Aerial salute to late Navy flier : Thomas Macleod Jr. served in World War II and Korea during 30-year career

MORGAN HOOVER, NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT

August 29, 2009 7:52 AM

An aerial salute by a pair of fighter jets was performed as part of a memorial service Friday to honor decorated career Navy man Thomas LeBreton Macleod Jr., who died Aug. 16.

Born Nov. 3, 1921, to Thomas and Minnie Macleod, Mr. Macleod was married for 57 years to the late Ann Macleod, with whom he had three sons. He is survived by son Ron, with wife Andra and their sons Grayson and Hudson; and son Scott, with wife Diana and their children Maile and Miles.

Mr. Macleod is preceded in death by his oldest son Tommy, who passed away in 1989.

Thomas Macleod learned to fly at the age of 17 from well-known aviator Waldo Dean Waterman.

After being the recipient of approximately 15 awards during his 30 years in the Navy, including the Distinguished Flying Cross and an Airman's Medal, he retired in 1975.

He served in both World War II and the Korean War, during which he flew in more than 30 combat-strike missions and received a personal letter from President Truman for distinguished service.

Mr. Macleod earned his bachelor's degree in geology at UCLA and an MBA from USC.

After his service, he continued to serve by working with the Department of Defense as a senior engineer for Lockheed International programs in the development of anti-submarine warfare programs.

He was buried Friday with full military honors at Santa Barbara Cemetery.

Jesusita hydromulching proposed : No plastic in the mix this time around, says county public works

MORGAN HOOVER, NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT

August 28, 2009 7:18 AM

The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors will vote Tuesday on whether to authorize county actions in support of a hydromulching project to limit any further damage that may be caused as a result of the Jesusita Fire.

The board approved the Emergency Watershed Response Plan for the Jesusita fire on July 7, and hydromulching is a crucial element of the plan. Hydromulching is applied to ease the hazard posed to downstream areas by mudslides, debris flow, sedimentation and an increase in runoff, all of which can occur after a fire.

In May, the Burn Area Emergency Response Report for Jesusita was completed. In it, aerial hydromulching, which is the process of applying paper, wood fiber and a binder to prevent soil erosion, was identified as an effective means of aiding in the reduction of flood peaks and sediment yield to downstream areas.

It is proposed that the process be completed between Sept. 2 and Oct. 19.

According to Deputy Public Works Director Tom Fayram, the county must prepare for the worst, and while there have been some concerns over the possibility of a strong El Niño presence, there is no definitive indication of what winter will bring.

"There is no ability to truly forecast whether you're going to have a big winter," he said.

The total cost of the project is expected to be $4.6 million, and 75 percent of it -- $3.6 million -- will come from the Natural Resources Conservation Service. The state of California's Emergency Management Agency will provide $690,000, the South Coast Flood Zone will provide $180,000 and the city of Santa Barbara has pledged $50,000. The Board of Supervisors is asked to authorize the funding as proposed.

Funding from the Natural Resources Conservation Service will be provided via emergency funding. Therefore, if the debris basin clean-out, debris rack construction, channel excavation and hydromulching processes are not completed within 60 days, the money will be lost.

Aerial hydromulching will be applied by the county to about 1,200 acres of private land and local public agency land; affected private land owners must consent to this service by signing the county's Right of Entry agreement.

"Our piece of the project is about the same size (as it was after the Gap fire)," said Mr. Fayram. "The Forest Service piece is going to be different; it's something much less."

The U.S. Forest Service has proposed about 300 acres of hydromulching and is pursuing a contractor. The process was completed by Western States Reclamation Inc. of Frederick, Colo., following the Gap Fire; Despite concerns raised over the issue of contaminants in the mulch mix used then, the county public works officials were satisfied with the job.

The Board of Supervisors is being asked to authorize a waiver of the bidding for the service and to execute an agreement with Western States Reclamation not to exceed the estimated $4.6 million cost.

A year ago this week, a $4.8 million aerial hydromulching operation in the Gap Fire burn area began. Officials then described the material as an all-organic mixture of recycled paper and wood fiber, water and a binding agent made of guar gum, which is a plant-based substance commonly used as a thickener in foods.

The mulch did not contain seeds or fertilizer, but it did contain an organic green dye to help pilots monitor application.

As it turns out, the mulch also contained plastic.

In the face of questions over such contaminants being dropped on local hillsides and where it could end up, the Public Works Department agreed to specify 100 percent plastic-free mulch mix in the future.

"We're confident we can avoid those problems again," said Mr. Fayram.

The Jesusita Fire burned more than 8,700 acres in the mountains above Santa Barbara and Goleta.

Other drainage measures included in the Emergency Watershed Response Plan include the monitoring and removal of vegetation from the debris racks and removal of debris plugs and accumulated sediment deposits from within the stream channel in the urban areas.

Sandbag distribution centers will also be established, and officials have pledged to make information available to the public about the risk of various hazards related to the fire's damage.

Auto buyers have last weekend to cash in clunkers

August 21, 2009 7:31 AM

The Obama administration plans to end the popular $3 billion Cash for Clunkers program on Monday, giving car shoppers a few more days to take advantage of the government incentive, but at least one local auto dealer doesn't think there will be a last-minute rush of buyers looking to unload their gas-guzzling, smog-belching jalopies.

The Transportation Department said Thursday the government will wind down the program on Monday at 8 p.m. EDT. Car buyers can receive rebates of $3,500 or $4,500 for trading in older vehicles for new, more fuel-efficient models.

"It's been a thrill to be part of the best economic news story in America," U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement. "Now we are working toward an orderly wind down of this very popular program."

According to Jim Crook, owner of Santa Barbara Chrysler Jeep Dodge, the project has wound down on its own, and its final weekend will not produce a spike in sales.

"I don't think it's going to do anything," he said. "If they were going to (take advantage of) it, they've already done it."

Walter Alfaro, general manager of Perry Ford Lincoln Mercury, sees things differently.

"It's impacted our business very positively," he said. "I know it will affect our business this weekend; I think the response is going to be overwhelming."

Through Thursday, auto dealers nationally have made deals worth $1.9 billion and are on pace to exhaust the program's $3 billion in early September. The incentives have generated more than 457,000 vehicle sales. Administration officials said they have reviewed nearly 40 percent of the transactions and have already paid out $145 million to dealers.

Administration officials said applications for rebates will not be accepted after 8 p.m. EDT Monday and dealers should not make additional sales without receiving all the necessary paperwork from their customers. Dealers will be able to resubmit applications after the deadline.

President Barack Obama said in an interview Thursday that the program has been "successful beyond anybody's imagination" but dealers were overwhelmed by the response of consumers. He pledged that dealers "will get their money."

Mr. Crook said he sees the wait for this reimbursement as a major downfall of the program.

"We haven't been funded from the government," he said. "That's the biggest negative."

According to Mr. Alfaro, the program "has put a lot of people in a position where they're looking at what they own," and how it relates to doing "the right thing for the environment."

News-Press Correspondent Morgan Hoover contributed to this report.

Native Sons of Golden West honor The Granada

MORGAN HOOVER, NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT

August 7, 2009 7:25 AM

The Granada was honored on Thursday with a plaque from the Native Sons of the Golden West.

The dedication ceremony featured the group's grand president and a junior past grand president, along with the first, second and third vice presidents of the Native Sons.

Granada Executive Director Peter Frisch began the ceremony by expressing his gratitude to the organization, which is made up of men who were born in California and whose mission it is to preserve the state's history.

"I greatly appreciate this honor bestowed on us by the Native Sons," he said. "I think we have, by all accounts, a wonderful facility."

Mr. Frisch went on to call the Granada, which recently underwent a dramatic renovation and reopened in March, 2008, "a balance of historical details ... and new things."

"We have a wonderful performing arts facility," he said. "Contemporary production demands what we did."

Mr. Frisch spoke proudly of The Granada and its renovation, saying "some of it's science, and some of it's luck."

"Seal ... came here and said it was his favorite place to play," he said.

Santa Barbara City Councilman Roger Horton then spoke, saying all Santa Barbarans are to receive credit for the renovation of the historic building.

"The city couldn't have done it by ourselves if we wanted to," he said, calling The Granada a "wonderful, restored, quality theatre."

NSGW Grand President Eugene Perry then took over, leading the dedication ceremony.

"This is truly a thing I've never seen before," he said, "and I think it's going to be great."

The ceremony consisted of the grand president addressing each of the vice presidents, from first to third, before they spoke respectively about symbolic sand and gravel, cement and water.

First Vice President Jim Shadle recited a response about the sand and gravel symbolizing California's natural resources, Second Vice President Dave Allen recited that cement symbolizes the efforts of man and Third Vice President Allan Baird recited that water represents the necessity of both natural resources and man's effort to be "mingled with the lessons of the past."

With this statement, the three vice presidents mixed a small amount of each of the elements on a small tray in front of the attendees.

"The present is ours," said Mr. Perry. "but the present will soon be in the past."

He declared The Granada dedicated, and NSGW Junior Past Grand President Richard Kimball said a closing prayer before the plaque was revealed and read by the grand president.

The plaque consists of five paragraphs, and across the top reads, "The Granada: A Glorious Tradition."

"On April 8, 1924, a dazzling new venue opened in beautiful Santa Barbara, the Granada Theatre," says the plaque's first paragraph.

It goes on to chart the venue's renovation in 2008, its sturdiness in the face of a "devastating" 1925 earthquake and the plethora of productions and performers to which it has played host in the decades since its construction.

It concludes, "The Granada is truly where art and history converge. May she continue to light up State Street for the next 100 years and beyond."

'A little tornado' : Grandfather shares moving tale at funeral service for Diego Calles

MORGAN HOOVER, NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT

August 1, 2009 7:04 AM

A 4-year-old whose grandfather called him "a little tornado" was laid to rest on Friday following an emotional service that came nearly two weeks after the boy was allegedly killed by his mother's boyfriend.

Mourners reacted emotionally upon seeing the open casket of Diego Calles outside Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church, where the youngster was remembered at a funeral service led by Father Denis Collins.

The casket was closed before being brought into the church by tearful pallbearers.

Father Collins began the service by reading scripture.

"At that time Jesus said, 'I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned, you have revealed them to the child,' " he read from Matthew, drawing nods from throughout the room.

Father Collins wove the theme of forgiveness throughout his message, in which he attempted to console the family by assuring them that Diego is in heaven.

"He is face to face with God," he said.

He spoke about Ignatius, asking the congregation to find "the forgiveness available to us."

"Ignatius was a genius in his ability to. . .live in peace in a time of strife," he said.

Father Collins asked the mourners to move forward living by Ignatius's two rules.

"Live as if everything depended on you," he said, "and pray as if everything depended on God."

After his message, he said a prayer, asking for Diego's eternal life, for the family of Diego to find the grace of God, for the friends of Diego to be consoled and all parents who are grieving the loss of a child to be "comforted in the knowledge that their children will have eternal life."

"God, embrace (Diego). . .together with all children who have died," he said. "With this sacrifice. . .advance the peace on earth."

Communion was offered following this prayer, and then Diego's grandfather, Anthony Calles, approached the pulpit to speak.

"I want to thank you all for being here," he said, "not just for myself, but for the family. To see you all here gives us a lot of strength."

Mr. Calles described Diego as a vibrant little boy.

"Diego had a lot of energy just like his dad," he said. "He was a little tornado coming through the door and leaving the same way."

The grieving grandfather went on to thank friends and family members, including his son's coworkers and his niece, for support that helped Diego's family cope with their loss.

"Just to come through those days," he said, "it's been rough."

His emotions became especially visible when he began to talk about the experience of having grandchildren.

"It's like golden," he said, fighting tears. "I have two more, and those kids, I'm never going to let anything happen to them if I can help it."

He concluded by inviting those in attendance to Calvary Cemetery and then to the Eagle's Lodge to lay Diego to rest and share stories.

Law enforcement suspects that Diego was beaten over a five-day span by James Curtis Lujan, 29, boyfriend of his mother, Megan Davis. He died on July 18.

Officially, the cause of death has not yet been revealed, and a judge granted a second independent autopsy last week in response to a request by public defender Giovanni Giordani.

Mr. Lujan is charged with three felonies -- murder, assault on a child causing death and corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant. He is expected to be arraigned on Tuesday.

Donations to help the family pay for the funeral can be made at any branch of Santa Barbara Bank & Trust to the Diego Calles Memorial Fund.

Another fundraiser planned to aid the family is a barbecue on Aug. 15 at the Eagles Lodge, 923 Bath St. Prestige Hand Car Wash at 524 N. Milpas St. will also donate 15 percent of its proceeds that day to the family.