COP program gives northwest police extra eyes and ears
Thursday, 04 September 2008
Cellular On Patrol members (from left) Jim Babbs, Al Upchurch and Larry Loveall flank the San Antonio Police Department Prue Substation’s COP coordinator, Officer Ron Atkinson. Photo by Lauri Gray Eaton
By Lauri Gray Eaton Editor of the Northwest Weekly
With more than 350,000 residents to serve and a coverage area that spans from Culebra Road to Blanco Road – geographically bigger than Corpus Christi – the San Antonio Police Department’s Prue Road Substation’s police officers have a challenge on their collective hands to keep on top of the northwest community’s criminals.
Helping to lessen that burden over the course of the past 14 years, the substation’s police have had nearly 2,000 sets of surrogate eyes and ears out in the community, trained to observe and report crime. They are trained volunteers who, using cellular phones, observe and report potentially criminal activity.
The Cellular On Patrol (COP) members have been directly responsible, over the past five or six years alone, for more than 100 arrests, says Officer Ron Atkinson, who coordinates the Prue Substation’s COP program.
Each of the SAPD’s substations has a COP program, but Prue’s “is probably the biggest,” said Atkinson.
Citizens are trained in two three-and-a-half hour sessions and work on a purely voluntary basis. “No one is required to do anything,” stressed Officer Atkinson, and the volunteers set their own schedules.
Far and away, the crimes that COP members report are criminal mischief, grafitti and vehicular burlaries.
“We don’t ask them to thwart crime,” said Atkinson. “We just want them to observe and report.”
The COP program also teaches its members to patrol their own neighborhoods.
Members Larry Loveall, Jim Babb and Al Upchurch are retirees who all live in the Woods of Shavano, where they actively patrol as well as teach neighbors how to prevent becoming victims of crime.
“We teach them how to protect themselves and their property,” said Atkinson, who said that community education is another large function of COP.
It’s surprising, they say, at the number of people who leave their garage doors open, inviting opportunistic crime.
“We try to get people to leave their outside lights on at night,” said Loveall. For the cost of a lightbulb that illuminates for less than 2 cents an hour, he said, a well-lit residence can encourage a would-be burglar to move on to someplace else.
The COP members form the nucleus of a nonprofit neighborhoods fundraising organization for the Prue Substation, where police are outfitted with the budgeted necessities but otherwise might have to do without items such as a McGruff “take a bite out of crime” dog suit ($1,000) and Stranger Danger puppets for programs in the schools or bike patrol bicycles.
“The city’s budgetary process doesn’t allow for many of these items,” said Atkinson.
“They let us know about it,” said Loveall. “We see if we can come up with the funds.”
An annual barbecue fund raiser for the COP citizen education and crime awareness and prevention program will be held Saturday, Sept. 13, at the Prue Road SAPD Substation, 5020 Prue Road, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Barbecue plates include brisket and sausage, beans and potato salad for $6. Sodas and water will be available. To-go plates are also available, and deliveries can be made for orders of 10 or more plates.
The next COP classes are scheduled for Sept. 20 and 27. Another set of classes will be Nov. 13 and 20. For more information, call Officer Ron Atkinson at 207-6087.
For more information, call Atkinson at 207-6087.
Helotes senior center gears up for fundraiser
Thursday, 04 September 2008
Jose Elizondo leads an exercise classes, held each morning at Casa Helotes. Photos by Lauri Gray Eaton
By Sarah Snyder Staff Writer
Twenty-two years ago, a few sorority girls from Sigma Pi took a meal-delivering operation to a new level when they rented a house from a Mexican restaurateur for $100 a month.
Beyond the popular “mi casa es su casa” sign, the Casa Helotes Senior Center has been feeding and entertaining the 60-plus crowd in Northwest Bexar County ever since.
For $3, one can get a hot meal, and there’s always a pool tournament that carries on until the late afternoon. Within the dreamsicle-colored walls of the center, now on Leslie Road, there are fitness classes, canasta, dominoes, Bingo and just good conversation.
Betty Meyer (background) contemplates her canasta cards as Marie Denman holds her hand.
The non-profit organization hopes to put a dent in its financial burden this month by raising funds at its second annual Taste of Helotes event, featuring buffet-style dining and door prizes with the purchase of a $20 ticket.
{Casa Helotes draws about 50 visitors a day for their noon meals, emceed by Director Casey Jones, who dabbles in stand-up comedy.
“I keep telling myself that one of my jobs is to make at least eight people laugh every day,” Jones said. “If I can tell 50 people here at lunchtime one funny ... and get them to laugh, I’ve done part of my day’s work.”
Utility prices and other operational costs lay siege to Casa Helotes, which receives about 80 percent of budget from fundraising. While the Alamo Area Council of Governments supplies a partial reimbursement for meals, Jones said, utilities and building maintenance must be funded by donations.
For example, somebody’s got to mow the lawn for these senior citizens.
Bill Dougherty takes aim on his billiards shot. Playing pool is a popular afternoon activity for the male clients at Casa Helotes.
“The outside volunteer work we get is slim to practically nothing, so we have outside maintenance to pay for.” Jones said.
Secretary Nancy Smith knows the need for fundraising all too well.
“All we ever do around here is fundraising,” she said, lighting up when recalling how she used to bring her late mother-in-law to the center.
"She was like a caged rat if she didn’t get here every day.”
Dottie Watt, on the board of directors, chimed in:
“We hope that it will be here forever, that it will be here for our grandkids.”
Some patrons have just started to visit the center, and others have been doing so for years. Some show up every single day, others only once in awhile.
Mary Lou Buenbello has been coming to the center for a year and a half. After her husband died a few years ago, friends invited her to the center for coffee, cards and companionship.
“I just enjoy the company. Three dollars, you can’t beat a lunch for three bucks,” she said.
“At least I’m not at home, thinking of my husband, crying, feeling bad, feeling sorry for myself. I did that for two years, and I couldn’t do that anymore.”
CASA HELOTES
A drawing of the original Casa Helotes. Courtesy illustration
The senior center is open from 9 a.m to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday (except for recognized holidays).
A $3 donation for meals is requested, as is a phone-in reservation to guarantee one. To cancel, call by 10 a.m.
Food is served at noon. Fitness for Seniors with Jose every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 to 11:30 a.m.; Domino 42 games at 9 a.m. every Tuesday and Friday; and Bingo most Thursdays after lunch.
Reach the Casa at 695-8510, or stop by 12070 Leslie Road.
TASTE OF HELOTES
Marie Jacobs, administrative assistant at Casa Helotes, helps the kitchen staff and hustles to make sure seniors get their hot lunches.
What: Fundraiser for Casa Helotes Senior Center that offers buffet-style dining and door prizes.
Where: Floore’s Country Store and El Chaparral
When: Sept. 16, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Cost: Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at either restaurant ahead of time or at the door. Tickets are also available at Casa Helotes.
For more info: Casa Helotes, 695-8510
Calendar - Sept. 4
Thursday, 04 September 2008
Friday, Sept. 5
A farmers’ market is held 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays at Grady’s Bar-B-Q, 7400 Bandera Road.
The Grey Forest Farmer’s Market is held 3 to 6 p.m. next to the Grey Forest Fire Department at the corner of Scenic Loop Road and Sherwood Trail. The event is held the first and third Fridays of each month.
Saturday
The Second annual Multicultural Conference on Breast Cancer is held 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the University of Texas Health Science Center Joe and Teresa Lozano Long Campus, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive. The conference is free to the public and deals with issues of breast health in a culturally sensitive manner, addressing differences and similarities through guest speakers, medical leaders and cancer survivors. Lunch will be provided. For more information, call UTHSCSA at 567-2579 or the San Antonio Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure at 222-9009, ext. 101.
A farmers’ market at H-E-B at Potranco and Loop 1604 features fresh produce from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. It is held at this location every other week.
The first Saturday of each month, Helotes Human Society will conduct a pet food bank for those who need assistance providing food for their dog or cat. The pet food bank will be open at Helotes City Hall, 12951 Bandera Road, for individuals from 9 to 9:30 a.m. and organizations from 9:30 to 10 a.m. An application will be required. Supplies are limited. The public is welcome to drop off food donations or contact Helotes Humane Society at
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Get your ’cue on. At 1:30 p.m. Dickey’s Barbecue Pit on Bandera Road will team with the New York-based Associa-tion of Independent Competitive Eaters to host the first-ever Southwest Division Pulled Pork Sandwich Showdown. The event, part of the restaurant’s anniversary celebration, will feature one of the nation’s top competitive eaters. Pittsburgh’s champion eater Bob “Killer” Kuhns is challenging all Texans to the contest.
For an online registration form for the contest, go to the AICE’s Web site, www.competitiveeaters.com
The Great Northwest Homeowners Association hosts a Good-Bye Summer/Back-To-School Carnival 5 to 10 p.m.
Sunday
Low-cost vaccinations for dogs and cats are offered at the following times and H-E-B stores: 9 to 11 a.m. at Guilbeau and Bandera roads, Loop 1604 and Potranco Rd., and Grissom and Tezel roads; and then 12:30 to 2 p.m. at 1604 and Bandera, 1604 and Culebra Rd., and Babcock and Huebner roads.
Tuesday, Sept. 9
A farmers’ market is held 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays at Grady’s Bar-B-Q, 7400 Bandera Road.
Wednesday, Sept. 10
Farmers’ markets are held 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Leon Valley Community Center, 6420 Evers Road, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the JC Food Mart, 3606 Fredericksburg Road.
The Cavender Chevrolet 2008 Live Music Series at The County Line, a benefit for the San Antonio Food Bank is held 6 to 10 p.m. each Wednesday through Oct. 29 at the County Line Bar-B-Q, 10101 Interstate 10 West. Tonight, Keith Davis opens at 6:30 p.m. before featured act Two Tons of Steel at 8 p.m. The live music series is free. Customers are asked to make a food or monetary donation to the San Antonio Food Bank.
The Texas Thunder Cloggers are offering an eight-week course of clogging lessons for beginners 6:15 to 7 p.m. Wednesdays beginning with an open house today and running through Oct. 29 at the San Antonio Street Dance & Drum Company Studio, 1026 Donaldson, in the Woodlawn area west of Fredericksburg Road and Hildebrand Ave. No partner is needed and no previous dance experience is required. For more information, call Bobbi Boyce at (830) 570-3250 or Criste Tonra at 859-4481. Clogging is an American folk dance with lively and constant footwork danced to upbeat bluegrass, country, pop and rock music.
Sept. 10
Farmers’ markets are held 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Leon Valley Community Center, 6420 Evers Road, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the JC Food Mart, 3606 Fredericksburg Road.
Sept. 11
The Leon Valley Public Library’s fall book sale includes publications priced to sell from 10 cents and up. The sale, held in the library annex at 6500 Evers Road, is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sept. 11, 12 and 13. For more information, call 684-0720.
Residents invited to learn how to reconcile home, environment
Thursday, 04 September 2008
By Sarah Snyder Staff Writer
There’s lots of talk in the region about disturbing the environment through development, but how about when the building has already occurred?
A class offered by the Texas Forest Service will teach residents in a rural setting how to be good stewards of the land, and how to protect their home from wildfire.
After the course, residents should be able to: create or modify landscaping that mitigates wildfire threat; help rebalance the ecosystem; understand the benefits of a balanced ecosystem; and become partners with their local firefighters.
“The idea is for people to understand how to live in this urban wildland interface,” said Grey Forest Fire Department chief Jen Nottingham. “This class will help us learn how to put it all back together so we’re all living in harmony again.”
She added that the class will clear up misconceptions about how to protect homes from wildfire, and that by selecting the right plants and “dead space,” residents can protect themselves form wildfire, and help restore wildlands simultaneously.
“You don’t have to moonscape the whole hill and add your house in the middle of it with a moat around it,” she said.
The Citizens Wildfire Ecologist specialist course is $50 dollars, and the first 15 Grey Forest residents who sign up will get a 50 percent discount. For more information, and to receive a registration form, call Nottingham at 695-5033, Ext. 2.
The deadline to register is Sept. 14. The classes will take place on Sept. 28, Oct. 5, Oct. 19 at Grey Forest City Hall, 18502 Scenic Loop Road.
Grey Forest applicants may leave their check with Nottingham at the fire station, 18515 Scenic Loop Road Residents outside of Grey Forest will need to mail $50 to the Texas Forest Service, TX Forest Service, P. O. Box 1991, Bastrop, Texas 78602.
The class, which has a capacity of 30 students, is eligible for continuing education credits, either through the Alamo Chapter Natural Naturalists or Palo Alto College.
The 30-hour program is in cooperation with the Urban Wildland Interface Program, the city of Grey Forest and the Grey Forest Fire Department.
Helotes OKs new city administrator
Thursday, 04 September 2008
After more than a year of failed attempts, Helotes has hired a city administrator, and he was right in the city’s backyard.
After more than a year of failed attempts, Helotes has hired a city administrator, and he was right in the city’s backyard. 
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