Kenny began his journey to join his ancestors with passing on May 3, 2023 in Redding. Kenny was born on June 30, 1953 in Hoopa to Wesley Ammon and DD Martin, when joined his brothers Paul, Jack and Earl. His parental grandparents were Chan and Ruth Ammon and maternal grandparents were Jack and Blanche Hensel. He was an active member of the Tsnungwe Tribe and was a resident in Tsnungwe aboriginal territory of Burnt Rach/Salyer, California. He graduated from Terra Nova High School, Pacifica, California in 1970.

Kenny was married to Irene and together they raised four daughters, Tampra, Shane, Jerrie and Lavada.

Kenny was known for his skills as a carpenter. He understood all phases of the profession and was extremely proud that he either built, remodeled and renovated over 500 homes in Hoopa. He would assist family and friends with their building projects by stopping by after his workday to review their progress while pointing out errors, how to correct and lay out the next phase of the project. His memory will be alive forever in the hearts of everyone who knew him. Kenny was a loving father, brother, and husband, but he really shined at being a grandfather.

He is survived by his wife Irene, daughters Tempra, Shane, Jerrie and Lavada and brother Paul Ammon.

He is further survived by nine grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and several nephews, nieces, uncles, aunts and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his brothers Jack and Earl, father, mother, step-mother Virginia Ammon and stepfather Lincoln Martin, his grandparents and numerous uncles, aunts and cousins.

Services will be held June 24, 2023 at 11 a.m. at the Ammon Family Cemetery on South Fork Road, Salyer. Followed by a gathering at the home of Tom Ammon, South Fork Road. For those who wish, in lieu of flowers make a donation to the Tsnungwe Scholarship Fund or other charity of your choice in Kenny’s name.

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Betty Rose Sporrer
November 29, 1924, to May 28, 2023

Betty Rose Sporrer, at age 98, passed peacefully in her sleep at home with family by her side on May 28, 2023. The Hospice of Humboldt provided exceptional care during her last days.

Betty is survived by her brother Clarence; her children: Renee, Kathy, and Dan; her six grandchildren: Daniel, Emma, Katie, Christopher, Bret, and Kinsey; her great-grandchildren: Jaxon and Eli. She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Dean (Buck) Sporrer; children, Dephane and Rodney, and 11 siblings.

Betty was born on November 29, 1924, in Wisconsin to Albert and Mildred Turenne. At the age of 15, Betty ventured to the big city of Chicago, Illinois, where she worked in the factories supporting the war effort. Shortly thereafter, she began her 10-year career as a switchboard operator for Bell Telephone. She transferred to Portland as a supervisor where she met Buck. Their 59-year marriage began on April 13, 1954, and continued until Buck’s passing in 2013.

Betty had an active retirement in Bend, Oregon. She was surrounded by family and a diverse tribe of friends, including various clubs and her beloved Catholic Daughters. Betty lived independently in Bend to age 93; at which time she moved to Northern California to live with her daughter Kathy and her husband.

She was loved, adored, and respected by all who knew her and is missed. She left this world a better place with her wit, her smile and encouraging words to all.

Our wish is to honor Betty with contributions to the Dephane Marie Sporrer scholarship foundation managed by St. Mary’s Academy. The address is 1615 SW 5th Portland OR 97021. The phone number for the foundation is (503) 228-8306.

The family invites you to a celebration of Betty’s life at the Stock Pot Broiler from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, July 15th, 2023. The address is 8200 SW Scholls Ferry Road, Beaverton, Oregon.

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Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

On June 11, 2023, at about 8:27 a.m., Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the area of Table Bluff and South Jetty Roads for the report of an assault and robbery. As deputies were responding, an additional reporting party contacted the Sheriff’s Emergency Communications Center regarding a male attempting to break into a residence.

Deputies arrived in the area and located the suspect, 35-year-old Jamael Brandon Lowery, walking naked on Indianola Reservation Road. Deputies detained Lowery without incident.

While continuing their investigation, deputies located and contacted four victims. One victim, a 39-year-old female, told deputies that she and Lowery had previously been in a dating relationship. While driving to the South Jetty, the victim noticed a Nissan Altima following her. Upon parking at the Jetty, Lowery reportedly exited the Altima and attacked the victim, causing minor injuries and damage to her vehicle. At some point following this incident, Lowery reportedly approached an unlocked, occupied vehicle parked by the Table Bluff Lookout. Lowery reportedly forced open the vehicle’s door, assaulted the 27-year-old female victim inside and stole her cell phone. The victim was able to push Lowery out of her vehicle and drive away to seek assistance.

Following this incident, Lowery reportedly approached a vehicle traveling along Table Bluff Road and began banging on the vehicle, attempting to open the door. During this incident, Lowery reportedly broke off the vehicle’s driver’s side mirror.

At some point following these altercations, Lowery attempted to force entry into a nearby residence via the home’s doggy door. He was confronted by a resident of the home and fled.

Lowery was booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of burglary (PC 459/461(a)), inflicting corporal injury on a spouse (PC 273.5(a)), robbery (PC 211), assault (PC 240), battery (PC 242), damaging a wireless communication device to prevent a person from calling for help (PC 591.5), vandalism (PC 594(b)(2)(A)) and violation of probation (PC 1203.2(a)(1) & (2).

Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.

Still yet to strike a budget deal with Gov. Gavin Newsom, legislative Democrats have put their own spending priorities into a bill that they plan to pass this week ahead of a critical deadline.

The proposal, which was published online late Sunday, represents an agreement between the Democratic caucuses of the state Senate and Assembly, both of which hold supermajorities and can pass any measure without Republican support. The Legislature is constitutionally required to approve a balanced budget by Thursday to get paid.

But negotiations are ongoing with Newsom, including over a looming shortfall in public transit funding and the governor’s push to streamline permitting for infrastructure projects, as California faces a budget deficit estimated to be more than $30 billion. They have just weeks remaining to work out a compromise before the start of the fiscal year on July 1.

“You cannot achieve that if you’re not close,” said Sen. Nancy Skinner, a Berkeley Democrat who leads the Senate budget committee. She characterized the remaining differences between the Legislature and the governor as a matter of details.

“The money will be very comparable,” she told CalMatters today.

Assemblymember Phil Ting, a San Francisco Democrat who leads the Assembly budget committee, pointed to permitting overhaul as the biggest unresolved issue. Newsom recently announced a plan to speed up development of major infrastructure projects by limiting environmental challenges, which he is trying to jam through the budget process over the objections of some legislators.

“We’re supportive of the overall direction of the governor’s bills, but we still need time to go through the policy details,” Ting said. “These are significant policy bills which all the different policy committees are reviewing.”

Overall, the Legislature’s $312 billion spending plan aligns with Newsom on avoiding major cuts to ongoing programs and even increasing core funding for some, including schools, public universities, welfare payments and health coverage. It also approves many of the new proposals from the governor’s own budget blueprint, such as $250 million in additional funding for flood protection and another $1 billion to help local governments address widespread homelessness.

How much assistance to provide public transit agencies, which warn that they may go over the “fiscal cliff” without an infusion of cash from the state because of steep ridership declines during the coronavirus pandemic, has been a key subject of disagreement.

Newsom wants to pull back more than $2 billion that was previously promised for local rail infrastructure. Legislative Democrats not only rejected that move, but also proposed an additional $1.1 billion over the next three years from the state’s cap-and-trade funds to help cover operating expenses for transit agencies.

Even that aid is not enough to avoid cutbacks in service, according to the California Transit Association, which represents the industry and pegs its revenue gap at closer to $6 billion.

“We are acknowledging that this isn’t a funding package that will address the full balance of our needs, but we see this as something that will address the most immediate needs,” said Michael Pimentel, executive director of the association. “It gives us the ability to come back in future months and future years and continue the conversation.”

Legislative Democrats’ plan also seeks $1 billion more than the governor for local homelessness initiatives and $1 billion to increase reimbursement rates for providers of subsidized child care, who say they do not make enough money to cover their costs. Newsom is pushing to change those rates through a more comprehensive overhaul.

“The wrinkle this year, relative to other years, is there is a new degree of challenge when you’re trying to close a shortfall,” said H.D. Palmer, spokesperson for the governor’s Department of Finance.

Palmer declined to discuss what specific issues remain unresolved in the negotiations, though he acknowledged that the permitting proposal is a priority for Newsom.

“We hope we’ll be able to resolve those differences sooner than later,” Palmer said.

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CalMatters’ state Capitol reporter Sameea Kamal contributed to this story. CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

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Press release from Cal Poly Humboldt:

Fresh off their national title victory two weeks ago, the Cal Poly Humboldt Women’s Rowing team celebrated in style with a visit to the White House on Monday, June 12.

For Humboldt rower Dana Foley, who was named Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) Rower of the Year, today’s visit was a culmination of a magical season that saw her team win its third national title in program history.

“I feel really happy to be here today with this particular team,” Foley said. “To end up here, at the White House, where everything feels very special and gold, I am just really happy to share it with everyone.”

The Lumberjacks, along with national rowing champions from Divisions I and III, attended the event as part of the White House’s College Athlete Day, which seeks to celebrate the NCAA’s national champions across all divisions and sports.

Humboldt’s GNAC Coach of the Year Matt Weise said he couldn’t have asked for a better ending to the season. Weise’s staff, which includes assistant coaches Pat Hyland and Ashley Donnell and volunteer coach Lisa Weise, also earned West Region Staff of the Year from the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA).

“I talked to my wife a week before the championship and I said I wanted my ‘sports movie ending’ to this season, because it’s been so good,” Weise said. “There’s not a much better ‘sports movie ending’ than being at the White House.”

Vice President Kamala Harris, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, and President of the NCAA Charlie Baker presided over the ceremony.

“It’s been an amazing experience,” Humboldt athletic director Nick Pettit said. “Celebrating [this team’s] achievements as national champions, being in front of the White House, and seeing their faces is a really special thing, not just for them, but for the whole community.”

Humboldt earned its invitation to the exclusive event after winning the NCAA Division II title on May 27 at Cooper River Park in New Jersey, where the Jacks snagged gold in both the Fours and Eights grand finals. The victory brings the third national title in program history back to the North Coast and is also the first title for head coach Matt Weise since he was named head coach in 2020.

PREVIOUSLY:

• CHPWatch, June 11, 8:28 p.m.

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Press release from the California Highway Patrol:

Party #1 (John Doe, 72, of Trinidad) was driving Vehicle #1 (Ford Ranger) westbound on SR-299, east of Cemetery Road, at approximately 55 mph. Party #2 (Aaron Angeli, 39, of Redding) was driving Vehicle #2 (Club Wagon) eastbound on SR-299, east of Cemetery Road, at approximately 55 mph.

For reasons still under investigation, the driver of the Ford Ranger veered over the double yellow lines and entered the eastbound lane directly into the path of the Club Wagon. The vehicles collided head-on in the eastbound lane. Angeli, who suffered major injury, exited his vehicle and extricated the unconscious Party #1 from his vehicle. The Ford Ranger then caught on fire and became fully engulfed seconds after both parties were clear of the vehicle. Party #1 succumbed to his injuries on scene.

This collision is under investigation and it is unknown at this time if alcohol and or drugs were a factor. The identity of Party #1 is withheld pending notification of next of kin.

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Press release from Senator Mike McGuire’s office:

Sacramento, CA – Senate Majority Leader Mike McGuire’s legislation, SB 18, which would create the first-ever dedicated tribal housing grant program in California, cleared the Senate with bipartisan support last week. The critical legislation addresses the historic and desperate need for tribal housing across the state.

Native American communities continue to face the long-standing impacts of historic genocide and discrimination. The numbers don’t lie:

• Native Americans are disproportionally represented among California’s homeless population.
• Tribal communities see higher rates of poverty and overcrowded and substandard homes compared to any other population in the Golden State. 
• One third of tribal residents live below the federal poverty line, and approximately 9% of tribes in California have homes that lack complete plumbing and 7% lack complete kitchens.

This is simply unacceptable.

SB 18 would create a tribal specific housing fund which would fund construction and rehabilitation of homes for rent and sale, specifically for tribal communities. The bill would also provide technical assistance to help tribal governments navigate the complex web of regulations and requirements that often hinder tribal housing projects.

“Tribal communities face a staggering housing crisis which is rooted in historic genocide and racism, underinvestment and lack of eligible funding. To truly fix this public health crisis that exists in so many California tribal communities, the State must move with speed in partnership with tribal leaders to establish an exclusive tribal housing program with dedicated infrastructure funding. That’s why we’re working hand-in-hand with tribal leaders from across the Golden State to move SB 18 forward,” McGuire said.

Despite the clear need, the overwhelming majority of tribes have been unable to access existing state housing program funds. Pre-existing funds are often too restrictive and bureaucratic for tribes to meet the threshold and compliance requirements, and many of the requirements are mismatched compared to the needs that exist on tribal land.

Only 13 out of 109 California tribes have been awarded state funds over the last several years.

SB 18 would address the severe housing shortage that exists on tribal lands by creating a new and separate housing program for tribal governments, specific to tribal needs, and designed in consultation with tribes.

SB 18 is supported by: The Yurok Tribe, Big Pine Paiute Tribe of the Owens Valley, Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria, Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians, Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel, Karuk Tribe Housing Authority, Manchester Point Arena Band of Pomo Indians, Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians, Round Valley Indian Housing Authority, among many others. The bill is co-authored by Senators Bill Dodd and Scott Wiener and Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry.