Columns

The student survivors of the Florida high school mass shootings are speaking out about school safety and gun violence. It seems they have the nation’s attention. They have provoked comments that “this time may be different.” Maybe these Florida students represent a new generation with a new voice and a new set of convictions. Maybe.

After more than two decades as a beacon of hope and support for Windsor residents, the Vineyard of Faith Lutheran Church (VOF) and its 125-member congregation face an uncertain future.

I write this on March 1, Saint David’s Day. Saint David is to Wales as Saint Patrick is to Ireland. Saint David, Dewi Sant in the native tongue, was born about the year 500. Like Saint Patrick in Ireland 100 years earlier, Saint David established schools and monasteries in the westward protruding belly of Britain that is Wales.

Finally, a common sense answer to gun violence and the seemingly weekly school massacres.

“Dark Land, Dark Mirror,” Jonah Raskin’s new, suspenseful murder mystery takes place in Sonoma County in the present day. The detective is a feisty woman named Tioga Vignetta. The criminals are all pretending to be respectable citizens. The fall guy who’s framed for a murder in town is a Mexican from Chiapas named Kiko Martinez who grows flowers and has hit songs south of the border.

Height limits

Senior center expanding board

Windsor Middle School has several community partners that work with us throughout the year in order to keep our students and staff safe, including Community Matters, Alliance Medical Center, Kaiser Permanente, Safe Routes to School and the American Heart Association.

As far as we know, vulnerable Sonoma County residents living in Cloverdale, Geyserville, Windsor and Healdsburg have not been detained by ICE or DHS; however, the threat and fear are real. Many immigrants all over California have been picked up and detained by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement).

We’re all familiar with the catastrophe of the October fires, and so far, we’ve responded in a way that showed the strength of our community.