Brentwood Press - Index
Brentwood Press - BrentwoodPress_08.15.08 - Index
YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
National Award Winning Newspapers
Vol. 10, No. 33 Including Surrounding Communities www.brentwoodpress.com August 15, 2008
Witnessing the making of Marines
by Rick Lemyre
Staff Writer
They scramble off the buses wearing typical
teenager haircuts, Nike T-shirts and looks
of bewilderment, trepidation and uncertainty.
Driven by sharp commands from a cadre of
men in crisp uniforms and impatient countenances,
they attempt to comply with orders to
both “Hurry up!” and “Stop running!” and
form up on precisely aligned yellow footprints
stenciled on the sidewalk. In a few moments,
they will be ushered through a nearby door
– which they will soon learn is properly called a
“hatch” – never to be seen again.
That’s because these young men are arriving
at Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD)
San Diego, and over the next 12 weeks they will
be stripped of their hair, their civilian clothing
and their uncertainty as they are transformed
from what they were when they arrived into
United States Marines.
Jerry Black, an administrator with the
Liberty Union High School District, and David
Koch, a teacher at Antioch High School,
were among 72 educators– and one journalist
– from the San Francisco Bay Area, and San
Diego and Las Vegas areas recently given the
opportunity to observe that transformation
process up close during a weeklong Educators
Workshop hosted by the Corps. The workshop
was held at MCRD, the Corps’ Air Station
Miramar and Camp Pendleton in Southern
California.
The purpose of the workshop, said Brig.
Gen. Angela Salinas, commander of MCRD
San Diego and the Corps’ Western Recruiting
Region, was to “show community leaders our
commitment to excellence” and to give them
fi rsthand knowledge and experience they could
bring back to their students.
More than 22,000 recruits began the process
last year and 93 percent of them com-
pleted it. The success rate is due to numerous
pre-screenings that ensure only the best wouldbe
Marines ever get a chance to stand in the
yellow footprints. The days are long gone when
the Marines accepted recruits who only want-
Two challengers vie for city offices
by Rick Lemyre
Staff Writer
A former city employee and
a private investigator will join the
trio of incumbents seeking election
to the Brentwood City Council
in November.
Teresa Wooten, a 13-year
employee of the city’s Engineering
Department, is challenging
incumbent Bob Taylor in the race
for the city’s fi rst four-year mayoral
term. Voters in 2006 approved
extending the mayor’s seat from
two to four years, matching the
length of the other council members’
terms. The change that takes
effect this year.
“I want to make it clear that
this is not about being a disgruntled
employee,” said Wooten, who
Photo by Rick Lemyre
Visiting educators receive orders to fi nd a bunk (“Today, people, today!”) during
an Educators Workshop at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego.
More than 70 teachers and administrators got a fi rsthand taste of life at boot
camp during their weeklong stay.
was laid off as a result of the city’s
belt-tightening earlier this year.
“As long as I was employed there,
(holding elected offi ce) wasn’t an
option.” She is currently looking
for work elsewhere in the engineering
fi eld.
Wooten, who is a single
mother to her 17-year-old daughter,
said the city’s planned $72
million civic center project will be
a major focus of her campaign.
She does not think that spending
so much money is a good idea in
the current economic climate, and
would like to see more return on
the millions of dollars invested
over the last few years locating
city offi ces where they are now.
She added that her candidacy is
meant to give the public “a chance
to voice what direction they would
like the city to go,” a discussion
that would not take place if Taylor
were to run un-opposed.
Wooten also said that she’s
aware that mayoral candidates
usually gain needed experience
by occupying Planning Commission
or City Council seats before
running for mayor. But after more
than a dozen years of working
with the commission and preparing
reports for the City Council,
she believes she’s gained the necessary
experience of how the city
runs to be an effective mayor.
Private investigator Roger
Short will contend with incumbents
Bob Brockman and Erick
Stonebarger for a seat on the
council.
“I’ve been in public service all
my life and I think I have some-
see Marines page 12A
thing to offer Brentwood,” said
Short, a retired member of the Air
Force Reserve, who ran unsuccessfully
for the council in 2006. Short
is married and has eight children,
six at home – ages 3 to 13 – and
two grown.
The top item on Short’s
agenda is “our inability to fi gure
out how to fi x American Avenue,”
where vehicles coming and going
to Heritage High and Adams
Middle schools create snarled traffi
c. “We’ve basically put a Band-
Aid on a gushing, gaping wound.
We have to aggressively pursue” a
long-term solution.
Another top priority for
Short is bringing more higherpaying
jobs to the city. “We have
see Challengers page 13A
THIS WEEK
Marsh makes
A historic house is no longer
the only place you can get an
up-close encounter with an
East County icon.
Page 4A
Wallpaper
redefined
An upcoming festival will
feature a wall adorned by the
community’s most promising
young artists.
Page 9A
Acting like
Hot Shots
An East County softball team
lived up to its name by taking
on tough competition and
bringing home a title.
Page 1B
INSIDE
Art .................................. 9A
Calendar ........................23B
Classifieds ......................15B
Community .................... 3A
Education .....................10A
Entertainment ..............14B
Food .............................. 12B
Health & Beauty............11B
Milestones .......................9B
Opinion ........................16A
Public Notices ................18B
Sports ...............................1B