SILVER CELEBRATION: Jean Daffern was one of...

SILVER CELEBRATION: Jean Daffern was one of the first employees hired by Simi Valley when it became a city 25 years ago. She helped write the General Plan and start up the police force. . . . So what do you give the city’s longest-serving employee for her silver anniversary? A gold watch, of course. . . . The City Council presented Daffern with the watch and a pin this week. “It’s been a great 25 years,” she said. “Thank-you.”

PAYING TRIBUTE: Oxnard officials Tuesday named a softball park after Oxnard Police Detective James O’Brien (B1), killed last year while chasing a gunman who shot up a jobs office. Four others, including the gunman, were killed in the Dec. 2 incident. . . . Officials are planning to commemorate the anniversary of the shootings with a ceremony at a newly planted rose garden at the County Government Center. . . . “As the day of the anniversary approaches, it’s bringing back a lot of memories,” Employment Development Department employee Bobbie Espinoza said.

ART LESSONS: A mural dedicated Tuesday at Ventura’s Westpark Community Center taught “high-risk” students something about art. But it also taught them about getting along. . . . The mural was created by students in the Community Alliance Program, an alternative school within the Ventura County Superintendent of Schools Office. . . . “Often the students come from areas that are at odds with each other,” said Larry Keegan, head teacher of the program. “We at least got to the point where that was forgotten.”

MANAGING MONEY: Responding to demands to curb spending, Simi Valley school officials are searching for ways to reduce the district’s $3.2-million deficit (B5). . . . In August, Ventura County school officials asked six districts to create deficit spending reduction plans. The Simi Valley Unified School District has struggled recently to balance its $75.5-million budget. . . . “We’re not balancing the budget yet,” Assistant Supt. E. Leon Mattingley said. “The county just wants to be sure we have a plan in mind.”