To the community,

Thanks to the sponsorship of Heavenly Mountain Resort, the cooking skills of the B&B volunteer cooks and the efforts of the Heavenly sponsor crew and B&B volunteers, a hearty stew, mixed vegetables, fruit salad, beverages and desserts were served to the very grateful guests at Bread & Broth’s April 8 dinner.

Over 90 meals were served and many of the dinner guests happily left with leftovers.

Heavenly Mountain Resort’s 12 annual Adopt A Day sponsorships are made possible through a grant provided by the Vail Resorts Charitable Fund/Vail Resorts Echo. Heavenly has chosen to host one Adopt A Day per month and encourages Heavenly employees to volunteer three hours of their time to assist B&B volunteers at their designated Monday evening dinners.

Heavenly’s April 8 sponsor volunteer crew were a cheerful, hardworking team who described their volunteer opportunity as “an honor to join forces with our colleagues and serve our community”. The Heavenly volunteers for the evening were Kelly Carmichael, manager, product sales; Sean Clark, assistant manager, scanning; Jolena Hearn, assistant manager, greeters; Jimi Herbst, assistant manager, product sales; and Paul Hopkins, direct, product sales.

Bread & Broth is very grateful to Vail Resorts Echo Foundation for their grant to the B&B program. Their grant has been a major funding source for providing the hot, nutritious dinners B&B provides for the needy of the South Lake Tahoe community.

For information on how you can support the B&B program, contact me at (530) 542.2876 or carolsgerard@aol.com.

Carol Gerard, Bread & Broth

By Ted Parkhill

The Tahoe Grizzlies Bantam hockey team won the state championship on Sunday.

The 13- to 15-year-olds entered the April 14 event as the underdogs. But that didn’t slow them down.

The boys, who are part of the South Tahoe Amateur Hockey Association, win the California State title at Sharks Ice in San Jose. It is the first state title ever won by a team from Lake Tahoe. Only once before had a team from Tahoe even made it to the state final.

The South Lake Tahoe Grizzlies are state champions. Photo/HockeyShots Photography

The championship banner will be displayed in the South Lake Tahoe arena.

“These boys came through when it really mattered in the championship game. They were down two players in the second period and the boys stuck to our game plan. They stepped up their tempo and took it to our opponent for the victory,” Head Coach Ken Wood said. “Like we have done all season through injuries, suspensions and a short bench [hockey -speak for not too many players] this Tahoe Grizzlies team played as a team and we won as a team.”

Indeed, there was a variety of talent on the team. But every player knew that to win, every player was important.

The state championships began April 12 when the Grizzlies faced the San Diego Jr. Gulls. The Grizzlies were ready and quickly discovered they could compete at the state level. They handily won the game 7-1. The Gulls were surprised by the Grizzlies incredible speed and offensive onslaught.

Later that day they faced their Northern California nemesis, the Fresno Junior Monsters. The Jr. Monsters had beaten the Grizzlies in the Northern California playoffs only two weeks before. Friday night was a hard fought game and Fresno finished just ahead, 3-2.

With this win Fresno qualified to play in the final championship game. It also meant the Grizzlies had to win on Saturday to make it to the final. Saturday night they faced the California Heat from Los Angeles.

It was a battle and the Heat were hungry. They wanted to win. But the Grizzlies did too. They went back and forth with the scoring and there were tied 3-3 in the middle of the third period. With only 2½ minutes left the Grizzlies scored to take the lead. The Grizzlies won the game 4-3.

They would face the Jr. Monsters in the championship game.

On Sunday both teams knew there was a state title at stake. Both teams came out hitting. The Jr. Monsters scored first. But the Grizzlies quickly tied it up.

There were some big hits early in the game and one of the Grizzlies was given a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct for a big hit. The Jr. Monsters capitalized on the power play and scored four minutes into the major penalty. The Grizzlies responded with a power play goal of their own to once again tie it up, 2-2.

The Grizzlies scored again to take the lead in the middle of the second.

Then one of the Fresno players hit one of the Grizzlies from behind and in the head. The Grizzly player was knocked unconscious. There was no penalty called on the play. However, the game was delayed for about 30 minutes.

The Grizzlies were now determined to win for themselves, their ejected teammate and the one on his way to the hospital. When play resumed with one minute left in the second period the Grizzlies were on the attack. The scored with one second left in the second period!. The Grizzlies were ahead now 4-2.

The Jr. Monsters did not give up. But at this point the Grizzlies were on a tear. In the third period they scored two unanswered goals and ended up winning 6-2.

These boys came from almost not having a team at all and not being able to play to banding together to form a championship team. It was an incredible effort.

Back in August STAHA tried assembling a Bantam age hockey team. Early on it became clear there might not be enough players to enter a team in NorCal travel hockey. Parents started recruiting. They ended up with boys coming from Carson City, Reno, Incline Village, Stockton, Valley Springs, Roseville and Rocklin.

—

Tahoe Grizzlies 2012-13 Bantam Roster:

Spencer Olson, Carson City

Alexander Low, Stockton

Jakob DeGregory, South Lake Tahoe

Edward Parkhill, Incline Village

Reiss Jensen, Reno

Janez Demsar, South Lake Tahoe

Colby Boucher, Sparks

John Moffat, South Lake Tahoe

Adam Contreras, Valley Springs

John Gist, Rocklin

Joseph Cookson, Stockton

Braydon Thompson, Roseville

Reed Leqeurica, Carson City

Travis Wood, South Lake Tahoe

Ted Parkhill works for  STAHA.

A Florida man died Monday when the vehicle he was driving went off the road near Caples Lake dam.

The name of the 25-year-old from Hobe Sound is not being released pending notification of family.

According to California Highway Patrolman Paul Smyrski, the victim was headed toward Kirkwood on Highway 88 at a high rate of speed when he lost control of his vehicle. About 1 inch of snow was on the ground. The Toyota pickup did not make the sharp left onto the dam. The vehicle left the road, went up a dirt embankment, struck a tree and sign post and then went airborne.

The vehicle then hit a metal gate and post before it went off a small cliff, hit a cedar tree and landed on the driver’s side.

The drive was ejected. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Smyrski told Lake Tahoe News alcohol is not believed to be a factor in the April 14 4:45pm fatality.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

By Kathryn Reed

Scrambled eggs are just about the only way I make eggs. But that can get a wee bit old even for someone who doesn’t make them that often.

The recipe below is something I made for Sue for her birthday earlier this month. I think it would be a perfect Mother’s Day breakfast as well.

The recipe is from the June 2010 Cooking Light magazine. I think I will have to try it again when morels in Tahoe start to sprout. I used a mixture of dried mushrooms.

While the recipe says it makes enough for four servings, we found it was better for three. But I didn’t serve anything else with it. So if fruit or something else were to be paired with it, the egg concoction would go farther because the diners would need less to feel satisfied.

The rest is from The Enlightened Cook column of the magazine:

Scrambled Eggs with Morel and Tarragon Cream Sauce

Use fresh morel mushrooms if they’re available — substitute 1 cup cleaned, fresh mushrooms for dried. The light anise notes from the tarragon make a natural pairing for eggs and also complement the earthiness of the mushrooms.

1/2 C (about 1/2 ounce) dried morel mushrooms

2 tsp butter

¼ C finely chopped shallots

½ C organic vegetable broth

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1/3 C reduced-fat sour cream

2 tsp chopped fresh chives, divided

2 tsp chopped fresh tarragon, divided

¼ tsp salt, divided

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper, divided

Cooking spray

3 large eggs

3 large egg whites

4 English muffins, split and toasted

Place mushrooms in a bowl, and cover with boiling water. Cover and let stand 20 minutes or until tender. Drain well; coarsely chop.

Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots; sauté 1 minute. Add mushrooms; sauté 2 minutes. Add broth and juice; cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream. Stir in 1 teaspoon chives, 1 teaspoon tarragon, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Place mushroom sauce in a small bowl; cover and keep warm. Wipe pan clean with a paper towel.

Heat pan over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Whisk together remaining 1 teaspoon chives, 1 teaspoon tarragon, 1/8 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, eggs, and egg whites. Pour egg mixture into pan. Cook for 4 minutes or until soft-scrambled, stirring frequently.

Place 2 muffin halves, cut sides up, on each of 4 plates. Top each serving with about 3 tablespoons sauce and ¼ cup eggs.

Tahoe Rim Trail Association is putting on a Trail Talk on April 23 from 11:30am-1pm for people to learn about the 165-mile trail.

The free event is at Explore Tahoe: An Urban Trailhead, 4114 Lake Tahoe Blvd, South Lake Tahoe.

Sign up by calling (775) 298.0235.

By Kathryn Reed

STATELINE – After less than two years on the job, Kathy Hardy is about to retire as forest supervisor of the Eldorado National Forest.

While the 605,000-acre forest does not include parts of the Lake Tahoe Basin, it once did. When the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit was created, the Eldorado lost the Lake Valley portion of its jurisdiction.

Years ago Hardy worked for LTBMU. And at that time she was a member of Soroptimist International South Lake Tahoe. She returned last week as a guest speaker to the group during a lunch at Harveys.

Kathy Hardy will be retiring this spring from the Eldorado National Forest. Photo/Provided

Ecological restoration is one of the main focuses of her job. This includes dealing with timber stands and various issues that affect rivers and streams.

When the Forest Service was created, trees were thought of as a crop. That’s why it falls under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The Eldorado includes four rivers, parts of two wilderness areas (Desolation is one), 888 lakes-ponds-reservoirs, 57 campgrounds, 700 miles of non-motorized trails, and 2,600 miles of roads. “Which is too many,” Hardy said of the roads.

There are 155 National Forests and 20 National Grasslands in the country.

“They are managed for multiple uses. There is a lot of conflict with each other,” Hardy said.

While recreation is often what people in Tahoe think of when being part of the forest, playing outdoors can have impacts on other goals of the Forest Service. This is because the resources of the forest also need protection – whether it’s the plants or animals.

Ensuring the watersheds provide a continuous flow of clean water is another mandate of the Forest Service.

Fire has long been an issue within the Forest Service, with policy changing throughout the years. Now it’s about managing the forest so the threat of a devastating fire is lessened. More recently letting some fires burn as they would do naturally is being allowed because research shows this is better for the ecosystem.

Of the 360 employees in the Eldorado about two-thirds are permanent employees, with the other third seasonal summer workers. Half of the workers are firefighters. They are deployed throughout the country as needed.

When Hardy started with the U.S. Forest Service in 1981 there were not many women. While she is the first woman to lead the Eldorado, of the 18 National Forests in California, 10 have a woman at the helm.

While budget cuts continue to impact Forest Service operations, she said the department anticipated sequestration by implementing 6 percent budget cuts at the start of the year.

But she also said she doesn’t know how the cutbacks will completely be absorbed. It’s possible some campgrounds won’t open.

This summer Hardy plans to spend more of her time playing outdoors with her husband, Bruce Ungari, who has already retired. Camping, skiing, rafting and fishing are some of their favorite activities. A tip she told Soroptimist – check out the Big Meadows campground near Georgetown.

“It’s just beautiful,” Hardy said, and her favorite in the Eldorado.

Soroptimist International South Lake Tahoe has opened its annual poster art contest.

Artists have until June 1 to submit original artwork.

The design must be on 11 inches by 17 inches. The theme is Tahoe and Wine Tasting.

The winning artist will receive $250, and local recognition.

The original art piece will become property of Soroptimist and will be used to advertise the 43rd Wine Tasting at Harrah’s Tahoe in November.

Entries may be dropped off at Skin & Hair, 1017 Carson St., No. 6, South Lake Tahoe.

For more info, contact Valerie Conners at (530) 544.8545 or valerieconners@yahoo.com.

By George Runner

Last year California voters approved two tax increases aimed at bringing billions more dollars into state coffers. But that hasn’t stopped revenue-hungry lawmakers in the Legislature from seeking further tax hikes. It’s almost as if they think we can tax ourselves into prosperity.

A recent example of this type of confused thinking is the oil severance tax. Like a bad penny, this tired old idea keeps turning up at the Capitol year after year, despite being rejected by voters in 2006.

George Runner

A severance tax is simply a fancy name for taxing something when it comes out of the ground—in this case, oil. Proponents of the tax argue that California is giving oil companies a free ride. In her release announcing Senate Bill 241, Sen. Noreen Evans claims — falsely — that “California is the largest—and only—oil producing state in the nation that does not tax its vast oil resources.”

The truth is California already has a statewide severance tax that funds state oil and gas regulators. We also tax oil companies in many other ways. These taxes includes property taxes assessed on oil in the ground, local extraction taxes, plus California’s sky-high sales and corporate taxes.

A 2008 study by José Luis Alberro and William Hamm found that “the tax burden California imposes on oil companies is average when compared to the tax burden imposed by other oil producing states.”

According to the study’s authors, a 9.9 percent severance tax would make California’s tax burden far higher than these other states, reduce oil production, increase our reliance on foreign oil, raise gas prices and eliminate nearly 10,000 California jobs.

Clearly, taxing oil won’t create prosperity for our state.

There is a path to greater prosperity that would create more jobs, lower gas prices and economic growth with no new taxes. But to take this path, we’ll need more domestic oil production, not less.

A recent study by USC explored the impact of using advanced oil-extraction technologies to access California’s vast oil reserves.

The study’s authors project that developing these oil reserves could add up to 2.8 million new jobs to California’s economy, bolster the state’s economic growth up to 14.3 percent and increase personal incomes by up to 10%. State and local government revenue could grow by as much as $24.6 billion — without a tax increase.

California’s oil reserves are located in the Monterey Shale Formation, much of which lies beneath California’s Central Valley. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the formation holds more than 15 billion barrels of oil—about two thirds of the nation’s shale oil reserves.

Hydraulic fracturing for oil, a practice that has been widely used and carefully regulated by states since the 1940s, has been increasingly used by the industry. Through advances in “fracking” technology, including the use of concrete barriers to ensure that the upward-moving oil remains contained within the well, California is well-positioned to safely and wisely access what is literally a new untapped resource.

California’s unemployment rate of 9.6 percent is tied with Mississippi and Nevada as the highest in the nation. In contrast, oil-producing North Dakota boasts the nation’s lowest unemployment rate of just 3.3 percent.

California’s Central Valley, where double digit unemployment rates still linger, would benefit most from a California oil boom. Of course, any new oil production must be done safely and in an environmentally responsible manner.

But we won’t ever reach economic prosperity if we block it from happening. The quickest way to do that is by enacting an oil severance tax. Let’s keep energy jobs in our state by stopping the severance tax. It’s the least we can do for our current energy industry workers and the many more who may soon join them.

George Runner represents more than 9 million Californians as a taxpayer advocate and elected member of the State Board of Equalization.

A Fresno man who controlled marijuana grows in El Dorado and Placer counties was sentenced April 15 to 17 1/2 years in federal prison for drug crimes.

Uriel Ochoa-Espindola, 44, according to court documents, was the leader of a massive marijuana manufacturing operation and an interstate drug distribution ring. He and his partners grew tens-of-thousands of marijuana plants in three counties and shipped their product across the country with the aid of commercial truckers. Espindola’s operation was based near Delhi, but he controlled marijuana grows in El Dorado County, Tehama County, and Placer County.

According to court documents, investigators seized three handguns and nearly 11,000 marijuana plants at the El Dorado County grow site. They seized nearly 17,500 marijuana plants at a grow site in Placer County, and nearly 2,000 marijuana plants at the grow site in Tehama County.

According to court documents, Espindola was “one of the largest marijuana traffickers in Northern California.” He, his lieutenants, and his workers used firearms to further that operation. In addition to the weapons found in the El Dorado County grow site and a shotgun found at Espindola’s home, Ramirez-Cardinez, told one of the undercover officers that he brought a .22-caliber rifle to the Placer County grow site. Investigators ultimately found five other firearms at Ramirez-Cardinez’ house when he was arrested. Earlier, Ramirez-Cardinez gave one of the undercover officers an AK-47 rifle. The officer was supposed to pay for the weapon later.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

Smoke rises April 15 after bombs went off near the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Photos/Les Wright

Four South Lake Tahoe residents who were in Boston for the country’s oldest marathon escaped the bombings unharmed.

Two bombs were heard going off near the finish line of the April 15 event just before noon Pacific time. Three people are confirmed dead and 144 injured.

“We were between both bombs which were 100 yards or less apart. We are back at our flat watching it on TV,” Les Wright of South Lake Tahoe said in an email to Lake Tahoe News. Wright puts on the Lake Tahoe Marathon and often travels to other races to promote his September event.

He is in Boston with his wife, Buffy, and their friend Kristin Blocher.

“We had just got through the massive crowd on the sidewalk where one of the bombs went off. I fear what the death toll will be. Earlier we were in the bleachers exactly across from the finish line first bomb in the bleachers. We had gone back to our apartment after the winners crossed and were just getting back to the finish line to see Kristin finish at around 4 hours. The bombs went off at 2:51 Boston time,” Wright said. “Kristin was running to the finish line between the two bombs. We are three very lucky people.”

Shandi Ashmore of South Lake Tahoe was also running the marathon. LTN has been notified that she was not harmed.

The race has 27,000 participants and can have nearly twice as many spectators.

The hotline for help locate friends and family is (617) 635.4500.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

—-

The finish line before the chaos.

The following is from the Reno Gazette-Journal:

After hearing two explosions, Frank Kight dove to the ground and mass chaos ensued.

“I heard that first explosion and my first thought was that maybe it was a festivity or cannon,” Kight, a retired Dilworth Middle School counselor from Sparks who was near the Boston Marathon finish line Monday when two explosions killed at least three and injured more than 100, said.

“When it went off I ducked and it was followed by another explosion — and at that point people were screaming. I dove to the ground and saw people screaming… It was mass chaos,” Kight said.

Shrapnel left a gash in Kight’s right calf and caught his pants on fire. His ex-wife was also taken to the hospital, where she remained after surgery to inspect a leg wound. They were in Boston to watch their daughter, Amy Blomquist, run the marathon. Blomquist was one of 33 Reno-Sparks-area runners in this year’s Boston Marathon.

There was no word on the motive or who may have carried out the attack, and police said they had no suspects in custody.

A senior U.S. intelligence official said two other bombs were found near the end of the 26.2-mile course.

The White House issued a statement Monday saying the government “will increase security around the United States as necessary,” and Reno-Tahoe International Airport spokesman Brian Kulpin said airport personnel were on a “heightened state of vigilance.”

—

People scramble for cover after two explosions go off at the Boston Marathon.

The following is from the Boston Globe:

At a news conference Monday evening, Richard DesLauriers, head of the Boston office of the FBI, said the FBI was taking the lead in the probe of the blasts. “It is a criminal investigation that is a potential terrorist investigation,” he said.

Blood and broken glass covered sidewalks in the area after the blasts occurred at about 2:50pm.

“It was just immediately [evident] there were injuries, right in the middle of the spectator crowds,” said boston.com sports producer Steve Silva, who was on the scene to cover the race, normally a spectacle that is a magnet for elite athletes and determined runners from across the world.

“There was blood everywhere; there were victims being carried out on stretchers. I saw someone lose their leg. People are crying. People are confused,” Silva, who captured one of the explosions on video, said moments after the blasts.

Peter Fagenholz, a trauma surgeon, told reporters “several” people had to have limbs amputated. Doctors said those injured had metal debris embedded in their bodies, but they didn’t think that the metal was shrapnel that was built into the bombs.

“We will turn every rock over to find the people who were responsible for this,” Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis said.

No suspects have been arrested, Davis said, though police were questioning many people.

Just before 8pm, a “person of interest” was being questioned at Brigham and Women’s in connection with the bombing, according to an official briefed on the investigation. The individual was hurt in the explosion, the official said. But Davis said at a mid-evening news conference attended by DesLauriers, Gov. Deval Patrick, and other officials, that “there is no suspect at Brigham and Women’s Hospital as has been widely reported.”

Neither Davis nor DesLauriers would discuss any specifics of the case.

Davis had initially said there had been a third explosion at the John F. Kennedy Library in Dorchester. But he downplayed those comments at an afternoon news conference, suggesting that the incident might not have been an explosion and might have been a fire.