Even if one is not a Catholic Christian, or even religious for that matter, a trip to Europe or Latin America would certainly include a visit to the prominent Catholic church of the city or region. One may argue that a visit to Rome is not complete without a visit to St. Peter’s Basilica, a trip to Paris not complete without seeing Notre Dame, and a trip to Mexico City is only whole after visiting the Metropolitan Cathedral.
At 7:20 on a crisp, clear Saturday morning in January, just as the sun began to makes its presence known east of the Sierras, three pick-up trucks sat idling, keeping the occupants toasty warm in the parking lot of one of the oldest businesses in Reedley. At 7:23 the lights inside Reedley Lumber Co. popped on in sections, indicating to the outside world, namely the aforementioned men huddling in the warmth of their vehicles, that the day was officially beginning. At 7:26 the doors were unlocked, and like moths to a flame, the gentlemen who had been so patiently waiting, exited the comfort of their trucks and made a beeline for the entrance.
On October 26, 2019 at Restaurante Il Cappuccino in the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo, a contingent of over 40 people met to celebrate a long history and connection to Reedley and to some of its residents. Those in attendance included a small delegation from our Valley town of Reedley, and from four Central American and Caribbean nations.
As a child, I didn’t realize that our family Christmas traditions were not everyone’s Christmas traditions. I thought everyone went to mass on Christmas Eve, then gathered at their grandparents’ house, ate hotdogs and potato salad, and opened gifts (insert the screeching sound of a car coming to a halt here). This was the ritual that happened annually and that my siblings and I longed for each year. Hotdogs and potato salad!?
It’s not very often that a contingent of Ukrainian Air Force officers, or any foreign air force officers for that matter, land in Reedley for a little R and R. But, on a hot August evening this year, that’s exactly what happened. No, they didn’t literally land their fighter jets in Reedley.
It’s full steam ahead for the Hillcrest & Wahtoke Railroad in Reedley, opened to the public along with the Hillcrest Pumpkin Patch on September 28 for the 2019 fall season. Most people don’t realize how much work goes into keeping the railroad in tip-top shape, ready to welcome passengers. While the locomotives, train cars, and track are all just a fraction of the size of a standard railroad, it is a real railroad.
