Santa Cruz shelters unite for first California Adopt-a-Pet Day
Santa Cruz SPCA and the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter will join over 150 California shelters in the state’s first ever Adopt-a-Pet Day on Saturday, June 1.
On this day, from 11am-6pm, both local shelters will provide fee-waived adoptions of spayed/neutered, vaccinated and microchipped animals. Santa Cruz SPCA is at 2601 Chanticleer Ave. and Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter is at 1001 Rodriguez St., both in Santa Cruz.
The overarching goal for the state-wide initiative is to find homes for at least 2,024 animals, helping to relieve some of the pressure of current shelter overcrowding.
Fees for all animals adopted through participating shelters on June 1 will be reimbursed by the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), in recognition of the current crisis in pet homelessness in California and across the nation.
Libraries launch 2024 Summer Reading Program
Santa Cruz Public Libraries (SCPL) is thrilled to welcome the summer season with the launch of its 2024 Summer Reading Program and invites adults, children and their family members to visit their local library, Bookmobile or the SCPL website to sign up for the program.
The theme of this year’s Summer Reading Program is “Read, Renew, Repeat,” a conservation message inviting participants to reduce consumption and reuse materials, and to read as a restorative measure for self-care and renewal.
The program will kick off on Saturday, June 1, at 10am at the brand-new Aptos Branch Library. The newest SCPL branch was chosen as the venue for this celebration, as the grand-opening event for the branch on Feb. 4 had to be postponed due to a weather event.
SCPL is hoping to recreate some of the magic planned for that day during the kick off celebration. Festivities will include performances by Magician James Chan, MusicalMe, face painting with Wisteria Faerie Creations and a performance by local musicians Cement Ship from the Soundswell collection.
Participants win prizes for reaching their goals through each of the reading milestones set by the program. The last day to log reading minutes for the Summer Reading Program is Wednesday, July 31, and the last day to sign out and redeem prizes is Saturday, Aug. 10.
During the next two months, every branch in the 10 library system and the Bookmobile will host a range of free activities for children, teens and adults to encourage and support a love of reading.
To learn more about the summer reading adventure at the library, call 831-427-7713 or visit the website santacruzpl.org/srp.
Grand reopening of Siltanen Family Swim Center set for Sunday
The City of Scotts Valley has announced that the Siltanen Family Swim Center will be open to the public once again and invites the community to join a celebration event this Sunday.
Earlier this spring, the Scotts Valley City Council approved a lease for the facility to Pacific Flow Swim School. Pacific Flow Swim School is owned and operated by local Scotts Valley resident Jeff Griffith-Jones, who brings 20-plus years of experience in aquatics and recreation with his full-service swim school.
Pacific Flow Swim School offers a USSSA Accredited Swim School run by lifeguard-certified professional instructors, year-round swim lessons for infants to adults in small group settings, recreational swim times throughout the week, two-hour party rental blocks available on weekends, and Red Cross Lifeguard and CPR/AED/First Aid Courses.
The City is looking forward to the upgrades Giffith-Jones has planned for the pool, which include installing a steel structure with canopy cover and rollup walls for comfortable year-round swimming, state-of-the-industry UV filter to remove undesirable water compounds, and new filter and pump system to deliver drinking quality water to swim in.
The community can attend the reopening ceremony on Sunday, June 2, from 11am-2pm. The event will start with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 11am, followed by recreation swim, summer-themed games, food trucks and fun. Siltanen Family Swim Center is located in Siltanen Park at 147 Vine Hill School Road in Scotts Valley.
To register for swim lessons, parties or more information, visit pacflowswim.com or call 831-334-3949.
