Then & Now
By Judy Salamacha

Where does Dr. Don M. Morris get his zest? It might be from his passionate interest in people and his quest to stay healthy and make things happen.
At 85-years young, he recently won three gold medals at the California State Senior Games Championships held in Pasadena. Competing in the 85-89 age group, the Shell Beach resident made 23 of 25 basketball free throws, including 11 of 18 from the 3-point line.
He also won the hotshot-shooting contest. He’s won over 100 medals in the past 33 years competing in track and field and basketball at Senior Olympic competitions in Florida, Texas, Louisiana, California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and Oregon.
In 2009, he was honored as the “Mt. San Antonio College Alumnus of the Year,” and the 1950 graduate was said to have “excelled academically and athletically,” according to the recitation for the award. Continue reading Dr. Don Morris – A Life Lived Well →

Then & Now
By Judy Salamacha

While traveling to workshops, author and education consultant, Sandra Mittelsteadt, meets people who are impressed that she has published three books. Publishing is their “dream” they tell her. To which she answers, “The only difference between me and you is I wrote the first word.”
Tolosa Press columnist, Teri Bayus, is the newest director for the 31st production of the Central Coast Writers Conference at Cuesta College, set for Sept. 18-20. She advises, “If you are even thinking of picking up a pen to start to write or want to jumpstart your current project, you need to come to the conference.”
Offered through Cuesta College Community Programs, registration and youth scholarship applications can be found at: www.cuesta.edu/communityprograms. Continue reading Writer’s Conference a Treat and a Bargain →

Then & Now
By Judy Salamacha

Would you like to meet people from all over the world without traveling far from home? Is teaching something amazing to children and adults on your bucket list?
Are there ocean mysteries you’d like to discover without leaving the shore? Does it make you happy to make others happier?
If you are intrigued by these questions, you should meet Polly Tatton, chairperson of the training team for Friends of the Elephant Seals (FES). An interview with her is the first step to becoming a docent and volunteer guide. Continue reading Training with the Friends of the Elephant Seals →

Then & Now
By Judy Salamacha

A luffa sponge isn’t grown in the ocean? Seriously, luffa sponges are harvested in Nipomo, and from vines no less.
Deanne Coon, co-owner of The Luffa Farm, claims, “It’s a plant with an attitude. It will either like you and grow for you or not.” Since 2003, she’s invited the public to visit and discover the mysteries of the luffa.
Coon had success growing luffas in Northern California, but after moving to Nipomo it took her three years to discover the perfect conditions her vines liked. Chasing off hungry gophers and creating a cozier environment inside greenhouses produced thriving luffa vines.
In 2003 she had enough sponges to create a mail order business and sell to a few local outlets. Long’s Drugs was first to agree to carry her luffa sponges. The growing business allowed Coon to work from Continue reading Living a Luffa Life →

By Judy Salamacha

Hiking up the Pecho Coast Trail, it is easy to imagine you’ve crossed over into another dimension. Only seaside can you spy, the carved, flattened space seemingly suspended three-quarters up the jagged cliff.
The precipice houses a light station compound built 125 years ago to protect Port Harford  and San Luis Bay. It might have been lost to decay, vandalism or demolition, but for the efforts of PG&E and other corporate and individual supporters who donated money and 85,000 hours of sweat equity to preserve the Central Coast treasure, now listed on the U.S. National Registry of Historic Places. Continue reading Then and Now →

Then & Now
By Judy Salamacha, photos provided by GGC member, Amaya Toke

Taylor Newton ‘”heard it through the grapevine” that his Morro Bay-based Guerrilla Gardening Club was needed to spruce up the grounds at Zoo to You in Paso Robles, which has plans to implement more public entertaining.
When Newton met Curator, Kasey House, they witnessed a serendipitous kinship that destined their organizations to work together.
Twenty years ago, David Jackson, an internationally known and respected exotic animal trainer and zoological manager, created Zoo to You to provide a permanent, loving home for displaced, abused, abandoned and permanently injured wild animals. Continue reading Guerillas Lend a Hand at the Zoo →