LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The 15th annual Stars of Lake County community recognition program will take place on Sunday, May 6, at PSI Seminars in High Valley, above Clearlake Oaks.  

The Stars of Lake County committee is actively seeking nominations from throughout Lake County, in 21 categories for these prestigious awards.  

The program is co-sponsored by the Lake County Record-Bee, over 30 Lake County businesses and the Lake County Chamber of Commerce.   

This program provides recognition for the hardworking volunteers, businesses and organizations that do so much for Lake County, not because they have to but because they want to.  

It is the only recognition program of its kind in the county, said Jim Magliulo, Lake County Chamber of Commerce president.

In the first 14 years of this program more than 1,500 entities have been acknowledged through nominations and 281 Star Awards have been presented.

It is only through the residents of Lake County that the chamber and our communities learn of nominees.  

Look around at the people, businesses and organizations you deal with daily for potential nominees. Who will your nominee be?  

Each nominee receives a letter from the Lake County Chamber informing them of their nomination and providing them with information about the event.  

The chamber takes photos of each nominee and creates a video that is shown during the reception/dinner. The video also names all the sponsors for each category.

The nomination form for Stars of Lake County 2012 is online at www.lakecochamber.com .

Forms are available at the Chamber office at 875 Lakeport Blvd., Vista Point in Lakeport.

Tickets for the Stars of Lake County will go on sale to the public on Monday, April 16, through the chamber office.

For more information about making nominations or purchasing tickets, contact the Lake County Chamber at 707-263-5092.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Community members are invited to join local time bankers and learn about a cash and tax free system for sharing services, skills, and labor that hearkens back to days of yore.

The meeting will be held on Saturday, March 31, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Lakeport Senior Activity Center, 527 Konocti Ave.  

Once upon a time neighbors helped neighbors with everything from hot casseroles to barn raising.  

While time banking philosophically draws on those old time traditions, it comes to us in a very modern manifestation – using computer software and the Internet to help like-minded community members connect.

Participants will learn more about how time banking works, meet current time bank members, have an opportunity to ask questions, and get an introduction to the time bank software.

If you are unable to attend, or want more information, please visit the Time Bank of Lake County Web site at http://timebanklakeco.com/ or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

NICE, Calif. – The Sons of Italy in Nice will have a very special visitor at an upcoming event.

The club is pleased to have Maria Fassio Pignati, president of the Order of Sons of Italy in America Grand Lodge of California, at its next dinner dance.  

The event will be held in the hall, on Saturday, March 24, at 2817 E. Highway 20 in Nice.

It is so important that longtime club and community member Sue Lewis, who once owned the Aurora Club, will share an old recipe from her restaurant.  

Many know the place as a campground but it was once a panoramic bar and resort on the shores of Nice, a hot spot of Lake County.  

Lewis, who is a past president of the lodge, will share the secret of making a scrumptious meal with guest chefs Deb and Duane Clarke during the preparation.

It should be a lively affair as there are several birthdays that night, including past president Rosalie Sonnenburg.  

The club hopes to have a good turn out, as profits will be going to items needed for a May 19 “Night on the Titanic” mystery dinner fundraiser for the Miss Lake County Scholarship fund.  

The dinner will include Italian pot roast, mashed potatoes, red sauce pasta, salad, sautéed green beans, French bread, dessert, coffee or tea.  

The bar is open for socializing at 5 p.m., dinner starts at 6 p.m., then dancing to the band The High Notes starts after the meal.

The cost will be $15 for everything.

Everyone is welcome; there is no need to be a member.

Please call to reserve a table so you can sit with your friends or if you plan on bringing a lot of people.

For information about this event or renting the hall for your own, call 707-274-9952.

LUCERNE, Calif. – North Lake Garden Club will present a workshop by Mary Lou Goodwin, past president of California Garden Clubs Inc. on Tuesday, March 27.

The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. with sharing plants and refreshments at Lucerne Community Church, 5870 E. Highway 20.

“Spring treasures featuring nine daffodils of yellow flowers” will be a hands-on flower arranging class.

Everyone needs to bring their own container, oasis, greens, filler and flowers. Learn to be creative with late winter early spring blossoms.

The club's last workshop, “Do the Rot Thing and Support Global Worming,” an informative hands-on presentation by Gabriele O'Neill, UCCE Lake County Master Gardener, had a great turnout. Attendees learned about the transformation of garbage into gardeners' gold, also called composting.

If you are interested in joining the group please come to the meeting.

You can check other activities coming up on the group's Facebook page at North Lake Garden Club.

The club is a member of California Garden Clubs Inc., National Garden Clubs Inc. and Mendo-Lake District, with meetings held on the fourth Tuesday September through May.

If you have a public place where a tree should be planted or need more information about the garden club please call club President Kimberly Marsh, 707-274-8775.

SACRAMENTO – At its board meeting in Sacramento on Wednesday, March 14, the Regional Council of Rural Counties (RCRC) board of directors approved supporting Proposition 28 – the legislative term limits reform measure, which will be on the June 2012 ballot.

“As an organization, we should support things that help rural counties achieve their policy goals,” said Sierra County Supervisor Lee Adams. “By having prospective legislators potentially serve 12 years in office allows more stability and provides members time to develop expertise in governing. In turn, this helps RCRC members since we rely on the legislature to fund many of our programs and various mandates.”

Additionally, the RCRC board voted to support moving forward with the memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management.

The MOA – crafted between RCRC, the California State Association of Counties, the USFS and BLM – prescribes communication protocols between counties and the U.S. Forest Service to minimize misunderstanding pertaining to forest and public lands.

“Crafting this agreement has been a long and arduous process,” said RCRC board chair and Colusa County Supervisor Kim Dolbow Vann.

“While rural counties and the U.S Forest Service have shared a partnership in managing federal lands, we have had some difficulties,” Vann said. “This MOA will help improve relationships by facilitating on-going communication; assuring a consistent process and outcomes; and recognizing that RCRC and its member counties are government partners, not just public stakeholders.”

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Kelseyville area churches are working together to offer the hungry in the Kelseyville/Finley area an opportunity to receive food for themselves and their families.  

The food giveaway will be held the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Kelseyville Methodist Church, located on Main Street in Kelseyville.

At this time, they are looking for donations of nonperishable items such as soups, stews, canned fruit and vegetables, rice, beans, powdered milk, chili, hot or cold cereal, as well as donations of paper bags and people to help pack the bags the day before and staffing the day of the giveaway.

If you can help, please call Julie at Kelseyville Presbyterian Church at 707-279-1104.