C ALI FORN IA’S OLDE ST NE W SPAPER
– E S T. 18 51
– Weekend Edition – mtdemocrat.com
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2025
VOLUME 174 • ISSUE 16 | $1.00
STAYING STRONG Committee looks to dispense cash Helping hands boost from (the) pot
Sadek duo’s recovery
Andrew Vonderschmitt Staff writer
The Cannabis Community Benefit Committee regular meeting was held in a special location on Feb. 18: Scout Hall. The discussion was about funding. In fact, every meeting is about funding; what the committee has funded, what it might fund in the future and how the projects that have been funded are progressing. When Placerville adopted ordinance No. 1694 in 2018 allowing cannabis sales in the city limits it included a provision that each licensed business “provide a community benefits component,” thus the committee was born. This provision required each business to contribute a percentage of its gross sales to the benefit program. The committee, made up of city staff, community members and cannabis retailer representatives began its work in 2023. To date the committee has funded, or partially funded, upward of 20 cprojects. These include, but are not limited to, funding to nonprofits and the Placerville Fire Safe Council, repairs to the Belltower on Main Street, new steps for the large slide at the Placerville Aquatics Center, lighting at Lion’s Park and a new vehicle for the Placerville Police Department’s school resource officer. At last Tuesday’s meeting, however, the hot topic was potential projects for the coming year, with more than $20,000 in the pot so far. ■ See COMMITTEE, page A8
Tahoe man killed in backcountry El Dorado County Sheriff ’s Office News release
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A South Lake Tahoe man died in an apparent backcountry skiing accident earlier this week around Powderhouse Peak near Luther Pass, the El Dorado County Sheriff ’s office has confirmed. Frederic Dross, 46, was reported as an overdue backcountry
skier to El Dorado County Central Dispatch at about 4 p.m. Monday, Feb. 17. Dross’ vehicle was located at a parking area and a search and rescue response was requested by EDSO. The man’s body was located a short time later by friends in an avalanche area, sheriff ’s officials reported. Due to the dangerous snow conditions the recovery of the deceased was postponed until early Tuesday. At 6 a.m. that morning a joint recovery and extraction operation was initiated. The unstable snow created extremely hazardous recovery conditions, officials noted and through the use of controlled explosives any further avalanche danger was mitigated. At around 5 p.m. on Feb. 18 the decedent, by assistance of EDSO SAR volunteers and Echo-1, was hoisted from the backcountry. ■ See BACKCOUNTRY, page A8
Shelly Thorene Staff writer
U
nion Mine High School wrestling assistant coach Kevin Sadek and his son, Charles, a top wrestler on the Diamondbacks’ team, are making a comeback from injuries they received in a head-on collision on Dec. 15 last year. Both father and son were traveling on Pleasant Valley Road to their home in Grizzly Flat when their Jeep Liberty was struck by a man driving a Ford F-150. The two were taken by ambulance to UC Davis Medical Center and treated for multiple injuries. Charles suffered a broken left femur and Kevin suffered a broken right femur, broken right wrist in two places and broken left hand. The injuries he sustained put the handyman out of work and stopped his son from participating in wrestling for the rest of the season. It also hampered the graduating senior’s pursuit of wrestling scholarships. “It (the accident) shut down looking for schools. This was his glory year,” Kevin noted, adding that with physical therapy he believes his son will be back to 100%. Charles was ranked in the top 25% in the state. His dad said the rod placed in his femur should not be a deterrent when his son resumes the sport. Yvonne Sadek was traveling in another vehicle about five minutes behind her son and husband. The family was returning home from Radiant Life Church. She said when the line of traffic inched up to where she could see the red Liberty Jeep “crunched in the road” she hurriedly passed all the cars on the left to get to the scene. She called the scene “absolutely horrifying.” Leaving their 10-year-
Mountain Democrat photo by Shelly Thorene
Union Mine assistant coach Kevin Sadek, left, and his son, Diamondbacks wrestler Charles, 18, right, stand together in the small gym at El Dorado High School on Jan. 29 during the SVC League championship. Charles was supposed to compete in the match but both father and son were injured in a head-on collision late last year.
Photo by Yvonne Sadek
El Dorado County firefighters use the Jaws of Life to extricate Charles Sadek, 18, from the vehicle he and his father were in after the Dec. 15 head-on collision on Pleasant Valley Road. His father Kevin received extensive injuries yet refused a life flight to Renown Medical Center in Reno as he would have been separated from his son. They were both transported to UC Davis Medical Center. old daughter, Priscilla in the car, who prayed out loud, “Please don’t take my daddy and brother,” Yvonne said she first heard her husband wailing and thus knew
he was alive. While paramedics worked on Kevin, Yvonne found Charles still trapped in the vehicle. She said she spoke to him through a crack in the wreckage
saying, “I’m right here. You’re gonna be OK.” Yvonne found the other driver lying on the grass alone and went ■ See SADEK DUO, page A8
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