On April 26, Richard William Evans transitioned to the next realm with love, song, poetry and light, surrounded by friends.

Richard was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on January 20, 1941. Starting young, he was always an adventurous music and art enthusiast. His first musical adventure was playing the bugle in The Knights of Pythias Drum and Bugle Corps. This early memory of his music reaching out and touching people brought joy to him even close to his departure from this life. Later in life he took up the flute.

At 18 in Greenwich Village, New York City, Richard plowed the fertile fields of expression there, assisting in editing the Village Voice newspaper. At age 21 he attended the 1963 March on Washington and witnessed the iconic “I Have a Dream” speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., a touchstone event for him. In 1966 Richard moved to Paris, where his calling in art grew. That career spanned pen and ink, glass, and paint. This passion and profession sustained Richard throughout his life.

Stateside in 1967, Richard immersed himself in the radical communal life of the Haight-Ashbury. Throughout his life he was amazed and inspired by the flowering of creativity and taboo-busting antics of that time and place. He ventured to Humboldt County in 1971, getting an intoxicating taste of the Back to the Land Movement.

Back in San Francisco, in 1979, Richard was a founding member of the Stellar Arts Collective. This group of designers, glass artists and activists obtained a grant from the State of California to construct a one-of-a-kind glass work as an entry to a large state building in The City. The epic stained glass doors, ceiling, and chandelier of the lobby, were completed in 1980. This was Richard’s major opus as an artist, capturing the essence of his multi-faceted life, spirit and craft. As a gay man, this creation was an expression of the light and love he projected throughout his life. Ironically, the glass work was destroyed on September 30, 1991, during the AB101 Riots, in protest of Governor Pete Wilson’s veto of a gay rights bill (Assembly Bill 101). Emblematic of his compassionate and forgiving nature, Richard felt no bitterness, only a sense of loss of a great work of art.

In this era of his life he joined The Billy Club, a group of gay men dedicated to the rural life style, healing and compassion. Life-long bonds were formed and Billy members were at his side when he passed, singing a traditional Billy Heart Circle song of love.

He met his life partner Richard Beyer in 1977 and returned to Humboldt County in the 1980s. They built a house on the Zenia Bluffs in a style that Richard aptly described as “intimate grandeur,” a description that well describes his entire life path. A gifted teacher and personal growth facilitator, Richard Beyer passed from complications from AIDS in 1995.

Richard Evans was dedicated to building community wherever he lived. In Southern Humboldt, he was active in Redwood AIDS Information Network and Service (RAINS), serving multiple terms as board president. A stalwart supporter of KMUD radio, he built the studio booth glass windows, among other duties, including Board service. Radio audiences may remember him as the voice of “Condy the Condom” from the 1998 “Straight Talk About AIDS” public service series. He was a master of the twinkling eye.

After moving to Eureka in 2006, he served on the Board of Directors of Redwood Community Action Agency (RCAA) and was a catalyst for the fruitful partnership between RCAA and the Westside Community Improvement Association, and the creation of Jefferson Park and Community Center, one hallmark among many of his legacy on the North Coast. Bringing his depth of experience and critical eye to the written word, he contributed regularly to the Art Beat column in the North Coast Journal.

Throughout his long and storied life, he transcended many of the social stereotypes imposed upon us, and modeled behaviors that reinforced acceptance, inclusion and tolerance. Still, with humor, he suffered no fools.

On the forefront to the end, Richard would want all to know that his was a medically assisted death. He was very grateful to the physicians and caring team who supported him in this decision.

A Celebration of Richard’s Life is planned for September 30 at Skyhorse — 216 Third Street, Eureka. Stay tuned for updates as the date approaches.

Richard remained his funny, cheerful and optimistic self to the end. One of Richard’s signature expressions exemplifies his rich life and graceful passing: “FABULOUS!” Say it again: “FABULOUS!”

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Ray Cline of Fortuna passed peacefully at home on April 28, 2023, at the age of 97.

Ray was one of 10 siblings born in West Virginia to Lonnie Ballard and Bertha Cline.

Ray was a WWII Veteran serving his country on the U.S. Navy’s Biddle DD151 destroyer. While on leave from the Navy he married the love of his life, (Iris) Fern Cline. After his discharge from the military, they moved and settled in Humboldt County in 1946. Shortly thereafter, they added four children to their family: Lonnie, Michael, Mary (Susie) and David.

Dad was a man that could do most anything. He was most proud of the house that he built for his family. Most of his career was spent working in the woods as a logger and in many of the sawmills of Humboldt County, retiring as a sawyer from Pacific Lumber Co.

His favorite thing to do was work around his home. It gave him so much pleasure when family and friends stopped by to visit him.

He was preceded in death by his wife Iris (Fern), his son Lonnie and eighjt of his siblings. He is survived by his sons Michael Cline, Sr., and David Cline, and his daughter Mary (Susie) Kirchman, numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

Family and friends are invited to a graveside memorial service that will be held at Fortuna Sunrise Cemetery on Monday, May, 15 at noon. Following the memorial service there will be a gathering at the Fortuna Monday Club.

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HUMBOLDT TODAY: A group of Eurekans is suing the city over its plans to make way for the construction of downtown housing; an Arcata restaurant closes indefinitely due to fire damage sustained Thursday night; plus, the Foggy Bottoms Boys hope to provide you a chill experience this summer! Those stories and more in today’s online newscast with John Kennedy O’Connor.

FURTHER READING: 

• The Foggy Bottoms Boys Give the Scoop on the Local Farm’s Soon-to-Open Loleta Ice Cream Shop
• Fire at Arcata’s Campground Restaurant Last Night Contained With Minimal Structural Damage, Fire District Says
• Arkley-Affiliated Group ‘Citizens for a Better Eureka’ Files Second Lawsuit Against the City Over Development Plans

HUMBOLDT TODAY can be viewed on LoCO’s homepage each night starting at 6 p.m.

Want to LISTEN to HUMBOLDT TODAY? Subscribe to the podcast version here.

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

On May 4, 2023, at about 9:51 a.m., Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a bank on the 12700 block of State Highway 96 in Hoopa for the report of a robbery.

According to bank employees, an unknown male suspect entered the bank and handed a bank teller a note indicating that he was in possession of a firearm and demanding money. The male fled the business with a large amount of cash and was observed being picked up by a red mustang. Deputies conducting follow up to this investigation located the mustang parked at a nearby residence on Tish Tang Road. The vehicle was unoccupied, and the suspect was not located.

The suspect remains outstanding at this time and is described as a light-skinned male, possibly in his mid-20’s, thin-build, approximately 5 feet 7 inches tall and 130 pounds, with brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a brown hoodie, black mask, white t-shirt and dark pants.  

This case is still under investigation. 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.

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If you follow the Foggy Bottoms Boys on social media – it’s the beloved Ferndale-based farm headed by self-described “fabulously gay farmers” Cody and Thomas Nicholson Stratton – then you already know that the dynamic duo recently announced plans to open an ice cream shop, where they will be serving artisanal soft-serve and classic ice cream made from the milk of their own Jersey cows. 

Though the Boys have been intentionally tight-lipped about the name and location of their newest venture, on Friday morning Thomas gave the Outpost the full scoop. In honor of the cows from which their milk comes, the new ice cream will be called Jersey Scoop and, as many people already guessed on Facebook and Instagram and maybe if they’ve noticed the “coming soon” sign already on the window, the shop will take over the space previously occupied by the Loleta Bakery.

“It’s really exciting for us,” Nicholson Stratton told the Outpost, adding that the space, which has a somewhat controversial history, has been vacant for a long time. With the bakery’s closure, plus the more recent closure of the once very popular Loleta Cheese Factory, Loleta has been in an economic slump and Foggy Bottoms is hoping to help breathe life back into the town’s Main Street. “We absolutely believe in the concept of not just us thriving, but multiple other businesses coming in and thriving.” 

A look at some of the Jersey Scoop soft serve

The space will basically be Foggy Bottoms Boys’ new headquarters, Nicholson Stratton said, with a main office where people can place orders for dairy and meat products and book tours of the farm. It will also have a kitchen, industrial freezers to hold their products, and the ice cream shop. The shop will include a classic ice cream-dipping cabinet with rotating, seasonal flavors, and — possibly even more exciting — a soft-serve machine, which will include one featured flavor that changes weekly. In addition to the ice cream, the shop will serve some other light fare, including sandwiches, soups and pastries from Ferndale bakery Patches’ Pastries. You’ll also be able to buy pints of the artisanal ice cream to take with you. 

Jersey Scoop ice cream will also be available for purchase in local grocery stores. At least to start, Nicholson Stratton said, the company will release two flavors for the stores – one will be a rich and creamy classic vanilla, and the other will be a new “fun flavor.” But the name and flavor of the new ice cream is something Nicholson Stratton was not willing to share yet.

“That info is for sure under wraps,” he said. Nicholson Stratton’s other half, Cody, posted a social media contest asking for flavor name suggestions. They didn’t end up using any of the names, exactly, Nicholson Stratton said, but they did base the name on one of the suggestions. 

As far as when this will all happen, Nicholson Stratton said the company still has to go through some inspection processes and is shooting to have the ice cream shop open by mid-summer. Because the process for being able to sell products in grocery stores is a little more arduous, he said, it will probably take a bit longer for the ice cream pints to hit shelves. 

If you are just so excited to taste the creamy treats of Jersey Scoop that you can’t wait until then, Nicholson Stratton said that the farmers plan to have their ice cream available at the Arcata Farmers Market before they have them anyplace else. The hope is to have ice cream pints available for purchase at their Farmers’ Market booth within the next month.

The other great way to help ensure the ice cream business gets going as quickly as possible is to help support the Foggy Bottoms Boys by purchasing their products (if you don’t already).

“What will help us get there [is] if anybody wants to go to Foggy Bottoms Boys and order and pick up at the Farmers’ Market or order and we can deliver to you on Sundays; that would be great,” Nicholson Stratton said.

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PREVIOUSLY: 

• (AUDIO) HUMBOLDT HOLDING UP: Getting to Know the Foggy Bottoms Boys, Gay Ferndale Farmers and Social Media Stars
• Ferndale’s Foggy Bottoms Boys Honored as Climate Smart Farmers of the Year

Last night the ventilation system at the upscale off-Plaza restaurant Campground caught fire, sending flames and smoke like a beacon.

The images were spectacular, but the damage was not as bad as it might have been. Chris Emmons, assistant chief of the Arcata Fire District, tells the Outpost this morning that the built-in sprinkler systems performed admirably in containing the fire, and the staff of the restaurant were able to safely evacuate themselves and customers. 

“As spectacular as it looked, it was actually lucky, for lack of a better term, that it didn’t spread,” Emmons said.

In short: Not much damage to the building, though of course restaurant operations will be affected for a while.

Emmons said that it will have a more complete rundown of the fire and a tally of the damage in a press release today. We’ll update with that when they send it.

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UPDATE: And here it is:

On 5/4/2023 at 9:45 P.M. a unit from Arcata Fire was dispatched to a local alarm at Campground restaurant in Arcata. While in route, the Fortuna Emergency Command Center upgraded the response to a full commercial structure fire dispatch.

Firefighters arrived to a three-story building with a restaurant on the ground floor and apartments on the upper floors. The first engine that arrived on scene found smoke and flames coming from the ventilation fan on the roof and fire in the kitchen area of the restaurant. The fire was found to have traveled from the kitchen area to the roof vent.

Additional Arcata units arrived and began evacuating the remainder of the structure and looking for extension of the fire throughout the building. The restaurant staff did an excellent job of evacuating patrons from the restaurant before firefighters arrived on scene. Mutual aid resources arrived on scene and assisted with all operations.

The fire was reported to be accidental due to the hood ventilation system having a buildup of grease that had ignited. The extinguishing system held the fire in check and slowed the spread.

Mutual aid resources were released to provide coverage of the Arcata Fire Protection District while Arcata units remained engaged in the incident.Estimated damages come to $100,000.

Upon completion of the incident, all units were returned to their respective jurisdictions. Thanks go out to Humboldt Bay Fire, Blue Lake Vol. Fire, Fieldbrook Vol. Fire, Westhaven Vol. Fire, Samoa Vol. Fire and Kneeland Vol. Fire for providing mutual aid.

If you have questions, please contact the Arcata Fire Protection District at 707-825-2000.

David James Renfer, a beloved member of the community and a dedicated father, volunteer and golfer, passed away unexpectedly on April 30, 2023. Although we are heartbroken at this tremendous loss, we take comfort in knowing David is with the Lord he loved so deeply. He was born in Portland, Oregon on July 10, 1985. He was 37 years old.

David’s greatest love was being a father to his two boys, Connor and Kasey. Fatherhood changed David’s life and he truly found his identity in being a loving dad. He embraced every moment and opportunity to be there for Connor and Kasey, whether it was grabbing his glove to play catch at a moment’s notice, or never missing a single practice, game or recital. David was especially known for being at least 30 minutes early every day for after-school pick up so the boys never had to wait. He demonstrated his deep love for his boys through words and actions every day. The boys were his world.

David grew up with a love for sports, especially golf and tennis. Playing in tournaments from a young age, he became a highly skilled golfer and famously long-driver off the tee. Some of his proudest accomplishments were reaching the state finals his senior year and the hole-in-one he hit during a junior high match at Quail Lodge Golf Club. After graduation, he continued his passion for the sport by playing regular weekly golf competitions at Eureka Municipal Golf Course.

David cherished the opportunity to pass on his love for sports to others through coaching. He volunteered as a coach and mentor to teach young players the fundamentals of baseball, basketball and soccer. His enthusiastic and encouraging coaching style made him a beloved figure among the youth sports community.

Recently, David found a new passion as a youth group leader at his local church, Faith Center. He enjoyed working with young people, sharing his love for the Lord, and making a positive impact on their lives. David’s dedication and enthusiasm for his work inspired many of the youth in his group, and he quickly became a beloved mentor.

David will be remembered for his infectious smile, his youthful enthusiasm, and his brightly-colored golf shirts. His love for his family and friends was unwavering. David had an incredible ability to comfort others through his strong faith in the Lord.

He leaves behind his wife Natalie, his two sons, Connor and Kasey, his mother Kimberly Walker, father Len Renfer, sister Jenny Kamnikar (Shaun), niece and nephew Hailey and Walker Kamnikar, brother Danny Renfer, mother-in-law Vicki Casey, sister-in-laws Valerie Canfield and Stephanie Goodwin (Beau), nieces and nephews Ella and Cade Canfield and Carter and Amelia Goodwin, grandparents Jim and Bonnie Walker and Dorothy Renfer. He also leaves behind a large extended family and community. David was preceded in death by grandparents Leonard Renfer Jr. and Linda Renfer and Father-in-law Ben Casey.

A memorial service will be held on May 7th, 2023 at 3:00 pm, at the Faith Center Church of Eureka. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in his memory to Redwood Fields to benefit youth sports programs. Donations may be sent in the form of check to P.O. Box 327, Cutten, CA 95534.

David, we love you and miss you dearly. We will cherish our memories until we meet again.

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