World War 2 veteran and Pocket resident Richard Moss will turn 90 years old on March 27.

He will be honored this month with a resolution from the Sacramento City Council, a recognition certificate from Senator Darrell Steinberg and a letter of recognition from Congresswoman Doris Matsui whose office is working with the White House to get one signed by the president.

One could easily write a whole book on Moss’s life. During the past 90 years, he has been as brave during wartimes as he has been an ambassador of peace since then.

Moss was enlisted in the US Army at age 19 to serve in the U.S. Army 86th Infantry, Blackhawk Division which was named after the famous Sauk Indian Chief Black Hawk of Illinois.

Moss completed training at Camp Crowder, Missouri as a signal corp operator charged with insuring communication among the divisions using the first FM backpack radios and other technology. These multi-channel radio broadcasts allowed for increased security and signal boosting that supported and enhanced U.S. military success.

He was active duty in the European Theater Operations arriving in France on March 4, 1945 and then reliving the 86th infantry, Blackhawk division while crossing the Rhine River to Elbelhausen Germany in April. Thereafter, he advanced successfully across German to Oberndorf, Austria and finally assisted the processing of German prisoners of war.

Moss’s service continued with deployment to the Philippine Islands in August 1945. His division was still aboard ship in Leyte Harbor when the Japanese surrendered. The division completed closing efforts in Angeles, north of Manila until his return and honorary discharge in 1946.

Moss received the Good Conduct Medal, and he and his unit were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation and the Victory Medal.

Thirty-five years later, he returned to the village of Oberndorf, in peace, and met with the adult children of townspeople he met during the war.

Besides his accomplishments as a war veteran, his professional and community service to the city of Sacramento is unwavering.

Moss began his employment as an auditor with the California State Board of Equalization in June 1948 until his advancement to Chief, of Special Contracts and Provider Standards with the Department of Health Care Services.

He became an unwilling expert in the emerging process of dialysis and
worked long and diligently to develop regulatory criteria and fiscal impact at the state level from 1966 to 1973.

Moss was promoted to Chief, Provider Participation Section, Health Services for the State of California and continued to develop regulations for the safe administration of care and fiscal management of dialysis centers and nursing homes leaving his position to embrace retirement in July 1973.

Moss’s efforts at retirement failed dismally, so he began a tax and accounting practice to further occupy his professional skills until his second retirement in 1986.

During his many years of professional practice he also gave willingly of his time and energy to promote the well being of the community through his involvement in a membership drive for the YMCA, the Boy Scouts of America, Jobs Daughters, the Order of DeMolay and his Masonic Lodge. Richard enjoys spending time with his family, friends, golf and Masonic activities.

His family and friends couldn’t be more proud of him.

Born Richard Levick Moss on March 27, 1923, in Belleville, Illinois, the WW2 veteran married Margaret Schweitzer on July 20, 1946 and they were married for 56 years. They had four daughters: Janet Moss of Boise, Idaho, Elaine Weathersbee who lives in the Pocket, Kathy Garcia who lives in the Pocket and Phyllis Katich who lives in Alameda. He has four grandsons and one great granddaughter. After losing his wife, Margaret, he remarried four years ago to Inez Perrine.

Margo Reid Brown knows a few things about St. Francis High School.
She graduated from the school in 1981 after spending time as junior class president, student body president and a member of the varsity tennis team.
Now Brown has decided to come back to St. Francis, but this time as president, taking over the reins from Marion Bishop, who retired earlier this year.
Brown, who was appointed president by Bishop Jaime Soto of the Diocese of Sacramento on Feb. 1, officially took over the position July 1.
“I’m honored to have the opportunity to be at St. Francis and help grow and contribute to that enriching environment that I so benefited from having been here,” Brown said. “And if what I have as far as gifts and talents that are bestowed upon me from God that I can share with the girls that are coming to St. Francis, I’m honored to be able to do that.”

Call it a come back
When presented with the opportunity, Brown said as an alumnus she was drawn to become president of St. Francis to help the school continue its growth in the community and ability to create an “academically excellent environment” for the girls that attend.
“Just seeing the contribution that graduates from St. Francis make to the community in Sacramento made me want to come back here and help lead St. Francis through the next growth opportunity,” she said.
Brown said the obvious change to the school she noticed from the time she was last on campus was its physical plan, which has grown to accommodate a growth in the number of students.
“When I was here, we had about 575 students and there were 125 in my graduating class,” she said. “My older daughter is a senior here at St. Francis and when she started as a freshman, there were 300 in her class and I think there’s still about 275. The size of the school has grown tremendously – we built a brand new gym, there’s a fine arts center and theater, and the athletic fields have changed.”
However, Brown says the spirit of St. Francis and opportunities students have “to grow and to blossom in an enriching environment” hasn’t changed.
“That has been the hallmark of what St. Francis does for the young women in this environment for more than 70 years – that’s what’s exciting to come back to,” she said.

Born and raised
Brown was born and raised in Sacramento. After graduating from St. Francis, she left the area to attend the University of Southern California, from which she graduated in 1985.
She then moved to the east coast to work in Washington, D.C. for five years, after which she moved back to California.
Brown’s past work experience includes a number of both professional and volunteer positions with nonprofits.
She was appointed by both the Wilson and Schwarzenegger administrations to serve in the Governors’ Capitol Office staff, and subsequently as Agency Executive leading the Administration’s initiatives on Waste Diversion & Recycling programs.
She was also director of the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle).
“My background is leading mission-based organizations, fundraising, community involvement, and that’s really the role of the president,” Brown said.
Now Brown calls East Sacramento home and lives with her husband and two daughters, both of whom attend St. Francis.
Her sister and brother are also currently raising families in East Sacramento as well, and Brown says she has a few nieces in the area that will be attending St. Francis in a few years.
Brown is also very active in the community outside of her school. A past president of the Junior League of Sacramento, she currently sits on the Board of Directors for Keep California Beautiful and the California Product Stewardship Council.
What has been taking up most of Brown’s free time, however, is her involvement with Team in Training. She and her daughter, Carolina, are in training for the Disneyland Half Marathon over Labor Day weekend. The marathon will help raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
“There have been members of our community who have been diagnosed with blood cancers and we’re running in honor of several of the people we know,” she said.

Moving forward
Now as president of St. Francis, Brown says her experience at various nonprofits and government agencies have given her the skills to make her a good fit for this position.
As president, Brown says her role is to provide fiscal oversight for the school, including budgeting, finance and facilities management, as well as business aspects such as admissions and marketing. She is also responsible for the spiritual ministry on campus.
Brown is already looking at plans for growth and improvement at the school as it continues to grow in student enrollment, which Brown says is at 1,100 right now.
“We have some capitol improvements that we’re looking at that we’re going to be developing over the next decade or so,” she said. “We’re looking at technology in the classroom, we’re looking at how we’re preparing girls to be admitted to the college of their dreams.”
And Brown says she is hoping to help St. Francis continue to grow and continue to be a “vibrant community” of girls that goes on and changes the world.
“The opportunity to be a part of that and help grow St. Francis over the next decade is truly a gift and I’m so much looking forward to the opportunity of really rising to the expectations that the community has for the potential of the girls here,” she said.

corrie@valcomnews.com

After 11 years of service, St. Francis High School’s first-ever president, Marion Bishop, will retire on May 31, leaving behind a legacy that includes a capital campaign, technology, campus ministry, and a growth spurt in student population.

The ‘President-Principal Model’

TWO BISHOPS. St. Francis High School President Marion Bishop, left, with Sacramento Bishop Jaime Soto on the campus of St. Francis High School. She will retire from the diocesan high school at the end of the month. / Photo courtesy of St. Francis High School

In 2001 Bishop, who at the time was working in the Catholic Schools Department for the Diocese of Sacramento, was appointed president of St. Francis High School to bring the president-principal model to St. Francis that other Catholic schools in the area were already using. This model calls for a principal to handle the academics of the school and a president to handle the business side of the school, including fund raising.

“Research had indicated that a when a high school reaches an enrollment of 600 or more students that it really becomes impossible for a single administrator to take care of all the academic concerns of the campus, as well as all the business,” Bishop recalled. “St. Francis was at the threshold of that 600 students and it was time to move in to this new model. I just happened to be first in line to be hired to implement the new model.”

St. Francis’ current principal, Patrick O’Neill (who has been principal for three years and was assistant principal for two years before that), said the president-principal model that Bishop initiated was instrumental in the growth of St. Francis’ student body from 600 to now 1,100 students. Having this model allows him to effectively concentrate on the academics of the school, while having a compatriot handling the business side.

“Marion and I have clicked from Day One,” O’Neill said. “We see things the same way and she’s been outstanding to work for.”

Making improvements

As part of her role as president, Bishop played an integral role in the improvements made to the St. Francis campus over the years. For instance, when she first arrived in 2001, the school was beginning the first phase of a capital campaign to expand the campus.

HONORED BOARD MEMBER. As President of St. Francis High School, Marion Bishop worked closely with Sacramento Bishop Jamie Soto and the Board of St. Francis High School. Board members acknowledge her pivotal role in the expansion of the school campus. / Photo courtesy, St. Francis High School

“I was really privileged not only to be part of that capital campaign to raise monies to improve the campus and expand it, but also I oriented the expansion itself,” Bishop said. For example, she played a pivotal role in the development of the school’s current Performing Arts Center and gymnasium.

Throughout her 11 years Bishop continued to make improvements to St. Francis.

“She listened to the student body and what was going on in the education world, and then would be strategic in trying to weave that into the direction of the school, whether it be technology, safety or the green movement,” explained Shannon Terwedo, past St. Francis High School Board member whose daughter graduated from the school in 2007.

Past Board member Helen Pierson – whose two daughters graduated from St. Francis in 2000 and she herself graduated from the school in 1974 – said Bishop always had St. Francis’ best interest in mind in all the decisions she made and that she was someone who could see what was important for the school.

“It’s a challenge to have an all-girl high school and keep it running – a lot of different schools have had to go different ways and unfortunately some even had to close,” Pierson explained. “St. Francis has been very fortunate because of the leadership that has enabled it to stay above the water and keep itself as a place where young ladies want to go. It’s a great school and she’s been at the helm for many years and I think it’s because of that.”

Having faith

FAITH is one of the Four Pillars at St. Francis High School. Under Marion Bishop's leadership, student class retreats grew and developed. / Photo courtesy, St. Francis High School

One area Bishop focused on building upon during her tenure at St. Francis was in the school’s Campus Ministry Department.

“Under Marion’s leadership, she’s put a lot of work, emphasis and resources into building up our program so we have more of a holistic approach to ministry, to where it’s not just prayers and retreats, but also service and faith community life,” explained Director of Campus Ministry Linda Norman.

As part of the Campus Ministry Department, Bishop said one of her proudest accomplishments is the establishment of an integrated retreat program where each year’s class has their own retreat, culminating with a senior retreat (called Kairos) their final year.

“This for many of our girls is a life-changing four-day student-lead retreat experience,” Bishop explained. “It has been the single-most item that our graduating seniors comment on as their most significant moment at St. Francis, and so I’m very proud of that because I think it speaks to the whole person, the whole student, and what she’s taking with her when she leaves here. That’s one program I’m very, very proud of.”

Additionally, Bishop began a mother-daughter retreat program in 2003, which Terwedo attended with her daughter. Terwedo recalled Bishop attending this retreat and talking to the mothers and daughters about her own experiences.

“She shared her personal journey with her daughter and as a daughter herself – the good, the bad, the challenges of dealing with a daughter in in the teenage years,” she recalled. “She just took off the mantle of being president and put on the mantle of being a woman that was both a daughter and a mother.”

‘A huge heart’

Now on the eve of her retirement, Bishop is excited for the Disney cruise she, her husband of 42 years, and family will be taking, and then occupying her time with gardening, playing and praying.

“I do feel like I have another life in me somewhere,” she said. “I still feel very young although I’m at retirement age. I feel like there’s something else there and I’ve been praying a lot about what that is and how it’s going to express itself.”

FAITH, FAMILY, FRIENDS AND FUN. Capital campaigns and fundraisers are hard work, but St. Francis President Marion Bishop always led the way with a faithful and encouraging heart. / Photo courtesy, St. Francis High School

Although she is looking forward to her retirement, Bishop said she will greatly miss the students and staff at St. Francis and that she hopes the school continues to grow and prepare the young women that attend to serve the greater community.

“When I came here, I hoped that I would really bring the school ‘heart’ and I think that I have done that and I’m very proud of that,” Bishop said. “I think the school has a huge heart and it shows itself in many, many ways.”

corrie@valcomnews.com

American Red Cross Capital Region Chapter members gather together at the chapter’s headquarters near Cal Expo. / Valley Community Newspapers photo, Lance Armstrong

It was on May 21, 1881, thus nearly 130 years ago, that the ARC was founded by Clara Barton.

Furthermore, on a national level, this is currently a very notable time for the organization.

This month is Red Cross Month, a recognition that has been a tradition since President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was serving as the honorary chairman of the organization, first declared March as a special month for the organization in 1943.

Since then, United States presidents have continued to proclaim March as Red Cross Month on an annual basis.

As a fundraising campaign with a goal of collecting $125 million, the original Red Cross Month received an overwhelming response as the goal was reached in less than six weeks.

Further proving that the public did not recognize Red Cross Month as a drive with an expiration date, funds continued to be donated to the organization. By June 1943, the drive had resulted in donations totaling about $146 million.

Because of this initial success, Red Cross Month became a tradition that has assisted the Red Cross in fulfilling its mission, which reads as follows: “The American Red Cross, a humanitarian organization led by volunteers and guided by its Congressional Charter and the Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross Movement, will provide relief to victims of disaster and help people prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies.”

Clara Barton, who was also known as the “Angel of the Battlefield,” founded the American Red Cross in 1881. / Photo courtesy of the American Red Cross

Furthermore, the ARC described its role as an organization that “shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families.”

With a long history of responding to the nation’s needs, the ARC, which is strictly a charitable, non-government agency that relies on the volunteer support of the American public to perform its services, has grown with the times.

For all the good that the ARC does to assist others in needs, none of the many services of the organization would have been possible without the work of its founder.

And for this reason, it is important in any overview of the ARC’s history to highlight Clara Barton.

Born Clarissa Harlowe Barton in Oxford, Mass. on Christmas Day in 1821, Barton can be considered a holiday gift for countless people who have benefitted from the services of the ARC since its founding.

But in order to have a better understanding of how long Barton maintained a deep interest in assisting others in need, it is necessary to know that Barton was active in helping such people long before she founded the ARC.

With the beginning of the Civil War, little time passed before Barton was dedicating her time to helping soldiers in her home state.

Initially, Barton cooked for soldiers and also ripped sheets into towels and handkerchiefs for them.

But her efforts did not stop there, as Barton was dedicated to bringing comfort to the sick and the wounded from the battlefield, and fought for permission to bring food, medicine and supplies to soldiers on the frontlines.

An American Red Cross worker speaks to an injured soldier in a field hospital in Vietnam. / Photo courtesy of the American Red Cross

Through these efforts, she received the nickname, the “Angel of the Battlefield.”

Following the war, Barton was commissioned by President Abraham Lincoln to search for missing Union soldiers and she also initiated a movement to have a national cemetery constructed for Union soldiers who died in the Andersonville prison – the Confederate prison of war camp, which was officially known as Camp Sumter – in Andersonville, Ga.

Barton’s goodwill nature and experience in helping those in need led to her founding of the American Association of the Red Cross – the name was later shortened to the American Red Cross – which evolved to become known as the nation’s premier emergency response organization.

In understanding that disasters result in human suffering, Barton, who served as the Red Cross’ first president, recognized a need for a volunteer organization that would be available during emergencies.

Barton, as well as the Red Cross symbol, became synonymous with the fact that comfort would be offered by the organization to those who suffered due to disasters.

The first American Red Cross chapter was organized at the Lutheran Church of Dansville, N.Y.

Among the early service of the Red Cross was its assistance to victims of the Ohio and Mississippi floods of 1884.

Nurses work at an American Red Cross recruiting station to field new members during World War II. / Photo courtesy of the American Red Cross

Five years later, the Sacramento Record-Union printed the following quote regarding Barton: “The sublime life of this plain, simple, unpretentious and self-sacrificing woman is one of the grandest monuments to charity and merciful kindness the world has witnessed.”

In 1898, the Red Cross played a very significant role in the Spanish-American War, as the organization assisted refugees and prisoners of war.

Since its early beginnings, the ARC has expanded to other cities across the nation, and today the organization, which also provides assistance in other countries, has many chapters throughout the nation.

Sacramento’s chapter, which was previously known as the Sacramento Sierra Chapter and is presently known as the Capital Region Chapter, was established in 1898.

The founding of the Sacramento chapter was very timely, considering that only seven years after its organization, the chapter was assisting in the relief efforts of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

This 1956 “On the Job” recruiting poster by John Gould is among the many posters that were designed to recruit American Red Cross volunteers. / Photo courtesy of the American Red Cross

The Red Cross’ local and national response to this disaster prompted President Theodore Roosevelt to describe the Red Cross as “the national organization best fitted to undertake the outpouring of the nation’s aide.”

The ARC also provided assistance during the 1918 Spanish influenza epidemic and World Wars I and II.

Leftover ARC funds from the Great War were utilized to create the “Baby Clinic,” which became part of the Sacramento Health Clinic in 1927.

During World War II, the Sacramento chapter was a 24 hours per day operation, and overall, Sacramento contributed $468,037 to the National War Relief Effort.

The Sacramento chapter responded to five American River floods and the Yuba City-Marysville floods during the 1950s, and during the Vietnam War, ARC programs were expanded to assist the military and their families.

In more recent times, the ARC’s Sacramento chapter has continued to provide local and national assistance, including its aide to Hurricane Katrina.

Trista Jensen, communications and marketing director for the Capital Region Chapter, said that as a representative of the American Red Cross, she is pleased that the organization has been able to successfully operate with consistency for the past 130 years.

“I think what’s remarkable about the American Red Cross is that we are still doing the things that we started doing 130 years ago,” Jensen said. “We started serving people in the battlefield, responding to disasters and helping people in their greatest time of need. Whether that’s a house fire across the street, a hurricane across the country or a major disease breakout across the world, we’re still responding in the same manner that we were 130 years ago.”

lance@valcomnews.com

SACRAMENTO – At the general association meeting held at Albert Einstein Middle School in Sacramento on Feb.y 24, Third District PTA members elected Roy Grimes as President for the 2011-2013 term. Mr. Grimes is a former three-time school board president of Sacramento City Unified School District, former seven-time president of the Sacramento County Office of Education, former teacher and reading coach and current president of a local PTA. His term will begin July 1 and as district president, he will also be a member of the State PTA Board of Managers.

Third District Parent Teacher Association was organized in 1916, in the office of the Sacramento County Superintendent of Schools by representatives from associations in Butte, El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo Counties. Councils were formed in this large district to tell the PTA story more widely and effectively.

In 1998, Third District moved to the building of the Sacramento County office of Education, and relocated with them in 2003 near their new building at Mather Office Park. Together they promoted and launched participation in the Family Education Network to provide quality parenting education materials and free PTA websites. Other partnerships include Sacramento Educational Cable Consortium and Greater Sacramento Safe Kids Coalition.

Third District PTA currently has 27,000 members in the eight counties of Colusa, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba. Those members are also members of California State PTA and National PTA.

PTAs are the nation’s oldest, largest and highest profile volunteer organization working on behalf of public schools, children and families. PTA volunteers work in their schools and communities to improve the education, health and welfare of all children and youth.

California is home to natural and man-made disasters: earthquakes, fires, flooding and even extreme weather situations, such as tornadoes, are not out of the realm of possibility here.

Because of the on-going potential for emergencies in the Sacramento region, city and county organizations and officials are co-sponsoring the Sacramento Emergency Preparedness and Self-Reliance Fair on Saturday, Oct. 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Guest exhibitors will include the Sacramento Office of Emergency Services, the American Red Cross, the Sacramento City Fire Department, the California Emergency Management Agency, the Drowning Accident Rescue Team (DART), the Sacramento Police Department, Army Corps of Engineers, United Animal Nations, Pacific Gas & Electric, the California Conservation Corps, CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) and many more.

Visitors to the event can learn about: building disaster-resilient families, having an emergency plan, emergency communication, emergency shelters, power generators, first aid kits, employment, wills, trusts, estate planning, budgeting and saving, a three-month supply of rotatable food, crime prevention, Neighborhood Watch, flood preparedness, water storage and purification, children’s emergency activities and much, much more.

This event is open to everyone in the community.

The event will be hosted by members of The Sacramento California Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Sponsors include the Sacramento City and County Office of Emergency Services, Council Member Robbie Waters, Council Member Bonnie Pannell and County Supervisor Jimmie Yee.

Individuals of all ages will have the opportunity to learn how to better prepare for natural and man-made disasters at this free event.

The Fair will include over 40 exhibits and displays highlighting topics such as: food and water storage, stretching your food dollar, employment, family evacuation plans, 72-hour kits, water purification, first aid, fire safety and much more.

Emergency vehicles will also be available for tours and close-up inspection, including an Army National Guard HH60 helicopter, a Coast Guard rescue boat, ambulance, highway patrol car and a CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) trailer. The Army National Guard HH60 plans to land around 10:30 a.m. and CERT will be performing several “triage” demonstrations throughout the day.

“The fair has been designed to provide useful information to families regardless of where they are in the wide spectrum of emergency preparedness and self-reliance,” said John Cassinat, president of the Sacramento Stake. “There will be meaningful experiences and valuable information for the person or family who doesn’t know where to begin, as well as for those who are well on there way to sustainable independence and self-reliance during most emergencies.”

The Fair will be held at a large property owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints located at 7401 24th Street in Sacramento.

This event is free and family oriented. Translators will be available for multiple languages.

“It is important that we as a community are prepared for any kind of unanticipated event,” Cassinat said. “The more educated we are as a community, the more resilient we will be.”