Politics & Government
Salsa Social Is a Savory and Splendid Success
TCALEO hosted a casual gathering of local elected officials and community leaders on Thursday night at the Watsonville Civic Plaza
A group of local Latino and Latina elected officials, appointed commissioners, business leaders, and community leaders from Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz counties got together for an enjoyable night of scrumptious snacks, the sweet sounds of Merengue music, and a chance for people to mingle in a more than unusual laid-back environment.
TCALEO President Tony Madrigal and Santa Cruz School Board member Steve Trujillo hosted the Spring Savory Salsa Social inside the Watsonville Civic Plaza Community Room on Thursday night in an effort to bring together the local officials and leaders in one giant room and talk like normal folks without the office setting for once.
Present at the event were Watsonville mayor Eduardo Montesino, Assemblyman Luis Alejo, city of Marina chief of police Eddie Rodriguez, and recently retired from the Cabrillo College Governing Board Rebecca Garcia.
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Madrigal was pleased with the results of the event and mentioned why it was important for TCALEO and other guests to attend the meet and greet on Thursday night.
"Today's turnout was a big success for this social event," said Madrigal. "It gives us all a chance to get to know each other a little bit better and in a more relaxed setting.”
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The evening included a table with trays of four different salsas along with giant bags of corn tortilla chips courtesy of Mi Pueblo supermarket and another table with samples from a new cook "Flavors of My Kitchen" by the Central Coast Region Champions for Change.
A raffle ticket fundraiser with prizes like gift certificates, gift baskets and wine bottles were handed out by Madrigal and Trujillo. Mayor Montesino and Assemblyman Alejo were also in the mix and picked out some of the winning raffle tickets as well.
Half of the proceeds from Thursday’s fundraiser went to CISPES (Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador) where a chapter resides on the UCSC campus. Members from CISPES were on hand to help out with raffle ticket sales including Shirley Lavareda, who has been a member for the past two years.
