2000 The year in review

August 19-31

Aug. 19

PALMDALE - Few planes have carried as much weight as the DC-10 that landed at Air Force Plant 42 Thursday evening.

Except for its small crew, the jet was empty, bereft of passengers and cargo. In terms of economics and hope, however, the aircraft was filled. As the plane landed, with it flew into the Antelope Valley more than $100 million for the economy and years of steady employment for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of aerospace workers.

Aug. 20

PALMDALE - Terry Kraemer Jr. could have let the death of his father remain a family tragedy. Instead he turned his father's death into a crusade to educate people about a little-known but deadly disease.

His father, Terry Kraemer Sr., died of melanoma about a year and a half ago. Melanoma is a potentially severe form of skin cancer that is highly curable if detected early but can quickly turn lethal if it is allowed to spread.

Aug. 21

LANCASTER - The Antelope Valley's air may be one step closer to meeting state air quality standards.

The state this week may reclassify the Valley's ozone reading as "non-attainment transitional," continuing the marked improvement seen in the Valley's air in recent years.

Aug. 22

LANCASTER - A handful of Antelope Valley Union High School District parents are up in arms about the board of trustees' decision earlier this year to name its next high school after state Sen. William J. "Pete" Knight.

Lancaster resident Natalie Hernandez said she is against the district's naming Mountain View High School after Knight because he has not supported education and has degraded Hispanics in the past.

Aug. 23

COVINA - At 5-foot-1 and 105 pounds, former Littlerock resident Jamie Dantzscher has become a giant in the world of women's gymnastics.

Dantzscher, 18, on Sunday was named one of the five members of the U.S. women's gymnastic team for the Sydney Olympic Games.

Aug. 24

LANCASTER - At least one Johnny Mathis fan did not let several thousand miles keep him from seeing his favorite singer perform Wednesday night. David Barnett of London traveled nearly 6,000 miles to watch Mathis perform Wednesday at the Lancaster Performing Arts Center.

Aug. 25

LANCASTER - The final touches for the 62nd Antelope Valley Fair and Alfalfa Festival won't be completed until the gates open to the public at 4 p.m. today, the start of its 11day run that ends Monday, Sept. 4.

The fair's opening day kicks off at 3:45 p.m. with a ribboncutting by George M. Lane, who will be the grand marshal of the AV Fair parade Saturday morning.

Aug. 26

GORMAN - A handful of mountain residents want to move out of Los Angeles County and take 1,010 acres of land with them.

Along the Los Angeles side of the border separating L.A. and Kern counties, the residents said they would rather live in Kern County where shopping, police and fire protection and other conveniences are closer.

Aug. 27

LANCASTER - Joshua Stiers is proud of how his 55-mph fastball has developed over the summer. And he should be. Three months ago, his health was in such dire condition that he couldn't play baseball. He couldn't even walk 10 feet without gasping for air. That all changed May 26 when the phone rang at his family's Lancaster home. Come to San Diego, they were told, there's a set of lungs available for Joshua's double lung transplant.

Aug. 28

LANCASTER - The atmosphere was a picture of modern society: sport-utility vehicles on the streets; street lights standing tall; modern buildings.

But within the borders of the campus, there was a world of maidens, knights, kingdoms, armor and swords.

Aug. 29

PALMDALE - The parents of Michelle O'Keefe filed a legal damage claim with the city of Palmdale, alleging negligence and ineffective security at the parkand-ride lot where O'Keefe was murdered contributed to or caused the 18-year-old's death.

Lancaster attorney R. Rex Parris filed the claim on behalf of the O'Keefes. The prominent personal injury attorney said it is obvious to him that the city bears some responsibility for the death.

Such a claim is a preliminary to a lawsuit. According to Parris, the city has already rejected the claim. Rejection of the claim paves the way to litigation, giving a plaintiff six months to file.

Aug. 30

PALMDALE - Donald W. Self, a veteran Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputy who patrolled the streets of the high desert for more than 18 years, died of cancer early Tuesday morning. He was 55.

A calm, soft-spoken street cop known for his patience and his ability to defuse tense situations, Self joined the Sheriff's Department in 1978 and came to work in the Antelope Valley in December 1981.

Aug. 31

PALMDALE - Unionized county workers have launched a five-pronged protest aimed at each member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, and Wednesday about 75 of them spent their lunch breaks picketing the sidewalk in front of Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich's Palmdale office.

Members of the giant Service Employees International Union, Local 660, which includes welfare case workers, child welfare social workers and county clerks, are demanding a bigger pay increase and an upgrade in benefits.

Uploaded December 26, 2000