Community

On May 22, the downtown business community and City Hall will celebrate the grand opening of a new temporary “pop-up park” in the parking of the former liquor store, located at the southeast corner of Third Street and Monterey Road. The park is part of the city’s downtown “placemaking” strategy. “The park will be fun, create a family gathering space and showcase many of the mini-grant art projects,” said city spokeswoman Maureen Tobin. The park will include a bicycle repair hub with bike racks, a historic bike map, hydration station and a “fix-it station.” Also featured will be a giant Adirondack chair, tables, chairs, umbrellas, benches made out of recycled propane tanks, festival lighting and artificial turf. The park will also include a “kids’ corner.” Pictured above is another public art mini-grant project, a mural painted on the front of the old liquor store building by Empire 7 Studio in San Jose. Artist Z Mesngr said the characters in the mural are based on one of his favorite films, “The Triplets of Belleville.” The grand opening celebration will take place 12 to 2 p.m. May 22.

The 2015 recreational boating season is already under way, but how long it will continue in Morgan Hill remains a guessing game due to the severe drought progressively decimating local water supplies and a state-mandated deadline to retrofit Anderson Dam.

It was mission accomplished for a passionate bunch of Relay for Life of Morgan Hill event organizers, volunteers and participants at the end of an emotional 24-hour walkathon May 17 as close to $84,000 was raised for the American Cancer Society’s fight to find a cure.In total, 34 teams, comprised of 329 individuals, walked the makeshift track at Community Park from 10 a.m. May 16 straight through to 10 a.m. May 17 in honor of survivors and in memory of those loved ones whose lives were cut short due to cancer.Locally, the Relay raised $83,826.02 in 2015, according to the relayforlife.org/morganhillca web page. Donations are still being accepted through Aug. 30.“We had a lot of new people out there,” said event organizer Valerie Renggli, whose efforts over the last two years have garnered close to $200,000 for cancer research. “I’m really excited about the new people who came out and I’m excited because we have some real go-getters who decided to join the leadership team so next year will be bigger and better.”This year, there was no better team as far as bringing in funds than mainstay Dancers Against Cancer—which totaled $16,249.15 in donations. Two members of the Dancers Against Cancer team were among the top three individuals in money raised with Nancy Bernal topping the field with $3,749 and partner Diane Berney third with $2,250.“They are fundraising dynamos,” said Renggli of the Dancers team. “They offered their expertise to other teams and said they are willing to do more of that this coming year.”Dennis and Lavon Busch raised the second most with $3,195 in donations to lead their team Patty’s Pals to a third-place overall mark of $5,215 raised this year.“Patty’s Pals is a second-year team. They were super strong last year,” said Renggli, whose Team Cure was second with $6,735 raised. “Their dedication to this Relay is truly amazing.”The City of Morgan Hill showed its dedication to making the Relay a continued success with a participating team of employees and their families for the second straight year. They helped Relay organizers gain the proper permits for their “Paint the Town Purple” campaign in the downtown.City councilmember Larry Carr cut the ribbon to open the Relay—but not before Oakwood School’s Christina Dobbek sang the national anthem—while Mayor Steve Tate as well as City Manager Steve Rymer and his wife walked for a couple of hours each.“The City leaders supported Relay again this year, which was great,” said Renggli, also sharing that Chiquy Mejia, the Youth Development Coordinator for the City, provided entertainment as a dancing jester on stilts.The 2015 keynote speaker was Tracey Eoff Soto, who is recovering from brain cancer after having a golf-sized tumor removed in August 2014. Her husband, Mark Soto, also spoke during the Luminaria lap, where the track is lit up in the evening, describing what it was like to support his wife during her battle.“It was very moving,” said Renggli, who plans to be back in 2016.

The Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce’s 2015 Friday Night Music Series will start June 5, featuring a different live music performance almost every week through Aug. 28.This year’s festival’s acts feature multiple genres of music ranging from country, dance and classic rock, according to festival organizer Nick Firato.The show starts every Friday at 6 p.m. and runs to 9 p.m. Each week will also feature opening acts from local youth and acoustic performances from local artists, Firato explained.“Each week our headlining band will rock downtown Morgan Hill from 7 to 9 p.m.,” Firato said.The Chamber will also host a wine and beer tent at the venue each week. The tent will feature a different local winery each week.Attendees are encouraged to bring their families and a blanket, and get comfortable on the Downtown Amphitheater lawn while they’re not dancing to the live music in front of the stage.“Our summer concert series has gone to another level over the past few years thanks to the overwhelming support from our local businesses,” Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce President John Horner said. “With all of our sponsors’ support this event has evolved into something the entire community can come out and enjoy year after year.”The Entourage band will open the concert series June 5, performing “today’s favorites and yesterday’s classics,” Firato said. Soul Kiss will follow June 12 with dance hits, with Super Bad headlining June 19.“I love bringing my family out every Friday night during the summer,” said FNMS patron Jessica Malia of Morgan Hill. “It’s a great environment, very safe, family friendly and great music for everyone to enjoy. It sets Morgan Hill apart from other communities.”The Downtown Amphitheater is located at 17000 Monterey Road.For more information about the Friday Night Music Series, including the full schedule of performers and weekly featured wineries, visit the Chamber’s website at morganhill.org.

This weekend, which celebrates the Memorial Day holiday, will feature the family-friendly 36th annual Mushroom Mardi Gras food, art and wine festival in downtown Morgan Hill.At the Community & Cultural Center and spread throughout the downtown area, the Morgan Hill Mushroom Mardi Gras will welcome thousands of residents and visitors. More than 80,000 people flooded last year’s festival over two days, according to Mardi Gras organizers.The festival, which raises funds for college scholarships for local high school students, will feature two days of food (with many vendors showcasing local and regional mushrooms), shopping and entertainment. Three stages throughout the festival grounds will perform a variety of live music and performances.In 2014, the Festival distributed $77,500 in scholarships, mini-grants and other donations. Over the last three decades, the Mushroom Mardi Gras has issued more than $860,000 in scholarships, $29,500 in mini-grants and $420,000 to participating school groups.The Mushroom Mardi Gras and participating vendors will be open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, May 23, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, May 24. It will take place at the Downtown Morgan Hill Amphitheater and Community Center grounds, and along Depot Street between Dunne Avenue and Second Street.Downtown streets on the east side of Monterey Road will be closed during the event.Parking is available at a number of lots surrounding the festival venue, including at the Butterfield Boulevard Park and Ride lot, which is a short walk across the railroad tracks from the Mushroom Mardi Gras. For a $5 donation to the Live Oak Emerald Regime Band, attendees can park at the large lot on the corner of Church Street and San Pedro Avenue with a free shuttle ride to and from the festival.For more information, visit the festival website at mhmmg.org.

The Morgan Hill-based performing arts school and production company South Valley Dance Arts will present the family musical comedy “La Fille Mal Gardee” next weekend at Ann Sobrato High School.Written in 1960 by Frederick Ashton, the SVDA’s musical rendition of the play will feature 110 student/performers, “ages 2 to 45,” from throughout the South Santa Clara Valley, according to SVDA instructor Juliet Smith.The tale centers around country beauty Lise, who falls in love with farm boy Colas against the wishes of her mother, Widow Simone. That’s where wealthy vineyard owner Thomas and his son Alain enter the picture, unraveling a string of hilarious results.The SVDA production features original choreography by Smith, an associate of the Royal Academy of Dance.The SVDA offers a full annual schedule of ballet and dance classes at the company’s headquarters at the Morgan Hill Grange, on East Fourth Street. They also offer summer dance camps.Students produce performances throughout the year, including the upcoming Spring Concert, which will feature SVDA’s emerging artists and experienced performers. The concert will also feature a full evening of musical theater as well as contemporary, folk, salsa and Ukrainian dance.The Spring Concert will take place 7 p.m. May 29 and 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. May 30 at the Morgan Hill Playhouse, 17090 Monterey Road. Tickets cost $15, and proceeds help raise money for outreach and scholarships, according to the SVDA website.

“Friends of Mary Sue” is just one team name of 35 participating in this Saturday’s Relay For Life of Morgan Hill—but it is one that local event volunteer Jill Davis holds dear to her heart.

The Learning and Loving Education Center was the top breadwinner for Morgan Hill nonprofits that participated in the May 5 Silicon Valley Gives 24-hour online telethon—raising $6,317 thanks to 54 donors.

With light showers sprinkling .03 inches of rain fall in Morgan Hill earlier today, cloudy skies, scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms are possible for the rest of Thursday afternoon through this evening, according to Forecaster Steve Anderson of the National Weather Service.

Every morning for as long as anyone can remember, retired educator and longtime Morgan Hill resident Belle McCormick starts her day with a warm glass of water and lemon.Whether the daily ritual is the secret to her longevity is a bit uncertain—although family members might say otherwise—McCormick, who turned 109 years young May 2, is living proof. (She also enjoyed a daily nightcap of a shot of brandy, according to family.)“I’ve had a wonderful life,” said the centenarian as she sat around the table Saturday with four generations of family members in the backyard of her West Edmundson Avenue country house—one she’s called home since moving from Montana in 1952.The second youngest and last surviving of four siblings, McCormick, along with her late husband Bill McCormick, a rancher and cowboy by trade, raised three daughters in Morgan Hill—Margaret, Annie and Mary Ellen. The family tree has since branched out to include nine grandchildren and 21 great grandchildren.“I raised this family,” said McCormick, who is known as “Nana” by the brood she so cherishes. “We all get along so beautifully. We all have so much fun together.”On this particular sunny afternoon, McCormick’s daughter, Margaret “Maggie” Escover, 73, who lives a short drive away in Gilroy, planned the small gathering at her childhood home to celebrate her mom’s special day. Her 109th birthday comes about one week before Mother’s Day, which didn’t even become an official American holiday until 1908, two years after Belle was born. Family members ate birthday cake and shared stories of time spent with Nana over the years, stopping frequently to ask McCormick if she remembered as well.“Her life was devoted to us. We never knew we weren’t the most important people in her life. She would do anything for us,” said Escover of her mother who was the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce’s Citizen of the Year in 1987. “She worked so hard. She could do anything. She could do it all.”McCormick’s younger daughter, Annie Saso, 72, of Morgan Hill, added: “She taught us there’s a right and wrong way to do everything, including riding horseback, fishing, setting the table, ironing a shirt and cleaning the house.”An educator, seamstress, outdoor adventurer, fashionista, horse lover, mentor and a beloved mother to this very day, McCormick took on many roles in her enriched and extended life, almost all of her adult years spent at the same house in west Morgan Hill.“She’s been here forever. She is part of our history,” Mayor Steve Tate said of McCormick. “She’s just a treasure to have as part of our community.”Dennis Kennedy, a former mayor and current director on the Santa Clara Valley Water District board of directors, said he knows the family well and even attended McCormick’s 100th birthday party—some nine years ago—held at the Community and Cultural Center.“She’s an amazing lady,” Kennedy said. “She was highly respected and regarded in the education community. I think she’s outlived most of her students.”The praise came as no surprise to grandson Tim Escover, who recalled day trips to Monterey and surprise visits while living in San Jose from his grandmother (known to never turn down a friendly street race in her Oldsmobile). He also remembered picking walnuts and feeding the chickens at the west Morgan Hill property, as well as the extravagant family dinners on holidays like Christmas Eve with the dining room table decked out in fine china.“She loved to cater to the family,” said Tim, sitting with his two children (Belle’s great grandchildren), Joshua and Jessica. “It’s just extremely incredible how independently strong she’s been. She still appreciates life and the outdoors.”Jessica Escover, 17, who attends Oakwood School, enjoys hearing McCormick talk of the old days more than anything. “It’s fun. I like hearing all the stories she tells us when dad and his siblings were kids,” Jessica shared.“Life is what you make it,” said McCormick with everyone all ears at the family gathering.And her life has been nothing less than extraordinary.After beginning a 36-year teaching career in a one-room schoolhouse in rural Montana, McCormick started substitute teaching locally at the Machado School while also earning her teaching degree from San Jose State University in the 1950s.“She somehow in some way touched a lot of people’s lives here in Morgan Hill,” Margaret Escover said. “She never lost patience or got angry with anyone. She’d just sit down and talk to you about whatever the problem was.”Lana Wright, owner of Lana’s Dance Studio, fondly recalls having McCormick as her fifth grade teacher at the old San Martin Elementary School.“She was warm and loving, and I think she treated us just like she would treat her own kids,” said Wright, who stopped by for McCormick’s 109th party. I just remember her as being one of my favorite all-time teachers.”McCormick, who also taught at the old Burnett School among others in town, was an active member of St. Catherine Church and a proud member of the Delta Kappa Gamma international society for key women educators.“I have a lot of friends,” said McCormick, whose positivity undoubtedly attracted many of them.One DKG sorority sister, Cindy Miller, also a retired teacher and now a local Realtor, met McCormick in the early 1980s. At that time, McCormick was already retired from the teaching profession.“She was a leader in that organization at a local level. She is someone who would take everyone under her wing,” said Miller, who shares the same birthday as her dear friend. “She was such a role model to so many different people.”And that includes her own children.“She used to be Mrs. Morgan Hill,” Margaret Escover said. “She’d do anything for Morgan Hill.”While Escover—married 53 years to husband Jack—said one of her most treasured memories will always be how her mother made her wedding dress, Saso recalled how special Easter mornings were with McCormick and her “goldenrod egg” breakfasts.“Not too long ago, I was visiting a friend with her and she asked my mom, ‘How old are you?’ My mom said, ‘I really can’t remember like I used to,” Saso explained. “I told her you’re 108—and she said, ‘no wonder I can’t remember.’”