Community

Ken Griffin is San Benito County’s first agricultural commissioner since 2021, following a recent interview and vote by the board of supervisors.  Griffin has served as the county’s Acting Agricultural Commissioner for about five years. The board voted to remove “acting” from his title on...

Applications for the 2026 Hazel Hawkins Hospital Auxiliary Scholarship Awards are now available, hospital staff announced on Jan. 14.  Each year the auxiliary awards scholarships to students pursuing a medical or medically oriented career. The total amount awarded to each recipient will be at the...

The Community Foundation for San Benito County this week announced that applications are now open for its 2026 scholarship program, offering local students the opportunity to receive financial support toward their higher education goals.  With more than 25 scholarship funds awarded annually, the foundation is...

How many fewer fatalities and injuries on the highways would we see if tax dollars for highway safety were not diverted to public sector transit, as in, empty bus seat transport?  If voters are unhappy with how highway safety tax dollars get diverted to wasteful...

Santa Cruz and Monterey counties were included in a list of areas statewide where people have been severely sickened by Amanita phalloides—commonly known as the death cap mushroom. A group of doctors from across California warned Jan. 14 that foraging for wild mushrooms can be...

Serve your community and the Earth on Jan. 19 by planting willows and setting up pollinator plots at the Nyland property in San Benito County. The volunteer event takes place on Martin Lugher King, Jr. Day, which commemorates the civil rights leader’s life and...

Ernie Salle, of Milpitas, and Ryan Finney, of Menlo Park, are pictured getting ready to ride their dirt bikes at Hollister Hills State Recreational Vehicle Area on Cienega Road on Jan. 13. Finney’s dog, Buddy, is also pictured. The two friends have been riding...

The Bureau of Land Management is seeking public comment on proposed management updates for oil and gas leasing and development on public lands in Santa Clara, San Benito, Alameda, Contra Costa, Monterey, San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties, as well as portions of Fresno,...

Days after a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed a U.S. citizen in Minneapolis, Californians across the state took to the streets to voice their opposition against federal immigration enforcement tactics and President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign. Over the weekend thousands...

Addyson Dell, an ambitious 13-year-old homeschooled eighth grader who is the secretary of her 4H club in Hollister, is on a mission to repair her new livestock shelter that was badly damaged in a recent wind storm.  With the help of her parents, Dell is...