We are dark next week for Thanksgiving.  Have a Happy Holiday!

 

In two weeks, Thursday December 5th, is our Annual Christmas Party at 5:30 for the social hour and 6:30 for dinner at the Cameron Park Country Club.  Please participate by contributing items for the auctions, asking additional guests to attend, and attending with your spouse or guest!

CP Rotary Member and County Supervisor, Shiva Frentzen, spoke to us about issues facing our County, and her District 2, in particular.  District 2 includes the southern part of El Dorado Hills, Cameron Park and much of the rural south county.  Some of the issues/progress Shiva discussed included: 
- CalPERS is having trouble hitting the rates of return that it promises, so the County has to set aside a much money as possible to try to address the unfunded pension liability that keeps growing.
- A senior nutrition program is available at the CP CSD.
- To build the new Sheriff's Office and law enforcement building, the county borrowed $40M and is paying back $2.5M/year for 40 years.
- Regarding Road Maintenance, the gas tax revenue has been declining.  On November 2020, there will be a 0.5% sales tax proposition on the ballot that would provide more local revenue for roads and probably open up the state money spigots because we would then be a self-help county.  Shiva is against it because she believes we have enough local taxes on us already.
- The county is contracting with a company to gather and, using AI, automatically analyze satellite images of the county to spot: vegetation management problem areas; cannabis grows; and cemetery maintenance issues.  The County is looking for a $700K grant to help clean up vegetation.
- Fire insurance premiums are skyrocketing in some rural, high risk areas.  Costs can be up to $7-8,000 per year.  Shiva is pushing for the state and insurance companies to offer a monthly payment plan to help cope with the very high bills.

- A feasibility study was conducted to investigate the County to build infrastructure to provide broadband internet access to everyone.  70% of the plant would be fiber on poles, and 30% would be underground.  The price tag would be several billion dollars which is unrealistic for the county to consider.

 

Shiva noted that there is a Community Planning Group for Cameron Park.  If interested, let Shiva know, as Dick Franks already has.

Bill Hughes asked Tom Elken to share his experience with polio with the club so as to bring home the impact of this devastating disease.  Tom contracted polio in 1955, the same year the Salk vaccine first became available.  Tom recounted his memories of the 3 month hospital stay, the physical therapy which followed and devices to help him deal with the result of having a shorter, weaker right leg than his left.  He had to live through some childhood ridicule, and a couple of surgeries to try to reduce the effects of the active polio episode.  During his teens through his thirties, there were few noticeable effects of the disease as he participated in several intramural sports, but in his sixties, post-polio symptoms have resulted in increased weakness and occasional pain in his right leg, which may result in more mobility issues before long.

Please join Tom in your continuing contributions to Polio+ and "Change for a Change" to combat this insidious disease as long as it exists on our planet.