54.4 F
Watsonville
February 11, 2026

​​100 year flood protection is within grasp for Pajaro, Watsonville

pajaro levee
Now, let’s say the levees that protect your home from flooding are old and deficient. They could fail during the next big storm, causing a major flood. The federal and state government offer to pay $400 million for new and improved levees. The only...

Masks

Jay Shinseki Watsonville
In the month of October, many will be celebrating or observing Halloween. It is surprising how many people have embraced this “holiday.” As Buddhists living here in America, we have assimilated into the culture and traditions and many will observe Halloween with parties, giving...

Words matter: From stigma and apathy to empathy and action

letters to the editor
By Denise Elerick, of the Harm Reduction Coalition of Santa Cruz County Substance use disorder is now widely recognized in the medical community as a chronic illness which responds to treatment. Similar to other chronic diseases such as diabetes or heart disease, remission and recurrence...

Donations to Watsonville’s Performing Arts Department greatly appreciated

Donations greatly appreciated  On behalf of the Watsonville High School Performing Arts Department, I would like to thank several individuals who have recently donated instruments to our school. The first being the family of Jim and Marion Rector for their recent donation of a beautiful...

Letters to the Editor, July 9

letter to the editor pajaronian
Enforce the laws We have endured another onslaught of pyrotechnics in Watsonville. While I appreciate efforts to discourage their use, such as bilingual ads in the newspaper and electronic message boards placed around the city, I wonder: why enact ordinances and laws if they apparently...

‘Missing’

Rev. Robin Mathews-Johnson
Memo from Rev. Mathews-Johnson I don’t know about you, but there’ve been times in my life when I thought something was missing. You know what I mean. Like when you’re young and single and things are going along fine, except you long for something else,...

Guest View: Sacramento leadership needs to prioritize language access in elections

pedro hernandez
In the 2020 election, my Watsonville family was energized and held its very first voting party. Local candidates competing for the same office visited, my cousins and I offered to translate and research for our elders, and many drove together to City Hall to...

On my mind, June 10: The song of life

For the past several weeks the mockingbirds have returned to our yard. This is the normal pattern, around May and June. Let’s face it — they’re noisy and a nuisance. It used to really bother me, but for reasons unknown, I’ve come to enjoy their morning sy

What’s going on?

Special events SCDG Turkey Bowl (Nov. 27) The Santa Cruz Derby Girls invite fans, friends and supporters to participate in their 11th Annual Turkey Bowl at the Boardwalk Bowl from 6-9 p.m. This annual tournament raises funds to help offset costs for the league’s travel teams. Teams...

Guest View: Living life together in Pajaro Valley

On March 7, 2020, I sat with friends and colleagues around a table at the fairgrounds’ Crosetti building for the annual crab feed. As we laughed and ate way too much, I never imagined the next time I’d be at the fairgrounds would be...
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Cabrillo football coach Justin Hansen to take leave of absence

Cabrillo College announced Monday that head football coach Justin Hansen will take a formal family medical leave of absence effective immediately. Hansen is expected to...