Mercy! Dedication Was Vintage Dorn

It could have been the early 1960s, judging from the array of politicians who turned out Monday for the dedication of the Warren M. Dorn Recreation Complex at Castaic Lake.

On hand to honor Dorn, supervisor of the county’s 5th District from 1956 to 1972, were former Gov. Edmund G. (Pat) Brown (1958-1966), former Los Angeles Mayor Sam Yorty (1961-1973), Councilman Gilbert Lindsay (1963 to present) and former San Francisco Mayor George Christopher (1956 to 1964).

Well-Wishes From President

Also on the platform for the ceremony were “newcomers” Sen. Pete Wilson (R-Calif.), elected to the Senate in 1982, and Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich, first elected in 1980. Antonovich greeted Dorn on behalf of another former California governor, President Reagan, who was the state’s chief executive from 1967 to 1975.

Antonovich said the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Nov. 5 to name the complex in Dorn’s honor because of Dorn’s “contributions to the development of recreation areas along the Feather River Project.” The project, authorized by voters as the State Water Project in 1960 and shepherded through the political whirlpools by Brown, brought water to a thirsty Southern California from the Feather River in Northern California.

Dorn recalled that, at first, Los Angeles supervisors voted not to support Brown’s water plan. Dorn said he was surprised when Brown called him and asked what could be done to change the supervisors’ minds. Once he persuaded the governor that recreational facilities should be included in the project, Dorn said, the board backed the proposal.

The Democratic Brown praised Dorn, a Republican, as one of “the great nonpartisan helpers” who were instrumental in making the water project a reality, calling it a “monument to what nonpartisan efforts can accomplish.”

About 200 people attended the dedication, which took place at the lake’s edge. Nearby, a handful of anglers showed no interest in the ceremony, concentrating on casting their lines.

Several members of Dorn’s family, including his wife, Phyllis, and his mother, Mrs. Walter Dorn, were in the audience. Dorn said having the Castaic Lake complex named in his honor had particular meaning for him and his mother because his father was a U. S. forest ranger in the area.

Favorite Word

“I grew up around here,” said Dorn, who now lives in Morro Bay.

During the event, several speakers referred to a favorite word of Dorn--”mercy.” Yorty said that word was the closest Dorn had ever come to swearing.

Dorn, in turn, gave all the participants cans of “mercy water” to commemorate the occasion. The engraved cans contained water from Castaic Lake, he said.