Around Town . . . with Robert Airoldi: Donkeys need dollars to rebuild shelter destroyed by recent storms

 

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By Robert Airoldi

The recent storms caused a lot of damage in South County, including destroying a shelter housing three donkeys in San Martin. That’s why Ingrid Rodriguez decided to organize an online fundraiser to help rebuild their home. Here is the item from her GoFundMe post:

“Hi!! We’re the Donkeys on 101 in San Martin and we need your help! We have been around for years and have given many of you beautiful memories and have helped in many ways.

“For some of you we’re a form of therapy, for your children it’s a fun visit they look forward to, and for others it’s just simply a pit stop after a long stressful commute. We are now asking for your help. Unfortunately, the rains caused some major damage to our shelter.

“We are asking for your help as our owners plan to repair our shelter. Donations would be for our shelter, for food and for a health checkup!

“With love,

“Filimon, Chencha, and DonkeyXote”

There’s a postscript worth a smile: “And just because we need more laughter in our lives . . .  ‘Home is where your ass needs to be . . .'”

Here’s the link: www.gofundme.com/f/the-donkeys-on-101-need-a-new-home.

What a worthy cause!

A sale of an 839-acre ranch west of Gilroy to the Peninsula Open Space Trust appears to be a win-win for the former owners and the nonprofit. Known as the Estrada Ranch and located near the Santa Clara-Santa Cruz county border adjacent to Mt. Madonna County Park, the Estrada family has sold the property for $10.6 million.

The Estrada family has owned land in the area since 1848. Under the deal, the family will continue to manage the property. And it won’t become a public park. The ranch is two miles long and a mix of redwood forests in fern-covered canyons, sweeping green meadows dotted with oak trees, and views of Monterey Bay.

Under the deal, the land will not be transferred to park ownership or open to the public. Instead, it will be managed by the Estradas, who will continue cattle grazing and modest levels of logging.

The family has a herd of 80 Black Angus cattle on the property. Working with Big Creek Lumber, it has cut redwood in the past — about 50 acres at a time, removing about 30 percent of the trees a few times a decade. The last harvest was three years ago. The next will be at least two years from now.

There’s a new Little Free Library in town, according to Margaret Rodrigues, a member of the DKG Chapter, Gamma Alpha. It will be dedicated at 3:45 p.m., Feb. 9, and is located at the front gate of the Morgan Hill Historical Society.

“These Little Free Libraries appear in all seven continents and all 50 states, circulating more than 250 million books,” she said. “Our members have paid labor costs for its construction, painted, decorated and maintain the libraries by restocking with donated books from Oakwood Schools annual book drive and donations from BookSmart.”

This effort is truly a community endeavor.

“Leslie Miles began the project using leftover materials from projects and their workers to construct the libraries,” Rodrigues added. “We have now obtained a L.I.F.E. grant from Delta Kappa Gamma to pay for construction. We have also purchased many bilingual books to share with the community.”

The Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Center will host an art show at GVA Cafe in downtown Morgan Hill. It is a wildlife themed show and fundraiser featuring art and photography by Morgan Hill artists. Original watercolor art and photography by WERC Volunteers will be on display and available for purchase at this event. Proceeds benefit WERC. The opening reception is from noon to 4 p.m., Saturday May 12. GVA will cater the food. The wine will be provided by Lion Ranch Winery, and entertainment by Music as Language.

Sounds fun, and WERC is a great local nonprofit.