Community Spirit Makes a Team’s Dream Come True
Meet the Titans Elite baseball team.They are an age twelve-and-under local travel team made up of players from Merced, Atwater, Chowchilla, and LeGrand. The team has played in tournaments sanctioned by the United States Specialty Sports Association. (USSSA)
A travel team is defined as a group of really good players, sometimes playing for different teams, who form a stand-alone team.This year, the Titans Elite set out to play the game they love in a ballpark connected to baseball tradition.
They did that, and much more.
Back in 2013, the team put in an application to play in a tournament held in Cooperstown, New York.
We know that Cooperstown is the home of the Baseball Hall of Fame.It is also the home of the Cooperstown Dreams Park, a premier destination for travel teams.
The park has twenty-two fields, and the week the Titans played, they were among one-hundred-and-four teams competing from all over the United States.
The tournament was played in early June.The team left central California on June 5th and returned June 11th.
Playing is not cheap.The cost for each player is $895.The same rate applies for coaches. When you add in airfare and other expenses for the week, it was both a distinguished honor and a high price tag to play.The cost for each player for this dream week at the home of baseball was approximately $1,600.
That’s where the community came into play.Coach Kent Floro says the commitment by the players’ families combined with the generosity from the local business community and others helped make it all possible.
Money was raised from local businesses, service clubs such as Merced Breakfast Lions and North Merced Rotary, along with other organizations and individuals who made contributions.
Kent provided me with the details of the Titan’s performances on the field in Cooperstown.
Teams representing twenty states were represented in the tournament.The Titans finished in the top twenty-five among the one-hundred-and-four teams.
On the first day of the tournament, they defeated the Mid-Atlantic Shockers from Maryland 19 to 3.Later that day, they beat Thunder Academy from Colorado 21 to 5.
On the second day, the Titans defeated the Salt City Sox of Utah 11 to 2.Later on day two, they defeated the SBA Life Heat from Florida 8 to 5.
It was then on to day three of the tournament and another Florida team.The Titans beat the PL (Pembroke Lakes) Bulldogs of Florida 12 to 8.Kent says this was a great game for the Titans.
“The Bulldogs are one of top teams in the tournament and were ranked number three in the state of Florida.”
The Titans first loss came after that game when they came up short to the Germantown, Tennessee Giants 13 to 5.
“That was the one game I thought we should have won,” Coach Floro said. “But I think the emotion that it took to beat the Bulldogs earlier combined with the players being a little worn out from the trip all hit at once.”
Then came the single elimination playoffs; single elimination meaning that once you lose, you are out of the tournament.In the first round, the Titans advanced by defeating the Longwood Longballers from Florida 14 to 2.The next step in the playoffs pitted the Titans against the number five top-ranked team: the Utah Marshalls.The Titans were defeated 18 to 5.
“Titans Elite did outstanding in this tournament,” Coach Floro said. “We are from a small area while many of the other teams were picked from large metropolitan areas or an entire state.”It’s believed some of the teams flew in players to help them on the single-elimination part of the tournament.
The week was full of excitement with many of the young players living away from their families for the first time in their lives.The players had a great experience in the home of baseball. “They represented our community both by playing exceptional baseball and as real gentleman while we were in the camp,” Kent told me.
The week started with a flight from the west coast to the east coast.After ground transportation from the airport to Cooperstown, the players were sealed away at the camp where they stayed throughout the tournament. Parents could not come into the camp area after the first day.From Friday night until Thursday night the following week, players and coaches were together playing the game they love on their field of dreams.
Visitors cannot go to the village that is the home of baseball without taking in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.Part of the Titans Elite week in Central New York included a day at the Hall of Fame.They saw the plaques of Hall of Fame members, viewed displays of iconic pieces of major league baseball history and took in the natural ambiance that defines this very special place.
Everyone agreed that as great as the Hall of Fame is, no one can truly appreciate all it has to offer the baseball fan in just a one-day visit.
One of the visitors from the Central Valley expressed his feelings from visiting the Hall of Fame in just one word, “Awesome.”
The group likely got a break from the poor summertime air quality in the Valley.Upstate New York, especially in rural areas such as Cooperstown, has some of the cleanest air in the United States.
They probably saw upstate New York agriculture, which is primarily dairy farming.They saw many hills and lots of deep green foliage.New York State, as well as most of the northeast United States, has no drought worries with above-average annual precipitation.
So while the run to the top ended with the loss to the Tennessee team, the Titans Elite can look back on several stunning individual achievements.
Kadon Floro (Coach Kent’s son) made the final round of the Home Run Derby and ended up finishing tied for fifth place. Kadon also had a .520 batting average for the tournament.Other high batting averages were:Hunter Stonier ( .500), Jake Sapien (.435), Gerald Braxton( .409), Danny Murphy (.350), and Aaron Martinez(.300).Home run leaders among the Titans for the tournament included:Kadon Florio with five,Aaron Martinez with four, and Jake Sapien with three. Hunter Stonier, Fernando Ruvalcaba, Gerald Braxton, Cooper Lanz, Cole Schortzmann and Michael Trejo all had one home run each in the tournament. Antonio Cortez and Gerald Braxton teamed up to pitch an outstanding game against the PL Bulldogs.
The Titans came back from their adventure in upstate New York with some outstanding accomplishments that made the communities of Merced, Atwater, Chowchilla and LeGrand proud.Ranking fifth among one-hundred-and-four teams in a national tournament is quite a feat.
And there’s more to come for the Titans Elite.They have another national tournament coming up in late October that will be played in Las Vegas.
Tournament batting averages, home run tallies, and pitching achievements notwithstanding, the real prize from their week in Cooperstown can be summed up by Coach Floro.
“It was a memory of a lifetime.”
MEET THE TITANS ELITE
Gerald Braxton
Louie Ceja
Antonio Cortez
Kadon Floro
Cooper Lanz
Aaron Martinez Jr.
Daniel Murphy II
Nathan Richards
Fernando Ruvalcaba Jr.
Jake Sapien
Cole Schortzmann
Hunter Stonier
Michael Trejo
Coaches: Kent Floro, Neal Richards, Vince Sapien, Tony Cortez, Aaron Martinez
For more on the Cooperstown Dreams Park, visit www.cooperstowndreamspark.com
Steve Newvine lives in Merced and grew up in a small town about eighty miles north of Cooperstown.He is indebted to Ken Stonier for leading him to the story that became this column.
A Golf Farewell at Stevinson Ranch
Among the victims of the 2015 drought is Stevinson Ranch Golf Course in northwestern Merced County, California. Local media reported the owners have agricultural interests nearby and those interests, combined with a general decline in the number of golf rounds at the course, forced a business decision to divert water from the fairways to farm fields.
Ever since the decision to close Stevinson was made, a lot of golfers are playing one last round at a memorable and challenging course.
Impressive course
I first played Stevinson in 2006 in a charity tournament shortly after moving to the community.I remember being impressed with the course but frustrated that I had to travel over a half-hour from downtown Merced over country roads just to find it.
Actually, the distance was a minor nuisance.The fact was that the course intimidated me.It was tough and I needed more time to develop my game.I stayed away for the next eight years in favor of courses that were easier to get to and not nearly as daunting.
About a year ago, a golf buddy of mine suggested we go out there again.My game had improved over the years and I found the course to be formidable and maybe even better than I had remembered the first time.We played there twice in 2014 and we were set to play again in 2015 when we read reports that the course would close in July.
Closing in July
Recently, we headed out to Stevinson for our last round.I brought my camera along.We had an early tee-off slot and that allowed us a little more time to take in the sights of the Central Valley countryside.Before long, the irrigation will be shut off.I wanted to enjoy this course in its bright green against a clear blue sky on a cool late spring morning.The weather cooperated.
Every hole on this course has a name, but I never took the time to connect these names with their respective piece of the landscape.Maybe if I had played the course more frequently, I would have become familiar with the names.Thanks to the score card saved after the round, I can refer back to each hole by name.
I took a photograph at what was once my nemesis.A pond on the number four hole goes by an ironic name of Eden.I’m sure the pond at Eden has captured many golfers’ first shots over the years.The pond water was gone the day we played.It’s just a dry bed of rough.It’s still a hazard, but it seemed less intimidating without the water.
Number six is aptly titled Risk & Hope.My approach shot landed in one of several sand traps that seem to circle the putting green.
Risk & Hope lived up to its name on this final round.With about one-hundred yards to the green, I took out my trusty seven-iron.I thought the risk was possibly overshooting the green.I hoped to land close to flag.I ended up in a bunker in front of the green. I’ve been in those traps before, but I didn’t seem to mind it as much this time around.
I’ve always admired an old tree stump that remains near an irrigation creek between holes ten (named Long) and eleven (named Wetland).I get the feeling that stump was there long before Stevinson became a golf course.I suspect it will remain there in the years to come.
I got a par at both par threes on the back nine: number twelve (Devil’s Pot) and sixteen (Hawk Perch).I also made par on the par four number fourteen (Alps).I ended the par five number eighteen (Home Cape) going one over with a six.I turned around and took one last picture of the cart path that brought us to the end of the line.
Picture- Stevinson 18- looking backcaption:Stevinson Ranch Golf Club.Photo by Steve Newvine
Keeping score
It’s been a rare opportunity for a guy who spent over twenty years trying to figure out the game of golf to now have the chance to play every week.I’m thankful that my game has improved to a point where I no longer use the phrase, “I’m having so much fun, why bother keeping score?”I keep score and keep trying to improve.There’s a long way to go, but I’ve never enjoyed the game more than I do right now.I’m grateful to a couple of golfing buddies who have accompanied me from time to time on some of the better courses in the Central Valley.
Stevinson Ranch scared me the first time I played there in 2006.I have by no means tamed this venue.But I have given the course my respect as it has brought out the best in me as far as the game of golf is concerned.
The blessing of golf
Golf has always been about blessings.I’m in reasonably good health to play.I can afford it as long as I keep an eye on discounted green fees and decide that I don’t need the latest club available at the sporting goods store.I’m blessed to be able to play this game.I’m blessed to enjoy it as much as I do.I’m blessed every time I get to walk outdoors and view the outstanding scenery surrounding many California courses.I’ve also been honored to meet some genuinely nice people on the fairway and in the clubhouse.
To the staff that kept this course up to an exceptionally high standard especially in these past two years, thank you for your care and customer service.
To the owners who made what was probably a very difficult business decision, thank you for hanging in there so long.
To everyone connected with Stevinson Ranch Golf Club, it’s been a pleasure sharing my passion for the game on those beautiful fairways, challenging bunkers, and demanding putting greens.
I have taken memories from playing there that will last me the rest of my life.I will miss it deeply.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
Lunch, Laughs, and Letterman
I don’t stay up to watch his show anymore, and I haven’t been a regular viewer in several years.I’m catching up on these final shows via CBS.com.The whole farewell thing with Dave is reminiscent of what I went through twenty-three years ago when Johnny Carson left the Tonight Show after nearly thirty years as host. Toward the end of that historic run in 1992, it seemed to me that every broadcast of Carson’s was special.
While I’m a fan of Dave’s, I had a much deeper sense of generational change when Johnny retired.
But Dave’s departure from nightly television reminds me of how his career has intermingled with my adult life.
My wife and I sat in the audience of his short-lived morning talk show in 1980.We were on our honeymoon as my then television station bosses arranged for a special tour of the studios and tickets to this new live morning talk show.
The show was funny, the host was quirky, and practically no one watched it.After the live broadcast, Dave came up into the audience and sat in front of us to record some promotional announcements for upcoming shows.
We saw those promos when we returned and I believe it’s still on an old broadcast video tape now buried in a pile of stuff that has traveled with me over the years.
Dave’s morning show went off the air after only a few months in 1980.A year-and-a-half later, he began Late Night with David Letterman.The hour-long talk show followed the Tonight Show Starring, Johnny Carson.Thanks to our VHS tape recorder, I was a regular viewer.
When Johnny left the Tonight Show in 1992, Dave’s fans were disappointed that he was not offered the job to replace Carson.Dave remained with the Late Night program for another year until his contract expired and CBS hired him to take on Jay Leno in a true battle for late night television dominance.
Jay won that battle, but it seemed to me that while Leno had bigger audience numbers, Dave had the better of the two shows.
In the late 1990s into the first few years of the 2000s, a good friend of mine would join me in midtown Manhattan once a year for an afternoon in the city followed by being in the audience for a taping of either Late Show with David Letterman or Late Night with Conan O’Brien.Both were great shows, but I’m especially fond of the two times I saw Dave’s show from the audience inside the Ed Sullivan Theater.
One time was in the Christmas season.Tom Brokaw was one of the guests.Being a former newsman, Brokaw was a guest I always enjoyed.He was clearly one of Dave’s favorite guests.
Another time was in the summer when the movie Moulin Rouge came out.Actor Ewan McGregor was one of the guests.At that time, I never heard of the guy.The musical guest that night was Moby and I recall being impressed at how quickly the crew could set up the stage during the commercial break right before he took to the stage.Thanks to Google, I now have learned the day of that show was June 21, 2001.
Those trips to New York City to meet my friend for a day of lunch, laughs, and late night show tapings were quite a test of endurance for me.I would get up around four AM, and then drive about six hours to a train station in Tarrytown, New York.
Following about an hour of travel on the rails, I’d emerge from Grand Central Station and walk to an agreed upon destination to meet up with my buddy.After a quick lunch, we’d do what I call the “poor man’s” tour of the New York City by taking in such iconic locations as the Dakota apartment complex where John Lennon lived and died, the restaurant where exterior scenes were shot in the television series Seinfeld, and my favorite venue: inside 30 Rockefeller Plaza where such iconic shows as Saturday Night Live are produced.
We’d have to get in line for the Letterman taping around 3:30, and after being moved from a gathering area in a building across the side entrance to the Ed Sullivan Theater, we’d take our seats inside and were coached as to how to behave while in the audience of a national television show.We were ready for a brief audience welcome by Dave and then the magic that is live-on-tape television was underway.
Live-on-tape means the show is performed as though it was being done live with no stops of the recording machines unless a major problem occurs.
When the taping was finished around 6:30, my friend and I would shake hands and depart:I would head to Grand Central while he headed to Penn Station to catch our respective trains.Barring any train delays, I’d get to my car in Tarrytown around 8:00 PM, and then head on back to either a hotel or a relative’s home for a well-appreciated good night’s sleep.
We did those trips annually for about four years, and then my friend moved to the west coast.My wife and I followed with our own west coast adventure a few years later.
While I’ve been to Hollywood to see a couple of television shows in production, I still have a longing for the days when I embarked on an annual endurance test to travel several hours to see David Letterman’s show
David Letterman began his late night television career just a couple of months prior to my becoming a father.He leaves television as I enjoy the privileges of being a grandparent.I remember watching that very first show on CBS in 1993.
I remember the night Johnny Carson did a walk-on to hand him the Top Ten list and symbolically “hand off” the late night throne- without saying a word.
I remember the broadcast a week after 9-11 and how in some satisfying way, he helped bring back some normalcy.
I remember the night he returned from heart surgery and nearly cried as he thanked his medical professionals that were brought on stage.
Thirty-three years have passed.
Thank you David Letterman, for entertaining me through fatherhood and for keeping the laughs coming as I became a grandfather.
You deserve to retire with all the accolades and all the memories.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
Life through Vinyl
We have the good people at Parade magazine to thank for telling readers that April 18 is National Record Store Day. Those seeking to make money from the music business have designated this day to bring attention to the resurgence of vinyl records. Many popular music artists are releasing special songs on vinyl . Once thought lost forever with the advent of compact discs and eventually digital music delivery, vinyl is enjoying sort of a comeback among those who prefer their music played with a needle and a turntable.
I made the move to compact discs about ten years after that format started back in the 1980s. But I’ve always held on to a few vinyl records because they bring back memories of my younger years when it was the best way to listen to music on your own terms.
The Monkees
The very first record I owned was this one from the Monkees. There was a time when I could tell you the exact order of songs on that album. I actually got both the first and second Monkees albums on the same day (my birthday), but I opened and played this one first. I would eventually acquire every record the group released in their short career, which lasted two years (the length of their television series) with several reunions over the past few decades.
Elvis Presley, the NBC-TV Special Soundtrack
While the Monkees represent the first music I would actually own, it was Elvis Presley who would instill my appreciation for popular music. I watched his NBC television special in late 1968 and became a fan instantly. I bought it from the closest thing we had to a music store in my hometown: a rack of records at a dry goods store. The soundtrack album propelled him into the third and final phase of his performing career, eventually clearing the way for his iconic jumpsuits and the hard living lifestyle that many suggest ended his life way too early at the age of forty-two in 1977. It begins with the song Trouble (“you lookin for trouble, you came to the right place…”) that he first popularized in the movie Kid Galahad. It ends with the inspiring If I Can Dream. I just found out this spring that If I Can Dream is my daughter Colleen’s favorite Elvis song. Good choice. The song has been covered over the years by such artists as Barry Manilow and Della Reese, but Elvis made it his own.
Goodyear/Columbia Great Songs of Christmas
I experience most of the holiday seasons through the lens of Christmas music. The Goodyear Tire company, through an arrangement with Columbia Records, released a compilation album of holiday music annually in the 1960s and 1970s. My mom bought this one from the local Goodyear dealer in hometown (Sylvester Burkhart’s Garage on Main Street in Port Leyden). This particular album has the distinction of being the first album my mother purchased when our family bought a record player in the early 1960s. I connect right back to the family living room in my hometown when I play this album.
These are three of the long playing albums that helped define my life in vinyl. We always had records playing in the house. My fascination with recorded music fed a desire to work as a disc jockey for a few years while I was in college. To this day, I occasionally put on an old vinyl record and listen to it with all the scratches that come from playing them over and over when I was much younger.
Long playing albums from my era generally had about ten to twelve songs, split between the two sides. Some record players allowed you to stack up to six so that the music could continue for well over an hour.
New York, New York by Frank Sinatra
I can’t forget the singles: the forty-five RPM (revolutions per minute) discs that so many of us from that generation had. I still have mine, but I don’t play them as much as the LPs (long-playing) albums that spun at thirty-three-and-a-third RPM. My friends and I would play them in the jukebox at the Leyden Elm diner (better known as Hazel’s) in my hometown.
But this one forty-five has special meaning to me. It’s Frank Sinatra’s New York, New York. It was recorded in 1980 and remained Sinatra’s signature show stopper in the remaining years of his public performances. It was also the last brand new single I ever bought from a music store. It would take a few more years before I’d consider myself a Sinatra fan, but there’s no doubt this single was the starting point.
And if that’s not enough to drive home how significant this record is to me, I can add that it was released in the same year I got married. A husband better not forget the year he got married. I have this single to remind me.
Records have a way of doing that for me. They bring back a memory of when I first received a particular album or single, they connect me to my hometown, and they help me remember important times in my life.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
For more on Record Store Day, go to www.recordstoreday.com
Completing the Apollo 13 Circle in Colorado
April 11 is the forty-fifth anniversary of the Apollo 13 mission to the moon. Apollo 13 was the mission that never landed on the lunar surface, but it became a legendary story of a true test of courage and ingenuity from the US space program. I had the recent good fortune to visit family living in Colorado. As I was preparing to leave at the Denver Airport, I encountered a statute that in many ways has completed a circle I started with Apollo 13 some forty-plus years ago.
The statue is of Apollo 13 astronaut Jack Swigert. The bronze cast shows Swigert in his astronaut suit. The plaque refers to Swigert as “Astronaut and Congressman Elect.” He was about to begin his first elected term in the US House of Representatives when he died from cancer in the early 1980s. I asked a fellow Californian who was viewing the statue with me to take this picture.
In my youth, I followed the space program with great interest. As a young boy, I was in front of the television set many times for rocket launches. My family circled around the set in July of 1969 when Apollo 11 landed on the moon.
I was a hardened space fan, but even I was becoming disinterested in moon landings after the second one (Apollo 12). I recall seeing Apollo 13 lift off on April 11, 1970, but my life was beginning to be occupied with all the things teenagers encounter.
My interest level changed two days later when we learned there was a problem aboard Apollo 13. News reporters on television tried to explain something about an explosion aboard the spacecraft, and how the astronauts were moved to the lunar module as plans were made to bring them back to Earth. I recall feeling concerned, but confident that the crew would make it home safely.
The now familiar story ends with a successful return to Earth for the three astronauts.
Commander Jim Lovell wrote a book called Lost Moon about the mission. Fred Haise worked in private industry after retiring from NASA. Jack Swigert lived in Colorado and was elected to the US House of Representatives. He died before taking office in 1982.
I never realized just how serious the effort to return the astronauts to Earth was until many years later when I started reporting on the space program as a television reporter for WAAY in Huntsville, Alabama. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center was in Huntsville, so anything about the space program was a local news story in northern Alabama. During my short time in Huntsville in the early 1980s, I learned more about how dangerous the Apollo 13 mission was as the ground crew worked the problem to bring the crew home safely.
A few years later, the Ron Howard film Apollo 13 introduced a new generation to the story behind the story of that mission. For many years, watching the movie was a family tradition in my house. During the time when I was working as an adjunct college lecturer, I used clips from the movie to demonstrate leadership principles. The movie remains one of my all-time favorites.
I met astronauts Jim Lovell and Fred Haise in 1996 when both appeared at a business conference I was attending. I was told at that event that this was the first time the two appeared together in public since the end of the mission.
Seeing the statue of Jack Swigert in Denver brought back many of those memories. From childhood passing on through my teen years, I experienced the excitement of the space program transition to a less intense interest as I grew older. I saw that passing interest reinvigorate as a journalist working in a town where space exploration defined the community, I re-lived, if only for a few moments, the thrill of reporting on the first three Space Shuttle missions. As a slightly bit older adult, I reconnected with my passion for the space program thanks to the movie Apollo 13 and the opportunity to meet the two surviving members of the crew.
And now a bronze statue of the astronaut who survived that ordeal only to be taken much too early brings it back full circle.
Apollo 13 showed us that bravery isn’t just about knowing the risks and acting anyway. The forty-fifth anniversary of that historic mission gives all of us an opportunity to spend a few moments reflecting on the successes we have experienced and the obstacles we have overcome.
Apollo 13 has also shown us that leadership comes in all shapes and sizes. From the crew’s courage under fire, to the steady seriousness demonstrated by flight director Gene Kranz , to the short-sleeved NASA technicians who offered solutions that kept the astronauts alive as the spaceship was being brought back home, Apollo 13 has proven the very best we all can do by working together.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced. He worked as a Space and Science reporter for WAAY-TV in Huntsville, Alabama from 1980 to 1982.
Welcome to the World Grandson
My wife and I recently became grandparents. Our grandson came into this world surrounded with a lot of love. For the first time in my life, I’m a grandpa. The best assessment I’ve ever read of how a child can change a person comes from that expert on family relationships: Alice Mitchell. She’s the mom of comic strip character Dennis the Menace.
Her view on how grandfather’s change comes in a recent cartoon where we see Dennis playing with his dad. Dennis’ grandfather remarks how amazing it is that a boy can make a man out of his father. Alice responds by saying, “And a boy out of his grandfather.”
I’d like to offer my special welcome, along with some grandfatherly observations, to my grandson. Some of my reflections come from experiences with my two grandfathers. Most of it comes from experiencing firsthand what it’s like to be a grandchild.
Welcome to the world little boy.
This is Earth grandson. It’s a unique spot, and now it’s a special place because you are here.
You came into this spot two months early, but you put up with all the tubes and monitors that helped make you stronger. You also had the help of some wonderful medical professionals who have made it their life’s work to help little folks like you. They helped you until you were well enough to leave the hospital and start living at home.
You have two wonderful parents. I know one of them real well. Your Mom was a bundle of joy, someone who enjoys an adventure, and someone who truly loves her family. You already know this, but she’s a great Mom. Dad is a good guy too. I’ve known him about ten years now and I know he’s the real deal. You are in excellent hands.
Someday, I hope your parents will take you to the family reunion on your grandma Newvine’s side of the family. They take lots of pictures throughout the reunion day, but the part I like is after the midday meal when they line up each generation of relatives for a special set of group photos. You may not think much of it at first, but my experience has been you’ll grow to appreciate those generation photographs in later years.
Someday, you might visit my hometown.
If you see it in the summer, you’ll enjoy county fairs, weekend picnics, and extended family in practically every surrounding village. If you visit in the winter, be prepared to see lots of snow. You can take part in downhill and cross-country skiing, ride a snowmobile, and build up your muscles when someone hands you a snow shovel after a big storm.
As you get to know me, you’ll find I like a lot of things young people enjoy. I keep a kite in the garage and know a perfect open field near our house where we can fly it on a breezy spring day.
When you get older, I’ll take you to a driving range where we can hit a bucket of golf balls. On cold days, we can stay inside and put together a jigsaw puzzle.
When I was about ten years old, my Grandpa on my mom’s side of the family took me and a load of scrap metal to a junkyard. The people at the junkyard weighed the car before and after we unloaded the cargo. My Grandpa was paid for the scrap metal by the pound. Upon leaving the junkyard, he took me out for breakfast.
It’s funny how I still remember that day as though it happened a week ago. I want to do something like that with you.
My other grandfather lived down the street from my house. He had hands that seemed as big as a coffee pot and as tough as a claw hammer, but he was kind and gentle, and had a smile that no one forgot. He lived to his mid-nineties and brought a lot of joy to a lot of people. I’m hoping for a nice long life too, not only for you but for me. I want to spend a lot of time with you, my grandson.
I promise you that I’ll try to help create memories for you of a grandfather who won’t take you or anyone else for granted.
I’ve had two pretty good role models in my grandfathers.
We’ll have a lot of fun.
Welcome to this world grandson.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
Target Renovation Will Make Merced a Five-StarbucksTown
Photo by steve Newvine
Merced has been called a lot of things by a lot of people. Some names have been positive, some names have been negative. In my latest book, I affectionately and truthfully call Merced my adopted hometown.
But by this spring, we may call our city a five-Starbucks town
That’s because the Target store near Merced Mall will add the coffee retailer as part of a renovation project. For those of you familiar with the layout of the Merced store, Starbucks will be located where the photo department currently is housed. The photo department will be scaled down to a self-service kiosk.
The express checkouts near that location will be moved to clear additional space for the Starbucks. You will not miss it when you enter the store from the south side, the side facing Sears. The news was given to me as I checked out recently, and I confirmed it with the manager on duty. Target will house Starbucks in a matter of weeks. This new Starbucks means that by spring, lovers of that particular brand of coffee will have a total of five locations from which to choose.
The other locations are:
- 425 West Main Street
- 580 West Olive Avenue
- 500 Carol Avenue
- 779 East Yosemite Avenue
Starbucks coffee
Adding a specialty retailer such as Starbucks inside an existing retailer is nothing new in business. The built-in traffic flow makes a lot of sense for both companies to come to terms on making that section of the retail space more profitable. Customers will likely enjoy the added convenience of a Starbucks inside Target. There’s something to be said about how the number and location of a Starbucks serves as an index for community growth and prosperity. Many believe the worst of the recession is now behind us, so it may make sense for some retailers to consider expanding their businesses.
In many communities, Starbucks is seen as sort of a barometer of business success. If business is doing well, they hire more people; with more people working, the likelihood of spending money on luxury items such as four-dollar specialty coffee increases.
And there may be a few companies who have been on the fence in terms of whether they should consider taking a next step in growing the business. Reasonable questions such as: is the worst of this recession really over, and will the economy stay on track long term, are likely to be raised. The fifth Starbucks coming to Merced may not be enough to get some business owners off the fence in terms of expanding and hiring.
But it may be just the right thing to bring about some optimism for the second half of this decade. Merced County still lingers among the highest in the state unemployment figures. The community could use a boost, and we’re not necessarily talking about a caffeine boost.
Let’s hope the soon-to-open Starbucks at Target will be a successful venture. Let’s hope this new venture will lead the way with expansion among local existing companies as well the starting up of new enterprises to serve customers here in Merced County and beyond.
If something like that happens, I’d be happy to buy people making the decision to grow their business in Merced a hot cup of coffee…either at the Starbucks in the Target Store, or at one of several other coffee shops that dot the community landscape.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
Meeting and Covering Mario Cuomo
Over the New Year holiday, we learned of former New York Governor Mario Cuomo’s passing at the age of 82.
Cub television reporter
As a former resident of the Empire State and a working journalist during most of the Cuomo administration, I covered the Governor during parts of his term.
My memories go back to the first time I met him in 1980. He was Lieutenant Governor and I was a cub television reporter for station WICZ in Binghamton. Cuomo was promoting some initiative from Governor Hugh Carey’s office. I don’t remember why he was in town, but I remember arriving to the press availability late and dealing with a handler who basically chastised me for being late and effectively told me that when you snooze you lose.
Observing my argument that we could set up our camera and ask a couple of questions in a matter of minutes, Cuomo came over to me, smiled, and then told his handler that he had the time to speak to my camera and me.
I spent several of the early Governor Cuomo administration years living outside New York State, but by the time I returned to live in Western New York in the mid-1980s, the Governor had a well-oiled government machine. He easily won reelection twice, and anyone who remembers the 1980s can hardly forget how his name frequently made the list of potential Democratic presidential nominees.
Livingston County Chamber of Commerce
By 1994, I left the world of television news and became an advocate for business as head of the Livingston County Chamber of Commerce. Once again, my path would cross that of Mario Cuomo.
It was in the fall of 1994 when the Governor arrived at the Livingston County Government Center in Geneseo, New York to announce a package of state incentives to keep a salt mine operating in our community.
The Governor’s office and the State Legislature worked with the County on a package of incentives. The Governor, who was up for re-election, wanted to make the point that his administration cared about those jobs and cared about upstate New York.
As the deal was sealed, it was decided by the Governor’s office that Mario Cuomo, staunch Democrat, would come to the Republican stronghold of Livingston County to personally deliver the goods.
The Governor was in a battle for his fourth term against George Pataki, so there was little doubt that politics played a role in the visit. But with a population around 65,000, the incumbent wasn’t going to win or lose the state based on how well or poorly he did in Livingston County. But image was as important then as it is today.
As a guest for the ceremony, I got to the Government Center about two hours early to get a seat close to the front. As Executive Director of the Livingston County Chamber of Commerce, I was in the audience to join with others in thanking the Governor and the Legislature for saving jobs in my community.
"We’re a family"
As he passed by me on his way to the podium, he shook a lot of hands including mine. He started his speech by addressing the elephant in the room. I’m not quoting him directly as it was twenty years ago and all I have are memories of that afternoon. Here’s what I recall the Governor saying to his Livingston County, New York audience:
“You may be asking what am I, a Democrat, doing here in the hot bed of the Republican party?” he joked with the receptive crowd. And then, he became serious. “I’m here because we’re a family, and this part of our family needs help and the rest of the family, the State of New York, is coming together to bring that help.”
When he finished, he left amid a standing ovation and again he passed by me. Again, I shook his hand. I had only been on the job as head of the Chamber of Commerce six months, but I was filled with the satisfaction that comes from knowing things were going to get better for the community.
Within a few weeks, the Governor would lose the election.
About a year later, the original aid package was rejected when the original mine company pulled out.
But a new company was formed, and five years later, long after Mario Cuomo left office, a new mine opened.
But it was those words from Governor Cuomo some twenty years ago that still resonate with me; challenging us to think of ourselves as a family, and coming together as a family when one of us needs help.
Those were powerful words two decades ago, and words that still define former Governor Mario Cuomo.
Steve Newvine has lived in the Central Valley of California for the past ten years.
A Pot Luck Filled with Love Plus
Love Plus Life Skills Training and Mentoring Fall Program
It was a pot luck dinner in many ways like the holiday parties that help define Christmas time: friends getting together, co-workers taking a moment to spend some social time with one another, or family joining in the spirit of the festive season. Only this pot luck was different
This was a pot luck dinner celebrating the graduation of ten participants in the Love Plus Life Skills Training and Mentoring Fall Program.
Love Plus is a life skills training and mentoring program offered by Love, INC in Merced.This year, ten participants completed the program. Since September, they have been attending weekly sessions at a classroom in the Gateway Community Church Conference Center.A second program was started this fall at the Atwater Nazarene Church.Each week, the session would begin with a speaker and specific lesson.Following the one-hour class, the participants would meet with their mentors for the second hour of the session.
The group was honored at a special graduation ceremony at Gateway Community Church in December, but not before one final lesson.Monika Grasley, Executive Director of Life Line Community Development, presented the final class about using the skills learned from the Love Plus program to recognize the gifts individuals have with their head, hands, and heart.
Monika was one of several volunteer presenters who spoke to the classes throughout the program cycle. Presentations over the twelve-week program included job interviewing, soft skills, financial management, and community service.It was an honor for me to be among the presenters.Throughout the season, other presenters included Shelly Hansen, Sherry Macias, and Eric Swensen.
Love INC
Sherry is the Executive Director of Love INC, and the force behind the Love Plus program.In her comments at the graduation, she told the group, “We can’t truly help people, until we take time to learn about their lives, connect with their struggles, and encourage their gifts.
The people entering the program cross a wide range of life experiences.Most have been through some setbacks.Some acknowledge they were responsible for some of the things that happened to them.But to a person, all agree that the combination of life skills alongside weekly mentoring has made a big difference in their lives.
At the ceremony, each participant was asked to speak to their experiences from the program.Most talked about their relationships with their mentors.
Experiences from the program
Teresa told the group she learned a lot of things that she’s going to use. Laura praised her mentor saying how she showed her how to be a better person. Candy said the program helped her realize that the best way to help others is to be sure she helps herself.Gina was recognized for having one-hundred percent participation in the program.Sable spoke about how her mentor showed her how to knuckle down to stay on track.Renee was grateful that the program exists for those who feel many doors have been closed to them.
Manuel and Stacy, one of two couples in the program, found the financial management sessions to be of great help to them. The other couple, Melinda and Jason, werepraised by their mentor whosaid, “They weren’t just individuals, they were a couple that are working great as a team.”
Volunteers also included child care givers who would look after the small children of some of the participants.Alex DeBusk donated her time and talent to document the event with photographs including the one selected for this column.
Faith in action
Love Plus is a program of Love INC, a coalition of churches working together to put faith into action.
A new cohort of participants is being recruited for the spring session beginning in early 2015.Of special need is for more potential mentors to step forward to help guide and nurture program participants.Anyone interested in learning more about becoming a mentor for the next Love Plus program beginning in early 2015 should contact Marcy Cotta, at 383-7034, or by email at info@loveincmerced.com
My involvement came about thanks in part to the columns I write for MercedCountyEvents.comA program volunteer found me in a Google search, realized I lived in Merced County, and asked me to share a cup of coffee to discuss the program.That happened more than two years ago.I met for coffee, asked a lot of questions, attended a session, and then agreed to do a presentation based on my book Soft Skills for Hard Times.
The graduation ceremony was about the people who have taken advantage of a unique opportunity to learn more about coping with life.They have learned that there are people out there willing to get to know them, and to find out more about who they are as individuals.As honored as I was to be part of that special pot luck dinner in December celebrating the success of this latest Love Plus class, I was grateful that someone reached out to me over two years ago to offer me an opportunity to share my experiences with others by being a program presenter.
I have a lot for which I’m thankful.Just like a pot luck dinner isn’t really about the food, this program to help others is much more than that.I was helped as well by being part of the leadership team for Love Plus that made this opportunity for others possible.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
Seeing Sinatra
PHOTO CREDIT: NEWVINE PERSONAL COLLECTION
Frank Sinatra
Among the experiences I have appreciated in my life are the two times I saw Frank Sinatra in concert.
I became a fan of Sinatra in 1980 when he released New York, New York. That was the year I got married. My wife and I honeymooned in New York City so I must have heard that song a hundred times leading up to our wedding. I know I heard it a few times while walking the streets of the Big Apple during the week of our honeymoon.
Fifty dollar tickets
Two years later, I was in Las Vegas for a convention. I stayed at Caesars Palace and as luck would have it, Frank was playing in the big room. Tickets were fifty dollars, so I stayed away from the casino and plopped down my money for what I thought would be a once-in-lifetime concert.
Lucky seats
No one I knew from the convention had any interest in attending the concert, so I entered the big room without them. Again, luck was with me as the usher escorted me to the front and center of the theater to a seat that filled out a table of eight. I had one of the best seats in the house simply because I was there alone and there had been room for only one more at that table. I made friends with the other people at the table and we settled in for the show.
“Welcome to my daddy’s show”
First up was Nancy Sinatra. While the lobby posters billed the show as Frank and Nancy, the daughter did not sing with her dad. I remember a few things about her performance that seemed strange. The first words out of her mouth when the applause from her introduction ended were “Welcome to my daddy’s show”. I found it odd was that her only hit record These Boots Were Made for Walking was not included in her half-hour show.
Other than being Frank’s daughter, the only reason most people would want to see Nancy sing would be for her to sign that hit record from the mid-1960s. I guess if your father is Frank Sinatra, it doesn’t matter what you sing on stage.
There was no duet with her father, even though the pair scored a top ten record in the early 1970s called Something Stupid.
Comedian Charlie Callas
Following Nancy, comedian Charlie Callas performed for a half-hour. Callas had a rubbery kind of comic face that actually reminds me of actor Jim Carrey. He kept us laughing as we patiently awaited the arrival of the real star of the show. As Callas left the stage from one end, Frank Sinatra walked out from the other end. There was no introduction, just applause from a grateful audience. Frank thanked the audience and asked Charlie Callas to come back out for a final bow.
Chairman of the Board
After Charlie took his final bow, Frank signaled to the orchestra leader and started his show with I’ve Got the World by the String. Then, for the next hour-and-a-half, we saw the man known as the Chairman of the Board take command of the stage. He finished with Chicago, and then returned for a curtain call where he sang New York, New York. He was sixty-seven in 1982, probably a few years past his prime, but still a very entertaining performer. Eleven years later in 1993, a seventy-eight year old Sinatra was still performing and I once again got a chance to see him live on stage.
Show in New York
This time it was in Rochester, New York. By then, everyone knew the Sinatra we would see on stage was not the same Rat-packer we witnessed in 1982. As one local critic described the event prior to the concert, “You’re not going to the show to see the Sinatra of thirty, twenty, or even ten years ago. You’re going to the concert to witness one of the world’s greatest performers as he winds down his public life.”
Comedian Tom Driesen did the warm up act at this Sinatra concert. Son Frank Junior conducted the orchestra. Frank sang the lyrics that appeared on a teleprompter at each of the four corners of the boxing ring type stage.
It wasn’t the same as I had experienced eleven years earlier, but I knew that going in. My wife and I enjoyed the show.
Sinatra parking space at the Cal-Neva Resort at Lake Tahoe, photo by Steve Newvine
Shortly after that performance, Sinatra stopped performing altogether. He passed away a few years later at the age of eighty-three.
The closest I would come to the Sinatra legacy again would be a parking spot marked with his name at the former Cal-Neva casino at Lake Tahoe on the California and Nevada line shortly after moving to California in 2004.
I have fond memories of the two Sinatra concerts I saw from a few decades back. Frank is gone, but the music lives.
No matter what you thought of Sinatra’s personal life, and there was certainly enough to pick apart if that is your pleasure, no one could argue about his contributions to popular music and the classic tunes commonly referred to the Great American Songbook.
To paraphrase the lyrics of one of his hit records, those were very good years.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
A Letter to A T & T
PHOTO BY STEVE NEWVINE
AT&T call center closing
I read in the paper recently that the union representing some of the employees at AT & T’s Atwater Call Center was asking for letters to the company. The union promised to forward any letters sent to their office in Modesto.
I sent this letter:
AT & T Castle Commerce Park Atwater, CA Dear ATT: Thank you for being a respected employer in Merced County these past two decades. As a resident of Merced County, I appreciate the economic impact the company made on the community. By employing close to four-hundred workers, you helped improve the quality of life for countless families. You were a good employer. We are saddened that a business decision has been made to end operations at the facility at the former Castle Air Base. AT & T was the first major employer to lease space at the former Air Base after military operations left. The company has been an anchor in the efforts by Merced County to market the site to other companies. I hope business conditions change and that AT & T might again consider Merced County for the location of a call center or other facility. The company knows our labor force, our business friendly approach, and our strong work ethic. ATT has enjoyed success here in Merced County for two decades. We hope to welcome you back in the future. Sincerely,
Steve Newvine
Two-decades of employment
My letter thanked the company for two-decades of employment on behalf of hundreds of families in and around Merced County. When AT & T leaves the call center buildings at Castle Air Base at the end of the summer, nearly four-hundred jobs will be lost. Employment has been offered at the company’s call centers in California and other states.
The company’s original offer for continued employment included a five-thousand dollar moving allowance and a ten-day decision window.
Economic tragedy for local families
My letter made it clear that I understand the business decision that drove this economic tragedy for local families. The company paid decent wages and many workers have described working conditions as good. But apparently there are efficiencies to be achieved by consolidating operations within other facilities. I try to be mindful that had this decision gone the other way, and workers from other facilities would have been asked to move within a week-and-a-half to Merced County, many of us would be celebrating a victory for job development in our community.
Keeping the door open
The letter offers to keep the door open should business conditions change in the future. Should AT & T ever consider expansion again, I ‘ll do whatever I can to gain the support of the entire business development community, from the Office of Commerce, Aviation, and Economic Development to the County Workforce Investment Board. I serve on the board of the latter.
In times like these, it would be easy to take shots at AT & T or any company that eliminates jobs from our community. I’d like to think the company discussed some of their efficiency concerns with the union representing workers and economic development leaders in the community. I have seen no evidence of that from the reporting done in the local media.
There’s even a small part of me hoping AT & T will see some merit in reconsidering the decision, although I’ve seen enough of these operational restructurings to know better. Anything is possible, but we have to move on and embrace the companies that want to do business in our county.
Our community has taken another hit in the struggle to recover from the recession. We’ll add it to the list of setbacks endured by Merced County in terms of job growth.
We’ll also take stock of our strong points:
- Agriculture
- Highway ninety-nine improvements
- UC Merced
Compassion for the families
The mourning period for the departure of AT & T will extend beyond the end of the summer when the last employee leaves the facilities at Customer Care Way in Atwater. With compassion for the families facing uncertainty and empathy for the businesses that relied on local spending from the AT & T payroll, we will move onward.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
He serves on the Merced County Workforce Investment Board
Remembering on Memorial Day
Last year in Merced, my wife and I attended one of several ceremonies honoring those who gave their lives in the battles of the nation.
We had not been to one of these ceremonies in quite a while. It was touching as we heard the speeches, viewed the military salute, and experienced the playing of Taps.
Events such as these make me feel sad about the loss of life in our nation’s wars, and at the same time pleased that we take these moments a few times every year to remember the sacrifice by the troops.
Our family took Memorial Day seriously when I was growing up in upstate New York. My grandparents and parents often called it Decoration Day, a term you don’t hear much about anymore.
The rituals for Decoration Day included placing flowers on the grave sites. This was done not only in our village, but at every final resting place for family members within driving distance.
The tradition of traveling to cemeteries that were more than an hour away from our home was maintained by my grandparents while they were still alive. My dad and uncle continue that annual trip now.
On separate occasions in recent years, my sister and I have taken that trip with Dad.
I grew up in the Vietnam era, and was isolated somewhat by the protests on the home front. My uncle served in the Army. Our family supported him with letters. We waited for him to return at the end of his tour of duty.
Once home, we sort of put Vietnam away in a corner of our consciousness as my uncle went back to work. When he died six months later in an automobile crash, any thoughts about the sacrifice he made for his country were replaced with sadness and mourning for a young man whose life ended so early.
It wasn’t until over forty years later that I was better able to understand the kind of sacrifice my uncle and his fellow soldiers made for America. In the section of my book Grown Up, Going Home, I detail my efforts to connect with former soldiers who served with my uncle in Vietnam.
Thanks to a website that was set up just for that particular unit, I connected with the site’s webmaster who not only knew of my uncle in Vietnam, but who also put me in touch with four other soldiers who served alongside Specialist Fourth Class William Newvine.
It was an incredible experience gathering photographs from the webmaster, and speaking by phone to the men who shared up to eighteen months in the Vietnam jungles with my uncle.
As amazing as this experience was, it doesn’t compare with a small piece of paper I still keep in my wallet. On that paper are the names of five soldiers who served with my uncle, and did not make it home.
The five were killed in action. I took that piece of paper with me on a business trip to Washington, DC a few years ago and used it to find their names etched on the walls of the Vietnam Memorial monument.
I will never forget them or their sacrifice.
Close to our home in north Merced, my wife and I occasionally walk past a memorial to a young soldier who lost his life in a sniper attack in Iraq. Marine Corporal Joshua Daniel Pickard was killed six days before Christmas in 2006.
He was twenty years old. The stone memorial includes fresh flowers, an American Flag, and a small wooden statue of a soldier.
The Los Angeles Times obituary of Corporal Pickard mentions his talk before children at the Allan Peterson Elementary School in Merced.
photo by steve newvine
In the obituary, he was quoted by a family member as saying there were more good people than bad in Iraq and how it was an honor and privilege to support the good people of that country.
I didn’t know Corporal Pickard and I didn’t know the five men who lost their lives in the unit my uncle served with in Vietnam.
I hope they know that our country appreciates what they did. At least every Memorial Day we have the opportunity to stand back and reflect on the sacrifices our armed forces have made during the many wars throughout our nation’s history.
For more on the soldiers from the 22nd Infantry: www.22ndinfantry.org
For a video on the memorial service for Marine Corporal Joshua Daniel Pickard:
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
Catapults and College Students, Teamwork at Merced College
It takes a basic understanding of physics, lots of team work, and a desire to have fun.
Students in two of Merced College’s Physics classes were doing their best at working together in the annual Siege Weapon Competition held on a warm spring afternoon at the College practice soccer fields.
It may look like something from the Haggar the Horrible comic strip, but it’s actually a way to put lessons from the classroom into action.
In a tradition that started fifteen years ago, students brought their full-scale trebuchets, a type of catapult, and launched basketballs across the field. The devices need to move the ball at least fifteen meters in order for the student teams to get a high grade. But from the looks of things on that sunny spring day near the end of the semester, no one was going to miss that minimum.
“We’re judged on distance and accuracy,” one of the participants said as he explained how the trebuchets are configured. “It’s important to have our physics right, but relying on each other is the best thing we take away from the competition.”
The trebuchet uses the energy of a raised counterweight to throw a projectile, in this case a basketball. Powered only by gravity, the counterweight provides the force necessary to fling the throwing arm. A sling at the end of that arm holds the projectile. When the weight is transferred through the throwing arm, the ball goes flying through the air.
It takes a good deal of teamwork to be successful in the competition. Each person has to be focused on how their catapult works and what it can do. Each has to coordinate with one another in order to have a winning effort. They have to trust not only the others on the team, but themselves as well.
The students must design, construct, and launch the trebuchets. There are no springs to create momentum. Weights are added to the catapult structure to provide the force. Ropes link the wood base to the carrier sleeve holding the ball.
Professor Lana Jordan started the event fifteen years ago. “The students look forward to this day from the beginning of the semester,” she said. “They learn many principles of physics such as the distribution of weight, the application of torque, and the impact of resistance.”
Instructional Support Technician Christine Clarkson has been involved in the program for the ten years she’s been with Merced College. She says she looks forward to the competition almost as much as the students do. “The event takes what the students are learning from lectures and textbooks and helps them apply it to something real.”
There are about thirty students involved in the competition. Each one that I spoke to has plans to transfer to a four-year college or university after they leave Merced College.
While the majority of students in this program are men, I spoke to two women who were readying their so-called floating arm trebuchet for the competition. The women told me both are entering the Bio Engineering program at UC Merced this fall. “It’s interesting when we can take the science out of the classroom,” one of them said.
Among the careers this group of students are pursing include: computer science, electrical engineering, math education, and medicine. They come to Merced College from communities throughout Merced County including Planada, LeGrand, Gustine, Atwater, and Dos Palos. One of the students is from San Diego.
They are in the class because they have a passion for physics. The Siege Weapon Competition, coming just before final exams, is a way to apply what they’ve learned throughout the semester. It is a ritual these students endure gladly as they wrap up another schedule of classes. They are on their way to a college diploma and a future that is filled with opportunity.
For these students, the event was a way to celebrate the rewards that come from teamwork and friendship among classmates.
And it was a great way to end the semester for these future teachers, doctors, engineers, and scientists.
“It gets us outside on a beautiful day like today,” another student said. “And that’s worth a lot right there.”
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
The Mail Pouch Tobacco Sign Makes Merced Building the Barn of the Year
Mail Pouch Tobacco
Every town should have an icon that immediately tells people why that place is special. San Francisco has the Golden Gate and Bay bridges. Turlock has the big tractor in front of United Equipment Company.
In Merced, we now have the recently refurbished Mail Pouch Tobacco sign painted on the barn belonging to Victor and Lorraine Dragovich. You can see the barn on highway 99 south of Merced. Going south, the barn is on the left side of the highway. Going north on 99, it’s on the right side just before you enter the city limits.
The original, and up to recently faded, Mail Pouch sign was painted by three men working on behalf of the Mail Pouch Tobacco Company back in 1940. Victor says the trio took two days to paint the sign on the roof and a smaller version of it along the side of the building. He doesn’t recall how much the company paid his dad to use the barn to promote the tobacco company.
“I was ten years old when they did the job,” Victor told me recently. “I remember it well. I have lived here all my life.”
1937
The barn was built in 1937 by Victor’s dad with help from Victor’s older brother. Victor’s parents, his brother, and three sisters lived there growing up in rural Merced. Victor and his wife Lorraine have lived at the homestead ever since they were married. They raised their son and daughter there.
“There were lots of barns with advertising painted on them back in those days,” Victor said.
But as billboards came into popularity, a lot of the barn signs were painted over. Victor even painted over his Mail Pouch sign once. “Painted it once, and then the paint faded, and the letters started to show again,” he said. “So I just left it.”
He left it without repainting until about three years ago when APG Solar made a deal to paint their company logo and telephone number on a side of his barn. APG Solar installed solar panels to power lights that shine on the APG sign at night. “Brent Jerner from the solar company was the one who got the Mail Pouch Barnstormers interested in restoring the sign,” Victor said. “He made all the arrangements to have the work done.”
Mail Pouch Barnstormers is a non-profit group dedicated to preserving and celebrating the history of the tobacco company signs all over the United States. The group’s website (www.MailPouchBarnstormers.org ) explains how the group name was chosen.
The term barnstormer refers to anyone who crosses the country to sell something. The term has its roots in the early days of aviation when pilots would fly across the country selling airplane rides and parachute jumps. The word is often used to describe efforts to travel around the country for political campaigns, sport exhibitions, and theatrical performances.
Starting in the 1930’s the men who went out across the country selling farmers on the idea of using their buildings for advertising were called barnstormers. They would cross the country from their home base in Syracuse, New York. According to the website, some farmers were paid very little for the use of their barns for advertising space.
But, the website’s history section explains that many were willing to have the job done, and some were grateful to get a little money out of the transaction. From the Barnstormers website, the visitor can read news articles, more history about roadside advertising in the 1940s and 1950s, and even shop the on line store.
“Barn of the Year.”
The Barnstormers group offers memberships for $20 a year. Victor gladly plopped down his money to be part the association. “They sent me a map of the United States that shows where all the remaining Mail Pouch signs are in the United States,” he said. “There are about two-hundred left, but only about a half-dozen in California.”
Victor says the Mail Pouch Barnstormers are naming his recently painted barn the “Barn of the Year.” A story on the honor will likely be posted to the organization’s website in the coming months.
I was impressed by the restoration work done by artist Deanna Schmidz. The restoration was made possible by a grant from the Barnstormers group. While the best view of the barn is from highway 99, the safer way to view it is from the frontage road that you can access at the Mission Avenue exit. The barn is located at the corner of that frontage road and 5525 East Worden Avenue.
So take a good look on the east side of highway 99 south of Merced the next time you’re making your way to Madera, Fresno, and beyond. Tell those heading to Merced to keep an eye out for the facelift of an iconic community landmark.
To learn more about other Mail Pouch signs across the United States, go to www.MailPouchBarnstormers.org
To see the story about the Mail Pouch Tobacco sign restoration that was reported by ABC-30 Action News-
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
The ER returns to Merced, and other items
Modesto Bee
There’s a columnist for the Modesto Bee by the name of Ron Agostini who uses a writing technique that is appealing to me. About once a week, Ron publishes a sports oriented column that contains about a dozen items.
The content of each item is too short for a complete column, but bundled together, it makes for interesting reading. He always begins the feature with the claim “estimated reading time, two minutes.”
So in tribute to Ron, here is my bundle of items from around Merced County.
Estimated reading time: two-and-a-half minutes.
Merced City Signs
It’s so nice to see the letters E and R replaced on the Merced sign heading north on G Street just beyond the railroad overpass.
The letters had been missing for about a year and it made the city seem a little less than welcoming to visitors and residents. Thank you to the City of Merced for replacing the letters. Shame on whoever removed them in the first place.
Speaking of letters, some are missing from the sign in front of Merced City Hall downtown. Maybe these missing letters can be restored soon.
Perhaps future designs of signs can take into consideration the elimination of letters and numbers that can be pried off by those with little or no regard for their community.
Town Hall Meetings
Two town hall meetings were held by the City of Merced in recent weeks to gather citizen input on how our community should move forward in the near future. According to the Merced Sun Star, the north side town hall was sparsely attended while the south side meeting had great attendance. What’s that telling us?
Presidential Visit
Regardless of your politics, having a U.S. President visit your community is a big deal. It was great to see Los Banos added to the President’s schedule on his Valentines’ Day visit.
The visit including a meeting with a foreign dignitary Friday night, and was extended by a couple of days so he’d have time to play three rounds of golf with some school buddies.
While in Merced County, the President got to see our water issues front and center with a flyover of the San Luis Reservoir. No matter how long the visit could have been, not every community can have the honor of welcoming the Chief Executive.
I would have appreciated seeing more diversity among the lawmakers invited to accompany the President, namely Valley Republican House members Jeff Denham and Devon Nunes. But I still see the visit for what it meant to our community; it was a big deal.
Google at Castle
Speaking of big deals, congratulations to the Merced County Office of Aviation, Commerce and Economic Development on landing Google at the Castle Commerce Center in Atwater. Google was interested in the wide open spaces offered by Castle’s expansive runways to test new technologies involving cars that drive themselves. The number of jobs coming to the community may be small, but you never know whether this small step by Google might lead to a giant leap for ancillary jobs that could be created in Merced County by other high tech companies from the Silicon Valley.
Panera and Chipotle
It’s also nice to see Panera Bread and soon Chipotle operating in the old Blockbuster building at Olive Avenue and R Street. Little by little, the region is picking up more economic activity. Why not celebrate these small signs of success with a Panera cookie or a Chipotle burrito.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
Excerpt from "Sign On at Sunrise" by Steve Newvine
photo by steve newvine
Grey arrived at the station onSunday atabout ahalf-hour before his shift was to begin. The station was doing a remote broadcast from the annual winter festival so this debut would be shortened with his role essentially being that of a news anchor with an hourly newscast. His other duty would be to stand by and be ready to go on the air in the event the remote line failed.
While in anticipation of his debut, Grey could not help but be amused by the remote broadcast from the scene of the annual snowmobile races that were a big part of the winter festival. The two race announcers were sales representatives who had sold the advertising for the event. The pair practically stumbled over one another to frequently mention each other’s clients who were sponsoring the radio broadcast.
The announcers were set up near the finish line of the snowmobile racetrack. Their audio was great while a race was in progress, but every time the racers got close to the finish line, all that could be heard was the loud sound of souped-up snowmobile engines swooshing past the broadcasters. The listeners rarely heard who actually won each race, but at least the advertisers could hear their names mentioned every five minutes.
“The racers are coming across the final turn, Johnson is in the lead, with Jones inching up closer. As they approach the finish line, it’s…. (VROOM, VROOM). …oh what a race that was. And now, a word from our sponsor.”
The remote broadcast ended shortly after four o’clock. This gave Grey about a half-hour of real on-air time. Loretta was there to be sure he was doing everything in accordance with F.C.C. (Federal Communications Commission) regulations with regard to meter readings. She was also a security blanket in the event Grey became too nervous to finish the shift.
The nervousness was there as the announcer on the remote broadcast wrapped up the event and pitched it back to the studio for the remainder of the broadcast day.
The first song Grey played as a professional disc jockey was How Deep is Your Love by the Bee Gees. He had prepared a formal introduction for his audience, but he was so tense, all he could do was start the turntable and turn on his microphone, only to shut the microphone off immediately. He let the song finish, then said hello to his listeners.
“You just heard the Bee Gees, and I’m Grey Harriman, your new voice on Sunday afternoons. It’s thirty-three degrees outside and twelve minutes after the hour.”
He quickly started up another record and flipped his microphone switch to the off position. He thought to himself, I wonder if my family is listening? He looked over at Loretta who was smiling.
“You’re doing just fine,” she said.
He played a few records, talked a little in between songs, read the weather forecast, and signed off at 4:45 p.m. Then, under the watchful eye of Loretta, he completed his F.C.C. log, turned off the station transmitter, straightened up the studio area of his used wire copy, put away records that were pulled but didn’t make it on the air, turned off the lights, locked the station door, and headed home.
His first shift on the air in a real radio station was over.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
Bakersfield gets the Nashville Treatment
photo by steve newvine
There’s a new compact disc out from Vince Gill and steel guitaristPaul Franklin called Bakersfield. The CD is a tribute to the country music known as the Bakersfield Soundmade popular by Merle Haggard and the late Buck Owens among others.
The music on the CD is true to the roots of the Bakersfield Sound which is characterized by steel and electric guitars, some piano, maybe a trifle bit more treble turned up on the amplifiers, and a backbeat. The music has its roots in the 1950s and was founded in part as a reaction to a growing trend in Nashville-based country music toward slick orchestrations. There’s more to the definition and the comparisons than that, but as with any art form, you know it when you hear it.
The CD takes me back to the four occasions I have visited the Crystal Palace in Bakersfield. The Palace was built by Buck as a means to bring the special brand of country music to a broader audience. Many credit Buck with taking the Bakersfield Sound from the honky tonks to the mainstream night clubs. The Palace has become a popular motor coach stop for group tours and other visitors in southern California.
The first time I saw the Crystal Palace was a pass through on my way to Los Angeles. I noted at the time that Buck would be playing every Friday night and promised myself I’d return to see his show. Six months later, Buck Owens died from a heart attack shortly after performing at his night club. My second visit was another pass through in my way to L.A.; only this time, the front lawn of the building was covered with flowers and signs from fans mourning their loss.
About a year after that, my wife and I went to the Palace for dinner and a show. Buck’s son Buddy Alan Owens was the headliner that night. Buddy did several of his dad’s hits, plus several songs made popular by other artists. After the show, he greeted every person who walked over to him in the lobby of the club. Knowing I was writing a book about California that would include a chapter on Bakersfield, he spent several minutes with us to talk about his dad and the music that put the city on the country music map. We saw Buddy Alan Owens perform again a couple of years later.
The Crystal Palace is more than a night club for country music. It is a museum celebrating the career of Buck Owens.
As I wrote about it in my 2010 book Nine From Ninety-Nine, Experiences in California’s Central Valley, cases upon cases of memorabilia from Buck’s television and music careers are on display. The most fascinating thing I saw on display was an autographed picture of Buck and Dean Martin, signed by Dean with the inscription “Thanks for doing our show… and I mean it.”
Dean Martin had a popular variety show in the 1960s and early seventies. He recorded some of Buck’s songs during those years.
Also inside the night club is the Cadillac convertible positioned over the bar. Visitors will scratch their heads wondering how the builder got it in there.
A visitor can’t miss the Crystal Palace. It’s visible off highway 99 just south of the famous Bakersfield sign that crosses Buck Owens Boulevard. The sign owes its reprieve from the junk yard to Buck who donated and raised the funds to restore and move the sign to its current location.
Both the larger than life sign and the Cadillac are included in the artwork that accompanies the Bakersfield CD. The artwork is very good. The music does not disappoint. The only thing that could have made it better would have been for the pair to have recorded the album in Bakersfield instead of Nashville.
The Bakersfield Sound is alive in California at the Crystal Palace. And thanks to Vince Gill and Paul Franklin , it’s alive on CD as well.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced.
Port of Stockton Celebrates Eighty Years
Agriculture, food processing, and several other Merced County industrial sectors rely on the transportation and logistics systems in place throughout the state of California. One of those transportation systems reached an important milestone this year.
The Port of Stockton is celebrating eighty years of service to the business community.
Every Saturday this summer, the Port has been providing free boat tours to the public in celebration of this milestone anniversary. Recently my wife and I took advantage of a two hour tour of the area served by the Port.
As our boat set off at the docks near downtown Stockton, we were impressed by the substantial investment of time and money to create an attractive vantage point of this city of four-hundred thousand.
The city has had a lot of negative attention in recent years with the local government filing for bankruptcy, CBS 60 Minutes describing the area as ground zero of the national mortgage crisis, and general bad news about crime.
Seeing the beautiful waterscape at the Port injects some optimism as well as civic pride.
Through the Port of Stockton, more than ninety percent of the chemical fertilizer used by the Central Valley agriculture industry comes in every year.
More than a million and a half tons of American products, everything from agricultural goods to tire chips, to cement goes through the waterway. The value of these products, as estimated by the Port, is over one-billion dollars annually.
The Port says it pays more than five million dollars annually in taxes.
Before the US Housing bubble burst in the middle of the past decade, the Port hit an all-time record in the shipping of concrete.
More than 2.2 million metric tons of cement were brought in for use throughout California and other states to feed the demand for new housing.
Those numbers fell throughout the housing crisis, but there is hope now as we see signs of a slow recovering in the building of new homes. Builders expect the demand for cement will intensify.
In 2011, the Port issued a report that showed the amount of material leaving the Stockton facility exceeded the value of goods coming into the facility. While the rest of the United States was experiencing a trade deficit, the Port of Stockton activity was going against the trends.
On top of that, management is proud of the environmental initiatives that have improved the soil, water, and air in the region.
We were shown wildlife habitats along the waterway as we passed under Interstate 5 and made our way west past Rough and Ready Island. Rough and Ready Island was a Naval Base that was turned over to the Port in 2000. The acquisition drastically increased the size and scope of services available to users of the shipping site.
Our cruise boat passed a number of warehouses that line the shoreline. There are seven-point-seven million square feet of covered storage space available to users. In addition to storage, the Port has U.S. Customs offices, scales, and an in-house police force providing security.
Both the Union Pacific and Northern Santa Fe Railroad lines run to the facility. With rail, truck, and ship traffic, this is truly a full intermodal transportation and logistics center.
There are also a number of private homes that line the north side of the waterway. These homes are considered prime real estate in a community that has hadmore thanits share of bumps in the midst of the mortgage crisis.
One home in particular shows its community pride with a replica of the Statue of Liberty on display for international visitors to see as they pass through the Port.
Nearly five dozen countries have some form of trade relationship that touches the Port of Stockton. Leadership at the Port takes pride in estimates that this community asset effectively supports over forty-five hundred jobs in the San Joaquin County area that includes Merced, Stanislaus, and other counties. These jobs generate an annual payroll of about $180-million to the region.
We take great pride in the bounty our farmers produce here in Merced County. Our agricultural producers know even the greatest products we can grow are of little value without a system to move these goods to the marketplace. Excellent products, coupled with a sound transportation system, add value to what our community contributes in terms of economic activity.
Thanks to the Port of Stockton and other transportation systems, the true economic engine of the Central Valley can be realized.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
School Spirit at El Capitan High School
A student car wash fund raiser is a common site on just about any Saturday in our community. But when the fund raiser is held at a school that has yet to open its’ doors for classes, the event takes on a special significance.The car wash was held in late July to tie in with the community open house for Merced’s newest high school: El Capitan High School (ECHS).
Among the many things I had to grow accustomed to when I started living in California nine years ago was the start of the new school year in August. Keep in mind I’m a transplant from another part of the country. Most schools in the northeast United States begin classes on the day after Labor Day.
El Capitan High School is located at the city’s northernmost border. The school is setting the stage to be the jewel in the district’s crown. At the very least, it has one outstanding benefit: on a clear day outside the east side classrooms, students may enjoy a view of the Sierras. When I was in high school, the closest thing to a distraction outside the classroom window was watching a local farmer operate his manure spreader.
This campus speaks state of the art at every level. During that recent community open house tour, my wife and I learned there would be no student lockers. Each student will have a laptop where all their textbooks will be digitally stored. We saw the library that will have very few paper books but lots of computer connectivity.
Outside, there are two football fields, many tennis courts, numerous outdoor basketball courts, and a large swimming pool. You get the feeling that once classes begin, there will hardly be any time when there isn’t some sort of activity going on among these outdoor athletic facilities.
photo by steve newvine
Inside, there is a large gymnasium with lots of room for fans to cheer on the El Capitan Gauchos. There’s also a smaller “practice gym” with no spectator seats. My wife joked that when she went to school the practice gym was better known as the “girls gym”. Thank goodness those days are behind us.
There’s a large quad in the middle of the array of buildings. The quad includes an amphitheater. The design will encourage social interaction. Our tour guide at the open house, an incoming freshman named Markus, says he is really impressed with the trash cans that have the school name cut through the metal.
750 students will make El Capitan their academic home this year. In their first academic year at ECHS, only freshmen and sophomores will attend. Incoming freshmen will join the student population over the next two years so that by 2015, the school will serve students in all four high school grade levels. Eventually, the student population will rise to about 1,800.
It is an exciting time for students at El Capitan High School. The start of a new academic cycle is always special. At schools throughout Merced County, students should be coming back to shinny floors, freshly painted walls, and updated landscapes. They will come prepared with new school supplies, new school clothes, and maybe a change in hairstyle. With any luck, they should also be welcomed by recharged faculty, encouraged by energized parents, and basking in a culture of lifelong learning.
Those students raising money for their school activities are doing much more than washing cars. They are engaging in a journey that offers knowledge, connectivity, and community service.
We should all be optimistic for the promise of this new school year.
Merced’s Musical Memories
I recommend that before the summer comes to an end, spend about an hour at the Merced County Courthouse Museum and see the exhibit on our community’s musical heritage.
The exhibit, called: “On the Banks of the Old Merced: A Music History” opened June 27th at an open house that included live musical performances.
The woman’s singing group Harmony Valley Chorus sang California Here I Come and a song written about our area On the Banks of the Old Merced. By the way, the song about Merced is pretty good. To paraphrase a contestant on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand’s Rate-A-Record segment, “I liked the beat, but found it hard to dance to. I’d still give it a 90.”
Early rock and roll local legend Roddy Jackson apologized to the opening night audience that doctor’s orders were to not sing or play. He then talked for about a half hour sharing his memories of early rock and roll and his contribution to local history.
Roddy introduced three musicians who made up the Merced Blue Notes, a blues band that captured a lot of attention in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The music returned with Crystal Syphon, a psychedelic rock band that recorded one album back in their heyday.
The performances were well received by the crowd at the Courthouse Park on that opening night of the exhibit. I hope some of the folks made it inside to see the exhibit. “On the Banks of the Old Merced: A Music History” is a fascinating look at the City of Merced through music, photographs, and artifacts from the past.
We saw the trumpet that belonged to Warren Lewis, sheet music from Along the Banks of the Old Merced, records (both 45-singles and 33-long playing albums) among dozens of pieces that make up the exhibit.
The visitor can read the stories behind the people who were making local history in the early days of rock and roll. There are dozens of photographs depicting some of the musicians. A lot of familiar landmarks are shown as they were seen decades ago.
Fortunately for us on the opening night of the exhibit, many musicians and their families were on hand to recall their recollections from that era. One band member told he always thought the name of his band was spelled one way, and learned for the first time after viewing a vintage concert poster, that the band, or possibly the concert promoter, preferred the spelling in a different way.
Crystal Syphon’s musicians may look familiar. Many of the band’s members were part of The Beatles Project that covered many of the Fab Four’s hits for several years up until about a couple of years ago when the group began to focus on returning to their roots.
Interestingly, you won’t find too much about The Beatles Project among the items on display at the museum. That is because their history is far too recent. This exhibit is divided into four categories: Early Musical Development, The Swing Era, Rock & Roll, and Music Melting Pot of the 1980s.
“On the Banks of the Old Merced: A Music History” will be on display through early October. The Museum, at 21st and N Streets in Merced, is open Wednesday through Sunday, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
This exhibit is about Merced’s past. I encourage you to take a look before it closes. You’ll learn something about early rock and roll as well as other categories of music. You’ll get a better understanding of Merced area musicians and their contributions to the evolution of the art form.
With any luck, you may be entertained by stories about the people who loved their craft and who were willing to share it with all of us.
Steve Newvine lives in Merced
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