The Coast News, March 22, 2013

A8 THE COAST NEWS
MARCH 22, 2013
For pastor, the price was most definitely right
By Rachel Stine
OCEANSIDE — Adam
Riojas, a pastor from
Oceanside Calvary Chapel,
was almost certain he
wouldn’t be chosen as a contestant
on “The Price is
Right” television game
show, and he definitely didn’t
expect to win thousands
of dollars in prizes.
He had onl y seen the
show once decades ago and
thought the game was
rather boring, and made the
mistake of telling the con-
testant interviewer just
that.
“There’s no w ay I’m
going to get close to e ven
get called,” he recalled
thinking.
Not only that, but
Riojas doesn’t have a history
of good luck.
Nine years ago, Riojas
served 13 y ears in
California prisons f or a
murder he didn’ t commit.
He was eventually released
in 2004 after the true m urderer,
Riojas’s father,
admitted the crime on his
deathbed.
He attended a taping of
the show at a CBS studio in
Los Angeles as a staff event
with about 30 other members
from Calvary Chapel in
late January.
Riojas and his co workers
agreed that he blew the
interview and set their
hopes on someone else from
their group getting the
chance to win big.
“The excitement in
there is w ay beyond anything
I can e ven describe,”
Riojas said a bout the filming.
During the first half of
the show, the food minister
from Riojas’s church, Vickii
Ceballos, was called to compete
and walked away with
$20,000 in cash, a weight
machine, refrigerator, television
and a camera.
Riojas said that the
staff was thrilled f or
Ceballos, who he said works
hard feeding mor e than
By Promise Yee
OCEANSIDE — City
Council approved having July
fireworks at the Mar ch 13
meeting, but did not determine
when, where and how.
Councilman Jack Feller
requested the city ho st July
fireworks to cele brate
Oceanside’s 125th anni versary
on July 3.
“We have a small matter
of 125 years of being incorporated,”
Feller said. “I think
it’s a worthy investment.”
It was not determined if
the fireworks will be held on
July 3 or July 4.
Some considerations
were security costs for police
and firefighters and the
demands on officer s and
firefighters during alr eady
busy days.
Another question w as
the best location to launc h
the fireworks.
Feller suggested El
Corazon, which is a high
point in the city. The benefit
is that residents can see the
fireworks from many locations
and would not have to
travel to one site.
Adam Riojas (right) waits with a fellow Calvary Chapel pastor to get in
to a taping session of the television game show “The Price is Right” in
late January. Riojas was selected as a contestant for the show and
walked away with big prizes. Photo courtesy of Adam Riojas
3,000 people per month and
doesn’t make a lot of
money.
But the thrill w asn’t
over for the Calvary Chapel
crew.
“The second part of the
show starts, and I’m the
first person called and w e
all go crazy,” said Riojas.
He was given the
chance to compete f or
prizes after besting other
contestants by coming up
with the closest guess on six
pairs of women’s shoes.
Riojas eventually won
his way into competing in
City parkland at El
Corazon is mostly undeveloped.
The El Corazon Senior
Center only allows parking
for 500 cars.
Mayor Jim Wood anticipated
extra officers would
be needed along major roadways
where cars might pull
off to watch the fireworks.
Councilwoman Esther
Sanchez suggested that fir eworks
be held at the beac h
where they were traditionally
located bef ore they were
discontinued two years ago.
There were concerns
that the beac h location
might trigger possible la wsuits
due to the potential
environmental impacts of
setting off fir eworks over
water.
Beach crowds and tr affic
jams w ere other concerns.
A third location that was
suggested was El Camino
High School.
The city is alr eady considering
opening the high
school as a viewing area if
the fireworks are set off at El
Corazon.
the grand finale showcase.
“Then I just liter ally
lost it, yelling and scr eaming
like I never have,” he
said.
With a luc ky guess, he
won a J eep Patriot, new
computer, and a f our-night
trip to Washington D.C.
He plans on taking the
trip with his wife and young
daughter in late April and
selling the Jeep to fund further
renovations on his
mother’s house.
“It’s like money came
down from heaven for me,”
he said.
Council OKs fireworks for July
The site w ould have a
limited viewing area
because of surrounding trees
and houses.
Funding for the fir eworks
is also undetermined.
The cost of fir eworks and
safety personnel is estimated
to be $27,000.
Residents and business
owners expressed support
for bringing bac k July fireworks.
Many said community
donations could be easil y
collected.
“There is nothing mor e
American than apple pie,
Chevrolet and fir eworks on
the Fourth of J uly,” David
Nydegger, CEO of Oceanside
Chamber of Commerce, said.
“With the 125th
anniversary celebrations we
have going on, the fireworks
will enhance that and create
more community pride and
synergy,” Leslee Gaul, president
and CEO of the Visit
Oceanside Conference and
Visitors Bureau, said.
City staff will bring
back ideas to council on the
when, where and ho w of
hosting July fireworks.
Don Diego
program
expands
By Bianca Kaplanek
DEL MAR — The Don
Diego Scholarship
Foundation has awarded
$600,000 to 139 collegebound
students from San
Diego County during the past
27 years.
“It’s impossible to make
the choices,” Chairman Paul
Ecke III said during the
March 13 boar d of dir ectors
meeting of the 22nd District
Agricultural Association,
which manages the Del Mar
Fairgrounds.
“We usually get a bout
15 applicants and the y’re all
great, but we have to pick
four,” he said. “And there’s
always one that rises to the
top.”
Hoping to a ward that
standout student, the foundation
is expanding its program
by adding the Spanjian
Family Scholarship.
Robert Spanjian is a former
22nd DAA board member
who currently serves on
the Don Diego Sc holarship
Foundation. He and his
brother patented Spandex.
Four high school seniors
currently are selected to each
receive a $5,000 sc holarship.
Applicants must be a 4-H
member, Future Farmers of
America member, fairgrounds
employee or fair
exhibitor. One scholarship is
awarded in each category.
Ecke said the f oundation
is tr ying to r aise extra
money to a ward a $10,000
scholarship to the exemplary
student.
He said more than half
of the necessary funds have
been secured. In addition to
donations, he said the f oundation
is also looking to find
people with “connections”
who could help out, such as
Sara Blakely, creator of
Spanx, a company that likely
wouldn’t be where it is today
without Spandex.
The Don Diego
Scholarship Trust Fund, as it
was originally known, was
created in 1986 as a tribute to
Tom Hernandez, who, in the
role of Don Diego , was the
host of the San Diego County
Fair from 1947 until his death
in 1984.
Funds are raised from
an annual gala, donations
and the Amigo Club, which
offers one year of free
entrance to all e vents sponsored
by the 22nd D AA and
Del Mar Thoroughbred Club
for $99.
Scholarship applications
for students ar e now available
at dondiegoscholarship.org.
More information is also
available at that website.