Editorial: Thumbs up, thumbs down

Thumbs up to Randy and Raelene Robinson, for keeping a positive spirit in the face of a heartless crime. When their son, Jeremy, died 12 years ago in a car crash, they left up his basketball hoop for the neighbor children. The sound of those bouncing balls was somehow comforting to them in their grief. The hoop disappeared July 11. As they described the events to The Bee’s Carmen George, Randy reported the theft to the Sheriff’s Office but, inside, he felt it was a lost cause. They would never recover this. Raelene could not let it go. She made a massive laminated sign that stood where the basketball hoop once was. It read: “To the people who took our basketball hoop: To you it’s just a hoop, but to us it’s a precious memory of our son, Jeremy, who resides now in heaven. It gave us great joy and comfort to share this hoop with the neighborhood kids! We know that it’s unlikely we will get it back, but if you have a heart, please return it, no questions asked!” The news spread and within days, the hoop showed up at Norseman School. It’s good to know that some people who make mistakes can see where they went did wrong and seize the opportunity to make it right.

Thumbs down to Parlier Unified School District trustees and Superintendent Gerardo Alvarez for squandering taxpayer money meant to improve the student performance and prepare them to succeed in the world. Although we don’t agree with all of the criticisms in a Fresno County Grand Jury report, it is clear that district leaders must sharpen their focus. It is also clear that too many people in the district are of the belief that money grows on trees. It doesn’t. Particularly galling is the district’s practice of holding meetings involving the superintendent and staff members and trustees at restaurants instead of district offices. This practice must end immediately. Going forward, Parlier Unified leaders must ask, “How does this improve classroom performance?” before approving all expenditures.

Thumbs up to the leadership at Wasuma School in Ahwahnee for getting creative with its construction budget and building a dome gymnasium instead of a typical box for its students. The dome saved the school millions in building fees and also is expected to save energy costs. The developers say it is the first dome-shaped public school building California. The building is a 3-D lesson plan for students in creativity, research and the value of creative thinking.

Thumbs up to the kind Sanger stranger who made Virginia Makini’s day. Makini, according to the Sanger Herald, is 70 years old and lives on a fixed income. She walked into the PG&E office a little after 11 a.m. recently with $50 to pay on her utility bill, leaving a balance of $214.18. Upset after leaving, she got in her car, and as she began to drive off, a blond, short woman tapped on her window. “Your bill is paid,” she said, and walked off. “I sat in my car and cried,” Makini told the Herald. “God knows who she is. That’s a beautiful thing. That lady was my angel.”

Thumbs up to the California Highway Patrol and the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office for handing out free Clubs to prevent car thefts. The Club is a steering wheel-locking device that discourages car thieves. Fresno is among the nation’s worst areas for car thieves. We have to live with these jerks, but at least we shouldn’t make crimes easy for them.

Thumbs up to Ofelia Gamez, director of Fresno State’s College Assistance Migrant Program for being named national president of the CAMP Association at its annual directors meeting in Washington, D.C. The federally funded program supports students who are migratory or seasonal farm workers, or the children of such workers, during their first year of undergraduate studies. There are 60 CAMP students enrolled at Fresno State for the fall. Gamez was a CAMP student in 1990 and has directed Fresno State CAMP since 1999. She credits migrant programs she attended from kindergarten, through college with helping her reach her goals.

Thumbs up to actor-author Chris Colfer, formerly of Clovis, for getting a new book published, “The Land of stories: Beyond the Kingdoms.” It is his fourth book in the series. Now that his role as Kurt in the popular TV series “Glee” has finished, he hopes to take some time off before his next film project, a story based on the life of Noel Coward.

Thumbs up to the World Changers, a Christian organization, for helping Jim Gonzales of Fresno and 12 other homeowners with property improvements. About 160 students of more than 12,000 students have volunteered to improve homes and lives of people in 75 cities in North America this year. The homes they chose in southeast Fresno were selected through referrals from Every Neighborhood Partnership and from Fresno City Council Member Sal Quintero, who represents the area. Thirteen homes were refurbished. “There are no words to describe the thrill that it has been to have these kids ... to have them like little work ants, just working on the property,” Gonzales told Sarah Anderson of The Bee.

Thumbs up to the volunteer team who came to town to bash Fresno — in a good way. These history lovers, downtown Fresno business owners and members of a swelling urban movement gave part of their weekend recently to do demolition work on the historic Expositor Building in downtown Fresno. Their goal is to peel back the facades that modernized old downtown buildings in the 1950s and 1960s. They removed the interior plaster wall to see the original brick construction. Once the original walls are uncovered, the owner, Henry Liu, will be able to better see the redevelopment possiblities, according to Craig Scharton of the Downtown Partnership.

Thumbs up to the generous Valley man who donated a trailer to a landscape maintenance worker and his wife who were brutally attacked by a former family friend and are still recovering. Elias Sanchez and his wife, Francisca, are thrilled with the $2,000 trailer because their attacker stole the equipment he needs to do his work. Other folks have sent money as well. “This never happened to me before,” he told ABC-30. “No one ever gave me something for free like that, something like this.”

This story was originally published July 24, 2015 at 9:37 AM with the headline "Editorial: Thumbs up, thumbs down."