EDITOR's NOTE: This article originally published in The Advocate on Aug. 24, 2011. To view original post, visit AccentAdvocate.com.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
Charles Gibson has survived a career in law enforcement that has spanned 30 years. But during his Fourth of July vacation he faced the greatest threat of his life.
Along with 26 others from the Bay Area who "love to fish," Gibson said, he took an annual trip to Mexico to catch big deep-sea fish.
This was the seventh vacation the friends had taken together and the third year the group went to San Felipé, a fishing town on the eastern coast of Baja California.
"It was the same ship, same captain, same crew," said Gibson, 54, who has been chief of Contra Costa Community College District Police Services for five years.
The trip was almost routine: drive down with a couple coolers each, and also fishing gear and clothing. Arrive in San Felipé on Friday and stay in the El Capitan Hotel on Saturday. Load gear into the 115-foot ship, the Erik. Caravan to a second parking area and come back in one truck.
Back on the vessel, the group would enjoy a day-and-a-half of open-sea fishing with a few guys in a 20-foot panga.
"There are two to three people in the middle of the Sea of Cortez in a little boat looking for fish," Gibson said. "It's part of the excitement, patrolling, getting big fish. It's challenging."
But this year they didn't even cast their lines.
Rude awakening
The sea was calm that weekend with no warning of danger.
"A couple even commented how calm the sea was," Gibson said.
He slept three decks below, waiting to go fishing the next day.
Suddenly, Gibson's cabinmate who he'd only met two days before, "Fish" Rich, woke him and told him to evacuate the sinking ship.
He ran to the deck, as the ship now leaned to the left side. Crew and vacationers alike pulled people off the boat before it capsized.
"I remember the look of terror in the eyes of people standing there," Gibson said.
Crew members ran out of life vests before Gibson could get one.
Before he could find an extra flotation device, a 40-foot wave yanked Gibson into the water.
"It is 2 a.m., I'm up and treading water," he said. "I was in my birthday suit, under water thinking, ‘Gee, this water is warm.'"
Out of Gibson's left eye he saw the Erik sinking stern first.
"It was like the Titanic," he said. "The ocean just swallowed it."
With the ship gone, so were any artificial lights.
"It was pitch black," he said. "There are no lights in the middle of the ocean."
Kicking to keep his head above water, Gibson found a cooler floating in the water and grabbed hold.
He heard yelling all around. People were confused and panicking, not just from being stuck in the sea without a boat, but also burning from the Erik's leaking gas and diesel fuel.
Gibson joined a group of six survivors, four fishermen and two crewmen, who tied three coolers together.
So close yet so far
Five miles away, they saw lights on the horizon and two islands, one to the left, one to the right, each about 3 miles away.
Gibson said the group focused on getting rescued.
"We were trying to get to the light and not focus on our plight. We could've died, been eaten by sharks," he said. "What else you got to do?"
Six of the seven took life vests and decided to head for land while one remained with the coolers.
As the six worked toward its goal, the water continued to split them further. Five took off like "Olympic swimmers" while Gibson used slower strokes, alternating between his sides and back.
But 15-foot swells and waves increased the feeling of isolation.
"It would go down and you can't see the island, then back up and you can see, back down and can't see anything," he said. "I couldn't see anyone. I was in the middle of the ocean alone."
Reason to live
He worked toward the island to the right. Swimming for hours not seeming to get any closer.
Stuck between two oases, nowhere near either, Gibson's mind wondered.
"I thought about a lot of stuff, mostly a reason to survive," he said. "Family, friends, work, whatever I could to motivate myself and keep going."
He explored the differences in boxing and mixed martial arts.
"In MMA you can tap out, but to tap out here meant death," he said. "Old boxers would fight until the end. There is something to be said about that."
As he floated like the red top of a fishing buoy, Gibson thought what it might mean to not make it.
"Lord, I've lived a good life and if it's my time, it's my time," he prayed. "If not, I'm going to fight like hell until I save myself."
‘Back to sleep'
Three hours later, Gibson was finally near the big rock.
Swimming closer and closer, Gibson's foot touched ground for the first time in nine hours.
He tried to make like a seal and climb atop the rocks. Once he got on, a wave came and knocked him off, onto a second rock and Gibson prepared for "the end."
But Gibson asked the Lord to give him a little push and a wave took him away from the rocks and pushed him toward a beachy area.
As the waves pushed him, he rolled once, twice and on the third thrust he crawled out of the water onto the island.
"It felt so good to finally be out of water," he said after spending 16 hours in the water. "I put my vest on a stick and collapsed from exhaustion for hours."
As he slept alone on the beach, the sounds of the waves crashing onto shore haunted his dreams.
"The waves would shake the island like an earthquake," he said. "When I closed my eyes it felt like I was in the water."
When he woke up, Gibson saw two men in boats and thought he might be saved, finally. But what he saw were merely two notorious albatross.
"Back to sleep."
His savior
Gibson's next sight was a friendly, familiar one, Fish Rich.
"Hey neighbor," he said stumbling across Gibson on the beach.
From the beach at 6 p.m. on July 3, Gibson saw what he'd been waiting for 16 hours: help.
"There were two guys in a boat picking up coolers like they were shopping at Wal-Mart," he said.
The villagers followed the debris trail from the ship and eventually ran into its survivors.
The boat dropped off four men and came back for the six remaining on the island with Gibson.
Eight men rode in the small boat with four coolers to shore.
A Mexican military helicopter took survivors to a hospital to treat their recent injuries, including dehydration and burns from exposure to the leaked fuels.
"It was a real scary period," Gibson said. "We didn't know how many people were lost or rescued."
Independence Day
The next day was July 4.
"It was the Fourth of July, but it didn't seem like it," Gibson said. "The Fourth of July is a happy time, a time for barbecues and fireworks. I was just happy to be alive."
As word circulated about the Erik's sinking, media swarmed Gibson and the other survivors.
The 19 at the El Capitan elected Gibson spokesman and he read a prepared statement and was interviewed on NBC's "Today" show.
"We had to craft a message, one voice, one goal: keep authorities searching for our friends," he said.
Ultimately, one died and seven people were never found and are presumed dead.
Little heroes
Jose Oliveira, who has worked with Gibson since he arrived five years ago as chief, said Gibson's high-survival mode is taught at the academy.
"In the police academy they teach you about the will to survive despite the circumstances," he said. "Chief Gibson is a very good example of never giving up on yourself."
Susan Sedillo, Gibson's administrative assistant at Diablo Valley College for four years, gathered cards and ordered a bouquet of cookies arranged into the shape of a foot, encouraging Gibson to get back on his feet.
"That was a life-changing experience for him," she said. "I'm sure he's changed in ways most of us will never know."
Between the 16 hours on his own in the sea and the month that passed since, Gibson has pondered life and priorities.
"There is a little hero in all of us that close to death and an appreciation for life and what is important," he said. "Material possessions, policy and procedure don't carry so much weight."
Among those heroes, Gibson remembers a 71-year-old man on the boat who saw life rafts tied up. He took a knife and went under the sinking ship to cut the boats loose.
"The guy who woke me up didn't have to," Gibson said. "Guys helping each other, pushing, pulling; it's heroic."
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Opinion: Fall semester spurs hitch in gitty up
EDITOR's NOTE: This article originally published in The Advocate on Aug. 31, 2011. To view original post, visit AccentAdvocate.com.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
Summer's end — what a depressing time.
Morning clouds and chances of rain, to say nothing of the start of school, now block the optimistic sunlight that used to shine into my window.
But there is more than one hemisphere in this great big world and it is springtime south of the equator.
It is time for flowers to bloom along the Ivory Coast, for flamingos to hatch in Chile and for koalas to be born in Australia.
There are many reasons to be upset for these seasonal changes beyond our control, and some can bring tears to the most sensitive eyes, but there is reason to hope.
Contra Costa College has many advantages over anywhere else I have been, but the most significant is that students come here because it is their choice. They want to learn science or English or music.
Students across campuses in this country often force themselves to class, heads down and shoulders slumped from the enormous pressure their parents have put upon them.
Here, however, students stroll, heads up, with only the pressure they put on themselves to succeed and better their own situation.
They want to be the best they can in a field they love and in which they can succeed.
Furthermore, the faculty and staff want them to do well and will sacrifice to see that happen.
Being away from the campus for two years reminded me how much I loved being here everyday.
But staying here is not the goal, obviously. Moving on to a university and getting that coveted bachelor's degree is what drove me when I first came here in 2006 after graduating high school.
But, as we all eventually learn, it's not the destination, but the journey.
When I moved on to the University of Nevada-Reno after three years at CCC, I couldn't help but smile from ear-to-ear for progressing.
After a year and a half, only memories of home could bring back a smile — and, occasionally, a tear.
I came home some weekends and as I backed out of my driveway headed for the Sierra Nevada, I wondered why I ever left.
As my mind was nearly made up that I would come back to San Pablo for another year of school and transfer to San Francisco State, there was suddenly a reason for me to stay in Reno. But I couldn't do it.
It was hard leaving her behind as the calendar changed from July to August, but I was trying to keep my eye on the destination while simultaneously enjoying the journey.
At first, it was nearly impossible to leave. August started and autumn brought a change to the landscape.
We didn't speak to each other, only passing unaddressed, coded statuses to one another on Facebook: "The same old song, but with a different meaning ..." You get the idea.
And after 10 days of sulking, I came on campus and went to All College Day as a reporter for The Advocate again. It felt great — a renaissance.
At the end of the day, I came home to the first message from my lost love since we had broken up two weeks earlier. The next day, Aug. 12, school officially started again and my girl was back in my arms, if only for the weekend.
Rebirth.
It was the return of two parts of me I could have lost forever.
As the semester and year go on, nothing will get easier and the thought wishing it would all end will surely cross my mind, but then I'll remember that it is always spring somewhere. What a wonderful world.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
Summer's end — what a depressing time.
Morning clouds and chances of rain, to say nothing of the start of school, now block the optimistic sunlight that used to shine into my window.
But there is more than one hemisphere in this great big world and it is springtime south of the equator.
It is time for flowers to bloom along the Ivory Coast, for flamingos to hatch in Chile and for koalas to be born in Australia.
There are many reasons to be upset for these seasonal changes beyond our control, and some can bring tears to the most sensitive eyes, but there is reason to hope.
Contra Costa College has many advantages over anywhere else I have been, but the most significant is that students come here because it is their choice. They want to learn science or English or music.
Students across campuses in this country often force themselves to class, heads down and shoulders slumped from the enormous pressure their parents have put upon them.
Here, however, students stroll, heads up, with only the pressure they put on themselves to succeed and better their own situation.
They want to be the best they can in a field they love and in which they can succeed.
Furthermore, the faculty and staff want them to do well and will sacrifice to see that happen.
Being away from the campus for two years reminded me how much I loved being here everyday.
But staying here is not the goal, obviously. Moving on to a university and getting that coveted bachelor's degree is what drove me when I first came here in 2006 after graduating high school.
But, as we all eventually learn, it's not the destination, but the journey.
When I moved on to the University of Nevada-Reno after three years at CCC, I couldn't help but smile from ear-to-ear for progressing.
After a year and a half, only memories of home could bring back a smile — and, occasionally, a tear.
I came home some weekends and as I backed out of my driveway headed for the Sierra Nevada, I wondered why I ever left.
As my mind was nearly made up that I would come back to San Pablo for another year of school and transfer to San Francisco State, there was suddenly a reason for me to stay in Reno. But I couldn't do it.
It was hard leaving her behind as the calendar changed from July to August, but I was trying to keep my eye on the destination while simultaneously enjoying the journey.
At first, it was nearly impossible to leave. August started and autumn brought a change to the landscape.
We didn't speak to each other, only passing unaddressed, coded statuses to one another on Facebook: "The same old song, but with a different meaning ..." You get the idea.
And after 10 days of sulking, I came on campus and went to All College Day as a reporter for The Advocate again. It felt great — a renaissance.
At the end of the day, I came home to the first message from my lost love since we had broken up two weeks earlier. The next day, Aug. 12, school officially started again and my girl was back in my arms, if only for the weekend.
Rebirth.
It was the return of two parts of me I could have lost forever.
As the semester and year go on, nothing will get easier and the thought wishing it would all end will surely cross my mind, but then I'll remember that it is always spring somewhere. What a wonderful world.
University fees climb
EDITOR's NOTE: This article originally published in The Advocate on Aug. 24, 2011. To view original post, visit AccentAdvocate.com.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
For the first time in California's history, public four-year universities will receive more money from student tuition and fees than from the state's general fund allocations for the 2011-12 year.
Student fee increases of about 10 percent, approved by both the University of California and CSU systems, and similar reductions in allocations from the Governor's Office will result in a $250 million difference of money from students than the state, a UC spokesman said.
Ricardo Vazquez, of the UC Office of the President, said revenue from student tuition and fees for the upcoming year are expected to reach $2.75 billion while state expenditures will not exceed $2.5 billion.
In the last four years, state funding for the UC system has dropped more than 27 percent, Vazquez said. From $3.25 billion allocated in 2007-08, UC funding dropped to $2.37 billion for 2011-12.
"The problem with numbers is they are sort of a snapshot in time," he said. "In general, student fees are projected to be more than (allocated from state general fund), being higher revenue than $2.37 billion."
Students, in addition to those who crunch these numbers professionally, have noticed the rise in cost.
"It's bullshit," Contra Costa College English major Francis Lopez said. "You're trying to better yourself, especially in this area, and it's hard enough to go to college and they raise prices.
"Most of my friends had to go to work to help their family and they raise tuition on top and it shoots a lot of people's dreams down," he said. "It's just hard for most people to just go to school."
Similarly, CSU will receive nearly equal funding from students and the state this academic year, down since 1998-99 when the state allocated two-thirds of the CSU's funding.
"The state is funding education with half the dollar amount, half of what is needed coming from tuition," CSU media relations specialist Erik Fallis said.
According to figures from the CSU, the state spent $10,930 per student in 1998-99 and the revenue from student fees was $2,572. In 2011-12, the state will spend $6,454 per student and tuition and fees will average $5,517.
"During tuition increases the implication is the driver is the cost and expenditures and that money for education is not spent in an efficient way," Fallis said. "(These numbers) counter that argument."
"The driver of tuition increases is not expenditures," he said. "It is the loss of state support."
State allocations continue to drop as Gov. Jerry Brown cut $650 million from his first general fund budget as governor (during this term) to both the UC and CSU systems with a potential mid-year "trigger" cut of another $100 million to each as well if the state does not reach a goal of $4 billion in tax revenue.
"The governor has been very vocal for higher education," Brown's spokesperson Elizabeth Ashford said.
"(Brown) had a $26 billion deficit when he came in and he ran on and was elected to fix the budget," she said.
CSU tuition and fees were increased twice for the 2011-12 year by 10 and 12 percent, respectively, resulting in a 23 percent total increase in fees from 2010-11, costing students $5,472 for the 2011-12 year. UC regents also approved a 9.6 percent tuition increase, costing students an average $13,000 per year to attend.
The increases in tuition, Fallis said, are an attempt to ease the three-quarter-billion dollars in cuts the CSUs could face in 2011-12.
"Of the $650 million, $400 million in cuts are offset by reductions and spending," he said. The other $250 million is being made up in tuition and fee increases.
To compound their problems, UC and CSU enrollment continues to rise and students are being served without funding.
The CSUs will also have to serve 10,000 fewer students as a result of the reductions, which could hurt more as a result of the possible trigger cut.
This cut would come mid-year and do twice the damage, Fallis said.
Instead of a $50 million cut per semester, he said, $100 million cut at the same time would double the impact. The cut will affect students accepted in the spring semester, mostly transfer students, and does not leave a lot of leeway for enrollment ahead of time.
"Cuts in December impact January," he said. "It makes it all that much more complicated."
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
For the first time in California's history, public four-year universities will receive more money from student tuition and fees than from the state's general fund allocations for the 2011-12 year.
Student fee increases of about 10 percent, approved by both the University of California and CSU systems, and similar reductions in allocations from the Governor's Office will result in a $250 million difference of money from students than the state, a UC spokesman said.
Ricardo Vazquez, of the UC Office of the President, said revenue from student tuition and fees for the upcoming year are expected to reach $2.75 billion while state expenditures will not exceed $2.5 billion.
In the last four years, state funding for the UC system has dropped more than 27 percent, Vazquez said. From $3.25 billion allocated in 2007-08, UC funding dropped to $2.37 billion for 2011-12.
"The problem with numbers is they are sort of a snapshot in time," he said. "In general, student fees are projected to be more than (allocated from state general fund), being higher revenue than $2.37 billion."
Students, in addition to those who crunch these numbers professionally, have noticed the rise in cost.
"It's bullshit," Contra Costa College English major Francis Lopez said. "You're trying to better yourself, especially in this area, and it's hard enough to go to college and they raise prices.
"Most of my friends had to go to work to help their family and they raise tuition on top and it shoots a lot of people's dreams down," he said. "It's just hard for most people to just go to school."
Similarly, CSU will receive nearly equal funding from students and the state this academic year, down since 1998-99 when the state allocated two-thirds of the CSU's funding.
"The state is funding education with half the dollar amount, half of what is needed coming from tuition," CSU media relations specialist Erik Fallis said.
According to figures from the CSU, the state spent $10,930 per student in 1998-99 and the revenue from student fees was $2,572. In 2011-12, the state will spend $6,454 per student and tuition and fees will average $5,517.
"During tuition increases the implication is the driver is the cost and expenditures and that money for education is not spent in an efficient way," Fallis said. "(These numbers) counter that argument."
"The driver of tuition increases is not expenditures," he said. "It is the loss of state support."
State allocations continue to drop as Gov. Jerry Brown cut $650 million from his first general fund budget as governor (during this term) to both the UC and CSU systems with a potential mid-year "trigger" cut of another $100 million to each as well if the state does not reach a goal of $4 billion in tax revenue.
"The governor has been very vocal for higher education," Brown's spokesperson Elizabeth Ashford said.
"(Brown) had a $26 billion deficit when he came in and he ran on and was elected to fix the budget," she said.
CSU tuition and fees were increased twice for the 2011-12 year by 10 and 12 percent, respectively, resulting in a 23 percent total increase in fees from 2010-11, costing students $5,472 for the 2011-12 year. UC regents also approved a 9.6 percent tuition increase, costing students an average $13,000 per year to attend.
The increases in tuition, Fallis said, are an attempt to ease the three-quarter-billion dollars in cuts the CSUs could face in 2011-12.
"Of the $650 million, $400 million in cuts are offset by reductions and spending," he said. The other $250 million is being made up in tuition and fee increases.
To compound their problems, UC and CSU enrollment continues to rise and students are being served without funding.
The CSUs will also have to serve 10,000 fewer students as a result of the reductions, which could hurt more as a result of the possible trigger cut.
This cut would come mid-year and do twice the damage, Fallis said.
Instead of a $50 million cut per semester, he said, $100 million cut at the same time would double the impact. The cut will affect students accepted in the spring semester, mostly transfer students, and does not leave a lot of leeway for enrollment ahead of time.
"Cuts in December impact January," he said. "It makes it all that much more complicated."
Professor returns after heart attack
EDITOR's NOTE: This article originally published in The Advocate on Aug. 31, 2011. To view original post, visit AccentAdvocate.com.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
Joe DeTorres is known in EOPS for remembering the birthdays of staffers he directed more than five years ago.
But in February, those workers feared they would never get another card when the business and real estate department chairperson suffered a heart attack and coma for three weeks.
"It is a miracle, simply a miracle," said Vicki Ferguson, interim dean of student services. "I am so happy to have him back and teaching our future business leaders."
Dr. DeTorres, 64, returned this semester resuming his position as head of the business department after doctors advised him to rest the remainder of the spring semester and summer.
"Joe is the type of person who goes over and above and beyond the call of duty," said Dr. Ollie Bayless-Payne, EOPS coordinator. "We are so grateful he pulled through this and is back on campus again."
Those who interact with DeTorres all say the same thing: he has the largest heart of anyone at Contra Costa College and always puts students first.
"He really has a heart for teaching this profession," business major Lakisha Hill said before class with DeTorres on Monday.
But when DeTorres' heart stopped Feb. 4, his 17 years of helping anyone needing a hand at CCC nearly ceased as well.
"I came home one Friday evening from work and was changing my clothes downstairs, my family was upstairs, and my dog was downstairs and I blacked out," DeTorres said. "No one knew I blacked out. My dog pretty much saved my life."
Maggie, DeTorres' spotted rat terrier, ran up and down the stairs of DeTorres' East County home barking at his wife and three children until they finally discovered him passed out and dialed 911.
"She's a pretty smart dog," DeTorres said with a smile pushing his black and grey beard toward the edges of his face.
Paramedics took DeTorres to two different hospitals, rushing him between intensive care and emergency rooms.
"The doctor on duty was one of the pioneers of the stent (a small mesh tube inserted into arteries)," DeTorres said. "He examined me, brought me in, took me to the emergency room and inserted a stent into my aorta."
DeTorres' pale face brightened as blood circulated through his body and his color came back as the blocked artery cleared.
But he was still in extreme danger.
"I died five times," he said. "Each of the five times I was revived with a defibrillator." The doctors used the electronic device 56 times to reboot his weakened heart.
"All that time in the emergency room I almost didn't make it," DeTorres said. "The doctor told my family to start preparing for the worst because it didn't look good."
All the while his friends and colleagues at CCC were frightened and left in disbelief.
"We were devastated," said Bayless-Payne, who replaced Ferguson, who replaced DeTorres. "How could this happen to such a wonderful person?"
After weeks of comatose and assisted eating and breathing in an Antioch hospital, DeTorres emerged from ICU and non-immediate family members could visit him.
"Even after leaving EOPS, he keeps in touch with EOPS staff and is still a member of the EOPS family," Bayless-Payne said.
"I wanted to see him in the hospital," EOPS programs assistant Sarn Saepharn said, "but he was in ICU and guests were not allowed. Three days later we went."
Saepharn, who met DeTorres in 2004 when he returned from Guam to be EOPS coordinator, said his old boss still had tubes down his throat but smiled and gave his visitors thumbs up when they told him to stay strong and they were praying for him.
After DeTorres spent three weeks and dropped 30 pounds in the hospital, doctors allowed him to return home with no brain damage, but recommended he take it easy for a while.
In addition to taking a leave of absence from teaching for a semester, they advised him to cut back on "all the things I grew up on and love," including bacon, sausage and steak.
They also said he needed to resist an item he made famous during his tenure as EOPS coordinator: doughnuts.
DeTorres began the short-lived tradition in the EOPS Office of Doughnut Friday.
But he eliminated processed sugars from his diet and advocates a healthier lifestyle since his heart attack.
"I tell everyone I know, ‘Watch your diet,'" he said. "People need to pay attention to themselves. Their body will tell them, but often times we ignore our body."
DeTorres' episode was all the more shocking due to his doctor's examination earlier.
"I had no idea it would happen. I felt fit and a physical confirmed it," he said. "Blockages can happen anytime."
While DeTorres recuperated in the hospital and at home, he worried about missing work and his students being left out of the classroom.
He called Linda Armistead in human resources worried he did not have enough sick days or vacation banked to last through his recovery.
But, just as DeTorres put so many before himself, they returned the favor.
"She said, ‘All kinds of people contributed sick days for you.' I was floored," he said. "I didn't realize that was something people did — for me anyway."
It was finally a chance for those he helped to help him.
"He cares more for others over himself," Saepharn said. "He's a caring individual who gave a lot to the program. Students come first, staff comes first."
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
Joe DeTorres is known in EOPS for remembering the birthdays of staffers he directed more than five years ago.
But in February, those workers feared they would never get another card when the business and real estate department chairperson suffered a heart attack and coma for three weeks.
"It is a miracle, simply a miracle," said Vicki Ferguson, interim dean of student services. "I am so happy to have him back and teaching our future business leaders."
Dr. DeTorres, 64, returned this semester resuming his position as head of the business department after doctors advised him to rest the remainder of the spring semester and summer.
"Joe is the type of person who goes over and above and beyond the call of duty," said Dr. Ollie Bayless-Payne, EOPS coordinator. "We are so grateful he pulled through this and is back on campus again."
Those who interact with DeTorres all say the same thing: he has the largest heart of anyone at Contra Costa College and always puts students first.
"He really has a heart for teaching this profession," business major Lakisha Hill said before class with DeTorres on Monday.
But when DeTorres' heart stopped Feb. 4, his 17 years of helping anyone needing a hand at CCC nearly ceased as well.
"I came home one Friday evening from work and was changing my clothes downstairs, my family was upstairs, and my dog was downstairs and I blacked out," DeTorres said. "No one knew I blacked out. My dog pretty much saved my life."
Maggie, DeTorres' spotted rat terrier, ran up and down the stairs of DeTorres' East County home barking at his wife and three children until they finally discovered him passed out and dialed 911.
"She's a pretty smart dog," DeTorres said with a smile pushing his black and grey beard toward the edges of his face.
Paramedics took DeTorres to two different hospitals, rushing him between intensive care and emergency rooms.
"The doctor on duty was one of the pioneers of the stent (a small mesh tube inserted into arteries)," DeTorres said. "He examined me, brought me in, took me to the emergency room and inserted a stent into my aorta."
DeTorres' pale face brightened as blood circulated through his body and his color came back as the blocked artery cleared.
But he was still in extreme danger.
"I died five times," he said. "Each of the five times I was revived with a defibrillator." The doctors used the electronic device 56 times to reboot his weakened heart.
"All that time in the emergency room I almost didn't make it," DeTorres said. "The doctor told my family to start preparing for the worst because it didn't look good."
All the while his friends and colleagues at CCC were frightened and left in disbelief.
"We were devastated," said Bayless-Payne, who replaced Ferguson, who replaced DeTorres. "How could this happen to such a wonderful person?"
After weeks of comatose and assisted eating and breathing in an Antioch hospital, DeTorres emerged from ICU and non-immediate family members could visit him.
"Even after leaving EOPS, he keeps in touch with EOPS staff and is still a member of the EOPS family," Bayless-Payne said.
"I wanted to see him in the hospital," EOPS programs assistant Sarn Saepharn said, "but he was in ICU and guests were not allowed. Three days later we went."
Saepharn, who met DeTorres in 2004 when he returned from Guam to be EOPS coordinator, said his old boss still had tubes down his throat but smiled and gave his visitors thumbs up when they told him to stay strong and they were praying for him.
After DeTorres spent three weeks and dropped 30 pounds in the hospital, doctors allowed him to return home with no brain damage, but recommended he take it easy for a while.
In addition to taking a leave of absence from teaching for a semester, they advised him to cut back on "all the things I grew up on and love," including bacon, sausage and steak.
They also said he needed to resist an item he made famous during his tenure as EOPS coordinator: doughnuts.
DeTorres began the short-lived tradition in the EOPS Office of Doughnut Friday.
But he eliminated processed sugars from his diet and advocates a healthier lifestyle since his heart attack.
"I tell everyone I know, ‘Watch your diet,'" he said. "People need to pay attention to themselves. Their body will tell them, but often times we ignore our body."
DeTorres' episode was all the more shocking due to his doctor's examination earlier.
"I had no idea it would happen. I felt fit and a physical confirmed it," he said. "Blockages can happen anytime."
While DeTorres recuperated in the hospital and at home, he worried about missing work and his students being left out of the classroom.
He called Linda Armistead in human resources worried he did not have enough sick days or vacation banked to last through his recovery.
But, just as DeTorres put so many before himself, they returned the favor.
"She said, ‘All kinds of people contributed sick days for you.' I was floored," he said. "I didn't realize that was something people did — for me anyway."
It was finally a chance for those he helped to help him.
"He cares more for others over himself," Saepharn said. "He's a caring individual who gave a lot to the program. Students come first, staff comes first."
Opinion: Assaults emphasize irrational
EDITOR's NOTE: This article originally published in The Advocate on Aug. 31, 2011. To view original post, visit AccentAdvocate.com.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
People say I talk a lot for a guy who doesn't have a team.
Watching games with friends, I critique players and coaches, but sometimes my friends accuse me of making personal attacks because I have no particular connection to a team for them to criticize.
But what relationship do I have to the San Francisco Giants? Any link is geographical and could be applied to the Oakland Athletics.
I tend to wear a green and gold cap over black and orange because I'm from the East Bay.
But there are fans rooting for the Raiders and simultaneously support the Giants while standing against the Niners and A's.
I don't understand it. I never have been able to "get" fans and probably never will.
They are loyal consumers to a corporation's local affiliate for no reason beyond a favorite player or color.
Fans irrationally invest their emotions into a team while the franchise only cares about ticket prices and hat and jersey sales.
College sports rivalries are somewhat understandable; students spend years of their lives and thousands of dollars on a campus and an attachment grows.
But there is no reason to hate someone because that person decided to go elsewhere.
Furthermore, people throw their lives away for a team to which they have only a limited tie.
Take, for instance, the recent attacks at sporting events.
The assault on Bryan Stow, a 42-year-old Giants' fan beaten into a coma on MLB's Opening Day after an alleged attack by two Los Angeles Dodgers' fans, makes no sense.
Neither does the outbreak of violence at a Battle of the Bay preseason football game between the Oakland Raiders and San Francisco 49ers on Aug. 20 at Candlestick Park, when unbridled fandom resulted in numerous fights and two parking lot shootings.
When these incidents occur, they divert attention from where it should be — the game.
After the shootings, the teams announced the end of the traditional preseason match.
The players and coaches make sports interesting. Seeing the best in the world perform at the highest level is the privilege of watching pro sports.
And, to be candid, the Niners and the Raiders are not world-class organizations these days, making any rationale behind the attacks more unfathomable.
Until these attacks stop, consider me the anti-fan.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
People say I talk a lot for a guy who doesn't have a team.
Watching games with friends, I critique players and coaches, but sometimes my friends accuse me of making personal attacks because I have no particular connection to a team for them to criticize.
But what relationship do I have to the San Francisco Giants? Any link is geographical and could be applied to the Oakland Athletics.
I tend to wear a green and gold cap over black and orange because I'm from the East Bay.
But there are fans rooting for the Raiders and simultaneously support the Giants while standing against the Niners and A's.
I don't understand it. I never have been able to "get" fans and probably never will.
They are loyal consumers to a corporation's local affiliate for no reason beyond a favorite player or color.
Fans irrationally invest their emotions into a team while the franchise only cares about ticket prices and hat and jersey sales.
College sports rivalries are somewhat understandable; students spend years of their lives and thousands of dollars on a campus and an attachment grows.
But there is no reason to hate someone because that person decided to go elsewhere.
Furthermore, people throw their lives away for a team to which they have only a limited tie.
Take, for instance, the recent attacks at sporting events.
The assault on Bryan Stow, a 42-year-old Giants' fan beaten into a coma on MLB's Opening Day after an alleged attack by two Los Angeles Dodgers' fans, makes no sense.
Neither does the outbreak of violence at a Battle of the Bay preseason football game between the Oakland Raiders and San Francisco 49ers on Aug. 20 at Candlestick Park, when unbridled fandom resulted in numerous fights and two parking lot shootings.
When these incidents occur, they divert attention from where it should be — the game.
After the shootings, the teams announced the end of the traditional preseason match.
The players and coaches make sports interesting. Seeing the best in the world perform at the highest level is the privilege of watching pro sports.
And, to be candid, the Niners and the Raiders are not world-class organizations these days, making any rationale behind the attacks more unfathomable.
Until these attacks stop, consider me the anti-fan.
Aid high, growing with debt
EDITOR's NOTE: This article originally published in The Advocate on Aug. 31, 2011. To view original post, visit AccentAdvocate.com.
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
The Financial Aid Office distributed more than $12 million to Contra Costa College students in 2010-11 as the demand for federal aid for education increases, college officials said.
Despite having the lowest number of students in the district, more financial aid passed through CCC than sister schools Los Medanos or Diablo Valley colleges.
"There are more students already here applying for financial aid because of the economy," CCC Financial Aid Manager Viviane LaMothe said. "They cannot deal with it, so they turn to federal funding."
Krista Ducharme, acting district assistant comptroller, said of the $34 million in aid which came through the district last year, with $12.5 million supporting CCC students, $11.3 million went to LMC and $10.6 million through DVC, whose Full-Time Equivalent Students is nearly the same as the other two campuses combined.
The numbers from 2010-11 are a $5 million increase in money across the district from the previous year.
"This suggests an increase in students applying for and getting aid," Ducharme said.
CCC Interim Dean of Student Services Vicki Ferguson said the numbers going through financial aid are "phenomenal."
"With financial aid the nucleus of student services outside of Admissions and Records," Ferguson said, "we're dealing with money and getting it around to get students what they need to support them to be successful."
LaMothe said the volume of students walking through the Student Services Center for aid continues to increase.
"The numbers suggest there are more and more people in economic crisis turning to financial aid," LaMothe said. "It also suggests higher numbers of people coming back to school."
Last year, financial aid supported about 7,000 CCC students, an increase from 5,800 in 2009-10, LaMothe said. In 2010-11, CCC had an FTES of 6,740.
"That is a big, dramatic change," she said.
During this year's late add period, the first two weeks of school, 2,762 students came to the CCC Financial Aid Office, according to SARS data, and nearly 4,400 came in all of August.
LaMothe said these are not all new students to CCC, but veteran students looking for help during the current global recession.
Two hundred more students applied for federal Pell Grants by March than all of the 2009-10 year, LaMothe said.
Pell Grant recipients receive up to $5,500 per school year, do not repay the money and accounted for $10.5 million of the total given to CCC students in 2010-11. The year before that number was $8.8 million.
"There is a greater need to fund federal education expenditures," LaMothe said.
Students receiving federal funding this year will notice two major changes: larger checks sooner and harsher penalties for abusing aid.
The first endowment students receive will be 50 percent of their award for the semester, allowing them to purchase books and supplies sooner. The second check, however, will arrive later than usual.
"It is a way to get more money in the hands of students and keep them in school," LaMothe said. "Students will have to budget money a little more wisely."
Furthermore, the penalty for students receiving federal funding who drop classes before completing 60 percent of the term is paying back the money and losing eligibility for federal aid. The drop dates without federal penalty for 2011-12 are Oct. 27 and March 31.
Students receiving financial assistance within the district need to additionally complete 67 percent of units attempted each semester while maintaining a 2.0 GPA.
The number of applicants and aid dispersed increased in nearly every category of financial aid except for college work study, which decreased from $115,000 to $105,000 over the last two academic years.
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, which serve students with the lowest expected family contribution, delivered $168,000 in aid the last two years to students with exceptional need, but is not available this year as the federal government attempts to reduce SEOGs.
"We are funding programs like prisons, but don't spend tremendous amounts of money on education," LaMothe said. "A switch needs to be flipped. What's important needs to rise to the top."
The trend of students looking for help to pay for books, transportation and housing in addition to tuition and fees, is uniform across the state, LaMothe said, and floods her office.
"It is overwhelming the number of people who apply for federal financial aid," LaMothe said. "We are understaffed and overwhelmed. We close Fridays and are doing nothing but processing all student files."
"They go over and above what I witness," said Ferguson, who worked in the same area with financial aid in the SSC as EOPS director before her promotion to interim dean in the spring. "They get students paid so they can stay in school with a limited staff.
"At the end of the day, students are why we're here and we haven't forgotten that," she said. "It would be a huge problem if we ever forget that."
By Brett Abel, brettsabel@gmail.com
The Financial Aid Office distributed more than $12 million to Contra Costa College students in 2010-11 as the demand for federal aid for education increases, college officials said.
Despite having the lowest number of students in the district, more financial aid passed through CCC than sister schools Los Medanos or Diablo Valley colleges.
"There are more students already here applying for financial aid because of the economy," CCC Financial Aid Manager Viviane LaMothe said. "They cannot deal with it, so they turn to federal funding."
Krista Ducharme, acting district assistant comptroller, said of the $34 million in aid which came through the district last year, with $12.5 million supporting CCC students, $11.3 million went to LMC and $10.6 million through DVC, whose Full-Time Equivalent Students is nearly the same as the other two campuses combined.
The numbers from 2010-11 are a $5 million increase in money across the district from the previous year.
"This suggests an increase in students applying for and getting aid," Ducharme said.
CCC Interim Dean of Student Services Vicki Ferguson said the numbers going through financial aid are "phenomenal."
"With financial aid the nucleus of student services outside of Admissions and Records," Ferguson said, "we're dealing with money and getting it around to get students what they need to support them to be successful."
LaMothe said the volume of students walking through the Student Services Center for aid continues to increase.
"The numbers suggest there are more and more people in economic crisis turning to financial aid," LaMothe said. "It also suggests higher numbers of people coming back to school."
Last year, financial aid supported about 7,000 CCC students, an increase from 5,800 in 2009-10, LaMothe said. In 2010-11, CCC had an FTES of 6,740.
"That is a big, dramatic change," she said.
During this year's late add period, the first two weeks of school, 2,762 students came to the CCC Financial Aid Office, according to SARS data, and nearly 4,400 came in all of August.
LaMothe said these are not all new students to CCC, but veteran students looking for help during the current global recession.
Two hundred more students applied for federal Pell Grants by March than all of the 2009-10 year, LaMothe said.
Pell Grant recipients receive up to $5,500 per school year, do not repay the money and accounted for $10.5 million of the total given to CCC students in 2010-11. The year before that number was $8.8 million.
"There is a greater need to fund federal education expenditures," LaMothe said.
Students receiving federal funding this year will notice two major changes: larger checks sooner and harsher penalties for abusing aid.
The first endowment students receive will be 50 percent of their award for the semester, allowing them to purchase books and supplies sooner. The second check, however, will arrive later than usual.
"It is a way to get more money in the hands of students and keep them in school," LaMothe said. "Students will have to budget money a little more wisely."
Furthermore, the penalty for students receiving federal funding who drop classes before completing 60 percent of the term is paying back the money and losing eligibility for federal aid. The drop dates without federal penalty for 2011-12 are Oct. 27 and March 31.
Students receiving financial assistance within the district need to additionally complete 67 percent of units attempted each semester while maintaining a 2.0 GPA.
The number of applicants and aid dispersed increased in nearly every category of financial aid except for college work study, which decreased from $115,000 to $105,000 over the last two academic years.
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, which serve students with the lowest expected family contribution, delivered $168,000 in aid the last two years to students with exceptional need, but is not available this year as the federal government attempts to reduce SEOGs.
"We are funding programs like prisons, but don't spend tremendous amounts of money on education," LaMothe said. "A switch needs to be flipped. What's important needs to rise to the top."
The trend of students looking for help to pay for books, transportation and housing in addition to tuition and fees, is uniform across the state, LaMothe said, and floods her office.
"It is overwhelming the number of people who apply for federal financial aid," LaMothe said. "We are understaffed and overwhelmed. We close Fridays and are doing nothing but processing all student files."
"They go over and above what I witness," said Ferguson, who worked in the same area with financial aid in the SSC as EOPS director before her promotion to interim dean in the spring. "They get students paid so they can stay in school with a limited staff.
"At the end of the day, students are why we're here and we haven't forgotten that," she said. "It would be a huge problem if we ever forget that."
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