VA Oceanside Clinic - Oceanside, CA, USA

A part of the VA (Veterans Administration) San Diego Healthcare System, the Oceanside Clinic was opened on May 18, 2010.  At 66,465 square feet and two stories this clinic is able to provide outpatient services for up to 88,000 visits per year.

Located at 1300 Rancho Del Oro Drive.

Veterans Memorial - Escondido, CA, USA

"MEMORIES

OF THEIR DEEDS

FADE AWAY,

BUT THEIR GLORY

NEVER"

IN MEMORY

OF

AMERICA'S

DEFENDERS

Wherever they

may rest

Located in Oak Hill Memorial Park, in front of the cemetery office, at 2640 Glenridge Road.

SunPower Solar Power System - Fallbrook, CA, USA

Located at the Fallbrook Public Utility District's wastewater treatment plant this solar panel project covers 8 acres.  The 2700 solar panels are expected to generate 2.4 million kilo-watt hours of energy, supplying the treatment plant with 70 percent of its energy.  Programed to tilt up to 45 degrees the panels track the Sun's movement from east to west throughout the day and provide approximately the same energy as 5000 fixed panels.  The project was dedicated in a ceremony held on June 7, 2011.

Located just to the south of 1425 Alturas Road.

Eastside Community Garden - Oceanside, CA, USA

With 53 plots this is the largest of the Community Gardens in Oceanside.  It is located on city-owned land that will one day be the location of low-income housing.  At that time the garden will be relocated.

Located on the 300 block of North Weitzel Street at the intersection of Pier View Way (formerly Fourth Street).  The garden is on the northeast corner and is bordered on the east by Interstate 5.

Happy Mothers Day Mural - Escondido, CA, USA

This mural in honor of Mothers Day 2013 is signed by artist Zane.  Photographed on May 3, 2013, it was located on the west exterior wall of Rosemary Duff Florist.

Located at 101 West 2nd Avenue, next to the parking lot.

Charles Hatfield House - Valley Center, CA, USA

This house, thought to have been built circa 1920,  is believed to have been occupied for a time by Charles Hatfield.  In 1916 the City of San Diego hired local rainmaker Charles Hatfield to produce rain.  A resident of San Diego County, Mr. Hatfield had been known to experiment in rainmaking by burning chemicals from the tops of towers.  Whether Charles Hatfield actually produced rain or if it was just a coincidence will probably never be known, but the ensuing rainstorm washed out roads, bridges and dams and resulted in multiple deaths not only in San Diego but throughout all of southern California.  The movie, The Rainmaker, starring Burt Lancaster is a fictionalized account of the incident.

No proof exists that Charles Hatfield actually lived in this house, but old stories and local legends seem to indicate that he burned chemicals from a tower on this property and, although he was not the owner, he did live briefly in the house.  According to a recorded  interview he did state that he had lived in Valley Center.

The house has been unoccupied and deteriorating for years and the property has been sold.  A commercial development called Hatfield Corners is planned at the location.  During the week of April 21, 2013 the house was demolished, and on Sunday, April 28, no trace of it remains.  The landowner had offered to let anyone who was willing to pay to have the house moved off the property to have it, but after several months there were no takers.

In the 1960s my step-grandparents lived in Valley Center and we drove out there several times a month.  This house was always a "landmark" for me on those drives.  It was situated up an embankment and that great porch overlooked the main road.  It has only been in the last few years that I heard of the Charles Hatfield connection, and I will miss seeing this house and the memories it brings.

Formerly located on the west side of Valley Center Road at the intersection of Woods Valley Road.

Fire Station #7 - Oceanside, CA, USA

Oceanside's Fire Station #7 opened in July of 2008.  It features a Mission style design complimenting Mission San Luis Rey not far to its east.  This station serves the western San Luis Rey Valley area.

Located at 3350 Mission Avenue, just east of Foussat Street and south of the 76 Expressway.