Green Thumbs

Green Thumbs

If you see two people in their late 70s weeding, planting or pruning in William Land Park, they’re probably Jeannie and Dale Claypoole, longtime Land Park residents who have made it their mission to keep the area beautiful.

“We’re advocates for the park,” says Jeannie, a certified Master Gardener and former school psychologist whose green thumb is behind much of the landscaping at McClatchy High School, along Sutterville Road and in Land Park. “If something’s not right, we try to find somebody who will make it right.”

Tiny Food Pantry

Tiny Food Pantry

Tiny Food Pantry McClatchy grad uses STEM to feed her community By Jessica Laskey August 2021 If there’s a problem to be solved, put River Park resident Ashley Jun on it. As a recent graduate of C.K. McClatchy High School’s esteemed Humanities and International...
Flying Brave

Flying Brave

Flying Brave Tahoe Park mom gives people on autism spectrum a place to belong By Jessica Laskey August 2021 For many parents, a child finishing school is an accomplishment. For Tahoe Park native Vanessa Bieker, seeing her son John Almeda aging out of the school system...
For His Family & Country

For His Family & Country

Paul C. Dong, a Land Park resident, knows a thing or two about achievements and milestones.

He is 100 years old—and a U.S. Army veteran who recently received the congressional Medal of Honor in recognition of his outstanding military service during World War II. The Medal of Honor is the highest civilian award Congress grants.

The Army trained him as a tank driver and engineer. He served in the Philippines where U.S. forces fought the Japanese, as did his brother Ben. “I saw the most beautiful sunset ever in Manilla,” Dong says.

The Bees Knees

The Bees Knees

If you see healthy bees happily flitting from flower to flower in Carmichael, Oscar Econome is probably partly to thank for that.

The 20-year-old Carmichael resident has kept bees in his backyard since he was 14. What started as a hobby has grown into a small side business selling honey from his hives and educating neighbors about the benefits of bees.

Saving Bushy Lake

Saving Bushy Lake

Scattered patches of smoldering ash emit wisps of grey smoke—10 days after the fire. The once verdant flora is now black. The air hints of scorched grass underfoot.

“These hot spots are not out. I worry about what’s going to happen,” says Dr. Michelle Stevens, professor of environmental studies at Sac State. “Just let it all burn? Will we have nothing left?”

Bushy Lake, 20 acres of riparian landscape and wetland, located behind Cal Expo along the lower American River Parkway, has burned three times in recent years—2014, 2017 and this past June.