Assembly Bill 2149 would rein an increasingly popular gimmick used by sales people in which they claim to be “senior experts” offering advice, rather than sales people out to make a buck. The bill would regulate the use of “expertise” designations and require actual training of anyone who would seek to convince seniors that they have special knowledge about their needs.

The full Senate, voting during an afternoon session, approved the bill on a 26-9 vote.

“I’m very pleased,” said Berg, D-Eureka, “that so many senators share my belief that we can and should do what we can to protect older adults.”

Berg’s bill is designed to stop unscrupulous salespeople from using bogus titles to gain the confidence of older adults, who all too often lose their life’s savings to sweet-sounding pitches by so-called experts.

After Thursday’s approval, the bill needs a concurrence vote in the Assembly – where success is expected – before being sent to the governor.

Berg, who for years has been the Legislature’s key thinker on aging issues, has introduced a trio of bills this year, all designed to give seniors more information about the people they are dealing with when considering insurance or financial investments. The fleecing of older adults, known to police as elder financial abuse, is one of the fastest-growing segments of crime in the country.

The bills are sponsored by the California Alliance for Retired Americans and the Congress of California Seniors. The Gray Panthers of California and the Older Women’s League are also in support.

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Deputy Air Pollution Control Officer Doug Gearhart reported Friday that the air quality index for particulate matter was in the good range on Friday, and is expected to remain at that level through Sunday.

He said the local air quality index is expected to remain well below the 101 rating which would trigger an unhealthy alert.

Several unhealthy air alerts were given last month as a result of wildfires on the North Coast and around Northern California.

Some residual smoke that returned to the Lake County Air Basin earlier this week was transported from many uncontrolled fires that still are burning in the northern part of the state, Gearhart said. Progress is being made on these federal land wildfires but much of the complexes are in rugged and remote areas.

Winds are expected to be mostly from the west with some northwest patterns through Sunday, keeping much of the smoke to the north and west of Lake County, according to Gearhart.

Residual smoke can be expected to remain throughout areas of Northern California on occasion, including Lake County, though at a much reduced level, until the lightning complex wildfires are contained, he said.

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Bryce Hayes and his 4-H project pig. Courtesy photo.

KELSEYVILLE – Hi, my name is Bryce Hayes I am a member of the Kelseyville 4-H Club.

This is my fifth year in 4-H. I am also a three-year member of the C and L Club, which is a Citizenship and Leadership project. In my 4-H club, I have been the treasurer and vice president, and this year I was the secretary.

I love 4-H because it gives you opportunities to work with other 4-H members and be involved in my community.

The projects that I am involved in this year are swine, horse, cavy, shooting sports, leadership and poultry. For some of my projects I am the junior teen leader. This is when I get to plan and run a portion of the meetings.

The projects that I am junior teen leader of are cavy, horse and shooting sports. The animals that I am taking to fair are two market ready swines. For our poultry educational display I will have pheasant and p-foul, or peacocks.

It is a lot of hard work to raise animals for the fair. Your day starts off really early you have to clean, feed and work your animal for the fair. On top of all that, we need to keep track of the animal’s weight gain and all that fun stuff. You also keep records of every time you clean, water, feed and work with them.

Now all that work you did keeping records you get to turn it into a thing we call a record book. You also have to put everything that you have learned in the different projects that you are taking and how much money you have invested in. Now that’s a lot of paper work. When my book is complete I take it to our first club meeting of the new year where it will be judged by a panel of parents.

So when you are at the fair just remember not all the animals there are pets, some of them are projects and learning experiences that will last a lifetime. So come on down to the Lake County Fair and look for me, Bryce Hayes, from Kelseyville 4-H!

4-H Youth Development is a program of the University of California Cooperative Extension. For more information on the 4-H program contact U.C. Cooperative Extension, 883 Lakeport Blvd., Lakeport, 263-6838.

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The Friday Night Farmers’ Market, located adjacent to Austin Park in Clearlake, offers local farm-fresh produce, crafters, vendors, live music and prepared foods. The market is a California Certified Farmers’ Market and runs from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. every Friday night through Oct. 17.

On Aug. 22, the featured music act will be Dan Meyer and the Misdemeanors of Jazz. The winner of the co-op’s logo contest will be announced at 7 p.m., with the winner receiving a box of local organic produce every week for four weeks. Help the co-op celebrate all of its successes at this special event. Please check out the logo submissions on the co-op wikisite – http://lakecountycommunityco-op.wikispaces.com/ – and cast your vote by midnight on Aug. 20.

The Co-op Buying Club boasts two different boxes of organic produce: the “Purist Box” combines local produce with produce from River Dog Farm in Capay Valley; the “Fruit and Veggie Box” comes from an organic supplier that supports a wider range of produce. Local organic pears are available from Yoxagoi Farms in Kelseyville. Produce orders can be picked up from 5:50 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. on Thursdays in Clearlake. To place an order for produce boxes, call Ann Breen at 995-0696 or email her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Volunteer coordinator Barbara Christwitz reminds buying club members, “We can only be successful if the community steps forward to sustain the buying club through volunteering.”

Anyone wanting to volunteer for the buying club or any of the co-op’s projects or committees can call her at 995-0490.

For more information about Lake County Community Co-Op, or any of their projects, stop by the co-op information booth at the Friday Night Market. Or, you can link from the Web site http://lakeco-op.org to the co-op’s wikisite.

Another great way to find out about the co-op is to drop in at a general meeting. The meetings are held the second Saturday of each month at the Hot Spot Youth Center, 4750 Golf Ave. in Clearlake from 10 a.m. until noon.

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The meeting will take place in the multi-use room located on Wardlaw Street.

Under unfinished business, the group will discuss the Middletown Street Light Project.

In new business, Rick Coel, director of Lake County's Community Development Department, will make a presentation. Discussion will be held on videotaping MATH meeting and street and stop signs will be an action item on the agenda.

MATH is a municipal advisory council serving the residents of Anderson Springs, Cobb, Coyote Valley (including Hidden Valley Lake), Long Valley, and Middletown. The meetings are open to the public.

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Kimo is a missing Rhodesian Ridgeback whose family wants to find him. Courtesy photo.

LAKEPORT – A Lakeport family is hoping to find their lost dog.

The male Rhodesian Ridgeback, who answers to the name “Kimo,” is around 90 pounds. He escaped from the yard at 250 Konocti Ave. on Aug. 10 at about 1:30 p.m.

The family's children miss the dog very much and hope to have him home soon.

If you have seen the dog please call Diane Allen at 334-3668.

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