That first frigid snap always seems to sneak up on me. It’s 72 and sunny one day and then … Old Man Winter wakes up and exhales and it’s 26 degrees and I’m running around the yard freezing my derriere off covering the citrus and tender plants. And they say there aren’t seasons in California …
Season, too, is for the garden hoses to kink up and I have been remiss in thanking three who helped me resolve the kinky hose issue. Patty Giacalone who dropped off a TV special that works, Marv Thomas who dropped off an industrial strength black beauty all rolled up and Pete Garcia who sent me to the web and the Family Handyman site. All work, all good for different reasons, but it’s the season that freezes old hoses, so …
Season is sharing and Christmas and thought I’d share a good tip from the thoughtful Exec Director of the local Wildlife Education and Rehab Center Sue Howell. She asked if I would remind the generous people who donate toys that including batteries, if needed, is a tremendous help to distributing organizations, plus it saves parents money which could be used for necessities.
Toy drive note: Remember Nathan Heredia. He was the 3-year-old leukemia patient who a few years ago was confined to a hospital bed and hooked up to IVs in the isolation unit at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in Palo Alto during Christmas. On Christmas Day, his spirits were lifted when he awoke to a surprise heap of toys at his bed that were donated from people in the community. Nathan got better, but he wanted to make sure the children in the hospital the next year had their spirits lifted, too. Thus began Nathan’s Toy Drive. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday you can support Nathan’s Toy Drive by dropping off a toy at the Milias Restaurant on Monterey Street in downtown Gilroy. Nathan is now 6, thankfully he’s cancer free and has had his chemo port removed, but he is intent on keeping that delivery tradition to Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital alive. As a bonus, Milias owners Ann Zyburra and Adam Sanchez are offering a free meal for kids 12 and under with every toy donation made Saturday.
Public payroll disability retirements aren’t necessarily donations, but did you know that if a public employee retires on disability that they do not have to pay taxes on half their retirement income? That’s quite an incentive given the lucrative retirement benefits for firefighters and police in particular to potentially game the system and taxpayers. Moreover, the City of Gilroy has denied our initial requests for the names of former employees now retired on disability. We asked for the names, carefully making it crystal clear that no medical information was being requested. The city tossed it over to Berliner-Cohen, the gargantuan and expensive hired-gun law firm, to concoct a tortured argument as to why that’s not public information. That’s where it stands, but we aren’t done yet.
If you aren’t done with good Christmas deeds “A gconsider this from Community Solutions: “A gift of $103.50 will provide one day of shelter, food, clothes, counseling and support services for a woman at La Isla Pacifica – the confidential domestic violence shelter for women and children escaping violence in their homes.” You can go online to donate quick (www.communitysolutions.org) and earn some good Christmas season karma before Santa arrives.
Think trees are good karma, and I really liked this recent idea that came to us via press release. There’s a non-profit organization called Our City Forest that is re-inventing an urban tradition in Willow Glen. Instead of cut trees gracing the neighborhood of the 1000 block of Camino Pablo for the annual Christmas tree lawn display, potted trees will be “rented” from the non-profit Our City Forest and will be planted at schools and parks after the Christmas season. That’s cool. We could certainly use some more trees at the dog park, for example, and perhaps the city could partner with Our City Forest and our local Western or Bonfante tree nurseries to start a new Gilroy tradition that would bring joy to the community and make a lasting difference by planting trees for the future. Willow Glen resident Humberto Chacon had a poignant quote in the release: “One generation plants a tree; the next sits in its shade.”
There’s shade in Jeff Martin’s lovely olive grove as the new orchard continues to develop, but there’s nothing shady about the latest award for this superior local product. Frantoio Grove Extra Virgin Olive Oil grown right here in the Valley of Heart’s Delight is a winner in the prestigious Good Food Awards competition which culminates in a flurry of fun food events in San Francisco in January. There’s a ceremony at the Palace of Fine Arts, an exhibition at the Ferry Building and then the Fancy Foods Show. If you’re looking for a tasty Christmas gift, head to Rocca’s Market in San Martin and pick up a few bottles before it’s all gone.
Reach Editor Mark Derry at
ed****@ga****.com
