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Home My WebLink AboutMINUTES - 02062001 - ADJ.3 ADJ 3. THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA Date: February 6, 2001 ADJOURNMENT On this.date, Supervisor Glover requested that the Board of Supervisors ADJOURN today's meeting in honor of the memory of Elaine Null, a dedicated citizen and longtime activist from West Pittsburg. THIS IS A MATTER FOR RECORD PURPOSES ONLY NO BOARD ACTION WAS TAKEN FEB-06-2001 17:01 P.02r04 _ N' ilame -Null live.. d to v0 11unteer M Those who worked with the same.One of hes grandchildren even embroidered sam ler that n?' a P 'K -a her remember her as read"No thank you." v� j1� None of it worked.Elaine wasn't haM if she wasn't doing somedung. ' and M of sburg kme Leonard Costa,volunteer coordf- ;2 " nator for the Pittsburg Police De- ? P �q By Jost-MOVIS pa ezri says Elaine vyas orae of the s;su tins sT.►rv�varrsrr most dedicated worker3 the sty had What was intended to be a sim.- seen. pie typing exercise,tick-tapped its aShe was always wifling,"Leonard way into Elaine Null's philosophy of says,"whatever p7ejeet we had.You Ide, just hast to call bar and she'd be "Give to the world the best you there- '= have,and the best will come back to She offered to run the shredding You. machine, a chore no one liked, Elaine, who never let circum- Leonard said. - . •. ,,�; smnoes.or age get In her way,must And she wouldn't miss a Hal- have d out that phrase a thou- lowma at the Pumpkin Patch,where y1 <l til lappa :� . •' :.a�._ �v sm ;. sand times while 1 the"touch- younger children are given a bag of <:1h ,,, :�._ : z w.tF, type" stem at burg High treats and a smafl pumpkin ::: ; :;a:,:.;fir..=,:+;a ,k. .��., ��, "--„;r•,::.:: 5cbooL She typed it so often,it be- , "With Elairse.the only downfall s'., 4�,x; ' came her motto. was if you worked with het"LeonaiYl "Give to the world the bestyou says,"you had to listen to the his- have,and the best will come back to toty of Say Point." 4 ....�.M...,�<<�. YM " 12]her quest t0 Elaine a self-described profes- explain the differame between Bay - sional volunteer,began giving her Point -- the real 'Bay Point, she , best while still in high sebooL At the would say—and West Pittsburg. urging of an older sister, Elaine in Elaine's view of things, the Ba Pbint Ia farther west =.. ,: .� R. M�.9 b•�.,. ��s•x+�f' Dined the women s sutiaty of the original Y Y j :ah:•� �;::�'•rare"'"��:,r....;�...,�'°:,..�".� Foresters 2of America,a benevolent than the area we now know as Bay ._..r�,„" a:: • :,._ °. % if^ society dedicated to be4gng neigh- Point born in times of need. The"real"Bay Point faded into History was more than dry facts Her volunteerism grew to include history when the town's leaders de- and dleory to Elaine,whose rich fann- more than a dozen groups and or- tided to change its name to Parr gy history was past of Easy Contra ganizations Chicago,a blatant attempt to eoaju m Costa's ta;M"- Wa$f uggiing career and family up a thriving industrial port. But Elaine was the daughter of abe was active at her son's school, within a few decades,Port Chicago Giuseppe DeStefano and Frances joining the Parent Teachers Assoc- was evacuated and the Navy took Scudero. Giuseppe,a talented car- ation and establisbing a parents club control of the waterfront. pester and boat baker;came to Cal- at Bel Air Elementary School.She The name Bay pojut lived in dim -forma,froca the Aeolian islands,be- served foe tezzw as president of the memory until 1993,when West Pitts- tween Sicily and Italy. Pitt3burg Business and Profemonal burg rents deeded to cbange the Frances was the daughter of An- Womens Club. unincorporated town's name to Say drew Scuder%a native of Catania, She founded and almost single- Point. • Sicily_He left Italy in 1849,sailed handedly stocked the West Pittsburg bleat Pittsburg had developed a around the Flora and an,to San.Fran- Historical Society and Museum. bad reputation and some residents cisco Main e also was a constant volunteer —mostly newcomers,Elaine would After Andrew came to the Delta, at the annual Pittsburg Seafood.Fes- scoff—thought a new name would he sent for his bride-to-be,Rosalia tival and at the city's Halloween encourage community pride and Romeo 'Pumpkin Patch. draw In neer business. "i think he told her a big fat lie to In her late 7os,she took training Whether Wrest Pittsburg was ever get her to cbme,"Elaine said in a to become a Neighborhood Watch p-•t of the original Bay Point is a 1997 interview."Told her he found coordinator,where she helped oth. subject area historians debate still, an island full of carnations.Tines is ers form watch programs: bort diene was no question in Elora s what he forma." She also served on several county =11d. Frances was 16 when she fell in agencies includin&most recently, Elaine had been born and raised love with the dashing 24-year-old the Bay Point Municipal Advisory in Pittsburg and moved to West Pitts- Giuseppe,who bad earned a modest Council- burg in 1815-The borne where she fortune building hoaxes and boats. "I just can't say no,"she often would live the restofher°Ii&was iO Togeth='tbW had 19 children be- said. viest Pitw=g and in West Pittsburg fore a cable car accident ended Her inability to do so led to a it would stay. Giuseppe's carpentry carte:He died standing family joke.While Nancy "if ynil called it Bay Point," a few years later,leaving his large Reagan urged teens to'9ust say no,- Leonard says,"she`d hit you on the family to struggle through. Frame's family enmu awd her to do sine of mar heart." MAW.HIM To.Yim:�9W>Ykn FEB-06-2001 17=03 P.03/04 rr,rirc_UA RY 1, 2401 ,r ci her father died,was sent to live with an older sister in Maria County un- til Frances could get back on her feet. They learned to acct the lantiness of neighbors and rely on themselves. The table was crowded with children, but they never went hungry. Her brothers got jobs at the steel m01 and the women in the household made pasta, which they sold from their home. Elaine took a secretarial job with the Pittsburg city attorney.fn 1935, sloe married and had a rhitd,Danny. The marriage ended and Elaine went to work at Camp Stoneman as a clerk-typist. There she met and fall in love with Arthur'Null. This marriage produced another son, Kenneth, and lasted until Arthur's death in 1988. From 1968 to 1973,Elaine worked as manager at the comity Housing Authority, where she oversaw 300 low-income housing units from Fort Chicago to Oakley. In"1995, the county honored Elaine by-naming a new 14-unit low-income apartment oompiex in bay Point"Elaine Null Court." Elaine,of course,pointed out the wmples,not far Som her Thome,was actually in West Pittsburg. Ever the years,Fl=e 8er'vW On a number of county advisory boards, but when she grew concerned about r>zoo�s,she placed .her name m�hat fora spirt on the Bay Point MAC. she served two years,in which she made crime-m- ducaion acid neighborhood pride her priorities. in 1999,at age Sl.Flame reluc- tandy gypped down from the board, citing health concerns. She suffered from diabetes and bigh blood pressure,which was ag gravated by the demands of public office. But she promised to stay active in the community,and she did. Elaine continued to advocate Cor Neighborhood Watch programs and to volunteer for whawver omwtiza- tion needed her help. "Give to the world the best you have,and the best will come baack to you_" Joan Morris wrUes story obitwm ies- Call her at 926977-8479,write her at P.U.Box 5099,Walnut Creek CA 94596-8099,or e-mail her at irnor- rrs�s�rtrrt. .. _ ./ r' b.