COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS

We are so fortunate to live in a community with so much heart . There never seems to be a shortage of places to go , people to see , and organizations to support .

As you will see in the following pages , these past few months have provided an abundance of all of the above . Gilroy Today is happy to include as many of these wonderful events and activities within its pages , as space allows . And we encourage community organizations and businesses to let us know about their efforts to support our community . We thank them for continuing to make Gilroy a wonderful place to live and raise a family .

DUCKY

DERBY PADDLE BOAT RACES

Presented by Leadership Gilroy

The 2nd Annual Leadership Gilroy Paddle Boat Races were held at Gilroy Gardens on September 30th . Six different heats narrowed the field down with six teams competing in the championship heat . A total of 28 two person teams competed for the coveted “ Duck ” trophy but it was the team from Articulate Solutions who waddled away with the prize . Before each heat , Jon Thomas played the trumpet fanfare , “ A Call to the Post ,” a tune often heard at the start of a horse race . The festive event included a local band called “ Just Friends ” that played for the nearly 200 attendees . The paddle boat races raised both awareness and money for the Leadership Gilroy program .

Left : Organizers Mark Turner , Konni Thomas , and LeeAnn Blean congratulate Joanie Lewis who won the main raffle prize of the day … valued at over $ 350 .

3RD ANNUAL ARTS FORUM

Presented by Arts Council of Silicon Valley

On October 24 , 2012 friends and representatives of the arts in Gilroy gathered at the Interim Center for the Arts . Joshua Russell from the Arts Council Silicon Valley presented “ Art Means Business ,” based on a 2010 study , Arts & Economic Prosperity . A summary of the study is available at artscouncil . org .

Audrey Wong and Joshua Russell from the Arts Council joined in a local panel discussion followed with personal and local examples of “ Art Means Business .” The forum concluded with Art & Business Partnership Awards to Dennis Daniels Company and the Gilroy Garlic Festival . Russ and Linda Fruchey received the Gilroy Community Art Award for their work on the City of Gilroy Utility Box Art Project .

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