Roundup: So Cool in School
Analy classrooms now have air conditioning; traveling to Ukraine and more
Eighty degree weather should no longer bother students and faculty at Analy High School. About $11 million in Measure A bond funds were used this summer for new construction and improvements on campus. HVAC and new roofing were completed for the main building, the Industrial Arts building, the East Wing and café.
It’s been a long time coming. The contracts for the architects (QKA) were approved by the district board in October 2022. The architects submitted plans to the Division of State Architect (DSA) for review at the end of January 2023 and approval was expected to take 6-8 months. However, it wasn’t until December 2023 that the project was approved by DSA. Bidding for the construction contract went out in March and April of this year, and work by Wright Construction began as soon as school was out for the summer. The work was completed in August in time for the new school year.
“We also power washed the entire school and did a few other improvements around campus,” said Jennie Bruneman, director of facilities for the district and the person who manages closely the prioritization and planning for all these projects.
At Wednesday’s school board meeting, a faculty member and a student each expressed their gratitude for the new AC, as well as for the work done over the summer to clean the campus by the facilities team. Lily Smedshammer, president of the teachers union, said that “the AC was a humongous success.” She also appreciated being able to adjust the temperatures in her classroom because once the classroom fills with a large number of teenagers, the temperature rises “like it’s a jungle.”
Here are some photos of the work being done this summer, photos courtesy of Jennie Bruneman, who deserves kudos for her and her team’s work.
An August Trip to Ukraine
John Namkung recently returned from a two-week humanitarian mission to Ukraine. John, who has helped organize bringing Ukrainian refugees to Sonoma County, was accompanied on the trip from the US by Alla Stetsenko, who wanted to return to her hometown. A grandmother and baker who John assisted in coming to Sonoma County two years ago with her daughter-in-law and two grandchildren, Alla decided to go back to Chernihiv. John and Alla flew to Poland and then he drove to Kyiv where Alla caught a bus to her hometown.
John wrote up his trip report online, and it’s quite moving — and a bit frightening, as he unexpectedly found himself closer to the front lines than he had planned. His blog, Bread is Life, is worth reading.
Here’s an excerpt from John’s blog:
About one hour away from Kyiv, the siren on my Air Alert app went off and warned citizens in the cities of Lviv, Rivne, Kyiv, and Chernihiv, to seek shelter immediately. These are four of the major cities that are on my itinerary, so I was understandably a little concerned. I had earlier asked the rental car company agent what I should do if the siren went off while I was driving. She said most Ukrainians ignore the instructions and continue driving, thinking that since no one knows where the missiles will hit, you might as well keep driving. The alert ended about 30 minutes later.
John worked in a humanitarian program called Bread is Life to bake and deliver bread in different cities.
At one point, while John is in a van with others going to deliver bread, they hear machine gun fire.
These were live bullets near us that I was hearing. Just then, a military vehicle with its windshield shattered by bullets came speeding by from the direction of the explosions. It swerved wildly over the dirt road and we noticed that all of its tires were flat. I kept thinking, “We need to get out of here.” My colleagues must have felt the same way as we got in the van and drove away from the village. Ivan told me that the Ukrainians were firing their machine guns in the air at Russian drones. The fact that there were drones in the air was also unnerving.
John later met up with Alla in Chernihiv.
Imagine, if you will, what it must have been like for a 61-year-old grandmother who lived in Chernihiv all her life to suddenly be dropped down in a foreign country where she couldn’t speak the language, didn’t know how to travel independently, and was totally dependent on others for everything. While she was grateful for all the support she received the past two years, her heart was always in Ukraine.
When I met her today for dinner at her apartment, I asked her if she was happy. A huge smile broke out, and she exclaimed loudly, “Very happy, very happy.” I knew that being home was a huge emotional experience in her life. And for that, I was also happy for her.
He also met the families in Chernihiv related to those who are now living in Sonoma County. He brought them gifts and returned to Sonoma County with the same bag refilled with gifts for the Ukrainians living back here.
John will be giving a talk about his trip to Ukraine on Thursday, Sept. 12, 7-8:30 pm at the Community Church of Sebastopol (1000 Gravenstein Hwy. North, Sebastopol). He said, “I want to give you a snapshot of what it’s like to live in a country at war, both in relatively safe areas as well as near the front lines of the war. What you see and read in the news are often sensational and newsworthy events. I try to show you what the ordinary Ukrainian copes with on a daily basis. I will also share with you the stories of brave, heroic and compassionate Ukrainians who are devoting their lives to try and meet the needs of struggling Ukrainians who either live near the front lines of the war or who fled and are displaced throughout the country.”
See also my interview with John Namkung on the Sebastopol City Limits podcast from September 2022.
Local Businesses Wanted for Student Internships
The West Sonoma County Union High School District is expanding its programs to provide students with actual work experience. “We’re currently trying to find placements and matches for our students who are seeking internships,” wrote Heidi Mickelson who is the CTE Coordinator. Here’s a flyer that they are circulating.
Correction: Ragle’s New Soccer Field
In a City Watch article this week, I mentioned that youth soccer season at Ragle Park had started. I noticed that a girls team was playing on the new field that WESCO put in and the field appeared dried out. I assumed that was due to the Gravenstein Apple Fair using it for parking a week earlier. WESCO Treasurer Steve Yob wrote: “The new field (field 1) was not used for parking for the Apple fair. The park services will not allow parking on the new field with the new irrigation installed. It just looks dry as it’s new and working through its first-year maturing cycle.”
Sebastopol Police Logs, Aug. 12-18
The following are crimes excerpted from Sebastopol Police Department daily crime log entries and listed at the time the alleged violation was reported.
MONDAY
11:26 p.m. Inflicting corporeal injury on a spouse or companion (felony) at Murphy Avenue and Batley Court. Suspect arrested.
11:26 p.m. Violation of post-release community supervision (felony) at Murphy Avenue and Batley Court. Suspect arrested.
THURSDAY
9:45 a.m. Theft of property after a prior conviction, and embezzlement (felony) at Gravenstein Highway South and Cooper Road. Pending further investigation.
10:03 p.m. Theft of property after a prior conviction (felony) at Bodega Avenue and High Street. Investigation suspended, leads exhausted.
FRIDAY
11:13 a.m. Petty theft from a motor vehicle (misdemeanor) at North Main Street and Healdsburg Avenue. Investigation suspended, leads exhausted.
8:22 p.m. Grand theft and burglary from a motor vehicle (felonies) at Petaluma and Abbott avenues. Pending further investigation.
SATURDAY
2:33 p.m. Served with an arrest warrant for failure to appear in court on a felony charge, violation of probation (felonies), giving false identification to and resisting a public officer (misdemeanors), possession of an open container of alcohol in a public place, and infraction of a Sebastopol city ordinance at Gravenstein Highway North and Hurlbut Avenue. Suspect arrested.
5:00 p.m. Resisting a public officer, possession of unlawful paraphernalia, failure to appear in court after making a written promise, and served with an arrest warrant for failure to appear in court on a misdemeanor charge (misdemeanors) at Laguna Park Way and McKinley Street. Suspect arrested.
11:31 p.m. Disorderly conduct involving alcohol, and violation of probation (misdemeanors) at Pleasant Hill Avenue North and Bodega Avenue. Suspect arrested.
SUNDAY
2:58 a.m. Served a misdemeanor arrest warrant for an outside agency at North Main Street and Healdsburg Avenue. Suspect arrested.
9:33 a.m. Possession of unlawful paraphernalia, and failure to appear in court after making a written promise (misdemeanors) at North Main Street and Healdsburg Avenue. Suspect arrested.
1:03 p.m. Failure to appear in court after making a written promise (misdemeanor) at Gravenstein Highway North and Hurlbut Avenue. Suspect arrested.
8:43 p.m. Trespassing, refusing to leave private property, and possession of a narcotic controlled substance (misdemeanors) at North Main Street and Healdsburg Avenue. Suspect arrested.
OTHER POLICE ACTION
The Sebastopol Police Department also recorded 165 other events requiring police action during the period, such as lost animals, assisting citizens, parking violations, foot patrol, traffic hazards and reckless driving.
Quote of the Week
Our fellow citizens deserve the same grace we hope they’ll extend to us.
— Barack Obama, from his speech this week at the Democratic Party Convention
The Week of August 19-24
A busy week full of good stories that you wouldn’t know about if not for the Sebastopol Times.
I hope they not only used measure A but fully capitalize on IRA funding for Heatpump or electrification work. They probably did. But can you forward to school board/principal just in case, please --> 30% of cost can be rewarded via direct pay since there is no tax rebate: https://www.undauntedk12.org/for-school-boards https://www.whitehouse.gov/cleanenergy/directpay/
"Direct Pay: The investment and
clean transportation tax credits
in the Inflation Reduction Act
include a Direct Pay option,
which allows non-taxable entities, such
as schools, to receive the eligible amount
as a cash payment from the IRS. These
dollars are uncapped and non-competitive.
For more details on the various financial
incentives available to schools for adopting
clean energy, see Schools and the Inflation
Reduction Act."
Congratulations Analy, thanks for all the hard work and to measure A for making this happen.