Michael Patrick Hanrahan
January 15, 1947 – March 1, 2023

If you have ever been regaled by a Michael Patrick Hanrahan (Grandpa Mike) story, joke, or memory, you are among the lucky. A gifted orator, whether it was a story you heard for the first or millionth time, he’d have you laughing none-the-less. Mike never met anyone who didn’t come away from the conversation wondering how “all of that” came from this small, feisty, solid man.

On March 1, 2023 Mike’s final story came to an end at 77 years old. After months of a hard fought battle trying to get his body to keep up with his witty, hysterical and brilliant mind he passed away quietly and painlessly with his daughter Leah by his side singing, “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” by John Denver.

Mike was raised in Eureka, a town he loved and to which he always returned. Mike lived in Eureka most of his life. He loved and took care of his mother, Mary Graham Filgas. His father, Mary’s first husband, Patrick Lloyd Hanrahan (Patricia Hanrahan), lived in New York and was not involved in Mike’s early years due to the distance. George Graham, Mike’s uncle, lovingly helped raise him, along with Mike’s Grandfather, until Mary married George Filgas when Mike was seven. Cathy and Jan Filgas were added to the family and Mike took the role of big brother very seriously. The girls were crazy about him. When George died unexpectedly at a young age, Mike assumed the very difficult role of caring for his family. He was only 22 and newly married but assumed the responsibility with great pride and care. Many happy summers were spent with them, as well as his cousins, at the family summer cabin that his grandfather built in Miranda.

Mike was a contractor by trade and if you ask his family and friends, he was the ultimate “tinkerer.” He will always be remembered as a hard worker who gave a hand up to many. He had so many projects going, he is probably the only one who knows where most of the “plans” are. If you know, you know.

Mike graduated from St. Bernard’s High School in 1964 where he got much of his material for his stories and jokes. He went on to the National Guard and then met his wife, Santa. Mike and Santa started HANCO Construction, then had their beloved daughter, Leah. Even though Mike and Santa divorced later, they remained friends and family through out the years. Mike later graduated from Humboldt State with a business degree and completed his first year of his MBA program.

Mike left his two daughters, Lisa Oleman (Kurt Oleman) and Leah Hanrahan-Gee (Kamara Gee) a legacy of a strong sense of family loyalty, laughter, hard work and wit. He showed both of his daughters unconditional love. Mike enjoyed traveling and spending time with them, with NASCAR trips being a favorite. The NASCAR crew knows who they are, and they held a special place in Mike’s heart, especially Billy “BK” Kadanka, his best friend.

His ultimate enjoyment came from being a part of his grandkid’s lives.

Ryan Nelson (Lisa’s son) and his wife Shannon (great grandkids Rose and Rowan) serve in the Navy and Mike could not be prouder of them. Mike served six years in the National Guard and always spoke about how his grandson serving in the military was an honor.

Jerome Gee (24), Ziamara Gee(17) and Amaya Gee (17), Leah and Kamara’s children, had the luxury of having Papi in their lives in Eureka and he filled it with laughter and devotion. He was known at various sporting events and had quite a colorful vocabulary, which tended to spark much laughter. When he was in the stands or at the field, you would know it by his ever-running commentary about how bad the officials were.

Jerome and Papi spent the last few months working on remodeling the “old family home” (it has housed four generations of the Graham family), and completing it was literally his dying wish. Jerome and Papi were an absolute comedy show whenever they were together, from cheating at UNO, to teasing the girls, to dating advice, to simple conversations about food and road trips, where they never admitted to how fast they drove.

Mike was a constant presence at any event big or small for his grandkids. He was able to attend the final senior nights for Ziamara and Amaya while also crashing his bonus granddaughter Trinity Preston’s senior night as well. He absolutely thought the sun and moon rose and set on his grandkids, and they felt the same about him. Ziamara was his princess and their silly looks to each other said it all. She could do no wrong in his eyes. Amaya and Papi always had an inside joke. Their dry wit made the two of them a force (and a lot of horse- power) of absolute hilarity. Papi was always in awe of Amaya’s dry wit as they were always trying to out do each other in that department.

Mike epitomized the phrase “he’d give you the shirt off his back.” His children and grandchildren witnessed numerous times this literally happened. Mike was a “Grandpa Mike” to many children throughout the county as he was very visible and involved in Leah and Kamara’s business supporting children in need.

The last few months and specifically the last few days would not have been possible to get through without Mike’s love, Helen Belloni. Helen brought so much joy to Mike’s life and their bond as soul mates was truly evident in the last days of his life. Thank you, Helen, for loving my dad and loving all of us along with him!

Mike is survived by:

His stepmother “mom”, Patricia Hanrahan.

His daughters and sons-in-law: Lisa Oleman (Kurt) and Leah Hanrahan-Gee (Kamara Gee)

His grandchildren: Ryan Nelson (Shannon), Jerome Gee, Ziamara Gee and Amaya Gee.

His great-grandchildren: Rose and Rowan Nelson

His siblings: Cathy Filgas (Shoaib Tareen), Jan Filgas and step brother Michael Welsch

His in-laws: Frank Perra (Caterina), Robert Perra (Anne), James Perra and Ovieda Elliott (Matthew)

Nieces and nephews: Bradley Brambani (great nieces and nephews Taylor, Kylee, Andrew and Nyexa Brambani), Cassandra Elliott (great niece Zoe Elliott), Sidra Tareen, Mikhiel Tareen

The Harris Family held such a special place in his heart; he thought of them as family. Jimmy, Erica, James Jr.,Kelly, Harleigh, Michael, Tiffany, Frederick, Caroline, Erica, Jennifer and Jack Harris. Know that he mentioned you all often and had a respect and love for you all; not all family has to be blood.

The family would like to thank: Shadie Aragon for always being available to check in on Grandpa Mike no matter what she had going on; she dropped everything to support him in whatever way he needed. She did this for years and always seemed to know what he needed and when.

The amazing staff at St. Joseph’s Acute Rehabilitation and the PCU crew at St. Josephs really did an amazing job of supporting Mike in his final days.

A wholehearted and gracious thank you to Natalia and Dr. Nelson from Palliative Care; the voices of reason to connect my mind and heart into accepting what dad wanted in his final days.

Mike requested a celebration of life to be held in his honor as opposed to traditional funeral services. Mike wanted food and stories and laughter. Please write down any stories to share with his family and friends. Knowing Mike, no stories are off limits as we gleefully never knew what was going to come out of his mouth. The celebration of life will be announced once the family home is ready for a party. In lieu of flowers or gifts, please donate to a veterans organization. He was passionate about homeless veterans deserving a safe home.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Mike Hanrahan’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.

Ann Louise Diehl — sweetheart, wife, mother, grandmother and best friend — suffered a stroke on November 9, 2022, ultimately passing away peacefully at home on February 4, 2023.

Ann was born in Franklin, Penn. on December 6, 1946. Her parents, Reginald and Dorothy Cubbison, both teachers, instilled in her a sense of duty, purpose and respect for others. These she embodied all her life.

Besides mothering her two sons, Bret and Ross, and keeping her husband somewhat on track, she taught English for 20-plus years, most of it at Eureka Senior High School. While Ann was comfortable teaching advanced-level classes, she took particular pride in developing courses for those not college bound. This included her favorite, “Mystery Lit,” which hooked students on detective novels. She also made sure during these years to support all manner of students of whatever minority status.

After retiring from teaching about twelve years ago, Ann shifted her focus to civic causes. She served the League of Women Voters, the California Retired Teachers Association, Humboldt Sponsors, the Humboldt Children’s Author Festival, and the Morris Graves Museum of Art.

When not serving others, Ann loved to travel. With family or friends, Ann visited much of Europe, as well as Indonesia, China, India, Costa Rica, Peru, Egypt, and Kenya. Throughout, she made friends and raised the spirits of all whom she encountered.

Her husband of 51 years, Duke, her sons Bret and Ross, along with Bret’s wife Lynn and grandson Merrick, all mourn her loss, but are thankful to have had the privilege of her presence and love.

Ann is preceded in death by her parents, Reginald and Dorothy Cubbison, her brother William Cubbison and her sister Shirley Sweetapple. As per her wishes, we would like to thank Ayres Family Cremation for their services and professionalism.

Many kind caregivers treated Ann at Providence St. Joseph’s Hospital and Seaview Rehabilitation Center. She also received extensive care at home by Hospice of Humboldt, Visiting Angels and others. A special thank you goes to Jude Zyskowski, our kind friend and neighbor, who was always available to smooth the bumps.

A celebration of life is being planned for a later date.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Ann Diehl’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.

HUMBOLDT TODAY: Our schizophrenic weather looks likely to stay in winter mode, if you can believe it. Plus, a fatal hit-and-run in Eureka results in arrest. And, yes, there are elections Tuesday! Find out if you should be voting on something and more stories in today’s newscast with John Kennedy O’Connor.

FURTHER READING: 

• ARCATA CITY COUNCIL: Study Session on Tuesday Night to Set Goals for the Next Fiscal Year
• SUPES PREVIEW: Cannabis Reform Initiative and North McKay Ranch Subdivision Headline a Packed Agenda
• Highway 101 Closed Just North of Willits Due to Snow, Jacknifed Big Rig
• Eureka Police Arrest Suspect in Yesterday Morning’s Fatal Hit-and-Run

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 PG&E:

After three months of higher-than-normal natural gas market prices driving up energy bills, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) customers can expect, on average, a 75% decline in their March natural gas bills.

The decrease is due in part to PG&E distributing the state’s April Climate Credit one month earlier than in previous years. Even without the Climate Credit, March natural gas bills, on average, would decrease 40% because of a significant drop in the market prices PG&E pays to buy natural gas to serve its customers, and customers using less gas as colder temperatures moderate. The estimated decrease, which is for natural gas usage in March, is based on customers using 38 therms (a unit of energy) compared to 50 therms in February. Depending on billing cycle, customers may not receive statements for March usage until April.

PG&E does not control market prices, nor does it mark up the cost of gas and electricity that it purchases on behalf of its customers.

“We supported the California Public Utilities Commission’s decision to distribute the statewide Climate Credit earlier than previous years, and we’re grateful to pass on that savings to our customers. Even with this bill credit, we know that after three months of sustained high natural gas prices, some customers may have difficulty paying their bills, and we’re here to help with individualized customer support, including payment plans,” said Vincent Davis, PG&E Vice President, Customer Operations and Enablement.

The average residential non-CARE customer bill for natural gas service in March is projected to be about $37.00, which includes the gas Climate Credit of $52.78. In February, the average residential non-CARE customer bill was about $150.00.

Natural gas prices also affect the cost of electricity since many power plants use natural gas to generate electricity. Customers can expect, on average, a 37% decrease in March electric bills.

The average residential non-CARE customer bill for electric service in March is projected to be about $91.00, which includes the Climate Credit of $38.39. That’s compared to $145.00 in February.

PG&E Efforts Save Customers Over $1 Billion

In late January, California average daily prices for natural gas were five times higher than the U.S. benchmark, according to the United States Energy Information Administration. The higher Internal market prices between November and January were driven by market forces including increased natural gas demand due to colder than normal temperatures; increased demand for gas-fired electric generation due to less hydroelectric generation and fewer electric imports; lower Pacific regional natural gas storage inventory; and natural gas pipeline delivery constraints.

PG&E customer bills could have been even higher during this time. PG&E’s team that purchases natural gas on behalf of its customers was able to save customers well over $1 billion through a series of measures. Among these actions: maintaining a diversified natural gas portfolio that includes interstate pipeline access to three natural gas supply basins, using natural gas storage, which was full at the beginning of the winter, and using financial hedging to protect against rising winter prices.

In February, market wholesale prices were well below the January average. Customer natural gas rates for the month are generally set based on wholesale prices at the end of the previous month.

Customer Support

While March bills are expected to drop, some customers still may have difficulty paying bills from the sustained higher prices this winter. PG&E offers individualized solutions and other ways to save:

• Customers who need more time to pay can extend their due date or make a payment arrangement through their online account at pge.com.
  
• PG&E offers many financial assistance programs that can help customers lower their monthly bills.
• In addition to the statewide Climate Credit, approximately 300,000 customers who experienced financial hardships during the pandemic also received a one-time automatic bill credit under the California Arrearage Payment Program.
• Customers who participated in the Power Saver Rewards Program last year and reduced energy use on event days may receive a bill credit on their February or March energy statement, depending on billing cycle. The program is providing over $55 million in bill credits to participating PG&E customers. Over the 10 event days in 2022, the average customer bill credit for participating customers was $35.

About PG&E

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit PG&E’s website and its newsroom.

As a deadline for California’s task force on reparations nears, the state-appointed panel charged with examining historic racial damage has made few final decisions on its dozens of preliminary recommendations for redress.

Nor did its members decide on specific dollar amounts for reparations during the meetings in Sacramento on Friday and Saturday.

Instead the task force voted to strengthen the power of a proposed “freedmen affairs’’ agency it says the state should create to help carry out reparations on behalf of California.

And it decided that Saturday was not its last in-person meeting; it will hold at least one more summit in Sacramento on March 29 and 30 and potentially two more later.

Created by state law after Minneapolis police killed George Floyd, the California Reparations Task Force is charged with delivering recommendations for reparations to the Legislature by July 1. State lawmakers will decide whether or not to enact or implement them.

The task force findings could become a blueprint for similar reparations deliberations, in the federal government and in some states and cities already beginning to explore restitution for eligible Black residents.

“I think everyone knows that the nation is going to be watching … what we do here,” said task force member Donald K. Tamaki on Saturday.

Fellow member Monica Montgomery Steppe, San Diego’s city council president, later added: “What we are doing — every step of it — is going to have resistance. And it is going to be hard. It’s going to take decades.”

During the two days of often intense discussion and public comment in Sacramento’s Byron Sher Auditorium, the 9-member group revisited a vote it took in January recommending the state create a California American Freedmen Affairs Agency.

More powers

In January, the body voted to recommend that the proposed agency function like an oversight commission that would monitor how the state implements reparations. But some members said Saturday they thought they had voted for broader powers for the agency.

The group debated and then unanimously voted to replace the earlier measure. It recommends that California structure the freedman affairs agency as an independent department that would directly implement the task force’s recommendations, including identifying and compensating descendants of enslaved Black people.

For instance, it would possibly have a genealogy branch to confirm who is eligible for reparations, a legal affairs branch to provide free law services while advocating for justice reforms, and a labor and employment branch to “supervise” discrimination claims, according to a task force summary.

‘How can we let bygones be bygones when the knee of white supremacy is still on the necks of Black Americans, choking the very life from us?’
— Maureen Simmons, legislative aide

The agency also would perform some oversight of existing state departments that provide services aimed at racial equity. It would look at the California Department of Justice’s enforcement of voting rights, for instance, and act if the redrawing of district lines dilutes Black political power, the measure said.

The new agency also would provide some direct services that other parts of government already provide, if they are not sufficient, the task force said.

Task force Chairperson Kamilah Moore said Saturday’s vote was necessary to take into account public comments and expert testimony.

“We have the duty and right to reconsider any decision that we’ve made,” she said.

“No one tells the Native Americans that the Bureau of Indian Affairs is too wonky or bureaucratic or that they don’t deserve it. No one tells our immigrant families and folks that the Office of Immigrant Affairs is too wonky or bureaucratic. So why should that answer be sufficient for the descendants of slaves?”

Dollar figures

Though the task force has yet to vote on final dollar amounts for reparations, some calculations have been suggested in prior reports.

One idea under consideration is whether to base individual compensation on the racial wealth gap as an indicator of the losses Black descendants of enslaved people have suffered. The racial wealth gap compares financial assets, such as earned income and inherited wealth.

Economists William Darity and Kirsten Mullen, part of a team of economists and scholars consulting with the task force, wrote in a report: “We view the racial wealth gap as the most robust indicator of the cumulative economic effects of white supremacy in the United States.”

Darity and Mullen pegged the average per-person racial wealth gap at approximately $358,293, which is what would be potentially owed to each Black descendant of an enslaved person, who was a resident of California at the time the reparations bill was signed into law in 2020.

An interim report to a task force advisory committee pegs the total debt California owes to Black descendants of enslaved people at more than $600 billion.

“If paid to a conservatively estimated 1.8 million Black Californians with an ancestor enslaved in the U.S. (80% of the 2.2 million) the amount required will be $636.7 billion,” the report states.

Another calculation would assign a dollar amount to each of five categories of racial damage identified by the task force. The categories include: the unjust taking of property by eminent domain, the devaluation of Black businesses, housing discrimination and homelessness, mass incarceration and over-policing, and health harms.

No whittling down

Though the task force has heard input on how the state might begin to pay for such compensation, staff from the Department of Justice said the law creating the task force did not instruct it to identify funding sources.

“The task force is required by AB 3121 to recommend to the Legislature methods for calculating reparations and the scope of reparations,” said Michael Newman, Senior Assistant Attorney General. “Based on their recommendations, the Legislature is ultimately tasked with implementing these changes into law and figuring out how to pay for it.”

Regarding the preliminary recommendations, Montgomery Stepp has warned several times against weakening them in hopes the Legislature would approve the reparation plan. She repeated that caution Saturday.

“Us thinking about what would be the best-case scenario to get our descendant community where it needs to be is where we need to start, and not already be whittling (the list) down, because more of that is going to happen as it goes through the process,” she said.

About 150 people attended the meeting Saturday, and dozens spoke to the task force.

‘What we are doing — every step of it — is going to have resistance. And it is going to be hard. It’s going to take decades.’
— Monica Montgomery Steppe, Task force member

Let bygones be?

Maureen Simmons, a legislative aide who drafted the task force law, said an apology and compensation are important for undoing past harm and preventing future repetition.

“Arguments against reparations center around who is eligible and how much, if anything, they should receive,” she said. “Those detractors believe … it is a futile effort, so we should just let bygones be bygones. But how can we let bygones be bygones when the knee of white supremacy is still on the necks of Black Americans, choking the very life from us?”

She paraphrased a line from a 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. speech where he listed government acts that financially enriched white people at the expense of Black people.

“I will accept your apology on the terms that, in the words of Dr. Martin Luther King — and I believe I can say this for some of us in the Black community — ‘We’re coming for our check,’” she said.

Lloyd Kelly, 62, from New Orleans, noted that other states are watching what shape California’s reparation plan is taking. He also said California’s lawmakers should be paying closer attention.

Two lawmakers are on the task force: Senator Steven Bradford and Assembly member Reginald Jones-Sawyer, Democrats from Los Angeles.

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg declared his support for reparations and apologized for his city’s historic discrimination against Black people.

“If the government should stand for anything, it should stand for investing in communities and people who have been the victims of discrimination and disenfranchisement for far too long,” he said.

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

PREVIOUSLY:

• Pedestrian Killed in Hit-and-Run Incident on Fifth Street in Eureka

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Guzman.

Press release from the Eureka Police Department:

On March 4, 2023, at approximately 3:15 p.m., EPD’s Communication Center received a call from a citizen in McKinleyville stating they had located the suspect vehicle. The vehicle was parked in an open parking lot and was unoccupied at the time of the call. EPD requested the assistance of the California Highway Patrol who responded to the scene to secure the vehicle. An EPD officer and two detectives were dispatched to the location and took over the investigation. Upon their arrival they confirmed this was the vehicle involved in the collision.

As detectives processed the vehicle, they were contacted by the vehicle’s owner. An interview was conducted with the owner, Jose Guzman Jimenez, 53 years old from Eureka, which revealed he was the driver of the vehicle at the time of the collision.

Jose Guzman was placed under arrest and transported and booked at the Humboldt County Jail for a violation of felony hit and run involving a death. This is still an ongoing investigation and we are asking for any witnesses to the collision to contact the Eureka Police Department.

The Eureka Police Department would like to thank the observant citizen who located the vehicle and the California Highway Patrol for their assistance with this investigation.

Markets can remain irrational longer than you can remain solvent.

— John Maynard Keynes

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The best way to make money is to die. That’s because, as financial advisor Adam Fayed puts it, “The dead aren’t watching CNBC and worried about the latest thing which can rock markets…They don’t panic if markets crash, or try to predict the next crash. And they don’t allow bias to affect investing.” If you want to succeed financially, die, Or, failing that, leave your investments alone. Whether you’re tempted to get in or out of the market, or change your strategy, or cash out and move to Panama, or hire an investment manager whose expertise must surely outmatch yours…don’t.

Usually in life, knowledge is power. When we fail, we probably didn’t do our homework first, or we based our decisions on emotions, not data. That is, we were coming at a problem with a lack of knowledge. The world of investing is different. Knowledge (assuming it’s not illegal insider knowledge) works against success. As an investor, the more knowledge you have, the worse off you’ll be…on average, in the long run.

Consider the results of a 2019 study from Morningstar, the independent research company. Comparing the results of active managers (financial gurus who use their knowledge to beat the market) with index funds (which passively follow the ups and downs of hundreds of companies), just 23% of the active managers were able to outperform their passive peers. That is, you’re paying your investment advisor to lose your hard-earned money while your non-managed index fund nets you nearly 7% interest every year. That’s the average stock market return over the past 200 years after taking inflation, which averages around 2% annually, into account.

Of course, if you invested with one of the 23%, you’re ahead of the game. This year. Statistically, the odds of your professional staying in the winning pack two years in a row are 5%. That’s based on past results, which is all you’ve got to go on when trying to predict the future. Of course, there are the Warren Buffett’s of this world, who consistently beat the odds—in Buffett’s case, by correctly picking what turned out to be undervalued stocks. But he’s the exception to the rule. Again, on balance and in the long run, managed money loses out to passive money.

The above is my attempt to explain the efficient-market hypothesis, or EMH, which says that share prices reflect all information about that stock, that is, the best available estimate of the value of the services or income flows it will generate. As my new BFF, ChatGPT, explains, “The EMH suggests that it’s difficult to consistently outsmart the stock market by finding ‘hidden gems’ or undervalued stocks, as the market is already efficient and all publicly available information is quickly reflected in stock prices.”

I’ve written about Bitcoin (BTC) previously (most recently here), and you may be wondering, What “services or income flows” can possibly be generated from cryptocurrency? The answer, as many naysayers have reminded me, is, None whatsover. Bitcoins don’t generate any earnings and their intrinsic worth is zero. Yet, for a worthless “currency,” Bitcoin has shown remarkable staying power over the last 13 years. Instead of popping like a traditional financial bubble (the 18th century South Sea Bubble being the archetype), it’s gone up, come down, gone up, come down (most recently, from nearly $70,000 to below $15,000)…and shows no signs of going away. What gives? Is Bitcoin “the final refutation of the efficient-market hypothesis,” as one commentator put it? Or will it pop, like all the rest? (If so, when?)

Perhaps the EMH has something to teach fans of cryptocurrency. Some years ago, while Bitcoin was dropping precipitously, a BTC investor and regular blogger advised his followers to HODL. That was late at night, after a couple of drinks. He meant, HOLD, of course. Typo or not, HODL entered the lexicon, and today you’ve got active cryptocurrency investors, just like with traditional stocks, trying to time and beat the market. And you’ve got HODL ones, who take the long view of the market, passively hanging on to whatever Bitcoins they might own. They watch as the value of Bitcoin goes through its wild swings—losing 20% in one day, for instance—all the while sticking to their HODL strategy. (Currently, Bitcoins that haven’t been moved from wallets in at least six months account for nearly four-fifths of all Bitcoins minted.)

Stock market and cryptocurrency investors alike could do worse than follow this strategy: When in doubt, do nothing!