LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Thanksgiving community dinners will be held at the Lakeport and Kelseyville senior centers on Wednesday, Nov. 23, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The dinners are open to all ages at no charge.

Joel Duguay with Microtone Audiology and Hearing Aid Center has generously sponsored this year’s food.

Volunteers are needed to help serve and should arrive by 10:45 a.m. to help with setup and get assignments.

For more information on this event call 707-263-4218.

Christmas Dinner has been sponsored by the Rotary Club of Kelseyville Sunrise and will be on Dec. 22 with more details to come.

The Lakeport Senior Activity Center is located at 527 Konocti Ave. The Kelseyville Senior Center is located at 5245 Third St.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Public Health has received a limited supply of Prevnar 13, the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine.

Prevnar 13 vaccine is used for the prevention of pneumococcal pneumonia and invasive disease caused by 13 streptococcus pneumoniae strains.

These vaccines will be provided free-of-charge except for a $9 administration fee while supplies last.

Eligibility guidelines to qualify for this program are:

– Prevnar 13 vaccine is available to adults 65 years of age or older.
– Adults 19 years of age or older with immunocompromising conditions, functional or anatomic asplenia, CSF leaks or cochlear implants, and who have not previously received PCV13 or PPSV23, should receive a dose of PCV13 first followed by a dose of PPSV23 at least eight weeks later.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, please call Public Health at Lake County Public Health, 922 Bevins Court, Lakeport, telephone 707-263-1090 or 800-794-9291.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Michael Lorren Allen, also known as Big Mike, passed away on Oct. 24, 2016, at the age of 42, after a short illness with family by his side.

A celebration of life will be held at the Legion Hall in Kelseyville on Nov. 20 at 2 p.m. All friends and family are welcome.

Mike was born on Oct. 7, 1974, to Frances and Lindel Allen in Lakeport, the youngest of three children. He was raised in Kelseyville, where he attended Kelseyville schools. As a single father, he raised his son Michael Junior here.

In 1999 after his father had a stroke, he took over Allens Custom Farming, continuing the work his father did .

Mike was preceded in death by his father, Lindel Allen; brother, James Allen; grandparents, Ed and Hazle Pruett, and Raymond and Mauree Allen; and many aunts and uncles and cousins.

He was survived by his son, Michael Allen Jr.; mother, Frances Allen; sister, Tammy Larned (Dale); the love of his life, Gwen Anderson; family by choice, including brother, Mike Manning and sister, Debbie Read; son, Travis Moore; daughter, Jenifer McNamara; grandchildren, Trinty, Shaelyn and Audree Rose; nieces and nephews, Jamie and Thomas (Hailey, Brook, Samantha), Jessica Read (David and Kylee), Jennifer and John (Daniel and Zackary), Jimmy and Chrissy Allen, (Kathrine and Hazel), Nicole Lund, Kevin Lund (Mackenzie), and Lelend Allen; far to many aunts, uncles and cousins to name; and many, many great friends.

Big Mike was a wonderful son, father, brother, uncle and friend. He will be missed and loved by all.

In lieu of flowers, please spend time with your family and loved ones.

Please share your memories by signing the guestbook at www.legacy.com .

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The First 5 Lake Commission will meet on Friday, Nov. 18.

The commission will meet beginning at 2:30 p.m. in the training/conference room at Legacy Court, 1950 Parallel Drive in Lakeport. 

Agenda items include approval of the 2015-16 independent audit and reports, an update on First 5 Lake’s ordinance revision and the recruitment for the new executive director.

There also will be discussion and action on adding an additional meeting to the 2016 approved meeting schedule, First 5 staff report and commissioners' reports, and public comments and announcements.

Commissioners include Chair Brock Falkenberg and Vice Chair Pam Klier, and members Laurie Daly, Susan Jen, Kathy Maes, Denise Pomeroy, Ana Santana and Jeff Smith.

For more information call the Lake County First 5 Lake Commission at 707-263-6169 or visit www.firstfivelake.org .

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California Community Colleges Board of Governors on Monday elected Cecilia V. Estolano to serve as president and Thomas Epstein to serve as vice president for 2017.

The board, appointed by the governor, nominates and elects its president and vice president each November.

“I couldn’t be happier or more honored to be elected as board president by my colleagues,” said Estolano, who served previously as board vice president. “This is a very exciting time for our system, as we prepare to welcome a new chancellor. I’m very much looking forward to working with the board, in partnership with the governor and the Legislature, to help our 2.1 million students to accomplish their educational goals.”

More on the two officers:

Cecilia V. Estolano of Pasadena, was appointed to serve on the board in 2014. She is co-founder of Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors, which provides consulting services to public agencies, foundations, business associations and other stakeholders looking to grow vibrant communities.

Estolano previously served as chief executive officer of the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles (CRA/LA). Prior to joining CRA/LA, Estolano was of counsel at the law firm of Gibson, Dunn, and Crutcher. Her career also includes service on the California Coastal Commission.

Estolano is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and holds a master’s in urban planning from the University of California, Los Angeles. She received her bachelor’s degree in social studies with honors from Harvard-Radcliffe Colleges.

Thomas Epstein is vice president of public affairs at Blue Shield of California, a statewide not-for-profit health plan based in San Francisco. Prior to joining Blue Shield, he was vice president of communications for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and served in the Clinton White House as a special assistant to the president for political affairs.

Before moving to Washington, Epstein was deputy commissioner for consumer protection and communications in the California Department of Insurance. He earned a J.D. from UCLA School of Law and a bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania, and is a senior fellow at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.

He is a member of the California Bar and serves on the board of trustees of the Coalition for Clean Air, Enroll America and the Blue Shield of California Foundation.

The California Community Colleges is the largest system of higher education in the nation composed of 72 districts and 113 colleges serving 2.1 million students per year.

For more information about the community colleges, please visit http://californiacommunitycolleges.cccco.edu/ , https://www.facebook.com/CACommColleges or https://twitter.com/CalCommColleges .

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Public Services Department announced that the Historic Courthouse Museum in Lakeport and the Historic Schoolhouse Museum in Lower Lake will be closed Thursday, Nov. 24, and Friday, Nov. 25, for the Thanksgiving Day holiday.

The Historic Courthouse in Lakeport and the Schoolhouse Museum in Lower Lake will reopen on Saturday, Nov. 26.

Normal operating hours at the Courthouse Museum in Lakeport are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

The Historic Schoolhouse Museum in Lower is normally open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday though Saturday and closed on Sundays.

If you have any questions regarding this subject, please call the Historic Courthouse Museum in Lakeport at 707-263-4555 or the Historic Schoolhouse Museum in Lower Lake at 707-995-3565.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Redbud Audubon is pleased to welcome Bob Lewis to its November meeting on Thursday, Nov. 17.

Refreshments will be offered at 7 p.m. and the program begins at 7:15 p.m. in the Glebe Social Hall, St. Peter’s Catholic Church, 4085 Main St. in Kelseyville. The program is free and are open to the public. 

The title of Lewis' talk is “A Bird’s Rainbow,” and is a look at the fascinating mysteries of the color of birds.

Many birds are brightly colored; others use patterned feathers for camouflage. How do these colors originate? What’s the difference between colors from pigments and physical colors? From yellow warblers to Anna’s Hummingbirds, from snow geese to Brewer’s Blackbirds, each species makes unique use of the feather colors it possesses.

What do the colors indicate to other birds? And do birds see the same colors we do? Lewis will unravel some of the mysteries of color in birds with a little chemistry, a bit of physics and a lot of brightly colored slides.

Lewis trained as a chemist and worked for Chevron for 33 years. He’s taught birding classes in the Bay Area for over 20 years, and served as the chair of Golden Gate Audubon’s Adult Education Committee.

Currently he’s co-teaching a popular master birding class at the SF Academy of Sciences with Jack Dumbacher and Eddie Bartley, and birds of the Bay Area with Rusty Scalf.

He loves to travel and photograph birds, and has recently returned from a trip to Peru, chasing the brightly colored birds of that area.

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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Redbud Audubon Society will hold a field trip to the Rodman Preserve on Saturday, Nov. 19.

The walk will begin at 9 a.m. at the preserve, 6350 Westlake Road near Upper Lake.

This will be an enjoyable walk with field trip leader, Pat Harmon.

There will be both songbirds, raptors and possibly migrating warblers. It is an easy hike lasting about two hours.

The preserve is owned and operated by the Lake County Land Trust. This walk will take the place of the usual Saturday morning walk at the preserve presented by Land Trust volunteers.

To reach the preserve, take the Nice-Lucerne Cutoff off of Highway 29 between Lakeport and Upper Lake. Turn east onto the cutoff, then left on to Westlake Road. The preserve entry is to the immediate right after turning on to Westlake.

Don’t confuse the Rodman Preserve with the County Rodman Slough Park which is located by the bridge on the Nice-Lucerne Cutoff.

For information call Pat Harmon at 707-263-4977.

SAN FRANCISCO – Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) is joining utilities throughout North America to make customers aware of telephone, mail, email and door-to-door/in-person scams that involve criminals posing as utility company representatives and demanding immediate payment or personal information.

The “Utilities United Against Scams” collaboration has designated Nov. 16 as “Utilities United Against Scams Day.”

This day will be supported by a week-long campaign, beginning Nov. 14, with information focused on exposing the tricks scammers use to steal from customers, and how customers can protect themselves.

“The safety and security of our customers is the foundation of how we operate, so it’s heartbreaking when you hear about people being affected by these types of scams,” said Deb Affonsa, vice president, PG&E Customer Care. “Awareness is a key part of stopping this type of crime and we are working hard to continue getting the word out to our customers.”

The North American-wide collaborative encourages the public to share these messages to help guard against scam activity.

To date in 2016, PG&E has received more than 2,400 scam reports. Scammers continue to employ increasingly more sophisticated tactics to exploit customers.

PG&E continues to work with law enforcement agencies that are conducting investigations as well as supporting ongoing efforts to help educate customers about scams.

Scam red flags and how to protect yourself

• A scammer tells the customer his or her account is past due and service will be disconnected if payment isn’t made through prepaid cash card – usually within an hour.
• PG&E never requires a customer to purchase a prepaid debit card to avoid disconnection. Customers behind on their bill receive multiple advance disconnection notifications – never a single notification one hour before disconnection. Customers can make payments online, by phone, automatic bank draft, mail or in person.
• Hang up on suspicious calls. Contact local police on their non-emergency number and then call PG&E.
• Never dial phone numbers scammers provide or assume caller ID is accurate. Scammers use sophisticated systems where they can mimic caller ID that appears to be PG&E’s number.
• An in-person scammer wears a hard hat, an orange vest and holds a clip board and asks to see your utility bill or to be let inside your home.
• If someone is at your door claiming to represent PG&E and is unwilling to show their ID or is otherwise making you uncomfortable, don’t let them in and call local law enforcement immediately. PG&E employees carry identification and are always willing to show it to you.
• Expect to receive an automated call from PG&E 48 hours before a scheduled visit. You may also receive a personal call from a PG&E gas service representative before a scheduled visit. You can also call PG&E to verify an appointment.
• A scammer sends an email that demands immediate payment, asks for financial information or contains suspicious links.
• Beware of emails requesting your personal information. Never click on suspicious links or open attachments that demand immediate payment or financial information.

Customers who suspect or experience fraud, or feel threatened during contact with one of these scammers, should contact local authorities and then PG&E 1-800-743-5000.

For more information visit www.pge.com .