So This Happened…Week of Dec. 9-15, 2024
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CA (Dec. 15, 2024) — Do you hear what I hear? Pioneer music columnist Dave Hughes serves up a sampling of local music sure to fit your holiday groove, from the instrumental “With Bells On” to the rockin’ “Happy Little Accidents.” “In keeping with the tradition of the anthemic holiday pop songs, the fellas go grand toward the end and modulate up a step for the last minute of the song,” he writes of the latest from Accidents At Sundown. (Read the complete story)
Meanwhile, Santa made an early arrival Dec. 14 at Buchanan Airport. A little rain and wind (OK, maybe a lot of rain and wind) didn’t faze the man in red. I mean, he does live at the North Pole. For details on more holiday events on the horizon, check out Sally Hogarty’s column featuring special productions at local theaters along with a showing of “Once Upon a Time Step” in Pleasanton.
Touching family reunion: It took 80 years, but Clayton resident Dianne Carbine was on hand as her father’s casket arrived in Oakland last month. Army Ranger First Lt. Jerry Sundstad died in Burma on June 5, 1944, but his remains were only identified recently. (Read the complete story)
Changing of the guard: Local City Councils will start the new year with fresh faces – Rich Enea in Clayton, Pablo Benavente in Concord and Belle La and Amanda Szakats in Pleasant Hill. Benavente, who defeated longtime Councilmember Edi Birsan, is ready to get to work for the residents of Concord. “We stayed focused on clear priorities: improving roads and infrastructure, balancing housing needs and ensuring public safety, which really resonated with voters,” he noted.
More stories
Here are some other stories the Pioneer covered recently:
In sports: Sports Shorts, plus Athlete Spotlight on Colin Farley of Clayton Valley Charter.
From local non-profits: White Pony Express Onward and Up campaign is halfway to goal, and Concord Turkey Trot raises $31,000 for Loaves and Fishes.
Dining out: Old Pancake House flipped into a new Crumbs in Pleasant Hill.
From Oakmont Memorial Park: A lasting act of love.
Read past installments of “So This Happened…”: Click here.
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Bev Britton
Bev Britton graduated with a degree in journalism from the University of North Dakota and moved to the Bay Area with her soon-to-be husband Jim in 1986. She was features editor at the Contra Costa Times in Walnut Creek before becoming managing editor of the Contra Costa Sun in Lafayette in 1995. She retired from newsrooms in 2001, but an ad for the Clayton Pioneer drew her back in. The family moved to Lake Wildwood in the Gold Country a few years ago - but working at the Pioneer keeps her in touch with her old neighborhoods in Concord and Clayton.