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Lisa Jarvis: Social media is just one online habit hurting teens

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Last spring, my tween was begging for more independence, starting with being allowed to walk home from school alone. The mile-plus walk involves crossing a few busy streets. I was hesitant; she doesn’t have a phone, so she had no way to contact me if something went wrong. But we practiced a few times (with me trailing her a block behind) to be sure she was confident of the route and talked about what she would do in various scenarios.Then, we allowed her to do something that some parents in our uber-connected era might find truly wild: roam free.The chance of something happening to her is vanishingly low, but it still took a few days to shed my anxiety. I reminded myself that building her independence requires mutual trust — and that comes with accepting some risk.And failing to give kids sufficient independence carries risks, too. That’s a recurring theme of “Growing Up in Public: Coming of Age in a Digital World,” a new book by Devorah Heitner. There ...

For the first time in its history, Twin Cities Marathon (and 10-miler) canceled due to heat and humidity

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon organizers canceled Sunday’s marathon and 10-mile due to the latest weather conditions, which they said would be dangerous for runners.The decision marks the first time the marathon has been canceled since the iconic event began in 1982 (it was held virtually at the start of the pandemic in 2020).“The latest weather forecast update projects record-setting heat conditions that do not allow a safe event for runners, supporters and volunteers,” Twin Cities In Motion, the nonprofit that organizes the event, said in a statement early Sunday.The statement continued: “It saddens Twin Cities In Motion and our partners to be unable to hold the races that runners have been pointing toward for months, but the safety of participants and the community will always be our primary concern. Extreme heat conditions can tax both runners and our emergency medical response systems. We ask the entire running community to come together for the safety ...

1 dead, 3 hospitalized in overnight shooting

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

An overnight shooting in San Pedro has left one person dead and three others wounded. Preliminary information from the Los Angeles Police Department indicates that the shooting took place just after 11:30 p.m. Saturday night near a residence on North Park Western Drive. When units arrived on scene, they discovered four victims with gunshot wounds.  Man dies after driving off cliff in San Pedro One of the victims was pronounced dead at the scene while the other three were transported to a local hospital in stable condition. The suspects fled the area in a gray sedan. It is unknown whether the shooting was gang related. The investigation is ongoing.

Blustery, wet weather to make way for summer-like conditions by midweek 

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Fall seems like it has arrived in Southern California, but the cold and moist conditions won’t linger for long. Reports from the National Weather Service indicate that a cold low-pressure system will hover over L.A. County all day Saturday and into Sunday. L.A. County mountain communities and San Gabriel Valley residents are advised to brace for isolated showers, NWS said. Anywhere from a quarter inch to one inch of rain is expected. Temperatures will also be ten to 20 degrees below normal in most areas, according to the National Weather Service.  These classic amusement parks inspired Walt Disney’s creation of Disneyland Coastal and desert regions will experience the most wind, with gusts forecast to reach up to 35 miles per hour. A wind advisory remains in effect for communities in the Indian Wells Valley, Mojave Desert Slopes and Mojave Desert until 11 p.m. Saturday evening.“[There is] a ten to 20 percent chance of thunderstorms on Saturday anywhere,” NWS s...

Dozens of San Jose students among National Merit semifinalists

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Dozens of students from public and private high schools in San Jose’s Willow Glen, Rose Garden and Almaden Valley neighborhoods are among nearly 1,140 Bay Area high school seniors named as semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program. These students are among 16,000 semifinalists across the nation — less than 1% of the nation’s high school seniors — who will now be considered for around 7,140 scholarships worth nearly $28 million next spring.It’s the third-to-last step in the process. About 95% of semifinalists are expected to be named finalists, and approximately half of those finalists will earn a scholarship. Over 1.3 million high school juniors in 21,000 high schools entered the competition through the 2022 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, or PSAT, which serves as the initial screening of program entrants. The semifinalists announced this week include the highest-scoring students in each state.In the Rose Garden area, the semifinalists from ...

Longtime Milpitas volunteers named Citizens of the Year at awards gala

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Andy and Sharon Dyson were named Citizens of the Year at the Milpitas Chamber of Commerce’s 64th annual Awards Gala on Friday, Sept. 22, at the Embassy Suites.The couple are longtime volunteers with St. Elizabeth’s Church. They also donate their time to other community events such as the Chamber’s annual crab feed.Last year’s Citizen of the Year, Chamber President Jennifer Cullenbine, welcomed over 120 attendees with champagne to kick off the evening. Cullenbine is founder and CEO of the Milpitas nonprofit Family Giving Tree.Police Officer of the Year honors went to Taylor Goods. Hired by the Milpitas Police Department in 2019, Goods is an officer in the Field Services Division who patrols the city on the midnight shift. Goods is known as a well-rounded, hard-working, and dependable officer who consistently serves the community with empathy.“While evaluating the 2022 candidates, what struck me about what was submitted about officer Goods was the fact that it didn’t just describe a s...

Sunnyvale animal welfare group celebrates 10 years with honors

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

A Sunnyvale-based animal welfare organization celebrated its 10th anniversary with back-to-back honors from the city and Santa Clara County.The Duo Duo Project, founded by Andrea Gung to help end the dog and cat meat trade in China, received the Mayor’s Award of Excellence at Sunnyvale’s State of the City celebration on Sept. 23, as well as a commendation from Santa Clara County Supervisor Otto Lee at the Sept. 24 Paws for a Celebration Gala, also held in Sunnyvale.Duo Duo grew out of Gung’s trip to China in 2012, where she participated in a veterinarian course to learn spaying and neutering skills. It was there she met Dou Dou, a dog the school used to practice surgeries. Duo Duo was slated to be sold off to a meat market, but Gung adopted the dog and brought it to California, where it became the inspiration for the name of her nonprofit.According to Gung, China’s Guangdong province accounts for 40 percent of the dog meat trade and 70 percent of the cat meat trade in China. Althoug...

Nine San Jose residents sworn in as advocates for foster youth

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Volunteers from Morgan Hill to Mountain View were sworn in Sept. 19 as Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) through Child Advocates of Silicon Valley, a Milpitas-based nonprofit.The swearing-in ceremony, presided over by Judge Shawna Schwarz, capped a training process where 22 volunteers from nine South Bay cities learned how to serve as the go-between for children in the foster care system and court officials. Nine San Jose residents are among the new CASA volunteers: Rekha Amble, Daniel Flores, Kathy Hunter, Rebecca Jedel, Vani Keil, Mankamal Nidhi, Oriana Medina, Dave Schneck  and Sandra Swage.Volunteer training consisted of 30 hours of self-paced courses and presentations, both online and in person, that covered topics like child development, the dependency court system and inclusionary practices.“We are continuously improving our pre-service training,” said Child Advocates CEO Frederick J. Ferrer. “This training included a lived-experience panel, which allowed our CASA cand...

Cupertino resident sworn in as advocate for foster youth

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Advocating for foster youthVolunteers from Morgan Hill to Mountain View were sworn in Sept. 19 as Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) through Child Advocates of Silicon Valley, a Milpitas-based nonprofit.The swearing-in ceremony, presided over by Judge Shawna Schwarz, capped a training process where 22 volunteers from nine South Bay cities learned how to serve as the go-between for children in the foster care system and court officials. Cupertino resident Mary Rose Klein is among the new CASA volunteers.Volunteer training consisted of 30 hours of self-paced courses and presentations, both online and in person, that covered topics like child development, the dependency court system and inclusionary practices.“We are continuously improving our pre-service training,” said Child Advocates CEO Frederick J. Ferrer. “This training included a lived-experience panel, which allowed our CASA candidates to hear firsthand perspectives from a current CASA, caregiver, social worker and former...

Dozens of Saratoga students named National Merit semifinalists

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:52 GMT

Thirty-nine Saratoga students are among nearly 1,140 Bay Area students named as semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program, a countrywide competition among high school seniors.Calvin J. Cha, Karen W. Gong,  Sania Jain, Prital S. Jariwala, Chienyu Sun and Sophia Tian of Prospect High School and Advaith Avadhanam, Sam M. Bai, Avik Belenje, Lynn Dai, Sophia Deng, Sanjoli Gupta, Yanis J. Herne, Victoria X. Hu, Emily Hung,  Madeline Hung, Yashom Kapoor, Zeyneb N. Kaya, Dev Krishnamoorthy, Katelyn Y. Lee, Bryan M. Li, Xiaoran Li, Andrew Lin, Alyssa Liu, Jonny J. Luo, Nikhil Mathihalli, Eric Y. Miao, Uttara Natarajan, Samik Pattanayak, Dhilon A. Prasad, Dhrithi L. Rachepalli, Rushil Saraf, Jarrett P. Singh, Anais Sobrier, Shaolun Sun, Nidhi Vadlamudi, Joseph Z. Wang, Aiden Ye and Matthew W. Zhang of Saratoga High School are among 16,000 semifinalists across the country — less than 1% of the nation’s high school seniors — who will now be considered for about 7,140 scholarships ...