VENTURA

Homeless group needs donation of truck or van

The River Haven tent community in Ventura is seeking a donated truck or van for a new recycling program.

A self-governed drug- and alcohol-free community created in 2004 for homeless individuals, River Haven is working with restaurants at the Ventura Harbor to better recycle used items, enabling the campers to earn money for personal expenses.

The group is looking for a truck or van in good running condition that can tow a trailer to haul goods to area recycling centers. Anyone with a vehicle to donate can call Jane Lax at Turning Point Foundation at 652-0596, ext. 831.

VENTURA COUNTY

Community colleges accepting fall registration

Registration is still open for fall semester classes at Moorpark, Oxnard and Ventura colleges.

Students can apply and register online or in person.

Deadline for full-semester classes is Aug. 31.

Most classes begin Aug. 20, but others start later in the fall. The colleges offer online courses, one-day seminars and weekend classes as well as traditional classes.

Several new courses will be offered this fall.

Ventura College has Hiking for Fitness, Conversational Japanese and Tai Chi, among others.

Oxnard College will have new online courses, including College Composition, Elementary Spanish and Introduction to Sociology.

A list of classes is available online at www.moorparkcollege.edu, www.oxnardcollege.edu and www.venturacollege.edu.

Fees are $20 per unit for in-state students. California high school students do not pay enrollment fees.

Annual release of Lake Piru water pushed ahead

The annual release of water from Lake Piru into the Santa Clara River starts Monday, a few weeks ahead of the normal schedule.

The release is being moved up from its usual time, after Labor Day, to do some work on the Santa Felicia Dam.

The lake level must be dropped 50 feet by October to do the repairs.

There will still be plenty of water for fishing and boating, officials said.

The release turns the normally slow moving Santa Clara River into a bona fide waterway, where 250 cubic feet of water per second travels downstream.

The release is most noticeable between the dam and the Freeman Diversion in Saticoy, where the water is diverted to recharge groundwater supplies.

Newbury Park

Electronic waste disposal planned

Businesses and individuals who need to dispose of electronic items like televisions, computers, printers, monitors, and microwave ovens can drop them off Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at a free electronic waste disposal event in Newbury Park.

The e-waste event will be held near the old Home Depot parking lot just south of the corner of Ventu Park Road and Hillcrest Drive.

Gold Coast Recycling will recycle the e-waste, with money raised going to support Many Motors.

Established in 2000, Many Motors serves Ventura County's low-income population by providing affordable vehicles to individuals and families in need. For more information, go to www.ManyMotors.org.

California law now prohibits the disposal of electronic waste in refuse or recycling containers. Gold Coast staff members will be on hand to unload electronic equipment for recycling.

Call 201-7905 for more information.

THOUSAND OAKS

Many Mansions gets homework-help grant

Target has given a $2,000 charitable grant to Many Mansions to fund its After-School Homework Literacy Program.

Many Mansions, a nonprofit organization, provides affordable housing for more than 1,300 residents in Ventura County. The After-School Homework Literacy Program helps children from 5 to 18 with school projects, daily homework, and one-on-one tutoring.

Target provides 5 percent of its income to organizations supporting education, the arts and safe families and communities.

VENTURA COUNTY

Habitat seeks helpers to plan events

Habitat for Humanity of Ventura County is seeking volunteers for its Special Events Team.

The team will work with Habitat volunteers and staff to plan events for the organization.

People who are interested in affordable housing and are skilled at planning parties and events are encouraged to join.

For information, call Karen Jensen at 485-6065, ext. 102.

Museum to feature Victorian clothing

The Museum of Ventura County will present "The Victorian Strip: Corsets, Bustles, and Hoops — Oh My!" at 2 p.m. Aug. 25.

Performers Dorothea Phelan and Joyce Nielsen will reveal secrets of Victorian clothing, such as what women wore under their attire and how they made their waists look smaller. Historian Glenda Jackson will present women's intimate accessories from the 1860s to the 1920s.

Two related exhibits, "All in the Details: 100 Years of Fashion Accessories" and "Neal Barr: An Eye for Fashion," will also be on display.

The price of the event is included in museum admission, which is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors, $1 for children, and free to members and children under 6.Reservations are required. RSVP to 653-0323, ext. 10.

MOORPARK

College holding freshman orientation

Moorpark College will hold its second annual Freshman Orientation/Social from 2 to 5 p.m. Aug. 16.

The college's 4,500 freshmen are invited to the event, which will include campus tours and opportunities to talk to the faculty and purchase school supplies.

The social is sponsored by the Admissions/Outreach Office and Associated Students at Moorpark College.

For information call 378-1409 or e-mail mcoutreach@vccccd.edu.

SANTA PAULA

Thomas Aquinas plans convocation

The Rev. Robert C. Morlino will preside over convocation ceremonies welcoming new and returning students at Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula on Aug. 20.

The day will begin with a Mass of the Holy Spirit at which Bishop Morlino will be the principal celebrant and homilist.

During the ceremony, President Thomas E. Dillon will welcome the freshmen and address the entire student body, after which new students can greet the president and bishop to formally enroll at the college by signing the school's registry.

Also during the ceremony, Dr. Anthony Andres, a newly appointed member of the teaching faculty, will make a profession of faith and take the oath of fidelity, in keeping with Pope Benedict XVI's desire that Catholic teachers make a public statement of their intention to maintain fidelity to the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church.

A graduate of the college's class of 1987, Andres obtained a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, where he also served as a philosophy instructor. He was then appointed to the faculty at Christendom College in Virginia, where he has taught for the past 14 years.

— From staff reports