Community

The California State Assembly Select Committee on Fentanyl, Opioid Addiction and Overdose Prevention on Aug. 12 during an informational hearing discussed the urgency of combating the rise in overdose deaths among youth in recent years primarily due to ingesting fentanyl.  Between 2019 and 2021, drug...

Statewide tourism spending hits all-time high Gov. Gavin Newsom announced May 5 that travel spending in California hit an all-time high of $150.4 billion in 2023, outdoing the previous record of $144.9 billion spent in 2019. The state has retained its title as the world’s fifth...

Reading the argument against Measure A, I was taken aback by one claim in particular: “These outside groups hope voters don’t read all 31 pages of Measure A. But WE have.”  Ridiculous. All I’ve ever heard from anybody supporting Measure A is the importance of...

I humbly apologize for a final line of the letter in last week’s paper (Hollister Free Lance, June 13) that missed the mark.    Team A (HHMH Board) and Team B (Board of Supervisors) may have finished a game but my omission stumbled and fell. Rather...

The National Weather Service is forecasting a heat wave coming to the Bay Area this week, with the hottest day being Wednesday.  A heat advisory is in effect from Tuesday to Thursday. The East Bay is predicted to have the highest temperatures, reaching the mid...

Our rain has been great and so far, no rainbow. When a rainbow beauty does color over gray skies I wonder if Mayor Casey will find her pot of gold under that arc. With careful reading of her “State of the city” report (Free...

Join symphony board The nonprofit South Valley Symphony is seeking volunteers to serve on its board of directors. Applicants should have a strong interest in helping to shape the symphony’s activities in coming years and becoming a part of the organization’s long standing traditions.  The board...

Nonprofit receives grant for children’s services The independent nonprofit Partnership for Children, which increases access to medical care for children with serious illnesses and supports their families, has been awarded a $10,000 Program Project Grant from the Community Foundation for San Benito County. With the grant,...

It takes a full team to win at softball, but some defensive positions stand out as crucial to success, and catcher is at or near the top. As Andrew Barragan’s Hollister Haybalers rose to the elite in California the last two years, they were...

Despite statewide efforts, California is still struggling to support the personal and educational needs of its students, according to the 2024 California Children’s Report Card conducted by the organization Children Now, which “grades the State on its ability to support better outcomes for kids”...