As summer heat gave way to crisp fall air, the pages of The Times were filled with news and activities from around the region, combining to close out the last quarter of the year.
This week, it’s the fourth and final installment of the 2025 Year In Review, covering October through December.
OCTOBER
From the decorated hallways on the Escalon High School campus to the many members of the Class of ’85 that served as Grand Marshals for the downtown parade, there was plenty to enjoy during Homecoming Week in Escalon. Capping it off was the naming of Jaqueline Aguayo as Homecoming Queen, receiving her crown, sash and signed football presented by the team captains during festivities at halftime of the varsity football game on Friday, Oct. 3. The daughter of Juan and Leticia Aguayo, the senior was all smiles and also said she enjoyed the week’s activities with the rest of the Homecoming Court: Chloe Green, Rylee Peavy, Skylar Anderson and Ruth Jones.
Saturday bargain hunters were out in force in Escalon during the annual Citywide Yard Sale on Saturday, Oct. 4. Multiple sales were offered from one end of the city to the other, with streets jammed with those out looking for something they needed … or just something they couldn’t live without. From clothing to old cassette tapes, tents to books, furniture and knick knacks, there was plenty to peruse throughout the day.
Some new features for the annual Halloween-themed gathering, Harvest on Main, proved to be a big draw for the event on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 5. Along with the costume contest and plenty of pumpkins for kids to decorate, this year’s event also was opened up to include a number of merchandise vendors, along with a full food court. Kenny Moore provided live music on stage and the bright sunshine and light breeze made for a perfect backdrop for the gathering. Escalon Chamber of Commerce hosted the event. Another new feature was having each of the vendors be a ‘trick or treat’ stop for the kids in attendance. Free trick or treat bags were handed out as kids arrived and they could visit all the vendors to collect some candy.
On Saturday, Oct. 11 the Great Valley Bookfest in Manteca included honors for a couple of area ‘Literacy Heroes’ – Manuel Camacho and Marg Jackson. Camacho started his career as an educator in 1993 where he taught Spanish at Canoga Park High School for 10 years. He moved to Stockton 22 years ago and has been teaching Spanish at San Joaquin Delta College as a full-time faculty member. Jackson, editor of the Escalon Times, Oakdale Leader and Riverbank News, has worked in the Central Valley for over 30 years. Originally from upstate New York, working first in radio and then as a newspaper reporter, she came to California for the chance to be an editor.
In a unanimous 5-0 vote, the South San Joaquin Irrigation District Board of Directors approved terminating its long-standing license agreement with Stanislaus County for recreation management at Woodward Reservoir. The board action at its Oct. 14 regular meeting to issue the termination notice follows a comprehensive review of the agreement, reservoir operations, and financial and management analysis conducted by SSJID staff. Woodward Reservoir consists of 36,000-acre feet of water storage with recreational facilities for camping and boating. By assuming direct responsibility for recreation operations, the board believes the SSJID is better able to protect water quality, improve oversight, and deliver long-term value to ratepayers and the community.
By a 3-2 decision, the Escalon Planning Commission has voted to move a proposal on to the City Council for review, a recommendation that could pave the way for a new housing development – a 72-lot single-family housing subdivision – near the intersection of Brennan and Highway 120. Commissioners Barbara Willis and Steve Castellanos opposed moving the proposal on to the council, while commissioners voting in favor were Mike Dunbar, Jenny Thompson and Roxanna Gonzales. The action came at the Oct. 14 Planning Commission meeting. The single-family home housing development is proposed at the southeast corner of Brennan Avenue and State Route 120.
Meeting with success during its inaugural year in 2024, organizers of the Farmington Fall Festival were also pleased with year number two, with the fest hosted Saturday, Oct. 18. Coordinating and sponsoring the fest was the EPIC group, Everything is Possible In Christ, and the festival once again drew a large variety of vendors to Farmington for the day. All booths were set up in Jacob Strojan Park, which is adjacent to the Farmington United Methodist Church on Elm Street, just off Escalon-Bellota Road in Farmington.
Escalon United Methodist Church had several tables of handcrafted items, woodworking, crocheted gifts and more for sale at its holiday bazaar on Saturday, Oct. 25 while another portion of the community room at the church was turned in to a café. Diners, some shopping first, some after, could sit down to a soup and pie lunch that featured several varieties of soup along with chili, bread, beverages and a slice of homemade pie for dessert.
NOVEMBER
There were plenty of shoppers that turned out for Saturday’s annual Kris Kringle Market on Nov. 1, a fundraiser at Saron Lutheran Church in Escalon, with lots of holiday items for sale. There was also a chili and cornbread luncheon, a drawing for a handmade quilt, and the chance to stock up on some sweet treats, handmade goods, ornaments, decorative pillows, hand towels, placemats, holiday décor and more.
Marking its 35th anniversary this year, the Escalon C.A.R.E. Center – Community Action Resources of Escalon – is seeing as brisk a business as ever. The local food cupboard helps to meet emergency food needs for residents in Escalon, Farmington and Collegeville. And with rising prices, continued inflation and lingering uncertainty regarding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP, benefits for eligible residents, C.A.R.E. Director Sherrie Vaden said they are seeing an increase in people needing a little extra help.
With a roughly half-hour parade, including a flag ceremony in front of the historic caboose adjacent to the city’s Main Street Park, residents of Escalon gathered downtown on Tuesday, Nov. 11 to observe Veterans Day. The familiar fire horn at the Escalon Historical Society Museum blared its signal at 10:30 a.m. to announce the official start of the parade. Escalon American Legion Post 263 Commander Mike Christensen was the Grand Marshal. Following the parade, many attendees made their way over to the Escalon Community Center for special music and ceremonies.
In a late afternoon ceremony hosted in the Escalon High School theater on Nov. 12, senior Madi Babasa took a huge step toward her future. The softball and basketball standout athlete, seated on stage surrounded by softball memorabilia and flanked by her mom Maria and dad Michael, signed her Letter of Intent to play collegiate softball at the University of Arizona. She will move on following high school graduation to play for the Wildcats at the Division I school, earning a spot in one of the country’s best DI softball programs. With a 4.2 GPA and natural athletic ability, Babasa has been a key member of both the varsity softball and varsity basketball teams throughout her time as a Lady Cougar.
There were some explosive moments, big touchdown runs, momentum swings … just about everything you could want in a football playoff game … except a victory. Escalon’s varsity football team saw its season come to an end on the road Friday night, Nov. 14, as the number seven seed Cougars were defeated by the host number two seed Roseville Tigers, 49-30. The contest was an opening round game in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 4 playoffs.
A one-day effort, staged Saturday, Nov. 22 at MarVal Main Street Market in the Vineyard Square Shopping Center on McHenry Avenue in Escalon, sought to help stock the shelves at the local food pantry and provide food for families in need during the upcoming holidays. A cooperative effort of the City of Escalon’s eTrans transit service, MarVal and the C.A.R.E., Community Action Resources of Escalon, food pantry, the annual Stuff the Bus food drive was a success. “We had $225.72 in cash, 20 turkeys, one ham and 107 bags,” Transit Coordinator John Andoh said once everything was tabulated. He said the food in the more than 100 donated bags translated to 1,852 pounds of food.
Well over 1,300 shoeboxes of gifts were donated this year by residents of Escalon and the surrounding area, all heading to children in need throughout the world. Operation Christmas Child wrapped up its effort for this year on Monday, Nov. 24 at Heritage Church in Escalon, after a very successful collection week. “We did 1,359 boxes total,” said Operation Christmas Child local coordinator Pam Mendez, reporting after the last truckload was packed up and sent on its way Monday afternoon. “I am really excited for this year.”
With plenty of volunteers on hand, the annual Community Thanksgiving Dinner in Escalon went off smoothly, as diners arrived around 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 27 to share the holiday. A longstanding outreach of the Escalon Ministerial Association, the effort has been coordinated through Heritage Church of Escalon the last couple of years. Food, prepared by students in the Culinary Arts Program at the Institute of Technology in Modesto, is served fresh and hot and includes all the traditional Thanksgiving fare, from turkey and mashed potatoes to stuffing and pumpkin pie.
DECEMBER
There were plenty of thanks and well wishes to go around on Thursday morning as a special ‘unveiling’ of new features at the Escalon Community Garden was hosted. Stepping up to take the microphone first at the Dec. 4 event was Aldah Johnson, who offered her thanks to Escalon Strong member Andy Hagan, who she said originally had the vision for the garden. “Thank you all for coming, as chilly as it is,” Johnson said at the start of the 10 a.m. gathering under cloudy skies. “A project starts with a vision and about two and a half years ago when Andy approached me about a community garden, he had a vision. A vision, in order to become a reality, you have to have a plan. You have to draw up some kind of a plan.” She also said you need property and workers, in addition to materials, to help bring the project to fruition. “When Andy approached me, we had none of that,” she recalled, chuckling. “But we had Andy’s vision.” And, slowly but surely, each of the pieces fell into place. Escalon’s Seventh Day Adventist Church donated land behind their church on Jackson Avenue for the garden and a small army of volunteers helped with the labor, many local businesses and individuals stepped up with donations of materials.
An influx of students from throughout the area arrived on the Escalon High School campus on Thursday morning, Dec. 4, ready to take part in a number of events as EHS hosted its second annual fire competition. “There were a total of 81 competitors from nine different schools across three counties,” said instructor Su Davis, who helped coordinate the competition. She and her husband Seth Davis oversee the EMT/Fire Science program at Escalon. Schools involved included host Escalon along with Linden, Delta Charter, Lodi, Tokay, Bear Creek, Lathrop, Tracy and Livingston. At the end of the event, point totals showed the top male and female competitors were both from Escalon High School, with Andrew Armosino the male division winner and Chloe Green the female division winner.
In a season that began in mid-October and ran through early December, nearly 400 local youngsters took part in flag football through the City of Escalon Recreation Department. There were teams at multiple age divisions and the final games were played at Hogan-Ennis Park on Saturday, Dec. 6, under cloudy skies and chilly conditions. “The City has seen consistent growth in its youth sports programs over the last two-plus years,” said City Manager Jaylen French. “Notably – and timely – is the large increase in female flag football players.” Girls flag football is now a league sport for Escalon High School, with EHS fielding both a JV and varsity team. The rec league can help prepare girls for the next level of competition in the sport. “We went from 24 girls in 2023 to 74 girls in 2024, to 102 girls in 2025,” French said.
Though it wasn’t really cold enough to snow, it almost felt like it, and that provided a fitting backdrop for the Saturday, Dec. 6 Christmas on Main celebration in Escalon. With a full slate of events from mid-afternoon continuing on through the evening, a huge crowd turned out to enjoy the festivities. From nearly non-stop entertainment on the Main Street stage to the wide variety of vendor booths set up in the park, a food court, fire pits for roasting s’mores and the traditional holiday light parade, there was something for everyone. A main feature of the parade was the arrival of Santa Claus, who rode in his sleigh and was accompanied this year by several elves as the tow vehicle pulled the sleigh as the final parade entry. The parade also included recognition for Grand Marshal Pat Brown, who serves as the Escalon Chamber of Commerce president. The Chamber is the primary sponsor of Christmas on Main, pulling the event together.
Music got the kids dancing, photos were being taken, lunch was served and it was a happy and excited crowd that joined in for the Friends Helping Friends holiday dance, hosted at Escalon High School for special day class students from throughout San Joaquin County. ESN, Extensive Support Needs, teacher Katie (San Julian) Hoffman, a 2010 EHS grad who now teaches at Escalon, working for San Joaquin County, was on hand to oversee the dance and praised those involved in bringing it together. She said the Escalon High School’s Friends Helping Friends Club partnered with members of the CSF, California Scholarship Federation, on campus this year to put on the festive dance ahead of the holiday break from school.
It was a chilly 55 degrees but there wasn’t any fog and no heavy rain in sight … just the blaring of the fire horn and the approaching sound of sirens as Santa and Mrs. Claus arrived in style at the Farmington firehouse. The Friday, Dec. 19 gathering at the firehouse, corner of Highway 4 and Escalon-Bellota Road, was the department’s annual Christmas celebration, open to all. Doors opened at 6:30 p.m. so those attending could enjoy hot cider, coffee or hot chocolate as well as take their pick of the multiple varieties of homemade cookies and other sweet treats.
The pile of toys in the center of the fire station equipment bay on Coley Avenue in Escalon on Saturday morning, Dec. 20 was impressive. What was even more impressive was how a small army of volunteers – ranging from high school soccer players to Starbucks baristas to members of the local American Legion and the Escalon Chamber – joined forces to divide and conquer the pile, separating the gifts into age-appropriate piles for boys and girls. It was all part of the distribution day activities, the culmination of the local annual holiday toy drive. Escalon Fire Department, in cooperation with the Escalon American Legion Post 263 and the Escalon Police Department, put on the toy drive. The goal is to collect enough toys so that every child signing up for the program gets to have several gifts for Christmas. This year’s final numbers were down slightly for those that signed up; there was a one-day registration earlier in the month for the Dec. 20 event. Program coordinator Ryan Burr of Escalon Fire reported that there were 45 families signed up for the toy distribution this year. That accounted for a total of 118 children and there were six different age groups for girls, six different age groups for boys.
