The Union Democrat
Frozen peril
Agraduate of Soulsbyville Elementary and Sonora High School survived a traumatic commercial crab boat wreck in a winter Alaska storm in the dangerous Bering Sea that required U.S. Coast Guard helicopter hoist rescues of he and eight crew members in...
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Expanding care
The Mathiesen Memorial Health and Wellness Center that’s currently under construction in Jamestown is being recognized by the state as part of a broader effort to expand behavioral health care in rural and underserved communities throughout...
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Who pays?
Calmatters In the final few weeks of his last legislative session as California governor, Gavin Newsom is asking lawmakers to help reduce how much profit-making utility companies must pay out after wildfires. His administration has for weeks floated...
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Housing crunch
Every eight years, state housing regulators give cities and counties across California an especially dreaded homework assignment: Make a plan for a bunch of new homes. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration assigns localities goals to hit at four...
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Answering the call
About 650 people turned out Saturday at the Mother Lode Fairgrounds for a benefit dinner supporting 9-year-old Clayton Radovich, of Jamestown, who is battling T-cell lymphoblastic leukemia. Proceeds from the “Rad Like Clayton” fundraiser will go...
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Coverage crisis
Ayear and a half after the Eaton Fire, Gil Barel is still waiting to move back into the Pasadena home she has rented for nearly a decade. Her complex did not burn down, but smoke engulfed it for days during the January 2025 fire. Barel wants to make...
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Deadly aftermath
Authorities working the Gann Fire in Calaveras County found a deceased woman inside a burned residence in the 4600 block of Jaquima Drive in unincorporated Angels Camp, county sheriff’s and coroner’s staff said Thursday. Cal Fire announced earlier...
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‘Don’t Flock me’
This story was originally published by Calmatters. In the past year alone, they’ve helped catch suspected murderers, bank robbers and hit-and-run drivers. They’ve located dozens of stolen cars and helped send a wildland arsonist to prison. They’re...
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Gann Fire
A brush fire that broke out Monday evening southeast of New Hogan Reservoir and Valley Springs had grown to 3,760 acres by 4 p.m. Tuesday with no containment, prompting authorities to issue evacuation orders for 90 square miles of rural western...
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Still soaring
More than 80 years after flying bombing missions over Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II, Tuolumne County resident Dennis “Denny” Thompson celebrated his 104th birthday Saturday at Sonora Moose Lodge 2183. The celebration honored not only...
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Young changemakers
Agroup of high school students who call themselves Tuolumne Students for Change recently hosted a car wash and raised $600 for one of the county’s leading distributors of food to families in need. Donors with the Sonora Area Foundation heard about the...
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Vanished paradise
Newlyweds Robert and Dorothy Duryea were outdoor enthusiasts par excellence, so it was not too unusual that they chose camping in Yosemite National Park for a two-week honeymoon. The couple, 1913 Stanford University graduates, were married in a...
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Recovery continues
The Sonora man accused of causing the Dove Fire told investigators he had been smoking a cigarette near the blaze’s point of origin Sunday afternoon when he dropped the butt into some dry grass and ran off after realizing it had ignited a fire that was...
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Built to last
Fifty years after Dan Pinnell opened a flooring business in Calaveras County, the family-owned company is celebrating both a milestone anniversary and changing of the guard. Pinnell’s Carpet One Floor & Home will host a public 50th anniversary...
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Another close call
As firefighters continued to get the 225-acre Dove Fire under control Monday afternoon, a second vegetation broke out less than a mile away and prompted new evacuations, road closures and another large emergency response before crews stopped its...
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Master craftsman
San Andreas native Dewayne Konz has been woodworking for most of his life. According to him, when he was just a young man attending Calaveras High School, woodshop was the only class that he got an A in. “My woodshop teacher loved me,” the 65-year-old...
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New lifeline
Aproposal to secure a new long-term water source for Tuolumne County has reached a major milestone after more than a decade of work. On Wednesday, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation opened a 60-day public comment period on a draft contract that would...
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Rad like Clayton
The Mother Lode Fairgrounds will host a benefit dinner at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 9, in support of Clayton Radovich, a 9-year-old Jamestown boy who is battling T-cell lymphoblastic leukemia. The dinner, organized by local community members in support...
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Recreation rising
The nonprofit Youth Sports Foundation of Tuolumne County is now well underway with phase two construction at its Foundation Sports Park in East Sonora, next to the county-owned Standard Park Sports Complex. Phase one of Foundation Sport Park is...
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Bigfoot fest
The sixth annual Sierra Bigfoot Music Festival returned to Twain Harte over the weekend, bringing three days of family fun and live music back to the Sierra Nevada foothills as it has every year since 2020. The festivities began Friday afternoon with...
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‘The real truth’
On a warm, still morning off Big Hill Road, high above Columbia and downtown Sonora, a family sought painful answers about a loved one who was last seen more than 15 years ago. Sonora residents Sandy Lee, 66, Darvis Lee Sr., 74, and Jake Lee, 27, were...
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Community canvas
Community boosters in Big Oak Flat and Groveland recently organized the creation of a 65-foot-wide, 9-foot-tall mural to celebrate America’s 250th birthday and unveiled it last Saturday on the Wards Ferry Road side of Around the Horn Brewing Co. Board...
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Cowboy kindness
Members of the Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Posse welcomed athletes from the local Special Olympics Northern California team, the Tuolumne Ravens, and representatives of Black Oak Casino Resort to the Posse Grounds on Tuesday evening to present the Ravens...
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Highway redo
Caltrans District 10 has started a $36.4 million project to rehabilitate and resurface 31.7 linear miles of Highway 4 in Alpine County, westward from Highway 89 to the Calaveras County line, a job that is scheduled to be completed by November...
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Campus prep
There wasn’t a parking spot in sight Saturday morning near Cover’s Apple Ranch in Tuolumne, as nearly 1,500 people came to celebrate the Back-to-school Bash and Touch-a-truck events that were held at the property. The free event was hosted by the...
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Gold Rush kids
More than a dozen children from as far as Manteca and as near as Sonora arrived in Columbia Friday morning for the kickoff of the Columbia State Historic Park Junior Rangers program. The program is scheduled to be a four-week educational course that’s...
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Funding fight
Property owners in Groveland rejected a proposed fire assessment Wednesday that would have provided roughly $1.6 million in additional funding per year for the Groveland Community Service District Fire Department. Results announced Wednesday by GCSD...
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World stage
High Voltage Dance Academy in Sonora sent shockwaves through the dance world last month at the 2026 Thunderstruck International Finals in Las Vegas, which took place at the Rio Hotel and Casino from June 23-27. At the conclusion of what the academy...
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Golden Rule
Five generations of a Sonora family gathered Sunday to celebrate the 100th birthday of the woman who made it all possible. Marjorie East marked a century of life that has included growing up during the Great Depression and World War II to a...
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Fair success
Organizers say about 13,000 people attended the Mother Lode Fair from Thursday through Sunday that featured the return of a professional rodeo and destruction derby, special exhibits in honor of the United States’ 250th anniversary and generated more...
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Heritage and honor
Sonora resident Carol Travis pointed to a photo of her father, Ronald “Mick” Hamilton, who served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War, and a photo of her fatherin-law, Robert Rundle, who served in the U.S. Army during World War II, on Thursday in...
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‘A surreal experience’
Five Twain Harte Fire Department firefighters responded to the massive June 11 warehouse distribution yard fire in Tracy, which consumed a 1-millionsquare-foot Medline medical supply warehouse in under one hour and sent up a dark smoke column that rose...
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Bucking expectations
Two years ago, 16-year-old Jamestown native Lincoln Arellano made the decision to start training as a competitive saddle bronc rider. That decision led him down a path to a second-place finish last month at the California High School Rodeo State...
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Community promise
Tangible steps of a dream-come-true were taken by Tuolumne County residents and Chicken Ranch Rancheria of Me-wuk Indians of California members, as ground was broken on the site of what will eventually be home to a new, $32 million health care facility...
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Timber tradition
Chainsaws roared, axes flew and a new Lumber Jubilee queen was crowned this past weekend during the 77th annual Tuolumne Lumber Jubilee. The threeday event held festivities in the heart of Tuolumne at West Side Memorial Park beginning Friday afternoon...
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Future flow
Tuolumne Utilities District hosted a groundbreaking ceremony Friday morning off South Fork Road north of downtown Twain Harte, where TUD is beginning construction of its $45.6 million Sierra Pines Regional Water Treatment Facility. The project has...
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Parade passion
Cardboard, castoffs and creative imagination have all gone into crafting floats for the Tuolumne Memorial Museum entry in the Tuolumne Lumber Jubilee parade for nearly 15 years. Julie Castillo-trambley, museum vice president, has provided the...
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Shared legacy
Alongplanned merger between Give Someone a Chance and Nancy’s Hope, two nonprofit organizations that have long been dedicated to helping unhoused and low-income Tuolumne County residents, finally reached the finish line earlier this month. Board...
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Knowles Hill clash
Aproposal to expand the uses of a historic hilltop mansion bedand-breakfast above downtown Sonora to add hosting brunch, lunch, or tea events, and special events such as anniversaries, bridal showers, and weddings, has prompted opposition from...
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Sky’s the limit
Columbia Airport was filled with the sights and sounds of aviation this Saturday for the 57th annual Father’s Day Fly-in, a long-running tradition that each year brings together pilots, airplane enthusiasts and families from across the Mother Lode and...
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Culture stories
Amonths-long effort to increase awareness and understanding of the diverse communities who built Tuolumne County and California culminated Thursday night with a presentation in the courtyard of the Tuolumne County Museum by local author and historian...
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Guarding memories
After nearly a quartercentury of preserving Sonora’s history, Patricia “Pat” Perry is handing the role over to someone she believes is the perfect successor. At a public meeting Monday, the Sonora City Council appointed recently retired City Clerk...
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Skyward bound
Vintage aircraft, aerial demonstrations and airplane rides will return to Columbia Airport this weekend for the 57th annual Father’s Day Fly-in. The event is Saturday and will feature military flyovers, a classic car show, live music, food vendors and...
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Forming foundations
Agroup of more than 40 people, including volunteers and potential future homeowners, worked together in 90-degree heat on a recent Tuesday to build a community garden at the Eureka Oaks Habitat for Humanity affordable housing development in Angels...
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Mist matters
The megapopular Mist Trail corridor, which includes Vernal Fall and Nevada Fall, is the busiest, most impacted hiking area in the entirety of Yosemite National Park, and the park is seeking public comment on a draft environmental report for mitigating...
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Student pathways
Hundreds of elementary, middle, and high school students attended the 2026 Career Technical Education Expo and Showcase on May 29 at Mother Lode Fairgrounds in Sonora, an event intended to allow young people to explore careers and workforce development...
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Eviction siege
Atense standoff that kept a downtown Sonora neighborhood on edge Wednesday afternoon ended peacefully at 5:02 p.m., after two men who had barricaded themselves inside an East Church Street residence surrendered to law enforcement following hours of...
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Capstone moment
School is officially out as the Summerville High School class of 2026 was celebrated on Friday night, June 5, at Thorsted Field for their senior graduation. A total of 136 graduates had their names called over the loudspeaker, with fireworks galore...
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Bright future
Asea of caps and gowns filled Dunlavy Field on Thursday night as Sonora High School’s class of 2026 said goodbye under the lights. A packed stadium welcomed the 174 seniors onto the field at 7 p.m. Eli Ingalls and Jolene Beach gave a “welcome” speech...
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Shared triumph
More than 90 teens and adults graduated from Sonora Union High School District alternative education programs this spring, and about 80 of them attended a ceremony and raucous celebration Wednesday evening before hundreds of overjoyed parents, family...
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Real-world skills
Eighteen second-year Construction Tech students at Sonora High School, including sophomores, juniors, and seniors, built an unfurnished, trailer-mounted, 200-squarefoot tiny home using recycled and energy-efficient materials from November to June this...
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Civic duty
NOTE: Election night results are not included in this edition due to the newspaper’s 5 p.m. print deadline, but are up online in a story on our website at www.uniondemocrat.com. More follow-up coverage will appear in Thursday’s paper. County results...
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‘Furry lawnmowers’
Aherd of 100 goats recently helped reduce wildfire risk and brought neighbors together in a Sonora Firewise community. The grazing project was organized last week by homeowners Haze and Rudy Contreras in the Sonora Knolls/dragoon Gulch subdivision,...
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Hometown roots
Maverick Alaway isn’t just a once-in-a-generation talent on a 125cc motocross bike. In fact, the 15-year-old Ione native is more akin to a once-in-alifetime type of phenom who’s currently in pursuit of an unprecedented Triple Crown performance this...
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Out There
The day after the National Park Service reopened Highway 120 in Yosemite National Park for spring and summer, I rode my motorbike over Tioga Road and Tioga Pass to U.S. 395 and used Sonora Pass to return to downtown Sonora. That was Saturday, May 16....
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Unified stride
Special Olympics athletes, family members, and other advocates for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, and personnel with the Sonora Police Department, Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office and California Highway Patrol took part Wednesday...
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Saddle success
Ateam of mule packers from Aspen Meadow Pack Station in Tuolumne County took first-place in a six-event, multiday packing competition over the long holiday weekend at Bishop Mule Days in Bishop, which is known as the “Mule Capital of the World.” Chris...
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Day of remembrance
Advocates for military veterans, survivors of deceased veterans, and community members gathered at numerous locations in Calaveras and Tuolumne counties Monday to honor service members who have lost their lives, including casualties of the ongoing...
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Out There
Last Saturday, May 16, I got up before 4 a.m. to check how cold it was at Tioga Pass. It was 50 degrees in downtown Sonora and below freezing at the highest paved mountain pass in the state. I expected that and dressed for even colder conditions on my...
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Lasting devotion
Ahead-on collision near the Grand Canyon almost ended Ruth and Verne Walter’s marriage before it had barely begun. Days after their wedding on May 22, 1966, the newlyweds were driving in Verne’s 1965 Thunderbird on their way to New Orleans for their...
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Cannabis caution
Amother from Colorado who is also an award-winning speaker and bestselling author spoke plainly to Sonora Elementary School students Wednesday about the dangers of today’s high-potency THC products — marijuana, vapes, edibles, and dabs — and addiction,...
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Bears triumph
Summerville High School’s varsity coed tennis team captured its first-ever Sacjoaquin Section Division II title last week, defeating Bret Harte in a match that came down to the final doubles court.
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Doubling up
Family dynasties squared off Sunday in the International Frog Jump Grand Finals Championship at the Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee south of downtown Angels Camp, where 88-year-old Lillian Fasano clinched her second title in three years...
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Leap forward
The California redlegged frog, wiped out in Yosemite National Park for decades, has made a significant comeback in the past 10 years thanks to coordinated human interventions and restoration efforts, according to state and federal Fish and Wildlife...
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Shared success
More than a year after four Tuolumne County school districts began sharing bus drivers to combat staffing shortages, officials say the experiment is paying off. The “Shared Services Tuolumne County Transportation” program recorded no canceled...
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Solemn tribute
Scores of spectators, including Tuolumne County elected officials and county government workers, joined local law enforcement leaders Wednesday for a ceremony at Dambacher Detention Center to remember and honor law enforcement personnel killed in the...
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‘It’s market season’
The very first Sonora Certified Farmers’ Market event of the year is scheduled for 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. this Saturday in the parking lot bounded by Stewart, Shepherd, and Theall streets. “It’s market season again,” said City of Sonora Community...
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Roundup reunion
Thousands of spectators lined downtown Sonora’s main thoroughfare Saturday morning for the 67th annual Mother Lode Roundup Parade that featured about 100 entries.
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Rise to royalty
Kaelee Gates, a 22-year-old resident of Copperopolis, was graced with a fancy new tiara, belt buckle and sash to honor her as the 2026 Mother Lode Roundup Queen during a coronation ceremony Thursday at Black Oak Casino Resort. In 2023, Gates took...
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Shaping futures
Sixteen teachers from schools across Tuolumne County were recognized last week for their dedication in the classroom at the annual Excellence in Teaching Awards, hosted by the Tuolumne County Board of Education and Tuolumne County Superintendent of...
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Wall of fame
Jamestown residents gathered Sunday afternoon for the unveiling of a long-planned mural at the corner of Seco and Main streets that celebrates the community’s railroad and filmmaking heritage. The 40-foot-long, 6.5-foot-tall mural complements work...
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Little legs, big fun
The seventh annual Tuolumne Dachshund Derby took place once again this past Sunday at West Side Memorial Park in Tuolumne, with nearly 50 floppy-eared participants competing in the races. Families and dog-lovers traveled to Tuolumne from across...
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Shared history
Modesto residents Cristal Baez Arellano and Jacquie Marroquin, volunteers with the Tuolumne County-based nonprofit Conamor Building Bridges, welcomed people Saturday to Columbia State Historic Park, site of the first documented Cinco de Mayo...
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175 years strong
Friday was May Day, long recognized as a day for ancient Celtic, Roman, and Germanic spring festivals and the birth of the modern labor movement in 1886 in Chicago, and it was also recognized as the City of Sonora’s official birthday as an incorporated...
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Open, for now
Caltrans opened Highway 108 from Kennedy Meadows Road to the 9,624-foot top of Sonora Pass at 10 a.m. Thursday, much to the relief of some business owners along the upper 108 corridor who say the past winter has been hard on them. “Winter was very...
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