Joseph Leemhuis, 39, of Idyllwild, arrested in Idyllwild on April 14, 2017, on suspicion of possession for sale of marijuana, was extradited to Ramsey County, Minnesota, on a “no bail” warrant for felony fraud.
According to Darren Meyer, California Highway Patrol public information officer, a tip led to Leemhuis’ arrest in Idyllwild. The tip said Leemhuis was staying at a particular residence.
When Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies arrived at the residence, Meyer said Leemhuis fled into the forest. Deputies located him and arrested him on two felony warrants. He was held in Riverside County until his extradition to Minnesota on May 10.
Preston Sparks holds a sign he made that rechristens the Idyllwild Dog Park as the Rick Barker Dog Park. Sparks also made a bench in Barker’s honor. Photo courtesy Kathy Brown
Rick Barker, much-loved Idyllwild author and community volunteer, served on the Idyllwild Community Center board and was an advocate for the Idyllwild Dog Park, now under ICC management.
Preston Sparks, local actor, craftsman and community volunteer, recently installed a memorial bench he created to honor Barker, who died this year on Jan. 20. Sparks said that while he was crafting the bench, there were moments when he strongly felt Barker’s presence. “I got a chill, the hair was standing up on my neck,” said Sparks. “He was there.” Sparks carved the sign naming the park as a living memorial in Barker’s honor.
He also carved the bench near Higher Grounds honoring Pete “Pedro” Anderson. “I just want to make sure they’re not forgotten,” said Sparks. “Both were such gentle men.”
Barker and his dog Stavro were frequent visitors to the park. He volunteered his time for ICC as part of his commitment and connection to Idyllwild and its people.
In January 2016, Barker was interviewed prior to speaking as part of the ICC Speaker Series. He talked in the interview about the importance of connecting with others and finding common ground. “If I focus on the differences in another’s story, that can be distancing,” he said. “But if I choose to focus on what we share, that can promote a sense of connection.”
Barker shared his vision for a more hospitable world and evolved social structure in his writing and in his volunteer activities. “None of our global problems will be solved from the top down,” Barker said. “Meaningful social change can only happen from the bottom up so that people feel more connection and more commonality.”
For Sparks and others in our dog-centric community, the newly-named Rick Barker Dog Park will be a place to feel that connection and celebrate that commonality.
James Walter Larkin II of Idyllwild passed away Saturday, June 3, 2017, from natural causes.
James was born in Stockton on Nov. 29, 1977, to James Larkin and Letitia Hanlon Larkin.
James attended Delta Island Elementary School and West High School in Tracy. After high school, he attended Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo where he met the love of his life, Rachel. After college, James and Rachel moved to Idyllwild and made it home.
Together, they completed their family with the additions of Opal Leigh and Jasper James.
James spent many years working for the local paper, the Town Crier, but then chose to pursue additional education and became a speech therapist. He used his passion for language and Spanish fluency to work with autistic children in the Coachella Valley. He recently completed his master’s degree in communication disorders.
During his short life, James had the opportunity to travel the world. He lived in Spain, and traveled to Japan and North Africa. He was a lover of history, art, music and language. He loved his family and was a devoted husband and father.
James is survived by his wife, Rachel Welch; and their two children, Opal, 5, and Jasper, 21 months. He also is survived by his parents, Jim and Letitia Larkin; his sisters, Amy (Chris) Lopes and Andrea (David) Payne; and his nieces and nephews, Stephen and Joshua Lopes, and Reagan and Lauren Payne.
A Rosary service was to take place at De Joung’s Memorial Chapel in Stockton at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 13. Funeral services will occur at 10 a.m. Wednesday, June 14, at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Escalon. A reception will immediately follow Mass at Roberts Union Farm Center in Stockton.
An additional memorial service will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, July 2, at the Rainbow Inn in Idyllwild.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the James Larkin Memorial Fund at www.youcaring.com/rachelwelch-839647.
Genevieve Eola (Moody) Skiles passed on Wednesday, June 7, 2017, at the Redlands Community Hospital. She was 95. She is now with her husband of 65 years, the Rev. J. Warner Skiles Jr., and her granddaughter Elizabeth Bucha. She is survived by her four children, 10 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren, with one on the way.
A 1943 graduate of the University of Redlands, Mrs. Skiles taught elementary school in several Southern California districts until her retirement in 1985. She and her husband then moved to Idyllwild, where they were both active in Rotary and involved in many other church and community activities.
In 2006, they left their high-altitude paradise and moved to the Plymouth Village senior community in Redlands where, again, they both participated in local events and happenings.
We will miss her warm smiles, loving hugs and open heart.
(This story is taken from a Riverside County press release.)
Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Chief John R. Hawkins received approval from the Riverside County Board of Supervisors to close seven hazardous fire areas throughout the region on June 6.
The closures will remain in effect until further notice in the following areas:
• Avery Canyon (Gibbel Road east of State Street in Hemet)
• North Mountain and Indian Canyon (San Jacinto area)
• Whitewater Canyon (Cabazon, north of Palm Springs)
• Nuevo/Lakeview (east of Menifee Road and San Jacinto Avenue)
• Minto (Sage)
• Reinhardt Canyon (north of Highway 74 and California Avenue in Hemet)
• Ramona Bowl and Bautista Canyon (southeast Hemet)
Riverside County Ordinance 787.8 restricts public access to these identified hazardous fire areas unless private property access is required. Public roadway travel is permitted; providing travel is confined to those roadway surfaces within hazardous fire areas. Those violating the ordinance may be subject to a minimum fine of $100 for first-time offenses.
Future closures may be implemented based on weather conditions, fuel moisture and increased wildland fire threat. Maps for each of the affected areas can be located at www.rvcfire.org. For more information on the closure of these hazardous fire areas, contact the Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department Public Affairs Bureau at 951-940-6985.
Pat Boss (left) and Pete Coy, former and present Fire Safe Council project managers. Photo courtesy Edwina Scott
Pete Coy, longtime U.S. Forest Service supervisory forestry technician and Hotshot Crew superintendent replaced Pat Boss as project manager of the nonprofit Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council.
Coy recently retired from the Forest Service and takes charge of MCFSC’s primary responsibility of educating the local public about fire-abatement practices that can save their homes in the event of a wildland fire.
Boss, who has lived in Idyllwild since age 2, has served as MCFSC project manager for more than 10 years. Boss commented that his tenure has given him enormous satisfaction in providing opportunities to Hill residents to use MCFSC services, including property tree thinning and abatement, and grant-funded replacement of shake roofs. “I feel very good about what I’ve done and what our agency has been able to accomplish,” said Boss.
Coy, who has lived in Idyllwild for 36 years, said he already is involved in getting up to speed with MCFSC projects and plans. “I enjoy the field position,” said Coy, “walking residents’ properties, educating them on hazard abatement and how fire affects an environment.” He noted the importance of abating grasses, removing lower tree limbs to prevent ground fire from getting into tree canopies, removing stacked firewood from being too close to a home and tarping it, and encasing eaves so embers cannot get under them and cause fire to spread.
“When fire threatens, your house has to protect itself,” he reminded readers. “You can’t count on having a fire truck being parked in your driveway when there is a fire. And fire season is year-round. Abate your property before June 1 each year and then keep grass cleared as the summer progresses. Abatement is ongoing.”
This past Friday kicked off a weekend full of live art in Idyllwild hosted by the Art Alliance of Idyllwild. During the Friday live painting demonstration, Richard “Rich” Stergulz, owner of The Green Art House in Bonsall, shared a wealth of information with more than 40 attendees at the Grand Idyllwild Lodge.
An Illinois native and artist since 8age 8, Stergulz also was the surprise guest judge for the Saturday Plein Air competition. Artists did not learn about his double role until the Saturday evening reception at Middle Ridge Winery Tasting Gallery.
Stergulz had the arduous task of selecting three ribbon winners. Award winners were Terry Chacon ($300), Ginger Pena ($200) and Rafael Maniago ($100). Guest Artist designation was awarded to Opal Larkin, 5-1/2-year-old daughter of Rachel Welch and the late James Larkin, who also received an honorable mention ribbon from Stergulz.
The artist wine and cheese reception was attended by about 158 guests. A successful overall event, a total of seven pieces of art were sold before the show closed on Sunday at 4 p.m.
Terry Chacon won first place and $300 at the Art Alliance of Idyllwild’s Plein Air Festival ceremony this weekend.
Ginger Pena won second place and $200 at the Plein Air Festival ceremony this weekend.
Rafael Maniago, left, won third place and $100 at the Plein Air Festival ceremony this weekend. Photos courtesy Judy Hoyt
Opal Larkin, 5 1/2, daughter of Rachel Welch and the late James Larkin, received a guest artist designation and an honorable mention ribbon at the Plein Air Festival ceremony this weekend.
Idyllwild has been a seminal player in Kenny Gioeli’s career
Kenny Gioeli, landscape artist, in a contemplative moment in his music studio. Photo by Marshall Smith
Hard work, perseverance and recognizing opportunities others failed to see characterize Idyllwild resident Kenny Gioeli’s career. Idyllwild has been a seminal player in the way Kenny’s personal and professional journey has unfolded.
“Landscape design is my passion,” said Kenny, whose garden and family compound on Double View Drive were featured in the recent public tour of select Idyllwild gardens. But the serendipitous path Gioeli navigated to achieve a career based on his artistic passion is the real story.
“I came here when I was 10 to live with my dad [Almadeus Star Gioeli],” said Kenny. After seventh grade at Idyllwild School, his dad home-schooled him, part of the year in Idyllwild and part in Mexico, south of Puerto Vallarta.
At 17, Kenny struck out on his own, making his way north from Mexico to the Temecula and San Diego areas where he worked various jobs before landing one with Thrifty Drug. “After five years, I left as store manager,” Kenny remembered.
At 25, he was back in Idyllwild working with artist David Reid-Marr. “He taught me everything I know about design, landscaping, form and function,” said Kenny. “I arrived back in Idyllwild with a backpack, some bologna and a skateboard, but after five years of working with David, I had learned a craft. He taught me patience and helped me shape my eye for visual design. Primarily, he continued to remind me about the patience that is key to landscape design. I worked with David from 1996 to 2001.
“The second day I was back in Idyllwild, I met my wife Eva at a gallery,” he shared. “And from that point on, Eva and our family were what grounded me and gave me the strength to try new things.”
In 2001, Kenny again struck out on his own, contracting for raking and small construction projects such as fences and retaining walls. “From 2001 until 2003, the most valuable thing I did was to learn to network,” he said, “how to build a network of people sharing the workload and referrals, rather than doing 100 percent of the work myself.”
Again, timing, serendipity and being in exactly the right place at the right time played a key role in Kenny’s career evolution. “Kosha Pino taught me the art of falling trees, just before the bark beetle crisis in 2003,” he said. With the rapid death of trees in this forest and those north of I-10 in Arrowhead, felling trees and harvesting wood proved a highly profitable business for Kenny and his partner Mike Pearson. “I remembered telling Mike, ‘I’ve got the crew, and you’ve got the license, so let’s do this.’
Beautifully placed art in a garden of esthetic loveliness. Kenny and Eva Gioeli’s garden on the annual Idyllwild Garden Tour. Photo by Marshall Smith
“I lost my landscaping and my passion for design during that time,” he remembered. “And there was no artistic satisfaction in what I was doing.” But with the intense need for dead-tree removal, the seed money that Kenny used to launch his tree-removal business grew into a comfortable financial cushion. “It was constant hard work,” he remembered. “We had to live away from home in hotels while we were in Arrowhead, and the work was physically draining.” But he had been in the right place at the right time, recognized and seized the work opportunity and ran a strong operation with Mike.
Starting in 2008, he began to reestablish his landscaping business in Idyllwild. “Eva was always a part of what I did,” Kenny acknowledged. “Her advice and her eye for color and materials were always important. I can’t imagine having this life and this career without her.”
Kenny credits his growing up in Mexico and in Idyllwild with his intuitive approach to design. “Through all my career I’ve never drawn a plan. I’ve learned the simplicity of life, the patience of waiting for and seeing the design approach,” he said. “And most important for me has been the drive to have a partner and a family. That is everything. I give till it’s gone.”
Brendan Steele tees it up Thursday in the second PGA Tour major of the year, the $12 million U.S. Open, played this year on the Erin Hills golf course in Erin Hills, Wisconsin.
Erin Hills is a very long, so-called “heartland” course, with wide fairways and few trees. The bunkers are not flat-bottomed, and the greens should be smooth and relatively flat. All in all, it may be the kind of course on which our native Idyllwilder will do well. We’ll see, beginning Thursday at 11:14 a.m. PDT and continuing Friday at 5:29 a.m. PDT, Brendan’s first two tee times.
Brendan goes into this tournament 12th on this season’s FedExCup list and 53rd in the Official World Golf Ranking. He has had four top-10 finishes so far this year, including a win at the Safeway Open, and has yet to miss a single cut in 14 singles tournaments played.
Two 3.2-magnitude earthquakes, one early Wednesday morning and the second early Friday morning, were felt on the Hill.
The epicenter of the first quake was 3.1 miles south/southwest of Cabazon and occurred at 12:12 a.m. Wednesday, June 7. The second was 8 miles south of Idyllwild and was felt locally at 2:24 a.m. Friday, June 9.
These are preliminary magnitudes but anything under 4 magnitude is considered a minor quake, according to 24 Hour Earthquakes Report.
