By David Kupfer

One of the most experienced, astute, opinionated, and influential players in the Organic Farming Movement, Amigo Bob Cantisano passed after an 8 year battle with throat cancer at age 69 surrounded by his family on December 26. He was a rare ninth-generation Californian, directly descended from a Spanish lieutenant in the 1775-76 Juan Bautista de Anza expedition that led and created the first land route between New Spain and Alta California.

Just as his ancestors were pioneers in their own right, Cantisano distinguished himself by being a singular powerhouse in the organic horticulture field for nearly half a century. A San Francisco native, as a child, he first learned how to garden from his grandmother, and in the late 1960s began growing pesticide-free food while living on communes in the City’s Haight Ashbury district and in Mendocino County. He first was employed at Good Karma, an early San Francisco vegetarian café, and at the City’s first natural foods emporium “New Age,” both owned by Fred Rohé, whom Cantisano called “the founder of the whole natural foods movement.” It was these experiences, along with exposure to Rodale Press’s Organic Gardening magazine and a speaker at San Francisco’s first Earth Day celebration in 1970 on the impacts and hazards of pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and large mono crops to human health and the environment, that set him off on his life-long crusade that extended through his life.

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Dear Friends,

On Saturday, based on more widespread testing, Stanford University picked up an uptick in cases of Coronavirus among students at their campus in virus plagued Santa Clara County and changed the decision on bringing first and second year students back to campus this week.

"In a message to the campus community dated Saturday, Stanford leaders cited a recent tenfold increase in coronavirus cases per 100,000 county residents as a major reason for the change in plans. In addition, as of Friday, 43 Stanford students had tested positive for COVID-19 since Jan. 2, according to the university."

This announcement makes clear the benefits of more testing….. more data produces more information and ALLOWS individuals, families, communities and institutions to make better decisions.  

Kudos to those who are participating in the testing of residents across the state including Yolo County residents….. but we are still way too low in terms of testing in Yolo County.  As of a look a few minutes ago to the Yolo County Coronavirus Dashboards we have had 80,862 people have been tested AT ANY TIME during the pandemic.  That is less than half of the Yolo County population of ~ 220,000 has ever been tested.  

For the Stanford decision, please see this article in the SF Chronicle:

https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Stanford-cancels-plan-to-bring-undergraduates-15860193.php?utm_campaign=CHL%3A%20Daily%20Edition&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=106090768&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_Rp27TahNnmJaPYqnv_2g8xfti7RA9b64Bn03N_TQEcwtfyc3euJJpHyD5BD1EV0ebnmyzjlhB2ygrTVtWp_3svu7HZg&utm_content=106090768&utm_source=hs_email

Regards,

John

Dear Friends:

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Hello!

Good morning and Happy New Year!

Would you like to know where/when the FIRST County sponsored coronavirus testing opportunity will be in 2021?  

Here it is:

And here are the rules, provided by the Health Department (NOTE:  You have to make an appointment):

Participants of these testing sites must be residents of Yolo County and will need to bring a document displaying their name and address, such as a driver’s license, ID card, utility bill, or piece of mail. All ages are accepted. Spanish translation will be available at most, if not all, of the sites. There may be some delays in getting testing results. Registration is recommended in order to speed up the process but is not required and does not guarantee a test. When residents register online, they will not be able to select a time slot and will not receive a confirmation of receipt. Register at: https://www.avellinocoronatest.com/patient.

And if you cannot take advantage of this "first of the year" opportunity, how do you find out about other County sponsored CV testing opportunities?  

Right here:  Please check the County’s testing website for more information: https://covidtesting.yolocounty.org/.

And remember, you get tested for yourself, your partner, you family, your friends, your community, yourself.  

Cheers,

John

PS  Did you see Rich Rifkin's column on contact tracing in the Davis Enterprise?  We have lots of challenges, but working together we can overcome them.  Let's do it 2021!  

https://www.davisenterprise.com/forum/rich-rifkin-why-covid-policy-is-not-driven-by-evidence/

Because he makes so darn much sense!

Here is what he posted on the Yolo Community COVID-19 FB page a little while ago.  Please take a look and don't forget to vote for "public health savvy" electeds like Jim Provenza!

Regards,

John

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Dear Friends,

You may decide that the next two weeks are an ideal time to learn more about the coronavirus.  Face it, we are all stuck with this virus and its impact for a while (read:  months!).  You can choose to ignore, to do basic coping, or dig in and learn some more.

I chose to dig in and learn some more.  Johns Hopkins University, home of the world famous School of Public Health, has been a pioneer in online education in public health for decades.  They have created some high quality, very accessible online courses on the coronavirus which are designed for lay people.  

Yes, that's you, the non-public health expert who is nonetheless smart enough to take an online course on this super important topic. For sure, you can take this course if you have no intention of becoming a Contact Tracer for the Yolo County Health Department.  You can take this course to learn more about CV to help you and your family understand how and why to protect yourselves.  

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Upper Crust’s apple pies will be among the choices available at the Davis Farmers Market on Dec. 23. (Courtesy photo)

(From press release) The Davis Farmers Market will offer additional vendors for its Wednesday, Dec. 23 market, with last-minute shopping for holiday meals and gifts.

That market will have regular Wednesday hours ­– 3 to 6 p.m. – in Central Park, 301 C St., Davis. As is tradition for the Wednesday market between Christmas and New Year’s Day, the Dec. 30 market will be closed. The Saturday markets on Dec. 26 and Jan. 2 will be open with regular hours – 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The Davis Farmers is filled with farm-fresh products like citrus and pomegranates, poinsettias, nuts and nut butters, juices and veggies. There’s also table décor, meats, cheeses, olive oil, nuts, dried fruits, honey and wine. Several bakeries will have fresh-baked items like pies, breads, stuffing mixes and cookies.

There is no Gift Basket Central this year. However, there are pre-packaged gift bags of market merchandise, and baskets shoppers may buy to create their own collections from market goods such as honey, jams, nuts, wine, oils, lotions, soaps, salts, masks, Kettlepop, coffee beans and bakery treats.

Year-round, rain or shine, the Davis Farmers Market is open from 3 to 6 p.m. on Wednesdays, and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays. For more information, visit https://davisfarmersmarket.org or visit it on Facebook or Instagram.

Pastor William H. Lamar
Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church
1518 M Street NW
Washington DC 20005
Rev. Dr. Ianther M. Mills
Asbury United Methodist Church
926 11th Street
Washington DC 20001

Dear Pastor Lamar and Rev. Dr. Mills,

The Celebration of Abraham is an interfaith group in Davis California. We write to offer our condolences and express our outrage over the December 12th, violent attacks on your congregations. As people of faith, we believe that the religious freedom and free speech rights of your congregations were trampled on by the perpetrators of these attacks. The obvious racism of the actions violates the universal tenet embedded in all our faiths that the dignity of each individual is sacred. Your public statements of hope and healing reminds us that we can get through this and build a better, more loving future.

We will keep you and your congregants in our prayers and hearts.

Sincerely,

Helen Roland Cramer, Chair
Celebration of Abraham