Appliance Repair in Prather, CA

By trading for DeVante Parker over the weekend, the Patriots got something they’ve been looking for all offseason – an upgrade at the top of their wide receiver depth chart. As it turns out, Parker got something he’s been wanting out of the deal as well.

Appearing on NFL Network Monday afternoon, Ian Rapoport shared that Parker let the Dolphins know he hoped to end up in New England. “DeVante Parker wanted to be a member of the New England Patriots,” Rapoport shared. “He made it very clear that he wanted to be a member of the Patriots.”

Perhaps this was hinted at shortly after the trade. As shared by Mark Daniels of the Providence Journal, Parker’s agent Jimmy Gould made a point of thanking the Patriots to get a deal done. “I am grateful to coach Belichick and Mr. Kraft for their efforts in making this happen and their faith in DeVante,” Gould said Saturday afternoon, via Daniels.

The respect goes both ways. Rapoport added in his report Monday that “[Parker] is someone that coach Bill Belichick has like for a long time, has always respected his skillset and really [is] someone that he considers to be a solid addition to his receiving core.”

According to Rapoport, Parker is expected to take his physical at some point on Monday. Once that’s completed, the deal can become official.

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Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at abarth@985TheSportsHub.com.

A few years ago, Erica Prather, the national outreach representative for Defenders of Wildlife, and her partner allowed every piece of plastic they used for an entire year to pile up in their living room, spilling over into their garage. It was a reminder that their waste is permanent. They called the mound of Styrofoam containers, dog bags and other trash their “Pile of Petroleum Past.” As someone who cares about the state of the planet, it was an example of Prather trying to live her values.

She wants others, including her own employer, to live their values too. But it wasn’t until Bernie Sanders ended his candidacy for the presidency in 2020 that Prather moved to a different, more drastic form of action: “I remember this moment when I was weeping during his concession speech, and he was like, ‘There are ways that the progressive movement can move on,’ and he literally said, ‘Unionize your workplace.’”

And unionize she did. Prather used the organizing skills she’d honed for years as an advocate for endangered species and applied them at her own workplace, Defenders of Wildlife. Quickly, other employees jumped on board; they voted to form their union in September.

And they are not the only ones. Employees at several other green groups have successfully formed unions over the last year, including Greenpeace USA, the Sunrise Movement, the Center for Biological Diversity and the National Audubon Society.

“He literally said, ‘Unionize your workplace.’”

Environmental organizations have long sought to affect change outwardly — to promote biodiversity and stave off extinctions or to curb the impacts of the climate crisis. Now the organizations’ employees are turning to unions to change their workplaces from within, by fighting for higher wages and better benefits, and by forcing their organizations — whose leadership is predominantly white — to be more diverse and inclusive.

Green groups haven’t had the best track record in this respect. Earlier this year, a report produced by a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) consultancy firm hired by Defenders of Wildlife was leaked. Its contents, which detailed a “culture of fear,” were damning for the organization: The 144 employees surveyed described an unwelcoming environment for BIPOC employees, who experienced “tokenism, microaggressions, cooption of ideas” and bore the brunt of DEI work. In response to the report, Defenders’ president and CEO Jamie Rappaport Clark told E&E News that the organization “is deeply committed to fostering a positive, inclusive and safe workplace where all voices are heard.”

The National Chapter of the Audubon Society, one of the nation’s oldest environmental organizations, is also aiming to improve representation. Tykee James, Audubon’s government affairs coordinator, started working at the nonprofit in 2018, the same year he co-founded a group for people of color. In 2020, he helped lead the unionizing effort at Audubon. “There needed to be a staff-led, staff-centered, POC-centered effort to support marginalized and historically excluded people in this organization,” James said. The group provided a novel opportunity for people to talk about their working conditions. “But being outspoken still felt risky,” James said. “One thing that we always feared was getting fired.” Unionizing felt like a smart next step. They won their election in late September.

“But being outspoken still felt risky.”

James hopes Audubon’s union will help management create DEI initiatives and trainings that staff can support. “We can have an opportunity to provide feedback (on DEI) that’s meaningful and moving,” James said. “When workers don’t have a say, it’s the Black and brown, it’s the most marginalized, it’s the historically excluded people who feel those burdens first and worst.”

Both Audubon and Defenders of Wildlife are in the nascent stages of their union efforts. They could take a cue from the Sierra Club, which signed a five-year contract with its shop, the Progressive Workers Union, in 2018. Prior to contract renegotiations, several employees — particularly women of color — were “seriously underpaid,” said Larry Williams Jr., who co-founded the Progressive Workers Union and worked there until recently. The union negotiated a contract that included pay raises, retirement and health benefits, and transparency around issues like how to get a promotion. Women of color at the Sierra Club also fought for a specific fund to be added to the contract to address inequities in pay and to cover the price of trainings and professional development, among other matters.

In a way, the motivations behind forming a union aren’t all that different from fighting extractive industries. And environmental workers are connecting the dots. “They recognize the exploitation of natural resources is just as bad as the exploitation of human resources.” James said. “If we stand up against that exploitation of the earth, we have to stand up against the exploitation of us.”

Jessica Kutz is an assistant editor for High Country News. We welcome reader letters. Email her at jessicak@hcn.org or submit a letter to the editor. See our letters to the editor policy.

Jason Prather, 32, grew up in Edgewood, Kentucky. He played every sport possible for his small high school: football, baseball, basketball. He helped do repairs on boats and cars for extra cash.

When he graduated high school, Prather tried college but quickly returned home. While his friends continued their degrees, Prather began working for a credit card company calling borrowers behind on their payments, who were often irate on the phone — a job he remembers as “horrible.”

Later, Prather worked at a nearby wastewater treatment plant for eight years and earned roughly $90,000 per year. Despite the good pay, he left the job to work for his father selling electrical equipment, where he earned roughly $70,000 per year. One day, he realized he could ride a bike between all of the places he had lived and worked.

“I never got to travel. I worked 15 minutes from home. I was home at all times and I got good perks, vacation and things of that nature, but I was complacent,” says Prather. “I stayed exactly where my hometown was. I wanted to see more, travel more, experience more.”

Today, Prather travels the country and around the world as a project foreman for a roller coaster painting company called Baynum Painting and he earns roughly $70,000 per year.

Here’s why, and how, he changed tracks:

Jason Prather on the job

Getting the job

Prather was at a family barbeque when he first learned about painting roller coasters. His cousin worked at Baynum and told him to apply for a painting position.

After having a difficult conversation with his dad about leaving the family business, Prather put in his application. Following a “typical” interview process, he began working as a general painter in 2019.

“I started at the entry-level just like most people,” he says. “The training process to get this job was very hands-on. Most of the training happens in the field. We do have good retention of employees, so I learned most of my training from guys that have been doing this for 30, 40 years.”

He also earned several construction-related certificates from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, known as OSHA.

“We hold multiple certifications, everything from an OSHA 10, which is a typical construction type certification from OSHA, as well as safety training for lifts,” says Prather, describing the tall cherry-picker lifts the crew often uses to reach parts of the amusement rides. “I had the certifications for lifts and that led me to being on the job site, learning how to actually maneuver the lift around the job.”

After working as a general painter, Prather began to be recognized for his ability to coordinate and work well with crews. In 2021, he was promoted to the position of project foreman.

“I’m in charge of getting the crew on-site and getting them up and rolling, as well as sourcing lifts as well as sourcing material paint sundries,” says Prather. “I’ve been in this position officially for about six months.”

As a project foreman, Prather earns $23 per hour when working in Kentucky, earns an additional 15% when he travels and earns overtime pay when he works more than 40 hours per week.

So far, Prather has worked on amusement park attractions in over 20 states and has worked abroad in Japan and France. He has worked on rides at Universal Studios, Six Flags and on cruise ships. This year, Prather estimates that he has spent six months traveling and has worked roughly 1,500 hours of overtime.

Jason Prather

A day on the job

A typical day on the job is “all weather dependent,” says Prather. “As long as the day looks good and there’s no rain, no moisture, we like to start as early as we can. Usually, when the sun’s coming up, we’re already here in the process of working. And usually, we stay until the end of the day.”

Most days this means being on-site by 6:00 a.m. and ending work when the sun goes down.

On the first day of a project, the first task is to clean the amusements.

“The way we begin these jobs, it all really depends on the difficulty of the project. Sometimes we have coasters that we have to walk to, sometimes we have to use ladders, but we mainly start with one process and that’s cleaning,” says Prather. “We pressure wash with 5,000 psi pressure washers, sometimes heated units. The heated units remove grease and build-up. Sometimes we do sandblasting as well, sometimes we grind rust.”

Next, Prather and his team work on priming the parts of the amusements that are susceptible to retaining water such as bare spots of metal and bolts.

The final step is applying topcoats of paint, or in the case of water slides, special moisture-resistant compounds.

Prather and his team use typical house brushes and rollers to paint these roller coasters and wear harnesses, hard hats and work boots.

Jason Prather

Getting to see the world

The work is often hard, but exciting, says Prather

“Sometimes you’re in a lift for 13, 14 hours a day,” he says. “I was never afraid of heights. I would say I’ve always respected heights … But I enjoy getting to climb up and go see roller coasters. It gets a little adrenaline junkie out of me.”

Prather also finds fulfillment in the cleaning and painting processes.

“The work itself is very satisfying,” he says. “You come in and see coasters and water slides that are in need of repair and being able to see the whole project start to finish, and see the color change and see all the patrons in the park actually looking up and pointing and taking photos of you doing your job, it’s quite satisfying because you’re making their day as well as earning a paycheck and making a life for yourself.”

And while he says traveling so much for work can make it difficult for him and his coworkers to have close relationships with their loved ones at home (Prather’s girlfriend is a speech-language pathologist for a Kentucky school district), he says he is grateful to have gotten to see the world outside of Kentucky thanks to his job.

“The beauty is getting to go see things that I would have never got to see in the world,” says Prather. “I’ve gotten to see a lot of things that I would never get to experience or see on my own — visiting all the different continents, traveling around the world, going to foreign and different locations, as well as trying different foods and seeing different cultures. That plus the personal benefit of climbing up and knowing that I did something.”

Do you have a creative or nontraditional career path? We’d love to hear from you! Fill out this form to be considered for a future episode of “On the Job.”

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August 20, 2021 - Prather, CA. – The Sierra National Forest (SNF) has updated its Closure Order for select recreation sites, roads, and trails. Forest Order 05-15-00-21-17 will be effective on August 19, 2021 through September 17, 2021. This order supersedes Forest Order 05-15-00-21-15.

Tree mortality continues to be a significant issue on the Sierra National Forest. Federal, State and County governments are working closely with citizens and private industry to mitigate these hazards and create more resilient forests. Over the last 5 years the Forest Service and private industry have treated thousands of acres which has significantly reduced some of the threats from hazardous trees. While overall the treatments are effective, they are outpaced by a contributing number of factors. Besides the threat from falling trees, there is the potential for catastrophic wildland fire. The combination of blocked roads and fire could be deadly to anyone trying to evacuate.

This Order supersedes Forest Order No. 05-15-00-21-15

Forest Order No. 05-15-00-21-17 Sierra National Forest Recreation Site, Road and Trail Closure

This Order is effective from August 19, 2021 - September 17, 2021.

See full closure order click link: Forest Order No. 05-15-00-21-17 (Order)

See full Record please click link: Forest Order No. 05-15-00-21-17 (Record)

Entering or using the Developed Recreation Sites on the National Forest System, being on the National Forest System Roads, and being on the Natioal Forest System Trails lands within the Sierra National ForestClosure Area as listed here in (Exhibit A)

If you plan on visiting the SNF we ask that you practice, and maintain, responsible/safe recreational practices, at all-times including:

• Research road conditions and make sure your vehicle is mechanically ready;

• Avoid areas with dead standing trees, look up before you choose a trail, park your car, or set your camp, always be aware of your surroundings;

• Avoid large gatherings and maintain your physical distance while recreating;

• Let family and friends know your plans, destination and return home, in the event of an unexpected emergency. Remember cell service in the Forest may not be available;

• Pack out your trash and leave with everything you bring in and use;

• All services may not be available, so please plan accordingly, do you part.

• Recreate Responsibly!

We appreciate your cooperation in keeping our national forests safe for everyone’s use.

Source: SNF

The Best of the Valley Quilt Show and Retrospective, was held over a three day weekend, from Friday until Sunday at McDermont X Field House in Lindsay.

After a hiatus of two years, when the quilts for the 2020 show weren't judged due to COVID-19 pandemic cancellation, there were more than enough quilts to fit in the 2022 show.

Everything included in the 2022 BOTV Show was spectacular.

And all the quilts that had been judged had handmade ribbons,

said Suzanne Kistler, Chair of the quilt show.

When people think of quilts, they often think of an old-fashioned bed-quilt, something warm, with a pastel pattern and lots of stitching.

Well, the variety of quilts, wall-hangings, handmade fabric dolls, and small art quilts were a feast for the eyes.

The retrospective was a history of the show from 1995 through 2019, with quilts or art quilts from featured artists for each year.

According to Kistler there were well over 1,000 attendees to the show over the weekend.

There were so many colors, textures, and types of quilting on display it was delightful, but almost overwhelming to a non-sewer.

“It’s a large variety of quilts from traditional to contemporary art quilts, and it’s truly amazing,” said Linda Matthews, a quilter on the BOTV committee.

Besides all the quilts on display, there were also photographs of all the quilts originally for the 2020 show, posted on the wall as one entered the field-house auditorium.

“We are blown away by how beautiful these quilts are,” said Richard Janeiro, “They belong in a museum. They are beautiful and unbelievable.” Janiero made stained glass at College of the Sequoias with Richard Flores.

Long-time quilter and quilt show sponsor Rose Johnson from Porterville Quilters was at the show, using a walker. She said she’d been very ill and had to move to another home in Porterville.

Johnson met Lori Fay, from Visalia, who had finished one of Johnson’s quilt projects and had displayed it at the show with Rose’s permission and on her behalf.

“We met only on the phone,” said Johnson, as she was speaking with Lori Fay, “I knew which one it was,” as they looked at the small applique art quilt Fay had finished for Johnson, using a special gold thread on the back of the purple toned quilt called “Postcards from Japan, Mt. Fuji.” Fay found out about Johnson’s quilting, and purchased fabric and patterns Johnson had at the Trinity Lutheran Church Bazaar.

“Suzanne won second place in the show. I was so pleased,” said Johnson.

Johnson sponsored quilts by a few artists: Deborah Gira, from Prather, who created “Sierra by the Sea” which won first place.

Suzanne Kistler created “Shalom,” which won second place. And Lor-Rae Raus, from Fresno, created “Denali, The Great One.”

“These quilts are absolutely beautiful,” said Rose Puccino, from Visalia.

Most of the people who spoke about the quilts and the show were so thrilled to be back, and they enjoyed meeting friends and colleagues again.

“It’s so nice being back after two years” and “we get to see what everyone has been working on,” said Becky Eidenshink from Bakersfield from the Cotton Patch Quilters Guild.

There was a wonderful large quilt which had received the Navy/Marine Corps Award of Merit called “Spangled Stars” created by Darla Hall, Michelle Punter, Kerri Smith, Rachael Reichmann, Peggy Vadom, and Tori McElwain.

The quilt was going to be auctioned off to benefit the Bakersfield “Honor Flight” in July, 2022.

“I was commissioned by a person who is going to donate the quilt to the Honor Flight in Bakersfield. It is an original design, pieced together by four of my friends. It was definitely a group effort,” said Hall.

“It is so nice to have in-person quilt shows to be inspired by the vibrant colors and the quilters themselves, and their techniques,” said Punter. “What an honor to help piece together this quilt that will be donated to benefit the Honor Flight and our Veterans.”

The handmade fabric dolls were so fantastic and whimsical, made with so much imagination. Kay Gaston commented it was the 17th year the dolls had been included as a separate exhibit. They were so fun and creative.

A vendor from Ventura, Connie Gunderson, selling lovely handmade purses, wallets, and bags made with fabric and many made with renewable natural cork, said, “This is the first time I’ve been to this show. It has been such a delight to be in the Valley with all the farmers and their crops. This is the glue that holds this country together. It’s been a refreshing change being here.”

Lisa Norton, from the Delta, said, “I did not realize that quilts were such a creative and artistic outlet. The designs, and the geometric balance. They are fiber art with such texture and contrast. They are definitely not what I expected.”

Georgia Goode of Calico Mermaid in Porterville said, “We appreciate the community support.” Her husband Richard said, “This is the best run show from a vendor's perspective. We’ve had lots of old friends stop by, and it’s been a real reunion.”

“The quilt show is amazing, with all the quilts with so many details. And the originality of each quilt. We saw three quilts that were the same pattern, but they were laid out differently, with different colors. It was so unique,” said Bridget Kidder.

The designer for Donkeys led by Foxes art doll display won the Viewers Choice Award at the end of the show.

Judie Fleming, from the quilt show committee Committee, said Calico Mermaid gave gift cards to all the Youth Quilt Makers at the show, “That was very nice,” Fleming said.