EXECUTIVE TRAVEL: In the 1980s, Ronald Reagan...

EXECUTIVE TRAVEL: In the 1980s, Ronald Reagan made presidential visits to Ventura County a common occurrence. But several others had come before him. . . . Benjamin Harrison made the earliest known visit in 1891. Franklin Roosevelt slipped through the county under wartime secrecy conditions. Thousands cheered John Kennedy during a 20-minute visit to Point Mugu. . . . Theodore Roosevelt told an enthusiastic Ventura crowd in 1903: “I have passed through a veritable paradise and I do not wonder that you all look so happy.”

QUAKE READY: Simi Valley will upgrade its computers in preparation for future earthquakes (B5). The city joins other agencies that have been reviewing response to last month’s disaster. . . . “It’s a scary scenario going through a disaster and even scarier if people are not familiar with their roles,” said Wendy Haddock of the county’s Office of Emergency Services. “Redundancy is the name of the game.” . . . In the fall, the county tested its emergency skills by simulating a magnitude 8.0 quake.

BRAIN GAMES: What do geniuses do when they get together? Play carnival games. That’s what 200 members of Mensa, the high-IQ society, are doing this long holiday weekend. . . . The group, which limits its membership to people with IQs higher than 98% of the population, held its regional gathering in Ventura. “It’s much more like a high school reunion than an intellectual gathering,” publicity chairwoman Linda Seebach said. . . . The only subject off limits: How high is your IQ?

FREE AT LAST: The Conejo Valley unit of B’nai B’rith Haverim today celebrates the Jewish festival of Purim. . . . The holiday is based on a 2,500-year-old legend that pits Queen Esther, wife of Persia’s King Ahasveros, against Haman, a royal adviser intent on destroying the Jews. Score: Esther 1, Haman 0. . . . “Certainly you have new Hamans coming up all the time,” said Rita Wagner, co-president of the local unit. “It’s important to remember the past so something like that doesn’t happen again.”

President’s Day

Presidential visits to Ventura County:

1891: Benjamin Harrison visits Santa Paula and Ventura.

1901: William McKinley tours Ventura.

1903: Theodore Roosevelt rings the wooden bells at the Ventura Mission.

1918: Woodrow Wilson waves to a Ventura crowd from the back of a train.

1963: John F. Kennedy spends 20 minutes at the Point Mugu Naval Air Station.

Source: Ventura County Museum of History and Art