News briefs

Church kids help Japan
Children from St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Boulder Creek presented the Rev. Richard Clark with a check for more than $650 they earned from a bake sale to support Catholic Relief Services for the people of Japan.
The bake sale was held after Mass on March 27 and the check presented before the congregation on April 3.
The children included Chiara “Kiki”Chatfield, who initiated the project, as well as Charlotte Lockwood, Alejandro Corona, Dante Corona, Mateo Corona, Cadie Peters, Helaina Fields-Rapley and Nicole Gavron.
Nonprofits invited to set up booths
Area nonprofits are invited to apply to have information booths at the Redwood Mountain Faire at Roaring Camp Railroads.
The fair, produced by the Valley Women’s Club, will feature music, community groups, artists and crafters June 4 and 5 and will benefit local nonprofits. It will include two kinds of booths: information booths and sales booths.
Applications are available online at www.redwoodmountainfaire.com, by e-mail at ju***@******************re.com or by phone at 216-6536.
Henry Cowell burn conducted
The California Department of Parks and Recreation began a 5-acre prescribed burn at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park on Wednesday, April 13.
Flames were expected to be out Friday, April 15.
Parks personnel burned 5 acres of crushed brush after warning valley residents that there would be a column of smoke rising from the park for several days.
“It’s up by the observation platform, so it will be visible from a lot of places,” Tim Hyland, parks environmental scientist, said before the burn began.
The goal, according to parks officials, was to reduce the threat of wildfire and to enhance the natural resources in the park.
Cell phone users ticketed
Santa Cruz County police agencies issued 301 cell phone-related tickets April 5 as part of a campaign against distracted driving.
The California Highway Patrol and the Scotts Valley, Watsonville, Capitola, University of California and Santa Cruz police departments took part in the crackdown.
The CHP gave 187 tickets for talking on cell phones and 11 texting tickets, the most of any county jurisdiction.
Scotts Valley officers issued 15 cell phone tickets and no texting tickets.
Watsonville officers recorded 43 cell phone violations; UCSC, 20 cell phone violations and one texting violation; Santa Cruz, 13 cell phone violations; and Capitola, 10 cell phone violations and one texting violation.
CHP officers are also speaking at local high schools this month, which has been dubbed Distracted Driver Awareness Month.
Stained-glass art displayed in library
Library employee April Zilber will have 26 panels of her fused glass works on display for the rest of the month in the Scotts Valley Branch Library, 230 Mount Hermon Road.
Included are six panels from her Bonny Doon Ecological Reserve series, depicting manzanita trees and knob cone pines.
For information: 427-7712
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