STUDENT MURAL
Santiago Benavidez, a junior at Del Lago Academy, designed the recently finished mural at Park Avenue Community Center in Escondido. Benavidez and other students from Escondido Union High School District came together over the summer to paint the mural, which depicts colorful flowers, hills and a child on a swing. Benavidez said the mural is meant to help visitors at the senior center reconnect with happy memories from their younger years while also celebrating life itself.
STUDENT HARVEST
Students at The Grauer School, an Encinitas-based private school, recently learned a lesson in science, sustainability and service after seventh graders harvested Korean white sweet potatoes, three varieties of carrots, potatoes, butternut squash, opo squash and mixed peppers and composted sweet potato vines from the school’s Luddy Campus gardens. Seniors later delivered 130 pounds of extra produce to St. Andrew’s Food Pantry and the Community Resource Center.
SCHOOL DONATION
Fox Law, a Solana Beach-based personal injury law firm, recently donated $10,000 to the Solana Beach Schools Foundation to help further its mission to provide more educational opportunities for students. Attorneys Dave and Joanna Fox, who own and manage Fox Law, have two girls in Solana Beach schools.
ITALIAN HERITAGE
Cardiff-based artist Angela Jackson’s exhibition, “From Sea to Italian Countryside: A Visual Genealogy” is currently on view at the Cardiff-by-the-Sea Library during Italian-American Heritage Month until Oct. 31. The exhibition brings together two landscapes that shaped the artist’s life: the Southern California Coast and the countryside of Campania, Italy, where her ancestors lived. She will lead a free artist talk and closing reception at the library on Oct. 17 from 1 to 4 p.m.
CHANGEMAKER
Mallika Sen, director of program services at Solana Center for Environmental Innovation in Encinitas, earned the Changemaker Award from California Resource Recovery Association last month. The award honors CRRA members who have proactively worked to improve environmental sustainability through zero waste strategies.
BUSINESS AWARD
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has named the Inn at Moonlight Beach as one of the nation’s top 100 small businesses. The inn is also the world’s first WELL Certified hotel, a property designed to actively support human health and well-being through the built environment.
BOBCAT RELEASED
A bobcat that was severely burned with life threatening injuries in the Pipeline Fire over the summer has been returned to Camp Pendleton after more than two months of veterinary care at the Ramona Wildlife Center.
SURGERY CENTER
DISC Surgery Center at Carlsbad has partnered with Sharp HealthCare and from now on will be co-branded as Sharp DISC Surgery Center Carlsbad, building on their previous collaboration with Tri-City Medical Center, which is now Sharp Tri-City. Procedures performed at the surgery center include microdiscectomies, artificial disc replacement (ADR), endoscopic spine surgery, minimally invasive spinal fusion, knee, hip and shoulder arthroscopy and total joint replacement.
WILDLIFE AWARDS
The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance earned three 2026 Honors and Awards from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums: the William G. Conway International Conservation Award for its Kenyan Rangelands Program, top honors for advancing recovery of the extinct-in-the-wild ‘Alalā (Hawaiian crow) through evidence-based management, and marketing excellence award for the San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s “Join the Herd” campaign.
NURSING HOMES
Newsweek has named Escondido Post Acute as one of its Best Nursing Homes for 2027 based on its high performance indicators, reputation, accreditations and resident and visitor satisfaction ratings.
