lifelong Willows resident Gary David Pence died on Friday, October 18, 2024. He was born to Donald and Nadene Pence on January 28, 1951.
He was an honest, hard-working and dedicated man. He graduated from Willows High School in 1969, then attended Shasta College and graduated with an associate’s degree in automotive in 1971.
He worked beside his father at Pence Auto Repair until 1982, when he took over the family business. He continued Pence Auto repair until 1994, when he then started working for a local automotive shop.
He “retired” in 2013.
In 1993, he married the love of his life, Christine. They were happily married until her death in December of 2020.
In his younger years, he was a great athlete, excelling in basketball, baseball, and football. He then enjoyed spending time at his family cabin in Lassen County, bowling, hunting, fishing and his family.
His love for fishing and hunting was something he shared with his children and grandchildren, leaving a mark on them that will never fade.
Meeting nights must also be mentioned. Twice a week, there was a gathering of great friends, where stories were told and laughs were shared.
He looked forward to these meetings until the very end.
His loved ones find comfort in knowing that his legacy lives on through the lessons he taught, the love he shared, and the memories that will be long cherished.
He is survived by his children, Matt Pence, Holly (Dennis) Pool, Latoyia (Miguel) Gonzalez, and Christopher (Deborah) Linnet; brother Dennis (Loretta) Pence; grandchildren Wyatt, Brandy, Maddisen, Danica, Lucy, Jackson, Kimberlynn; great-grandchildren Lydia and Connor; and several nieces and nephews, as well as many friends and extended family members who will miss him dearly.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Christine; mother Nadene Pence; father Donald Pence; and brother Richard Pence.
A Celebration of Life is planned for Saturday, November 2, at “The Garage”.
Arrangements are under the direction of Sweet-Olsen Family Mortuary of Orland.
Dolores Eva Leonard of Orland died in Williams on Tuesday,October 22, 2024.
She was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Hubert and Amalia Garlinger on June 29, 1927.
She is survived by her sons Art (Carol) Leonard, Audie Leonard, and Allan Leonard; six grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren.
Arrangements are under the direction of Sweet-Olsen Family Mortuary of Orland.
Robert Lee “Bob” Griffith died on Sunday, October 20, 2024, seven months after being diagnosed with ALS. He was born in Los Angeles on May 15, 1940.
He lived a life filled with faith, love, and service to others. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, cherished friend, and devout Christian.
His loved ones “take comfort in knowing that Bob, because of his faith in Christ, is now in the presence of the Lord, free from pain and surrounded by His love.”
He was known for hugs, kindness, compassion, and unwavering faith. He touched the lives of many through his involvement in church activities (where he served as an elder), community service (where he served both as a planning commissioner and councilman), and his family.
He is survived by his loving wife of 57 years, Georgia; children Robert Griffith (Heather) and Jennifer Peters (Eric); grandchildren Robert Griffith (Danna), Abigail McGhee (Brayden), Michael Griffith, Marissa Peters and Wyatt Peters; great-granddaughters Ellie Griffith, Margaret McGhee and Lillian McGhee; and countless friends who will remember his warm spirit and generous heart. He was preceded in death by his mother, Geneva Lucille Griffith; and his sister, Donna Roberts (Don).
A Celebration of Life is planned for 10 a.m. on Saturday, November 30, at Open Gate Christian Fellowship, 950 West Laurel Street, Willows. All are welcome to join in honoring his memory.
Here is a list of the bookings into the Glenn County Jail, with information provided by jail personnel, the Glenn County Sheriff’s log, and the Orland police log. Remember: Everyone accused of a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Friday, October 25:
10:24 p.m., Ivan Gabriel Luna Jimenez, 28, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging public intoxication (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $0. He was taken into custody at 600 North Humboldt Avenue, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
Saturday, October 26:
2:27 a.m., Ivan Gabriel Luna Jimenez, 28, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on a warrant alleging possession of a controlled substance (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $5,000. He was taken into custody at the Glenn County Jail by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
6:36 p.m., Savannah Marie Dees, 24, of Olivehurst, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury which results in the death of a child under the age of eight years by a person having the care or custody of the child, and two counts of infliction of injury upon a child (all felonies). Bail was set at $690,000. She was taken into custody on County Road M at County Road 27 by a California Highway Patrol officer.
Sunday, October 27:
12:07 a.m., Jacob William Mertz, 31, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, driving while under the influence of alcohol, and driving with a license suspended for driving while under the influence (all misdemeanors). Bail was set at $15,000. He was taken into custody in the 200 block of East Swift Street by an Orland police officer.
According to the Orland Police Department’s log, an Orland police officer initiated a traffic enforcement stop in the 200 block of East Swift Street on a gray 2019 Dodge Journey. Following an investigation, Jacob Mertz, 31, of Orland, was arrested and booked for allegedly driving while under the influence of alcohol, driving with a license suspended for DUI, and violation of DUI probation.
Monday, October 28:
9:43 a.m., Isaac Reyes Juarez, 37, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on warrants alleging failure to appear on a felony charge. Total bail was set at $150,000. He was taken into custody at the Glenn County Probation Department, Willows, by a probation officer.
11:12 a.m., Kathleen Elizabeth Grimes, 40, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging using or being under the influence of a controlled substance (a misdemeanor). Bail was set at $0. She was taken into custody at Murdock Elementary School, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
According to the Glenn County Sheriff’s log, at about 10:51 a.m. on October 28, an employee of Murdock Elementary School, 655 French Street, Willows, contacted the Glenn County Sheriff’s Office to report a suspicious person on the school grounds.
Deputy Peterson responded and contacted the vice principal, Darcy Pollak, who said that Kathleen Grimes entered the school property without checking in and was confrontational toward staff.
Deputy Peterson contacted Grimes and admonished her from the property.
Due to Grimes’ behavior being sporadic, Deputy Peterson conducted a controlled substance evaluation on her. The deputy determined Grimes was allegedly under the influence of a controlled substance.
She was subsequently arrested and transported to the Glenn County Jail.
4:10 p.m., Joshua Lewis Abanathie, 22, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging possession of a controlled substance (a misdemeanor), carrying a concealed dirk or dagger (a felony), and misdemeanor violation of probation, and a warrant alleging misdemeanor violation of probation. Total bail was set at $35,000. He was taken into custody at the west end of Stony Creek Drive by an Orland police officer.
4:15 p.m., Meleah Renee Valderrabano, 49, of Corning, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on warrants alleging failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge, failure to appear on a felony charge and felony violation of probation. Total bail was set at $57,000. She was taken into custody at the west end of Stony Creek Drive by an Orland police officer.
As heard on the police scanner, at about 4 p.m., the Orland Fire Department responded to what appeared to be a vegetation fire in the bed of Stony Creek, just north of Orland and south of the creek itself.
Orland Fire Chief Justin Chaney made it to the source of the fire on foot, and discovered it was caused by occupants of a homeless camp burning garbage. The fire was extinguished.
However, it was reported that two people were seen running away from the encampment. Whether Joshua Lewis Abanathie and Meleah Renee Valderrabano were the two people who were seen running away is unclear, but the Orland Police Department log gives the following information:
At about 4:07 p.m. on October 28, Orland police officers contacted Joshua Abanathie, 22, of Orland, and Meleah Valderrabano, 49, of Willows, in the 200 block of Stony Creek Drive.
Abanathie was arrested and booked for a misdemeanor Glenn County warrant and alleged possession of narcotics. Valderrabano was arrested and booked for one misdemeanor and two felony Glenn County warrants.
Monday afternoon, the CHP issued a press release concerning tragic accident that took the life of a five-year-old early Saturday evening.
According to the release from the Willows Area Office of the California Highway Patrol, at about 6 p.m. on Saturday, October 26, Savannah M. Dees, 24, of Olivehurst, was driving a 2009 Ford south on County Road M, south of County Road 27.
At the time, the driver was transporting three small children, ages five years, two years, and one year. All other information (names, genders, city or cities of residence, even whether their safety equipment was in use) was improperly withheld in the news release.
Dees was wearing her seat belts.
Dees reportedly continued southbound at an unknown speed above the 55 mph speed limit. Then, south of Road 27, the driver turned the Ford to the west, where it traveled across the road edge and struck a power pole.
Upon impact, the vehicle overturned several times before coming to rest along the west shoulder of Road M.
As a result of the crash, the five-year-old suffered fatal injuries. The other two children sustained minor injuries and were transported by ground ambulance to an unspecified “local area hospital.”
CHP Officer J. Blanken, the investigating officer who submitted the media release, stated, “It appears as if alcohol and drugs were a contributing factor” in the accident.
The investigation into the cause of this crash is still pending.
As reported previously in The Observer, according to the Glenn County Jail, Dees was booked into the facility on charges alleging causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury which results in the death of a child under the age of eight years by a person having the care or custody of the child, and two counts of infliction of injury on a child (all felonies).
Her bail was set at $690,000.
A call to the jail late Monday afternoon indicated she was still in custody.
A child was killed in a vehicle vs. power pole collision early Saturday evening.
The driver of the vehicle, Savannah Marie Dees, 24, of Olivehurst, was arrested on several alcohol-related felonies.
According to the California Highway Patrol traffic incident webpage, at about 6:02 p.m. on October 26, emergency responders were dispatched to a report of a vehicle vs. PG&E power pole accident on County Road M at County Road 27 (later changed to just south of Road 27).
This reporter was at a home on East Yolo Street at the time of the call. First, with overhead lights and sirens activated, two Orland police units zoomed by; then, the fire department’s vehicles began driving by.
A little later, the Artois Fire Department was called for mutual aid.
One child was able to exit the vehicle. Another was unable to get out, however.
When the child finally was extricated from the vehicle, CPR commenced.
The FlightCare helicopter was also called and landed near the scene. It was too late, however.
The child was dead.
The crash caused the fall of a PG&E power pole. At the same time, presumably as a result of the accident, power was lost for several hours in areas of Glenn County, including much of Willows.
According to Glenn County Jail personnel, Dees was booked into the facility on charges alleging causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, causing bodily injury while driving while under the influence of alcohol, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury which results in the death of a child under the age of eight years by a person having the care or custody of the child, and two counts of infliction of injury on a child (all felonies).
A member of the Powell family, the winner of the 2024 Pumpkin Drop Survival Contest, holds the lone survivor of the event Saturday afternoon. Glenn County Observer photo by Larry Judkins.
By Larry Judkins
Glenn County Observer
That’s one relatively short drop for a pumpkin, one giant plummet for pumpkinkind.
There was one, and only one, undisputed winner of the Orland Fire Department’s 2024 Pumpkin Drop Survival Contest on Saturday: the Powell family, who took it as their mission to design and engineer a mock lunar lander.
For their efforts, they won $20.
Time will tell if this will encourage any member of the family to seek a career as a NASA engineer.
The NASA lunar lander mock-up re-enters the Earth’s atmosphere (well, sort of) during the 2024 Pumpkin Drop. Glenn County Observer photo by Larry Judkins.
And what did the older Powell boy do after the contest ended? Why, what any all-American, red-blooded lad would do, of course!
He smashed his previously unblemished pumpkin on pavement of the parking lot, alongside all the other pumpkin bits and pieces.
And speaking of red-blooded, the big surprise of the event came when what appeared to be an ordinary pumpkin was dropped without a parachute, without a box filled with bubble wrap or padding, without anything.
How unimaginative, right? Firefighter Jerry Kraemer, who had the honor of dropping the pumpkins from the top of the ladder, later admitted that he wondered why anyone would go to the bother of dropping a completely unprotected pumpkin.
“Are they out of their gourd?” others asked themselves.
Nevertheless, Kraemer performed his dropping duty without complaint, and released the pumpkin from his grasp.
As soon as it hit the ground, it became clear why this particular pumpkin was special. When it broke open and splattered in the parking lot, it was immediately realized that it had been injected with a blood-red dye.
This entry won the best of show category.
Splat down! The NASA moon lander rests alongside the remains of the previous entries in the pumpkin drop contest. Glenn County Observer photo by Larry Judkins.
All of the pumpkins were eventually damaged beyond hope.
A few made it through the event with only some nasty cracks, but even these were said to be in a vegetative state.
It is safe to say that just about everyone is hoping for a pumpkin drop next year.
Secure (or, so it was thought) in a box, a pumpkin is let loose from the top of the OVFD ladder truck at the 2023 pumpkin drop event. Glenn County Observer photo by Larry Judkins.
Glenn County Observer
Get your pumpkins ready!
Due to popular demand (translation: firefighters and pretty much everyone else in the community had a ton of fun last year), the Pumpkin Drop Survival Contest is back.
A lucky (or brilliant) participant can win $20 if his or her pumpkin can survive unscathed a 50-foot drop from the top of the Orland Fire Department’s ladder truck tomorrow, Saturday, October 26, so wrap it in bubble wrap, put it in a box with foam peanuts, make a parachute, or use your own creative ideas. The pumpkin drop time is 3:30 p.m. in the parking lot of the fire station.
Here are the rules:
1). The pumpkin must be in the 8-inch to 10-inch range. No little mini stuff or gourds that you could drop from 100 feet and not be hurt. Judges must declare, “Now that’s a droppable pumpkin!”
2) If the pumpkin is placed in a box, the overall size of any side of the box can be no more than about 18 inches. And the box and its contents can weigh no more than 35 pounds. (Firefighters have to carry it up the ladder.)
3) Any crack in the pumpkin and it’s out.
4) First prize is $20. The most creative or cutest entry wins $10. The judges’ decision is final, but note that they can be bribed with large quantities of candy and treats.
5) In case of a tie, there will be a re-drop from a higher elevation.
Here is a list of the bookings into the Glenn County Jail, with information provided by jail personnel, the Glenn County Sheriff’s log, and the Orland police log. Remember: Everyone accused of a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Tuesday, October 22:
10:50 a.m., Marcus Daniel Yocum, 41, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail without bail for alleged violation of post-release community supervision (a felony). He was taken into custody at the Glenn County Probation Department, Willows, by a probation officer.
5:20 p.m., Donald Gerard Smith, 63, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging felony violation of probation (one county), and misdemeanor violation of probation (two counts). Bail was set at $45,000. He was taken into custody at the Glenn County Probation Department, Willows, by a probation officer.
Wednesday, October 23:
11:45 a.m., Thomas Michael Butler, 30, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging felony violation of probation. Bail was set at $20,000. He was taken into custody at the Glenn County Probation Department, Willows, by a probation officer.
12 p.m., Estevan Ramirez Hernandez, 41, of Hayward, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on warrant alleging failure to appear on a felony charge. Bail was set at $30,000. He was taken into custody at the Alameda County Jail by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
Thursday, October 24:
8:05 a.m., Gabriel Lopez Baeza, 45, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging misdemeanor trespassing. Bail was set at $0. He was taken into custody at 143 North Yolo Street, Willows, by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
According to the Glenn County Sheriff’s log, at about 8:22 a.m. on October 24, deputies were conducting a search of a condemned property at 143 North Yolo Street in Willows due to prior history of people squatting there. Deputies found Gabriel Baeza, who was admonished for trespassing on the property the previous day, inside the same unit. Deputy Peterson subsequently arrested Baeza for alleged unauthorized entry into a non-commercial dwelling. Baeza was transported to the Glenn County Jail for booking and processing.
1:46 p.m., Jose Alfredo Marmolejo, 31, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail without bail on charges of felony violation of post-release community supervision/flash incarceration, which consists of one to 10 days in jail for the purpose of punishing the person without disrupting his or her home or work life. Marmolejo was taken into custody at 928 Woodward Avenue, apt. #2, Orland, by a Glenn County probation officer.
5 p.m., Beatrice Lee Salazar, 34, of Willows, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging felony violation of probation. Bail was set at $20,000. She was taken into custody at the Glenn County Probation Department, Willows, by a probation officer.
10:09 p.m., Christopher James Dunn, 38, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on three misdemeanor Glenn County Superior Court bench warrants alleging disobeying a court order. Total bail was set at $120,000. He was taken into custody at 745 Paigewood Drive by an Orland police officer.
The Orland police log says only that at 10:04 p.m. on October 24, at the Paigewood Village Apartments, 745 Paigewood Drive, Orland police officers “contacted Christopher Dunn, 38, of Orland. Dunn was arrested and booked for three misdemeanor Glenn County warrants.”
The 200 block of East Walker Street in Orland was, alas, a happenin’ place on Wednesday.
First, at about 10 a.m., there was a vehicle accident that sent three people to the hospital. Then, at about 11:15 p.m., reports of shots fired somewhere in the area of Woodward Avenue and East Walker Street began coming into the Glenn County Sheriff’s Communications Center.
This reporter was awakened from a sound sleep by about a dozen very loud “bangs”. At the time, he thought the bangs were the result of fireworks of some kind.
Listening to the police scanner, however, it soon became clear that law enforcement officers were taking the reports much more seriously.
At first, officers checked the 200 block of East Colusa Street near Woodward Avenue. Then, they started to focus on the area of Woodward Avenue and the 200 block of East Walker Street.
With overhead lights flashing, at least one law enforcement vehicle was parked at Woodward and East Walker as officer(s) searched the area on foot.
Also with overheads flashing, another law enforcement officer was parked at East Walker Street and Papst Avenue.
According to the Orland Police Department log, officers found evidence that occupants from two vehicles traveling east on East Walker Street fired several shots at each other.
The Glenn County Observer 