When a woman as knowledgeable, resourceful and experienced as Monica Rosenthal offers to serve as our supervisor, we should not hesitate to take her up on it.
 
Monica has already established working relationships with officials in county, state and federal offices who can be instrumental in helping our supervisors reach our goals.

As a former member of the Lake County Planning Commission, and in decision-making positions in a number of the most influential organizations in Lake County, she has learned how to consolidate the varied needs of a broad range of constituents.
 
She will take office ready and able to perform as needed.
 
I urge you to join me in voting for Monica Rosenthal for District 1 supervisor.
 
Nina Bouska lives in Hidden Valley Lake, Calif.

Carl “Ratty” Freeman
Sept. 20, 1955 – Oct. 6, 2016

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Carl is survived by brother-in-law, Sidney McCloud; sister-in-law, Delphine Ellis; nieces and nephews, Flaman McCloud, Gertrude Stra, Catherine La Rose, Inez McCloud. Evelyn Ferrel, Julie McCloud, Wayde McCloud, April McCloud, Marilyn Ellis, Edward Ellis, Ernie Ellis, Antoine Ellis, Dawn Ellis, Ross Ellis, Latrell Lacey and many great nieces and nephews.

Pre-deceased by parents, Vivian Fred and Thurman Freeman; sisters, Frances McCloud and Marian Garcia; brother, Raymond Ellis; nephew, Ivan McCloud; and niece, Marian Ellis.

He will be arriving at Big Valley Rancheria Gymnasium for visitation on Thursday, Oct 21, at 10 a.m.

Graveside funeral service will be held at St. Mary's Cemetery on Friday, Oct. 21, at 11 a.m.

For further information please contact Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary at 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com .

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The Redbud Audubon Society will welcome speaker Floyd E. Hayes, Ph.D. who will be presenting his program “Adventures Along the Amazon on Thursday, Oct. 20.

Refreshments will be offered at 7 p.m. and the program at 7:15 p.m. in the Glebe Social Hall, St. Peter’s Catholic Church, 4085 Main St., Kelseyville.

Hayes’ presentation will include short videos of plants and animals, landscapes and people, from four trips with students from Pacific Union College to Amazonian Brazil during each spring break from 2013 to 2016.

During each trip, Hayes is accompanied by four to five students who take courses from him in tropical biology.

Each day they search for plants and animals to learn as much as possible about the creatures of the Amazon.

The group also is part of a larger group of students participating in a mission trip in which they help build health care facilities and provide water filters for rural communities.

Hayes is a zoologist specializing in the ecology, behavior and biogeography of birds, and has studied other organisms including anemones, crustaceans, sea urchins, frogs, turtles, snakes and bats.

Since 2003 Dr. Hayes has worked as a professor of biology at Pacific Union College.

He has published the results of field research in 14 countries in peer-reviewed scientific journals, and was the editor in chief of Journal of Caribbean Ornithology from 2005 to 2013.

In his spare time he enjoys birding, rock climbing, mountaineering, snorkeling, scuba diving, and documenting his adventures with photos and videos.

UPPER LAKE, Calif. – The Lake County Wine Studio is presenting an interactive exploration of Lake County varietals, appellations and wine making styles co-hosted by Shannon Michele. 

The series aims to help participants advance their sensory evaluation and wine tasting skills with specially selected varietals, flights and verticals paired with "snackatizers" to compliment the wine tasting experience.

The last session in the four-part series on Sunday, Oct. 23, will focus on the Bordeaux varietal, Malbec and Rhone grape, Syrah.

The cost is $25 per person for each session. Seating is limited.

For reservations and additional information, contact Susan at 707-293-8752.

The Lake County Wine Studio is located at 9505 Main St. in Upper Lake.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Sutter Lakeside Hospital will host its monthly Wellness & Stroke Recovery support group on Wednesday, Oct. 26, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in the hospital conference room.

Light refreshments will be provided.

Frank Nelson of the Health Insurance Counseling & Advocacy Program, or HICAP, will educate attendees on Medicare, including how to enroll and the program’s benefits. 

He will answer questions from the audience, as well as talk about available insurance options.

Medicare open enrollment began on Oct. 15 and ends Dec. 7. During open enrollment, qualified persons can sign up for coverage, or make changes to existing plans. 

Those already covered by Medicare do not need to sign up each year, however, open enrollment allows patients to review or change coverage.

“Navigating Medicare can be daunting,” said Nikki Bullock, LCSW, Sutter Lakeside Hospital. “This open forum allows participants to learn more about their Medicare options, as well as get their questions answered in a face-to-face setting. We believe the public should be educated about their insurance so they can make the choice that best fits individual needs.”

The group is free and open to the public. For questions or for more information, contact Nikki Bullock, LCSW, by phone at 707-262-5015 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Morgen Wells is Community Relations and Fund Development coordinator.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Chi Council for the Clear Lake Hitch will resume meetings for the fall starting on Wednesday, Oct. 26.

The group will meet at 3:30 p.m. at the Lake County Agriculture Center, 883 Lakeport Blvd., Lakeport.

Minutes from the May 25 meeting are posted at http://lakelive.info/chicouncil/pdffiles/5.25.16minutes.pdf .

COBB, Calif. – The Lake County Public Works Department said road work will take place on Gifford Springs Road on Wednesday, Oct. 19.

Gifford Springs Road will be subject to single-lane control traffic from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in order to perform asphalt repairs to the roadway.

Up to 15-minute delays may be expected.

MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. – Fire managers are preparing to conduct a 568-acre glade prescribed fire about five miles northwest of Elk Creek on the Grindstone Ranger District on Thursday, Oct. 20.

Crews are planning to ignite units that are part of the Grindstone Type Conversion project.

Smoke may be visible from Interstate 5, Highway 162, Stonyford, Elk Creek and surrounding areas.

The glade is predominantly grass and smoke should disperse quickly after ignitions are completed.

The ignition of all prescribed fires is dependent on the availability of personnel and equipment, favorable weather, conditions that minimize smoke impacts as best as possible, and California Air Resources Board approval.

A project map is posted on the forest website at http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd521875.pdf .

Have you tried to read the 33 pages of fine print in your official Voter Information Guide that aims to legalize recreational marijuana (RMJ) in California? Too much to digest? Are you going to rely on the half sheet Quick Reference Guide to get your facts?

Buried within the proposed RMJ law are provisions governing RMJ growing that should concern all homeowners, parents and landlords that are not mentioned in the Quick Reference Guide.

The proposed law states that six RMJ plants, with no size restriction, may be grown at a private residence. Private residence is defined to include a house, apartment or mobile home.

This new “right” was featured in the Oct. 16 Press Democrat with pictures of marijuana plants that appear to be over 6 feet high and at least 4 or 5 feet wide.

This new right is supposedly tempered by provisions which gave cities and counties the power to enact and enforce reasonable regulations to prohibit outdoor RMJ growing on the grounds of a private residence, but in the next paragraph forbids the city or county to prohibit indoor growing in a fully enclosed and secure residence or accessory structure.

The Trojan horse is buried on page 181 of the Voter Information Guide but is never mentioned anywhere else.

Subparagraph (4) of Section 11362.2 gives the California Attorney General the authority to nullify and repeal all city and county zoning ordinances to regulate outdoor growing at a private residence upon a determination by the attorney general that nonmedical use of the RMJ is lawful in the state of California under federal law.

To give a state politician the unilateral power to gut all local residential zoning ordinances is horrible policy and frightening.

Any homeowner or parent who has had to endure the skunk-like stench of marijuana for weeks at a time knows how terrible this could be. Valuable homes become unsellable.

As a person who has studied and practiced law for over 35 years, I have noticed that it is not unusual for a politician to suddenly announce that a long-accepted and established principle of law is incorrect. It is not hard to imagine this happening in our state capital. Why else would this be buried in the fine print?

Protect our children and residential neighborhoods and vote no on Proposition 64.

Bob Bridges lives in Lakeport, Calif.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The topic at the Sunday service of the Unitarian Universalist Community of Lake County for Oct. 23 is, “Mindfully Creating Inspired and Uplifted Community.”

The service begins at 11 a.m. at the church, located at 3810 Main St. in Kelseyville. Guests are welcome.

Guest speaker JoAnn Saccato will lead the congregation through a series of guided inquiries to help determine what inspired and thriving community looks like.

She will discuss how community may be created, and lead a guided intention-setting meditation for individuals and for the community.

Saccato, a native of Lake County, is a mindfulness teacher, life-coach, author and consultant living in Cobb. She is the author of “Companioning the Sacred Journey: A Guide to Creating a Compassionate Container for Your Spiritual Practice,” and the forthcoming “Compassion-based Mindfulness for Peace, Clarity and Freedom.”

For more information, call 707-587-4243.