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A Tapestry of Hope
In Santa Cruz County, the story of a year is not written by a single hand, but woven together by many. It is a tapestry of hope, its threads spun from justice, compassion, and the quiet power of community. This is the story of those weavers.
At its vibrant heart is Blanca Acosta, our Rising Star of the Year. For two decades, Blanca has been quietly revolutionizing the landscape of behavioral health and justice. At Constructing Circles of Peace, she saw beyond the cold machinery of punitive systems, envisioning instead a restorative model that heals. Her pioneering work creating the county’s first Pretrial Services Program and Drug Recovery Court replaced cycles of incarceration with pathways to dignity. She builds bridges to healing where others saw only walls.
A community cannot heal when its members are hungry. This reality is exemplified by Monica Gonzalez, our Person of the Year. As the leader of the Community Food Bank’s Southern Arizona resource centers, Monica deeply understands that fighting hunger is about restoring dignity. In rural Amado, she has transformed a distribution site into a hub of hope for over 150 families. Her service stands as a quiet and steady testament to the idea that nurturing opportunities is just as important as meeting basic needs.
Yet, when needs become legal crises, where does one turn? This year, our community answered with a powerful new beacon: The Santa Cruz County Justice Project, our Organization of the Year. Born from the simple, yet painful reality that too many face the legal system alone and afraid, this nonprofit, under the leadership of Miguel Lopez and Martha L. Barrón, has crafted a visionary blueprint. Even before its doors are fully open, its promise of bilingual clinics, community advocate training, and accessible tech tools stands as a solemn vow to dismantle the barriers of language, fear, and cost.
These threads of justice, compassion, and empowerment converged in a historic moment that was our Event of the Year. On a resonant December evening, the county auditorium swelled with mariachi music and the electric chant of “¡Adelante!” for "The People’s Swearing-In" of Congresswoman Adelita S. Grijalva. This was no distant capital ceremony. It was a community’s promise fulfilled, a joyous affirmation that the first Latina to represent Arizona in Congress was being sworn in by the very people who elected her. In her historic victory, we saw the reflection of Blanca’s restorative justice, Monica’s nurtured dignity, and the Justice Project’s promise of equity.
This is the tapestry of Santa Cruz County. A story where the rising star, the compassionate heart, the empowering organization, and a historic event are not separate tales, but different shades of the same truth: that our greatest strength is woven together, thread by courageous thread.
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Los Padres Program Posada: Celebrating Families, Community, and Well-Being, Delivering Smiles 2025:A Season of Kindness and Connection, Year in Review: Event of the Year, Organization of the Year, Person of the Year, Rising Star of the Year: A Legacy of Service: Nidia Solorzano Marks, Years of Empowering Survivors of Domestic Violence, Rio Rico Insights-A Busload of Kindness: SCV35 Celebrates 5th Year Stuff the Bus Event, NPD Monthly Roll Call, Let’s Talk Health- It’s January 2026