UPPER LAKE, Calif. – The Redwood Empire Civil War Roundtable will discuss the 150th anniversary of the battle between the ironclads Monitor and Merrimac when it meets on Monday, March 5.

The meeting will begin at 6:15 p.m. at the historic Tallman Hotel, 9550 Main St. in Upper Lake.

Admission is free.

It was 150 years ago, on March 9, 1862, that for the first time in history two ironclad ships fought each other.

The day before, the ironclad CSS Virginia (formerly the USS Merrimac) had been wreaking havoc near Newport News, Virginia, sinking two federal frigates.

When the Confederate naval ship arrived the next day to sink more Union ships, it was met by a federal ironclad, the USS Monitor, and the resulting battle changed naval history forever.  

The details of this epic event will be covered at this month's Redwood Empire Civil War Roundtable.

Presenter Mark Cooper will lead the group in analyzing the events leading up to that fateful day, how the battle was fought, and how it was the end of one era and the beginning of another.  

Cooper, a well-known Lake County dentist, will utilize a variety of multimedia tools, including PowerPoint, video, audio and group discussion in his presentation.  

Cooper is a longtime amateur historian who perfected a powerful three-hour review of the Civil War that he annually presents for the history classes at Yuba College.

Cooper's presentation will be followed by a presentation by Zane Jensen entitled “The Struggle for Tennessee,” highlighting the Battles for Forts Henry and Donelson, leading up to the Battle of Shiloh.

Jensen is a US history teacher at Terrace Middle School in Lakeport, and an amateur historian who recently visited the battle sites he will discuss.

The Redwood Empire Civil War Roundtable was founded in 2010 to commemorate the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War.

The group meets once a month and attempts to review the events that occurred that month, 150 years ago.

For more information, contact Phil Smoley at 707-264-4905 or Zane Jensen at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Middletown residents Mike and Ramona McKell were the first to kick off Lake County CAN Stop Hunger with donations of non perishable foods at Middletown Methodist Church during the 31-day countywide campaign.

Lake County CAN! Stop Hunger Now is working to stock seven food pantries around Lake County and prepare 20,000 meals to be shipped overseas.

If you want to help, look for the “Stop Hunger” cans at Mount St. Helena Brewery, the Hardester's Stores in Middletown, Cobb and Hidden Valley Lake and the Social Hall of all the Methodist Churches in Lake County.

For more information visit www.LakeCountyCAN.org .

For more information call 707-295-7174 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

The U.S. Postal Service is hosting a series of Passport Fairs in the North Bay on Saturday, March 10, to provide passport information to U.S. citizens and to accept passport applications.

The Postal Service is joining the U.S. Department of State in celebrating “Passport Day in the USA,” a national passport acceptance and outreach event.

“We are happy to leverage the convenience of the Postal Service and partner with the Department of State to help our customers apply for passports,” said Raj Sanghera Postmaster of San Francisco.

On March 10, customers can visit one of the following locations to apply for a passport without first making an appointment.

Sonoma County

• Santa Rosa Main Post Office, 730 Second St., Santa Rosa, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Sonoma Main Post Office, 617 Broadway, Sonoma, 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• Sebastopol Post Office, 290 S. Main St., Sebastopol, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Mendocino County

• Littleriver Post Office, 7748 N. Highway 1, Littleriver, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Application forms, information on the costs and how to apply for a passport book and/or passport card can be found at www.usps.com/passport or www.travel.state.gov/ .

U.S. citizens also may obtain passport information by phone, in English and Spanish, by calling the National Passport Information Center toll-free at 877-487-2778.

In 2011, the Postal Service accepted more than 5.7 million passport applications at more than 6,000 retail locations across the country. Most of the locations also offer passport photo services at a price of $15.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The next HazMobile event will be held Friday, March 16, and Saturday, March 17, at Kelseyville Lumber, 3555 N. Main St., Kelseyville.

Hours will be from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Households can bring up to 15 gallons of toxic items free of charge. Fees will be charged for amounts over 15 gallons.

Items that are accepted include paint, solvents, fuels, five-gallon propane tanks, pool chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, batteries, fluorescent light tubes (up to 60 linear feet) and other toxic materials that cannot be put in the trash.

Items that cannot be accepted include televisions, computer monitors, ammunition, explosives, radioactive materials or infectious wastes.

To learn how and where to properly dispose these items, please visit www.recycling.co.lake.ca.us or contact the Recycling Hotline at 707-263-1980.

HazMobile services are provided to residential households by the Integrated Waste Management Division of the Lake County Public Services Department and the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, (CalRecycle).

Businesses also are welcome to use this convenient service to properly dispose of hazardous waste and protect our environment, however, businesses must pay for this taxpayer-funded service and first make an appointment.

Business appointments can be made by calling the Mendocino County Solid Waste Authority, the contracted agency that provides this service in Lake County at 707-468-9786.

Free recycling options for residents and businesses:

• Recycled paint is available to both residents and businesses at Lake County Waste Solutions on first-come, first-served basis in five gallon containers. Colors include tan, brown, gray and pink.
• Used cooking oil can be dropped-off by businesses and residents, which will be recycled into BioDiesel by Yokayo BioFuels. Drop off at Lake County Waste Solutions, South Lake Refuse & Recycling Center and the North Shore Fire Protection District station at 6257 Seventh Ave. in Lucerne.
• Used motor oil can be dropped-off by residents for recycling year round at a number of sites in the county. Visit www.recycling.co.lake.ca.us for locations.
• Electronics (E-Waste) can be dropped off at Lake County Waste Solutions, South Lake Refuse & Recycling Center, and monthly at the Goodwill E-Waste collection held in Lakeport.

Lake County Waste Solutions
230 Soda Bay Road, Lakeport
888-718-4888 or 707-234-6400
Monday-Saturday, 7:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
www.candswaste.com

South Lake Refuse & Recycling Center
16015 Davis St., Clearlake
Open daily, 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m.
707-994-8614
www.southlakerefuse.com

The HazMobile program is subsidized by the Lake County Public Services Department, Integrated Waste Management Division and CalRecycle as a public service to Lake County residents.

For more information about recycling, reusing and reducing, please visit www.recycling.co.lake.ca.us or call the Recycling Hotline at 707-263-1980.

MENDOCINO NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. – For the next week, starting tomorrow, the Mendocino National Forest will be training candidates applying for the Willits Organized Crew.

The Organized Crew is a firefighting crew that is available for assignments from late spring through fall on a call-as-needed basis. Most participants are interested in wildland firefighting and employed in other jobs that allow flexibility for the program.

The training will take place at the Willits Community Center, located at 111 E. Commercial St. in Willits.

Beginning Saturday, the forest will be processing paperwork for applicants at the center, followed by the work capacity test on Sunday where applicants are required to walk three miles in 45 minutes carrying a 45-pound pack.

Monday through Friday will be concentrated on classroom work between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. The training will be complete following a field exercise on Thursday, March 15.

This year more than 100 candidates are expected to participate in the training, among them Lake County residents.

Approximately 40 will be selected to work on two 20-person crews. This year the Mendocino will host 13 Organized Crews, including the two Willits crews.

The Organized Crew program is important for the Forest Service. The crews are called when needed and dispatched on fire assignments not only for the Mendocino National Forest, but also supporting firefighting efforts across the country.

Last year the Willits Organized Crew assignments included wildfires in Arizona and Minnesota.

The crews can also be called upon when local firefighting resources are assigned to other incidents and the fire danger is increasing locally.

The Mendocino National Forest also has brought the crews on for assignments to help with fuel reduction and forest health activities during slower fire seasons.

“This program is a huge asset for the Mendocino National Forest,” said Mendocino National Forest Fire Training Officer Jesse Roach. “These crews have local knowledge of the area and can be called up, ready and available within 12 hours.”

Once activated, the Organized Crews are treated the same as any other wildland firefighting crew.  Crews are typically sent on 14-day assignments, with a required two days off between assignments. The forest also assigns at least two Forest Services firefighters as crew bosses to go out with the crew.

“The program has also produced many firefighters who have gone on to have successful careers in the Forest Service and with other firefighting programs,” Roach said.

The candidates receive $15.98 per hour and three college credits for the training. If they are selected for a crew and dispatched on a fire assignment they could earn anywhere from $15.64 to $21.04 per hour.

“We genuinely appreciate the Willits community’s support as we train the Organized Crews in preparation for the coming fire season,” Forest Supervisor Sherry Tune said. “This annual training helps us support local businesses, teach wildland firefighting skills and provide on-call work for at least 40 people on the two crews.”

For more information, please visit the Mendocino National Forest Web page at www.fs.usda.gov/mendocino or call 530-934-3316.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Redbud Library will hold its quarterly book sale on Saturday, March 3.

The sale will take place from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the library, located at 14785 Burns Valley Road, Clearlake.

Stuff a book bag with books, CDs and DVDs for $15 or buy them separately.

For more information call the library, 707-994-5115.