Forestville the Good Life by Lucy Hardcastle — March — 2020

Bright green hills, daffodils and trees in bloom, sounds lovely until we realize we’ve only had 2” of rain since January. Let’s hope March is a wet one, enough to get us out of drought mode, but not enough for another flooded mess.

Great news for El Molino High School. They recently received the largest grant from the John Jordan Foundation of $25,000 to increase the number of classroom computers available to students. We are all happy about that. Those students are our future.

Guided by dance teacher, Jolene Johnson, student dancers are perfecting their skills for their Spring Performance at 7 pm on March 4th, 5th and 6th. That next night, Saturday, March 7, the Boosters host their fundraising “PigNic” at Shone Farm, postponed from last October’s Kincade Fire evacuation. $35 gets you in and “Who’s Your Daddy” is the band. Money raised is targeted to Project Graduation. Full steam ahead they are hosting a second fundraiser in March in case you missed the first. It’s March 28, again at Shone Farm. This event will be catered by the competitive BBQ team called “When Pigs Fly.” You’ll get home- made desserts from the students themselves plus another opportunity for scoring notable silent auction items.

For our elementary and middle school, the BIG spring play this year is The Wizard of Oz, performed by all grades and sure to please. I can hardly wait to see what teacher Nicole Huberty has in store for us. Dates are March 6th, 7th, 13th and 14th at 7 pm and matinees on March 8th and 15th at 1 pm. You can be sure the students and the parents who make it happen are busy getting ready to create another masterpiece for our entertainment.

If you have a young one ready for Kindergarten, registration is now open, so don’t miss out on having them get a great start in school. This school’s the kind of place where students recently raised $1,300 to help animals impacted by the Australian wildfires. I’m proud of both our schools. Aren’t you?

Spring break for both the elementary and high schools will be March 16th through the 20th so watch out for kids on the roads.

The Methodist Church is as busy as ever. Their HUGE rummage sale takes place Saturday, March 7th starting at 8 am and going until 2. I arrived late last year, but still managed to score some really nice items.

The Church’s Irish Potato Supper takes place March 15; doors open at 5:30, supper at 6. “The Forestville Strings” start out the night, then “Plaid Menagerie” kicks in Irish music after. Although the supper is free, donations are accepted. There you’ll have a chance to bid on some lovely auction items. Call the church 887-2020 to let them know you are coming so they have enough potatoes for all. Supporting the fun activities at the church hall helps them run our local Food Closet currently serving 65 Forestville families.

And speaking of celebrating all things Irish don’t miss your opportunity for authentic Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner at the Hollydale Club coming up Saturday, March 14 at 6 pm. They use an age- old recipe brought over from County Cork not far from where my own relatives lived generations ago.

The Lower Russian River MAC (Municipal Advisory Council) is finishing up its first year of public meetings where we heard from multiple County offices. Presentations were from Human Services, Health Services, the Homeless Task Force, Rapid Rehousing, Permit Sonoma, Flood Relief Loan Funding, the Sheriff’s Office on disaster response, road repair updates, broadband to outlying areas, wastewater and sewer issues and more. The MAC consists of 9 elected members and 7 alternates. They meet every other month on the third Thursday of the month and welcome you to participate. Go to Sonoma County website to find out locations and agenda items posted 72 hours prior. Jennette Dillman from Pocket Canyon was voted Council President, and Claudia Sisomphou from Hacienda was voted Vice President for the coming year. Vesta Copestakes and Lucy Hardcastle are your elected representatives. Let’s talk!

If you’d like more information on what’s happening locally, put the next Town Hall meeting on your calendar for Sunday, April 19 from 3-5 at the school library.