Guardian Angels in Lodi
Who’d a thunk it? The Guardian Angels have organized in
Lodi and are actively recruiting for members, according to chapter leader Rick
Fehling. They describe themselves as “a nonprofit international volunteer organization of unarmed crime-prevention.”
Lodi’s fledgling chapter is affiliated with the one in New York, where the movement started. The Angels boast chapters in 130 cities and 13 countries. Fehling declines to disclose how many members Lodi’s chapter currently has, but he says they are seeking qualified applicants, all of whom who will go through a thorough background check before being accepted into membership.
New members are taught selfdefense techniques and receive other specific training before being turned loose on the streets. Fehling says the Angels aren’t some vigilante group. They seek to “bring the community together” by interfacing with citizens at all levels and, when necessary, performing a citizen’s arrest in certain situations.
The squad is already patrolling certain areas of town, says Fehling, such as the downtown core. Members are unarmed and strive for peaceful solutions in even the most difficult situations. Fehling is from Lodi and was in fact homeless as a teenager, he says. That gives him empathy for others in that situation, but he says he’s not a “fan of handing out free stuff” as a solution to the homeless problem.
Speaking from his own experience, he says the homeless need hope and that’s what he and his volunteers strive to provide. Fehling got involved when he read about an individual reportedly exposing himself around town along with all the other homeless crimes. He thought to himself, “We need to get in front of this.” He then asked himself, rhetorically, “Why are YOU letting this happen?” That was his call to action. Lodi Police Chief Tod Patterson says he’s “cautiously optimistic about their presence.” The organization is currently self-funded but will be looking for corporate sponsors soon.
Another high-ranking Lodi official is leaving. City Clerk Jennifer Ferraiolo will be retiring in December after more than 31 years with the city. She will be following the departures of City Planner Craig Hoffman this week and Parks, Rec and Cultural Services Director Jeff Hood at the end of the month. At 50 years old, she says she’s retiring a little early because, “I’m done.” She and her husband, a professor at Delta College who will also be retiring soon, plan to move to Groveland, where they already own a home. Ferraiolo started with the city in 1988, when she was a mere teenager. After serving as deputy city clerk for several years, she was appointed to the top spot in late 1992 when the position opened. She later self-demoted back to deputy so she could raise her young family. Jennifer was again appointed city clerk in 2014 when Randi Johl took the clerk’s position in Temecula. She thanks former colleagues (the late) City Manager Tom Peterson, City Attorney (and later Superior Court judge) Bob McNatt, (the late) City Planner Jim Schroeder and retired City Clerk Susan Blackston for mentoring her over the years.
There’s a new owner at Pure Form Fitness Sports Club, formerly Fitness Works, on Lockeford Street. In an email to members, John Bubica writes that he will assume ownership of the gym on Nov. 1. Bubica is also founder and CEO of Prestigio Jewelers, with a store in downtown Lodi. The gym was purchased just two years ago when Fitness Works announced they were closing. … Lodi’s own Ron Wilkins received a letter from the president of the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) congratulating him on his election into the organization’s Half Century Club, which acknowledges his 50-year membership in the PGA. In addition to a certificate and gold lapel pin, Ron will be recognized in an upcoming issue of PGA Magazine. Another community member making us proud.
It seems like yesterday, 2009, especially when you recall the events of that year. It was 10 years ago that we said goodbye to Bob Wheeler, the esteemed plant manager of General Mills, who died of cancer at age 63. What seems even more unbelievable is that his beloved cereal plant closed a few years later and “The Big G” now only resides in our collective memories. … Longtime Realtor Bozant Katzakian also passed away in July that year at age 94. Katzakian and his partner Ben Schaffer operated one of the city’s most successful real estate offices of his era. After retiring from real estate, Katzakian became one of the founders and chairman of the board of the Bank of Lodi. … Another pillar of the community, Robert Mullen, died in February of 2009 at age 94. Mullen was Lodi’s first city attorney, working part-time. Mullen was also a principal in the founding of Lodi Memorial Hospital. … It was a decade ago that defendant David Paradiso stabbed the judge in his murder trial in Stockton, and Lodi police detective Eric Bradley saved the day by using his gun to take out the suspect. He was credited with saving the life of San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Cinda Fox. It was a shocking event that likely helped expedite construction of the new, more secure county courthouse in Stockton. … Who can forget the financial straits the city of Lodi found itself in following the economic meltdown of 2009? The city shed approximately 20 percent of its workforce through retirements, layoffs and golden handshakes. Some would argue that the city has still not fully recovered from those dark days. Indeed, many public agencies are still licking their financial wounds. The financial collapse caused the value of the state pension fund’s (CalPERS) assets to shrink and shrivel by about half. Their answer has been to jack up the premiums cities like Lodi pay, thus making matters exponentially worse for member agencies. … The financial crisis of that year prompted the closures of several prominent businesses in Lodi, perhaps the most shocking of which was Geweke Chrysler-JeepDodge and Plummer Pontiac. Geweke Ford would soon close, as well. … Opening prayer at city council meetings created a stir that year with city leaders ultimately deciding to observe a moment of silence before the start of regular meetings. … Kyle Coumas, a 22-year old soldier from Lockeford, was killed in Afghanistan in October of 2009 when his vehicle was attacked by a roadside bomb. … Lodi Memorial Hospital completed its $187 million expansion, opening a new wing and adding 90 additional beds (for a total of 270) and a new, much larger emergency room facility. … Lodi’s redevelopment efforts sputtered in 2009 with voters rejecting a proposal to establish a redevelopment project on the eastside of town. Mayor Larry Hansen said at the time, following voter rejection, that it “was really frustrating to me because those who understood it are just baffled why the community wouldn’t help itself.”