Cerritos Republican Club News
Click on any picture to see an enlarged view.
April 22 thru June 2016
June General Meeting
June 14, 2016
At the May General meeting Programs Chair Hugo Enciso introduced our speaker, Brad Dacus of Pacific Justice Institute (PJI). He is the founder of this non-profit organization comprised of many volunteer and a few paid attorneys who provide legal assistance for schools, churches, and individuals whose religious freedom, parental rights, and other civil liberties are challenged. Sometimes they find that the American Civil Liberties Union are their opponents.
When Pacific Justice Institute was first founded in 1997, they found that school districts which restricted the civil liberties of students would not remove those restrictions until PJI litigated and won in court. As they won more cases, school districts realized that, when they were doing the same thing as other districts had been doing and lost in court, they should listen to the PJI attorneys, not go to court, and change their rules to honor the civil liberties of students.
One example was a high school Senior who became a Christian and wanted to tell others about his transformation. He would meet other students during lunch and after school and talk about his conversion. He would pass out literature that he had written. The school forbade him from doing this and suspended him three different times. When PJI stepped in, they litigated and won for the student. So now the school has changed its ways.
Brad thinks that this presidential election will be critical to the traditional American way of life. If a liberal Supreme Court Justice is appointed by the next President, we may very well see more liberal decisions by the Supreme Court. Transgender, gun control, and other issues will be decided over the next decade by the Supreme Court. Especially since two more Justices may retire during the next Presidential term.
Memorial Day Ceremony
May 30, 2016
The City of Cerritos held a Memorial Day Ceremony next to the Veterans Memorial in Civic Center. On hand to honor those who have given the ultimate sacrifice were City Council members, State Assemblymember Cristina Garcia, Army National Guard Brigadier General John Lathrop, and friends and family of fallen ones. Candy Yee took these pictures at the event.
Floyd Freeman said that he started writing about his life when he realized that his teenage granddaughter knew very little about him. For example, she asked him, "What did he watch on television when he was growing up?" Floyd had to explain that televisions didn't exist when he was a kid. You get the drift that one or two generations makes life quite different technologically and philosophically. His class meets at the Cerritos Senior Center every Tuesday at 2 p.m. Anyone can join. However, you need to share a story about yourself that fits on a single sheet of paper. This will be one page of your life. It's a wonderful way to write your autobiography.
May General Meeting
May 10, 2016
At the General meeting on May 10, the guest speaker was Vida Barone, Cerritos City Clerk. Many years ago, Vida witnessed her grandparents trying to get service at a DMV office and saw that they were treated "shabbily." That incident prompted her to want to pursue a public service career where the public would get the best and most courteous service possible. Her career culminated with her being appointed Cerritos City Clerk. A graduate of Cal State Northridge with a Master's in Public Administration, Vida is also the CEO of City Clerk Management Services, Inc.
The City Clerk is best known as being responsible for running City Council elections. This includes pre-planning, candidate nominations, canvassing, certification of election results, and filing of final campaign disclosure documents.
Vida explained how new election rules will delay the certification of 2017 election results by one week. VBMs that are postmarked on election day (March 7) will be accepted if they are received by Friday, March 10. Unsigned VBMs can be signed by Wednesday, March 15. The Hand Tally of one precinct will be done on Thursday, March 16. The election will be certified on March 21. This allows Council reorganization to occur on March 22. The first meeting of the new Council will be on Thursday, March 22. She mentioned that other cities will certify elections after 30 days.
The City Clerk has other important responsibilities. The Office of City Clerk makes up agendas and minutes for the City Council, Commissions, and Committee meetings. It serves as the Secretary for City meetings. The City Clerk Office serves as Municipal Secretary, Custodian of Official Records, and Political Reform Act Filing Officer.
City Rock N Roll Party
April 22, 2016
The City of Cerritos held a Rock 'N' Roll Party to kick off the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the City of Cerritos. It was held at Liberty Park's newly renovated Camp Snoopy shelter. In attendance were former mayors and several Cerritos Republican members who were entertained by the Captain Cardiac and the Coronaries band. Candy Yee took these pictures at this event:
