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Hollister High School this week announced its top 10 students in the Class of 2023, based on grade point average and other academic factors.  This year’s Hollister High valedictorian is Ava Thatcher, and the salutatorian is Alejandro Beltran, according to the school’s announcement. The remainder...

Seventeen Hollister High School seniors received medals at a recognition luncheon last week to honor the fact that they had perfect attendance throughout all four years on campus. Not all students were available during the lunchtime event, but the five present received a welcome...

The Sans Topo Ranch in San Benito County, which has been owned and managed by five generations of the Sans family since 1926, will be preserved in its current state forever after the California Rangeland Trust purchased a conservation easement for the property.  The 4,500-acre...

It’s somewhat improbable that both Julie Maldonado and her daughter, Mary Villegas, have worked simultaneously in the Hollister School District for multiple decades.  Perhaps even more astonishing is that Villegas has taught for 20 years with cerebral palsy.  The duo reflected on their time and experiences...

The deadline to apply for direct assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency was extended to July 20 for California residents in 12 counties who were impacted by winter storms.  The extension gives residents in San Benito, Santa Cruz, Monterey, and other impacted counties an...

After an investigation that lasted about one year, authorities from San Benito County and neighboring agencies arrested an alleged gang member on June 1 who was in possession of more than 20 illegal firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition, according to the sheriff’s...

Local authorities arrested several people—including four juveniles—for gun-related offenses and are seeking information on possible additional suspects in relation to a collision, followed by a shooting, that occurred June 1 in Hollister, according to police.  About 8pm, police were dispatched to the 1000 block of...

Rightfully, San Benito County residents complain about road conditions more than any other local issue. Our road conditions are unacceptable, and they have been for a very long time.  After spending my first year on the San Benito County Board strongly advocating for a major...

Gavilan graduate awarded $20K scholarship Gavilan College graduate Josephine Torres, who will be transferring to UC Santa Cruz in the fall, has been awarded that institution’s Karl S. Pister Leadership Opportunity Scholarship for 2023.  Torres is a biology major whose career goal is to help people...

Charades can be a fun way to occupy an after-dinner-evening with friends or family.  Pantomiming, gesturing, pretending and making hilarious faces can dissolve into hilarity and satisfaction but is never taken seriously.  What should not be like a game of charades is a democratic board...