LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Democratic Party of Lake County has opened a campaign office in Lakeport at 390 Main St. and welcomes all voters to join the effort to elect Democratic candidates to local, state and national office.

The office will be open from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 3, to allow visitors to explore the available volunteer opportunities from now through Nov. 8 and to purchase campaign materials. Speakers will be on hand to address what’s at stake in this election.

A special welcome is extended to those who supported Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton in the Democratic Primary and are now committed to working closely together to ensure Democratic wins in November, up and down the ticket.

In endorsing Secretary Clinton, Sen. Sanders said, “Trump would be a disaster as president of the United States. I cannot believe, and I say this with all sincerity, that Republicans would have a candidate for president in the year of 2016 who makes bigotry and discrimination a cornerstone of his campaign.”

In her nomination acceptance speech, Secretary Clinton thanked Sen. Sanders and welcomed his supporters to her campaign. “I’ve heard you. Your cause is our cause. Our country needs your ideas, energy and passion.”

“This election our bedrock values and rights as Americans are on the line,” Rebecca Curry, chair of the Lake County Democratic Party, said. “At stake is the balance of power of the Supreme Court, how we effectively address climate change, systemic racism, criminal justice reform and rampant gun violence, equal rights for women, income equality, attacks on social security, the threat of global terrorism and so many other major issues facing this country. This is the time to unite, not splinter, to hold on to the progress we've made and to push our country forward. We have a nominee who is strong, compassionate and experienced. Together, let's get her elected.”

To join the effort, learn about upcoming events, regular office hours and stay up-to-date on campaign activities, please visit http://lakecountydemocrats.org/ or Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/LakeCountyDemocrats/ .

You also can visit the group at the Lake County Fair from Sept. 1 to 4.

For more information email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 707-533-4885.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Lupoyoma Parlor No. 329 of the Native Daughters of the Golden West will meet on Thursday, Aug. 11, for a membership social and organizational meeting.

The group meets at 5:30 p.m. for social time and 6 p.m. for the business meeting at Round Table Pizza, 821 11th St. in Lakeport.

If you were born in California and are over 16 you are a Native Californian eligible for membership in the Native Daughters of the Golden West organization.

The Native Daughters is a fraternal and patriotic organization founded in 1886 on the principles of:

– Love of home;
– Devotion to the flag;
– Veneration of the pioneers;
– Faith in the existence of God.

All Native Daughters are welcome to attend.

For more information contact Parlor Worthy President Carla Dore, 831-524-5588, or V.P. Dee Cuney, 707-235-2902, or visit the Native Daughters of the Golden West, Lupoyoma Parlor No. 329 Facebook page.

For information about Lake County Konocti No. 159 Chapter of the Native Sons of the Golden West contact Tony Braito at 707-245-7663.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Department of Public Works is advising the public that traffic control will be in place on a portion of 11th Street on Wednesday, Aug. 3.

Between 8:30 a.m. and noon, traffic control will be in effect in the area of 963 11th St. while AT&T trims trees.

Public Works said there will be possible delays of up to 10 minutes.

The agency thanks the public for its patience.

Here's a fine, deftly made poem by Meg Kearney, of New Hampshire, in which the details deliver the emotions, which are never overtly named other than by the title. It's my favorite kind of poem, and it's from her book An Unkindness of Ravens, from BOA Editions. Her most recent book is Home By Now (Four Way Books 2009).

Loneliness

The girl hunting with her father approaches
the strange man who has stopped at the end
of his day to rest and look at the lake.
Do you like geese? she asks. The man smiles.
The girl draws a webbed foot from her pocket
and places it in his hand. It's late fall
and still the geese keep coming, two fingers
spread against a caution-yellow sky. Before
he can thank her, the girl has run off, down
to the edge of the water. The man studies her
father, about to bring down his third goose
today—then ponders the foot: soft, pink,
and covered with dirt like the little girl's hand.
He slips it into his coat pocket, and holds it there.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation ( www.poetryfoundation.org ), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. They do not accept unsolicited submissions. Poem reprinted by permission of The Permissions Co. Inc., on behalf of BOA Editions, LTD. Introduction copyright ©2016 by The Poetry Foundation. Introduction copyright © 2016 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – St. Helena Hospital Clear Lake’s Live Well Program invites the community to the Wellness Rx Healthy Lifestyle Series, a free six-week series of classes focused on healthy lifestyle changes.

The classes are held on Wednesday afternoons from 3:15 to 4:30 p.m. beginning Aug. 17 and running through Sept. 21.

“All of us can benefit from drinking more water, eating right and moving more, but sometimes we need some extra support or education,” said Jean McNally, care coordinator at the Live Well Program. “These classes inspire real changes and provide the information you need to feel healthier and build a life you love.”

The Wellness Rx Healthy Lifestyle series is open to all and includes healthy snacks and giveaways.

Each session features an engaging education session focusing on a different topic, including exercise, nutrition, stress management, weight management and achieving wellness goals.

Eula Ford of Clearlake attended the first two sets of Wellness Rx classes and is looking forward to coming back for a third time.

“They teach you how to choose healthy foods,” she said. “I’ve already seen a difference in my blood sugar.”

New students can join the classes at any point in the program. Sessions are hosted at the Live Well Program at 15230 Lakeshore Drive in Clearlake.

For more information or to RSVP to the WellnessRx Healthy Lifestyle Series, contact the Live Well Program at 707-995-4545. 

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Lake County Campus of Woodland Community College in Clearlake is proud to announce the arrival of a new instructor who will teach a new set of classes.

Dr. Montana Hodges is a geologist and a paleontologist.

She fell in love with the lake and the community seven years ago when her family moved in the area.

“I love that my backyard sparkles in obsidian, that volcanic ash and flows are frozen in our hills, and of course collecting the incredibly translucent quartz we know as Lake County Diamonds,” she said.

Dr. Hodges’ experience as an instructor started when she was a graduate student teaching geology and continued as she taught for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as a manager of the Montana Space Grant Consortium Space Public Outreach Team.

Just last year, she reached 12,000 students with her presentations and instruction time.

Dr. Hodges is more than an instructor. She’s also a writer and has published five books, and has dug up dinosaurs in the Arctic.

The students at Lake County Campus are bound to find a wealth of information when taking her geology classes that she will be instructing during the fall of 2016.

During the fall semester she will be teaching physical geology, which will cover rocks and minerals, volcanoes, earthquakes and plate tectonics. It also examines how water and wind shape the Earth’s surface.

The second class she will be teaching is historical geology. Students taking this class will learn how the study of fossils, rocks, tectonic processes, and geologic structures can provide us with information regarding Earth’s geologic and biologic history.

For anyone interested in registering for these new and exciting classes, please make an appointment with a counselor at 707-995-7900, visit the admissions office located at 15880 Dam Road Extension in Clearlake or visit https://lcc.yccd.edu/ .

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Lake County Campus of Woodland Community College in Clearlake is pleased to announce a new instructor and a new class being offered at the campus.

Dr. Christopher Hodges will be teaching astronomy during the fall semester.

Astronomy 1L will feature a survey of the solar system, stars, galaxies, history, and tools of astronomy, cosmology and exploration of space.

There also is a lab that goes along with the class. The lab will cover the study and interpretation of astronomical observations through the use of prepared astronomy exercises, the use of telescopes or computer simulations of telescopes, naked eye observation of celestial bodies, and laboratory activities using various quantitative measuring devices.

Dr. Hodges has taught for eight years at San Francisco State University and University of California, Riverside.

His interest in astronomy started when he took his first community college class when he was still in high school. He’s hopeful to bring a similar experience this fall to the Lake County Campus.

“This is a very exciting time in astronomy,” said Hodges. “That our observations and understanding of the universe has exploded over the last two decades.”

From Hubble telescope images, detection of more than 3,000 exoplanets, flybys of Pluto, to the plethora of information obtained by the Mars rovers, there are so many new discoveries in astronomy.

A discussion of the numerous modern results and what we should expect in the next decade will be part of Astronomy 1L offered on the campus.

Dr. Hodges believes that Lake County is a perfect place to discuss astronomy. The lack of big city lights allows the county to have beautiful night skies filled with celestial bodies. This should allow for spectacular visuals during the lab exercises.

Dr. Hodges is not just an astronomy instructor, he’s also a physicist. He has created antimatter, has hit the speed of light limit, turned mercury into gold and measured the age of the planets.

He will be a fabulous addition to the wonderful staff at Lake County Campus and his class will be very interesting and exciting for all students.

For anyone interested in registering for this new and exciting class, please make an appointment with a counselor at 707-995-7900, stop by the admissions office located at 15880 Dam Road Extension in Clearlake, or visit http://lcc.yccd.edu .

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Association of Realtors is sponsoring a back to school supply drive in conjunction with the California Association of Realtor's Young Professional Network August Month of Giving.

Supplies needed include backpacks, pencils, colored pencils, erasers, crayons, paper and glue sticks.

Supplies collected will be distributed throughout the Lake County school districts in August.

The school supply drive is happening now through Aug. 5.

Stop by your favorite real estate office, local title company office or the Lake County Association of Realtors office at 2559 Lakeshore Blvd. in Lakeport to drop off your school supply donations.

For more information or to locate a real estate office near you, please contact Lake County Association of Realtors at 707-263-9300.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The Lake County Democratic Club's meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 9, will focus on local school issues.

The group will meet at 6:30 p.m. in the social hall of the Lower Lake Community United Methodist Church, 16255 Second St.

The usual business meeting will be dispensed with in order to accommodate several speakers.

Speakers include Pat Sabo, CTA/NEA-Retired Teachers Region 1 president, on the history of Common Core Standards and current educational topics including student debt; Mitch Markowitz, Konocti Unified School District Board member, on the new state funding plan; Sean Millerick, candidate for Middletown Unified School Board; and Helena Welsh, candidate for Middletown Unified School Board.

The Lake County Democratic Club is an officially chartered club of the Democratic Party of Lake County.

All meetings are open to the public. Membership is open to registered Democrats.

Visit www.lakecountydemocraticclub.org or email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .