Things might have been easier for Midsi Sanchez as she worked through the trauma of being kidnapped and held captive by a serial child rapist/killer at age 8 - if something like Solano County's Courage Center 2 had existed.
Vallejo's most famous self-rescued survivor is a featured speaker at the center's second anniversary celebration, set for next week.
CC2, Solano's safe place for abused children, celebrates two years in operationThe American Canyon High softball team was shut out by Vanden 5-0 on Wednesday in Solano County Athletic Conference.
Vikings pitcher Dari Orme struck out 12 and fired a two-hitter for the Vikings (7-1-1, 2-0). Katherine Montuya had a double for one of the Wolves' two hits.
Lisa Bolton struck out 11 in the circle for American Canyon (6-2, 1-1), which will host Bethel on Friday.
American Canyon High softball team loses to VandenThe California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has started work on a long-term project to repair the pavement on State Route 29 between the City of Napa and just south of St. Helena, agency officials announced.
As part of the project, Caltrans and its contractor will perform overnight pavement preparation which includes drainage and culvert work on northbound and southbound SR-29 between Yountville and St.
Overnight work scheduled along Highway 29 between Yountville, St. Helena in Napa CountyVallejo's Senior Round Table is coming back for the first time since 2015, organizers announced.
The new iteration of the senior citizens informational gatherings will kick off at 1:30 p.m. Monday, at the Florence Douglas Senior Center, and will meet at 1:30 p.m. the first Monday of each month, thereafter, organizer Tom Bartee said.
Vallejo's Senior Round Table reborn at senior center next weekThe main traffic artery through Vallejo is currently shut down for several blocks, following a single vehicle crash into a power pole early Wednesday, Vallejo Police Department Lt. Herman Robinson said.
A Kia hit the pole at around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, causing several live electrical wires to hang too low to be safe, so the road was closed from Highway 37/Lewis Brown Road to Sereno Drive.
Highway 29 closed for several blocksAt an average of $3.37 per gallon of unleaded, Vallejo's gas prices in March aren't the highest in the Bay Area, but, they're up there, according to the latest report from AAA of Northern California.
The highest they've been in March since 2014, gas prices statewide are likely to spike this spring in response to record travel demand in the U.
Gas prices on the rise, locally, statewide, AAA saysStephen and Erika Myers of Vallejo have been doing it since 1992.
Dan Lyke has been coming all the way to Vallejo from Petaluma for the past six years to do it.
And none of them - all members of the Vallejo Pioneers Square Dance Club - would have imagined themselves doing it until they tried it and got hooked.
60-year-old Vallejo square dance group offering free starter lessons next monthTwo San Francisco women were in custody Friday after leading law enforcement on a pursuit through American Canyon, Vallejo and beyond, American Canyon Police officials said.
The episode started at about 9:10 p.m., when police were dispatched to Walmart, after two women were caught stealing and loss prevention personnel were unable to detain them, American Canyon Police Chief Oscar Ortiz said.
Car chase through American Canyon and Vallejo ends with arrest of two San Francisco womenFAIRFIELD>> Those who think they have a winning business idea but need a free place to test it out have until March 30 to enter Solano Town Center's "The Challenge: Battle of the Pop-Up Contest," mall officials announced.
Since Feb. 9 Solano Town Center officials have been encouraging local entrepreneurs to submit "fresh, fun and innovative retail concepts.
Pop-up Solano mall contest ends FridayThe unemployment rates in Solano and Napa counties fell in February, according to the state's most recent report, released Friday.
The jobless rate in the Vallejo-Fairfield area was 4.4 percent last month, down from 4.5 percent in January, and below the year-ago estimate of 5.5 percent.
This compares with an unemployment rate of 4.
Unemployment falls in Solano, Napa counties in FebruaryThree years to the day that Denise Huskins and Aaron Quinn were attacked in their Mare Island home by an intruder in a wet suit - setting off what became known as the "Gone Girl" kidnapping case - the couple will appear tonight on 20/20.
ABC News' Amy Robach sits down for the first interview with Huskins and Quinn, who describe the anguish they felt when authorities dismissed Huskins' kidnapping as a hoax, an announcement from ABC says.
Vallejo's 'Gone Girl' kidnapping case couple on ABC tonightJason Kishineff of American Canyon is running for United States Congress.
A Los Angeles native living in the North Bay for more than 15 years, the 48-year-old stay-at-home dad and former pharmacy technician has filed official papers as the Green Party candidate in the 2018 race against Mike Thompson (D.
American Canyon man hopes to unseat Mike Thompson in Congressional bidHaving taken some lessons from the wildfires that devastated the North Bay and Southern California last year, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. is making some changes that some of its local customers may notice, company officials announced Thursday.
With PG&E's comprehensive Community Wildfire Safety Program, people mostly in the North Bay and the North Coast may notice more diligent vegetation management, PG&E spokeswoman Deanna Contreras said.
PG&E announces pro-active fire prevention actions in the North BayTension was in the air in the City Council chambers during Tuesday's meeting, and it occasionally sparked among those in the gallery during discussions on the city's elusive cannabis ordinance and water rate reform.
Though both matters - extending the cannabis moratorium until mid-November, and significantly raising the water rates over the next four years - eventually passed.
American Canyon extends cannabis moratorium despite some contentious objectionsThe state Senate passed a bipartisan resolution by Senator Bill Dodd (D-Napa) declaring March as Problem Gambling Awareness Month in California, Dodd's office staff announced. The purpose of the declaration is to raise public awareness of problem gambling and connect individuals in need with treatment, they said.
Dodd bill about problem gambling passes California SenateAMERICAN CANYON >> The city is looking for volunteers who can beautify the area and give Mother Nature a boost for Meadow Bay Trail Volunteer Day.
Hosted by the American Canyon Community & Parks Foundation and the City of American Canyon, the effort, spearheaded by Eagle Scout candidate Raul Cortez, will upgrade the landscaping along the Meadow Bay Trail, organizers said.
Volunteers needed to spruce up water's edge in American CanyonRosie the giraffe, a resident of Vallejo's Six Flags Discovery Kingdom since 2009, died Monday, park spokeswoman Nancy Chan said.
"Six Flags Discovery Kingdom mourns the loss of its beloved female reticulated giraffe, Rosie, who passed away (Monday) night in her indoor enclosure," Chan said in a statement.
Discovery Kingdom staff mourn death of giraffe that died this weekAn American Canyon man will likely die in prison, having been handed the maximum sentence of 740 years to life for child molesting, Napa County officials announced.
Miguel Segura Roman, 43, was convicted in February in Napa County Superior court of 38 counts related to molesting two female family members, between ages 5 and 13 between 2009 and 2013.
American Canyon man draws 740-year sentence for child molestationRents in Vallejo fell slightly last month - among the few areas to see decreases - but, anyone hoping this means the city's upward rental trajectory is through, will likely be disappointed, one local and one regional expert said.
"The Zumper SF Bay Area Metro Report analyzed active listings in February across 30 metro cities to show the most and least expensive cities and cities with the fastest growing rents," according to the latest report, released Wednesday.
Vallejo rents down slightly in FebruaryAs of Tuesday afternoon, some 37,600 people from across the United States have signed a petition asking the federal government to retake responsibility for the badly decaying Mare Island Cemetery.
It's part of a year-long effort to right what its champions feel is a serious wrong done to the military personnel and others buried there.
Petition for Mare Island Cemetery gains thousands of signaturesAMERICAN CANYON >> Ron Banasik and his Eagle Vines Realty family have come up with an out-of-the-basket way to raise funds for American Canyon's new Boys and Girls Club facility.
Called "Egg Your House," the fund-raiser involves volunteers going to the homes of people who pay $30 for 20 candy-filled eggs or $40 for 60, after dark, and hiding them around the front yard in time for Easter Sunday.
American Canyon businessman launches unique Easter fund-raiser for Boys & Girls ClubAfter six years, a missing cat was found, and its owner located. But this was not destined to be one of those heartwarming stories that go viral on the internet, said Kirstin Eddy of Vallejo's Human Society of the North Bay.
"A woman came in to the shelter with a kitty she said she'd found that was very sweet and loving but she already has several cats and couldn't take care of it," Eddy said.
Lil' Orphan Annie cat, six years missing, needs a home, as found owner rejects herKaiser Permanente Northern California and its unionized nurses have reached a tentative contract agreement, both sides announced Monday.
Debora Catsavas, Senior Vice President, Human Resources, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, said management is pleased.
"We are pleased to announce that Kaiser Permanente and the California Nurses Association (CNA) have reached a tentative agreement for a new five-year contract for nurses in our Northern California region," she said.
Kaiser Permanente, nurses union, reach tentative contract agreement for Northern Californiarzrihen@timesheraldonline.com @RachelVTH on TwitterFor the second time in nearly a decade, Visit Vallejo is holding a contest to determine the best Vallejo-related photo to represent the City far and wide.
Shoot, Share + Win! is a chance to showcase your photography prowess, and your Vallejo vision, organizers said.
Visit Vallejo holds its second photo contest in nine years, for fame and 'fortune'First there was the underground railroad, a vast network of people who helped fugitive American slaves escape to the North. Then there were Oskar Schindler, Marion Pritchard, Raoul Wallenberg, and a few others, who helped hide and/or rescue Jews being hunted by the Nazis in Europe.
Today, people living in the United States without permission are feeling increasingly hunted and others have stepped up to help them in various ways.
North Bay Rapid Response Network trains Legal Observers to keep ICE agents in lineUC Davis public health researchers are asking survivors of the North Bay Wildfires to fill out an online questionnaire to find out what went right and what went wrong with the official response.
The questionnaire - called the Northern California Fire and Health Impacts Survey - is about their experiences before, during and after the October 2017 fires, they said.
Northern Californians asked to share fire experiencesRep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) will host a Discussion on Gun Violence Prevention on Saturday, March 17, at Benicia's Heritage Presbyterian Church, he announced.
The event is planned in from 10 to 11:30 a.m. to discuss Thompson's work to prevent gun violence, he said.
"In the wake of the school shooting in Parkland, Fla.
Thompson to host gun violence prevention talk in Benicia on SaturdayThe Vallejo Ferry, as part of the Bay Area-wide Water Emergency Transportation Authority system, is doing so well, officials are finding it challenging to keep up, they said. Big plans are underway and more are on the horizon, they said.
The Vallejo/San Francisco ferry run represents nearly half the area's annual ridership, Vallejo Economic Development Director Ron Gerber said.
Ferry ridership exploding, especially in VallejoVallejo is full of well-meaning people working to make a positive difference, but they may lack coordination, so some of them have organized the Magnanimous Mixer for 7 p.m. Friday, at the H Lounge, 472 Benicia Road.
The event was the brainchild of Diedre Carter of Mothers Against Hunger, Vallejo Together founder Maria Guevara said.
Do-gooder gathering set for Friday in VallejoThe Joint is owner Stephanie Brown's wild ride - a nervous-making step into the untried - that, so far, anyway, seems to be working out better than expected, she said.
The Joint is a "new lifestyle boutique," at 419 Georgia St., Suite 29, that carries a "cool mix of handmade, vintage and modern goods," according to the company's website.
The Joint, a 'Southwestern, Bohemian,' boutique opens in downtown VallejoFor those hooked on video games, there's now a way to get out of the house, be with others at the mall and still indulge your obsession, Solano Town Center officials announced.
"PLAYlive Nation, one of the hottest social opportunities for gamers of all ages and abilities, has opened its first location in Fairfield at Solano Town Center," they said.
Game arcade for the 21st Century arrives at Solano Town CenterIf you're a family of four in Solano County, you need about $7,500 per month, or nearly $90,000 annually, to live halfway decently, a new report shows. That same family in Napa County needs about $103,000 annually or nearly $9,000 per month to maintain that same modest lifestyle, it shows.
The Economic Policy Institute's Family Budget Calculator measures the income a family needs to attain a "modest yet adequate" standard of living, Institute officials said.
New study shows who pays what to live whereThe Vallejo Police Department will be on the lookout for impaired drivers on St. Patrick's Day weekend, agency officials announced.
Additional officers will be deployed on special DUI Saturation Patrols specifically to stop and arrest drivers showing signs of alcohol or drug impairment during the hours of 8 p.
Vallejo police watching for impaired drivers over St. Patrick's Day weekendNapa >> Parkinson's patients will have a new training program starting March 19, at Queen of the Valley's Wellness Center's Synergy Medical Fitness Center, hospital officials announced.
Rock Steady Boxing, a unique exercise program, based on training used by professional boxers and adapted to people with Parkinson's, will be available at Queen to men and women of all ages and levels of ability who have been diagnosed with the disease, they said.
Rock Steady Boxing for Parkinson's sufferers now offered in NapaTwo armed robberies plagued Vallejo over the weekend, with one pair of criminals hitting a residence and another set hitting a business, both in broad daylight, Vallejo police said.
"On Sunday at 2:20 p.m. in the 1100 block of Monterey Street, there was a residential robbery," Lt. Herman Robinson said.
Two armed robberies in Vallejo over the weekend, both in broad daylightA huge fire in the 100 block of Vallejo's Corporate Place early Sunday badly damaged a vinyl windows manufacturing facility's office, and brought mutual aid fire suppression units from around the area, Capt. Eric Strom said Monday.
The site houses Petrochem Insulation, Inc.
"At about 4:53 a.
Vallejo business badly damaged in huge blaze early SundayAMERICAN CANYON >> Two Vallejo men were taken into police custody early Saturday, after allegedly attacking a man in American Canyon and driving away from the scene impaired, American Canyon Police Chief Oscar Ortiz said.
"At about 3 a.m. Saturday, American Canyon Police were dispatched to a report of two male subjects jumping on and assaulting one male on the street in the 2100 block of Elliott Drive," he said.
Two Vallejo men arrested for attacking another in American CanyonShe was president of the Filipino Community of Solano County for so long, people were starting to compare her to Ferdinand Marcos, Norma Placido said, jokingly.
Having retired in 2017 after 10, two-year terms in which she ran unopposed each time, Placido is being honored by her community with An Evening Dinner and Dance from 6 to midnight on Friday, March 23, at the Filipino Community center, located at 611 Amador St.
March 23 event celebrating longest-serving Filipino Community of Solano County presidentThe upside of being the least expensive (or most depressed) city in the Bay Area may be losing less than most others from the new Trump tax changes, a newly released industry report shows.
"In Vallejo, we estimate that owners of median-priced homes will lose approximately $300 in housing-related deductions under the new tax code," said Chris Salviati, housing economist for ApartmentList.
Study: Vallejo home owners to lose less than others in Bay Area with Trump's tax changesIn a first-time collaborative effort, some science students from Vallejo's St. Patrick-St. Vincent High School, are teaming with UC Davis scientists in an effort to catalog the plant life in Solano County, but, there's a catch, school officials said.
They had six weeks to raise $6,000, now, less than that, they said.
St. Patrick-St. Vincent High students raising funds for UC Davis science collaborationNAPA COUNTY >> A long-term project to repair the pavement on State Route 29 between the City of Napa and just south of St. Helena has begun with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and its contractor, Caltrans officials announced.
The preparation work includes drainage and curb repair at various intersections on SR-29 in the City of Napa, including at Trower Avenue, at Wine Country Avenue and at Salvador Avenue, they said.
State Route 29 repairs in Napa area beginOfficials may consider a second fire station, north of the one on Donaldson Way, for the American Canyon Fire Protection District, as the number of calls for mutual aid exploded statewide in 2017.
The North Bay Firestorm was not the only thing that kept the American Canyon Fire Protection District busy with mutual aid in 2017, Chief Glen Weeks said during his annual report presentation at Tuesday's City Council meeting.
American Canyon fire fighters' response times improving, despite especially busy 2017American Canyon High School's drama class has never ventured into musical theater, until now. A special NBC grant, based on a new TV show premiering next week, will help make this better than could have been hoped for before, teacher Summer Heartt said.
"We've never done a musical show until this year; we're doing 'Bye-Bye Birdie.
American Canyon High School's drama class's first musical runs in April; tickets on sale nowThere was a lot of screaming and tears of joy at American Canyon High School on Monday, when students learned theirs is among just 50 schools from across the United States to win a $10,000 grant from NBC, theater instructor Summer Heartt said.
"At first I couldn't believe it. My heart just jumped," Vallejo resident and American Canyon High School senior Deangelo Cipriano, 17, said, adding that he's found a home in the theater arts.
American Canyon High School one of 50 to win nationwide NBC theater grantKaiser Permanente registered nurses have OK'd a strike if their negotiators deem it necessary, though no strike date has been set, California Nurses Association union officials said Monday.
Kaiser officials say this is a common tactic unions use during negotiations, and management remains certain agreement can be reached that both sides can live with.
Kaiser's unionized nurses vote to OK strike if management doesn't heed warningsA Vallejo woman and an American Canyon man were in custody Saturday, after leading American Canyon police on a high speed chase, Police Chief Oscar Ortiz said.
The incident began just after 8 p.m. with a report of a shoplifter fleeing Walmart security and climbing into a white Nissan Rogue.
Ortiz said officers arrived promptly and attempted to make a traffic stop on the Nissan, but the driver, later identified as 34-year-old Stephanie Lopez of Vallejo, failed to yield, and, instead, lead the ACPD units on a high speed pursuit.
American Canyon police arrest alleged shoplifter, getaway driver after high-speed chaseLongtime Vallejo resident Kathryn Marocchino said that when she and her husband lost their beloved cat Nikki some two decades ago, they learned something was missing. So, they started the Nikki Hospice Foundation for Pets and an annual candle lighting event for those mourning animal companions.
This year's 13th Annual Pet Remembrance Candle Lighting event is from 7 to 8:30 p.
Mourners to gather in Vallejo for Pet Remembrance Candle Lighting on MondayAMERICAN CANYON >> Close followers of city government here might notice some slight changes to the way they run City Council meetings, starting with the one set for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, at City Hall.
For one thing, council comments will be heard at the end, instead of at the start of the meeting - a format tested the last two meetings and found preferable, according to the staff report.
Some minor changes to American Canyon City Council meetingsMarta Flores of American Canyon was winging her way to Guatemala on Friday to help give a measure of independence to those with mobility issues so serious, they now must rely on people to carry them.
The Queen of the Valley Registered Nurse - one of 49 Providence St. Joseph Health caregivers volunteering with Global Partnerships and Faith In Practice - said she was ecstatic to have been selected a few weeks ago, for the week-long mission of mercy to Central America.
American Canyon nurse heads to Central America to help handicappedU.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) will hold a Town Hall on Gun Violence Prevention from 2 to 3 p.m. on Saturday at Vallejo High School's Bottari Gym.
Thompson plans to discuss his work to prevent gun violence he said.
In the wake of the school shooting in Parkland, Fla., measures to prevent gun violence have again captured the nation's attention, and Thompson will discuss his work in Congress as chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force to address these issues.
Thompson gun violence prevention Town Hall at Botari Gym on SaturdayConcern rippled through the local immigrant community Wednesday when talk of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in Vallejo and Solano County began spreading.
In Vallejo, a previously removed citizen of El Salvador, who has multiple criminal convictions for driving under the influence, was arrested according to a news release from ICE sent out on Thursday afternoon.
Fear of ICE raids grips Vallejo immigrant communityA convicted Napa Area murderer will not be freed after all, since Gov. Brown reversed a parole board decision granting him parole, Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley announced.
Brown this week, at Haley's urging, reversed the decision following the Sept. 28, 2017 decision of the Board of Parole Hearings to grant parole to Robert Shippman, now 80, she announced.
Gov. Brown reverses parole granted to convicted Napa area murdererRep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) is holding a Town Hall on Gun Violence Prevention at the Vallejo High School Theater from 2 - 3 p.m. Saturday, March 3, his office staff announced.
The purpose of the gathering is to discuss Thompson's work to prevent gun violence, he said.
"In the wake of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, measures to prevent gun violence have again captured the nation's attention, and Rep.
Thompson to hold gun violence prevention Town Hall on Saturday at Vallejo High