Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/57238
Saturday, March 3, 2012 – Daily News 9A Obituaries GYM Continued from page 1A "There wasn't anyone else like me around when I was his age," Lalaguna said earlier this week overseeing Ramirez working out in Dave's Cave at the fitness center. Lalaguna, who graduated EDWARD L. WILLIAMS ily by his side on February 26, 2012. He was 89. He was born in Danville, CA. to Wallace and Grace Williams. He is survived by his sons, Karl Williams of Red Bluff, CA. and Ed Williams of Panama City, FL., grandsons Walter Williams, Kodi Williams and Elijah Williams all of Red Bluff, CA., step grandsons Jacob Carey of Redding, CA., Micah and Noah Carey of Red Bluff, CA., and great grand- son Kolby Williams of Red Bluff, CA. He served for the U.S. Army in both WWII and Korean in Gunskirchen Lager, Austria. At the end of WWII he was part of the "Army of Occupation" forces working with the German youth. He worked as a long haul truck driver and later was a Ed Williams passed away in Red Bluff, CA. with his fam- seven years earlier than Ramirez from Red Bluff Union High School, esti- mates he's helped train around a dozen Division-I level athletes during in his time at Tehama Fitness. However, there's a special bond with Ramirez, who has spent more time with him than anyone else. wars as a Warrant Officer. In WWII he was assigned to the 71st infantry which was attached to several units in- cluding General Patton's Third Army. Subsequently the 71st liberated the concentration camp self employed butcher and processor. He was involved in the Corning, CA. Scouting programs for several years. Most notable was his commitment and service as the Chaplin for the Corning, CA. VFW, Post 4218 for 28 years. He was a man who enjoyed music, singing, playing gui- tar and never said no to food. He was a great story teller, had a wonderful sense of humor and appreciated a good joke. He would go out of his way to help others that were in need. He will be missed by many, especially those who loved and appreciated the man he was. Services will be held at the Corning Veterans Memorial Hall; 1620 Solano St., Corning, CA. on Saturday March 10th at 11:00 a.m. A celebration of his life will follow di- rectly afterward at the Veterans Memorial Hall. VAN Continued from page 1A They often share correc- tional officers and van space with the Glenn County Sheriff's Office to transport prisoners to Sacramento and Susanville. An officer from Glenn County was riding in the van alongside the driver, a Tehama County Correc- tional Officer, Greer said. Both officers, who only complained of soreness and being shaken by the crash, were examined at St. Elizabeth Community Hospital and cleared to return to duty. Three of the inmates were also taken by ambu- lance to the hospital where they were treated for minor injuries and released back to the coun- ty jail, Greer said. The other two prisoners were uninjured and taken from the scene to Susanville in another transport van sent from High Desert State Prison. The three inmates left in Tehama County were taken Friday morning to READ Continued from page 1A Thursday included Dr. Seuss Night for which cafe- teria staff member Kristina Furrow made 500 cupcakes decorated to look like grass with a clover on it from the book "Horton Hears a Who." Students played games and decorated headbands with paper Horton the Ele- phant ears. Gerber Elementary School celebrated the day, which was also Pajama Day, with green eggs and ham for lunch and a decorated Cat in the Hat bucket full of Dr. Seuss books circulated amongst the classrooms. While reading was a part of Read Across America cel- ebrations, its something that's year-round at Gerber who has an accelerated read- ing speedway in its cafeteria. Each student has a race- car with his or her name on it on the track and as they accumulate points it moves around the track. Students who have shown outstanding achievement in reading are rewarded at the end of the year. Lincoln Street School held a brief assembly to hand out certificates and a reward to the 35 students who par- ticipated in the Discovery Education Read To Succeed program. Those students read over 360 minutes of recreational, non-school related reading Susanville in another transport van, he said. In response to the acci- dent, the sheriff's depart- ment is rethinking the design of transport vans, Greer said. If the van had landed in the same way in some other landscape such as water, it would help if there was another way to get the passengers out. The van is being repaired and will most likely be back in service soon, Greer said. Officers from the Cali- fornia Highway Patrol's Chester office, rangers from the Lassen National Forest, officers from the U.S. Forest Service and employees from Caltrans assisted the Tehama County Sheriff's deputies during the incident. "All were instrumental in the care, control and safety of the inmates post the accident," Greer said. ——— Andrea Wagner can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or awagner@redbluffdailyne ws.com. and will be rewarded with a free admission ticket to Six Flags theme park in Vallejo. Lincoln Street teacher Christi Deveraux, who is an avid reader herself, was pleased to see so many stu- dents participate, she said. "This program is great because so often students read because they have to," Deveraux said. "I love the fact that so many children are choosing to read on their fun time. No one is making them read. I would love to see our students develop into life-long readers with a pas- sion for print." At West Street School, guest readers rotated amongst the classrooms and the students participated in the Accelerated Reader (AR) Read Across America event by taking as many AR quizzes school-wide as they could. The school also has a unique twist on the day, pre- sented by the staff. "It's a tradition that the staff performs a Dr. Seuss play for the students," West Street principal Megan Neely said. "We have one teacher in the Cat in the Hat costume and two of the teachers dressed as Thing 1 and Thing 2. Then the rest of the staff dresses as characters from the story." ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews.co m. Follow her on Twitter @DN_Zeeb. Lalaguna recalls watch- ing an athletic fourth grader dominating on the youth football field and thinking to himself, 'he's going to be something." Years later, as a freshman in high school Ramirez began attending Lalaguna's speed training camps and a relationship was formed. Lalaguna helped train Ramirez through high school and the pair kept up the routine between football seasons at Butte College. "Kind of everything I've achieved and kind of every- thing I've done can be attrib- uted back to my work I put in here with Troy," Ramirez said. As a senior Ramirez mea- sured in at 6-foot, 1-inch and 170 pounds. Since then he's grown an inch and bulked on 30 pounds to a muscular frame. While Ramirez possesses a level of football talent that can't be taught, it's aspects of his personality that has helped him rise above the competition including his likable personality and his willingness to be coached. "He's the best you could ask for," Lalaguna said. Ramirez has continued to work out with Lalaguna around five times a week after breaking Rodgers' record. It's a record that Lalaguna Daily News photo by Rich Greene described as rewarding for himself as a trainer and one obviously Ramirez will never forget. "It was a great feeling for me," Ramirez recalled. "I hadn't really even thought about it until that game. My coach pulled me aside and said 'you know you're a touchdown away from breaking the record.' I hadn't even thought about it then until that point. I kind of brushed it off and kept play- ing and the next three or four touchdowns just kind of came themselves and I ended up at 30." Ramirez posted a 60.7 completion percentage and 2,218 passing yards to go along with his 30 touch- downs last season. Those statistics helped draw the attention of several pro- grams. In the end Ramirez chose Portland State, where he's projected to compete for the starting quarterback posi- tion this season as a junior. Business and community members concerned about the future of Tehama County are urged to convene at the Red Bluff Community and Senior Center March 6 to see the Phase 1 results of the Tehama County Branding Project, which many believe will help the area become economically stronger through tourism. In order to be a success, there must be widespread commitment to make the changes required to implement the brands developed for Tehama County, Manton and Red Bluff. "The biggest concern I hear about the Branding Project is from people who say they don't want our communities to change," Liz Kremer said. "How- ever, change is inevitable. If we do nothing, our local towns will continue to deteriorate due to the loss of industries that sustained our economy in the past. We have the opportunity to shape change now for positive economic devel- opment before it's too late. I know with all the amazing com- munity support seen so far for the Collin Ramirez (foreground) and Troy Lalaguna set up weights, Monday. athletes. "That was a big part of my decision. I just want to go play," Ramirez said. "I just love the game and I just want to play somewhere where I can be successful and hopefully contribute to whatever program I go to." The program he's joining competes in the Big Sky Conference and even has a game against the Pacific-12 Conference's Washington Huskies set for the 2012 sea- son. Ramirez will get to come back to California as the Vikings have road trips to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and UC Davis this season. It should be a nice adven- ture for a quarterback who still doesn't like talking about missing the playoffs by fractions of a point during his senior year at Red Bluff. "The main thing that I did was not ever give up on myself," Ramirez said of advice he would offer cur- rent and future high school Branding Project, that Tehama County will choose to take posi- tive steps toward change." Phase 1 of the Branding Pro- ject began when a group of com- munity members representing various organizations and busi- nesses raised funds to retain Roger Brooks and his company Destination Development Inter- national to develop a Branding, Development and Marketing Action Plan. "The community hired Brooks to create an economic develop- ment strategy and identity to help keep spending local, encourage new business opportunities, sup- port existing businesses and increase tourism spending in Tehama County," said Kristin Behrens, past-president of the Red Bluff-Tehama County Chamber of Commerce. Brooks will present the brands to the community twice on March 6, from 7:30-9:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. to noon. There is no charge to attend, but organizers ask that you RSVP to slown@ncen.org or call 529- 7000. ons. Before becoming a Super Bowl MVP, Rodgers gradu- ated from Pleasant Valley High School. He became a star at Butte College and transferred to California before being drafted by the Green Bay Packers. Whether Ramirez will get to that last step remains to be seen, but breaking Rodgers' record opens the door for comparisons. That could be beneficial for more than just Ramirez, says Lalaguna. "What Aaron's done for the Pleasant Valley kids — all those kids think they can be pro football players," Lalaguna said. Would Ramirez want to be that inspiration for future Spartans? "I'd love to be that role model for Red Bluff kids," he said. "It doesn't matter where you come from. It's the work you put in." Shaping change in Tehama County Memorial plans shape for firefighter COTTONWOOD — As plans are being finalized for Memorial Services for Fire Captain Mark Ratledge, the residents of Cottonwood should be reassured that emergency services are still available. Neighboring fire departments have been covering, and will cover behind the Cottonwood Fire Department until Monday, March 5 at 8 a.m. Shasta County Fire Department, Anderson Fire Protection District, Redding Fire Department and Burney Fire Protec- tion District are providing engines and staff staged at the Cottonwood Fire Station in order to respond quickly to any incident occurring within the Cot- tonwood Fire jurisdiction. The response and support from agencies ail over the state has been tremendous. The Memorial Services are being coordinated by the California Fire Foundation and the National Fallen Firefighters L.A.S.T. (Local Assis- tance State Team). Memorial Services are scheduled for 11 a.m. Sunday, March 4, at West Cottonwood Junior High School, 20512 First St., in Cot- tonwood. The doors will be open at 10 a.m. and anyone wishing to attend is advised to be there by 10:30. California prisons remove symbol of overcrowding TRACY (AP) — California prisons marked a milestone Friday, when offi- cials said they had removed the last of nearly 20,000 beds that had been jammed into gymnasiums and other common areas to house inmates who overflowed traditional prison cells. Inmates in rows of double- and triple-stacked bunk beds became an iconic symbol of the overcrowding cri- sis, Corrections Secretary Matthew Cate said in announcing an end to the practice. ''It symbolized, I think, a system that was so crowded it could not work effectively or efficiently,'' Cate said at Deuel Vocational Institution in Tracy, 70 miles south of the state capital. Crowding was so bad at the Califor- nia Rehabilitation Center in Riverside County in 2005 that it was hours before guards discovered an inmate had been killed in his bunk in a makeshift dor- mitory. Since then, federal judges have forced California to radically change the way it houses criminals. The prison population dropped by nearly 19,000 inmates after a new law took effect in October that sends less serious offend- ers to county jails instead of state pris- The state currently has nearly 142,000 inmates but must shed another 17,000 inmates to reach the June 2013 court deadline to reduce crowding in its 33 adult prisons. The federal judges ordered the state to reduce its inmate population as a way to improve inmate medical care, which was so inadequate that judges ruled it violated prisoners' constitutional rights. The overflow beds once held more inmates than the entire prison popula- tions of 25 other states, according to national statistics for 2010, the most recent available. The U.S. Supreme Court published two photographs of tattooed, shirtless inmates milling around three-tier bunk beds as part of its ruling last year upholding the authority of lower courts to order California to reduce crowding. Cramped conditions promote unrest and violence, the justices said. The court's ruling cited a medical expert who testified that forcing large num- bers of inmates to share a few toilets made the congested areas breeding grounds for disease. The crowding was unhealthy and dangerous not only for inmates, the court said, but for the guards, as well. The ratio in some overcrowded dormi- tories was often two or three guards for every 200 inmates. ''They provided an accurate and extremely graphic example of the crowding and inhumanity that engulfed the entire system,'' said Don Specter, director of the nonprofit Prison Law Office in Berkeley, which sued to force the state to ease crowding as a way to improve the treatment of sick and mentally ill inmates. The use of the overflow beds dates back a quarter-century but spiked when California prisons filled to bursting as get-tough sentencing laws took effect. At the peak in August 2007, the depart- ment had 72 gyms and 125 dayrooms jammed with 19,618 inmate beds. Cate, the corrections secretary, spoke to reporters Friday in an empty football field-sized field house that once was home to nearly 700 inmates sleeping in dense rows of bunks stacked so high that guards couldn't see over them. That created opportunities for unseen assaults and drug deals, said Correctional Sgt. Corey Johnson.