The LAND and It's People

April 2016Serving Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Benito and San Luis Obispo Counties

Inside ...Ag rule 2

Elkhorn Slough grant 3

MCARLM speaker 4

Second Harvest awards 7

Please turn to Page 5



The Pajaro Valley has finally turned deep green with the aid of recent rains.Tarmo Hannula/The Land

By TODD GUILDOf the Land

WATSONVILLE — When the annual National Agriculture Day Spring Luncheon began in Santa Cruz County, it drew around 100 people, easily filling the Codiga Center.

That number has doubled since its inception three decades ago, a testament to the Pajaro Valley agricultural community, whose roots wend deep into the soil through numerous generations and fathomless years.

“We outgrew the Codiga Center,” Agricultural History Project CEO John Kegebein said.

In addition to giving the Pajaro Valley agriculture community a time to gather and let its hair down, the luncheon is also a symbolic springtime kickoff of the planting season, where efforts to sow crops traditionally begin in earnest, Kegebein said.

Bill Codiga, who helped fund the Agricultural History Project, and for whom the Codiga Center is named, said honoring farming and promoting the farming lifestyle is a way to make sure that fertile Pajaro Valley

A growing communityMore than 200 attend annual agricultural luncheon

Aptos High senior Maya Capurro-Frosch is awarded with the 2016 Jimmie Cox Memorial Scholarship on March 16 at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds during the annual National Agriculture Day spring luncheon. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/The Land

Christian Salazar tries to untie a Greenfield High School FFA shirt during lunchtime.

By SAMANTHA BENGTSONOf the Land

KING CITY — Agriculture is a very complex field and makes up the majority of businesses in the Salinas Valley. Third-grade students from up and down the Valley made their way to the Salinas Valley Fairgrounds to see just what it takes to be a part of various agricultural fields.

Javier Rodriguez, a representative of Clean Globe, spoke with the third-grade students about his job as a pest control advisor. A Pest Control Advisor or a plant doctor is a person who specializes in insects and fertilizer.

“One of the biggest pest problems in my job would be the plume moth and artichoke,” said Rodriguez. “I brought some samples of artichoke to show them what the worm damage looks like.”

Rodriguez was surprised to see that students knew what aphides were and said that the students are learning from the Farm Day project. The students made their way to the Topo Ranch Center and the Rava Equestrian Center and learned about different aspects of agriculture.

A day of learning for third-grade students from the Salinas Valley By SAMANTHA BENGTSON

Of the Land

GREENFIELD — Greenfield High School FFA chapter celebrated National FFA Week in late February and showed their fellow classmates what being a part of FFA is all about.

Beginning the week was a Cowboy Day and showed FFA members dressing up cowboys and cowgirls. At lunch the FFA members and high school students took part in a tug-of-war. On Feb. 23 the FFA members wore their farm hats and a tractor-wheel activity took place at lunch.

“They basically had to roll a wheel around a little obstacle course,” said Anthony Camacho, FFA historian. “My favorite part of the week was Monday. I think it was a really good start and I had a lot of fun.”

The FFA members wore their FFA shirts on Feb. 24 and participated in a sack race. Feb. 25 was wear cowboy boots day and a corn toss activity was held. The corn toss activity rolled over to Feb. 26 as well as an Animal Zoo. The Animal Zoo gave the students a chance to see the different types of animals that are raised in FFA from pigs to lambs to goats.

FFA members show their pride during National FFA Week

2 The Land - April 2016

PUBLISHERJohn Bartlett

[email protected]

EDITORErik Chalhoub

[email protected]

EDITORIAL STAFFTarmo Hannula, Todd Guild,

Samantha Bengtson

ADVERTISINGTina Chavez

[email protected] Novack

[email protected] Stenberg

[email protected] Bailey

[email protected] Allred

[email protected]

ART AND DESIGNMike Lyon

The Land is published monthly. All rights reserved, material may not be reprinted without written consent from the publisher. The Land made every effort to maintain the accuracy of information presented in this publication, but assumes no responsibility for errors, changes or omissions. The Land is a division of the Register-Pajaronian and South County Newspapers.

Contact UsRegister-Pajaronian

831-761-7300 South County Newspapers

831-385-4880

Thank you for reading!

Ag Luncheon


WATSONVILLE — One year ago, a local developer purchased a 7.3-acre parcel on West Beach Street that once held the Indalex aluminum plant.

That company – Elite Development – planned to build two hotels, a restaurant and two small shops on the property.

But the work is being held up by a 12-year-old Watsonville City Council resolution that requires a 200-foot buffer zone between agricultural land and residential development.

Elite Development President Jagjit “Juggy” Tut said the ordinance, if enforced, could ultimately halt the project, which has been estimated to generate at least $1 million annual tax revenue for the city and create as many as 300 jobs.

“Worst case scenario is we don’t build it,” he said. “We divert our money and go build somewhere else.”

The 2004 resolution states the buffer zone was put in place to “address urban/agriculture conflicts.”

That is at the heart of opposition by the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau to changing the rule, said President David Van Lennep.

“We looked at it, and we had some discussion and ultimately the Farm Bureau didn’t feel comfortable giving the city permission to violate its own ordinance,” he said.

Van Lennep pointed out that a development adjacent to agricultural land could be exposed to pesticides, smells from fertilizer, dust, traffic and, during harvest time, round-the-clock noise.

That could cause conflict that might further strain relations between urban and agriculture use, he said.

“That’s how it protects agriculture,” Van Lennep said. “It buffers people’s exposure to those activities. The intent was to make it less offensive to the adjacent uses.”

Van Lennep added that Elite Development was unaware of the buffer zone when they purchased the property.

Tut said he has paid architects and engineers to find ways to fit the proposed development into the space, to no avail.

“We can’t build in that buffer zone,” he said. “If we try to put our hotel outside the buffer zone, it doesn’t work. There’s not enough space.”

Because of delays caused by battling the buffer zone, the company has also twice

paid extension penalties to Hampton Inn & Suites, the hotel chain tapped to build on the property. Tut said he is worried the company will withdraw its offer.

The city is planning on meeting with the farm bureau, but Tut was not optimistic about the outcome.

“It’s not getting anywhere,” he said. “It’s been the same story for six or seven months.”

Tut added that the setback only applies to the hotels, not the proposed restaurant, outdoor space and shops.

Dennis Osmer, who has been working with Elite Development on the project, said the rule stems from an older policy approved 25 years ago to protect residential areas and addressed such outmoded agricultural activities as crop-dusting.

“It’s really outdated, and now it’s a major barrier to something we really need,” he said. “A strict implementation would be really backward.”

Watsonville Mayor Felipe Hernandez said he hopes the city can come to a compromise with the farm bureau and Elite Development and try to “mitigate” the buffer zone.

“That would be my goal,” he said. “We should have a conversation with the ag community.”

But Van Lennep said such a move would be ill-advised.

“We don’t feel it’s good policy making if they are changing (the buffer zone) to accommodate this one project,” he said.

Van Lennep expressed concern that, whichever way the issue falls, the farm bureau will either look like it has allowed agricultural policy to be side-stepped, or that it is standing in the way of a potentially beneficial project.

“The farm bureau was brought into this situation after the property had been purchased and the plans were set forth,” he said. “We find ourselves stuck in the middle.”

The potential tax revenue is particularly important as Measure G, the half-cent sales tax approved by voters in 2014, is set to expire in 2021. The measure was created to fund the Watsonville police and fire departments.

Watsonville City Manager Charles Montoya said the issue is neither about the farm bureau nor Elite Development. Instead, it comes down to a project that could bolster the city’s financial picture, helping it to deal with issues such as unemployment, youth violence and homelessness.

“I’m obligated to bring this to the city, because if I don’t I’m not doing my job,” he said. “I want to work with the farm bureau, without a shadow of a doubt. But there has to be a balance.”

Ag rule threatens developmentFarm Bureau: Buffer needed

Most of the former Indalux aluminum plant, at the corner of Lee and Beach roads in Watsonville, has been torn down. The Tut family is hoping to build two hotels, a restaurant and other businesses. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/The Land

People line for the annual Crab Feed at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds on March 5. Put on by the Heritage Foundation, the popular event serves as a fundraiser for the fairgrounds. On top of the meal a silent and live auction, headed up by auctioneer Terry Medina, punctuated the event. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/The Land

Crab feed a huge draw

The Land -April 2016 3

Ag Luncheon Continued from page 1

402 Bassett St. • King CityPh: (831) 385-3507 • Fax: (831) 385-3508

TANKERS • LOWBOY • VEGETABLE HAULINGCody Bassetti (831) 320-2667

Serving the farming community

since 1984

farmland remains undeveloped. To do that, he said, agriculture leaders

must recruit youth and tap their vast and growing technical knowledge.

“A lot of people don’t understand that the next build-out is going to be with the youth,” Codiga said.

Dick Peixoto, who owns Lakeside Organic Gardens, said the luncheon is a time to focus on the agriculture community.

He noted the diversity of the attendees in the room, an assemblage that included education officials and bankers, business people and politicians.

“We have so many people in this room who aren’t involved in ag, but still support it,” Peixoto said. “And that’s so important.”

The luncheon is also a time to honor the National Agriculture Day poster contest and poetry contest winners, along with the Al Smith Friend of Agriculture Award.

That award went to Community Foundation Santa Cruz County, a 34-year-old organization that manages endowments

to fund a wide variety of projects and organizations.

It has awarded $94 million in grants throughout its history and has more than $100 million in assets.

In 2014, more than $764,000 of the foundation’s $13.4 million in grants went to Watsonville and the Pajaro Valley.

The Jimmie Cox Memorial Scholarship went to Aptos High School senior Maya Capurro-Frosch, 18.

Capurro-Frosch captains her school’s basketball and golf teams. She topped eight other finalists to win the $4,000 scholarship.

She will attend California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo, where she plans to study agriculture business.

She said she was inspired by her family, which owns Moss Landing-based Capurro Farms.

“I grew up in the ag world,” she said. “It’s something I think is very honorable and it’s something I want to be a part of.”

A Santa Cruz County Bee

This poster, designed by Quinn Porterfield, a sixth-grader at Mission Hill Middle School, won first place in the annual poster contest.

Lance Linares, CEO of the Community Foundation Santa Cruz County, was the keynote speaker. The Community Foundation was also named the 2016 Al Smith Friend of Agriculture. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/The Land

By Joel BurchellEighth-grade student at Creekside School

I am a bee — I pollinate flowers.I work in the fields for hours and hours.There are so many crops in the Pajaro Valley,The number of kinds can be

tricky to tally.Juicy apples, crispy and sweetRipe red raspberries, so hard to beat!Celery, lettuce, broccoli —There’s much to do for a bug like me.I think to myself as the last light is fadingI love to work here, just pollinating.

Staff report

ELKHORN — The Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve is one of 186 federal sites selected to receive a 2016 field trip grant from the National Park Foundation (NPF), as part of their Open OutDoors for Kids program. The NPF grant supports the White House youth initiative “Every Kid in a Park.”

The $7,680 grant will help fund transportation to bring local school children to the Elkhorn Slough Reserve to learn about the estuary, wildlife, and watershed in their own community.

“We are so pleased to have this opportunity to bring more fourth-graders to the reserve,” said Dave Feliz, who manages the Elkhorn Slough Reserve for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW). “This grant will enable the students, who may have never been to the reserve before, to explore this conserved land that is right in their neighborhood.”

Nine buses will arrive at the reserve over the next four months, carrying approximately 300 fourth-graders from the communities of Castroville, Las Lomas and Watsonville.

“NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuaries and National Estuarine Research Reserves provide ideal settings for fourth-graders and their families to experience hands-on activities that can inspire a sense of wonder and a thirst for knowledge about our ocean, coasts and Great Lakes,” said Dr. Russell Callender, acting assistant administrator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Ocean Service. “These grants will help us reach out to students who otherwise may not have the opportunity to visit a sanctuary or estuarine reserve.”

This grant directly affects one of the major obstacles for schools to conduct field trips — transportation. The

Elkhorn Slough Reserve hosts nearly 7,000 K-12 students annually, providing outdoor science and environmental studies instruction. Teachers that have completed the free “Teachers on the Reserve” program can engage their students in water quality lessons or explore the life in a drop of slough water at the Reserve’s microscope lab. These lessons help students understand how they are connected to their environment.

“We want to help people everywhere, from all backgrounds, discover how national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, and other public lands and waters are relevant to their lives, and the best way to do that is to give people an opportunity to experience them first-hand,” said Will Shafroth, president of the National Park Foundation.

More than 340 bird species have been identified in the Elkhorn Slough watershed, including more than 135 species of aquatic birds. The estuary also hosts more than 550 species of marine invertebrates and 102 species of fish, as well as resident sea lions, harbor seals and the largest concentration of endangered Southern sea otters on the west coast.

Managed by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) with funding support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve (ESNERR) is one of 28 reserves established nationwide to support long-term research, water-quality monitoring, environmental education, and coastal stewardship.

For more than 30 years, Elkhorn Slough Foundation (ESF) has worked in partnership with the Reserve, and is the only nonprofit organization solely dedicated to protecting Elkhorn Slough and its watershed.

For information, visit www.elkhornslough.org.

The Best in Farm Equipment Repair

• Quality Service Since 1963

• Custom Fabrication• Complete Blacksmithing• Full Line of Agricultural

& Industrial Hardware & Equipment

• Machine Work

132 Lynn St. • King City • Shop 385-3343 • Store 385-5901

L to R Chris Conatser, Mike Conatser, Pancho Alcantar, Neil McCollough, JP Wollesen, Clay Parlett & RJ Roberts

• Quality Service Since

King City Industrial

Supply, Inc.

ConatserWelding &

Machine, LLC&

Elkhorn Slough Reserve receives grantGrant to help fund field trips


Scurich InsuranceServices

Scurich InsuranceServices License #0436405

Servicing the Agricultural Community Since 1924

783 Rio Del Mar Blvd. Suite 7Aptos, CA 95003-4700Phone: (831) 722-3541

www.scurichinsurance.com

By SAMANTHA BENGTSONOf the Land

KING CITY — Monterey County Agriculture and Rural Life Museum speaker and author Lori A. Flores shed light on Mexican-American history at a gathering on March 1. The event was part of the MCARLM speaker series.

“I wanted to ask readers to think more deeply about the people who cultivate and harvest the food that shows up in our grocery stores and our restaurants and farmer’s markets,” Flores said. “And bring to light the kind of history behind the farm worker’s rights movement, the farm worker’s rights struggle and how far we still need to go today.”

Flores began her book project in 2008 and started with interviewing people. Flores interviewed local families who lived in the Salinas Valley in the 1940s and ‘50s. Flores’s research included using old phone books and old city directories from the library to figure out who lived in what neighborhood. Deportation and Immigration and Naturalization Service files were the next stop for Flores.

Flores begins her book with a sign found on Highway 101, Bracero Memorial Highway. The sign remembers the loss of dozens of Braceros in two major traffic accidents. The first incident occurred with a group of Braceros who were riding in a truck coming back from a work assignment. A lit cigarette sparked with gasoline in the back of the labor bus trapping the workers.

Fourteen Braceros were burned alive during that accident.

The second accident was five years later in 1963 in Chualar. A bus full of Braceros was crossing railroad tracks and a freight train collided with the bus. The bus was broken apart and 31 Braceros perished along with one undocumented worker.

“These were two major moments in California and United States history where the nation was forced to pay attention to the ways we were treating our farm workers,” Flores said.

Flores is originally from South Texas and comes from a working-class agricultural family. She attended Yale University and received her doctorate from Stanford University. Currently Flores works for Stony Brook University in New York teaching courses in U.S. Latino Labor, Immigration and Working Class History. Flores has been working on a book for the last eight years and completed a portion of her research at the Monterey County Agriculture and Rural Life Museum.

“Grounds for Dreaming: Mexican Americans, Mexican Immigrants, and the California Farmworker Movement” follows farm worker struggles in the Salinas Valley like the transportation incidents involving Braceros. The Bracero program was a guest worker program that operated in all 50 states from 1942-1964. The United States and Mexico came to an agreement and thousands of Mexican guest workers came into United States to work in fields. Salinas Valley was one of

the top employers of Bracero labor.Flores recognizes the impact that Cesar

Chavez had on farm workers but wanted her book to focus on the time before Chavez. Flores researched relationships

between different groups of Latinos and how they evolved over time.

“Grounds for Dreaming” is available for purchase on Amazon.

Lori A. Flores, author of “Grounds for Dreaming: Mexican American, Mexican Immigrants and the California Farmworker Movement” follows farm worker history from the 1930s to late-1960s. Photo by Samantha Bengtson/The Land

MCARLM speaker sheds light on Mexican-American historyAuthor talks of Bracero Program and Mexican American farm labor relationships

FFA Week Continued from page 1

Greenfield High School students were able to participate in a shirt-untying contest and Senior Christian Salazar was the winner. The shirt was an FFA shirt that promoted getting involved in FFA.

After school on Feb. 26 the FFA members held a musical appreciation meeting. Finishing out FFA week was a Swiss Sausage barbecue at the Santa Lucia Shopping Center in partnership with the Greenfield Rotary club.

FFA members experience a lot of different events and learning experiences including conferences. Lissette Ramirez, chapter historian, hopes to be a part of the State Conference this year in April. Ramirez likes to attend conferences because it gives her a chance to meet other FFA members in different chapters in California.

“A lot of the activities I am involved in are conferences like MFE, Greenhand,” said Damaris Ispache, sentinel. “I’m working on my state degree and getting this group to grow as an agricultural program and inspire other people.”

High school students and FFA members compete in the corn toss.

Photo by Samantha Bengtson/The Land

Staff report

SALINAS — Assemblymember Luis A. Alejo (D-Salinas) announced that Caltrans has installed signs designating a two-mile section of Highway 101 in Salinas as the “John Steinbeck Highway” in concurrence with the world renowned author’s birthday.

Alejo authored Assembly Concurrent Resolution 67 in 2014, which officially named the portion of Highway 101 from the Espinosa Road/Russell Road undercrossing to John Street after Salinas’ most famous son, who won the Pulitzer and Nobel prizes during his literary career.

“John Steinbeck was born in Salinas in 1902 and went on to become an American literary giant during a golden era of American literature, alongside icons such as Hemingway, Faulkner and Fitzgerald,” said Alejo, who unveiled the look of

the signs at an October ceremony at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas. “His books centered in the Salinas Valley – such as East of Eden, Of Mice and Men and The Long Valley – made the region famous worldwide.”

“As a youth Steinbeck spent summers working alongside migrant workers,” Alejo added. “It was here that he became aware of the harsh life migrant workers experienced in the Salinas Valley and he often found himself writing about those experiences in some of his books.”

The signs designating the “John Steinbeck Highway” are located on northbound Highway 101 at mile marker 87.16 in vegetation behind the guardrail, about 700 feet south of Market Street Bridge and on southbound Highway 101, at mile marker 91.60 in vegetation behind the guardrail, about 1,000 feet north of the Boranda Road off-ramp.

‘John Steinbeck Highway’ signs go up on Highway 101


Students Continued from page 1

MCARLM speaker sheds light on Mexican-American historyAuthor talks of Bracero Program and Mexican American farm labor relationships

Students could venture to Robert Guillen, a viticulturist from CCA Green Valley Farm Supply, who showed the third-graders how important it is to attend college. Guillen brought some grape vines with him and demonstrated how to prune and the technology that is available. Guillen said that growers are able to be more productive with the right equipment such as shears and to be safe by using gloves.

Outside of the Rava Equestrian Center and the Topo Ranch Center were five King City FFA members and their Advisor Patrick Smith. Emily Brewen, Morgan

Randall, Tessa Nunez, Victoria Mercado, and Chelsea Garcia gave celery, red cabbage, cabbage and broccoli plants to the third-graders.

“We live in the Salad Bowl and we grow all these plants,” said Randall. “It would be fun for them to grow these vegetables in their own back yard. They could go outside, pick the vegetables, wash them and put it in their own salad.”

More than 1,000 third-grade students took part in the Farm Day experience and learned about plants, soil, pests, tractors, law enforcement and various animals.

Students from Jack Franscioni School in Soledad learn about what kinds of pests farmers work with and how they can tell which pest is in which plant from Javier Rodriguez. Photos by Samantha Bengtson/The Land

Robert Guillen talks to King City Rotarians about what using the right tool can mean for the effectiveness of a farming operation.

King City FFA members encouraged third-graders to take home their own vegetable plant and plant it in their back yard. Pictured left to right: Chelsea Garcia, Victoria Mercado, Tessa Nunez and Morgan Randall.

Soledad High School FFA hosts Farm DayIn honor of National FFA Week, Feb. 20-27, the Soledad High School FFA Chapter held a Farm Day. Soledad FFA invited students from all the elementary schools in Soledad. The students learned about dairy animals, sheep and poultry (including ducks and chicks). The students also learned about planting, growing and horticulture. Each of the elementary students left with a plant. Submitted Photos


By ERIK CHALHOUBOf the Land

WATSONVILLE — Frequented by Rolling Hills Middle School students but in a state of disrepair, Hazelwood Park will be the beneficiary of a state grant to help fund improvements.

The Parks and Community Services Department’s Neighborhood Services Division and Public Works and Utilities Department held a public meeting on March 14 to discuss improvements to the park, which is a stretch of trail that connects Herman Avenue to Melwood Court.

Jonathan Pilch, director of Watsonville Wetlands Watch’s Operations and Restoration Program, said the work, which is still in the planning stage, will consist of adding native plants and building a wider sealed granite trail.

The work, funded by an Urban Greening Grant from the state, will not only improve the aesthetics and “natural beauty of the park,” according to Pilch,

but improve water quality and storm filtration. The area drains into West Struve Slough.

“Our goal is to involve students and community members in the process,” he said. “We want to bring some positive energy to this park and really help make it a more enjoyable, usable place.”

Parks Superintendent Ben Heistein said the city is looking at adding benches to the park, giving those who use the trail an opportunity to “hang out and enjoy it.”

“It doesn’t really have a definitive use,” he said.

In June 2015, Monterey Bay Murals and volunteers painted a mural on a fence near the Melwood Court side of the park, a site that has long been plagued with graffiti.

However, the mural, which depicts a series of flowers, has not completely deterred graffiti, as tags have cropped up along the fence.

City discusses Hazelwood Park improvements


WATSONVILLE — Launching a boat at Pinto Lake City Park was difficult for a while, as an enormous floating island wedged itself in front of the dock sometime during the night of March 8.

The island is a piece of wetland composed largely of willow and tule rushes, that likely broke away from the southeast side of the lake after becoming supersaturated by recent heavy rainfall, said Watsonville Environmental Projects Manager Jackie McCloud.

Normally around 28 feet deep, the lake was recently measured at 30 feet, McCloud said.

Residents noticed the chunk of land — estimated between 100 and 200 feet long — floating in the lake March 8. Winds blew it against the jetty, perpendicular to the dock, where it became stuck.

There is a bright side to the errant aisle’s wayfaring ways: wetlands are natural filters for freshwater ecosystems, McCloud said

The concept of floating islands — manmade structures that collect and clean excess nutrients as they bobble on lakes — was rejected as too expensive by city officials.

The floating island, McCloud said, could provide a pilot study to see if that method is feasible.

Pinto Lake has long been plagued by microcystin, a toxin that comes from cyanobacteria that blooms there.

That prompted officials last year to close the lake to boating and fishing, and to issue a permanent warning not to eat fish caught there.

Using a $750,000 grant awarded in April 2014, city officials have been investigating ways to clean the water.

That includes treating the water with environmentally safe aluminum polymers, with preliminary testing set to begin in April.

Other efforts have included a 2013 carp fishing contest to help rid the lake of the bottom-feeding fish that kick up toxic sediment.

McCloud said the island has moved and likely set anchor on the western edge of the lake, and has begun to break apart. Since it is out of the way of human activities, it is no longer a concern.

“We will leave it as it is,” McCloud said.

Floating island blocks Pinto Lake boat launch

A large rogue island (lower right) rests against the boat ramp at Pinto Lake City Park. Photo courtesy of Noel Murphy

A 200-foot-long island rests against the boat dock at Pinto Lake City Park. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/The Land


Seed Dynamics is specialized inseed-applied plant protectants

SEED DYNAMICS Inc. The Seed Preparation Professionals®

1081 Harkins RoadP.O. Box 6069

Salinas, CA 93912Telephone (831) 424-1177 • Fax (831) 424-0174

Staff report

WATSONVILLE — Twenty-one people have been selected for Class XXVII of the Focus Agriculture program.

This “first-in-the-nation” program is designed for community leaders to learn about agriculture in Santa Cruz County and the Pajaro Valley. Class XXVII members include: Stephen Gray, Chief Administrative Officer, Sutter Health, Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center; Jacques Bertrand, Councilmember, City of Capitola; Cynthia Druley, Executive Director, CASA; Josh Schneider, President, Bluewater Construction, Inc.; Angela Gile, Field Representative, California State Assembly – Mark Stone; Rachel Kippen, Director of Programs, Save Our Shores; and Bruce Nicholson, Co-Founder/ Principal, The Nicholson Company.

The program consists of once-a-month, daylong seminars, held over a period of nine months. Speakers ranging from farmers to elected officials to representatives from environmental groups will address the class. The sessions will cover such topics as ethnic groups in agriculture, new technology and diversity of commodities locally grown. In addition, there are many farm tours and hands-on experiences. The participants will spend one day working on a farm.

“Community leaders will find this program beneficial and, in turn, growers who present information to the class will learn the public’s current perspective of local agriculture,” said Agri-Culture President Steve Bontadelli. “The program is designed to be a two-way learning process.”

The Focus Agriculture program received a national award for its approach to bringing the public and the agricultural community together.

Class XXVII participants are:• Jacques Bertrand — Councilmember,

City of Capitola• David Brody — Executive Director,

First 5 Santa Cruz County• Cameron Chabre — Conservation

Land Manager, Land Trust of Santa Cruz County

• Doron Comerchero — Executive Director, FoodWhat

• Marie Cubillas — Executive Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Santa Cruz County

• Cynthia Druley — Executive Director, CASA of Santa Cruz County

• Marcelle Dupraw — Managing Senior Mediator & Facilitator, CSU Sacramento, Center for Collaborative Policy

• Angela Gile — Field Representative, California State Assembly – Mark Stone

• Stephen Gray — Chief Administrative Officer, Sutter Health, Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center

• Jan Kamman — Community/Corporate Relations Director, Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Cruz County

• Kathie Keely — Retired, Director of Sales, Santa Cruz Seaside Co.

• Rachel Kippen — Director of Programs, Save Our Shores

• Erin Larrus — Agriculture Teacher, Pajaro Valley Unified School District

• Barbara Mendenhall — Senior Trial Attorney, Zenith Insurance Co.

• Bruce Nicholson — Co-Founder/Principal, The Nicholson Company

• Josh Schneider — President, Blue Water Construction, Inc.

• Francisco Rodriguez — Assistant Vice President/SBA Loan Officer, Santa Cruz County Bank

• Keith Rushing — Realtor, Self-Employed Coldwell Banker Realtor

• Mary Russell — Broker/Principal, Mortgage Results

• Mike Watson — Property Manager, Shikuma Farms

• Jenni Veitch-Olson — Preschool Founding Director, United Presbyterian Church of Watsonville

By TARMO HANNULAOf the Land

SANTA CRUZ — Those that help feed the needy were thrown into the spotlight March 9 at the Annual Awards Dinner put on by the Second Harvest Food Bank of Watsonville. From individuals to large corporations, from private businesses to area schools, dozens of awards were passed around to pay thanks to the biggest donors.

“This evening is about you, the folks that do all the work,” said former Santa Cruz Mayor Hilary Bryant, in the banquet room at the Hotel Paradox. “The meals you raised for people matter; it’s not just a number, it’s about a person.”

In the Special Awards category, the Lifetime Achievement Award went to Terry Dorsey who helped raise 53,000 pounds of food last year and over the past 20 years has helped garner a million meals for Second Harvest.

Angela Farley and Patrick Littleton were named Hunger Fighters of the Year. Littleton heads up the Pajaro Valley Unified School District Garden Project and Farley is the founder of the Teen Kitchen Project.

Plantronics and Twin Lakes Church

were named Heavyweights. Twin Lakes Church alone raised 750,000 meals while Plantronics raised $23,796.

Graniterock fell under the category of Above & Beyond and Watsonville High School claimed the Annual Interact Award. PVUSD and Santa Cruz City Schools won the District Challenge.

Lakeside Organic Gardens of Watsonville, who routinely contribute to numerous charities, was awarded as a Champion Sponsor.

The Register-Pajaronian was one of six media agencies to earn a Media Award along with an Ambassador Award and a Silver Can Award.

“I want to thank Angela (Farley) for coming to Watsonville and working with our Incubator Kitchen Project,” said Watsonville Mayor Felipe Hernandez. “That meant a lot to us in South County.”

Second Harvest CEO Willy Elliott-McCrea paid earnest respect and thanks to all that were singled out, but especially to Terry Dorsey, a retired analyst for the Board of Supervisors.

“She is one of the most gracious, caring people I have ever met,” he said. “Terry works tirelessly and with extraordinary compassion.”

Champions of feeding the needy

Focus Agriculture Class XXVII selected

Ricardo Vazquez, a math teacher at Pajaro Valley High, shows a Coordinator of the Year award he was presented with for his efforts to round up more than 5,000 meals from students and staff at his campus. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/The Land

Willy Elliott-McCrea, CEO of the Second Harvest Food Bank, congratulates Terry Dorsey after presenting her with the Lifetime Achievement Award in Santa Cruz at the Annual Awards Dinner. Photo by Tarmo Hannula/The Land

Floating island blocks Pinto Lake boat launch


STEP UPStep up to the driver’s suite: Kubota’s new M135GX. Crowned with the largest Kubota cab ever built, and one of the largest available in its class. You’ll enjoy the panoramic view from the ergonomically designed operator’s platform, with more headroom, more legroom — more work-all-day-in-comfort kind of room. So step up, because like every Kubota, the reliable and efficient M135GX works hard today and holds its value tomorrow. Ready to take the next step?

See your local Kubota dealership to learn more.

C&NTRACTORS

www.kubota.comOptional equipment may be shown.

© Kubota Tractor Corporation 2012

496 Salinas Rd.Watsonville Ca.831-722-2733

2690 Ramada Dr.Paso Robles Ca.805-237-3855

Proudly serving our customers and communities for 70 years

WE DELIVER

Santa Cruz831-477-71333700 SOQUEL AVE.

Salinas831-424-7368210 W. MARKET ST.

Morgan Hill408-779-7368

95 E. MAIN AVE.

Santa Clara408-727-08222550 LAFAYETTE ST.

Campbell408-378-4921

900 DELL AVE.

Watsonville831-722-0334

285 W. BEACH ST.

Hollister831-638-19992610 SAN JUAN RD.

SEVEN CONVENIENT LOCATIONS

www.AToolShed.com1-800-A-TOOL-SHED

• AIR COMPRESSORS• AUTO TOOLS• CHAIN SAWS• GENERATORS• GARDEN TOOLS• LOG SPLITTERS• MIXERS

• FORKLIFTS• MANLIFTS• LIGHT TOWERS• REACH LIFTS• BACKHOES• TRUCKS• TRAILERS

& MORE!

OPEN 7 DAYS!

Now!

WE PAY THE

SALES TAX ON RENTALS!

The LAND and It's People

Documents

Transcript of The LAND and It's People