Robert Plank - page 181

Ceres schools may reopen next month

Ceres Unified School District has a plan in place to re-open its elementary campuses for in-person learning. Teachers, staff and families were notified last Friday by Superintendent Scott Siegel. To allow for social distancing, a hybrid schedule will be used to minimize the number of students on campus at a time, beginning when elementary schools reopen. Summer vacation ended for CUSD students on Aug. 12 as the 2020-21 school year opened with remote learning due to state imposed coronavirus restrictions. All public schools in Stanislaus County were closed from March 19 through the 2019-20 spring academic year to help minimize the spread of COVID-19.

You can once again wait for an Amtrak train inside the Modesto station

Enhanced cleaning, more space for physical distancing, travel flexibility and a contact-free travel experience are Amtrak’s new standard of travel during coronavirus pandemic, says Amtrak Medical Director Dr. Ann Kuhnen. Amtrak is reopening station interiors in Modesto and three other cities as of Monday, Oct. 5. Passengers will again be able to check baggage and purchase tickets at the four stations, but cash will not be accepted out of concern for virus transmission. Online reservations are urged, face coverings and social distancing are required in the stations and on the platforms. The reopened stations have these hours seven days a week:

Modesto: 7:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. | Merced: 10:15 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. | Fresno: 5:45 a.m. to 6:15 p.m.| Hanford: 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
The other 14 stations on the route have remained open. They include Turlock/Denair, which has a platform but no building.

Air quality impacts sports schedule for Bulldogs, Hawks

Central Valley and Ceres High canceled conditioning workouts last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday because of poor air quality. Athletic directors Greg Magni and John Bussard made the joint decision to cancel conditioning workouts for sports teams from Central Valley and Ceres High, respectively, last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday due to poor air quality as a result of smoke from wildfires in California.None of Central Valley’s sports teams practice on Fridays at this point of the school year. Extracurricular activities, including sports, had been suspended until further notice on July 13 due to a spike in COVID-19 cases in Stanislaus County.

County provides alternatives to mailing in ballots

A number of satellite offices, drop-off boxes and drive-thru options are popping up in Turlock throughout the course of October and into November to ensure that every ballot is counted come election day. For the first time ever, all registered voters in Stanislaus County will receive their ballot in the mail for the upcoming election on Nov. 3 following legislation signed in June by Gov. Gavin Newsom. While every registered voter in Stanislaus County will receive a postage-paid ballot in their mailboxes this year, they do not have to turn it in by using the postal system. There will be one voting center for every 10,000 voters where those who don’t want to send in their ballots can drop them off. Voters can also receive device or language assistance at these locations, or replace a misplaced ballot.

Satellite office locations in Turlock include the Assyrian American Civic Club, Stanislaus County Fairgrounds, Ten Pin Fun Center and Turlock CSA Epic Center and will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. beginning Oct. 31 through Nov. 2, and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3.

The County has also worked with a variety of locations to allow for indoor, outdoor and curbside drop boxes where ballots can also be placed. It will be located at Turlock City Hall (, Turlock CSA South County Service Center, Save Mart and FoodMaxx. Curbside ballot drop off locations in Turlock are located at Stanislaus State and the Turlock Silvercrest Senior Residence. Indoor ballot drop box locations are open beginning Oct. 5. Curbside ballot drop-off locations will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Nov. 2 and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3. For more information on satellite office and drop box locations, visit StanVote.com. To track your ballot once it has been mailed or dropped off, visit California BallotTrax.

Want to get Halloween pumpkins and help first responders?

The Bogetti family has set up a pumpkin stand along Highway 132 where all of the proceeds will go to first responders. Dad, James Bogetti is the manager at Mapes Ranch and he and his wife Coren do some farming of their own but this is the first year they’ve grown pumpkins. It all started out as a little college fund for their son, George but with all the good work of our first responders, they felt that it was their Good Samaritan work to help out those that keep us all safe, especially in this day and age. The family set up the stand on a friend’s property next to the Twin River Saloon on Highway 132 and Hart Road. It is open 24/7 on a merit based system with envelopes supplied to drop cash directly into the stand. They put up the stand on Oct. 1 and already have generated $1,000, mostly from friends and family in the area but they hope to earn much more before Halloween. In addition to the Sheriff’s Department, Bogetti said funds will go the Woodland Avenue Fire Department and healthcare workers.

Coronavirus Update as of October 8

Stanislaus County added 37 cases of the virus Wednesday, a day after its best performance on this measure since early June. The county Health Services Agency also announced two more deaths to COVID-19, bringing the total to 379. Stanislaus now has 16,804 positive tests, 91,605 negative tests and 16,230 people who are presumed recovered. Wednesday’s positive rate of 6.83% followed 1.73% on Tuesday, the lowest since the 1.21% on June 1.The county’s five hospitals had 38 confirmed COVID-19 cases Wednesday, up from 35 on Tuesday. Though they make up 47 percent of the population, Latinos represented 64 percent of the positive cases. Geographically: Modesto has 6,255 positive cases, Turlock has 2,253. Ceres has 2,098. Stanislaus County has finally met both criteria for leaving the most restrictive tier of California coronavirus reopening program.

Welcome to Local Turlock Podcast! Buckle up for another episode as this podcast gives you some of the interesting scoops, news, and stories for the week of October 2nd! And oh, it’s already the 2nd of October, 2020 going by so quickly. Hope you guys are all safe and tuning in to our podcast this week. Let’s start with a very inspiring story – a local Turlock retiree and Red Cross volunteer for the past 22 yrs makes his free time worthwhile as he helped those affected by the onslaught of fires in the northern half of the state. Good news to those who are missing the outdoors, the California Department of Public Health has given the greenlight for parks and playgrounds to reopen statewide, and speaking of going outdoor, here’s a fun one – GO Drive-Up Turlock, a drive-in movie theater located at the Turlock fairgrounds, has opened its doors to the public! A bit of a bad news – A fire at a Turlock home Wednesday morning displaced 10 residents in the 400 block of Julian Street. Moving on, wondering when to get the Fair food in October? Stanislaus County Fair food will make an October appearance the next two weekends in Stanislaus County Fairgrounds. the latest updates about COVID 19 in Stanislaus County. All that and more today in this week’s Local Turlock podcast!

Turlock retiree makes free time count with Red Cross

Being a volunteer with the American Red Cross for the past 22 years, Turlock resident Dan Hardesty thought he had seen it all — from helping those affected by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to making sure team members could communicate with one another in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. That was the case until this year, when he was called upon last month to help those affected by the onslaught of fires which had engulfed the northern half of the state. While Hardesty was no stranger to providing aid during a crisis, this was the first time he had to do so during a global pandemic.  He was asked to accept a position as Disaster Services Technology Chief. The position would be part of a Rapid Response Team and Hardesty’s job was to ensure that up to 450 Red Cross staff could communicate with each other and Red Cross Headquarters.  After 17 days on the job, Hardesty was relieved by a fellow Red Cross volunteer. He’s already helping out with fires again, however, filling in for a staff member in Fresno and driving down to help every other day. While most retire from their day jobs to relax, Hardesty doesn’t mind dedicating his free time to such a worthy cause.

Parks reopen as Stanislaus County remains in widespread COVID-19 tier

The California Department of Public Health has given the greenlight for parks and playgrounds to reopen statewide, regardless of what tier the counties are in currently. The authorization was granted Monday and is only for outdoor parks and playgrounds. It also comes with a lengthy list of rules designed to minimize the spread of COVID-19. Playgrounds that are allowed to open must be fully outdoors, free to enter and use, and publicly accessible. Stanislaus County is making progress towards moving to the next tier down in California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, but currently remains in the widespread purple tier. Under the purple tier most non-essential indoor business operations have to remain closed or make modifications to operate outdoors, like restaurants, or decrease capacity. In order to move out of the purple widespread tier and into the red substantial tier, the county must meet both metrics and sustain that level for two consecutive weeks. Under the red tier, some non-essential indoor business operations can open and/or increase capacity.

Turlock’s Ultimate Drive-In Movie Theater Experience

GO Drive-Up Turlock, a drive-in movie theater located at the Turlock fairgrounds, has opened its doors to the public! Movies being shown at the drive-in include family friendly favorites such as “Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse,” “The Fast and the Furious,” “The Lion King” and “La Bamba,” among many others.  The organizers of the drive-in theater have set up three shipping containers on top of each other to create a larger screen. You can enjoy the movie while having blankets and pillows in the back of your car, you can set chairs outside within your slot, or you stay inside your car. No matter which way you choose to watch, the screen is big enough to support any method of watching. To make the experience of the drive-in more enjoyable, there are also concession stands offering classic theater and fairground foods that have been set up for customers to buy from. Customers are encouraged to not take outside food or drinks but instead to purchase food from their concession stands helping them to stay in business. The theater is open weekly at 6 p.m. from Thursday to Sunday. For more information, head to their https://godriveup.com/

Fire displaces 10 from Turlock home

A fire at a Turlock home Wednesday morning displaced 10 residents in the 400 block of Julian Street. Ten residents were displaced from the home because of the significant fire damage. The first crews from the Turlock Fire Department to arrive at the scene found a significant amount of smoke and flames coming from the single-story home. According to the fire department, the residents were outside of their home and confirmed that everyone had gotten out but three family dogs were missing and presumed to still be in the home. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Displaced resident are now being assisted by American Red Cross for immediate shelter needs.

Fair food in October? When to get it at the Stanislaus County Fairgrounds

Stanislaus County Fair food will make an October appearance the next two weekends. “Sit tight, Fair bites” will have a fall return at the fairgrounds in Turlock, according to a press release. Drive-thru options only are available. On Friday-Sunday, Oct. 2-4, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., the VFW 5059 Auxiliary Booth’s Famous Fair Hamburgers and Warrior Fries will be offered along with Yonan’s fresh hand-dipped corn dogs and curly fries, as well as offerings from Funnel Cakes Express. On Friday-Saturday, Oct. 9-10, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., the VFW hamburgers and fries and funnel cakes will be available. Staff will practice safety guidelines set by the county and customers must stay inside their cars. The Stanislaus County Fairgrounds is at 900 N. Broadway, Turlock; call 209-668-1333.

Coronavirus update, Oct. 1: Stanislaus adds 3 deaths; September numbers lower

The COVID-19 caseload continued to grow slowly in Stanislaus County on Wednesday. It also announced three more deaths, for a total of 362. The 16 new positive tests bring the total to 16,512, according to Health Services Agency . There were 102 deaths in September, down from 148 in August. In July, the county reported 60 deaths. The county remains in the lowest, or purple, tier in the state rating system that decides how much restaurants and other businesses can loosen its coronavirus restrictions. The county’s five hospitals had 45 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, up from 39 on Tuesday. As of now, Modesto has 6,135 positive cases, Turlock has 2,227, and Ceres has 2,068 cases.

Thank you for sticking with me until the end of this episode. Make sure to visit our website, localturlock.com, to stay up to date on our local news. You can always email me at turlock@localturlock.com and visit our Facebook at Facebook.com/localturlock and leave us some comments! Stay tuned for next week’s exciting episode! Have a great weekend and always stay safe.