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Rosemary Menard Expected to Assume Role as Interim City Manager

GT Staff

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August 13, 2021

Rosemary Menard Expected to Assume Role as Interim City Manager

By Aiyana Moya

As the Santa Cruz City Council continues its search for its next city manager, it will vote on appointing Water Director Rosemary Menard as interim city manager at its next meeting on Aug. 24.

While the city council discussed Mernard as a candidate for interim city manager during its closed session on Aug. 9, it could not vote her into the position as it was not an item on the agenda. That decision requires the opportunity for community input, city spokesperson Elizabeth Smith said.

Current city manager Martín Bernal announced his pending retirement in February, and will leave his position at the end of this month. The city’s recruitment agency has been looking to hire Bernal’s replacement since May.

Menard has served in the public sector for 40 years, working in water utility leadership roles across the West Coast. She has worked for the city of Santa Cruz’s water department for the past seven years, and has spearheaded a water system renovation effort to increase drought preparedness.

If appointed at the Aug. 24 meeting, she would assume the role Sept. 1.

Scotts Valley Tech Start-up Aims to Shake up Global Biz Payments Industry

Drew Penner

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August 13, 2021

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Scotts Valley Tech Start-up Aims to Shake up Global Biz Payments Industry

Inside the Shell station at Scotts Valley Drive and Mt. Hermon Road, right next to the ATM there’s a similar-looking cryptocurrency dispenser where a person can buy the Ethereum cryptocurrency “Ether” with cash.

But if a person takes Glen Canyon Road under the freeway and hangs a left, they’ll come to the Green Hills Tech Center, where a booming start-up called PayStand is harnessing the code behind it—the “blockchain”—for something entirely different.

The company wants to do nothing less than completely upend what Mastercard has described as a $125 trillion business-payments industry.

“You could think of us as Venmo for B2B,” said Mark Fisher, the company’s v.p. of marketing. “We’re building a new commercial financial infrastructure.”

PayStand just announced it raised $50 million, in a funding round led by NewView Capital, with SoftBank’s Opportunity Fund, King River Capital, Industrious Ventures and Transform Capital also investing.

“I’m excited to have a company like this in Santa Cruz County,” said Aliyah Nance, the one-time Scotts Valley Banner employee who’s now hiring for 50 roles as v.p. of people at PayStand. “Santa Cruz County, as you know, has not historically provided the Silicon Valley-kind of jobs. It’s been a tough job market for the entire time I’ve lived here.”

From the low-rise, understated corporate exterior of the former Seagate location, to the ping-pong table covered with puzzle pieces in their second-floor, open-plan office, the company’s headquarters has the Silicon Valley look and feel. The Java and MySQL programming tomes on the bookshelf speak to an understanding of software history, but the collection of Surfer’s Journals remind you you’re just minutes away from some of the best waves in the world.

PayStand’s Series A lead funder was BlueRun Ventures, which was famously the first institutional backer of PayPal. Fisher says they’re poised for massive success on the business side of the digital-payments world, where PayPal has fallen short on multiple occasions.

He says what makes PayStand unique is not just the way it uses distributed servers (aka “the cloud”) to handle payments efficiently, but also how it has managed to tap into technology that’s mostly used these days for cryptocurrency transactions—the blockchain.

“There’s a lot of reasons that people are getting hyped up about it,” he said. “It disrupts a lot of what today is done in a very manual, error-prone, untrustworthy fashion.”

It’s not that different from buying real estate or a used car online via an escrow process, he notes.

“You deliver your funds into a third-party account that, in theory, you can’t tamper with and the receiving entity can’t tamper with,” he said of escrow-based transactions. “Someone in the middle is responsible for disbursing those funds when a certain set of rules have been agreed to.”

Mark Fisher, PayStand’s v.p. of marketing, says the company’s blockchain-based payment technology allows businesses to pay for things in a way that’s as easy as sending money to your friends with Venmo. PHOTO: Drew Penner/Press Banner

And that’s how the blockchain works: specific instructions are automatically executed after previously defined criteria are met. This is supposed to completely eliminate embezzlement and typos issues—and financial middlemen in general.

“We use the blockchain to assure transactions,” Fisher said. “It’s called our Assurety Blockchain. So, when someone pays over the PayStand Bank Network, you connect your bank in real time. You log in, and our infrastructure verifies in real time that you have funds available to send, and that the account is valid.”

PayStand runs a “public-private hybrid chain”—a fork of Ethereum, the blockchain dreamed up by programmer Vitalik Buterin in 2013.

Until recently, the world may have been most familiar with the Bitcoin blockchain system—coming to prominence with the roller-coaster ups and downs of digital currency speculation.

But Ethereum moved to center stage as so-called non-fungible tokens (NFTs) became a pop-culture phenomenon over the past year.

In March, Saturday Night Live even performed a skit where castmembers Kate McKinnon, as U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, Pete Davidson, as an Eminem look-alike, and Chris Redd, resembling Morpheus from the Matrix, discuss how NFTs are a new digital art market based on blockchain technology.

So, since most NFTs are built on Ethereum, many people have already been introduced to the broader concept behind how PayStand operates its decentralized network.

“Ethereum is geared towards things like smart contracts,” Fisher said, “which is why we built on the Ethereum blockchain.”

*Nestled amid the trees at the Green Hills Tech Center, employees enjoy a Silicon Valley work environment in the laid-back atmosphere of Santa Cruz County. PHOTO: Drew Penner/Press Banner*

PayStand reports 250,000 companies already use its platform, leading to $2 billion flowing through its tech and 1,007% revenue growth over the past three years.

And then there’s the business model: PayStand doesn’t bill customers each time they send or receive a payment—the hated banking fees. Instead, it uses a subscription model, charging based on the overall number of transactions. Fisher compares this to switching from Blockbuster to Netflix.

“Businesses can consume as many transactions as they want within a volume tier,” he said, adding he believes the time has come for a shake-up of financial technology in the corporate world. “Most [financial technology] today just puts a veneer on very bad, old plumbing.”

In addition to her newspaper roots, Nance has worked as chief financial officer for a variety of companies, from Sunland Gardens to Beachhead Solutions—and continues to serve as CFO for Santa Cruz nature photographer Frans Lanting’s studio.

But, she says, helping negotiate the latest $50 million Series C investment was something else.

“I was very involved in that,” she said, looking back on the 18-hour days—seven days a week—that ended up bearing fruit. “The due-diligence process to bring in that kind of money is very intense.”

As PayStand’s director of finance at the time, Nance says it was intriguing to see how eager the institutional money folk were to come on board.

“We’ve obviously got some magic sauce here,” she said. “The investors want to give us money long before we’re looking for it. So, that part’s the easy part here. The difficult part is explaining what we do.”

Now her attention has turned to attracting talent to an office that allows employees to work on the patio, in flip-flops, or after a surf session—provided they’re driven.

“We’ve brought in 55 new humans since January in our locations,” she said, pondering the rush of hypergrowth pumping through their Scotts Valley veins, as well as campuses in Draper, Utah and Guadalajara, Mexico. “Here we go: growth, growth, growth.”

Scotts Valley Crime Rates Rise in Pandemic-impacted Year

Drew Penner

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August 13, 2021

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Scotts Valley Crime Rates Rise in Pandemic-impacted Year

While assaults dropped by 27% last year in Scotts Valley, other crimes increased—including burglaries almost doubling, according to stats presented to Scotts Valley City Council by Police Chief Steve Walpole, Jr., Aug. 4.

Other so-called Part 1 Crimes that increased between 2019 and 2020 included robbery, which jumped from one to seven, and rape, which rose from two to seven.

“We continue to keep our city the safest place to live in Santa Cruz County, and we were ranked as one of the safest places to live in all of the state of California,” Walpole said. “We were able to maintain the public safety despite a number of unprecedented challenges to our organization, to our city and our way of life.”

Scotts Valley continued its trend of zero homicides, and overall calls for service remained just under 6,500, but officer-initiated activity dropped 16%, citations plunged 40% and arrests were down 23%.

Unlike other communities, which saw intimate partner abuse rise during the pandemic, domestic violence incidents dropped 24% from 25 to 19 in Scotts Valley.

Vandalism/graffiti was down by 31%, from 77 to 53. Drug violations were down by 5%—from 95 to 90. But auto thefts increased 163%, from eight to 21.

City Councilwoman Donna Lind, a former Scotts Valley Police Department officer, thanked the chief for his “outstanding service” in trying times.

“I did notice the dramatic increase of crimes on the Part 1 crimes—both the robbery and obviously the rape cases as well,” she said, wondering if this could be connected to the coronavirus pandemic. “I’m just wondering if there’s any indication—if there’s anything in looking at those crimes that we could learn from them?”

Walpole replied that the dramatic percentage increases are due to the fact that Scotts Valley has so little crime to begin with.

“So, it makes it look like it’s a huge jump, but really it’s just a couple extra,” he said. “The one that was concerning to me, and we did notice here, for sure, was burglary.”

While the city had seen fewer than 45 burglaries for the previous three years, between 2019 and 2020, the number jumped from 31 to 60.

“Due to the lockdown, all the burglars knew that everybody was locked at home,” Walpole said. “So, unfortunately, some of our businesses got targeted in the first few months of Covid-19.”

Lind said she understands that a small number of additional crimes can be a valid explanation for the triple-digit increases.

“I know that’s always the case when we have some of these major crimes—one or two can make a huge jump,” she said, adding, “the burglaries definitely seem—and maybe even the robbery—to coincide with the community shut-downs.”

The traffic ticket drop was also linked to Covid-19, Walpole said.

“There wasn’t a lot of traffic on the roadway, for three or four months in a row,” he said. “So, there wasn’t a lot of vehicles to even stop, which resulted in less citations.”

Walpole reflected on how the department also took on a new role last year—public health enforcement of mask-wearing and stay-at-home order compliance.

“These new rules kind of forced our department to become the de facto enforcement arm of the county health department, as the general public called in violations of the order,” he said. “It also meant our staff all had to mask up during work.”

And he singled out Capt. Mike Dean for his efforts—alongside his other employees—during the CZU Lighting Complex fires evacuation.

“Capt. Dean probably held the record for the most hours worked in a seven-day workweek,” he said. “He logged in 105 hours in seven days, which was outrageous.”

City Councilman Jim Reed, the vice mayor, commended the police department for the way it reacted to the wave of racial justice activism over the past year.

“I just especially want to thank you and your entire team … for the way that you proactively responded after George Floyd’s murder,” he said, noting some of his local government peers over the hill in Silicon Valley “couldn’t believe it” when he told them the chief actually spoke at the Black Lives Matter protest, “—and that was certainly a catalyst for change.”

And yet, something many residents might not realize, is that even at that very moment, the department was already in discussions with the city about how to stamp out discrimination, promote inclusion, and outlaw inappropriate officer tactics.

“You were talking with the city manager about things that we can do proactively, before there was really any pressure on the Scotts Valley Police Department to take a look at its own procedures—just because you had an organization that’s committed to continuous improvement,” Reed said. “And you volunteered that we can do more about implicit bias training; and we can do more about conflict de-escalation; we can do more to make sure officers are sensitive to when we might be dealing with primarily what’s a mental health problem.”

Demographic data included with the report showed Black people made up about 1% of Scotts Valley’s population at the time of the 2010 Census, and 4% of in-custody arrests in 2020. Latinx people made up 10% of the city’s population, and 22% of arrests. Asians made up 5% of the city’s population, and 1% of arrests. White people made up 86% of the population and 67% of arrests. Other racial groups made up 8% of the population and 6% of arrests.

This is the first year these statistics—which are collected during routine traffic stops—have been included with the department’s annual report.

During his presentation, Walpole reflected on how the department was trying to be responsive to the social movement afoot in 2020.

“The peaceful protest prompted our department to reexamine our own policies and procedures around the use of force,” he said. “And we ended up making improvements to the way we do business, and ultimately presented those changes to city council for approval.”

City Councilman Randy Johnson said he appreciated the quality police service provided this year, adding the residents do too.

“They like living here because it is a safe place,” he said. “But mostly, Steve, the leadership you’ve shown is impressive. And I just kind of want to pass that on and give you my compliments on a job well done in a pretty hard year.”

Freedom VFW Post Facing Closure

Todd Guild

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August 13, 2021

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Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1716, which has served the local community of veterans since its inception in 1929, is facing closure after members failed to elect officers at a meeting in July.

Member Paul Szemenciak says that, out of 116 members, just eight showed up to the last meeting.

When members were unable to decide on this year’s leadership, the California VFW Department of California suspended the charter of Post 1716, Szemenciak says.

Now, with the next meeting on Aug. 18 fast approaching, Szemenciak is hoping that more members will attend and step up into leadership roles.

If that doesn’t happen, the state office could permanently disband the post and sell the property, Szemenciak says.

That would be a blow for the community of veterans that rely on the post to connect with their brethren, he says.

“All I know is that the veterans wouldn’t have a place to go,” he said.

Rodger Meier, the VFW State Adjutant and Quartermaster, says the result of failing to elect leadership could also be consolidation into another local post. In order for that to happen, however, the post would have to agree to take on Post 1716’s debts, he said.

“We hope that the post can either elect officers and continue to be an integral part of their community, or be a part of a neighboring post,” Meier said.

Meier says that VFW halls are crucial parts of their communities, serving as places for blood drives, food distributions and educational programs to the community. Members donate thousands of volunteer hours, he says.

More importantly, they serve as a vital gathering place for people who have served in the military

“A VFW post is an important place for vets to socialize with other vets,” he said. “It’s a form of mental health to talk to people who can actually understand them.”

Ramon Gomez, who works as an analyst for Santa Cruz County Supervisor Greg Caput, says the low attendance likely stems from concerns over the Covid-19 pandemic, especially with increasing cases of the Delta Variant.

“It’s hard to get people together these days,” he said.

U.S. Army veteran Harry Wiggins, who is active in the local veteran community, added that the younger generations of veterans who served in more recent conflicts such as Iraq and Afghanistan aren’t joining the VFW as older ones did.

“I think it’s a whole generational thing,” he said.

Wiggins says that, if the VFW closed, it could mean the end to the volunteer efforts for which it is known, such as putting U.S. flags along Freedom Boulevard on Memorial Day.

It could also mean the end of the local Color Guard, and possibly the annual Memorial Day Parade, he said.

“The community would be crying,” he said.

The VFW Post 1716 will meet on Aug. 18 at 7pm at 1960 Freedom Blvd. to elect officers. All members are encouraged to attend.

In Texas, a Quarantine Camp for Migrants with COVID-19

The New York Times and GT Staff

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August 13, 2021

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In Texas, a Quarantine Camp for Migrants with COVID-19

By Miriam Jordan, The New York Times

MISSION, Texas — On the edge of the Rio Grande in South Texas, sprawling Anzalduas Park has long been a popular spot for bird-watching, family cookouts and fishing. But earlier this month, the grassland expanse with barbecue grills and picnic tables was put off-limits, transformed into a large COVID-19 quarantine camp for migrants who have crossed from Mexico.

Buses now pull in to deposit passengers under a large circular pavilion, where bedraggled families form a line, waiting to be tested for the coronavirus. Those who test positive must remain at the camp, often with their families, until they are virus-free.

By this week, at least 1,000 migrants were housed at the teeming camp, erected by the nearby city of McAllen as an emergency measure to contain the spread of the virus beyond the Southwestern border. About 1,000 others are quarantined elsewhere in the Rio Grande Valley, some of them in hotel rooms paid for by a private charity.

Cities in South Texas, the busiest crossing points along the border, are now at a harrowing place where two international crises intersect: an escalating surge of migrants and the rise of the delta variant, forcing city leaders and nongovernment organizations to step up testing and quarantine operations as the Border Patrol continues to refrain from testing newly arrived migrants.

Amid a ferocious resurgence of coronavirus infections in many parts of the country, some conservative politicians, including the governors of Texas and Florida, have blamed the Biden administration’s failure to halt the influx of migrants for the soaring case numbers.

In fact, the massive operation in McAllen and others like it make that extremely unlikely, and public health officials and elected leaders here note that the region was facing rising case numbers even before the recent increase in border crossings.

“We can’t attribute the rise in COVID numbers to migrants,” Mayor Javier Villalobos of McAllen said. He said city and county officials issued a disaster declaration Aug. 2 and moved to set up a quarantine center after it became apparent that the surge in border crossings posed a health risk to local residents.

“The influx of migrants just became too big,” he said. “The vast majority of McAllen residents never see a migrant, but we couldn’t risk them wandering around town.”

A New York Times reporter was granted exclusive access to the quarantine camp on a recent weekend. It could be mistaken for a sprawling recreational campsite. Residents were picking up food under a white event-style tent, children climbed on a jungle gym and families lounged in the shade. Some people appeared lethargic and unwell.

Of the 96,808 migrants who have passed through McAllen this year and been checked for the coronavirus, 8,559 had tested positive as of Tuesday.

Yet the prevalence of the virus among migrants thus far has been no greater than among the U.S. population overall, according to medical experts, and the highest positivity rates in the country are not in communities along the border. Rather, they are in areas with low vaccination rates and no mask mandates.

The positivity rate among migrants serviced by Catholic Charities in McAllen reached 14.8% in early August, after hovering between 5% and 8% from late March to early July, but it has not surpassed the rate among local residents.

In Hidalgo County, the migrant positivity rate was about 16% last week compared with 17.59% for residents, who have had little, if any, interaction with the migrants.

“Is this a pandemic of the migrants? No, it’s a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” Dr. Iván Meléndez, the health authority in Hidalgo County, said last week during a news conference.

On Thursday, the Homeland Security secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, was scheduled to visit Brownsville, on the border 60 miles southeast of McAllen, where migrants who test negative are being offered vaccines at the bus station.

Since March 2020, the federal government has been using an emergency health law known as Title 42 to expel thousands of migrants who might otherwise have been allowed into the United States. The Biden administration extended the policy, but has had to admit many families arriving in the Rio Grande Valley, especially those with young children, because Mexico says it has nowhere to shelter them.

Smuggling networks have exploited the loophole, and overall migrant apprehensions in July reached 212,672, the highest monthly figure in 21 years, despite the searing heat. The number of intercepted people in family units jumped 49%, to 82,966, from 55,839 in June.

Even without COVID-19 challenges, the surge has strained local shelters, where families typically stay long enough to bathe, rest and book travel to destinations across the country.

Sister Norma Pimentel, the executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, which runs a shelter in downtown McAllen that has room for 1,200 migrants, said she had to sound an alarm last week because the Border Patrol was dropping off so many people at the shelter’s door.

“I told the mayor, ‘I need help,’ ” she said. “We have never seen these numbers before.”

“The problem wasn’t that a higher percentage of families were COVID-positive,” Pimentel said. “It was that the numbers arriving were so high, there were more positives among them.”

The McAllen City Council voted within an hour to accommodate migrants in tents on city land, prompting an outcry among some residents. The tent shelter soon relocated to Anzalduas Park, well outside the city.

Everardo Villarreal, a county commissioner, called the park “a perfect location because it has natural barriers to keep immigrants from county residents.”

“We have enough people of our own infecting each other; we don’t need people from other countries coming and infecting us,” he said.

The Border Patrol said it does not have the capacity to test migrants for the coronavirus upon arrival; doing so would require them to remain even longer in crowded border processing stations when the priority is to release them as quickly as possible, officials said.

Catholic Charities since last year had been testing migrant families for the virus immediately upon their release by Border Patrol and isolating those who test positive at its downtown shelter. In February, amid an uptick in arrivals, it began sending those families to motels.

The issue exploded in late July after a resident in the nearby town of La Joya waved down a police officer to report a family of migrants who appeared to be exhibiting COVID-like symptoms while dining at a Whataburger.

The fast-food restaurant is a three-minute walk from a Texas Inn, where the infected family had been staying, according to Sgt. Ismael Garza, a local police officer. It soon emerged that the motel was one of several in the Valley that were housing under quarantine many other migrants also stricken with the virus.

“We posted it on Facebook, and next thing you know…,” said Garza, his voice trailing off.

The post, headlined “COVID-19 Alert,” said officers had been previously unaware that migrants who had tested positive were at the hotel and noted that 20 to 30 of them had been observed “out and about, the majority without face masks.”

Soon, Fox News was on the scene.

In response, Gov. Greg Abbott on July 28 issued an executive order barring private citizens and organizations from transporting migrants who “pose a risk of carrying COVID-19 into Texas communities,” an order apparently directed at the private charities that were operating shelters and contracting with local hotels for quarantine locations. He said the Biden administration’s border policies were “having a predictable and potentially catastrophic effect on public health in Texas.”

Attorney General Merrick Garland called the governor’s order “dangerous and unlawful” and the Justice Department sued, winning a temporary injunction blocking the order, at least through Aug. 13.

On a recent afternoon, the door to every room of the sand-colored two-story motel in La Joya was closed. The pool area was empty. A man who sat in a blue Volkswagen Beetle, directly facing the compound, said that his job was to ensure that no migrants left their rooms. Food was being left at their doors three times a day, he said.

The motel’s owner, Sam Patel, said that about 15 rooms were occupied by migrants who had the virus, half the original number.

A nurse was visiting twice a week, he said. “Everything’s safe.”

The locations of motels quarantining migrants have not been publicized, and Vilma Ayala, 60, said that she spent the night at one of them, only to realize that many fellow guests were COVID-positive migrants.

“Never did they tell us they were using this hotel for COVID people,” said Ayala, who had not been vaccinated. She said that she grew suspicious when she saw food being delivered to several rooms. She demanded, and received, a refund.

A couple of miles away from the motel in La Joya, as the sun went down, new groups of arriving migrants began emerging from the brush along the border. By 10 p.m., dozens were sitting in a baseball field off Military Road, waiting to be transported to a Border Patrol facility.

Jeremy, a 3-year-old Honduran boy, his eyes sunken and his body limp, was draped over his mother’s lap. “He has a fever,” said the mother, Rosi Mabel. “We’re all coughing and sneezing.”

Once they were processed, the families who were not immediately expelled were delivered to the Anzalduas Park tent camp for coronavirus testing.

After having their noses swabbed, migrants were directed to sit in gray folding chairs under the shade of a tree until their results were ready. Those who tested positive were sent to an area behind a railing, where they waited for further instructions.

Those who tested negative were told they would be transported to the Catholic Charities shelter.

A volunteer announced what was, on that day at least, good news. “We just had 110 negatives,” she said.

Military Equipment Acquisition Now Requires Santa Cruz City Council’s OK

GT Staff

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August 13, 2021

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Military Equipment Acquisition Now Requires Santa Cruz City Council’s OK

By Aiyana Moya

The Santa Cruz City Council returned Aug. 11 from summer break and unanimously adopted a policy that requires city council approval for the acquisition of military equipment by any city department.

Police Chief Andy Mills presented the resolution for the policy, which was initially introduced Nov. 24, 2020, when the council introduced a slate of bills aimed at reforming the police department.

The resolution is in response to the federal 1033 Program, which allows federal, state and local agencies to apply for and receive surplus military equipment. The types of equipment that could be acquired under the program vary from military-specific equipment and vehicles to generic office furniture or first aid kits.

Currently, there are no procedural checks in place to limit or oversee what equipment city departments apply for under the 1033 Program. The Santa Cruz Police Department does not have military equipment, nor has it applied for or accepted military equipment in recent history, Mills said.

Should the police department, or any city department, want to accept or apply for military equipment, it would now submit a proposal to the council, delineating the reason for securing military equipment. The resolution also requires departments in possession of military equipment to submit an annual report to the City Council Public Safety Committee, specifying the type and purpose of military equipment in use—however, there is no language around the council’s ability to remove military equipment after reviewing these reports. Lastly, the policy gives the city council the authority to accept or deny requests for grant funding that would be used to acquire military surplus items.

City Council member Jason Cummings supported the move.

“Many members of the community have expressed concern over having the ability to accept military-grade equipment … having the council weigh-in will allow for it to be a transparent process,” Cummings said.

City Council member Sandy Brown also supported the resolution but warned of the consequences of any militarization of the police department.

“For the record, I’m opposed to the city getting involved in acquiring military-grade equipment … I think that the move towards militarizing local police forces is problematic,” Brown said.

In other action, Deputy Chief Bernie Escalante gave an update on the Black Lives Matter mural vandalism suspects. Brandon Bochat, 20, of Santa Cruz and Hagan Warner, 19, of Boulder Creek met bail, and SCPD detectives are still searching for two suspects involved in the vandalism. Both are assumed to be youths and one is suspected to be out of state, Escalante said. A preliminary hearing for Bochat and Warner will be held on Sept. 20.

The Equity Collaborative is working with the District Attorney’s office to create outreach materials that communicate the impact of the defacing of the mural, to be displayed next to the mural in the coming weeks.

‘It’s Emotional’: Youth N.O.W. Closing on Aug. 31

GT Staff

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August 13, 2021

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‘It’s Emotional’: Youth N.O.W. Closing on Aug. 31

By Aiyana Moya

A line of students from a variety of Watsonville schools on Wednesday filed through the Youth N.O.W. facility loading their backpacks with school supplies—from paper, tape and paints, to notebooks, pens and glue.

“It’s emotional. It’s emotional for my staff, it’s emotional for me … we’re all feeling it right now,” Youth N.O.W. Executive Director Michele Chaney said.

After more than 11 years of serving students in South County, Youth N.O.W., a nonprofit organization that offers students free tutoring services, after-school activities and a low-cost summer school program, is closing on Aug. 31 due to insufficient funding.

Youth N.O.W. served 14 schools throughout its operation and expanded its services to 16 schools during the pandemic. Staff offered virtual services and coordinated chrome book pick-ups, and they stepped in to assist students with internet access. Wanting to continue to provide students with a place to go, it offered its summer program in 2020 and this summer.

When his daughter, who is participating in Youth N.O.W.’s summer program, told him about the nonprofits’ imminent closure, Pajaro Valley Unified School District Trustee Daniel Dodge, Jr. was shocked.

“I didn’t believe it,” Dodge said. “They offered so many great programs to people. [Youth N.O.W.’s closure] affects students and children in my neighborhood and around the county.”

Dodge enrolled his daughter in the summer program as a way to keep her occupied, and also to ensure she was in a safe environment while he worked—her mother had concerns about who his daughter was hanging out with, and also about her staying home alone all day.

Initially, his teenage daughter was hesitant about the program. But as the summer progressed, she made connections with students from around the county and had her day filled with activities from hiking to going to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, and she began to look forward to the summer program.

“It was five days a week from nine to five. What other program are you going to pay $50 a week for a whole day packed with activities?” Dodge said.

One of Youth N.O.W.’s goals is to ensure all its services are accessible to students of all backgrounds, especially given its students are primarily children from working-class families.

“Even the smallest amount of fees can prohibit a student from being able to access services,” Chaney said. “[We want students] to see the potential that they have no matter where they’re from. Most of them are just needing academic support and somewhere to be after school when parents are working.”

While Youth N.O.W.’s closure means there is one less place for students to access essential services free of charge, Chaney is optimistic about other organizations stepping in to provide similar services and fill this need for students. She also knows that the connections students made at the organization will have last beyond Youth N.O.W.’s closure.

“There’s a lot of laughter around here today. There’s of course a lot of questions, a lot of tears from staff and students. They’re sad. But at the same time, they’ve made so many new friends together … And I know that there will be other programs that are realizing that there’s that gap to fill with Youth N.O.W. closing,” Chaney said.

When he heard of Youth N.O.W.’s closure, Darren Gertler, Environmental Science Workshop coordinator, found time to drive the workshop’s mobile classroom to the Youth N.O.W. parking lot with a few staff members.

“I just wanted to connect and hopefully find some recruits from Youth N.O.W. students,” he said. “It’s important we work together and I want these students to know there are alternatives; they are all welcome to take part in our program as well.”

ESW is a free, drop-in program under the city of Watsonville’s umbrella where young people can stop by and use, among other things, power tools, art supplies, books and computers in a host of projects, from building birdhouses, cooking, sewing and bike repair to playing music.

The common thread that connects these organizations is that they provide a safe place where youth can go and feel that they belong, and provide students with the resources and connections to succeed, Chaney said.

“I’m just really glad that I know personally that some kids are on a better track, having been through Youth N.O.W.,” Chaney said.

Pajaronian reporter Tarmo Hannula contributed to this story — Editor

Santa Cruz County Health Officer Says Mask Order Won’t Change Behavior

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August 13, 2021

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Santa Cruz County Health Officer Says Mask Order Won’t Change Behavior

Saying that she has not yet seen reliable data that a countywide masking mandate would alter personal behavior or lower Covid-19 cases, Santa Cruz County Health Officer Dr. Gail Newel said she does not plan to issue a new order any time soon.

Newel at a Thursday virtual press conference said that at this point of the pandemic—deemed the “mitigation phase” by Health Services Agency Director Mimi Hall—the county did not want to distract from its ongoing efforts to increase its commendable but still unsatisfactory vaccination rates.

Across the county, 78% of those eligible for the inoculation have had at least one shot of the Covid-19 vaccines, and 68% are fully vaccinated. When expanded to all county residents, said Deputy County Health Officer Dr. David Ghilarducci, the percentage of those who are partially vaccinated drops to 67%.

That percentage, health officials say, will undoubtedly improve when those under 12 are allowed to get the shot, but it is unknown when federal health agencies will OK the vaccine’s use for children. Newel said she has heard that approval could come by the end of September, at the earliest.

Health officials called the press conference, Newel said, to again urge those who are not vaccinated to get their shot. The rate of vaccinations has slowed, Ghilarducci said, particularly in people living in Boulder Creek and Ben Lomond. Unsurprisingly, he added, the number of North County and caucasian residents aged 25-50 coming down with the disease has risen.

Overall, at least 687 county residents were infected with Covid-19 as of Thursday, according to the data available on the county’s dashboard. The county’s seven-day positivity rate on Thursday was 5.2 cases per 100,000 residents, a number that would have placed the county in the orange “moderate” tier under California’s reopening plan scrapped by Gov. Gavin Newsom in June.

Hospitalizations have also slowly risen in the past week. According to state data, there were 18 patients in local hospitals with the disease on Wednesday, including three in the ICU.

Ghilarducci said that ICU capacity is not the only issue at local hospitals. Low staffing as a result of the pandemic—doctors and nurses are taking sabbaticals and vacations after the hectic past 16 months—and people returning to the hospital for elective procedures have also put a strain on the health care system.

“Our hospital workers are burned out,” Ghilarducci said.

The county also recently reported its first Covid-19-related deaths since May. Both were unvaccinated people in their 70s. Those deaths, Ghilarducci said, were preventable, as vaccinated people are more than 16 times less likely to die from Covid-19 than those without the shot.

“The Delta variant is here,” added Newel. “It’s time to be vaccinated if you’re not already … We need all of the layers of protection that we can get and even vaccinated folks should be wearing masks indoors.”

But Newel stopped short of following many of her peers across the state in issuing a masking mandate—instead, keeping in place her recommendations issued last month. Along with saying that it would not alter the behavior of people who do not wear masks, she said that she did not want to put local law enforcement in the same position they were last year when officers had to enforce masking orders on public beaches and other spaces. She also said she did not want to undercut HSA’s vaccination outreach efforts, which, health officials say, have largely paid off in South Santa Cruz County.

It was Watsonville—with its large low-income and uninsured population that makes up much of the county’s workforce deemed essential by the state and federal governments last year—that bore the brunt of the pandemic. The majority of the county’s confirmed 17,272 Covid-19 cases and 209 deaths happened in its southernmost city. Seeing that, HSA invested the bulk of its federal and state Covid-19 funding into partnerships with Watsonville nonprofits and other community based organizations. It also chose to establish a free Covid-19 testing center, erect a vaccination center and run its massive weekly drive-thru clinic in Watsonville.

As a result, Watsonville has the highest vaccination rates in the county—69% are fully vaccinated and 81% are partially vaccinated.

“We are spiking the football,” Hall said, adding that not everyone agreed with HSA’s “equity” approach over the last year. “I truly think our efforts saved lives.”

HSA Assistant Director Jen Herrera said the Covid-19 testing centers in Watsonville and Santa Cruz will be open through the rest of the year. The vaccination center in downtown Watsonville, however, will close at the end of the month—both the testing and vaccination centers are funded by the state.

Herrera said that the county is trying to work with a local organization to offer an alternative when the downtown Watsonville center closes.

Things To Do in Santa Cruz: Aug. 11-17

GT Staff

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August 11, 2021

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A weekly guide to what’s happening.

ARTS AND MUSIC

ARCANE LULLABY FREE LIVE CONCERT AT SHANTY SHACK BREWING Local Santa Cruz band Arcane Lullaby will be playing an eclectic mix of original music at this free, outdoor, live show at Shanty Shack Brewing. Saturday, Aug. 14, 7-8pm. Shanty Shack Brewing, 138 Fern St., Santa Cruz.

BOTANICAL BEAUTIES OF SANTA CRUZ Botanical Beauties of Santa Cruz County, a selection of digital photographs of plants and blossoms photographed in Santa Cruz County by Marlene Mirassou, will be hanging at the Ugly Mug Coffeehouse. Wednesday, Aug. 11-Tuesday, Aug. 17, 6:30am-3:30pm. The Ugly Mug, 4640 Soquel Drive, Soquel. cafeugly.com.

SANTA CRUZ SHAKESPEARE: RII The story that sets England’s Wars of the Roses in motion, Jessica Kubzansky’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s Richard II tells the story of that king’s ill-fated reign using just three actors. What is our responsibility when a bad leader rightfully occupies the throne? This exploration of divine right, capricious leadership and bloody insurrection is packed with contemporary political relevance. A critic’s choice pick when it premiered at the Boston Court Theatre in Los Angeles, Charles McNulty, critic for the L.A. Times, called the play a “feat of ingenious stagecraft.” Santa Cruz Shakespeare performances take place in the Audrey Stanley Grove at Upper DeLaveaga Park in Santa Cruz. With a “safety first” mantra, Santa Cruz Shakespeare has implemented numerous Covid-19 safety protocols for its 2021 Season—including a revised seating layout that ensures adequate space and comfort for patrons. For more information about SCS, visit santacruzshakespeare.org. Due to limited capacity at the venue, early ticket purchase is encouraged.. Thursday, Aug. 12, 7:30-9:30pm. Saturday, Aug. 14, 8-10pm. Sunday, Aug. 15, 1-3pm. The Grove at DeLaveaga Park, 501 Upper Park Road, Santa Cruz.

SANTA CRUZ SHAKESPEARE: THE AGITATORS This play tells the story of Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony. Over the 45 volatile years they knew one another, they were friends, allies and adversaries. Their hopes and dreams for equality brought them to common ground and political battlefields. As agitators, they were not content to let either our nation or each other rest in complacency, and their respective fights for racial justice and gender equity continue to this day. Santa Cruz Shakespeare performances take place in the Audrey Stanley Grove at Upper DeLaveaga Park in Santa Cruz. With a “safety first” mantra, Santa Cruz Shakespeare has implemented numerous Covid-19 safety protocols for its 2021 Season, including a revised seating layout that ensures adequate space and comfort for patrons. For more information about SCS, visit santacruzshakespeare.org. Due to limited capacity at the venue, early ticket purchase is encouraged. Wednesday, Aug. 11, 7:30pm. Friday, Aug. 13, 8pm. Saturday, Aug. 14, 2pm. Sunday, Aug. 15, 7pm. The Grove at DeLaveaga Park, 501 Upper Park Road, Santa Cruz.

THE EIGHTH ANNUAL SANTA CRUZ COMEDY FESTIVAL (OUTDOORS) The Santa Cruz Comedy Festival has a different national headliner each week with a brand new all-star line-up. This is a fun and funny day in the park. Bring your blankets and beach chairs, check out the vendors and food trucks and get ready to laugh! Saturday, Aug. 14, 4pm. Laurel Street Park, 301 Maple St., Santa Cruz.

THE EIGHTH ANNUAL SANTA CRUZ COMEDY FESTIVAL AFTER PARTY Join Greater Purpose Brewery on Saturday evenings for 90 minutes of comedy featuring the best comedians in California and beyond. Hosted by DNA and friends, this is a great way to start off your weekend! The Afterparty will feature comedians from the festival, including regional and national headliners. Greater Purpose Brewing Company, 21517 East Cliff Dr., Santa Cruz. Saturday, Aug. 14, 7pm.

COMMUNITY

10 WARNING SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER’S WEBINAR Alzheimer’s and other dementias cause memory, thinking and behavior problems that interfere with daily living. Join us to learn how to recognize common signs of the disease, approach someone about memory concerns; the importance of early detection and benefits of a diagnosis; possible tests and assessments for the diagnostic process, and Alzheimer’s Association resources. Register at alz.org/crf or call 800-272-3900. Thursday, Aug. 12, 3-4:30pm.

A TASTE OF SPAIN ON YOUR PLATE—VEGAN COOKING AND WINE PAIRING CLASS Spend an afternoon enjoying the beautiful art of vegan Spanish cooking and wine pairing at the gorgeous FlipJack Ranch, nestled in the magical Santa Cruz Mountains. In this hands-on vegan cooking class, you’ll make a four-course meal: smoked paprika garbanzo bean and green olives tapa; fennel-orange salad with citrus dressing composed of Spanish olive oil, Meyer lemon, orange juice and rind; paella with roasted organic seasonal vegetables, shallots, garlic, artichokes, caper berries, Spanish green olives and lemon-saffron Santo Tomas bomba rice; fig tart (torta de higos) with crushed organic pistachios and honey. Class runs for four hours and is limited to 10 students. Early registration is highly encouraged. The class fee is $225.00 (nonrefundable) and includes a bottle of Truvee Red Blend Central Coast 2013, an apron and a name badge for each student. Saturday, Aug. 14, 1-5pm. FlipJack Ranch, 4600 Smith Grade, Santa Cruz.

A YEAR AGO TODAY: COMMUNITIES REFLECT ON THE CZU LIGHTNING COMPLEX FIRES Join collaborators from across the county as they collectively reflect on the one-year anniversary of the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fires. This event will highlight the stories of those affected by these fires as part of the MAH’s new exhibition, “Out of the Ashes,” which features an ongoing film and audio archiving project by Shmuel and Nikki, who began collaborating with MAH in September 2020 to document and record some of the personal stories of those who were impacted by these devastating fires. The evening will also feature a preview screening of Contents Inventory by local filmmaker Irene Lusztig, who has also been working closely with affected members of the community to document and share their stories. We hope you’ll join us at the MAH for an evening of collective storytelling and visioning our next steps as a community that continues to deal with the threat of fire and climate change. Comments and recommendations provided during this program will help shape an ongoing series of programs that will run throughout the year. Monday, Aug. 16, 6-7:30pm. Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History (MAH), 705 Front St., Santa Cruz.

COMMUNITY PILATES MAT CLASS Come build strength with us. This very popular in-person community Pilates mat class in the big auditorium at Temple Beth El in Aptos is in session once again. Please bring your own mat, small Pilates ball and Theraband, if you have one. You must be vaccinated for this indoor class. Suggested donation of $10/class is welcome. Thursday, Aug. 12, 10am. Tuesday, Aug. 17, 10am. Temple Beth El, 3055 Porter Gulch Road, Aptos.

DEMENTIA CONVERSATION WEBINAR When someone is showing signs of dementia, it’s time to talk. Often, conversations with family about changing behaviors can be challenging and uncomfortable. This program provides tips for breaking the ice with your family so you can address some of the most common issues that are difficult to discuss: going to the doctor for a diagnosis or medical treatment, deciding when to stop driving, and making legal and financial plans for future care. Register at alz.org/crf or call 1-800-272-3900. Friday, Aug. 13, 1-2:30pm.

DOWNTOWN SANTA CRUZ MAKERS MARKET Come out and support local makers and artists at the Downtown Santa Cruz Makers Market every third Sunday of the month on Pacific Ave at Lincoln Street. The market is now on the 1100 block of Pacific Ave. between Cathcart and Lincoln Streets near New Leaf and alongside so many amazing downtown restaurants. Support local and shop small with over 30 Santa Cruz County artists and makers. Don’t forget to stop in and visit the downtown merchants and grab a bite to eat from the downtown restaurants. Remember to social distance as you shop and wear your mask. If you’re not feeling well, please stay home. Friendly leashed pups are welcome at this free event. Sunday, Aug. 15, 10am-5pm. Downtown Santa Cruz Makers Market, Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz.

GREY BEARS BROWN BAG LINE Grey Bears are looking for help with their brown bag production line on Thursday and Friday mornings. Volunteers will receive breakfast and a bag of food if wanted. Be at the warehouse with a mask and gloves at 7am. Call ahead for more information: 831-479-1055, greybears.org. Thursday, Aug. 12, 7am. California Grey Bears, 2710 Chanticleer Ave., Santa Cruz.

HEALTHY LIVING FOR YOUR BRAIN AND BODY WEBINAR For centuries, we’ve known that the health of the brain and the body are connected. But now, science is able to provide insights into how to make lifestyle choices that may help you keep your brain and body healthy as you age. Learn about research in the areas of diet and nutrition, exercise, cognitive activity and social engagement, and use hands-on tools to help you incorporate these recommendations into a plan for healthy aging. Register at alz.org/crf or call 800-272-3900. Tuesday, Aug. 17, 1-2:30pm.

VAX UP SANTA CRUZ! In partnership with the County of Santa Cruz and HSA Public Health Division, the MAH will hold a walk-in vaccination clinic offering the Janssen vaccine. While you’re at the MAH, contribute to the Tree of Hope activity. Free, walk-ins accepted, no registration required. Friday, Aug. 13, Noon-4pm. Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History (MAH), 705 Front St., Santa Cruz.

GROUPS

ENTRE NOSOTRAS GRUPO DE APOYO Entre Nosotras support group for Spanish-speaking women with a cancer diagnosis. Meets twice monthly. Registration required, please call Entre Nosotras 831-761-3973. Friday, Aug. 13, 6pm. WomenCARE, 2901 Park Ave., Suite A1, Soquel.

S+LAA MENS’ MEETING Having trouble with compulsive sexual or emotional behavior? Recovery is possible. Our small 12-step group meets Saturday evenings. Enter through front entrance, go straight down the hallway to the last door on the right. Thursday, Aug. 12, 6pm. Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center, 2900 Chanticleer Ave., Santa Cruz.

WOMENCARE ARM-IN-ARM WomenCARE Arm-in-Arm Cancer support group for women with advanced, recurrent, or metastatic cancer. Meets every Monday at WomenCARE’s office. Currently on Zoom. Registration is required, call WomenCARE at 831-457-2273. All services are free. For more information visit womencaresantacruz.org. Monday, Aug. 16, 12:30pm.

WOMENCARE TUESDAY SUPPORT GROUP WomenCARE Tuesday Cancer support group for women newly diagnosed and through their treatment. Meets every Tuesday currently on Zoom. Registration required, call WomenCARE 831-457-2273. Tuesday, Aug. 17, 12:30-2pm.

WOMENCARE WRITING CIRCLE Writing Circle for women with a cancer diagnosis. Meets on the second Saturday every other month. Registration is required, please call WomenCARE at 831-457-2273. Saturday, Aug. 14, 10am-1pm. WomenCARE, 2901 Park Ave., Suite A1, Soquel.

WOMENCARE: LAUGHTER YOGA Laughter yoga for women with a cancer diagnosis. Meets every Wednesday, currently via Zoom. Registration is required, please call WomenCARE at 831-457-2273. Wednesday, Aug. 11, 3:30-4:30pm. WomenCARE, 2901 Park Ave., Suite A1, Soquel.

OUTDOOR

CASFS FARMSTAND Organic vegetables, fruit, herbs and flowers are sold weekly at the CASFS Farmstand, starting June 15 and continuing through Nov. 23. Proceeds support experiential education programs at the UCSC Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems. Friday, Aug. 13, Noon-6pm. Tuesday, Aug. 17, Noon-6pm. Cowell Ranch Historic Hay Barn, Ranch View Road, Santa Cruz.

FASCINATING FISH BONES: ARCHAEOLOGY FOR THE FUTURE OF FISHERS AND FISHERIES At coastal archaeological sites, thousands of fish bones represent the discarded remains of past meals. Fishbones provide important clues about how people of the past lived and how their daily activities shaped the identity of coastal residents, their relationships, and their interaction with the surrounding environment; an understanding of the long history of fishing can help us conserve coastal fisheries for future fishers. Join Eréndira M. Quintana Morales, Assistant Professor, Anthropology Department at UCSC to discover the fascinating world of fish bones and learn about her collaborative research on the archaeology of fisheries in the Western Indian Ocean. Register in advance for the online Science Sunday webinar (required): seymourcenter.ucsc.edu/learn/ongoing-education/science-sundays. Virtual Science Sundays are free for Seymour Center members and $10 per household for non-members. Please consider supporting the Seymour Center, and gaining free access to programs like Science Sunday, by becoming a member today: seymourcenter.ucsc.edu/get-involved/join. Sunday, Aug. 15, 1:30-2:30pm. Seymour Marine Discovery Center, 100 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz.

HISTORIC RANCH GROUND TOUR Discover what life was like a century ago on this innovative dairy ranch. This hour-long tour includes the 1896 water-powered machine shop, barns and other historic buildings. The vehicle day-use fee is $10. For more information, call 831-426-0505. Spaces are limited and early pre-registration is recommended. Attendees are required to self-screen for Covid-19 symptoms when pre-registering. Masks and social distancing are also required at all programs. To register, visit santacruzstateparks.as.me/schedule.php. Saturday, Aug. 14, 1pm. Sunday, Aug. 15, 1pm. Wilder Ranch State Park, 1401 Coast Road, Santa Cruz.

LEAN ON ME: COMMUNITY STRUCTURES OF SUPPORT Return to the Farm for a Sunday afternoon community celebration with delicious food, music, volunteer opportunities, presentations, an interactive art activity and talk from artist M. James Becker about the new trellis and bench he is donating to HGP, and more. Holey Roller Bagels is creating a menu of fresh treats, bagels and spreads, and there will be coffee and tea from Alta Organic Coffee and Tea all for donations for HGP’s transitional employment program. The event will also feature music from Chris Jones of Wolf Jett, as well as a performance by Celadon. Sunday, Aug. 15, Noon-3pm. Homeless Garden Project Farm, Shaffer Road at Delaware Ave., Santa Cruz.

NATURAL BRIDGES LITTLE RANGERS Participants are invited to play games, listen to stories and songs, and learn about nature! Activities and games vary from week to week but always cover a topic relevant to Natural Bridges. Meet at the side porch of the Visitor Center. Parents or caregivers are required to stay and encouraged to help facilitate the fun and games. Day-use fee for vehicles is $10. For more information, call 831-423-0871. Masks and social distancing are also required at all programs. Although no pre-registration is required, this program has a class capacity and operates on a first come first serve basis, so make sure to arrive early. We can’t wait to see you again! Monday, Aug. 16, 10-10:30am. Natural Bridges State Beach, Swanton Boulevard and West Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz.

NEW BRIGHTON JUNIOR RANGERS This fun one-hour program offers kids ages 7-12 an opportunity to earn prizes while learning about birds, sea life, and local park animals, playing games, and doing arts and crafts. Meet at the campground Ramada. For more information, call 831-685-6444. Spaces are limited and early pre-registration is recommended. Attendees are required to self-screen for Covid-19 symptoms when pre-registering. Masks and social distancing are also required at all programs. To register, visit: santacruzstateparks.as.me/schedule.php. Friday, Aug. 13, 3pm. Saturday, Aug. 14, 3pm. New Brighton Beach, 1500 Park Ave., Capitola.

PERMACULTURE FOOD FORESTS COURSE Do you want to gain hands-on skills and build a community around growing food? Interested in learning best practices for orchard establishment and management, food forestry, designing year-round productive vegetable farms and gardens, and preserving the harvest? We are pleased to offer this advanced practicum grounded in sound horticultural practices and spiced with the delicious seasonal fruits and vegetables our region has to offer. Before the area around San Jose was called the Silicon Valley, it was known as “the Valley of the Heart’s Delight” because of its apricot, peach and plum orchards, and the delightful abundance it produced. Join us in creating and celebrating these habitats on both home and broadacre scales. Learn more and register online at santacruzpermaculture.com/foodforests/. Saturday, Aug. 14, 10am. Santa Cruz Permaculture, 343 Soquel Ave. #185, Santa Cruz.

SEYMOUR CENTER OUTDOORS Activities include tide pool investigation: hone your observation skills and watch animals such as sea stars, sea urchins, and hermit crabs gracefully move in their environment; outdoor scavenger hunt: explore the pathway of giants and find nine outdoor objects hidden around the Seymour Center; larval fish geocache: why do baby fish look so different from their adult forms? What kinds of strategies do fish use for raising their young? And just what kind of fish live in Monterey Bay, anyway? Find the answers to these questions in five secret containers located throughout the Coastal Science Campus. Marine Animal Selfie Station: Grab a selfie with one of our life-sized wooden marine animals—be sure to use #SeymourCenter on your social media profiles. The Seymour Center Outdoors is free to visit with a suggested $10 donation per household. Become a sustaining supporter of the Seymour Center, and purchase a membership! To learn more see seymourcenter.ucsc.edu/visit. Saturday, Aug. 14, 11am-2pm. Seymour Marine Discovery Center, 100 McAllister Way, Santa Cruz.
SUNSET BEACH BOWLS Experience the tranquility, peace and calmness as the ocean waves harmonize with the sound of crystal bowls raising vibration and energy levels. Every Tuesday one hour before sunset at Moran Lake Beach. Call 831-333-6736 for more details. Tuesday, Aug. 17, 7:15-8:15pm. Moran Lake Park & Beach, East Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz.

Carrie Nicole Robinson Moves from Backup Singer to Center Stage

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August 11, 2021

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Carrie Nicole Robinson Moves from Backup Singer to Center Stage

In the mid-to-late 2000s, Carrie Nicole Robinson sang backup vocals for the hip-hop group Serendipity Project and the reggae band Congregation. She also sang lead vocals briefly in blues-rock-soul outfit Robinson Family Band with her father, uncle and cousin. After being immersed in music for so long, life pulled her away from it.

But in 2019, as she found the confidence to return to music, she knew she didn’t want to be the backup singer anymore. She focused on writing and performing her own material and returning to the scene as a solo artist. In spring, she released the bluesy R&B track “Making Room,” her first official single. And it’s a powerful track that talks about her journey over the past decade to claim music for herself as she took control of her life.

“It’s been a long journey—mentally, spiritually, emotionally,” Robinson says. “I’ve done a lot of self-help, remaking who I am and what I want to do in life. When I came out, I said, ‘I’m ready to do my music again.’”

It was an arduous journey. In 2009, at the age of 25, Robinson became pregnant; her child was born with chronic medical conditions. To make matters more complicated, his father was sent back to Peru, making her a single mom. She’d already struggled with substance abuse and PTSD, which worsened.

“It was a very difficult, traumatic time in my life, and I began to try and numb my feelings with alcohol and substances. I got to the point where I needed to [go to] rehab to stop drinking,” Robinson says. “I never stopped music completely; I just lost a lot of self-confidence and wasn’t inspired, or didn’t feel safe enough to express myself and perform for a while. I was finding myself again.”

She is seven years sober now and has continued to improve her mental health, which she addresses in “Making Room.” It’s about ending bad habits and creating space for new, better ones; the song is full of soul and hope.

It would have been easy to pen a song that dwells on the dark moments of her past, but that’s not what she wanted to put out into the world.

“Music has always been an outlet for me to get through the hard times. When things are tough, I put on Alicia Keys or India Arie. They usually have an optimistic outlook,” Robinson says.

She recorded “Making Room” during the lockdown with her uncle James Robinson who co-wrote and plays guitar on the track. Carrie plays piano and sings on the tune. She brought in her cousin James Eric Robinson to play bass and Celso Alberti to play drums. Recorded at James’ house, surrounded by friends and family, the session was comfortable.

Once she got that first song out, more followed. Some are about her journey, and some have social commentary; others tell stories. Robinson has a whole album’s worth of material ready to go; she hopes to record it all and release it sometime next year.

“This is my talent, my purpose,” she says. “And the songs were coming so easily to me; I knew that I had more to say, and it was time for me to create that musical experience that I have visions of.”

Throughout the 20-plus years that Robinson spent as a backup singer, she had always dreamt of being front and center.

“I’m a little late, but I’m on the right track,” she says. “It gives me a new level of confidence. I hope my song can reach others and help them feel safe in their skin, too. You never really know. You just put it out there.”

Hear “Making Room” at carrie-nicole.com.

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Low-Key Lux

Rosemary Menard Expected to Assume Role as Interim City Manager

Scotts Valley Tech Start-up Aims to Shake up Global Biz Payments Industry

Scotts Valley Crime Rates Rise in Pandemic-impacted Year

Freedom VFW Post Facing Closure

In Texas, a Quarantine Camp for Migrants with COVID-19

Military Equipment Acquisition Now Requires Santa Cruz City Council’s OK

‘It’s Emotional’: Youth N.O.W. Closing on Aug. 31

Santa Cruz County Health Officer Says Mask Order Won’t Change Behavior

Things To Do in Santa Cruz: Aug. 11-17

ARTS AND MUSIC

COMMUNITY

GROUPS

OUTDOOR

Carrie Nicole Robinson Moves from Backup Singer to Center Stage

Rosemary Menard Expected to Assume Role as Interim City Manager

Scotts Valley Tech Start-up Aims to Shake up Global Biz Payments Industry

Scotts Valley Crime Rates Rise in Pandemic-impacted Year

Freedom VFW Post Facing Closure

In Texas, a Quarantine Camp for Migrants with COVID-19

Military Equipment Acquisition Now Requires Santa Cruz City Council’s OK

‘It’s Emotional’: Youth N.O.W. Closing on Aug. 31

Santa Cruz County Health Officer Says Mask Order Won’t Change Behavior

Things To Do in Santa Cruz: Aug. 11-17

Carrie Nicole Robinson Moves from Backup Singer to Center Stage