CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Soroptimist International Clear Lake will hold its regular monthly program meeting on Thursday, Feb. 28.

The meeting will be held at Howard's Grotto in Clearlake, 14732 Lakeshore Dr.

Lunch starts at noon, to be followed by the program.

Ginny Craven, founder and manager of Operation Tango Mike in Kelseyville, will be the guest speaker.

Craven will discuss how packages sent by Operation Tango Mike bring comfort and smiles to members of the military who are deployed and away from homes and their families.

Everyone attending the luncheon meeting is encouraged to bring items for future packages. Craven says cards and letters are particularly needed as they are great morale boosters.  

Other items such as gum, candy, toothbrushes, toothpaste and any items you can imagine that men and women can use while deployed to a foreign country. Check www.operationtangomike.com for more suggestions.

There also will be a special committee chairs meeting at 11 a.m., before the lunch, to put the final touches on the annual “Spring Fling” fundraiser, scheduled for Saturday, March 2, at Clearlake Senior Center with guest speaker Christine Pelosi.

Soroptimist is a cause related philanthropic federation of clubs working to improve the lives of women and girls locally, nationally and internationally.

Soroptimist meets twice monthly on the second and fourth Thursdays. Lunch is $12 and all interested women are invited to attend and learn more about the organization.  

For information on the meeting or the Spring Fling, please contact Soroptimist President Wanda Harris at telephone 707-987-9027 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

LUCERNE, Calif. – A caregiver support group for families dealing with memory loss or other cognitive impairments will meet on Thursday, Feb. 21.

The group meets at the First Lutheran Church, 3863 Country Club Drive across from the Lucerne Alpine Senior Center, from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Social worker Jenny Johnson is the facilitator.  

The group is sponsored by Redwood Caregiver Resource Center (1-800-834-1636) and the Social Day Programs in Lake County.  

For more information call Jenny Johnson at 707-350-3030 or Caroline Denny at 707-263-9481.

Respite is provided by the centers at no charge.

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Area Town Hall (MATH) group will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19.

The group will meet at the new Middletown County building at 21256 Washington St.

The public is invited to attend.

Under new business, the group hold a meet and greet to discuss like concerns, goals, plans, hopes and dreams, visions between MATH and the Middletown Area Merchants Association for the health, welfare, safety, growth and beauty of Middletown.

Supervisor Jim Comstock also will present his “State of the First District” update.

There also will be board and committee reports, and the March 14 meeting agenda.

MATH meetings are subject to videotaping. Meeting proceedings may be available for viewing on public access television and/or the Internet.

MATH – established by resolution of the Lake County Board of Supervisors on Dec. 12, 2006 – is a municipal advisory council serving the residents of Anderson Springs, Cobb, Coyote Valley (including Hidden Valley Lake), Long Valley and Middletown.

The group’s current board of directors include Chairman Fletcher Thornton, Vice Chair Claude Brown, Secretary Ken Gonzales and members Tom Darms and Laura Helton.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Green Knights will meet at the Round Table Pizza on 11th Street in Lakeport on Thursday, Feb. 21.

The meeting will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Meetings are free but the pizza and beer are no host, so come and tell them about your community project or dream.

All ages are welcome. Dress in costume and get into the mood.

Call Sir Hempalot for more info at 707-263-3391, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

 
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Lake Co-op recently announced the relocation of operations from their Clearlake site to two locations in Lakeport.

Aggregation and boxing facilities are now shared with numerous organizations at the Lake County Community Action Agency's warehouse on Bevins Street.

The co-op's office and overage sales are now located in downtown Lakeport at the new Lake Works Community Spaces, 307 N. Main St., Lakeport, between Watershed Books and the Lake County Arts Council.
 
The co-op, organized in 2008 as a grassroots movement to source more organic and local produce, is celebrating its fifth year in operation.

It will kick off its anniversary and celebrate its new facilities during a ribbon cutting ceremony with Thrive/Time Bank Lake County on Tuesday, Feb. 26, from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. At the new location.
 
The celebration will feature live music by Andy Rossoff, Jim Leonardis and Clovice Lewis. There will be wine/beer tasting, local cuisine and raffle prizes that will include products available through the co-op.
 
The co-op now sells their overage on Thursdays from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. At the new site. Overage is the sale of products left over from the orders placed through their online ordering system and include fresh organic produce, bakery items, herbs and more.
 
Lakeport area customers who order through the co-op's weekly order cycle can pick up their orders at the new site located within the Lake Works Community Spaces.

Started by Cheri Holden, owner of Watershed Books, the Community Spaces is a space that has room for six small enterprises and provides for shared use of office equipment, Internet and other amenities. There also is a common area that has a piano and conference table area available for use.
 
Lake Co-op is sharing office space with Thrive!/Time Bank Lake County. The time bank is an hour exchange program where participants trade their services for other needed services on an equal exchange basis.
 
Aggregation and boxing operations for the co-op have moved to the Lake County Community Action Agency's warehouse at 785 Bevins St., Lakeport.

There, produce and locally produced products are delivered early on Thursday morning. Co-op owner-workers then fill boxes with those products for customers that have ordered online during the co-op's weekly order cycle from Sunday, 12:01 a.m. through Tuesday, 12:30 p.m.
 
From there, the boxes are loaded in a refrigerated truck and delivered to one of 12 pick up (drop point) locations throughout Lake County or delivered to directly to customers' home or office.
 
For more information about the co-op, visit www.lake.coop or call 707-513-5226.

For more information on Thrive/Time Bank Lake County, visit www.timebanklakeco.com .

For information on Lake Works Community Spaces email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 707-263-5787.

Caltrans, which manages two of the nation’s busiest passenger rail lines, is asking its rapidly growing passenger base what they think about rail systems in the Golden State.

The department is hosting a series of public open houses and a statewide Webinar this month to solicit input on the draft California State Rail Plan (CSRP), which will lay out a vision for freight, passenger and high-speed rail in the state.

The draft plan is available on the Internet, http://californiastaterailplan.com/ , and comments can be submitted through March 11.  

“Each year, nearly six million passengers ride the trains in California,” said Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty. “It’s important that we find out what our citizens have to say about rail, because their input will help us build a truly connected California.”

Ridership on California trains is up 56 percent since 2002, and California has about 18 percent of all Amtrak riders.

“The authority looks forward in working with Caltrans and our local partners to implement a statewide rail modernization plan that invests in urban, commuter, intercity, and high-speed rail lines to meet the state’s 21st century transportation needs,” said Jeff Morales, chief executive officer of California High-Speed Rail Authority.

The remaining meetings are to be held in San Diego on Feb. 19, Los Angeles on Feb. 20 and Feb. 21.

North Coast residents can participate in the online Webinar on Tuesday, Feb. 26, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Log on to https://aecom.webex.com/aecom/onstage/g.php?d=597054493&;t=a, , password RailPlan1.

The final plan – scheduled to be issued this summer – will fully integrate California’s future high-speed rail system with existing and proposed conventional rail systems.

The plan will serve as a basis for federal and state investments for high-speed and intercity passenger rail in California and will also describe the existing conditions of the state’s rail systems and the economic and environmental benefits of improvements.