What would cause a small-town mayor to refuse to meet with his citizens? Oddly (and ironically) enough the answer is: diplomacy. Clear, calm-headed diplomacy. I don't know about you, but something is very wrong here...

A few friends and I decided to petition Mayor Romero to sign a resolution aiming at avoiding another preemptive war (this time with Iran) by using diplomacy, rather than, you know, nukes. My friend called his office, left a couple voicemails, and never got a return call. So I went down to the office this morning and set up a "tentative" meeting for the day after tomorrow via a nice lady there (it was 9am, but the Mayor doesn't come in until 10 and he may have a conflict). She said I'd get a call to confirm.

San Luis Trust Bank is offering support for local high school graduates that plan on attending Cal Poly in the fall. The local bank has created a $2,500 scholarship to assist local students and promote higher education. The requirements for the Trust Bank Scholarship are:

- San Luis Obispo High School Graduate
- Attending Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo this fall
- Low to moderate level family income.

Local leaders in the construction industry will host a casino night benefit on Saturday, June 28, to remember the life of Trent Tobin and to raise money to support his wife and daughters. Tobin, a longtime San Luis Obispo construction worker, died unexpectedly from pancreatic cancer on Feb 17.

The event, held from 7:30 to 10:30 PM, will be hosted at Holland Ranch and will feature a live and silent auction, casino games, food and drinks. Tickets are $40 each and all proceeds will go to assisting the Tobin family with basic needs, now and in the future, of Tobin’s daughters, Emily, 14, and Samantha, 11. Additionally, much of the funding will be diverted to support the costly medical bills of Tobin’s wife, Judy Tobin, a cancer survivor, currently undergoing treatment for a second bout of the illness.

by Susan Stewart

Every minute of every day, America loses two acres of agricultural land to urban, commercial or residential development.1 In California, roughly 50,000 acres of farmland is developed every year.2 If patterns continue, another 2 million acres of California land will be paved over by 2050.3 As farmers are increasingly pressured to convert fertile land into non-farm developments, the lyrical warning from 1970 – that we will “pave paradise to put up a parking lot” – is now an all too imminent threat. Will our desire to raise our children in a pristine rural setting, be suddenly unattainable? Will we one day wake up to find that our dreams of peaceful country living have just slipped out of reach?

Children’s Health Initiative of San Luis Obispo (CHISLO) will host the second annual Champions for Children event, “Sunset at the Ranch II” on Saturday, April 26 at the Santa Margarita Ranch. The event honors five local individuals for their outstanding efforts in awareness and advocacy on behalf of local children.
The award recipients were chosen for their unique contributions within their professional fields to the education, health and wellbeing of children in the local community:
• For Art – Dr. Botso Korisheli, Co-Founder, Conductor, San Luis Obispo County Youth Symphony: Beginning his local career as a music teacher at Morro Elementary School in 1957, Korisheli expanded his reach by coordinating and instructing a small group of young musicians, which he eventually transformed into the San Luis Obispo County Youth Symphony. As cofounder and the first conductor of the program, Korisheli has tirelessly assisted in the achievements of the group, training young musicians to understand, appreciate and master the musical art.

The San Luis Obispo School of Law will be hosting an introductory night on Thursday, April 24th at 6:00 PM. This event is open to the public and provides an opportunity for those that are interested in the school or obtaining a law degree to come learn more and ask questions. All attendees will have the opportunity to meet Judge Charles Porter, the founder and head instructor of the school. The event will be held in the school’s regular classroom at the former Pacheco Elementary School at 165 Grand Avenue. To get to the school take Grand Avenue towards Cal Poly, and turn left on Slack Street.

Taken some time ago at the ranch next to Home Depot in SLO (Froom?).

-- submitted by Angela Henderson, Grover Beach