Keith Evan Downing was born on December 7, 1953 to Darlene and Robert Downing. He passed away on January 13, 2024 at the age of 70. Keith was a lifelong resident of Willow Creek. He was the proud father of three children and grandfather to three grandsons.

Keith was born in Garberville, as a toddler he and his family relocated to Burnt Ranch, then to Willow Creek following the 1964 flood. He attended elementary school in Burnt Ranch and went on to graduate from Hoopa High School in 1972. Keith excelled on and off the court, earning honors on student council, was named to the principal’s honor roll list all four years and was a star athlete in football, basketball, baseball, and track. Keith became known by his classmates as “Goose,” a name that would stick with him into his adult life.

Keith married Debra Cooley of Eureka, in 1976. The couple started a family and had three children; Brian Keith, Jennifer Lee, and Rhonda Lynn, where they resided in Willow Creek.

Keith was the second oldest of five siblings, all of whom enjoyed life on the river and in the beautiful mountains of the Klamath-Trinity region. Keith was a true mountain man and embodied all of the characteristics of what that possessed; from working in the woods, to living off the land and most recently-transforming scrap wood into beautiful pieces of art. His wood work, including his benches, walking sticks, face carving and vases were sold at some of the local shops.

Keith loved being outdoors and enjoyed hunting and fishing. He, his father and older brother Kevin, along with several cousins made many trips to the Trinity Alps where countless memories were made. One trip in particular, Keith killed two bucks in two days; a memory that was forever cherished and a story that was told for decades to come! He was a true storyteller and always loved to emphasis his stories to make for a better tale and an even better laugh! Not only did his stories invoke a lot of laughs, but Keith had a way about him that always brought out the humor in every situation. He knew how to make people laugh and once he got you going, that loud belly aching laugh would take over and the entire room would follow suit!

Keith had a lot of friends and close family whom he shared a lot of good memories with, however none closer to his heart than his children and grandchildren. His three grandsons were the light of his life and he enjoyed attending their sporting events, birthdays and family gatherings. He also thoroughly enjoyed family get-togethers, whether it was a birthday, holiday, camping trips, an outing at Horse Linto Creek Campground, he truly enjoyed those moments with his siblings and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents; Bill & Marion Brown, Chet & Katherine Downing, as well as his parents; Robert Downing (Barbara) and Darlene Downing. Keith is survived by his children; Brian Downing (Heather Maddox), Jennifer (JR) Larkins, and Rhonda Downing (Shawn Washington), his grandchildren; Jayce Larkins, Evan Larkins and Lavell Washington, as well as his siblings; Kevin Downing (Sandra), Karen Middleton (Ron), Kim Downing and Kelly Downing, his aunt DeAnne Morrow, and many nieces and nephews, cousins and friends.

A Celebration of Life will be held at the VFW Hall in Willow Creek on Saturday, February 17 from 1 to 3 p.m. The family would like to invite Keith’s friends and all whom loved him to attend. This is a potluck, so we welcome you all to bring one of your favorite dishes.

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Local photographer Matt Filar, a champion of both the Humboldt Crabs and Humboldt’s crabbers, captured these images of ships departing Trinidad Harbor this morning ahead of the tempestuous atmospheric river headed our way. 

They headed to the more protected marinas in Eureka to wait out the storm, which promises heavy rain and gusts up to 65 mph.

“They expect to return on Sunday,” Filar reports. “Don’t expect to see crab in the markets for a few days.”

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office needs the public’s help to locate a missing person, Mark Charles Burleigh, age 39, of Humboldt County. Mark was reported missing by his family on 02/18/2018. He was last seen in September of 2017 in the Alderpoint area. He has not reached out to family or friends since that time.

 Mark is a white male, 39 years-old, blonde hair, blue eyes, 5 feet 11 inches tall and 150 pounds.

 Anyone with information for the Sheriff’s Office regarding Mark’s possible whereabouts should call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251.

UPDATE, Jan. 31: 

Michael James Martin has been located safe in Eureka, CA, by the Eureka Police Department. 

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the public for their assistance. 

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Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

Michael James Martin

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office needs the public’s help to locate missing person Michael James Martin, age 34. The last communication with his family was in September of 2023 and last known to be in the Humboldt County area.

Michael was reported missing by his family on November 22, 2023, at about 12:24 p.m., Michael is a white male, 5 feet 9 inches tall, 170 pounds, with blonde hair, hazel eyes and possibly a full beard and mustache.  He is living a transient lifestyle with his female mixed breed dog named Maisey.

Maisey

Anyone with information for the Sheriff’s Office regarding Michael’s possible whereabouts is requested to contact Mike Fridley at (707) 441-3024.

Press release from the Office of Gov. Gavin Newsom:

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced new actions and efforts already underway that California is taking to help restore California’s salmon populations.

After 10 years of rapidly intensifying drought and more extreme weather, salmon are not doing well. Last year, with projections showing Chinook salmon population at historic lows, the salmon season was closed and the Newsom Administration requested a Federal Fishery Disaster to support impacted communities. Additionally, due to crashing salmon populations in 2023, some tribes canceled their religious and cultural harvests for the first time ever.

Yesterday, the Governor visited salmon restoration sites in Humboldt County to see how the Salmon Strategy will support communities across the state.

THE STRATEGY: California is working to reverse these trends and save salmon. The state’s Salmon Strategy specifies the six priorities and 71 actions to build healthier, thriving salmon populations in California.

Read the Salmon Strategy.

Get the fact sheet.

The strategy’s six priorities call for:

1. Removing barriers and modernizing infrastructure for salmon migration
2. Restoring habitat
3. Protecting water flows in key rivers at the right times
4. Modernizing hatcheries
5. Transforming technology and management systems
6. Strengthening partnerships

WHY IT MATTERS: Salmon are central to religions, creation stories, the health and subsistence of California Native Tribes, and a multi-million-dollar fishing industry. A multitude of factors have led to a decline in salmon populations, from ocean temperatures to drastic alteration of river habitat and flows by dams and water diversions.

PARTNERING WITH TRIBES: The Salmon Strategy relies on strong partnerships with tribal nations. Tribes and Native communities are driving policy and science critical to rebuilding California’s salmon populations. This strategy builds on existing partnerships in tribally-led restoration work, beaver reintroductions, and returning salmon to their ancestral homes.

ACTIONS & INVESTMENTS UNDERWAY: California is not waiting. The Newsom Administration and Legislature have already spent $796.4 million in state investments over the last three years to protect and restore salmon populations.

Recent actions include:

• Largest Dam Removal in History: Restoring the Klamath River, which was once a prodigious producer of salmon, by removing four obsolete hydroelectric dams. One dam was taken down last September and the rest are slated for removal by November 2024, restoring nearly 400 miles of once-blocked river to salmon, steelhead, lamprey and other native fish species.
• Bringing Fish Back to Historical Habitat: Moving endangered adult winter-run and threatened spring-run Chinook salmon to the upper reaches of Sacramento River tributaries at the height of the 2020-2022 drought, where colder water temperatures better support spawning and help salmon eggs survive. This effort returned adult winter-run to the North Fork of Battle Creek for the first time in more than 110 years
• Doing the Science: Boosting the resilience of hatchery-raised salmon with injections of thiamine (Vitamin B) to counter a deficiency that researchers believe has depressed survival of their offspring in recent years. The deficiency has been tied to shifting ocean conditions and salmon feeding primarily on anchovies compared to a more diverse diet of forage fish, krill and other species.
• Fixing the Landscape: Restoring approximately 3,000 acres of tidal wetland where the Sacramento River drains to San Francisco Bay, creating habitat beneficial to native fish and wildlife, including salmon.
• Flows for Fish: In the Scott and Shasta rivers in the Klamath Basin and Mill Creek in the Sacramento Valley, beginning efforts to establish minimum instream flows while working with local partners and tribes on locally driven solutions.
• Expanding Partnerships with Tribes: From signing a co-management agreement with the Winnemem Wintu Tribe to bring salmon back to the McCloud River for the first time since construction of Shasta Dam, to investing in tribally led restoration like the Oregon Gulch, Farmers’ Ditch, and post-McKinney fire projects with the Yurok and Karuk Tribes, to beaver reintroductions.
• Modernizing and Removing Infrastructure: Reaching agreement with local and federal partners on a framework to reopen miles of Yuba River habitat to multiple native fish species. The agreement sets the stage for the return of imperiled spring-run Chinook salmon to their native habitat in the North Yuba River for the first time in more than 100 years. And, taking the next big step with a coalition of counties, tribes, and fish conservation groups to create California’s longest free-flowing river – the Eel River – through the decommissioning of outdated infrastructure.

You ready for this? Our friends at the National Weather Service Eureka HQ, out there on Woodley Island, are sounding all the alarms about the torrential atmospheric river that is just about ready to batter the North Coast. Indications are that it’ll hit this afternoon or evening.

We’re talking strong, strong wind:

And après le vent, le déluge. Big rain is coming Wednesday. This is especially concerning, forecasters say, because most of our soil is already saturated. They’re expecting plenty of flooding and landslides.

Of course, you’re going to want to strap down anything that might flap away in the coming storm, especially if you’re up on an exposed ridgetop, and you’re probably going to want to put off any big trips out of town for the next couple of days, if you can. Make sure your flashlight batteries and such are all charged. 

Stay safe and dry, everyone!

For years, Kipp Kahlia felt stuck. The Long Beach guitarist used to tour the country with reggae artists. But 20 years ago, after contracting intestinal parasites on a trip abroad, Kahlia had to take a step back from gigging.

Her health deteriorated and visits to doctors drained her savings. Recently she decided to start a business performing social justice songs at events. But with no extra funds or time, she had to pause the venture.

“With all the struggling I was doing, my attitude took a hit,” Kahlia said. “The more you witness yourself being down and out, the more you feel down and out, and the more stuck you feel.”

Now Kahlia is getting a chance to get unstuck. Kahlia was selected as one of 1,000 participants in L.A. County’s guaranteed income program, called Breathe.

It’s one of the largest guaranteed income programs in the nation, giving participants $1,000 a month over three years, more money over a longer period of time than other similar income programs. Last year, the program added an additional 200 participants who are former foster youth.

The pilot program will allow researchers to track its impact in a large, diverse region, said Sean Kline, director of the Stanford Basic Income Lab, which studies guaranteed income programs across the country.

“Whenever L.A. city or county or Chicago or New York do something bold like this, it’s a really important signal that this big policy idea found its footing during COVID and represents a possible way forward in terms of supporting low income people across America,” Kline said.

Guaranteed income’s impact

One question the Breathe program raises, Kline said, is what does it mean to have extra money for months versus several years? “If you knew the money was coming for three years, it’s a much longer runway. Can you go back to school? Can you quit your job now and look for a new one? Can you care for your aging parents?”

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania are surveying the 1,000 Breathe participants, along with a control group of people not receiving funds. Every six months, program participants and members in the control group receive the same survey questions about their wellbeing, financially and mentally, said Amy Castro, director of Penn’s Center for Guaranteed Income Research.

Program participants are assigned a personal coach to guide them through any needs, financial or otherwise, that arise during the duration of the program.

Guaranteed income pilot programs first garnered mainstream attention in 2019, when Stockton launched a pilot program in his city, giving families $500 monthly for two years. The idea was to see how people use financial aid when it doesn’t have restrictions.

That pilot is one of the only experiments with published study results. While there were positive impacts on mental health and wellbeing the first year, when the pandemic broke out, the benefits were less pronounced, according to Penn’s research.

Interest nevertheless grew in the last few years as COVID-19 exacerbated income inequality throughout California, researchers said.

Advocates point to the expansion of the federal child tax credit as proof that direct cash payments to families reduce poverty. In 2021 child poverty decreased to 9% from 17.6% in 2019.

‘I had to get stronger and healthier, clear space, and lay a foundation first. Pulling yourself out of a hole often doesn’t look dramatic. ‘
— Kipp Kahlia, singer and musician participating in L.A. County’s guaranteed income pilot

Since then, guaranteed income programs’ popularity remains strong at the local and state level. In the last two years, there have been 150 to 200 guaranteed income pilot programs launched in the U.S. In California, more than 12,000 people received money through several dozen similar pilots.

Still some opponents said these types of programs discourage participation in the labor market, are too costly and fail to sufficiently reform the welfare system to bring working people out of poverty.

Most of these programs don’t yet have published results, and it’s unclear how they’ll contribute to federal policy, but California is taking the lead.

In November 2023, California launched its first state-funded guaranteed income pilot programs focused on former foster youth. The pilots will give 150 Ventura County residents $1,000 and 150 San Francisco residents $1,200 monthly.

“There is so much we don’t know yet,” Castro said. “We don’t know how long people need to receive cash to create what level of change.”

A work in progress

More than halfway through the Breathe program, Kahlia said she and her business remain a work in progress, but the funds have given her an ability to move forward in a way she hadn’t before.

“It’s taking me from always putting out fires to being able to actually make some moves to advance, not just being stuck,” Kahlia said.

The money came at the perfect time. Because of the pandemic, Kahlia had stopped teaching guitar lessons in person at parks and recreation centers and transitioned to virtual teaching. But one by one, her clients dropped off.

“I didn’t expect to be accepted,” to the Breathe program, Kahlia said. “When I was, I was really, really pleasantly surprised. It definitely took the edge off.”

She figured $1,000 a month for three years would be enough to start investing in her business. She performed in a few experimental shows in 2017 when she sang about social justice issues and got positive responses from audiences.

Singing about social justice allows Kahlia to be a performer again and return to her roots as a reggae artist. She promised herself she would make this business work and focus on her health.

As the world recovered post-pandemic, Kahlia resumed giving virtual guitar lessons from her living room. During the lessons, she sits on a narrow carpet with a binder filled with sheet music propped in front of her. She places lamps near her laptop so students can see her well.

Kahlia said she doesn’t keep track of how she spends the Breathe money. A lot of it has gone to health expenses, and some has gone to her business. But she also spends it on day-to-day things like groceries, or a taco night out with friends, she said.

Kipp Kahlia in Long Beach, next to the car she was able to lease, as part of L.A. County’s guaranteed income program. November 15, 2023. Photo by Julie A. Hotz for CalMatters

Her biggest expense has been a new car she leased after her 28-year-old Toyota Corolla started breaking down.

Kahlia thought if she was going to meet clients for her business, showing up in an old, dinged up car wouldn’t do a lot for her image.

Other smaller expenses include spending money on a website for her business and hiring a freelance IT worker.

Under other circumstances, Kahlia would have thought twice before spending that money.

“I’m probably getting more comfortable with spending money,” she said. “Just learning to say yes to stuff. There’s some stuff that, at the beginning of the program I felt was, you know, almost extravagant. And now I’m like ‘Oh my god, I really needed that for my business to move forward.’”

What research shows about guaranteed income

Though data from the L.A. County guaranteed income program is limited, the Stanford Guaranteed Income Lab tracks 31 pilot programs throughout the country, including the Breathe pilot.

The lab found, in general, that food and groceries are the top way participants are spending money, making up 35% of the funds spent. Retail sales and services are a close second at 31%.

Participants also spent the money on transportation (10%) and housing and utilities (8%). They spend a smaller percentage on educational expenses, miscellaneous expenses and health care or medical expenses.

There’s also anecdotal evidence that participants are spending some on things that may help them build wealth, like starting a business or saving for a down payment on a home, said Brian Arredondo, a coach for program participants.

The program’s coaches, provided through Wilmington-based Strength Based Community Change, personally support participants as their lives change.

Arredondo regularly checks in with about 300 participants. He said participants come to him with a huge variety of needs, from questions about investing and money management to how to find a good mechanic.

He assists them in applying for state programs, such as CalFresh, and helps some enroll in schools or colleges. He even has helped families sign their kids up on sports teams with the extra funds.

Strength Based Community Change also offers workshops on financial literacy, investing and credit repair.

‘It can’t just be the money.’

When Kahlia wanted to lease a new car, she went to Arredondo, who helped her research the used car market. He has helped other participants look for new cars and accompanied them to dealerships.

“People need help with normal, everyday interactions that may be easy for some individuals,” he said. “But for others, they don’t have any prior experience with them.”

Researchers and advocates stress how no-strings-attached cash not only improves peoples’ financial situations, but gives them peace of mind and improves mental health.

Participants report feeling more free to spend money on self care, outings with family members or sharing their wealth with community members. It’s those hard-to-measure impacts that are key, said Ely Fournier, who oversees the program coaches at Strength Based Community Change.

“It can’t just be the money,” Fournier said. “It’s the opportunity and the access to experiences sometimes that really make a big difference when there is even a little bit more resources folks can have. ”

A year and a half into the program, Kahlia’s business isn’t off the ground yet. But she’s made some progress. The program funds have given her time, she said. Normally she’d be stuck in a cycle of teaching guitar lessons to make money, but wouldn’t have time for her business.

Now Kahlia is taking a step back from teaching and spending time writing new arrangements of music to perform for clients. She’s working on updating her website and making calls to potential clients.

“I haven’t gotten to the sexy part yet,” Kahlia said. “I had to get stronger and healthier, clear space, and lay a foundation first. Pulling yourself out of a hole often doesn’t look dramatic. For me it’s been the ability to do some fairly tedious stuff over an extended period of time, over and over again.”

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CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.