Heber breaks ground for new school gymnasium
HEBER — This small community swelled with pride a week ago as it broke ground for a new school gymnasium for Heber Elementary School, thanks to Measure J.
Measure J was approved by voters in 2015 and includes $6 million in general obligation bonds to raise the $13.2 million needed for construction. District officials estimate the highest tax rate to repay the bonds will be $59 per $100,000 of assessed property value. Measure J provides funding for: classrooms to support physical education curriculum, making health, safety and handicapped accessibility improvements and building a new gym for school and community use.
Western heritage restored to glory
BRAWLEY — The classic statue of Casey Tibbs was returned to its pedestal after the original, worn from decades of bearing up under harsh climate, was dismantled recently.
The fiberglass statue of the renowned bronco rider was donated by Tibbs himself in 1966. It was returned to its base at the Cattle Call Arena on Friday. The Cattle Call Rodeo Committee spearheaded the restoration after it was deemed necessary to remove the original at the arena as well as its twin at the downtown Plaza noted Mark Huber, a committee member. The statue is modeled after Tibbs competing in a rodeo at the Cow Palace in San Francisco during the 1950s, Huber believed.
Behavioral Health focuses on mental health options
IMPERIAL — Advocating for more scrutiny of mental health issues with partner agencies, Imperial County Behavioral Health Services convened a summit here Friday.
Aiming to alert numerous agencies encountering mental distress, ICBHS invited law enforcement, schools, health clinics and other care providers to Imperial Valley College to highlight the need to support mental health awareness. The intention is to promote the road to recovery noted Andrea Kuhlen, ICBHS director as mental health problems affect all races, ages and genders, she noted.
Valley native nominated for prestigious federal workforce award
El CENTRO — A native of the city who grew up watching movies with a techno, science-fiction element was nominated for a notable government service award.
Mark Skoog, an aerospace engineer at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, with headquarters at Edwards Air Force Base, is in the running for the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals also known as the Sammies. Skoog was chosen as a finalist for leading the development of a groundbreaking flight control system the Air Force uses to prevent ground collisions when pilots become disoriented or lose consciousness, which could save the lives of pilots and destruction of aircrafts, noted the Partnership for Public Service.
The Automatic Ground-Collision Avoidance System (Auto-GCAS) may greatly curtail the occurrence of aircraft accidents and is now being incorporated into the flight control systems of the U.S. Air Force’s fleet of F-16 fighter jets. Widespread testing at NASA Armstrong has shown advanced computing technology could lessen the number of accidents attributed to, control flight into terrain (CFIT). This is a leading cause of deaths in military and civil aviation and causes 100 fatalities every year in the U.S.
Local winery enjoys exposure through NBC hit show
EL CENTRO — Since Pearson Brothers Winery opened up shop in 2014 in the Imperial Valley, they have steadily grown to make premiere honey-based wine.
Currently, the winery is receiving the boost that is having A-list celebrities popping its bottles of wine.
Producers from the NBC hit show “This Is Us” recently reached out to the brothers to see if they could provide cases of wine to cast members after winning two Primetime Emmy Awards along with 10 nominations.
They reached out to the local winery specifically because the winery owners and show’s main characters have the same last name — Pearson.