Diane Oestreich

After a salute to the American flag and a prayer at the June 23 Republican Women's meeting, Sandy Schultz came to the microphone and described an ongoing project of the club. “We have a program through our club that gives $250 to locals and loved ones of locals who are with the active military and are coming home on leave,” she said. “They just send me a screenshot of their travel information, and then we send off a check for $250. It's completely nonpartisan. We don't ask what their political party affiliation is, it's just our way of saying thank you. So, in order to help make funds to give away, we're selling raffle ticket...It's $5 for one ticket, $20 for five tickets, and we're raffling off a $500 Amazon gift card. The drawing will be held at our Holiday Fantasy event. You don't need to be present in order to win.” She also expressed appreciation for those who have been participating in the Saturday Running Springs Farmer's Market for the club.

Compared to the end-of-the-year gaiety and presentations at the June 4 meeting, the June 25 meeting of Rim of the World Unified School District's school board consisted of a very capable skeleton crew carrying on what needed to be done. Dr. William Mellinger called the meeting to order at 5:30 PM in the absence of President Cindy Gardner, with trustees present identifying themselves: Dr. William Mellinger, Trustee Area 1: Scott Craft, Trustee Area 4: and Jordan Zarate, Trustee Area 5. If you haven't done so, go to

The June 23 meeting of the Lake Arrowhead Community Services District began, after the usual preliminaries, with recognition of retiring employees. Jeff Lewis was recognized for his 25 years of service, highlighting his roles in field operations and as a senior treatment plant operator. Operations Manager Matthew Brooks (retiring July 4 after 27.5 years of service), was recognized for his dedication to operational excellence and his impact on the district and community. Trevor Cory was recognized for his 31 years of service, including his roles in field operations and water and wastewater operations.

The San Bernardino Faith Based Network Luncheon, hosted by The Way World Outreach, brings together individuals and organizations seeking to help those who need assistance, especially in ending homelessness. Their mission statement is “We will build strong relationships, share wisdom, resources, and knowledge through a foundation of Christian values.” They “support the goals of the San Bernardino County strategic plan to end homelessness and to expand resources to empower and engage families and individuals in need.” On Thursday, June 18, when the scheduled speaker had to cancel, the group put together a panel of those who are trained in helping those who desire to redirect their lives and those who have overcome. Each one brought a dimension of experience to the panel discussion.

by Diane Oestreich Updated of 8 Lisa Shinkle has lived on the mountain for almost 30 years, her husband John for 40.

Kevin Hauser knows his way around apples—their history, the kinds that grow best in various climates, and how to grow them. He recommended his favorites, even though he joked “I have the taste buds of a 12-year-old” at his talk for the Rim of the World Historical Society at Skypark on July 15. His PowerPoint presentation was fast paced, factual, and a lot of fun. He lives in Riverside and brought apples to share from his own trees, but he is very familiar with mountain apple history and the personalities involved with it. “The one with the russets on it” (rough patches of brown or yellow color), “that's the Hudson's Golden Gem,” he explained about the apples he brought, “and the red one is a Japanese variety from the 1930s called Akane—”Not your average supermarket varieties.

There are two Shaunas and one Shawna in the Rim Forest Animal Hospital staff. A vet, a vet's assistant, and a receptionist are part of the staff of 12. Each staff member is pictured, with a personalized job description, on the hospital's website at

Proclaiming Awards Night at Rim High School to be “the very best night on this mountain” when hundreds of 1000s of dollars in scholarships are given to Rim of the World High School seniors, Marla Maganian said the second best night is having their scholarship winners present at a Republican Women's meeting and having them read their essays for the group—and giving them their scholarship money directly. The story of the Linda Ehe Memorial scholarship for $1500 was recounted. Linda was a past President of the Republican Women. When she passed, her husband Chris said, “Can we set up a scholarship fund in her name?” Every year he donates $1000-$1,500, and then the club tries to match that amount of money so that they have the amount to give to graduating seniors. This year they had $2,500, and so they had a $1500 first place winner and a second place $1,000 winner. The club decided to give checks directly to students to avoid colleges taking part of scholarship funds as they do with federal money.

by Diane Oestreich Updated of 10 Covers Major Projects, PFAS and Water Supply

by Diane Oestreich Updated of 7 with a Five-Generation Connection to Lake Arrowhead