March 19 2003

PEACE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
Have you ever heard of the Northern California Peace Officers Association? It's kind of a 'Mutual Admiration Society' consisting of peace officer members of the various local, county, state and federal the justice systems. They meet monthly throughout the greater Sacramento Valley, hosted by local law enforcement departments. In addition to their monthly get-togethers the NCPOA, provide Criminal Justice scholarships, usually in the name of fallen Peace Officers. The hosts for this month's luncheon will be CHIEF ROBERT DENHAM, of the Sacramento Sheriff's Department and our very our ELK GROVE POLICE DEPARTMENT. It will be held tomorrow at the Elk Grove Park Pavilion. If you're involved in any part of the Criminal Justice system and are interested in attending their lunch to see if you would be interested in learning more about the NCPOA call VAL KOBZA, organization treasurer at 967-0562.

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THERMAL IMAGER ... The 'light at the end of the darkness' is much clearer after last Saturday's benefit dinner prepared by the ELK GROVE LIONS CLUB at the Elk Grove Senior Center. Adelay Idler, the chair of this fund raising project by the ELK GROVE/LAGUNA WOMEN'S CLUB, told me that the dinner bought in a little over $6,000, which brings their total raised to just over $20,000 on their way to their goal of $40,000. This will allow the ELK GROVE FIRE DEPARTMENT to purchase two of the four needed in the District. These Thermal Imagers not only can detect persons in smoke filled buildings, but I was told by one firemen helping out, (serving and such), that a imager can pick out a person lost in the dark or fog, where they might have been missed by the naked eye. Master of Ceremonies, WADE LOKKA, teamed with his own 'VANNA', DIANE BYNUN, was a 'Master' at keeping the night on a roll. PAT KERSTING commanded a super group of volunteers that made sure the meals were delivered hot and fast to everyone and then, quick as wink, had the table cleared and cleaned. Addie said that she had a lot of help from many people, including PAT WINCAPAW, and would like to thank them each, but it would fill this column. However, there were a couple of folks that stood out in their efforts; those being SHARON DERVIS and DAVE ARMENDARIZ. Deputy Chief KEITH GRUENEBERG, stated the fire department will take a giant step forward in protecting life and that they really appreciate all the efforts that Addie and the Women's Club have made to bring the Imagers to the department.

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SPRINGTIME DONATION . . . I think I told you about this offer a month or two ago, but since spring is right around the corner, I thought it was time to repeat it. RICK WEST agent with LYON REAL ESTATE, has told me that if you use him as your agent to purchase or sell your property, that upon close of escrow, up to $1,000 will be donated to athletic departments or organizations of the schools in the Elk Grove Unified School District. As a bonus, when selling your home River City Lawn and Garden Care, in which he owns, will maintain you yard at no charge during the listing period. Sounds like a heck of a deal and will really benefit our local schools. Why not give him a call, 247-8952, tell him you read about it here.

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MONTI CARLO NIGHT . . . Don't forget that Home Field Advantage will be holding their FIRST ANNAUL 'Western Style' MONTI CARLO NIGHT on Friday, May 3^rd at the Laguna Town Hall. Tickets are just $20.00, which will get you a whole night of friendly gambling where Everyone Wins! Mark your calendars now and plan on kicking off a super Western Festival weekend by attending a fun evening which will help our local youth sports. For more information you can contact event chair: JACK BUDMARK 685-8889 or President BOB BREWER 686-7084.

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In God I Trust! Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to read my column. If you have a comment or would like to see something that your group is doing in this column, you can call me at 686-5261 or check out my WEB page at 'dasimpson.com'.