Elko Committee Against Domestic Violence also known as Harbor House has been chosen to receive a $20,000 grant from The Mary Kay Foundation as part of the organization’s annual $3 million national domestic violence grant program. Harbor House is one of 150 domestic violence organizations participating in the program. The grant will be used to provide shelter for victims of domestic violence and their children at $145 per bednight including meals and supplies. 100% of the Mary Kay Ash Funds will match federal and state grants.

“Without Harbor House, many victims and their children would be forced into homelessness, to live in inadequate, unsafe conditions or to return to their abusers.” said Yvette Waters, Executive Director. “CADV needs over $215,000 each year just to operate the shelter program at Harbor House.” “It is so difficult as a rural agency to compete on a national level for funding,” explained Waters. “I want to thank The Mary Kay Foundation for their support. Harbor House is honored to be chosen as a recipient. Not only does the grant help make up for an anticipated deficit in funding but it acknowledges what CADV does with a lot less funding than the cities,” “I’ve been an advocate for 26 years,” added Waters, “and domestic violence is not going away. It’s a daily realization as I watch the many faces go through Harbor House and wipe the many tears that are shed. The Mary Kay Funding will provide an opportunity to share smiles which will light up the Harbor House.”

Domestic Violence Outlook

According to the second “Mary Kay Truth About Abuse” national survey conducted in March 2010, domestic violence shelters indicate the economic downturn has increased demand for services. Shelters also report, the ability to raise funds and provide services will be hampered into 2011. Due to the economy, the survey also revealed:

· 88 percent of domestic violence shelters expect their overall situation will worsen, or remain the same into 2011.

· Three out of four domestic violence shelters (77 percent) report an increase in women seeking assistance from abuse.

· 51 percent of shelters nationwide note the abuse is more violent now than before the economic downturn.

“In light of the economic downturn and alarming increases in domestic violence, The Mary Kay Foundation’s mission is more critical than ever before. Harbor House has helped so many women and their families in Northeastern Nevada. We know they will use these funds to benefit even more domestic violence survivors and their children and help end domestic violence,” said Jennifer Cook, The Mary Kay Foundation board member.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Eggheads.

The Elko Police Department is asking for help from the public to determine whether or not five idiots should be charged with felonies for throwing eggs at cars. They did the bulk of their dairy work at 10:30 pm Wednesday in Elko’s south side.

The infantile nimrods include three teens and two adults. They were nabbed when one enraged victim followed the car until police were able to catch up.

Police ask anyone who woke up to the aroma of dried egg on their car should fill out a report, including the cost of repair to your car. A dried egg on a car can destroy the paint in mere hours. Five people have sent in reports so far, and the perpetrators haven’t been charged or arrested – yet.

Police say that the cost of  new paint jobs could put these mindless crimes at the felony level.

Popularity: 4% [?]

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) generated $280,123 during its quarterly oil and gas competitive lease sale held in Reno on September 14, selling 21 parcels that comprised 42,762 acres. Of the total sale receipt amount, $212,928 is bonus bid revenue.

The BLM offered 72 parcels encompassing 153,237 acres. The highest bid per parcel was $29,610 and the highest bid per acre was $18.50, with both parcels located in Nye County. The highest bid per parcel came from Kirkwood Oil & Gas LLC of Casper, Wyoming, and the highest bid per acre came from Makoil Inc. of Las Vegas.

The leases are for a period of 10 years with annual rentals of $1.50 per acre for the first five years and $2 an acre after that until production begins. Once a lease is producing, a royalty of 12.5 percent is charged. Nearly half of the bid and rental receipts go to the state of Nevada.

The BLM received $68,586 in bonus bids in the June 2010 quarterly competitive sale with 23 parcels sold. The highest bid per parcel was $4,958 sold for a parcel located in Eureka County. All parcels sold received the minimum bid of $2 per acre.

A complete listing of the parcels offered and the winning bidders is available on-line at: www.blm.gov/nv/. The next sale is tentatively scheduled for March 8, 2011.

Popularity: 8% [?]

The Elko California Trail Center will host a dramatic Chautauqua presentation about Donner Party survivor Margaret Breen at 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 9, 2010. Dr. Doris Dwyer, history professor at Elko’s Western Nevada Community College, will portray Margaret. The presentation is sponsored by Nevada Humanities, and admission is free.

Margaret, her husband and their seven children were all members of the ill-fated Donner Party. An Irish immigrant and devout Catholic, Margaret worked tenaciously to ensure the survival of her family during the winter of entrapment in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Due largely to her efforts, the Breens were one of only two families in the party to survive without the loss of life. Margaret spent the remainder of her life in San Juan Bautista, California, surrounded by her family near the Catholic mission that she loved.

The Elko California Trail Center completed its first summer of operations on September 5. Even though the grand opening is not scheduled until spring 2012, the Center opened this past summer so the public could see the new exhibits and get a preview of things to come. The season was a successful one. Kicking off the season over Memorial Day weekend was California Trail Days, which brought in nearly 1,000 people. Over the course of the summer more than 3,600 people from 45 different states and 11 foreign countries visited the Center.

By spring 2011, the Center will complete phase 2 of exhibit installation, doubling the number of permanent exhibits. New temporary exhibits will also be on display. Accessible hiking trails have been completed and interpretive panels will be installed along the paths. A new five-piece bronze sculpture will be installed on the plaza, and the retail area will be expanded.

The Center will not be open on a regular basis during the winter months, but it will be open to the public for History along the Humboldt presentations, special events, and prearranged tours for school and community groups. Center staff will publicize other events and programs throughout the fall and winter months, such as the popular family contra-dances, and History along the Humboldt presentations.

Operated by the Bureau of Land Management Elko District Office, the Elko California Trail Center is located just off Interstate 80, eight miles west of Elko at Hunter Exit 292. A meeting room is also available. For more information about these programs or for questions about the Elko California Trail Center, please contact Suzanne Miller at 775-738-1849.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Once again, Nevada leads the nation in unemployment.

Figures released from the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation reveal more economic futility for Nevada. The unemployment rate crawled to 14.4 percent – a record high. However, that same rate in the Elko area fell from 8 percent to 7.7 percent since July – the second lowest rate in the state.

The report gave the gritty details – 192K in the state of Nevada are unemployed. Some 142K of those are in the vicinity of Las Vegas. As it pertains to Elko County, 26,150 are employed with 2,150 out of work.

Younger workers are being shafted due to more experienced workers laid off from their higher paying jobs taking jobs they would normally take. Even more troubling, the number of workers 65 and over overtook the number of workers age 16-19 in Nevada’s labor force in May 2009. Officials say this shift is a result of the recession.

On the good side of the economic news for Nevada – the bulk of jobs that were created recently came from the construction industry, which added 700 jobs. The personal and business services sector tacked on 500 jobs. While the leisure and hospitality industry added 700 jobs, those only offset the 700 jobs lost in casino and hotel gaming.

The national jobless rate stands at 9.6 percent.

For more on this story, visit The Elko Daily News

Popularity: 3% [?]

A  woman from Elko  was nabbed by narcotics units Thursday afternoon.

Officers acted on a tip from someone who said Melanie Ann Shaw was selling prescription pharmaceuticals. While it is unknown whether or not she had a prescription for them, investigators successfully purchased hydrocodone from the woman three times.

On top of peddling pain pills, police found a marijuana pipe in her possession at her residence.

Until she pays bail, which has been set at $30,637, she’ll have plenty of time to think about her problem.

Read more:Elko Daily Free Press

Popularity: 17% [?]

The Bureau of Land Management Student Career Experience Program has an opening for a Student Trainee Hydrologist, in the Sierra Front Field Office in Carson City.

The student must be currently enrolled, pursuing a degree in Hydrology or a related degree program. Students must be committed to their academic goals, highly motivated, energetic, flexible, and adaptable.

The Sierra Front Field Office manages 1.1 million acres of public land in the western portion of the Carson City District, including lands in Washoe, Storey, Carson City, Lyon, and Douglas counties in Nevada, and parts of Alpine, Lassen, and Plumas counties in California. The student will be a key member of a diverse staff that includes the following disciplines: rangeland management specialist, wildlife biologist, botanist, forester, geologist, archaeologist, realty specialist, outdoor recreation planner.

Work assignments will provide on-the-job, specialized work experience targeted to the full-performance duties of a Hydrologist as listed in the job specification. At the end of the training and completion of all academic program requirements, the selected student will be on track to perform as a fully functional Hydrologist at the appropriate grade level, and will be able to demonstrate understanding, progression, and mastery of the position’s required knowledge, skills, and abilities.

For more information, read the official documentation.

Popularity: 4% [?]

With unemployment remaining high, it is nice to see some good news, especially in rural areas. A junior mining company is preparing to work on a mine that had great results prior to 2000, extracting around 200,000 ounces at that time.

Gryphon Gold is working on the Borealis open pit mine, in Mineral County Nevada, near Yerrington, Schurz and Hawthorne. Hawthorne currently has high unemployment and is around 16 miles from the mine.

Baret News says “Even though gold prices have risen substantially, making mines more profitable, a startup requires more cash to get through the initial registration minefield, a catch-22 situation”.

Gryphon Gold seems to have that under control. The Company has all the necessary permits in place to put a leach pad operation in with estimates of as much as 50,000 ounces per year production.  Once in place, Gryphon would rank 6th out of 12 gold producing mining companies in the state, when measured against State mine production statistics from 2009.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that mining employment has been rising since a low in October last year, with an 8,000 increase in August. The mines are not only good for miners, but also for businesses that support the miners. 25% of the jobs went to miners, and 75% to supporting businesses.

See the story Junior Gold Miner Prepares To Open Pit of Gold

As long as gold prices remain high, the gold in the hills will have companies like Gryphon making the most of the opportunity.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Union members at Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital recently asked hospital management to improve hospital safety. There is a program in place, but the union thinks it could be much better.

Elko County Sheriff Dale Lotspeich set the cat amongst the pigeons by writing a letter supporting the union position. Although there are low crime levels at the hospital, there is always the potential for violence because many patents come in for alcohol or drug-related problems, or are under the influence.

The sheriff recommended a uniform security program because the presence of a uniform often deters problems starting.

See this story at elkodaily.com

Popularity: 5% [?]

BLM Issues Temporary Closure For Burning Man Event

The Bureau of Land Management Winnemucca District Office ordered a temporary closure and the prohibition of certain activities on public lands around the site of the 2010 Burning Man event through Friday, Sept. 17, 2010.

The BLM says this is to provide for public safety and to protect public resources.

The closures affect a small part of the Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area Black Rock Desert playa during the Burning Man Event.

“Similar closures for the Burning Man event in past years have been implemented with minimal disruption to other public uses.”
- Black Rock Field Office Manager Roger Farschon

The closures reserve the 8-Mile entrance to the Black Rock Desert playa solely for Burning Man ticket holders, but all other playa access points and 93 percent of the playa, more than 97,000 acres, remains open to public use.

The closure order is posted on the BLM website.

The event’s 2011 Art Theme is called “Rites of Passage”

There are moments of crisis and frisson in our lives which inform us that we’ve somehow crossed an inner threshold and are changed. Thus moving from one state of being into an unknown other is not a facile transformation; it obliges us to face our innermost insecurities, and it requires faith, a willingness to leap off the ladder of ordered existence. Our theme this year invites participants to join with others in creating rites of passage.
- Burning Man Event website

Burning Man Event Illustration by Dominic "DA" Tinio

The Burning Man website has more information.

Popularity: 8% [?]