🌱 Patch AM: How Watsonville volunteers keep hundreds of local veterans fed each week

Cheers Watsonville! We’re back, helping you stay up to date with what’s happening. Let's take on the day together! ☀️

In today's newsletter:

• How Watsonville volunteers keep hundreds of local veterans fed each week
• What Watsonville neighbors Googled most in 2025 might surprise you
• How new rail-trail decisions could reshape Watsonville’s future connections

Today's riddle: Playing golf is bad for your brain. 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

• Thursday: Periods of rain, with a high of 64 and low of 50 degrees.
• Friday: Occasional rain and drizzle, temps: high: 64, low: 52.
• Saturday: Periods of rain, with a high of 63 and low of 50 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Volunteers Power Santa Cruz Veterans Meal and Pantry Program (goodtimes.sc) — Watsonville veterans and their families can access a weekly Tuesday food pantry at the Watsonville Veterans Memorial Building, run entirely by volunteers and donations. The story highlights how that pantry connects with a larger Santa Cruz veterans meal program, profiles local volunteers and leaders keeping both sites going, and explains what supplies and support are most needed to keep these lifelines open.
   

2. Central Coast's top 2025 searches reveal what captured attention heading into 2026 (ksbw.com) — Watsonville residents were busy searching for very local topics in 2025, from the Watsonville Strawberry Festival and power outages to Planet Fitness, Silver Spur, and City of Watsonville jobs. A new Dientes dental clinic, local schools, and neighborhood restaurants also ranked high, offering a snapshot of what neighbors here cared about most heading into 2026.
   

3. Year in Review: What comes next for Santa Cruz County's rail and trail? (santacruzsentinel.com) — Major rail-trail decisions in Santa Cruz County are shaping what happens next on segments serving Watsonville, including future work on South County trail stretches and long-term plans for a Pajaro rail station near town. Leaders shifted some trail segments to an interim on-rail design to save crucial state funding, while still keeping a long-range vision for zero-emission passenger rail alive.
   

4. Year in Review: Pajaro Valley activists raise awareness of pesticide use near schools (santacruzsentinel.com) — Watsonville schools and neighborhoods were at the center of a year-long push to curb pesticide use near Pajaro Valley campuses and fields, with protests, press conferences and even hunger strikes aimed largely at Driscoll’s practices. Local activists, farmworker advocates and visiting figures like Dolores Huerta rallied in Watsonville to demand wider buffer zones, more organic farming and stronger protections for children heading into 2026.
   

5. Central Coast 2025 recap: Moss Landing battery fire, tragedy, protests and change (ksbw.com) — Watsonville joined Santa Cruz, Monterey, and Salinas in “Hands Off” protests against federal program and job cuts, highlighting local political engagement in 2025. The year also brought a Moss Landing battery fire, tragic accidents, and regional changes, including new Catholic leadership and the return of Hollister’s Independence Day Motorcycle Rally.
   

📸 Around Watsonville

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🗓 Upcoming Events in Watsonville

Add your event to our calendar and newsletter!

Wednesday January 7

• Family Movie Night
  Main Library , 275 Main Street, Suite #100 , Watsonville
  5:30 pm

📣 Watsonville Shout Outs!

Want to say something great about someone in town? Click here to submit your Shout Out to Patch AM! It's free!

🗓 Events Nearby

Friday January 2

• Winter Break Crafts/Manualidades de Invierno
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
• Baby Bounce Storytime
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  10:30 am
• Noon Yearâs Eve Countdown/ Celebre el aĂąo nuevo
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  11:00 am

Saturday January 3

• Family Storytime [Hora de Cuentos]
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  10:30 am
• Are You Game? Lancelot's Merry Band of Gamers
  Barbara Gorson Multiuse Room , Capitola
  12:00 pm
• Movie - The Fantastic Four: First Steps
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  2:00 pm

Monday January 5

• 1-on-1 Tech Help / Ayuda con la TecnologĂ­a
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  1:00 pm
• Free Snacks for Kids! / Meriendas Gratis Para NiĂąos!
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  3:00 pm
• Create-N-Play [Crear-Y-Jugar]
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  5:30 pm
• Pajama Storytime [Hora de Cuentos en Pijama]
  Gilroy Library , 350 West Sixth Street , Gilroy
  6:30 pm

Tuesday January 6

• Aptos Youth Chess Club @ Aptos
  The Betty Leonard Community Room , Aptos
  3:30 pm

Have we missed something on our calendar? Add an event yourself! As always, before attending confirm event details to ensure accuracy.

Thank you 👏👏👏 to the local businesses for making Watsonville PatchAM possible:

• Mindsee.it — (646) 663-8317
  Teach your kids they can achieve the impossible!
• El Capulin Nursery — (831) 840-9195
  El Capulin Nursery

Click here to show your appreciation! 💚

Want to see your business here? Click here to connect with local customers.

💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

• UPDATE!
  Marley is home! We are beyond relieved! Missing cat. Last seen at 3:00 AM Tuesday morning. She’s very sick and needs her medication. She… (Nextdoor Kelly Lake)
• Hello, we've seen these dogs on our property a couple times over the last couple of weeks.
  Does anyone know if they belong to someone or if they’ve been abandoned? We weren’t able to check for collars because the German Shepherd started… (Nextdoor Corralitos Mountains)

• Pajaro Valley Unified School District posted a job opening for 25/26 CHILD DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE TEACHER 181Days/8 hrs per day + Full Family Benefits $90 per month in Watsonville. Apply here.
• Staff of Life posted a job opening for Meat Cutter in Watsonville. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Watsonville here.

Ok Watsonville! 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 just heard a golfer say he had four strokes on the first hole!
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Send it to us!

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