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🌱 Patch AM: How Watsonville farmworkers are reshaping birth support in Santa Cruz County

Coming up: El capulin nursery on the Santa Cruz Patch calendar

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Hey hey Santa Cruz! Your one-stop source for local news is here. Continue reading for all the updates. ☕️️

In today's newsletter:

  • How Watsonville farmworkers are reshaping birth support in Santa Cruz County
  • What changes after a Santa Cruz accounting firm’s surprise rebranding?
  • How a UCSC grad took Santa Cruz theater roots nationwide

Also on today's calendar: Christmas Community Dinner and 9 more events.

Find out what's happening in Santa Cruzfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Today's riddle: What did the little needle say to the mother needle when it brought home a failing report card? 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

Find out what's happening in Santa Cruzfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

  • Thursday: Strong winds subsiding; rain, with a high of 60 and low of 51 degrees.
  • Friday: A couple of showers, temps: high: 58, low: 47.
  • Saturday: Times of clouds and sun, with a high of 59 and low of 41 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Farmworkers Train As Doulas In Santa Cruz County (kqed.org) — Mixtec farmworkers in Watsonville are training as doulas to support Indigenous women during pregnancy and childbirth, helping bridge language and cultural gaps in Santa Cruz County’s maternity care. Led by midwife Maria Bracamontes, the program offers emotional support and translation in Mixtec, while a separate story highlights a major land return to the Tule River Indian Tribe in Tulare County.
   

2. Platform adds two Calif. firms (accountingtoday.com) — An accounting firm based in Santa Cruz, Seghetti Waxler, has been acquired by Utah-based Platform Accounting Group and rebranded under Bayshore Advisors, which specializes in tax and business valuations. The deal, alongside a Bakersfield firm, expands Platform’s growing network of California accounting practices, though financial terms were not disclosed.
   

3. UC Santa Cruz alum Juliette Carrillo leaves mark on theater nationally (santacruzsentinel.com) — A UC Santa Cruz alum who grew up in the Santa Cruz Mountains is now directing theater productions across the country, including a new bilingual staging of “Go, Dog. Go!” in Minneapolis. She credits her time at UCSC and local schools for launching her career and says she hopes to return to Santa Cruz to direct a show in the future.
   

4. Scotts Valley's Hayden Smith crushes it for top honor (fresnobee.com) — Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League volleyball players, including Santa Cruz High senior Natalie Monroe, earned top honors in a standout season led by Scotts Valley star Hayden Smith, the league MVP. The all-league lists highlight athletes from Santa Cruz, Harbor, Soquel, Aptos, Scotts Valley, SLV and Mt. Madonna after a historic playoff run for Scotts Valley.
   

5. ‘Super-Jupiter' exoplanet is not so Jupiter-like, UCSC study finds (santacruzsentinel.com) — A UC Santa Cruz scientist has revealed that the so-called “super-Jupiter” exoplanet VHS 1256b behaves more like a dust-stormy Mars than our own Jupiter, thanks to massive silicate clouds driving huge brightness swings. Using advanced atmospheric modeling and James Webb data, the UCSC-led team showed the planet’s slow rotation and extreme heat fuel turbulent dust plumes that may reshape how astronomers understand brown dwarfs and distant worlds.
   

📸 Around Santa Cruz

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💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • This is from the VW Holiday Light drive on Sunday, it’s super cute!
    (Sped up so I could shorten the length!) Happy Holidays neighbors! (Nextdoor Lighthouse Cowells)
  • Roo here.
    Haven't torn down the tree yet. Thinking of strategies. And wanted to say Merry Christmas!!! (Nextdoor Paradise Park)
  • University of California Santa Cruz posted a job opening for Music Department: Music Theory & Composition Lecturer Pool in Santa Cruz. Apply here.
  • Apple posted a job opening for Community Specialist, Channel Retail in Santa Cruz. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Santa Cruz here.

Ok Santa Cruz! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: I guess I’m not as sharp as I thought.
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Send it to us!

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