Have you seen 8-year-old Sandra Cantu?

Sandra Cantu, an 8-year-old girl from Tracy, has been missing since Friday night, March 27, 2009.

Sandra is 4 feet tall and weighs 45 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a pink Hello Kitty T-shirt and black leggings. She was reported missing at 7:53 p.m. Friday, and a search was started 15 minutes later.

The Tracy Police Department has set up a mobile command post on West Clover Road as a helicopter searches the area. Sandra was supposed to be at a friend's house in the Orchard Estates mobile home park where she lives, but she wasn't found there. Police searched all night.

The FBI, California Highway Patrol, San Joaquin Sheriff's Office, Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office, Tracy Volunteers in Police Services, Tracy Community Emergency Response Team, Tracy Fire Department and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children are helping in the investigation.

Anyone with information that would be helpful in the investigation is asked to call the Tracy police at 831-4550 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678.

Sandra is a Jacobson Elementary School second-grader. The search for her hasn't let up. "We're turning over everything we can," Sgt. Tony Sheneman said during a 5 p.m. press conference. "We'll keep going until we find out she's safe."

The eight-year-old is the daughter of Maria Chavez and Danny Cantu. Sgt. Sheneman said there are no indications that the girl has been harmed. Registered sexual offenders who live in the area have been interviewed, and surveillance cameras at the nearby hotels show nothing suspicious.

Danny Cantu, Sandra's father, is believed to be in Mexico, and Sheneman said he isn't considered a kidnapping suspect. "The mother said he hasn't been involved in the family for a long time," he said.

The Tracy CERT team will be coordinating volunteers to help in the search. We will be at the Fire Admin Bldg on Central Ave beginning at 8am on Sunday. These volunteers will be going door to door, handing out fliers. Again, anyone who has information that would be helpful in finding Sandra is asked to call the police department at 831-4550 or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678.

It's my right

Many times, a person's opinion about a particular subject can be shaped or changed when the issue hits close to home. In an effort to put a more personal spin on an upcoming California ballot initiative, you should know that support of Proposition 8 would directly hurt several people in your own community.

I'm one of those people, the neighbor who has worked hard and given my own time and money to help keep you and your families safe, to make our community a better and safer place to live.

Proposition 8 would take away my fundamental civil rights and would legitimize discrimination in the California constitution.

I believe that everyone in the Alden Park area should be treated with dignity and respect and that each of us should be afforded the same civil rights, regardless of age, gender, faith, race, or political belief. Don't you?

I also feel that because of this, it is my duty to urge you to vote NO on Prop. 8.

As the volunteer who created and maintains this website, it is my right to do so on this blog. Some of you may not agree. Deal with it.

In memoriam...

More than 30 residents of the Alden Park community came out at 8:00pm tonight to remember and honor the life of Steven Klent.

We were joined by Steve's father Jim, his mother Alice, and his sister Suzanne, and together we took the next steps in healing our hearts and our lives, following Steve's death on September 9, 2007.

Rest in peace, Steve. Your life made a difference.

__________________________________

To read the article in The Tracy Press on our event and the life and troubled times of Steven Klent, click here.

Later Sunday afternoon...

Officer Rose responds:

I received this e-mail and was unhappy you were not told what we can do. The dispatcher was right; it doesn't have any evidential value at this point, but we can put a "72 hour" notice on the vehicle, and if it isn't moved in that time period, it will be towed.

You are very right we are in this together, and I am here to help where ever I can. Please call me anytime you have a question.

Your Crime Prevention Officer,
Irene T. Rose

Drive-by shooting in our neighborhood?!

Has anyone else seen the black Acura Legend automobile, California license place 2PRM997, parked on Beechnut Avenue at the corner of Sequoia Boulevard?

I suppose you can't miss it, with the back window smashed out and the series of BULLET HOLES along the driver's side. The car was reported to the Tracy Police Department last night, with a promise from them to call back, but no call came. (Some of you would say, "As usual...") Another call to the police this morning confirmed that the car has apparently been sitting there FOR OVER A WEEK in its current condition, and it may have been shot up as it sat at the curb!

One would think that such a vehicle would be impounded as part of a crime scene investigation, but apparently, that's not happening. In fact, because the vehicle may still be operational, it's not considered "abandoned," and it can sit at the curb forever.

"It's up to the owner to get it repaired," noted the person who answered the Tracy Police non-emergency line (which is 831-4550, by the way). "If it's not an abandoned car, there's nothing we can do about it."

REALLY?!

So, a bullet-riddled eyesore on a street in YOUR neighborhood would be allowed to sit there, announcing the entrance to Gang Land? Haven't property values in our community dropped enough?

Now, be clear, I hope to God that no one was in the vehicle and seriously injured when some ________ decided to fire off several rounds at the car. I also understand that the registered owner of the vehicle lives here in our neighborhood, so they're one of our own.

But something has to be done about this. If anyone one knows who owns this car, let's get together and see if there's anything we can do to help. Does a family in our neighborhood need support or, at worst, our condolences? At the least, I'd be willing to pitch in and buy a car cover so we can make the car less conspicuous while the owner decides if he's going to get it repaired. Or I'll pay part of the towing charge if he's going to junk it.

We need to remember that we're all in this together. Please help do your part. And while you're at it, call the Tracy Police and the Mayor's office to tell them that "doing nothing" is not an option.

Nearly one year later...

On September 9, 2007, Steven Klent was found murdered in Alden Park.

Less than a week later, on September 13th, more than 150 residents came together to take back their park and their community, making the first steps to form our Neighborhood Watch.

In the nearly one year since, we've reached out to our neighbors, made new friends, and seen significant progress in reducing crime in our community. We have a lot to be proud of.

On Tuesday, September 9, 2008, however, we'd like to take a moment to pay tribute to event that started it all.

Please join us in Alden Park at 8:00pm that evening for a Candlelight Vigil in memory of Steven Klent.

Bring a candle, and help us light up the night.

National Night Out, August 5, 2008

Tuesday, August 5th was "National Night Out," the one night each year that thousands of communities across the country send a message to would-be criminals to let them know that we’re organized, we’re watching out for each other, and we’re fighting back!

It was our Neighborhood Watch’s first year participating in this important event, under the theme of “Caring for Our Community,” and many people attended.

With more than a dozen representatives from the Tracy Police Department along with the Mayor's wife, Lynda, neighbors in the Alden Park area came together to celebrate our success in reducing crime and creating a greater sense of community. People gave of themselves by participating in a potluck dinner and bringing canned goods and clothing for the local shelters.

In all, it was a great success. We hope to see you at our next event and throughout the year. Keep up the good work!