Communities Rising May 20: Indian Valley Wide Yard Sale today
By Meg Upton
This is my favorite time of year in Indian Valley—Valley Wide Yard Sale this weekend! Sadly, though most of my family will be there this weekend, I won’t be until next weekend. I hope when I’m up next week for Feather River College’s graduation (my youngest graduates next Friday and will be headed to her grandmother’s alma mater in August (Go Poets! Go Whittier College! Go Paloma!) I get to soak up some rays of sun in the valley. I’m just going to come out and say it. I miss the column. I miss Debra Moore and Cobey Brown and I miss you all. With your help, I’m picking the column back up.
How do I need your help? Be my eyes and ears. Send me stories to follow up on. Send me photos. Our coverage of Indian Valley and other communities rising will only be as responsive as you all make it. So there. The gauntlet is thrown. Join me in citizen journalism, whether it be uplifting or investigative (how are organizations spending that PG&E money? I started working on that before I left). I’ll consider every idea.
What have I learned in our time apart? I’ve learned that I really did join an odd club of fire survival. When you move far away after living in the daily struggle of it, it creates a wall between you and other people who by and large just don’t get it—unless they themselves have been through fire and fire recovery. So I wander the suburbs of Orange County on my way to work or home with all this knowledge and trauma among cars of people who might be going through many a trauma but are unlikely to be in a new homeland separated from their old one—unless they are an immigrant. I find every once in awhile I accidentally stop conversations by mentioning fire. A co-worker was showing photos of Canadian fires burning and they didn’t look nearly as tough as what we experienced. I said so. I go back and look at photos on my desktop and I stop and think wow. We. Lived. Through. This.
And in the shadow of Disneyland, that can make you feel pretty alone. There’s nothing weirder than being depressed under palm trees. The odd person in a fog walking aimlessly in an outdoor mall, purchasing nothing. Before you say, ah! I knew she wouldn’t like it; I do. I’ve met incredible people down here and have gotten to do all sorts of things career-wise that have been nothing short of amazing. My first poetry collection debuts on June 18, 2023. I’m headed to Lisbon, Portugal for the first time on June 24. Still, part of my heart is always in Plumas.
I did have a great conversation with Christi Hazelton of Region Burger on the reclamation of the trailer and the plans ahead. It was quite a saga (they’ll still be around in a slightly different capacity right now). I saw the photos of Mary’s German Grill trailer needing work. It serves to remind us all that recovery is a far longer road than people outside of ground zero realize.
Also I want to do a round-up of all the new businesses starting up. If this is you, send me information for the next column.
Before I close, a big shout out to my son’s girlfriend Kaytlyn Cedillos (IVA graduate 2021) on her graduation from Saddleback College down here in Mission Viejo next week in music production. It’s been a pleasure to have her with us down here. I love being around students. Oh shoot. Am I missing teaching too?! And to all the FRC graduates that I know—congratulations on your accomplishments, and my kid, who just last year graduated from QHS. We are very proud of her.
And so I sign off with a list I’ve gleaned of all things communities rising, not the least of which is the monthly Dixie Fire Collaborative meeting at GES Cafeteria tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. As is the custom, send any story ideas, photos, opinions, correspondence to [email protected]. Thank you. It’s good to see you all again.
Dixie Fire Collaborative Meeting
The Dixie Fire Collaborative has its monthly meeting on May 20 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. What’s on the table? Danny Manning on plans for the Rancheria, Manning or Shelby Leung on plans for Roundhouse, Kest Porter on Business Funders Roundtable, Tracey Ferguson on the county’s Long Term Recovery Plan, to be okayed by the Board in August, Tyler Pew on CCA interns based in Greenville this summer, and Sue Weber on workforce housing at Copper Creek.
In addition there’s a Nature Camp at 1323 Wolf Creek Road in Greenville for kids ages five to 18 years old from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Indian Valley Wide Yard Sale
Valley Wide Yard Sale maps will be available today until 6 p.m. and Saturday May 20, 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the Indian Valley Chamber of Commerce booth found on Pine Street at Hwy 89 and Pine. They are across from the IV Thrift Store, where the old movie theater once was.
“We will have signs posted to help you find the booth. We will leave maps for you at the booth if you stop by after 10 a.m.” Find out more on their facebook page.
IVCSD
From general manager Adam Cox, I have word that Crescent Mills Fire Protection District has initiated the process to merge into the IVCSD. They will dissolve and IVCSD would merge their fire department into IVCSD. “We expect this process to take several months and be done around the fall,” Cox said.
Greenville Community Picnic
Sunday, May 21 at 4 p.m. at Greenville Community Park on Hot Springs Road “Until we get tired” join friends and neighbors for music (Sloop Ricket) and a burrito bar from Crush-a-Bowl. Picnickers are asked to bring their own blankets and chairs and place settings.
School Meeting
From Dan Kearns: “There will be a meeting with superintendent Bill Roderick to update the community on plans for Greenville High School this coming Monday, May 22 at 5:30 p.m. at the Greenville Elementary School cafeteria.
“Immediately following Mr. Roderick’s presentation there will be a community discussion to raise awareness around the situation with the $2 million the schools received from PG&E, recalling Trustee Keller, and to come up with a plan as to how we are going to create a learning environment on our Greenville campus which best serves our children.
“This has been a long and frustrating process for our community. Let’s be the masters of our own destiny. Let’s work together to come up with solutions and help put them into place. Many hands make light work. Please come and share your input and support. Thank you and have a wonderful day!”
