Community
Schools, nonprofits and neighbors: the civic life of Sonoma.
A school favorite at Sassarini: Christina Dieckmann is Sonoma County's Teacher of the Month
The Sonoma County Office of Education visited the transitional kindergarten teacher in her classroom on Monday morning, October 19, to recognize her with the October honor. The nominations behind it describe past students who still stop by to say hello, and a teacher who makes sure every child in the room is heard.
Sandbags return to Depot Park on Tuesday as Sonoma gets winter ready
The city opens its self service sandbag station at Depot Park on October 20, earlier than usual, and hands out free empty bags at City Hall. The next evening, the county hosts a Winter Ready town hall online, as the state prepares for a forecast strong El Nino winter.
Power is coming back: 1,092 Sonoma County customers still out Friday evening as PG&E crews resume restoration Saturday morning
The fire weather that drove this week's shutoff has passed for Sonoma County. PG&E reported more than 66,000 customers restored by Friday evening, after restoration began Friday afternoon instead of the original Saturday afternoon estimate, and the county's remaining outages had fallen from 2,041 on Friday morning to 1,092 by 5 p.m.
The shutoffs are underway: about 2,000 Sonoma County customers are without power as PG&E's fire-weather event runs toward Saturday
What was a map and a warning on Wednesday became an outage on Thursday: KION reported 87,475 customers without power statewide as of 10 a.m., PG&E said more shutoffs were possible Friday morning, and restoration will follow inspections once the wind eases.
One last movie night on the Plaza: Coco and Ghostbusters: Afterlife close the season tonight
The City of Sonoma and the Sebastiani Theatre Foundation end this year's free Movies Under the Stars series on Friday with a double feature on the lawn behind City Hall: Coco at 6 p.m. and Ghostbusters: Afterlife at about 8 p.m., with free popcorn while it lasts.
Shutoff scope grows in Sonoma County: 2,041 customers now in PG&E's planned outage area
PG&E widened its planned Public Safety Power Shutoff on October 14 to about 88,000 customers statewide, and the Sonoma County figure rose to 2,041 customers, up from the 1,783 in the scope the utility published a day earlier.
City and Highway 12 corridor sit outside PG&E's possible shutoff area, for now: 1,783 Sonoma County customers are in scope
The City of Sonoma says neither the city nor the main Highway 12 corridor is in the potential Public Safety Power Shutoff area as of October 13, while PG&E puts 1,783 Sonoma County customers, primarily in higher ground around the Valley, in its possible scope for later this week.
Delta will fly a case of Sonoma wine home free, starting today
The airline's new SkyMiles "Wine Takes Flight" program waives the $45 checked-bag fee for one case of wine on Delta flights departing STS and four other Northern California airports.
Heat advisory extended through Wednesday evening
The National Weather Service updated the advisory late Sunday night, pushing the end date from Monday to Wednesday as triple-digit valley heat lingers.
Sutter Health Plan expands coverage into Sonoma Valley
The insurer's service-area expansion adds ZIP code 95476, covering Sonoma and the valley, effective October 1 for small groups; large groups and individuals follow January 1, 2027.
Heat advisory covers Sonoma Valley through Monday evening
The National Weather Service expects highs from the mid-90s to near 103 through 10 p.m. Monday; the city is urging residents to hydrate, limit midday exertion and check on vulnerable neighbors.
Nominations open for Sonoma's 2027 Treasure Artist of the Year
The Cultural and Fine Arts Commission is accepting nominations through November 5; the honor has recognized Sonoma Valley artists since 1983.
Big Blue Weekend brings three days of events to Sonoma State
The Oct. 2-4 celebration folds Family Weekend, Discovery Day and SSU Palooza into one weekend, from Harvest Night to a movie under the stars.
Sonoma Garden Park's Harvest Festival returns Saturday, free and full of pickles
Sonoma Ecology Center's annual family festival runs 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on October 3: live music, farm games, a quick-pickle competition, a poetry pop-up, and the 6.1-acre public garden at the height of fall.
Sonoma Valley Museum of Art opens a career survey of M. Louise Stanley
The Real-Life Art History of M. Louise Stanley runs September 19 through January 24, with paintings, works on paper and pieces from the artist's archives.
Sonoma weighs stronger protections for mobile-home park residents
Draft revisions to the closure and conversion ordinance would tighten relocation reports, notice and assistance for the town's three parks and 450-plus homes.
College advising comes to the Boys and Girls Club
Students Rising Above will place a dedicated pre-college advisor on-site at the Club starting in the 2026-27 school year.