Men’s Club: August 2018 Update

To make way for the 4th of July Pancake Breakfast, we skipped our regular first Tuesday meeting last month. Instead, Bob Russell and Roy Dohner led a cast of more than 60 members cooking and serving about 500 pancake, fruit and sausage breakfasts while generating additional funds for the Men’s
Club Scholarship Fund. A very good day in a very great place!
On July 17, promptly at 8:00 a.m., the Sweeney Team under the guidance of Jack Christiansen and Greg Gutknecht served their fabulous hash brown sausage casserole, and our regular meeting got underway.
Bob Oakley presided and Bob Borland introduced two of the three Men’s Club Scholarship winners. Isaac Palmer is already at UCSD this summer. Lindsey Ammann will attend UCLA undergrad and, hopefully, go on to medical school to become an OB/ GYN physician. Grant Shober is headed for Dartmouth and could not be more appreciative of the financial assistance.
Since we are now into the general election season, Program Chair C Dub invited both candidates for the OC Sheriff position to speak to our group. Don Barnes accepted the invitation, but his opponent
Duke Nguyen declined.Department, has been Undersheriff since 2016 in OCSD, the fifth largest sheriff’s department in the US, with 24 divisions and 3,900 sworn employees serving 3.1 million residents.
Endorsed by current Sheriff Sandra Hutchens, Barnes has been a Past Commander, Captain, Lieutenant, Sergeant, and Chief of Police Services before his role as Undersheriff.
He has credentials from the FBI National Academy and the University of Virginia.
In his detailed talk, Barnes expressed his views on pressing issues such as crime prevention, prison conditions and expenses, police service expenses, drug abuse and trafficking, policing local waters, homelessness and residential treatment centers, weapons permits, and the SB54 state sanctuary bill. In the June Primary, Barnes won 49.4% of a three-way vote, and Nguyen earned 31.1%. Department veteran David Harrington ran third, and now supports Barnes’ bid.
The Men’s Club is now looking forward to this month’s meetings when we will hear from Bill Green and Dennis Erdman of the South Coast Water District on August 7 and then Mike Levin and Diane Harkey, who are running to replace retiring Darrell Issa in the 49th Congressional District, on August 21.
For each political encounter, bring your questions and enjoy an appetizing breakfast and enlightenment about our state’s political future. Note that neither Niguel Shores nor the Seashore News takes political positions or endorses candidates.
On the other hand, your politically incorrect fiscal conservative scrivener recognizes the right (and obligation) of free speech.
The Men’s Club wants its demographics to match the changing demographics of the community, and we encourage membership from all who are interested. If you are new to Niguel Shores or if you just have not made it to a Men’s Club breakfast, please stop by on the first or third Tuesday of the month at 8:00 a.m. for a good meal, a thought-provoking speaker, and the chance to meet a fine group of men.
—Robert F. Saint-Aubin