Visitacion Valley Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) training will be held on Thursday nights from Jan. 8 through Feb. 12 at Visitacion Valley Middle School (VVMS), 450 Raymond St. Classes will begin at 6:30 p.m.

There is plenty of free parking available at the school.

Sponsored by the S.F. Fire Department and taught by S.F. firefighters, the goal of NERT training is to do the most good for the most people by helping citizens of San Francisco to be self-sufficient in a major disaster through development of multi-functional teams cross trained in basic skills.

NERT training consists of six classes, each about 3 hours in length covering: earthquake preparedness, utility (gas, water, electricity) control, fire fighting equipment and techniques, hazardous materials, the ABC of disaster medicine and triage, building damage recognition and light search and rescue techniques, NERT team organization and management, and the City's disaster plan.

In the last class, participants will be able to practice their skills by extinguishing a fire, turning off a gas valve, treating injured victims, extricating a victim trapped by heavy timbers, performing an interior search for missing persons and performing an exterior building damage assessment.

Enroll by contacting the S.F. Fire Department NERT Office, 260 Golden Gate Ave., San Francisco, CA 94102-3706 at 558-3456.

Valley Will Have Its Own Day of Dialogue on Race Relations

Visitacion Valley will have its own Day of Dialogue at the Community Center on Jan. 18 at 1:30 p.m. when the National Days of Dialogue on Race Relations occurs next Jan. 14-19.

Scheduled in almost two dozen urban locations across the country, organizers in various communities are hoping the informal discussions will encourage all participants to pool their ideas into a cohesive plan to inch closer to racial unity. Some are hopeful the candid exchange of ideas could commence neighborhood activities designed to bring neighbors closer together.

But the neighbors must first be open to the dialogue, explained Rita Adrian of Community Boards in a recent interview with USA Today. A Valley resident who will help organize the local event, she related an optimistic view that the neighborhood could collectively function much better as a society if some residents would communicate more with each other and be just a little less aggressive in their attitude.

Concluding on the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday next month, the Days of Dialogue are an answer to President Clinton's request that people of different ethnicity might overcome their differences in opinion by merely expressing their views.

Hit-and-Run Halts Grapevine Delivery

A Grapevine worker distributing copies of the November issue was slightly injured Nov. 10 when a motorist heading eastbound at a reckless speed on Leland Ave. rolled through a stop sign and struck the delivery vehicle negotiating a left turn from Desmond Street before backing from the wreckage and fleeing the scene.

Several witnesses observed the rust-colored car involved speed away at about 4:45 p.m., leaving a large section of its front end in the intersection after severely damaging the Grapevine vehicle.

Both police and an ambulance responded quickly to the hit-and-run accident, which left the Grapevine vehicle inoperable.

Thanksgiving Gathering Also Celebrates Retirement

by Gerry L. Galvan

Greetings and felicitations!

Such were the words expressed by family members, close and distant relatives and friends of St. James Presbyterian Church Elder Ray Esplana who was feted on the occasion of his retirement from his job of 30 years.
Envisioned by Mrs. Raquel Saludo Esplana, the Esplana/Saludo fete was a consortium celebration of Ray's retirement, Thanksgiving, and the birthday of Ray's nephew, Wayne.

It was solemnized as a formal spiritual service with St. James Presbyterian Church Pastor Jerry O. Resus at church setting helm.

To properly and adequately observe the 1997 Thanksgiving Day as it related to Ray Esplana's retirement and Wayne's birthday, Dr. Resus saw it proper to ask the family and some close Esplana friends to say a few words on thanksgiving.

Responding to the invitation to speak, one member addressed the Pastor, "I'm thankful to God for my family. I thank God that I'm a Christian. I'm thankful that I've had such friends as you and your family. I'm thankful for the Esplanas, the Saludos, Razons, Norman/Violetta Esplana Reyeses, etc. as among our many friends."

Concluding the thank yous, he said, "I'm thankful for my health" and "I thank God for my sanity" before the retiree faced the testimony giver and commented, "You said it all, my friend."

Meanwhile, the Pastor and a number of congregation members including youth, have commenced the customary hanging of the greens, a yearly Church activity.

Same Income May Mean Lower State Taxes

The California personal income tax brackets will be indexed by 2.2 percent for the 1997 tax year, according to the Franchise Tax Board. What this means for Californians whose taxable income is unchanged from last year is that they will pay lower state income taxes when they file upcoming tax returns. Taxpayers whose income increased and generally kept pace with inflation will pay approximately the same amount of taxes that they paid last year.

Indexing takes the rate of inflation into account and adjusts tax rates and certain credits to insure that additional taxes are not paid from year to year due solely to inflation. Items affected by indexing include the filing requirement thresholds, the standard deduction, personal and dependent exemptions, tax rates and various tax credits and income deductions.

The filing requirement threshold amounts are $8,307 of adjusted gross income and $10,384 of gross income for single or unmarried individuals. For married couples, the amounts are $16,614 of adjusted gross income and $20,768 of gross income. The standard deduction will increase for single or separate taxpayers from $2,527 to $2,583, and for joint, surviving spouse or head of household taxpayers from $5,054 to $5,166. The personal exemption will increase for single, separate or head of household taxpayers from $67 to $68 and for joint or surviving spouses, from $134 to $136. The dependent exemption credit increases from $67 to $68.

Tax credits affected by indexing include the Joint Custody Head of Household/Dependent Parent Credit and the Qualified Senior Head of Household Credit. The Renter's Tax Credit is once again suspended for 1997. Also affected are the income amounts used to compute reductions in exemption credits and itemized deductions for high income taxpayers.

The indexed values are computed based on the inflation rate as measured by the California Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers from June 1996 to June 1997.

VVES Students to Sing

Visitacion Valley Elementary School (VVMS) choral students will perform in the auditorium as part of the San Francisco Arts Education Project on Thursday, Dec. 18 at 1 p.m. Admission is free.

Show Wins National Proclaim Award

For Heaven's Sake, a half-hour program exploring spiritual alternatives to today's problems has received the 1997 National Proclaim Award Certificate of Merit from the Catholic Communications Campaign in Washington, D.C. The award honored the show as one of the top religious television programs in the country.

Hosted by Father Miles Riley, For Heaven's Sake offers a spiritual framework for dealing with issues such as euthanasia, self-esteem, Alzheimer's disease, gang violence, Catholic vocations, breast cancer and capital punishment.. Recent show guests have included the Reverend Andrew Young, Billy Mills and Michael Pritchard. The show airs every other Sunday at 5 a.m. on KRON-TV, Channel 4.

Community Boards Again Wrapping and Rapping

Community Boards (CB), a 21-year-old dispute and resolution organization, continues this year's Wrap and Rap fundraising and promotional event at the Barnes & Noble Booksellers located at 2552 Taylor St.

For the third consecutive year, CB board members, staff and volunteers will continue wrapping holiday gifts at no charge and informing the public about CB's services to City residents, schools nationwide, juvenile correctional facilities and the workplace on Dec. 14, 20, 21, 22 and 23. after starting Nov. 29. Donations will go towards supporting the organization's programs.

"This event is beneficial in a myriad of ways," said Hilda Gutierrez Baldoquin, acting executive director of CB. "This is not only an opportunity to raise much needed money, but also an opportunity to build relationships with people that can support as well as utilize our services. Additionally, this event will provide a great team-building experience for our volunteers to work together."

Among its programs, CB provides mediation service at no cost and training to City residents who want to volunteer to help others resolve their disputes. Mediation is held in donated sites throughout the City, facilitated by volunteers who represent the diversity of San Francisco. Mediators deal with conflicts involving fights, harassment, noise, property use, property damage, money, interpersonal issues, miscommunication, landlord/tenant disagreements, pets and more. CB also trains schools nationwide to implement conflict resolution programs using the Whole School Approach and sells curricula and training materials for grades kindergarten through 12.

Positive Atmosphere at Village Youth Council

Providing a positive atmosphere in Visitacion Valley, the Village Youth Council provides young adults with knowledge systems to facilitate positive mental attitudes.

Located at 333 Schwerin St. inside the Village, the organization replaces the former youth services provided by Geneva Towers with activities and experiences encouraging independence, resourcefulness, competition and compassion.
Village Youth Council can be reached at 337-1035.

Planetarium Show at Randall Museum

A Star Lab for novice astronomers will be held at the Randall Museum on Dec. 30 at 10 and 11 a.m., 12 noon and 1 p.m. This planetarium show will identify some of the constellations and how they got their names. Space is limited to 25 people per show and seats cost $4-10 a person sliding scale. Sign-ups start 30 minutes before each show, or pre-register. Call 554-9600.

Sing Yourself into the Holiday Spirit

Students and friends will join Dr. Helen Dilworth from City College for a spirited afternoon of group singing, solos and ensembles at the Pilgrim Church, 400 Randolph St. on Sunday, Dec. 14 at 4 p.m.

Words will be provided for such holiday favorites as Go Tell It on the Mountain, Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire, and Joy to the World along with refreshments in this "Sing Yourself" benefit for the Pilgrim Church's piano fund.

Students of Dr. Dilworth recently displayed their singing talents at a coffee house adjacent to City College, where a recital will be held Tuesday, Dec. 16 at 7:30 p.m. in A133.