A helpful thing happened this week in the heart of some of the most productive farmland in the state. On June 9, various reps from the Pajaro Valley Collaborative—a partnership of 26 nonprofit advancing health and wellness, economic mobility and civic engagement—gathered to provide context around proposed cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), aka CalFresh in California.
As I noted here last week, SNAP works wonders in preventing hunger and medical bills, with $1 spent resulting in as much as $10.64 in health care costs averted.
It also provides a bunch of benefits for local farms and businesses, as Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau VP Peter Navarro points out.
“Santa Cruz County farms vary in size, crop and background—but they share one critical truth: They rely on stable markets, consistent labor and policies that protect the people and systems that keep them running…” he says. “If these cuts to SNAP go through, more fields will go unplanted, more food will go unharvested, more family farms will go under, and more working families will go hungry.”
Hopefully that clear-eyed wisdom helps plow through all the current noise specifically designed to distract and divide.
More info and resources await at pvcollaborative.org and savesnaped.org.
BOARDWALK THIS WAY
The one and only Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk is unleashing seasonal excitement, including July 11 and July 25 “summer luau” celebrations with a nine-station tropical buffet, live music and Polynesian dancers. Then there’s free movie Fridays at 9pm, June 13–Aug. 8, with kettle corn, corndogs and taffy on offer; new-for-2025 summer long bowling passes, $22 for two games a day (though that doesn’t include shoes or weekends); and half-priced arcade games 9–11am June 16–Aug. 8; plus summer discount nights Monday–Thursday with 65% off wristbands June 16–Aug. 7. Fresh culinary partnerships with popular local purveyors also await, with Sumano Bakery laying down the sourdough for crab sandwiches, coffee savants Cat & Cloud brewing joe, Sugar Bakery doing cookies and Driscoll’s supplying the berries for fresh-juiced strawberry lemonade, beachboardwalk.com.
POURING IT ON
Venus Spirits celebrates its oldest and most flavorful whiskey to date with its third annual Pig Roast for Whiskey Folks, a “backyard-style bash” 2–6pm Saturday, June 21, at the distillery (200 High Road, Santa Cruz), with 1pm early access VIP $100 and general admission $45—and limited release of the caramel-toffee-toasted-oaky whiskey available while bottles last, vennussspirits.com…It’s across the bay, but the new Snack Shack from the same team behind neighboring Margaritaville and Pete’s in Capitola has a glorious summer thing going with smashburgers, Straus Family Creamery soft serve and Hebrew National hot dogs on Martin’s Famous potato rolls, all overlooking Lovers Point Park and Beach, snackshackloverspoint.com…Marianne’s Ice Cream is in the running for USA Today’s 10 Best nationwide, as are Marini’s Candies and Pacific Cookie Company—vote for three sweet community classics via 10best.usatoday.com…From the Wacky-or-Wack? File: Rhode Island distillery Industrious Spirit Company has debuted a Pizza Vodka macerated with herbs, spices and tomatoes, distilled, then infused with mozzarella…Ralph Waldo Emerson, take it from here: “What is a farm but a mute gospel?”
