Former 49er great inspires the boys at Orin Allen Youth Rehabilitation Facility

Mr. Cacciaroni (left) with Keena Turner.

As he stood alone, in front of an audience of 100 boys at the Orin Allen Youth Rehabilitation Facility, quietly nodding and smiling back to the audience who were settling into their chairs, former San Francisco 49er football star Keena Turner patiently waited for his introduction.  These moments of anticipation were followed by an impressive hour and a half of speaker and audience engagement.  This past Tuesday’s presentation was so successful, everyone was shocked by how fast the time flew by.

Now at age 53, Turner still looked like he could make the key tackles on Sundays like he did back in the 1980s.  Though speaking in a gentle and positive manner, it was obvious his words meant quite a bit to the young men, as well as the facility’s attending guards, teachers, and administrators.  The former All-Pro linebacker told the boys, “Life is about chasing goals, and I know many of you have goals right now, here in this facility.  Just remember, there will be challenges that act as roadblocks to you achieving your positive goals, but you need to break through them.  You are all at the beginning of your life journey, and that journey starts with you—right now.”

Contra Costa County Office of Education (CCCOE) teacher Allan “Mr. C” Cacciaroni, who teaches at Delta Vista High School, a CCCOE school that provides state-accredited education to the resident youth inside the rehabilitation facility, brought Turner out to give the boys the inspirational presentation.  “The boys really love hearing from these speakers.”  It was obvious, the way Turner had the entire audience’s attention.  “They showed Mr. Turner lots of respect by listening so intently.”  Through the years, “Mr. C” has brought in additional inspirational presenters to speak to the boys, including other grid-iron greats, such as Ronnie Lott, Eason Ramson, and Bennie Blades. 

Turner, who earned four Super Bowl rings during his eleven seasons with the 49ers, was kind enough to hand out two of them for all the boys to hold, try on, and marvel at.  “I am very happy to have those rings and other accolades that my team and I accomplished, but I’m more proud of the college degree I earned,” said Turner.  Before his pro career, Turner attended Perdue University, where he majored in physical education – though he did not finish his degree.  “After my playing days, I went straight back to college, and earned my BS degree in organizational behavior, at the University of San Francisco.  “Let me tell you guys, I keep my Super Bowl rings in my sock drawer, but I have my college diploma hanging up on a wall in my house.”

Turner talked about his current life: father of three, an active volunteer for the Boys & Girls Club, and his job as vice president of football affairs with the San Francisco 49ers.  He also talked about his younger days, before the 49ers, his childhood, high school football, growing up in Chicago, and attending Perdue University.

Throughout the majority of the morning, Turner answered numerous diverse questions: How much money did he make while playing?  Who was the hardest hitter on the team? Did he get in trouble as a young man?  Who was the most difficult player to tackle?  Did he do drugs?  Was he related to Tina Turner?  It was interesting how many questions were asked about players that Turner played with or against whose careers were well over before these young men were even born.

Before leaving, Turner reminded the boys to set and achieve their goals for a better life, and to start their positive journeys immediately.  It was certainly heartening to the popular speaker as many of the boys nodded back in agreement.

Gardens Abound at County Office of Education Sites

When you look at the impressive activity and bounty in the COE's gardens, it's obvious that spring is here with summer right on its heels! Recently, we had a chance to visit the bustling gardens growing on our education sites: O'Hara Park Middle School (Oakley), Liberty High (Brentwood), Turner School (Pittsburg), Mauzy School (Alamo), and Delta Vista High School at the Orin Allen Youth Rehabilitation Facility (Byron). Here's a brief crop report:

O'Hara Park Middle: Brian Brady, SMH teacher, recently applied for, and was awarded, a grant for $1,200 from the California Fertilizer Foundation. Pam Emery, representative of the Foundation, presented Brian and his class with a check, a shovel, a Home Depot gift card, and a supply of fertilizer to get their garden started. This grant will help fund a planned multi-layered campus learning garden. Plans for the garden include fruit trees, shrubs, fast-growing fruit vines, bulbs, and flowers. The garden, and its student-learning activities, will support facets of the school's curriculum on a daily basis. 

Above, Brian Brady and Sean hold the grant check presented by the CA Fertilizer Foundation.



Liberty Transition students, Christine (left), Jonny (center) with Instructional Assistant (IA) Cheri Aranda, and David (above), love their work in the Liberty garden.

Brian Brady plans to consult with James Koch, CBI teacher at Liberty High, on their new garden. Liberty is home to the first COE garden. Named in honor of former East County Student Programs Principal Evelyn LaTorre, the Liberty garden is a beautiful site to see, featuring fruit trees, flowers, and many types of vegetables. James holds a degree in conservation of natural resources with an emphasis on native flora of California, and brings a wealth of knowledge to the program. 


Left, Turner IA, Marlene Laisure, shows Malik the chard before the harvest. Teacher's assistant and volunteer, Harland (standing), from Sue Madole's Antioch CBI class, helps Sam with the hand trowel in preparation to plant their spring veggies.



Turner School: Last year, Turner's garden project got off the ground with the help of Augie Marabuto of General Services, and Eloise Lovelace of Pittsburg CBI. Augie built the handicapped-accessible raised garden beds, and Eloise helped with raising garden donations. All of the classrooms at Turner participate in the garden, planting, weeding, and harvesting the bounty of vegetables which are enjoyed by students in the classroom, as well as the students' families and staff members. This year's winter garden included chard, spinach, cilantro, peas, cauliflower, broccoli, lettuce, and onions. "We are currently planting our spring and summer veggies," said Marleen Laisure, instructional assistant in Robert Keller's SMH class. "We look forward to enjoying tomatoes, carrots, bell peppers, string beans, and cucumbers with our students this season." 



Mauzy School: "Dave Verdin, our facilities worker, has worked very hard on the garden to get it ready for this season's planting," reports Paula Ramsey, office assistant at the school. "The tomatoes are in and we will be growing zucchini, beans, and herbs this season." MaryAnn Purcell's class is very involved in working the garden, as it is located right outside her classroom. 



Delta Vista High School (DVHS): Students at DVHS are also learning gardening skills in their huge on-site garden. Annually, the Discovery Bay Garden Club collaborates with the school to provide plants for the garden. In addition, the club works closely with the boys in the garden. "There is a therapeutic aspect woven into their work with our students," said Lynette Martelle, instructional assistant at Delta Vista. "The volunteers teach the students how to love and nurture the plants, flowers, and vegetables. The hope is that the boys will learn gentleness and nurturing skills that they can apply to their life." Lynette shares that many of her students have benefited from their time in the garden. Their comments have included, "I love working in the garden... when I go home maybe I can help my grandma in her garden." Others have said, "I am going to have a garden and do this at my home. This will keep me busy, focused, and out of trouble." The harvested vegetables from the garden are taken to the kitchen for all of the residents and staff members on site to enjoy.


We wish all of our sites a bountiful harvest this season!