Events

History Sharing Day at Castro-Adobe

November 13, 2018 by Seb Frey

Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks (Friends) today announced it will host a history-sharing event Castro Adobe State Historic Park on Saturday, Nov. 17 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“Thanks for the Memories” is a chance for history buffs, locals and Castro family descendants to visit the new state historic park in the Pajaro Valley and share historic photos of the property and surrounding area. Staff will be on-hand to scan the images and add them to the park’s archive and for potential use in the site interpretation. Friends staff is also interested in hearing personal stories and anecdotes about the Castro Adobe and families that have resided there.

“Part of restoring and opening the Castro Adobe as a State Historic Park is learning all of the history of the property and interpreting it for the public,” said Bonny Hawley, executive director of Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks. “But we need help. Please check your attics, photo albums and even family bibles for information related to the Castro family or the property. We’re crowd-sourcing in the 21st century to get a look at life in the 19th century.”

Friends is trying to solve one mystery in particular — what did the family of Juan Jose Castro and his wife, Rita Josefa Pinto Castro look like? To date, no photos of this particular family have surfaced. Friends is also seeking historic photos that include:
• Castro family members and nearby rancho families, such as Rodriguez and Amesti
• the Castro property and historic buildings including outbuildings
• nearby properties and surrounding lands
• Old Adobe Road from various angles

Photos and documents will be returned immediately after they are scanned.

The Saturday event also will include tours of the Adobe and is free to attend. Castro Adobe State Historic Park is located at 184 Old Adobe Road, Watsonville. Parking is extremely limited and carpooling is encouraged. Learn more at www.thatsmypark.org.

For those who cannot attend the event, but still want contribute to the historical archive at Castro Adobe State Historic Park, please contact Friends at 831-429-1840.

Mar Vista Harvest Festival Back for 2018

October 10, 2018 by Seb Frey

Mar Vista Harvest Festival 2018It’s baaack! The Annual (not to be missed) Mar Vista Harvest Festival is October 28th, 2018 from 12-4 PM at Mar Vista Elementary School (behind the Aptos/La Selva Fire Station on Soquel). This community event is open to all families and community members, and that includes folks who don’t have kids at Mar Vista!

Admission is free but rides and activities require tickets or an unlimited wristband. There will be many fun activities including a cake walk, photo booths, dunk tank, rock wall, bungee swings and so much more!

Food Trucks at the Harvest Festival

Ate3one
Saucey’z
Pono Hawaiian Grill
El Buen Taco

This is a really, REALLY fun event that never fails to disappoint. If you’re looking for a fun, inexpensive, weekend family activity, this is one you honestly won’t want to miss!

Tickets can be pre-purchased online at https://squareup.com/store/mvps-club/item/harvest-festival. All-day wristbands are available for $15 each if you pre-order before October 28th, and after that they’ll be $20 each at the door and online. You can also buy ride and activity tickets online for $1 each or $10 for a book of 12.

*Rain or shine, you’ll have a great time!*

If you have a teenager and they need community service hours, please e-mail the Harvest Festival organizers at marvistaharvest@gmail.com and they will be in touch.

Halloween at the Santa Cruz KOA

September 30, 2018 by Seb Frey

If you know anything about Santa Cruz County’s reputation, you wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Halloween is a big deal here. Every Halloween evening in downtown Santa Cruz, there’s a massive street party attended by many thousands of people in costume. The police are out in force to make sure everyone stays safe amid the chaos. While some children do go downtown for the festivities, many parents are wary of bringing their kids, especially those of single-digit ages, into that madhouse.

So what is a fun-loving family to do in Santa Cruz county for Halloween? It turns out, there’s a raging party down by the southern end of the county at the Santa Cruz Monterey KOA.

KOAs are known as squeaky-clean family campgrounds, a Disney-fied camping experience that’s cleaner, better-run and with much superior amenities compared to anything you’d find in a public campground. So imagine my surprise when I learned that at our amazing KOA they host a Halloween party that is absolutely off the hook.

Each year, for the last three weekends of October, the Santa Cruz Monterey KOA hosts what they call the “Halloween Spooktacular.” For 2018, the weekends are October 12-14, October 19-21, and October 26-28. Of course, you’re probably already too late to get a spot for any of these weekends; I understand that they are generally booked up a year in advance – but they could have a cancelation, so it’s worth your time to inquire.

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So what’s this “Spooktacular” all about? They have a bunch of activities during the day, like a pumpkin carving contest, the spooky train, site decorating contest, Halloween ceramic painting, the KOA Ice Cream Bike, and new this year, the “Haunted Trail” in the evening. So there’s plenty of activities to keep everyone occupied until the witching hour, which starts at 6:30 PM.

That’s when the real fun begins. The whole campground turns into a massive trick-or-treat extravaganza, with most cabin and RV sites hosting visitors, sharing candy for the kids and cocktails for the adults. Many of the sites are decorated very creatively in splendid Halloween adornments, which make great conversation starters with the site tenants and fellow revelers.

Later in the night, a roving dance party makes its way through the campground, with sound, lights, and dozens (hundreds?) of people bouncing around, with every color and configuration of lights flashing and swaying to the beat.

It’s an amazing thing to experience – a great time for children of all ages (even those who’ve been in their double digits for decades). If you’re able to grab a spot and you’re looking to have fun this Halloween, you need to look into spending one of the last three weekends in October at the Santa Cruz / Monterey KOA.

Video from Santa Cruz / Monterey KOA Halloween Spooktacular

Photo Gallery for Halloween at the Santa Cruz KOA

Unified Corridor Investment Study Released, Workshops Planned

September 29, 2018 by Seb Frey

Santa Cruz County RTC (Regional Transportation Commission)

The long-awaited Unified Corridor Investment Study (UCIS) “Draft Step 2 Scenario Analysis” was released on Friday, September 28th 2018. The document is available on the RTC web site but is also being made available for download here. The Santa Cruz RTC (Regional Transportation Commission) will be holding two public workshops so residents can join the discussion about transportation options for our Aptos community’s transportation needs now and into the future.

The UCIS is investigating what projects on Highway 1, Soquel Avenue/Soquel Drive/Freedom Boulevard, and the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line will provide the greatest benefit to the community. These workshops will feature an overview of the UCIS draft Step 2 scenario analysis and seek public input on a preferred scenario for Santa Cruz County’s transportation future.

Public input is critical as we move forward with examining how well combinations of transportation investments – automobile, transit, bicycle and pedestrian – serve the community’s needs. The evaluation is based on a triple bottom line (environment, economic and equity) approach to sustainability and adopted UCS performance measures.

Input can also be emailed to ucs@sccrtc.org or mailed to the RTC at 1523 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz 95062.

UCIS Public Workshop Dates and Locations

Monday, October 15
6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Live Oak Elementary School
Multi-Purpose Room
1916 Capitola Road, Live Oak, CA

Tuesday, October 16
6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Civic Plaza Community Rm A, 4th Fl
275 Main Street, Watsonville, CA
(Parking in garage on Level 6)

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Valencia Vendor Fair on Sunday, October 7th

September 29, 2018 by Seb Frey

Save the Date for the Valencia Vendor Fair

Valencia Elementary School will be having a fundraiser and vendor fair on Sunday, October 7th from 10 AM util 2 PM at the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz (Across the street from Safeway & Beside Chase bank). They’ll have a hot dog stand, and be selling lemonade, coffee/tea, and having a bake sale as well. A number of local Aptos vendors will be attending, including:

DoTerra Essential Oils
H20 at home
Agnes & Dora apparel
Rodan + Fields
Healy Chiropractic
Monat
Prime My Body CBD oil
Alixandra Art & Photography
Wolf camp
Tu p p e r w a r e
31 bags 4 Partylite “ Beaches and Bubbles “
LuLaRoe
Beautycounter
Arbonne International
Melaleuca Chalk couture
Vintage With a Spin
Gone Seaglassin
Pretty nails by Jenn
Greeting cards
Cocoa Exchange
and so many more

You’ll also have an opportunity to purchase tickets Drive for Schools raffle – where you can win a new car or $25,000 in cash! All proceeds go towards Valencia School fundraiser. Come on down and support a great local school and mix and mingle with your Aptos friends and neighbors!

Looking for a Home in Aptos?

Golden Goals Community Celebration and Auction comes to Aptos

September 22, 2018 by Seb Frey

The Aztecas Youth Soccer Academy will be holding its 4th annual Golden Goals Community Celebration at the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz County (on Soquel Drive, across from the Safeway at the Rancho Del Mar Shopping Center) on Friday, September 28th 2019 from 4:00 until 8:00 PM. Come and join their many supporters to celebrate Aztecas’ inspiring successes and dreams for our community! Patrons will enjoy great local food, drink and live music while socializing and bidding on a huge variety of auction items to benefit the Aztecas Youth Soccer Academy. Be a part of a healthy solution that reclaims the lives of at-risk youth.

Tickets are $50 each and can be purchased online using this link.

See you there!

Golden Goals Auction at Community Foundation of Santa Cruz

Home Seller Seminar Comes to Aptos in January 2019

September 21, 2018 by Seb Frey

This coming January 24th, 2019 local author and real estate broker Sebastian “Seb” Frey will be putting on a “Savvy Seller Seminar” for home owners thinking about selling their homes in 2019. This novel home seller seminar will be held from 6:30 to 8:00 PM at the Best Western Seacliff Inn (home to Severino’s Bar and Grill) on Old Dominion Court, just off Highway 1 / State Park Drive, across from the Rancho Del Mar Shopping Center.

The seminar will be fun, fast-paced and very informative. The goal of the seminar is to teach attendees how to achieve four simple objectives for a successful home sale:

Maximize the Sale Price
Minimize the Costs of Sale
Speed the Sale Process
Mitigate Risk

The presentation will be given by a number of speakers with years of experience in their respective fields. Topics that will be explored include:

Current Market Statistics
Ninja Marketing and advertising tactics
Staging Your Home to Sell Quickly at Peak Pricing
Disclosure Requirements
Key Features of the Listing Agreement
Key Features of the Purchase Agreement
What to know about the Appraisal Process
Buyer’s Contingencies and Inspections Purchase
What Makes Deals Fail

Ticketing Information

Tickets are available at no charge on EventBrite – but hurry, seats are limited and are expected to fill quickly. Limit two tickets per person, and include snacks, drinks, end eligibility to win any of several door prizes.

Libro Castro: Saturday, June 23

June 5, 2018 by Seb Frey

Libro Castro is a fundraising party and book launch to honor Castro Adobe stewards from the past and celebrate the recent progress toward opening the Castro Adobe, the first State Historic Park in the Pajaro Valley. The event will be 4-7 p.m. Saturday, June 23.

Tickets are now available. Cost is $75 per person, including food and drink, or $100 with food, drink and a copy of the book. All donations will be matched 1:1 by the James & Carol Toney Fund.

This year’s stewardship event honors the Paizis family, who owned and cared for the property from 1959-1963, and also celebrates the launch of the second edition of Suzanne Paizis’s chronicle of the Castro’s history: The Castro Adobe in the Twentieth Century: From Earthquake to Earthquake.

The event will pay tribute to John Paizi’s Greek heritage with assorted Mediterranean food. Wine from Storrs Winery, local beer, and made-to-order espresso and tea will be served.

Early 60’s period address is encouraged! The Castro Adobe site is fragile, so guests are encouraged to park offsite at the Strawberry Business Center at 125 Hangar Way in Watsonville. Free shuttles will be running through the evening, but some parking for mobility-impaired guests will be available at the Adobe. But guests who do take the shuttle will be given a free ticket to enter a raffle drawing.

Become an event sponsor!

African Dance comes to Aptos Library in June

June 5, 2018 by Seb Frey

The Diaspora Performance Project supports our community of Artists of the African Diaspora and provides opportunity for the development of new work, deep and meaningful connection to our community, and performances. All ages are welcome to these interactive and inspiring workshops. This program is made possible by the Tannery World Dance + Cultural Center.

Mandjou Koné: West African Dance

Workshop for all ages Saturday, June 9th at 2 p.m. at the Aptos Library. As a young girl Mandjou helped her Griot father keep his band alive by singing, dancing and playing instruments like the Djembe, Bala, Dundun, Kora and Tama. She is a popular dance educator and has been teaching and performing over the past twenty years throughout the US.

Nano Loubayi: Congolese African Dance

Workshop for all ages Saturday, June 30th at 2p.m. at the Aptos Library. Promoting Congolese dance is the focus of Nano Loubayi, dance teacher, choreographer and director of Bitezo Bia Kongo, his Congolese African dance company. Loubayi lives in Santa Cruz, California, frequently teaching traditional Congolese dance.

These events are part of the Santa Cruz Public libraries Summer Reading Program, Reading Takes You Everywhere. A reading and activities program for all ages. To register, visit santacruzpl.org/srp/.

Ninth Annual Kitayama Brothers Farms Gerbera Festival

June 5, 2018 by Seb Frey

Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks today announced the ninth annual Kitayama Brothers Farms Gerbera Festival, a benefit for Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks, will be held Saturday, June 9 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Kitayama Brothers Farms is located at 481 San Andreas Road in Watsonville (next to Sunset State Beach).

The Gerbera Festival, part of the Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers Open House event, features free greenhouse tours, potted Gerbera plants and cut flowers for sale, flower arranging demonstrations, a farmers market, tacos, local beer and a PopUp ParkStore.

All proceeds from the Gerbera Festival benefit Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks.

The Gerbera Festival is part of the larger Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers Open House, a daylong event on June 9 featuring guided tours of four Monterey Bay flower farms, including Kitayama Brothers. Go to www.montereybayfarmtours.org for more.