Tynes Marks 46 Years in City Government

When people call John O. Tynes a council veteran, they aren’t overstating the case.

The Placentia councilman has been involved in city government for 46 years and this month begins his 13th as a councilman.

Tynes was first elected in 1950. He served until 1954, then returned for one year in 1970. He has served continuously since 1988 and remains undecided about seeking reelection later this year.

Tynes, 79, also once worked as acting administrator for a local school district.

“I’ve had just about every job in town,” he said.

Being a councilman was easiest in the 1950s, Tynes said, when the city had just a few hundred residents. “You knew everyone in town,” he said. “You were kind of the peacemaker in town. I enjoyed it then. It was fun.”

Politics is more complicated these days, Tynes said, but he applies the same principles that he did 40 years ago. “Ever since I’ve been on the council, I always make my decisions based on what is good for the city, regardless of how many protesters there are,” he said.

Tynes said he is focusing his efforts now on helping the city deal with the effects of the county bankruptcy. Once the city recovers from the financial crisis, “I’ll be satisfied,” he said.

HUNTINGTON BEACH: 2 Honored by Police for Heroic Actions

When Michael Gomberg and Spencer Joseph acted heroically, the Police Department took notice.

The two were the department’s first inductees onto the Citizen Honor Roll, which acknowledges acts of bravery and extraordinary merit by citizens.

Gomberg and Joseph placed their own lives at risk late last year to save a toddler.

The two had been pulled over by Police Officer Monte Mauney for a seat-belt violation. While they were stopped on Beach Boulevard near Owen Avenue, a young boy darted into southbound traffic on Beach.

Mauney turned on his emergency lights and siren to alert traffic. Gomberg, 29, whose car engine was running, pulled his vehicle diagonally across the lanes to block traffic.

The child made it to the center divider safely but then stepped off into traffic again.

Without hesitation, Joseph jumped out of the car and grabbed the boy, preventing him from crossing the street.

“There wasn’t a lot of time,” said Joseph, 27, a Huntington Beach resident. “It just happened so fast.”

Gomberg, who lives in Garden Grove, said he came close to getting hit by other vehicles but would undoubtedly do the same thing again.

Senior Officer Mike P. Kelly, a police spokesman, said that other local heroes will be honored during the year.

As for that ticket for not wearing his seat belt, Joseph said, Mauney shook his hand and told him to forget about it. “He told me to frame it,” Joseph said. “He said, ‘A lot of people wouldn’t put their life on the line.’ ”

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Compiled by SHELBY GRAD AND DEBRA CANO