NOTE: Both links appear to have been removed.
Here is a link from Lancaster's official site that mentions Paul Chappell being named 'Citizen of the Year' by Mayor Perris:
from: Citizen of the Year.
excerpt:
“I am honored to present to Pastor Paul Chappell a donation from me and my wife Carrol in the amount of $10,000 to continue the good service he provides to the community.”
The article often quoted from the Antelope Valley Press does not appear to be coming up. Fortunately, Paul Chappel printed the entire article on his blog.
Here is the link that does not work:
Link to AV article that does not work.(now removed)
Link to Paul Chappell's blog that reprints the article:
http://www.lancasterbaptist.org/citizen_of_the_year.asp(now removed)
Excerpts (from removed articles):
>"A lot more can be said about the greatness of who you are," Baca told Chappell.
>Other dignitaries at Sunday's ceremony included Lancaster Vice Mayor Ron Smith, Councilwoman Sherry Marquez, and City Manager Mark Bozigian, plus Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Field Operations Region 1 Chief Neal Tyler, Cmdr. Carl Deeley, and Capt. Axel Anderson, Lancaster Sheriff's Station commander.
Also making presentations were Lew Stults, field representative for Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon, R-Santa Clarita; Vince Fong, field representative for Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield; Larry Grooms, district director for Assemblyman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, and Norm Hickling, field deputy for Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich.
Shaking Chappell's hand and sharing a hug, Parris said he has no doubt that Lancaster's efforts will go far and that current achievements are only the first step.
"Lancaster is changing the world. In a short period of time we are going to become the model of how America is supposed to run," Parris said.
There is a video attached to Chappell's article where the mayor talks about going to China with Chappell.
My favorite quote is when the mayor says, "It's not about holding people accountable, it's about holding us accountable."
LOL! Yeah, we all trust our elected officials to hold themselves accountable. Isn't that how it always worked?
He talks about how bible college students were 'terrorized' and had people following them from the parking lot. He does not talk about how some appointed students are sitting in trucks and monitoring the strangers visiting their town. That happened to me the last time I was there.
LANCASTER - Lancaster Baptist Church Pastor Paul Chappell was called an "inspiration, a blessing to the city and a man of great vision" as city officials honored him Sunday as Lancaster's Citizen of the Year.
City Councilmembers, law enforcement officials, lawmakers and their representatives, plus thousands of congregation members, joined Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris on Sunday evening in recognizing the pastor's efforts to fight crime and improve the community.
"No one deserves it more than he does," Parris said. "Our lives are richer in so many ways, tangible and intangible, due to the services provided by Pastor Chappell's ministry. I am very proud of what his organizations have contributed to Lancaster and I am excited about the good work he continues to do for our citizens. He is undoubtedly a citizens who leads by example."
Parris said the Citizen of the Year award goes to a person who performs exemplary service and helps promote business and community growth by enhancing programs that improve the community.
"The idea of Citizen of the Year is discussed with many of us. We talked about many potential people that would be worthy and it kept coming down to Pastor Chappell," the mayor said. "And every time it came down to him, I kept saying 'No, we can't do that. The pastor and I are friends.' So we discussed it more and discussed it more and it still came down to Pastor Chappell. And it came down to Pastor Chappell for a every good reason; it's because he deserves it more than anyone."
Speaking during the church's Sunday evening service, Parris and other dignitaries praised Chappell's work through the church ministry, the West Coast Baptist College, and the Antelope Valley War on Gangs and Crime, a grass-roots efforts he started with Parris in 2007.
In 2008, Palmdale and Lancaster officials reported a 10% overall decrease in crime from 2007, in addition to a 33% drop in gang-related crimes. Sheriff's officials calculated Lancaster's 2008 crime rate as 398.4 serious crimes per 10,000 residents, down from 449.4 in 2007. Palmdale's rate was calculated at 329, down from 371 a year earlier.
On Sunday, Parris reported an almost 30% drop in crime in the last three months and added, "It's still dropping."
"He is a man of great vision," state Sen. George Runner, R-Lancaster, said of Chappell. "It is good to be here tonight to congratulate and also to recognize and to agree and to affirm the wonderful selection of Pastor Chappell as Citizen of the Year. You know, one of the issues that is still key to making community work Ö is individuals that have vision for what it is they like to contribute and then bring people along with them in order to see that vision fulfilled and that certainly is what we have here."
Los Angeles County Sheriff Leroy Baca agreed.
"A lot more can be said about the greatness of who you are," Baca told Chappell. "It's a privilege to be here today with all of you. I like the principle of him being the visionary in all of us. I want to be that plow for him: the person that plows the soil to create new life, to create new opportunities for more life and secure life needs some help. I want to join and continue to help this man to find strong plows, so we can make the garden of effective life here something that everyone will envy."
Other dignitaries at Sunday's ceremony included Lancaster Vice Mayor Ron Smith, Councilwoman Sherry Marquez, and City Manager Mark Bozigian, plus Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Field Operations Region 1 Chief Neal Tyler, Cmdr. Carl Deeley, and Capt. Axel Anderson, Lancaster Sheriff's Station commander.
Also making presentations were Lew Stults, field representative for Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon, R-Santa Clarita; Vince Fong, field representative for Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield; Larry Grooms, district director for Assemblyman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, and Norm Hickling, field deputy for Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich.
Shaking Chappell's hand and sharing a hug, Parris said he has no doubt that Lancaster's efforts will go far and that current achievements are only the first step.
"Lancaster is changing the world. In a short period of time we are going to become the model of how America is supposed to run," Parris said.
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