News Briefs (July 10, 2015)

Santa Cruz County Bank invites you to help “Stuff the Bus!”
Santa Cruz County Bank is partnering with the United Way of Santa Cruz County to support the Santa Cruz Office of Education – Write Start Project by collecting backpacks and school supplies for local children in need. According to the United Way, there are 4,200 students currently experiencing homelessness in our County. The public is welcomed to donate school supplies at any of the Bank’s five locations through July 31^st. On August 8th, Santa Cruz County Bank employees will join community volunteers at Target in Capitola to fill backpacks with donated items and “Stuff the Bus” with school supplies. Santa Cruz County Bank has been a proud sponsor of “Stuff the Bus” since its inception.
“We look forward to making a difference in the lives of local children who will return to school well equipped with essential supplies for their continued education,” stated Mary Anne Carson, the Bank’s Senior Vice President and Director of Community Relations.
Desired donation items: new backpacks (no shades of red or blue), pencils, pens, pencil sharpeners, erasers, highlighters, markers, crayons, colored pencils, note books, binders, folders, paper, scissors, glue sticks, rulers, calculators, Spanish/English dictionaries and more items in need can be found at: www.santacruz.K12.ca.us/ed_services/writestart.html  “Stuff the Bus” collection site:  4604 Scotts Valley Drive, Scotts Valley, CA. 95066   or Mary Anne Carson, [email protected] Direct Line: 831.457.5003 ext 2118
Volunteers prevent 1,947 pounds of pollution from entering Monterey Bay 
Save Our Shores (SOS), the leader in ocean awareness, advocacy and action on the Central Coast, has announced the results from today’s Star Spangled Beach Cleanup. SOS hosted 11 cleanups around the Monterey Bay and, with the help of 182 volunteers, prevented 1,947 pounds of debris from entering the water in just two hours.
Cleanups were held at Davenport Main Beach, Cowell and Main Beach, Seabright State Beach, Twin Lakes State Beach, Sunny Cove, Moran Lake, Seacliff State Beach, Hidden Beach, Casa Verde Beach, Del Monte City Beach and Carmel City Beach.
Cowell and Main Beach was the dirtiest site with more than 676 pounds of waste removed. Davenport Main Beach came in second with 412 pounds of trash. The most common items found were cigarette butts and fireworks. Volunteers also found broken beach chairs, barbeque grills and pop up tents.
During last year’s Star Spangled Beach Cleanup, 320 volunteers prevented 1,894 pounds of trash from polluting 15 beaches along the Central Coast. This year, SOS focused the number of cleanup sites to 11 in order to concentrate volunteers into teams to give locations the attention they needed.
RTC launches new 511 Traveler Information Service 
Have you ever wondered what the traffic is like before you head for home? Been stuck in a traffic jam with no idea what’s causing the back-up? Stopped behind a flagman and unsure about how long the construction delay might last? With Cruz511’s new interactive real-time traffic map, find out what traffic conditions are like on Highways 1 and 17 and on other key streets and roads before you start your trip. Equipped with this knowledge, you can choose to take a different route, change the time of your trip, or travel by a different mode. Cruz511 helps you identify your travel options and travel smarter. This mobile responsive website can be accessed by Smartphone, tablet or computer.
Cruz511 is a new community service of the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission designed to be a one-stop shop for transportation users as well as a go-to place for information about emergencies that impact the transportation system. Released in mid-May, the Cruz511 website provides 24/7 traffic congestion information, including traffic speeds and images from over 17 traffic cameras and details on specific types of travel delays such as construction and collisions. Data from Caltrans, the CHP and Google is updated every few minutes.
Connect with CRUZ511: facebook.com/cruz511, twitter.com/cruz511, 831.429.POOL, Email: [email protected]
Scotts Valley Sports Center announces Wharf to Wharf Race bibs for grand prize drawing
The Scotts Valley Sports Complex (http://www.supportsvsc.org/) is a non-profit organization that raises funds for the development of the track and field and for the aquatics center at Scotts Valley High School.  They announced that during its final fundraising TGIF BBQ event of the summer season, there will be a grand prize drawing for two bibs for the sold out Wharf to Wharf 5K race.
The registration for the Wharf to Wharf race was sold out in less than two hours. The race will be held on Sunday, July 26, 2015.  The race goes from the Santa Cruz boardwalk along the coast to Capitola-by-the-Sea.
“We are really excited that Wharf to Wharf donated two race bibs for a fundraising drawing as the event was sold out to 16,000 people in under two hours. We know these are a hot commodity, Wharf to Wharf Race is a California nonprofit organization chartered to promote running as a means to health and fitness aligns well with what we are working towards at Scotts Valley Sports Complex,” said Julia Blanton, Scotts Valley Sports Center.
Scotts Valley Farmers’ Market
The Santa Cruz Community Farmers’ Markets’ Pop-Up Breakfast Series is back again for another season. Extensive farm-to-table meals hosted at the Westside and Scotts Valley Markets between June and September, the goal of these ticketed, outdoor, events is to highlight our rich local agriculture and food artisan community while raising funds for the markets’ public educational programs including the Foodshed Project.
These sunny morning gatherings feature admired regional chefs and employ graduates of the Santa Cruz County  Food What youth empowerment program. Upon arrival guests choose their seats by placing their own plate and silverware at a space along a u-shaped, family-style table. A local band serenades the newly arrived with old time Italian, Spanish and blue grass standards while they drink a hot beverage and await the first course. At 10am plates of seasonal cuisine made with ingredients sourced from the markets begin rolling out. As the guests eat and visit, farmers and chefs share their knowledge and perspective regarding agriculture, community and consumer choice within the food system. The 2014 Pop-Up events sold out well in advance. We look forward to another packed series in 2015. Limited seating; tickets are $36 and are available for purchase online and at our markets.
Menu for July 18 Pop-Up Breakfast
Chef Kevin Koebel of Local Fatt
Dry Farmed Tomato Carpaccio with collard-whole cream, tarragon savory bread pudding and cherry-balsamic syrup
Corn Beef and Hash Timbale shredded roasted potato, slow cooked brisket and spinach
Rosemary Egg Flan topped with meyer lemon, macerated raw beet and a cilantro-arugula coulis
Fig and Fennel Salad with mint, chevre and strawberry vinegar reduction
Braised Greens with roasted alliums, olive oil and salt
Sweet Finish – honey-lemon curd with lavender shortbread
Tasty Beverages courtesy of  Hidden Fortress Coffee