Green Fix
Holidays at the Rancho
Santa Cruz’s newest state historic park is finally open for business, and starting this season visitors are invited to partake in their “Festivos en el Rancho.” The Castro Adobe is one of the finest examples of a rancho hacienda in the Monterey Bay area and a historically important example of Northern California’s Rancho period. Visitors will be able to tour the property, see the newly restored cocina and Potter-Church garden, as well as dig into handmade tortillas cooked on the reconstructed brasero (stove).
Info: 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10. Castro Adobe State Historic Park, 184 Old Adobe Road, Watsonville. Donations accepted.
Art Seen
Diversity Center Holiday Party
When the going gets tough, the tough get together. Celebrate the beginning of the winter holidays with the Diversity Center’s annual holiday party. Bring nutritious canned or boxed food donations for the Santa Cruz Aids Project holiday drive. Raffle tickets will be offered for chances to win a sail on the Monterey Bay for four, trips to the spa, craniosacral massages, yoga, dinner and a show at Kuumbwa and so much more. Celebrate the end of one year with friends in the local community.
Info: 4-7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 11. 126 Pacheco Ave., Santa Cruz. $10-$100.
December
Shop Local Month
Remember “think global, act local?” Well here’s a way you can combine that with the best in holiday shopping sprees—shop local for your Christmas gifts! This year Think Local First of Santa Cruz has expanded its annual Shop Local Week to extend to the entire month of December. Make your dollar count where your friends, family and neighbors reside. It’s all about the Think Local First principle—which TLF has put to the test with a month-long “Great Money Race.” Five checks of $100 from five local financial institutions were given to five members of the locally-owned business community who were then asked to spend the check at another local business, and so on. At the end of the month, the five $100 checks generated $8,711.48 in local business.
Info: Santa Cruz businesses. thinklocalsantacruz.org/shoplocal.
Saturday 12/10
Scales and Tails
This Saturday, Dec. 10, the Santa Cruz Veterinary Service and Santa Cruz Koi join forces to host “Scales and Tails,” an open house, art show, and silent auction to benefit the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter. Janey Appleseed, Jeri Mearns Photography, Kaleidescapes Art Works, and Connie Williams Art will have their art exhibited and tours of the one-of-a-kind aquatic veterinary facility will be offered. There’ll be a silent auction with gifts for pets and local products in addition to the book launch for Dr. Jessie Sanders’ book Boo and Bubbles, the tale of a friendship between a cat and a fish.
Info: 5-9 p.m. 4061 Soquel Drive, Soquel. Free.
Sunday 12/11
Mary/Maryam Play
Who was Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ in the Christian Bible and who was Maryam, the mother of Isa, in the Qur’an? That’s the question that writer and director Victoria Rue, who teaches Comparative Religious Studies at San Jose State University, wants to flesh out in Mary/Maryam. “In these difficult times, it is so important to build bridges of understanding among people and religions. The story of Mary/Maryam is that bridge between Christianity and Islam,” says Rue. This dinner-and-a-show event is a benefit for the Islamic Center of Santa Cruz and Peace United Church programs, and hosts a cast of all different faiths including Muslim, Christian, Hindu and Sufi.
Info: 4-8 p.m. Peace United Church, 900 High St., Santa Cruz. peaceunited.org/mary. $8-$10.
