Community

For the 28th consecutive year, the Chamber of Commerce Taste of Morgan Hill street festival entertained visitors and residents with live music, plenty of food, cold beverages and scores of vendors offering a variety of handmade crafts and trendy merchandise.Chamber Executive Director John Horner said this year’s Taste of Morgan Hill, which took place Sept. 23 and 24 in the city’s downtown, was a “terrific success.”“We enjoyed beautiful weather, which was neither too hot nor too cold,” Horner said. “Vendor booth rental spaces were completely sold out with 172 participating vendors. The Kids Zone ride area was bigger and more popular than ever.”On Saturday, the festival’s annual car show—always a hit—was also sold out with the owners of 185 classic cars delighted to show off their rides, which ranged from old Model A’s to “modern prototype electric vehicles and everything in between,” Horner said.While the event is an annual fundraiser for the chamber, the organization doesn’t publicize specific dollar figures, Horner explained. But he noted that beer, wine and soda sales at the 28th annual Taste of Morgan Hill were “higher than they have been over the previous five years.”Furthermore, the Saturday Night Street Dance—a relatively new attraction at the annual festival—“has become a lynchpin of the weekend, and we plan to do it for many years to come,” Horner said. Pacific Soul played this year’s street dance.The Taste also featured numerous live bands throughout the weekend. Downtown streets were closed to vehicle traffic as vendors and patrons took over on foot.

The funeral services for California Highway Patrol Officer James Branik, who died in an early-morning accident in San Martin Sept. 19, will take place Sept. 29 in Morgan Hill.Services are scheduled for 2:30 p.m. at the Morgan Hill Community and Cultural Center, 17000 Monterey Road. The public is invited.Branik, 44, of Morgan Hill, died after a traffic accident on Monterey Road just south of Chester Avenue just before 6 a.m. Sept. 19. He was driving south on his Suzuki motorcycle when a Chevrolet pickup—travelling north on Monterey Road in the left-turn lane—turned into him, according to authorities.Branik, who was off duty at the time of the accident, was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, which is under investigation, according to police. Alcohol or drugs are not suspected to be a factor in the collision.Branik worked for the CHP since 2005. Since 2010, he was assigned to the Gilroy Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Facility, which is located on U.S. 101 in San Martin. His role was as a mobile road enforcement officer, tasked with patrolling county roads and freeways in the area of the weigh station for vehicle safety violations, making traffic stops and issuing citations, according to CHP Lt. Robb Kaczor, who was Branik’s commanding officer at the San Martin facility.Branik was recognized by his commander and his peers as a “leader” in commercial vehicle safety knowledge and enforcement, Kaczor said.His obituary, printed in the Morgan Hill Times and other South County media, says Branik was “a man of integrity and quiet conviction.”He graduated from Leigh High School in San Jose in 1991. Before becoming a CHP officer, Branik worked for the U.S. Post Office in Campbell and Los Gatos from 1993 to 2005. He enjoyed basketball, G.I. Joe, Marvel and DC comics and animals, according to the obituary notice.In lieu of flowers, Branik’s family has requested donations be made to the CHP 11-99 Foundation in his name.

After an extensive national search, the Board of Directors for South Bay Regional Public Safety Training Consortium appointed Linda Vaughn to the position of President/CEO at their Sept. 21 meeting, according to a Sept. 21 announcement.

Older adults who no longer have a driver’s license or do not feel comfortable operating a motor vehicle will soon be able to hitch a low-cost ride through a new “Get’n Around Town” program based out of the Morgan Hill Senior Center.

Architect and community advocate Charles Weston, the Interfaith Clergy Alliance and Mama Mia’s were named as recipients of Gavilan College’s 2017 Community Spirit Awards, which are handed out annually to honor the people and institutions that contribute to improving the local quality of life.

The Santa Clara County Library District and the Bay Area’s own singer/songwriter Andy Z will perform in a free family concert series, including a Sept. 27 show at Morgan Hill Library (660 W. Main Ave.).

The nonprofit Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Center will host its 22nd annual “Wildlife Fest” barbecue and auction fundraiser Oct. 21 at the Morgan Hill Buddhist Community Center.The event features a BBQ lunch with “all the trimmings” (vegetarian options available), silent and live auctions, raffle and door prizes and fun activities for children. Attendees will also get to meet WERC’s education animals.Tickets must be purchased in advance. Tickets cost $45 for adults, and $10 for children.The fundraiser will go from noon to 3 p.m. Oct. 21. The Buddhist Center is located at 16450 Murphy Ave.WERC, located in west Morgan Hill, is a nonprofit organization that assists in the rescue and rehabilitation of injured wild animals found in the region. The organization also provides educational opportunities to teach the community about the importance of native wildlife and our environment.For more information, visit werc-ca.org.

About 300 area residents frequented the three-day St. Catherine’s Funfest over the Sept. 15-17 weekend, enjoying carnival rides and games, live entertainment, and beverages and food.

Registration is open for schools to participate in the 2018 Santa Clara County Spelling Bee.

The local chapter of the American Association of University Women will host a panel covering issues of homelessness beginning at 7 p.m. Sept. 26 at the Morgan Hill Public Library, which is located at 660 W. Main Ave.