Pumpkin Maze: Smashing hit

LATHROP - It is without a doubt the largest agri-tourist attraction in the Central Valley if not all of California.

Retired black minister struggles to secure VA benefits

This is a story of a retired black minister who served his country, refused a medical discharge for a back injury because of his sense of duty, and who was told by a Navy doctor that he could file for disability when his pain became more intense as he aged.

$746M in Manteca retail sales projected for fiscal year

Manteca's municipal spending plan is based in part on the conservative projection that taxable retail sales will hit $746 million in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010.

Ethel Allen house built in 1878 torn down

LATHROP – One of Lathrop's oldest homes is no more. The house where one of the city's revered teachers lived was razed last week to make room for a warehouse expansion of California Natural Products across the street on McKinley Avenue.

Dinner raises money for pencils, hand sanitizers

The New Haven School Community Club is looking to purchase supply of pencils and hand sanitizers for youngsters.

Free Facebook basics class this Thursday

Fred White of DeCristo Productions is offering a free Facebook basics class at Main Street Café on North Main Street this Thursday, Nov. 5, from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

ARTIST GUILD SHOW

Swiss Echoes dance, concert Saturday

RIPON - The San Joaquin Valley "Swiss Echoes" will perform their Fall Concert and Dance Saturday, Nov. 7, at the San Joaquin Valley Swiss Club hall at East Main Street and Manley Road.

First fireplace ban issued for today

The season's first fireplace and wood stove prohibition has been issued in San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Fresno, and the valley portion of Kern counties for today due to deteriorating air quality.

HALLOWEEN FUN RUN

Friends of Parks & Rec donate $5,000 to youth scholarships

The recent Swing for Youth Golf Tournament made a $5,000 donation to the Youth Scholarship Program possible through the efforts of the Friends of the Manteca Parks and Recreation Foundation.

Churches help with telethon in bid to keep doors open to Boys & Girls

Church groups are among the organizations stepping up to help the Boys & Girls Club of Manteca/Lathrop during the 30th annual telethon Nov. 23-24.

Wood carver designing 28-piece chess set

Wood carving from basswood blocks is a whittling art in action every Monday at the Manteca Senior Center Mondays from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.

Diagnosis brings more caring toward others

Lisa DeGroot is an amazing woman she's determined to make a difference.

BARN YARD BLOW OUT

GOING HOLLYWOOD

Marshall Magincalda stood in the front of his Woodward Avenue ranchette and gazed at the dozens of people buzzing around his property as if it were normal.

He’s helped folks keep their cool for 20 years

Frank Warren is a busy man.

Move afoot to restore librarians

Mary Buchanan is not a certificated Manteca Unified teacher librarian. But she is working hard to convince district officials "to consider returning the teacher librarian positions to each of the high schools." Those positions were among the victims of the budget cuts that were made during the Great Recession.

Donations allow man to keep foot

A Manteca man who suffered a compound fracture above his ankle during a river accident and faced amputation will get to keep his left foot.

Powwow ends three-day run in Manteca

Orena Monahan once again enjoyed her three-day stay at the Fourth of July Powwow at the Three Rivers Lodge in Manteca.

ONE SWEET LIFE

"Coach" is still swinging for the bleachers.

ADA lawsuit: The $32,000 parking stall

There's a potential $32,000 pay day in Manteca for someone trying to make a living by filing Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuits for alleged non-compliance to federal rules.

8 MUSD schools gearing up for latest technology

If everything goes according to plan, eight elementary schools in Manteca Unified will be fully wired for 21st-century technology connection by September.

Manteca parade offers Independence Day fun

It wasn't exactly the fictional Wagon Queen Family Truckster from National Lampoon Vacation.

5 nurses start internships at Doctors Hospital

Five graduate nurses picked from a field of 187 applicants were welcomed into Doctors Hospital's six-month-long Versant internship program at a noon luncheon on Wednesday in the DHM conference room.

PATRIOTIC PARADE

Today's Manteca Independence Day Parade will feature over 34 entries to the theme of "Traveling the USA."

Pay raises for city workers in new budget

There's money for pay raises in Manteca's $30.1 million general fund spending plan for the next 12 months.

Independence booms stress some veterans

They've been known to drive dogs crazy.

Fireworks unnerve dogs, officials warn

Pet stores are offering sedation pills to calm dogs during the booming July 4th fireworks, according to Manteca Animal Control Officer Les Rowe.

Rhodes: America is land of opportunity

Gloryanna Rhodes loves the open spaces in America. That feeling first hit her in the gut about 45 years ago while going over the Altamont Pass on the way to Yosemite National Park as she gazed at the vast valley below.