Thanking all who helped with Spirit of Watsonville parade
To the Editor,
On behalf of the City of Watsonville Parks and Community Services Department, I want to take the opportunity to thank all of the community members who participated in the 2017 Spirit of Watsonville Fourth of July Parade. More than 1,600 individuals representing nearly 90 groups participated in the parade.
The Fourth of July parade is arguably the longest running annual special event in Watsonville; a parade has been held downtown for more than 125 years. In the past the parade had been organized by community groups, and it is now planned by the City of Watsonville Parks and Community Services Department.
This event would not be possible without the efforts of staff from the Police, Fire, Public Works and Utilities, and Parks and Community Services Departments. Even more critical to the success of the parade are the community members who served on the Grand Marshal Selection Committee, helped secure resources and contributed to the planning of the parade, and served as marshals at the parade.
The community members who volunteered to make the parade possible included Bill Neighbors, Juan Luis Romero, Maria Elena De La Garza, Lizette Ramos, Natalie Oliver, the Watsonville Police Cadets, Jailine Zavalla, Lissette Ramirez, Daniel Barba, Beatriz Hernandez, Irma de la Torre, Mindy Roman, Judith Roman and Veto Roman. All deserve special thanks for volunteering to make the parade possible.
In 2018, the City of Watsonville will celebrate its 150th anniversary. As one of many ways of celebrating this sesquicentennial, please accept this early invitation to participate, as either a parade entry or a volunteer, in the 2018 Spirit of Watsonville Fourth of July Parade.
Brad Blachly
Assistant Director
City of Watsonville Parks and Community Services Department
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Focus on citizens, not election
To the Editor,
I don’t know about the rest of the citizens of this country, but our election was held nine months ago and I think it’s time that our elected officials stop spending all their time and energy regarding whether or not Russia had anything to do with our election. I didn’t vote for him, but like it or not, Donald Trump is our president and I believe he deserves the support of all our elected officials, Democrats and Republicans.
Why is hashing what Russia did or didn’t do nine months ago more important than the citizens of this country? Why are people from other countries being encouraged to come to America? America has thousands of citizens that are homeless and need help. Our homeless citizens should be taken care of first.
Where are the thousands and thousands of people that are encouraged to come to America going to live? How are they going to make a living? Are the tax-paying citizens expected to support them? If our government and elected officials have the funds and housing for these immigrants, I believe that is wrong. I don’t understand why or how our government has millions and millions of dollars to help other countries, but can’t find the funds to help our homeless citizens, or most of all, our veterans that come home injured from fighting in foreign countries.
As I have stated, elected officials and news reporters have spent too much time whether or not Russia had anything to do with our election. That can’t be the only thing there is to report on.
Juanita Lawrence
Watsonville
