SIMI RESIDENTS RALLY AROUND POLICE COMMUNITY BACKS COPS OVER THE PAST DECADE.Byline: ERIC LEACH Staff Writer SIMI VALLEY Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. -- When Mayor Paul Miller The name Paul Miller is shared by a number of people.
So when he retired and was elected to the City Council in 1994, he decided to help organize the community's natural inclination to support law enforcement. From that, the Simi Valley Police Foundation was born. This month, the group is celebrating its 10th anniversary. ``People in this community have definitely wrapped their arms around this foundation,'' said City Councilman Steve Sjoka, a member of the foundation's board, who said when he first joined in 1998, it raised about $16,000 a year. ``Now we're consistently raising over $100,000 a year.'' The nonprofit group has about 400 members who raise money to support the police and help Simi Valley keep its ranking as one of the nation's safest cities. Mike Lewis, who became police chief in September after a 28-year career with the Ventura County Sheriff's Department The Ventura County Sheriff's Department (VCSD) provides law enforcement for the unincorporated areas of Ventura County, California, USA, as well as several cities within the county. The cities that VCSD serves are Camarillo, Fillmore, Moorpark, Ojai, and Thousand Oaks. , agreed with Sjoka that local cops enjoy extraordinary community support. ``It's one of the best (police foundations) I've ever seen,'' he said. ``Their fundraisers ... are incredibly well-supported.'' The foundation is now spending tens of thousands of dollars for a mobile anti-drunken-driving display for local schools, including a car that was actually wrecked in a DUI crash, Lewis noted. Foundation President Dave McCormick, who was recently given the Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce Strathearn Lifetime Achievement Award, estimated the foundation has been able to donate about $400,000 to buy police dogs. The biggest fundraiser of the year is the annual golf tournament, and the second biggest is the banquet, which has sold out every year. Some of that money has provided thousands of dollars in gifts that are distributed to children in the DARE program. The foundation also recently purchased bulletproof Refers to extremely stable hardware and/or software that cannot be brought down no matter what unusual conditions arise. See industrial strength. bulletproof - Used of an algorithm or implementation considered extremely robust; lossage-resistant; capable of correctly vests it will give to the department in February. And it provided thousands of dollars to support the department's Citizens on Patrol program, which was established four years ago to train citizens to act as eyes and ears for the police department. ``In 10 years we've really accomplished a lot,'' said Bill Martin, a member Citizens on Patrol for three years and foundation vice president. ``I've been living here 44 years and seen Simi Valley go from 16,000 people when we moved here to 123,000 now. The more people you have, the more mischief A specific injury or damage caused by another person's action or inaction. In Civil Law, a person who suffered physical injury due to the Negligence of another person could allege mischief in a lawsuit in tort. there is,'' Martin said. ``But it is still a safe community, a marvelous place to live and raise your family.'' eric.leach@dailynews.com (805) 583-7602 Annual banquet A 10th anniversary celebration will be held at the Simi Valley Police Foundation's annual banquet Feb. 9 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Center for Public Affairs , with entertainment provided by the Wood Family band from Ojai, known for their appearance as Celtic Spring Celtic Spring are an Irish American dance and fiddle band from California who combine traditional Celtic music with Irish and Cape Breton step dancing. The members of Celtic Spring are all members of the Wood family, consisting of the father, Greg, on bodhrán (traditional Irish on ``America's Got Talent America's Got Talent is an American reality television series on the NBC television network. It is a talent show that features amateur singers, dancers, magicians, comedians and other performers of all ages competing for the advertised top prize of US$1 million. .'' Tickets are $100 per person or $2,000 for a table of 10, and the funds are used to help the foundation support the police. CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box Photo: (1) Police Foundation president Dave McCormick, left, and Mayor Paul Miller play with police dog Gero and his handler A software routine that performs a particular task. It often refers to a routine that "handles" an exception of some kind, such as an error, but it can refer to mainstream processes as well. The term is typically used in operating systems and other system software. , Officer Richard Wigginton. (2) no caption (police dog) Joe Binoya/Special to the Daily News Box: Annual banquet (see text) |
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