Monthly Archives: January, 2022

This past week I received a text from a friend - “Did you hear the news - Betty White just passed away?” We texted back and forth a few times about the passing of this remarkable comedian/actress who was just weeks shy of her 100th birthday. It seems that almost everybody loved Betty. From her work on The Mary Tyler Moore Show to The Golden Girls, Betty was always a hit. She lived an incredible life, working until the end. She once even remarked, “Why retire from something if you’re loving and enjoying it so much? What would I do with myself?” One of her long-time friends even referred to her as a “national treasure.”

Mt. San Jacinto College (MSJC) will open its free COVID-19 testing sites to the public this week. The three testing sites at the San Jacinto, Menifee Valley and Temecula Valley campuses are open this week from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday and then 7 a.m. to noon Friday. Next week, the testing sites will be open to the public from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. MSJC contracts with Virus Geeks to offer the free testing service.

Call it a late Christmas present or a “Happy New Year” gift, but four local educators are celebrating their random selection as recipients of CalRTA Division 33’s $100 Teacher Grants. Division 33 of the California Retired Teachers Association conducts random drawings five times each year, awarding 3-4 $100 teacher grant checks to local teachers who complete the short application, no strings attached, via an online form they receive in their school email inbox or by accessing a link on the CalRTA Division 33 website or Facebook page. Chauntai Marchal, a TK (transitional kindergarten) teacher at Ramona Elementary School in Hemet, says, “My students love dramatic play.” She plans to purchase “more toys such as dress up clothes and a pretend cash register for them to play with.

Season One of the 2022 Tribute Mania Concert Series continues on Saturday January 22nd with a Tribute to Prince, performed by Prince Again. This group is the world’s #1 Prince tribute band and local fans have been anxiously awaiting this first appearance at HHT. Tickets have been selling fast, but are expected to still be available on day of show.

When am I contagious if infected with omicron? It’s not yet clear, but some early data suggests people might become contagious sooner than with earlier variants — possibly within a day after infection.