C I Andy McSorley, center, directs corpsmembers in electrical work at the Placer lab.

C I Andy McSorley runs one of the CCC's veterans crews, but isn't instructing the corpsmembers in firefighting or fuel reduction techniques. His focus is energy work, with his crew working in recent weeks for the Department of Motor Vehicles in Sacramento, replacing old lighting fixtures with new ones that save both money and energy.

The majority of the crew is composed of veterans, joined by other Placer corpsmembers.

Not long before the DMV assignment, the crew completed work at an old Highway Patrol building, switching out old T-12 lamps with the more efficient T-8s, and retrofitting old ballasts with new electronic ones.

Andy has more than 30 years experience in the construction industry. When he was laid off during the economic downtown, he got his teaching credential and has spent time teaching the construction trades to young people, including some in the correctional system at Solano State Prison in Vacaville.

He joined the CCC as a Residential Advisor, then "during last year's Chips Fire, I finally got a crew."

Army veteran Gunnar Brown at work at the DMV.

 A Marine Corps veteran from the Vietnam era, Andy is a good match to lead the crew. He, in turn, sees the value of the comprehensive instruction they've received from Sierra College, together with the practical, on-the-job training.

"The experience on this crew gives the veterans hope to get another job or occupation, especially in the energy field," Andy says. "Electricians are in high demand."

"The veterans are motivated to learn as much as they can and are good mentors to the other corpsmembers on the crew."

Carl Webster, 22, was deployed to Saudi Arabia while in the Air Force. He spotted the CCC's notice about the veterans crew on Craigslist. "I checked it out and liked what they had to say," Carl says. "I switched from the fire crew, and the experience has made me think about switching over to an electrical career, maybe with PG&E."

Nick Tisdall, 22, was involved with field artillery in the Army. "This experience -- to put this on a resume -- is a huge help."

Army veteran Aaron Lara. 26, also heard about the crew on Craigslist and praised the Sierra College training. "It's definitely valuable -- the class actually filled in a lot of gaps that help me when I come upon surprises in the lighting fixtures."

Aaron Lara, who served in the Army military police, checks electrical connections.

Alexandra Warner, 28, a former Army ammunitions specialist, has been on the crew for a year after the training. "For women, it's a total equal opportunity. I was tired of the same old, same old and would recommend it for other females."

Michael Bearry's father and grandfather are both electricians. "It's in the blood," he says. He found out about the crew from a flyer on a bulletin board. Michael, 23, built roads in the Army for the Border Patrol. "The Sierra College training was awesome," he says.

Training was done at the Placer Center, with instruction provided by Sierra College's Brian Hurd, along with Placer Conservationist II Aaron Fry.

"It's very job-specific training, matching up with the real world," Aaron says.

In traveling to DMV offices throughout the state, he says the corpsmembers have gained good experience in being exposed to buildings of many different types, different ages, with different scenarios of problems.

Aaron says there's a big need for lighting retrofit workers.

"There are lots of companies out there that do nothing but this," he notes. "Stores, high rises -- it's not the maintenance guy who does the work."

Aaron says the veterans have blended in well with the rest of the Placer corpsmembers. "It's a pretty homogenized crew," he says. "But the veterans also bring a little maturity and life exposure to the crew."

Funding for the veterans crew is provided by the State Assembly through the efforts of Assembly Speaker John Perez.

The Placer veterans energy crew poses with DMV sponsor Ed Gardner at one of the agency's Los Angeles offices.

Gary Burica in front of the new men's restroom and shower facility. Photo by Cathy Barr.

The CCC has bestowed the Superior Accomplishment Gold Individual Award, the Superior Accomplishment Gold Team Award and the Director's Award on CCC staff.

Superior Accomplishment: Ukiah Conservationist II Gary Burica received the $100 cash award for his work on the new men's restroom and shower facility at the Ukiah Center.

Gary, an ROP instructor in the building trades for many years, took on the entire project, from drawing up the plans to purchasing the materials to all phases of construction work. He used corpsmembers in as many phases as possible. "Gary wanted the men's facility to be as energy-efficient as we could make it," the award recommendation noted. The building includes solar panels on the roof and will use grey water to water trees at the center, removing 3000 gallons of fluids from entering the Ukiah system. "Gary has gone above and beyond with his special skill set."

Gary has been with the CCC for nearly 25 years, the majority of the time in Ukiah. Last year he was honored with the Salmonid Restoration Federation Lifetime Achievement Award for his fish habitat work over many years.  

Superior Accomplishment -- Gold Team Award and Director's Award: This was awarded to 14 people involved in the planning, organizing, coordinating and executing the

Sandbagging at Twitchell Island. Photo by DWR's John Chacon.

December 2012 Statewide Emergency Floodfight Preparedness Demonstration at Brannan Island and Twitchell Island. They will share a $500 award.

As we noted in last month's newsletter, the demonstration mobilized one crew from each center to respond to the Delta as if responding to an actual flood event. The crews spent two nights in tents at Brannan Island. The effort took months of planning, making use of the Incident Command System and the Standardized Emergency Management System and partnering with four other state and local agencies.   A Field Operations Guide was produced and tailored specifically for the event.

Honored as part of the team award were Brian Lussier (Greenwood); Enrique Rios (Fresno); Jeanette Kimbrough (Greenwood); Robert Desrosiers (Tahoe); Michael Haupt (Greenwood); Ray Garcia (Stockton); Tony Vasquez (HQs); Nate Ortiz (HQs); Scott Linton (HQs); Aaron Bayhon (Stockton); Nick Howe (Greenwood); John Martinez (HQs); and Susanne Levitsky (HQs).  Greenwood Center Director Marie Mijares received the Director's Award for her participation.

The Corps Network held its annual conference last month in Washington, D.C., with CCC Director David Muraki and Programs and Operations Chief Erin Healy attending. David is a member of the Board of Directors.

During the week of the forum, David pointed to many productive meetings with federal agencies that support Corps work. He spoke of interest in building partnerships with Workforce Investment Boards. "There are some 4.3 million 20-to-25-year-olds without work, and solid support for the 'earn/learn' concept, what we've called 'work/learn' for many years."

He said the CCC has experience in many areas that can assist the field of corps programs. One example is making use of federal transportation funding, through projects such as tree planting along highways, historical restoration efforts, and more. "We did a presentation and there was a huge amount of interest," he said.

David also attended a meeting of the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps advisory committee. He said leaders of eight federal departments and agencies set up a National Council to help implement the Corps' work, making use of existing corps programs and encouraging public/private partnerships.

Six corpsmembers were honored as Corpsmembers of the Year, including our own Sarah Huff, a Redding Center corpsmember from Weaverville. The corpsmembers had a chance to tour the White House, Capitol Hill and the Air and Space Museum during their stay.

Sarah spoke briefly to the conference attendees about her years in the CCC.

"My time in the California Conservation Corps was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I learned so much during my three years in the Corps. Not only about the work we do, but also about myself. I have overcome challenges I once thought impossible and met amazing people along the way. I now have direction for my future and the support, knowledge and resources to make it happen.

"While in the CCC, I've been a trailworker, a cook, a firefighter, a crewleader, a student and a teacher. I've done landscaping, fuel reduction, fence repair, habitat restoration and rock work, I've worked harder than I thought possible.

" I built trails in the Trinity Alps wilderness, fought wildfires in Utah and California and was able to fulfill a dream of going to Australia. The pay may have been low but the rewards were great. I've watched people come and go and made some great friends. Most importantly, I've made a difference."

Sarah left the CCC in January and is now pursuing her education, using her CCC and AmeriCorps scholarships.

The five other corpsmembers honored were from the Urban Corps of San Diego, the Fresno Local Conservation Corps, the Bay Area's Civicorps, and programs in Colorado and Arizona.

Honored with Legacy Achievement Awards were Marilee Eckert, Conservation Corps North Bay; Ira Okun, founding president of the California Association of Local Conservation Corps; and John Irish, who created the Arizona Conservation Corps and is current chair of the Southwest Conservation Corps Board of Directors.

CCC Director David Muraki introduces several "CCC boys" from the 1930s at the Corps Network Washington Forum. Photos by Peter Stepanek.

  

The Tahoe Center is often called out to assist with snow removal during the winter months.  Above, corpsmembers Marcus McBroome and Nathaniel Perron dig out fire hydrants for the Lake Valley Fire Department in the Meyers area.  Photo by Crewleader II Antoinette Burton.

Halfway around the world, our California crew has been enjoying the end of the Australian summer, and now early fall.  CCC liasion Duane Wilson has sent photos of the corpsmembers, below, participating in the exchange with Conservation Volunteers Australia.

Among the work tackled by the five of the corpsmembers was removing non-native pines from Bamboo Beach. The crew then had time for snorkeling, crab fishing and seeing the local wildlife, including a friendly kangaroo.

The other four corpsmembers, along with Duane, removed olive trees and non-native cacti. While working on the project in the Tolowie Preserve and Gorge, the group lived in a huge farm with a host family. When the work was completed, the crew hiked to remote portion of the Gorge to view kangaroos, native birds and wild goats.

The corpsmembers then headed for Melbourne to assist with projects there.

From left, corpsmembers Robert Barragan (San Diego); a CVA volunteer; Phillip Hernandez (Fortuna); another CVA volunteer; Cecilia Whitworth (Los Padres); Ruby Simonian (Ukiah) and Isaiah Chadwick (Redding).

The Redding Center's Isaiah Chadwick meets his first kangaroo.

Meanwhile, the Australian exchange team arrived to spend two weeks in Ukiah, followed by two weeks in Fortuna.  The eight CVA members had a chance to do some work at McKerricher State Park along the Mendocino coast, then spent a weekend at Yosemite National Park before moving on to the Fortuna Center.

Also on the agenda, an expedition to the local Walmart, to pick up a few items and compare California merchandise with that at home.

The Australians at the Ukiah Center. Photo by CVA liaison Michael Darcy.

Staff liaison Michael Darcy snaps his Australian team members at McKerricher State Park.

 Region 1 Analyst Summer Kincaid coordinates the annual exchange for the CCC. 

Los Padres Center Director Domenic Santangelo tells us the center will be honored by the History Center of San Luis Obispo County for its historic renovation work in preserving and promoting local history throughout the county.

Projects over the years have included restoration work of the Point Sur, Port San Luis and Piedras Blancas lighhouses, the old Santa Rosa chapel and cemetery in Cambria, the Rancho Nipomo Dana Adobe, the Oceano Rail Depot, Morro Bay State Park (restoration of old CCC work), the Hearst Castle grounds, and more.

The award presentation will take place in May, and Domenic says he was specifically requested to "plan on having a group of young CCC representatives" at the event.

The Santa Barbara Presidio chapel under construction in the 1980s.

And the Camarillo Center will be recognized next month by the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation for its many hours of restoration work at the Santa Barbara Presidio.

"The California Conservation Corps played a huge role in the development of El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park in the 1980s," the head of the Trust wrote.  "Thanks to the commitment of CCC Camarillo Center Director Nacho Pi�a, the Corps provided the labor for the reconstruction of the Presidio Chapel, which became an instant iconic building in downtown Santa Barbara."

"Corpsmembers participated in archeology, made almost 30,000 50-pound adobe bricks [using 18th century methods], laid them, plastered walls, lifted beams for the roof structure, installed the tile floor, and whitewashed the building.  They did it all, in short."

The Trust notes that this is the 30th anniversary of the CCC's beginning work on the chapel, a two-year project completed in 1985.  "Our community owes the CCCs a great debt of gratitude for thier work on this building. The Chapel was Santa Barbara's first church.  Corpsmembers also served as interns at the site for many years."

The Trust is inviting the many CCC alumni who worked on the project to attend its 50th anniversary ceremony on April 21.

Camarillo corpsmembers making adobe bricks for the chapel.

In front of the chapel reconstructed by the CCC.

We're now working on establishing a CCC Intranet, which will centralize and organize data in one place. Staff will be able to easily locate, share and contribute timely information.

Information Systems' Rita Gass says the goal of the first phase of the Intranet project is to replace the current Online Resource Library on the L drive and will include documents related to forms, policies, procedures, training, center information and more.  There will be links to announcements and to statewide event and training calendars.

What we need now is a creative name for our Intranet.  Please send your suggestions to Pattie Woody by April 1. 

Manager, Corpsmember Development and Support Unit.

Where are you located?

Headquarters.

Tell us what you do for the CCC:

I've got one of the best jobs here at the CCC in that I get to work with so many great people all over the state to provide opportunities for our corpsmembers to succeed in life, once they transition out of the CCC.

Our unit coordinates with the CCC charter school providers, develops training and transition components such as the new Corpsmember Orientation Motivation Education and Training -- COMET -- and Career Development and Transition -- CDT-- curriculum, facilitates the CCC and AmeriCorps Education Award scholarship processes, and maintains the corpsmember Job Board and the new internship board. Oh, I can't forget about guiding the VISTA program, too.

How did you end up at the CCC?

I was a corporate meeting and event planner up until 2007. I worked on the Clinton Inauguration and the Atlanta Olympics. With the economic winds changing, a lot of my prior clients informed me they weren't going to be hosting events over the next couple years due to budgetary challenges. At that time, I decided to make a career shift and applied to serve with the state.

By chance, I landed in the bond unit here at the CCC, one of the most fortunate things that's ever happened to me. Helping California's youth and the environment is a much higher calling for me than helping organizations schmooze clients to buy their products, LOL.

How long have you been with the Corps?

This is my first state job and I've now been here for over five years. Only in the CCC can someone be around for this long and still be called a "newbie." Gotta love it!

What do you like best about the CCC?

There is NEVER a boring day here! On any given day, I can navigate between 15 different urgent matters that need immediate attention. This is great because I love being a "firefighter" and problem solver. That the beneficiaries of my efforts are the corpsmembers only makes it all sweeter.

But also, the people I work with every day amaze me. Like I said, I'm a lucky guy to work with you all.

If you were to be a corpsmember for a day, what would you want to do?

Fuel load reduction work around Tahoe. I'm pretty good with a chain saw and chipper...

Anything you might want to change or add to the program?

I wish that the budgets weren't so tight because it would be great to bring counseling and case management services to all the centers.

In my spare time, I like to ....

Ski downhill really, really fast!

People would be surprised to know I . . .

Worked at Disneyland growing up -- I took tickets at the main gate, among other jobs. Since I worked there, I could get in free any night after 5, except Saturday. In the mornings, before the park opened, we used to have canoe races between the different divisions.

And I still collect comic books -- hey, I'm a big kid at heart.

Time travel becomes a reality and you can visit any era you want. Where would you go?

Boldly where no one has gone before...

  Congratulations to Brian, Kelly, Tony and Aaron on their years of service. 

 15 Years

                          Brian Lussier      Conservation Supervisor      Greenwood

                          Kelly Reynolds     Personnel Supervisor           Headquarters

                       Tony Vasquez     Assoc. Gov'tal Prog.Analyst      Headquarters

 35 Years

Aaron Fry is the first staff member to reach 35 years of CCC service.  He began in 1978 as a Conservation Technician at the CCC's Bret Harte Academy in Calaveras County. 

                         Aaron Fry                       Conservationist II                 Placer

That's Senator Roderick Wright of Inglewood, left, posing with Los Angeles VISTA Marisol Espino and Acting Conservation Supervisor Edgar Lino. The occasion was Assemblymember Isadore Hall's annual Business 2 Business Roundtable held at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

That's Watershed Stewards member Nicolas Massa at the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by Amanda Lightfoot-Wright.

Wildllife Refuge Tree Planting: More than 100 volunteers, including corpsmembers, Scouts and Humboldt State students, joined in the second annual tree planting project at the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The event was organized by Watershed Stewards Project member Andrea Garcia, who is also a former Fortuna corpsmember.

More than 1200 trees and plants were planted as part of a 10-year project to restore Salmon Creek to its natural course and increase salmon and trout habitat. The event was cosponsored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Tahoe corpsmembers talk with Assemblyman Frank Bigelow (in cowboy hat) at a South Lake Tahoe community meeting. Photos by Leedy Dunkle.

Tahoe corpsmembers pose with Senator Ted Gaines.

Tahoe Corpsmembers Meet Legislators: Tahoe Center Director Leedy Dunkle took three corpsmembers with her to meet Assemblyman Frank Bigelow and Senator Ted Gaines who held a joint community meeting in South Lake Tahoe. Leedy says she had the corpsmembers prepare by reading the legislators' websites, "and they went prepared with questions! They liked the fact that Assemblyman Bigelow is still a volunteer firefighter."

Leedy took with her Specialist Alyssa O'Keefe, and crewleaders Nick Spangler and Matt Scully. She also had a chance to meet John D'Agostini, the El Dorado County Sheriff.

Ukiah Tour of Calpine: Ukiah VISTA Sara Wolman organized a guided tour of Calpine's geothermal power plant in Cloverdale last month. The plant is the world's largest producer of green geothermal energy. The corpsmembers received a tour from Area General Manager Jim Kluesener and learned how steam is used to produce green energy. The tour included a look at the plant's control room. Photos below by Sara Wolman.

Monterey Bay Targets Archery Range: Corpsmembers from the Monterey Bay Center went to the Santa Teresa County Park's  Archery Range, to help the Black Mountain Bowmen maintain the range.  The park is located 10 miles south of San Jose.

Special Corpsmember Julie Deaton tells us the corpsmembers cut portions of a trail, replaced a dozen bow racks and several targets, and filled potholes with asphalt.  After their volunteer efforts, archers taught them how to use the bows.  Photos below by Julie Deaton.

After helping to spruce up the archery range, Monterey Bay corpsmembers got instruction in proper bow usage.

Monterey Bay's John Dorvitt and Kiabin Xian hone their bow-and-arrow techniques.

New Camarillo cooks: Robert Campos is the new Supervising Cook for the center.  He comes to the CCC following a 26-year career in the culinary arts, sparked by seeing the passion of his father, executive chef of a Ventura County country club. Robert began his state service in 1987 at the Ventura Correctional Facility, formerly the California Youth Authority.  While there, he cooked for the Cal Fire fire camp. 

Robert started March 1; Douglas Shy came on board as a Cook, CCC  at Camarillo last fall.  Douglas is a former Camarillo corpsmember mentored in the culinary arts by Clarence Franklin.  After his CCC days, Douglas returned to Camarillo as a Special Corpsmember, then took the Cook exam where he was the top candidate.

Julie Mull, formerly of the CCC's Human Resources Unit, is back in HR as a retired annuitant. Julie retired as human resources chief at Cal Expo and had been working there as a retired annuitant.  

Chad Harris, longtime supervisor of a San Jose crew, was appointed as Conservationist II at the Monterey Bay Center last year. He continued to run a crew until the center crew supervisor positions were fully staffed.  Chad started his CCC career as a corpsmember at the Sequoia and Delta centers.         

Retirements: Personnel Assistant Paul Subialka retired at the end of February, with 25 years of state service.  Paul had been with the CCC since October 2001, working in the Transactions Unit.  Previously, he had worked in the Human Resources Unit at the State Compensation Insurance Fund in San Francisco. 

Corpsmember Development's Nancy Kington is retiring at the end of the month after about six years with the CCC in three locations -- Delta (Stockton), Ukiah and Headquarters.  At Delta, she was a Supervisor, Corpsmember Development, when the position was first established, and also filled that position in Ukiah.  When the position was eliminated, she went to the Dept. of Toxic Substances Control, then returned to the CCC to work in Corpsmember Development at Headquarters.  She has overseen the VISTA program, including 40+ VISTA members and 20+ VISTA supervisors, and also took the lead on the new Career Development and Transition course.

Nancy plans to return to her hometown of San Luis Obispo, where her husband lives, and maybe get involved in part-time work with direct service to others.  She'll also spend time with her first grandchild, Logan, born last November.

Former CCC staff member Pat Day is retiring from the Department of Corrections at the end of July.  "My best state experience was at the CCC for 14 years."  Pat worked at the CCC from 1989 through 2003: she was at the Santa Clara Center that became the Pacific Bays Center, and went from there to Headquarters.

In memoriam:

Dotty Bryan, a longtime cook for the CCC, passed away in February.  Dotty was hired in 1987 as a Cook at the Academy, transferred to the Leggett Satellite in Mendocino County and was promoted to Supervising Cook at the Fortuna Center in 1995.  She retired from Fortuna in 2002.

Region 2 Deputy Michelle Rankin recalls that "Dotty loved working with and cooking for corpsmembers, and despite many personal hardships, she stayed committed to the mission of the CCC for her entire career.  Not only that, her cheesecake was amazing!"

Program Operations and Development Chief Erin Healy worked with Dotty when Erin headed the Leggett Satellite.  "Every corpsmember liked Dotty, and she was like a mom to them."  Erin notes that she created some great food despite primitive conditions, and got corpsmembers involved in volunteering at many community events. 

CCC boys completing a campsite at Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, 1934.  Photo courtesy of California State Parks.

Back in 1933, Franklin Roosevelt was inaugurated on March 4.  Legislation creating the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Emergency Conservation Work Act, was introduced just a few weeks later and signed into law March 31.  The first enrollee joined in early April 1933.  

The program paid the CCC boys $30/month, with $25 sent home to the families.  That was an immediate boost to local economies throughout the country, as well as the communities near the hundreds of camps.

The program ran from 1933 to 1942, winding down as the country geared up for World War II.  But there was a wealth of achievements during those nine years.  More than three million men hired, some two billion trees were planted, hence the nickname "The Tree Army."  The men fought fires, floods and hurricanes, built roads, lookout towers and fire breaks, and erected miles of telephone lines.

In California, dozens of state parks and national parks were developed or enhanced by the CCC.  We've worked in most of these parks in more recent years. President Roosevelt visited Los Angeles' Griffith Park, site of a CCC camp and statue; First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt visited Camp Wawona at Yosemite.

The lobby of our headquarters building features a life-size bronze statue of a CCC worker, largely funded by Bob Griffiths, a CCC boy himself in New York state.  The statue was dedicated during the 75th anniversary of the original program in 2008.  Bob is now 96 and lives in Roseville. 

First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt Visits Camp Wawona at Yosemite.

-- March 4-6              Center Director/BSO Training, Headquarters 

-- March 4 - 7            Hazwoper Training, Pomona

-- March 11 - 15        Environmental Health and Safety Tech Training, Camarillo

-- March 11 - 15        Leadership Training, Placer

-- March  15               CCC Film Festival Voting begins on YouTube

-- March 25 - 29        Hazwoper Training, Tahoe Center

-- March 31                80th anniversary of the creation of the Civilian Conservation Corps

-- April 10                   Government Education Day, CAB Conference, Placer/Sacramento

-- April 15 - 18           Veterans Fire Training, Placer

The next newsletter is scheduled to be sent out in early April.  We'd like to receive any information or photos (jpgs, please) by Friday, March 22.  Earlier is always appreciated.  Please direct your items to Susanne Levitsky at [email protected]; (916) 341-3145.