Scotts Valley resident Patrice Maginnis was announced this week as the recipient of the Be the Difference Award from the Santa Cruz Volunteer Center.

Firefighters with CalFire and other local agencies are battling a 271 acre wildfire in Boulder Creek called the Bear Fire.

Who knows what the weather will be like this winter but we do know that some of our rain events will come with a vengeance. It's not that unusual for our area to get 8 inches of rainfall during a storm and that can create havoc on an unprotected hillside. Fortunately, October is a good time to do something about it.

After preaching more than a thousand sermons to his 140-member congregation, the Rev. Randal Kay announced his resignation from the Felton Bible Church. His last sermon will be Sunday, Oct. 15.

If you read my column regularly or even once in a while you’ve probably heard me lament about the difficult growing conditions here in my garden. Between the sandy soil, 5 hours of intense sun but for only 6 months of the year, gophers, squirrels, moles, deer and chipmunks I’m happy if any plant thrives. So it is with pleasure that I report to you the small successes I’ve had lately and maybe give you hope that you might also grow plants that provide some color and fragrance in your garden along with attracting hummingbirds, songbirds, bees and butterflies.