The meeting will be held at 9 a.m. at Upper Lake's Station 90 on Main Street.

Anyone who is interested in the team is encouraged to attend.

For more information contact the Northshore Dive Team at 707-275-2446 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

MIDDLETOWN – Funtopia, Lake County's premier toy store, is helping give Lake County's only site-based charter school, Lake County International Charter School (LCICS), a fighting chance in the face of tremendous state budget cuts.

Funtopia will match up to $1,000 in donations made via LCICS's PayPal account from now through Jan. 31.

“When we opened Funtopia, over four years ago, we did it to give people choices by providing quality toys not found elsewhere in Lake County. We can't be everything to everybody, but we can offer options, just like LCICS offers a fantastic option for tuition-free public school education in Lake County,” said Funtopia's co-owner and LCICS Charter Council Member Jason Curtis.

“We are blessed with many great schools in Lake County and we see our committed teachers in Funtopia frequently,” said Jennifer Nunn, Funtopia's co-owner and Jason Curtis' wife. “We know the passion and dedication it takes to educate and shape young minds. We always give a discount to schools, but we wanted to do something more, that is why we are supporting LCICS's viral campaign to fight the budget cuts that are threatening the choices we have in Lake County.”

“LCICS is doing something very innovative, they are hoping that by reaching out to everyone through Facebook, they can bring in additional donations from friends, family and supporters of learning choices from inside and outside Lake County,” said Curtis.

Curtis said the school's goal is to raise over $60,000, in increments of $5, $10 or more, to fight the state budget cuts that have impacted its ability to thrive and grow.

To help that effort Funtopia will be matching dollar-for-dollar up to $1,000 in donations made via the web before Jan. 31.

Curtis urged people to go to www.lcics.org/donate.html, click the “Make a Donation” button and donate. Even $5 can make a huge difference, he said.

LCICS is a tuition-free, kindergarten through eighth grade public school that is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and an authorized International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, providing students with an inquiry-based, enriched education in a nurturing environment.

At LCICS, students are taught to become competent and self-motivated individuals with a commitment to life-long learning, enabling them to reach their full potentials as literate, knowledgeable, principled and responsible global citizens of the 21st century.

Funtopia, located at 21208 Calistoga St. in Middletown, is Lake County's award-winning locally owned independent toy store, specializing in unique, affordable toys and games that enhance play and creativity for children of all ages. With their 1,000-plus item inventory, they are the perfect place to find that special gift and have it wrapped for free.

“California’s specialty crop production leads the nation,” said Secretary A.G. Kawamura. “By providing federal funding to California growers and farm associations we are creating a more dynamic and innovative food system that will benefit all consumers.”

The competitive solicitation process begins with submission of concept proposals by eligible non-profit organizations; local, state and federal government entities; for profit organizations; and universities. Applicants with the most competitive proposals will be invited to participate in the second phase of the solicitation process by submitting a more formal application.

The deadline for applications is Feb. 1.

Applicants must access the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) at www.cdfa.ca.gov/grants for detailed solicitation and application instructions.

To streamline and expedite the application process, the department is partnering with the California State Water Resources Control Board, which hosts an online application site using the Financial Assistance Application Submittal Tool (FAAST). All applicants must register for a FAAST account at https://faast.waterboards.ca.gov .

The California Department of Food and Agriculture will award federal funds, on a competitive basis, to projects ranging from $75,000 to $500,000.

The 2010 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and authorized by the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 (farm bill).

The purpose of the program is to solely enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. Specialty crops are defined as fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture and nursery crops (including floriculture).

Prospective applicants may contact CDFA’s Federal Funds Management Office at 916-657-3231 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

This free-to-the-public event offers brides-to-be a look at the best wedding professionals that service Lake County.

Established in 2009, www.LakeCountyWedding.com is the effort to establish Lake County as a major wedding destination while also providing a resource for local couples to the very best wedding professionals serving Lake County.

Following an ever growing trend by brides-to-be to utilize the Internet as a research tool when planning their wedding, www.LakeCountyWedding.com offers a free resource for both the site’s visitors and those who wish to list their services on the site, marrying customers and clients into one happy couple.

What’s more, the site is intended to direct those looking for a beautiful wine country destination location to Lake County as an alternative to more pricey locations south of the County.

“We have some beautiful places to have a wedding and reception here in Lake County at a fraction of the price that someone would pay for a similar experience in Napa,” said the site’s visionary Tony Barthel, who owns a wedding venue in Lake County as well as in Southern California and has written the book “Wedding Horror Stories and How to Avoid Them.”

“I’ve spent 22 years in the wedding business and Lake County has so much to offer, but there was never a Web site that collected all these resources into one place,” Barthel said. “Now there is.”

The Wedding Faire is an opportunity to meet the people behind the Web site and learn more about the intricacies of planning a wedding as well. The timing is great, as the largest number of engagements occur on Christmas, Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve.

“It’s great to start planning a wedding early and this is a one-stop opportunity to do so,” said Barthel.

Brides-to-be can establish relationships with the best wedding pros at the show and then continue those relationships at www.LakeCountyWedding.com .

Not just weddings

While the Two Hearts Wedding Fair’s focus is weddings, many of the professionals at the show and on www.LakeCountyWedding.com offer services that are applicable to all sorts of celebrations.

For example, there are shops that offer party supplies, rentals, florists, photographers and many other professionals who can be called upon as a resource at other times.

Knowing a limousine company can help if someone is planning a wine tour, and a great photographer can also help with those family, school or holiday portraits. Most of the venues listed are also adept at handling family reunions, gatherings and even business events.

About LakeCountyWedding.com

While the site is only a few months old, www.LakeCountyWedding.com has already become a popular search result for those looking for a wine country wedding.

Utilizing keywords that reflect the region, the site’s traffic comes primarily from those seeking a wine country destination wedding.

Traffic statistics for the site demonstrate that most of the visitors are coming from the Bay Area, Sacramento and Santa Rosa and have used keywords indicating that they’re interested in getting married “in the wine country.”

Statistics show that they’re finding things they’re interested in and are returning to the site more than once.

Those interested in listing their business on www.LakeCountyWedding.com or participating in the Wedding Faire should visit the site for more information.