STORIES FROM THE PAST

50 years ago

Snow fell on the desert in western Imperial County last night for the first time in the memory of most residents in the Ocotillo-Coyote Wells area.

“It was white all over,” said Ken Johnson, who operates Miller’s Garage and Cafe at Ocotillo.

Imperial Valley experienced a spattering of rain, and Earl Gay at the Federal Aviation Agency at Imperial said there was snow overhead which melted before it reached the ground.

An extensive cold front passed southward over the region during the evening, dumping a large amount of snow onto the mountains in eastern San Diego County. Reports indicated it was about a foot deep in the Pine Valley area.

40 years ago

Aside from expressions of strong support for fellow farmers, local growers have yet to take part in the nationwide protest by farmers for 100 percent parity.

Farmers, mainly from the Midwest, are demanding the prices of their goods be allowed to rise to 100 percent of parity — an economic yardstick meaning their income is in balance with their costs. The measure is based on farmers’ purchasing power from 1910 to 1914.

Some economists have predicted that food prices may rise 25 percent if the farmers have their way.

Nonetheless, farmers have carried their protests — usually in the form of giant tractor convoys — to Washington, D.C., Plains, Ga., and to state capitals across the nation.

(One wayward protest tractor, which began its westward trek in New Mexico, was scheduled to lumber through the Imperial Valley this morning. It traveled through El Centro about 6 a.m. on the way to San Diego, its final destination).

30 years ago

Calexico and Central posted easy wins in Friday’s first round of the 10th Annual Central Girls Basketball Tournament and Holtville and Ramona won tougher games to set up the final day of the event today.

This morning, Calexico was due to play Holtville and Ramona was due to play Central in the elimination bracket.

The third-place game was scheduled for 4:30 p.m. and the title game is slated for 7:30.

Calexico defeated Calipatria easily after building a 30-point lead in the first half. The Bulldogs, led by Susana Groff’s 15 points, defeated the Hornets, 5516.

Holtville’s Dina Patzloff scored 15 points and led the Vikings to a 44-39 victory over Palo Verde. Palo Verde was led by Stef Henderson, who scored 14 points.

Ramona defeated Brawley 37-35, despite being outscored in the final quarter by a 9-3 margin. Ramona’s Kris Miller scored 12 points in the third quarter and 16 in the game. Brawley’s April Wilhite scored a dozen.

20 years ago

Sal Godinez knew sooner or later something had to click to turn around his Brawley Union High boys’ soccer team.

“It’s hard to get these kids to understand, to get them with a positive mentality,” Godinez said. “But when they start to relax, everything starts to fall into place.”

That was the case Friday when Brawley picked up that elusive first victory with a 3-1 home win over Holtville.

Brawley scored three answered goals, including two in the second half when the Wildcats put the game out of reach.

“It was more mental than it was physical,” Godinez said. “It was just a matter of getting them to believe they could play with teams and I guarantee this will help our confidence.”

Holtville’s Luis Aragon gave the Vikings an early lead, scoring in the game’s fifth minute.

That seemed to be the wake-up call Brawley needed.

“It did take us a while to get going,” Godinez said. “But after that, I think you could see a difference in the way we played.”