Cover Story
They Were Entitled to Free Care. Hospitals Hounded Them to Pay.
In 2018, senior executives at one of the country’s largest nonprofit hospital chains, Providence, were frustrated. They were spending hundreds of millions of dollars providing free health care to patients. It was eating into their bottom line. The executives, led by Providence’s chief financial officer at the time, devised a solution: a program called Rev-Up.…
Local Developer Started Controversial Home Construction Without Permit
When then Humboldt County Planning Commission Chair Alan Bongio did some undisclosed concrete work at local developer Travis Schneider’s home, it may have been during a more than eight-month period in which Schneider was building without a permit, the Journal has learned. According to Schneider, Bongio did the concrete work on the project one day…
Red Hot Chili Peppers Interrupt Tour to Play Free Closed Concert in Hoopa
*Editor’s Note: This is a closed community event. To limit potential safety hazards, those without a pass are asked to refrain from visiting the location. If your chili pepper harvest wasn’t quite what you hoped for this year, don’t worry, a bumper crop is about to come in, and they are red hot! Rumors that…
Six Condors Now Fly Free Over Humboldt
There are now six California condors flying over the skies of Humboldt County after two more took their first forays into the wild today as part of a Yurok Tribe-led effort to return the endangered species they know as prey-go-neesh to the north reaches of its former territory. The two birds —A4 and A5 —…
Dan and Doris ‘Papa & Gaga’ Goff: 1929-2022, 1933-2022
A true love story of Dan and Doris Goff, better known as “Papa & Gaga.” Doris Ann Goff, 89, was born February 25,1933 in Alhambra California and Daniel Oscar Goff, 93 was born July 14,1929 in Columbus Ohio. They were married over 72 years and passed away five days apart. Doris passed away on July…
Condor Release Attempt Take Two
Northern California Condor Restoration Program team members are calling off today’s attempt to release two additional birds out into the wild for safety reasons due to the late hour. “In order to allow time for newly released condors to find adequate perches safely after tenuous first flights, we prefer for them to have plenty of…
Congenital Syphilis Rates Soar Across California as Public Health Funding Dwindles
In the Central Valley, where two-thirds of the nation’s fruit and nuts are grown, the pastoral landscape masks entrenched racial and economic disparities. Life expectancy in Fresno County drops by 20 years depending on where you live, and it’s those who live in historically poor, redlined or rural neighborhoods who are most impacted by a…
Tavern 1888 Opens in Eagle House
After 13 months of renovation and preparation, Tavern 1888 has “soft opened” in the Eagle House in Old Town Eureka (139 Second St.). The official grand opening is set for Friday, Oct. 14 and Jennifer Metz, co-owner of the Inn at 2nd & C and Phatsy Kline’s Parlor Lounge, says, “We’re excited to make it…
NCJ Preview: Providence’s Brutal Billing, Yang’s Wings
This week we’re talking about the New York Times’ exposé on how Providence Health has accepted $1 billion in tax breaks to care for the poor but has hounded those qualified for free care with sometimes devastating bills. It’s an issue that hits Humboldt via St. Joseph Hospital and its clinics. We’re also getting to…
Spooky Fun with Dell’Arte’s Macabre Cabaret
Heads up, horror freaks. The fabulous and infamous Dell’Arte Macabre Cabaret is coming up and you don’t want to be left in the dark. One of the company’s most popular shows, the cabaret features a mixture of terrifying and humorous, sexy and spooky, and it always sells out. So, get your tickets now for the…
Trinidad Hosts the Fisherman’s Feast
Cast your net and catch a spectacular Saturday afternoon in the seaside town of Trinidad, eating fresh local albacore and listening to live music at the Fisherman’s Feast (formerly the Trinidad Fish Festival). The good eats/great time happens Saturday, Oct. 8 from 1 to 5 p.m. at Trinidad Elementary School (free to attend, $20 for…
Condor Release Attempt Set for Monday
If all goes as planned, the number of California condors flying free over Humboldt County will increase to six on Monday as part of a Yurok Tribe-led effort to return the endangered species they know as prey-go-neesh to the northern reaches of its former territory. The two birds that will take their first foray into…
Photos: Redwood Coast Music Festival Back in Swing
The Redwood Coast Music Festival finally got to start celebrating its 30th anniversary last Thursday night at Eureka’s Adorni Center, with Gino & the Lone Gunmen filling in for our local Delta Nationals, who had to cancel … dang COVID. Last held in 2019 due to pandemic cancelations, the four-day festival offered a smorgasbord lineup…
Bongio Steps Down as PlanCo Chair, Commission Approves Letter of Apology to Tribes
Humboldt County Planning Commission Alan Bongio officially stepped down as the commission’s chair before last night’s meeting, at which he and fellow commissioners voted unanimously to send a letter of apology to three Wiyot area tribes stemming from his conduct at a meeting last month. Bongio did not speak at the meeting about stepping down…
Corky Cornwell: 1943-2022
Corky Cornwell, a pillar in our community has passed away at the age of 79, will be remembered forever. He battled cancer for over 6 years and never lost the twinkle in his eyes or his spirit. Corky was born at St. Joseph’s Hospital in 1943 to parents Ray Cornwell and Myrtle Rose Moore. In…
Carl Leroy Spencer: 1952 to 2022
Carl Leroy Spencer was born on July 29, 1952, in Sacramento, California, and sadly passed away on Sept. 19, 2022, in Eureka, California. He was preceded in death by his parents, Lloyd Spencer and Francis Spencer and two of his brothers, Frank and Samuel. He was a graduate of Rio Linda High school in 1970.…
Sample Ballot Contains Error on FUSD Bond
County counsel’s impartial analysis of the Ferndale Unified School District’s proposed school bond in the sample ballot recently sent to voters contains an error on the estimated yearly tax that homeowners in the district will pay if it passes. Known as Measure Q, the proposed $7.7 million bond measure to fix a wide array of…
Correction
The story headlined “44 Feet” in the Sept. 15, 2022, edition of the North Coast Journal included inaccurate information about local electricity provider Redwood Coast Energy Authority’s requests to contract for power. The requests were made in an effort to secure replacement energy for the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant, and RCEA is not buying nuclear…
The Tuluwat Island Massacre in its Time
Archeologists have determined that Wiyot people occupied Indian Island for at least 1,000 years — possibly much longer — including the village of Tuluwat, one of the several locations where the tribe held annual World Renewal ceremonies. During one of these ceremonies, the night of Feb. 26, 1860, Tuluwat was one of about a dozen…
Turning, Part III:
The afternoon holds just enough. Life and dying, Should be familiar In the narrow, empty spaces Hiding, In the confusing mass of briars, And dried or mildewed berries: Take your pick. Meanwhile, the shadowed visitors of place Sneak back home. Somewhere, this stretch of time, Memories turn, Stretch further, Longer Than the stories Our present…
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): When you Aries folks are at your best, you are drawn to people who tell you exactly what they think, who aren’t intimidated by your high energy, and who dare to be as vigorous as you. I hope you have an array of allies like that in your sphere right now.…
Supes OK Fish Farm Environmental Review
The proposed Nordic Aquafarms California fish farm project on the Samoa Peninsula lurched forward Aug. 28 as the Board of Supervisors, at the end of a nine-hour meeting, voted unanimously, with Fifth District Supervisor Steve Madrone absent, to reject an appeal of the project’s environmental impact report and grant the company three necessary permits. But…
Free Parties and Spoken Words
The zaftig orb weaver, often called a pumpkin spider, near my front door is getting fatter on her buggy spoils by the day, preparing for her brief voyage into motherhood before she returns to her ancestors in the Land of Frosts. My night walks and bike rides are by default becoming sharper and creepier, with…
Hmong American Entrepreneurship at Yang’s Kitchen
The circular Yang’s Kitchen tent set up in Old Town for the last Friday Night Market of the year resembles a beehive. Owner Thao Yang and his wife, Mai Vang, dart around and past one another from the bubbling fryers to the stainless steel bowls of sauce and up to the front window to pass…
Pastels on the Plaza’s Fleeting Beauty Returns
More than a few of the 180-plus pastel-chalk artists participating in this year’s Pastels on the Plaza in Arcata started showing up by 7 a.m. under a foggy sky on Saturday, Oct. 1. The creative social event with its ephemeral art began back in 1987 as a major fundraiser for Northcoast Children’s Services. NCS serves…
Klamath Closed to the Take of Adult Kings
If you’re looking to harvest an adult Chinook salmon in the Klamath basin, the Trinity River will be your only option as of Thursday. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife determined last Friday that the recreational fall-run Chinook salmon catch will have met the Upper Klamath River adult fall-run Chinook salmon quota (of 360)…
Hollywood, Romance
BLONDE. Marilyn Monroe (neé Norma Jean Mortensen) has been dead now 60 years; nearly twice as long as she lived and a dozen times longer than the period of her working life. Her image, more than her acting work, which is truly formidable, sustains her as one of the undeniable icons of 20th century culture.…
A Picture of Corruption?
Editor: Kudos to Thadeus Greenson for staying on the Travis Schneider story (“‘Never, ever, ever’ Again,” Sept. 29). It is understandable that Mr. Schneider wants to be in good standing with his family, but to brush off the “size” and number of his mistakes with, “Life is full of mistakes,” is a lot to swallow.…
‘Misinformation?’
Editor: I found Laurie Rose’s letter (Mailbox, Sept. 22) in response to mine, very curious. She seems to understand that the COVID vaccines do not reliably stop transmission of the virus, which was the point of my letter. So why did she call my letter “misinformation?” She appears to have read quite a lot into…
‘No More Apologies for Putin’
Editor: Why do people contend that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine lies with the United States and its western allies (Mailbox, Sept. 22)? The aphorism “Russia is a country with an unpredictable past” comes to mind. I have personal experiences with those who have lived through the Soviet era, including my wife who was born in…
Vote!
Editor: Please vote for Kimberley White for Arcata City Council. Kimberley has demonstrated in many ways that she would be a valuable member of Arcata’s city council. Kimberley believes in listening to and including ideas from the community as she has demonstrated as a co-coordinator of CUNA (Comunidad Unida Del Norte de Arcata) and in…
