Local Thousand Oaks Moms Create Service-Learning Summer Camp That is Fun-Filled and Community Inspired

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Thousand Oaks locals, Meredith Madnick Cornelius and Anne Byer Marquart decided to create a summer camp focused on service-learning after they wanted to send their own children to one and realized there were none available for younger children.

From that realization, Camp Helping Hands™ (CHH) was born. CHH is a co-ed summer day camp for kids ages six to 13 with service-learning as its core theme.  Service-learning emphasizes both service and learning and requires participants to use their knowledge and skills to address real-life needs in their own communities.  

At Camp Helping Hands, campers will do just this by following the four phases of the service-learning process: investigation, planning, taking action, and reflection. When campers are led through this collaborative process, they share and invest their ideas and skills and feel truly committed to the project and to making a difference. Local organizations from the community will join as service partners, and local college students will lead the groups as CHH counselors.  

The theme for 2011 is “Living: Our Place in the World,” and the three-week session will be hosted at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks.  During week one, CHH campers will work with Waste Management to see firsthand how a landfill can be transformed into a pollinator garden. After a brief facility tour, which includes an up-close visit with Avian Entertainment falconers and their bir

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First 2011 Chevy Volt Ordered in Ventura County Arrives at the Murphy Auto Museum on January 7th

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The Murphy Auto Museum finally received the 2011 Chevy Volt ordered by Museum Director Dr. Dan Murphy.  It was the first order placed in Ventura County.  Dr. Murphy was able to take delivery last Friday, January 7th, at Paradise Chevrolet in Ventura. (Note from Conejo Joe: I believe Volt pricing starts in the $41,000 range). Volt is not cheap, but certainly interesting. It'll take you 35 miles gas free, then gas kicks in for another 340 miles, or a total range of 375 miles.

Over 1,800 are Homeless in Ventura County According to a January 2010 Survey

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During the last week of January 2010, the Ventura County Homeless and Housing Coalition coordinated a count of homeless individuals in Ventura County.

A person was considered homeless in the survey if he/she fell within the Department of Housing and Urban Development definition, residing in 1) places not meant for human habitation, such as cars, parks, sidewalks and abandoned buildings, 2) in an emergency shelter or 3) in transitional housing for homeless persons.

In its April 2010 report, the Coalition counted 1,815 homeless individuals, keeping in mind that the count understated the actual number due to the complexities involved. The count in 2009 was 2,193 and the previous count in 2007 was 1,961. Here are some details from the latest count:

  • 88% were adults and 12% were children
  • 5% of the adults counted were 62 or older
  • 67% of the adults were men and 33% were women
  • 117 families were counted, the majority (74%) of which were single-parent families

Of the 1,815 reported homeless, 601 were in Ventura, 520 in Oxnard, 229 in Simi Valley, 223 in unincorporated areas, 106 in Thousand Oaks, 54 in Santa Paula, 52 in Ojai, 15 in Camarillo, 9 in Port Hueneme, 5 in Fillmore and 1 in Moorpark.

The Coalition noted this count does not include people at risk of becoming homeless. In 2000, there were 42,000 households, consisting of about 130,000 people (20% of Ventura County at that time) whose households earned less than $25,000 per year. Additionally, 8%, or close to 64,000 Ventura County residents, were living below the poverty level*.

If you encounter someone in need, refer them to this list of Ventura County homeless shelters and hot meal providers.

* 2010 Poverty Guidelines issued by the Department of Health and Human Services is $10,830 for a 1 person family, $14,570 for 2, $18,310 for 3, $22,050 for 4 and so on.

The Ventura County Maritime Museum is More Than Doubling its Size in 2011!

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The Ventura County Maritime Museum is currently located at Fisherman’s Wharf, on the corner of Channel Islands Boulevard and Victoria Avenue in Oxnard.  The Museum was opened in 1991 and will celebrate its twentieth anniversary in February.  The permanent collection includes an unbelievable array of fine maritime art, a large number of exquisitely detailed model ships, and other marine artifacts.  The Museum is open seven days a week from 11 to 5 and has always offered free admission.  The Museum is staffed by one full time employee and 4 part time employees, and this small staff is adequate only because of the over 80 active volunteers.

Because of impending redevelopment and the desire for a larger facility, the Museum is moving from its present 5,000 sq ft location to a larger 12,000 sq ft facility on the west side of the harbor.  The Museum has purchased the rights to a building, the old Port Royal restaurant, and has entered into a long term lease with the County.  Our selected architectural firm, Lauterbach and Associates, has completed the

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Why Are There No Ventura County Cities on MONEY Magazine's America's 100 Best Small Cities List?

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The August 2010 issue of MONEY Magazine published its annual list of "100 Best Places to Live in America." I have subscribed to MONEY for years and each year my wife reviews the list and tells me 3 other places she would like to consider moving to. To which I reply:

I LIKE IT WHERE WE LIVE!

Curious, I reviewed MONEY's 2010 list and there was not a single Ventura County city on it.

MONEY's methodology was to start out with the 746 U.S. cities with a population of 50,000 to 300,000*, remove median incomes greater than 200% or below 85% of the state median, retirement communities, large job losses and poor education scores, then rank the remaining cities based on housing affordability, education, arts/leisure, health care, safety and other factors. *This methodology eliminates fine cities like Agoura and Moorpark from consideration.

Then they whittle down the list based on economic factors and visit 30 of the cities to select the winner.

Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, Camarillo and Oxnard, all cities between 50,000 and 300,000, are nowhere to be found on the list.

I looked back at MONEY's Top 100 lists going back to 2005 and only once, Simi Valley in 2006 (#35), has a Ventura County city been included on this list. Something ain't right here!

Well it should be noted that Newbury Park, albeit not officially a city (it is part of Thousand Oaks), made it to #71 on the 2005 list. But that was 5 years ago!

Why is it that cities like Piscataway, NJ, Centreville, VA, Roswell, GA and Stillwater, OK made the list but not a single city from Ventura County has made the list  going back to 2006!?

MONEY, are you reading this? Come visit Ventura County why doncha and check out what we have to offer! Yah, all right, it is still a bit pricey to live here, but we have hundreds of things to do and all sorts of local events year round,  kids' activities and plenty more!

No offense, but I'm not leaving the Conejo Valley for Owensboro, KY, Gilbert, AZ, O'Fallon, MO or Millcreek, PA any time soon. I'm staying put right here in America's #1 county, Ventura County! :>

For the record though, here are the top 10 cities on the 2010 list: Eden Prairie, MN, Columbia/Ellicott City, MD, Newton, MA, Bellevue, WA, McKinney, TX, Fort Collins, CO, Overland Park, KS, Fishers, IN, Ames, IA and Rogers, AZ.

The Sun Was Beaming on the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza Today

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Local resident Sarah Roth was visiting the beautiful Gardens of the World with her family today when she took this photo of the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza across the street. It looks like a sunbeam coming out of the sky! It was a perfect fall day after a night of light rain, with highs in the mid to upper 60s. Yet another great day to be out and about in the Conejo Valley.

Check Your DUI Test Results Online Via the Ventura County Sheriff's Department Website

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The Ventura County Sheriff's Department announced that, beginning October 1st, people arrested for driving under the influence can obtain their test results via their website at www.vcsd.org.

Simply scroll down and find the "DUI Results" icon (or alternatively, click the "Alcohol Test Results" link in the footer, and you will be brought to a page (shown below) that requires you to submit your first/last name, date of birth and date of test (if you were REALLY inebriated, perhaps you won't remember this).

After submitting the information, you will see your test results. Hopefully you failed this particular test. You will then be allowed to print a copy that you can proudly display on you wall (if you failed) or provide to your attorney (if you "passed").

This site provides the same information that individuals can obtain by presenting their information at the Forensic Sciences Laboratory. The site was developed with funding provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, to bring new technologies and enhanced services for alcohol testing to Ventura County.

PLEASE DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE!

This is one post I hope none of you out there have to make use of!