MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Join the Middletown Luncheon Club at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 19, for lunch and a presentation on Rotary International and its presence in Lake County as well as around the world. 

The speaker will be Bea Moulton, assistant governor of Rotary. 

Enjoy this informational lunch at the Middletown Senior Center at 21256 Washington St., behind the new park.

All ages are welcome and lunch is only $5 per person.

Warm up with cream of broccoli soup accompanied by a half tuna sandwich and cottage cheese and fruit. Dessert and beverages are included.

This month’s serving group is the senior center.

Support the Middletown Luncheon Club, the Middletown Senior Center and Rotary with your presence. This is our last luncheon of 2014.

Space is limited for lunch. Please make your reservation by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by calling the Middletown Senior Center at 707-987-3113; specify that you are with the Middletown Luncheon Club. 

Visitors also are welcome to come hear the speaker for free without buying lunch.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Lake County Library Director Christopher Veach invites the public to “come play with an iPad, Galaxy Tab, Kindle Fire and Nexus 7 tablet and learn how to download free ebooks from the library!”

Library staff will conduct free “technology petting zoos” at all of the Lake County Library branches over the next few months to introduce people to an array of small electronic devices.

Patrons can try out the various devices in the library and can bring in their own devices to get help with them.

The first technology petting zoo will take place from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 29, at the Lakeport Library, 1425 N. High St.

People can use their Lake County Library cards to borrow electronic books through the library’s Web site for free.

Library staff will demonstrate how to download ebooks at the technology petting zoos.

The other library branches will host technology petting zoos in rotation over the coming months.

Redbud Library in Clearlake will host a technology petting zoo on Dec. 20.

In 2015 technology petting zoos will be held at Middletown Library on Jan. 30, Upper Lake Library on Feb. 28, Lakeport Library on March 28, Redbud Library on April 25 and at Middletown Library on May 30.

All technology petting zoos will occur from 1 to 3 p.m.

For more information about the technology petting zoos call the Lakeport Library at 707-263-8817.

Redbud Library is located at 14785 Burns Valley Road in Clearlake. Middletown Library is located at 21256 Washington St. in Middletown. Upper Lake Library is located at 310 Second St. in Upper Lake.

The Lake County Library is on the Internet at http://library.lakecountyca.gov and Facebook at www.facebook.com/LakeCountyLibrary .

Library events are posted on the calendar at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Lake_County_CA__Library/Calendar.htm .

LAKEPORT, Calif. – The “quad that keeps on giving” was raffled off Saturday, Nov. 1, at Hillside Honda in Lakeport.

Lake County Search and Rescue Association held a major fundraiser by raffling a 2014 Honda 4X4 AT Rancher.

It was dubbed the “quad that keeps on giving” because the winner is donating the all-terrain vehicle to her Relay for Life team.

Donna Rose of Lakeport held the winning ticket.

Lake County Search and Rescue Association netted more than $12,000, according to the event organizer and LCSARA Board member, Jim Adams.

The association will use the funds to purchase, or replace, rescue gear such as technical ropes and hardware, uniforms, cold weather clothing, and to buy expendables items that includes printer toner, markers, maps and other items.

The money may be used to send individual members to national training events.

Kaylene Strugnell, association president, thanked everyone for their donation and the support given to LCSARA.

“We live in a small county that has a big heart,” said Strugnell. “The donations will help Search and Rescue for several years.”

Search and Rescue members have responded several times this year to look for missing people.

They have assisted Napa County in searching for an autistic man.

Mendocino County requested help on two occasions in locating a missing photographer and a hunter.

The city of Clearlake asked for assistance with locating a missing woman.

These mutual aid searches ended happily, with the people found alive and well.

Lake County Search and Rescue is a volunteer-based paraprofessional organization.

Members are required to meet national standards. They train to meet those requirements and to maintain perishable skills.

LCSARA meets monthly at the AWP building, 4913 Helbush Drive, Lakeport. Anyone interested is welcome to attend.

Further information can be obtained through the Lake County Sheriff’s Office or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LakeCoSAR .

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Nov. 3 marked the 13th annual benefit dinner for Habitat for Humanity Lake County.

Held again at the Saw Shop Gallery Bistro in Kelseyville, the event raised nearly $12,000 to aid in providing Lake County veterans with health and safety-related repairs, including wheelchair ramps and lifts, accessibility retrofits and other needed home maintenance. 

Major contributors and event sponsors this year included the Saw Shop Gallery Bistro, WestAmerica Bank, Grocery Outlet Clearlake, Sutter Lakeside Hospital, Mendo Lake Credit Union, Drains Etc., Davis Fabrication and Bank of the West.

Contributions such as these allow Habitat for Humanity Lake County to continue to serve Lake County residents.

The group thanked every organization and individual who made this dinner a success. 

For more information on how you can donate and help Habitat for Humanity Lake County keep going, call the organization's Lower Lake office at 707-994-1100.

SAN FRANCISCO – Attorney General Kamala D. Harris issued a consumer alert to Californians regarding a recent scam involving fake newspaper subscription mailings.

Individuals throughout California have recently received deceptive mailings that claim to be bills, invoices or renewal notices for newspaper subscriptions.

The mailings may appear to be legitimate renewal notices from a local newspaper, but they are most likely a scam and should be ignored and reported.

Seniors should be especially wary, as they are frequently targeted by scams of this nature.

What to look for:

The deceptive notices may contain the following information:

– The words “notice of renewal,” or “new order”;
– A company name that has words such as “publishers,” “billing,” “services,” “payment” or “circulation” in its name;
– An official-looking “control number”;
– Statements encouraging consumers to lock in their “low rates”;
– Small print on the back of the invoices stating that they come from someone other than the publisher;
– A self-addressed, postage unpaid envelope bearing a post office box or other mailing address that is located in a different state than the publisher;
– The notices offer renewals and new subscriptions at highly inflated prices – in some cases nearly twice the actual renewal cost;
– Subscribers have reported receiving these deceptive notices outside their regular billing periods, and sometimes after they have already renewed their subscriptions.

What to do:

– If you receive a suspicious subscription notice, do not pay it. Consider canceling the order if you believe you may have already paid a suspicious renewal notice.
– If you have a question about whether your subscription is expiring or needs to be renewed you should contact your newspaper publisher directly. Contact information is generally available in your newspaper, and on the newspaper’s official Web site.
– Consumers who receive a deceptive renewal notice should file a complaint with their newspaper.

Consumers also can file a complaint with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at http://ehome.uspis.gov/fcsexternal/default.aspx and with the Federal Trade Commission at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/ .

California consumers can also file a complaint with the California Attorney General’s Office at https://oag.ca.gov/contact/consumer-complaint-against-business-or-company . Be sure to attach a copy of the deceptive notice to your complaint.

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The Ely Stage Stop and Country Museum, operated by the Lake County Historical Society, will be closed Sunday, Nov. 16, so that docents and potential visitors can attend the society's Thanksgiving dinner meeting that day.

A traditional “turkey and all the trimmings” dinner will be enjoyed by attendees.

Bernie Butcher of the Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon in Upper Lake will present a program on the history of Upper Lake.

The second beautiful Ely picnic table will be raffled off so that will be the last chance to buy tickets. 

Chris Skarada, last year's winner, may be there to pull the winning ticket this year.

The meeting starts at 1:30 p.m. at the Live Oak Senior Center, located at 12502 Foothill Blvd., near the Oaks Plaza Park.

Dinner tickets are $15 each for Lake County Historical Society members and $18 each for nonmembers.

For more information about the dinner contact Bonnie Skee at 707-262-1432 or Jackie Ridgel at 707-279-4062.

The Ely Stage Stop and Country Museum will be open as usual on Saturday, Nov. 15, and then resume its Saturday/Sunday schedule the following weekend.

The museum is located at 9921 Soda Bay Road (Highway 281) in Kelseyville (near Clear Lake Riviera).

Normal hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.

Fiddlers’ Jams occur the first Sunday of every month.

Contact number for questions about volunteer work, donations of old wood for barn construction, or docent applications is 707-533-9990.

Visit www.elystagestop.com or www.lakecountyhistory.org or check out the stage stop on Facebook at www.facebook.com/elystagestop .