So This Happened…Week of Sept. 9 through 15, 2024
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CA (Sept. 15, 2024) — With the November election closing in, the four candidates for the Clayton City Council answered questionnaires from The Pioneer. Issues considered include city staff, housing, and diversity and inclusion in the small town.
Meanwhile, voters can learn more about vote411.org and the state ballot measures at webinars on Sept. 19 and 26. And for more local election information, check the Sept. 20 print edition of The Pioneer for articles about the City Council elections in Pleasant Hill, Concord and Clayton.
Celebrating community service: In his column, Pleasant Hill Mayor Matt Rinn reviews the 20-year success of the city’s Community Service Day. In addition to the traditional volunteer gathering on Sept. 21, the city will host a special Party in the Park on Sept. 20 – plus a citywide food drive linked to both events. We know the city can draw a crowd, given that more than 1,500 came out for the Sept. 8 Bike Family Fest.
No going back: In part two of her travel essay, Gail Murray reflects on a 2002 visit to Moscow. “After the Berlin Wall had come down and the Cold War had ended, the Iron Curtin cracked open and I was ready to go,” she reflected, adding that such a visit would not be possible in today’s Russia.
Running the bases: Long before sluggers like Barry Bonds and Jose Canseco, Clayton had an amateur baseball team called the Haymakers – made up of local farm boys. Despite a name change to the Clayton Nine, “sometimes they were taunted by nasty opponents as ‘hayseeds, pumpkins and woodchoppers,’ ” Debbie Eistetter notes in her history column.
More stories
Here are some other stories the Pioneer covered recently:
The local art scene: East Bay Gallery Tour set for October.
At the movies: “Alien: Romulus” puts too much stock in franchise flashbacks.
Home décor: Creating living spaces you love and adore without rushing the process.
From the police: Concord’s latest arrest report.
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.