Mount Helix Patch 2011 Year in Review

It was a big year for Mount Helix Patch. We published more than 2,000 articles in 2011 and further tried to entrench ourselves as your "go-to" source for news about Mount Helix, Spring Valley, and Casa de Oro.

Some of the stories were fun, some were tragic. Some were uplifting, and some were important. Having to pick through and pick out some favorites was a daunting task, but alas, we've done it.

Here is a list of the stories that kept us busy, and had you talking, month-by-month in 2011.

Thanks for letting us become an integral part of your community, and we look forward to an even better 2012!

January

The new year began with tragic news, as on January 2, the body of Michael Cour and his wife were found burned in their Santee home. It was learned later that Cour, who was a 1968 graduate of Helix High School, and a former track coach at Mount Miguel High School, had perpetrated a murder-suicide, shooting his wife and burning their house to the ground.

February

Months of planning and preparations came to fruition in mid-February, when hundreds of volunteers pitched in to build a brand-new playground at the Spring Valley-East Communities Center. Patch was there to lend a helping hand as well, as they teamed up with Kaboom!, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Spring Valley Youth and Family Coalition, San Diego Youth Services, and the La Mesa-Spring Valley School District, who made it all possible. To date, the playground is used daily, and has helped enrich the lives of kids and families in the community.

March

In the community's most bizarre story of the year, Domingos Oliveira, a Spring Valley man, was arrested and charged with putting out a "dead or alive" bounty on the boyfriend of his daughter. Oliveira posted fliers on the campus of Grossmont College, where the daughter went to school, offering $3,000 to anyone who could bring in the boyfriend, a registered sex offender. He was convicted in July on charges of solicitation of murder, and sentenced to seven years, four months in federal prison on Aug. 1

April

The Helix Water District passed a controversial new "pension reform" plan that had been chided by the general public and watchdog tax advocacy groups for months. In a 4-1 vote, the new MOU was approved by the board. The plan that would increase employee contributions to their pension system to 2 percent in 2011-12, and 4 percent in the years thereafter. It also calls for a 2 percent cost of living increase. The move was called "ridiculous," "a charade," and "only token changes" by angry ratepayers.

May

Another bizarre tale ensued in May, when it was learned that Sharlotte Hydorn, a 91-year-old El Cajon woman, owned and operated a company called The Gladd Group, which sold plastic bags, helium tanks and medical tubing online, for the purpose of self-asphyxiation. Hydorn claims the "suicide kits" are intended for terminally ill patients, but she caught fire from an Oregon legislator when one of her kits was used by a man to kill himself. He was not terminally ill. The Gladd Group uses a postal address on Avocado Boulevard in Mt. Helix. Feds raided Hydorn's home in late May, and in December she plead guilty to failing to file a tax return. As of now, she faces no criminal charges for selling the kits.

June

In a touching reunion, Grant Fleener of Spring Valley, met the men and women who helped save his life after he collapsed while jogging on Sweetwater Springs Boulevard six weeks prior, a victim of cardiac arrest.

July

It was ruled that a Mt. Helix man's anti-Obama rant was not deemed a threat to life, but rather free speech, by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. A divided three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Walter Edward Bagdasarian’s writings threatening Obama were “repugnant'” but not criminal.

August

More contentious decisions from local water agencies followed in August, when the Otay Water District board approved a controversial "lifetime benefits" package for its employees, despite vitriolic opposition from hundreds of angry ratepayers, and more than 20 speaking against the plan at the agency's public meeting.

September

As a tribute to the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Spring Valley resident Mitch Mendel started The Patriot Flag Project, which flew a giant American flag in 50 states in 50 weeks, including in New York City on Sunday, September 11, 2011. The flag was flown in Rancho San Diego a few days before it left for the East Coast.

October

Thousands attended the 2nd Annual Spring Valley Tailgate and BBQ Festival in mid-October. The event was a wildly successful follow-up to last year's inaugural festival. More than $3,000 was raised in support of youth sports in Spring Valley, and more than a dozen local BBQ teams competed for the top 'cue crown.

November

After 14 years, a long proposed new sheriff's station in Rancho San Diego is one more step closer to completion, after ground was broken for the new $17.5 million facility in November. The facility will be an epicenter for deputies who work several areas of East County, including Spring Valley, Casa de Oro, Lemon Grove, Mt. Helix, Jamul, Rancho San Diego and unincorporated parts of La Mesa and El Cajon, serving about 100,000 people who live in these areas.

December

About 100 third grade students at Bancroft Elementary received an amazing pre-Christmas surprise, when they were all given free bicycles, courtesy of Bikes for Kids, a local non-profit group. Mount Helix Patch was there when the curtain was pulled back, revealing the shiny new presents.

As you can see, it was a full year. Those are just a small sample of the stories that we've done for you, the reader, in our communities. Please continue to check in with us, engage with the site, and send those story tips to mounthelix@patch.com. Tell us what stories you enjoyed in our comments section, and what kinds of stories you want to see more of in 2012.

Have a safe and Happy New Year!