Cub Scouts Gather For Day Camp Fun

Practicing Scouting skills, playing games and generally having a great time, more than 50 boys gathered at the Riverbank Community Park over the past week in a Cub Olympics day camp.

Nuts Rank As Valuable County Crop

Nut farmers like Doug Ott and Dale Van Groningen of Oakdale don't seem to do it for the money – they call it fun – but they and growers like them produce the second most valuable agricultural crop in Stanislaus County.

ROTA Service Seeks Merger With County Transit System

Riverbank Oakdale Transit Authority directors have decided to merge their system with Stanislaus Regional Transit (StaRT) and have the county take over administration of the public bus program that has served the two cities since 1993.

Ramblings - Thoughts On A Diamond Jubilee

Why just because I was born and raised in England I should be considered an expert on English life and customs and especially its monarchy I have never been able to understand.

TV Host Presents Mini Gardens

Television gardening host Arlena Schott and Jeremie Miniatures brought the "Magic of Miniature Gardening" to local enthusiasts at the P&L Concrete and Garden Center in Escalon on May 15.

Chocolate Games

Youngsters and the young at heart who love being daubed with chocolate, sinking their face into a custard pie or nosing for candy in a plate of whipped cream may want to visit the Chocolate Challenge Stage this weekend. A perennially popular feature of the annual Oakdale Chocolate Festival, the stage is slated to be set up next to the Chase Bank at West F Street and Yosemite Avenue in an area fenced ...

Condit Campaigns For Congress

Congressional candidate Chad Condit (Independent -10th District) was walking precincts in Oakdale during the past week and spreading the word that most of what is wrong with Washington is caused by partisan gridlock and the best way to end partisanship is to elect independent candidates who are not bound to either the Republicans or the Democrats.

ROTA Eyes County System

Riverbank Oakdale Transit Authority directors on April 10 again discussed the public bus system's failure to meet state funding requirements by recovering at least 10 percent of their costs in fares and talked about possible options such as handing over its operation to Stanislaus County Regional Transit.

Carving A Niche – Part II - Shoe Repair Business Flourishes During Recession

Entering the shoe and boot repair business when he was 14, Javier "Harvey" Melgoza of Harvey's Shoe Repair in Oakdale has spent almost 40 years practicing the trade and still likes his work.

Ramblings - Save Us From Telephone Solicitors

May the Good Lord preserve and keep us from telephone solicitors - please. It isn't bad enough the mail carrier stuffs my letterbox with advertisements and invitations to buy everything from bathroom tissue to pink elephants. They go, mostly unopened, into the kitchen garbage can and from there to swell a county garbage dump with useless paper. The waste is ferocious. That accompanies the daily task of separating gaily-colored ads from the newspaper's reading material ...

Oakdale Incident Prompts Rehab For Councilman

Embattled Riverbank City Councilmember Jesse James White failed to appear at the Feb. 27 council meeting after his arrest in Oakdale a week before on charges of felony driving under the influence and child endangerment and renewed calls for his resignation from the council.

ROTA Incurs Financial Penalty

Riverbank Oakdale Transit Authority has incurred a $14,000 penalty for failing to meet the 10 percent fare box ratio of the state's funding for operating the public bus system, ROTA Coordinator Donna Bridges reported in her memo to the board that met yesterday, Feb. 14. This amount is due in the 2013-2014 fiscal year and is an approximate amount depending on how service improves in the fiscal year 2012-2013. The penalty can ...

Ramblings - Jumping The (Shopping) Gun

Black Friday has come and gone but it roused more emotions this year because many stores decided to jump the gun and start their sales at midnight on Thanksgiving Day instead of some ungodly hour the next morning.

Riverbank Bicycle Ride Expects 350 Participants

Several hundred bicyclists are expected to stream out of Riverbank High School on Sunday, Oct. 9 for rides through the farmlands and grasslands to the Sierra Nevada foothills as part of the Riverbank Cheese & Wine Exposition.

Rotary Introduces Changes For Expo

The street fair and festival combo known as the Riverbank Cheese & Wine Exposition will return to the downtown area on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 8 and 9 with a few tweaks made by the sponsoring Riverbank Rotary Club to an event that has proved hugely successful year after year.

Ramblings – This Scribbler Calls It Quits

Resigning from any job is bound to quicken the heartbeat but retiring from a career is downright frightening. I did just that at the end of November although I've been on medical leave since August.

Downtown Cowboy Bar Preps For Rodeo