Boulevard Lights up for Christmas Visitor

CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - Clear skies –and faux snow– blessed the 17^th annual tree lighting ceremony in Carmichael Park last week.

Leading a community count-down, Park District board chairman Michael Rockenstein flipped a switch to ignite thousands of fairy lights on the 50ft park Christmas tree and surrounding illuminations.

Christmas songs were led by the 60-strong River City Concert band. Santa Claus arrived on a decorated gold cart and hundreds of children stood patiently in line for an audience with the merriest VIP of all.  An estimated crowd of 2500 attended and an avenue of food trucks fed the multitudes.

Machine-generated snow flurries dotted upturned noses and eyelashes with white stuff.

The park Christmas decorations may be viewed on the park’s Fair Oaks Boulevard frontage every night until the end of December.

Buck Family Automotive: Fixing Cars and Building Community in Carmichael

CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - Jeff and Rosie Buck opened Buck Family Automotive in February 2019 — when Jeff was just 25 years old. The repair shop has been a labor of love for the young couple, who are excited to be building their lives and raising their son in the community they love.                   

Jeff is a Carmichael native. He grew up here and graduated from Del Campo High School, where he began his career in the automotive Regional Occupational Program (ROP). He worked an internship in a repair shop in Roseville, where he learned how to work on cars while also learning how to run a business. From there, Jeff “moved from shop to shop to gain as much experience as possible.” He always knew owning his own business was the end goal: “I tailored my whole career towards the plan of opening up my own place.”

Rosie is extremely proud of her husband: “I love that he wanted to move back to Carmichael because he wanted to be near family, he had a strong community here, and he wanted to come back to his roots where he learned to work on cars. It’s been fun diving in with him.”

Jeff focuses on the automotive repairs, while Rosie handles all the administrative work and manages the business’s online presence. “I’m very lucky to have her as a part of this,” Jeff said. “It wouldn’t have happened as fast without her.”

Jeff specializes in Asian vehicles, but he also has experience with domestic models. Buck Family Automotive offers services such as oil changes, regular scheduled maintenance, brakes and suspension, engine and transmission repair, heating and cooling systems, and electrical work.

“My love is diagnostics … so when people have that weird, strange electrical issue, that’s what I strive for, I love that,” said Jeff. Instead of just plugging into a car’s computer, he goes a step further, conducting pin-point testing of individual wires. He uses a labscope to read the signals and “graph electrical currents and see in milliseconds what they’re doing” so he can figure out the specific problem.

The shop has an innovative repair order system that Rosie said is “a key component of our business and our communication with our clients.” The Bucks’ digital system sends a link to the client that they can access online. The page shows real-time photos and videos along with notes from the technician.

Rosie said, “We really wanted to have transparency … by basically allowing them to see what we see when we’re looking at the cars.” Clients can share the link with others for a second opinion, and they can also approve the order through the webpage.

The Buck family also has a passion for helping the community — frequently offering their services to those in need. Jeff explained that “Rosie is really integrated and involved in the online community chats for local Carmichael groups. Sometimes she’ll find people on there who are having an issue and it’s something that I either specialize in or can help them with. … Since it’s something that I can do easily, it’s something that I’d like to do to help.”

A single mother has been giving music lessons in a back room of the Buck Family Automotive office since July. Another single mother needed a new alternator in her Honda, so Jeff installed it free of charge.

And Jeff is storing the body of a drift racing car for a young man with a muscular dystrophy disease, which causes paralysis of the legs; Jeff will be helping him build a car that he can operate with hand controls instead of foot pedals. Jeff said, “Building something for someone else is just as fun and also more motivating.”

Buck Family Automotive also welcomes interns through the ROP at Del Campo, and Jeff is now serving on the committee that oversees the quality control of the ROP to ensure it’s up to today’s standards.

While most technicians are ASE certified, Jeff took additional automotive courses to gain a Master ASE-level certification through the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE). Repairs at the Buck Family Automotive are also covered under a three-year/36,000-mile warranty supported by TechNet Professional Automotive Service, a nationwide network of repair shops. “You’re covered on most of our repairs even if you’re on a road trip,” said Jeff.

Buck Family Automotive has a spacious and comfortable waiting area, a kids’ room with toys to keep little ones occupied, and a selection of snacks and drinks. The shop is open seven days a week by appointment, from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM Monday through Saturday and noon to 4:00 PM on Sunday.

The Bucks are currently a drop-off donation station for the holiday food drive held by Carmichael Homeless Assistance Resource Team (HART). You can drop off non-perishable food at Buck Family Automotive until the end of December and receive a coupon for $5 off a future repair.

Buck Family Automotive is located at 7637 Fair Oaks Boulevard Suite 1, Carmichael. To contact Buck Family Automotive, visit them on Facebook or at www.buckfamilyautomotive.com.

The Playmakers Organization Hosts First Game of Winter Basketball Series

SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - On November 16, local non-profit The Playmakers Organization hosted a basketball game for special needs and at-risk kids at Oak Hills Church in Folsom. Playmakers founder Greg Roeszler said, “This is the first day of a series of these that we will do throughout the winter, and that we just believe will continue to grow and enable us to provide more support for special needs and at-risk kids and their families.”

The event featured a waffle breakfast catered by the Burgess Brothers BBQ & Burgers. Corporate sponsors included Mortgage Consultant Group, FitGuard, Asher College, Republic Services, Palm Tile, Go Forth Coaching, and Serenity Spa.

Roeszler was especially excited about the various groups who came together for the event: The Special Olympics, Big Brothers Big Sisters, United Cerebral Palsy of Sacramento and Northern California (which provides programs and services for people with developmental disabilities), Rotarians, members of Oak Hills church, and community volunteers.

The Folsom High School freshman football team played a pivotal role in the game, filling out the four basketball teams and encouraging and assisting the participants. One of the players, Ian Walsh, said, “It’s really special to help out my community and make sure that everyone has a really good time today and to make sure these kids have a good day.”

When addressing the crowd before the game, Roeszler spoke about some of the professional athletes who support Playmakers, including NFL player Jordan Richards, who has played with the New England Patriots, the Atlanta Falcons, the Oakland Raiders, and is now a Baltimore Raven. Richards has been involved in Playmakers since he was 13, attending Playmakers football camps as a teen. His mother, Sharon Richards, is a member of Oak Hills Church, and she attended the game to show her support: “I just love this organization. … It’s great to see the kids having fun.”

Playmakers made a vital impact on her own son, and Sharon is grateful that the organization continues to reach out to kids in need. “No matter what our situation in life, we all need support, we all need people who believe in us. And it really is, in my estimation, the purest definition of community,” she said. “You come together, and you support, you encourage. We’ve got to do more of that.”

Mike Lueken, Pastor of Oak Hills Church, said, “It’s a way to encourage young people and to support what Playmakers does. And we’ve been involved in it for a long time, and it’s just a way to come together, to collaborate with Playmakers and with other people, and to do something that is encouraging and helpful to young people.”

The game participants ran across the court and practiced their free-throw shots, all to the thundering encouragement of all in attendance. Clarissa Viers (12) loves attending Playmakers events: “You get to have real fun, and it helps you learn to get through bullying and struggles and stuff through sports and recreation.”

Jerry Viers has seen a variety of positive changes since Clarissa joined Playmakers: “They’ve put so much confidence in her that I couldn’t have implanted in her…. It’s been great getting to watch her grow and become the fine young lady that she is today.”

If you would like to learn more about The Playmakers Organization and their work to support at-risk and special needs kids, visit www.ThePlaymakers.org.

CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - With the slash of a sapphire-colored ribbon, Aiman (Simon) Nasrawi last week declared open sesame for the Carmichael treasure-trove he calls Aquamarine.

Jordanian-born, Nasrawi brought his craft to California in 1989. After years of designing for Nordstrom, the jeweler established a store at Watt and Arden. He named the business for the birthstone of his Hmong-American wife, See. The couple and their three daughters live in Carmichael and recently jumped at the opportunity to relocate their bijou boutique closer to home. “Five Points Plaza is a beautiful, secure location,” reports the owner. “My customers are making us feel very welcome.”

Bursting with colorful carats, the new Aquamarine is located at 5136 Arden Way, Carmichael.