REIGNING QUEEN: RIPON IS A GENERATIONAL TOWN

By JASON CAMPBELL The Bulletin

Briley Perez will always remember what it was like seeing the Almond Blossom Queen riding in the annual parade.

It isn’t every day, Perez remembers thinking, that a real-life princess is in your own city.

And this weekend Perez will get her final chance to inspire the next wave of Miss Almond Blossom candidates when she rides in the annual parade to bookend her year as serving the community that she has grown up in and come to love.

“I will say the parade has always been a huge things for me – I remember being a little girl and seeing all of the candidates and queen and it’s a fantasy for a little kid to see a reallife princess in your city,” Perez said. “It was very impactful to me from a young age.”

Perez, the daughter of Golda and Tim Perez, said that the year that she has spent serving the citizens of Ripon – spending the weekend as the Almond Blossom Queen and then the remainder of the term as Miss Ripon – has grown to love and appreciate Ripon on a much deeper level thanks to her participation in the longstanding tradition.

While she had the unique perspective of having attended both Ripon and Ripon Christian High Schools, Perez said that since her family isn’t as entrenched into the fabric of the community as some of the other participants she was able to learn a lot more about the town and what makes it special and unique.

“On a grander scale, this has showed me how important the Almond Blossom festival is to the people who live in Ripon – it’s a generational town, and you get to learn about the people and find out that their grandparents grew up here,” Perez said. “These are people that have a generational – a deep family connection – to this town and hearing the stories of people that have flown their grandchildren or extended families in to celebrate this weekend shows how special it is.”

A member of the drama department all four years she’s been in high school and three years as a member of the “Knights Sounds” singing team, Perez said that she’s grateful for the opportunity to serve the community she loves – which allowed her to see the place that she grew up in a completely different light.

“I’m so grateful for all of the wonderful blessings and opportunities – it has been such a humbling experience,” Perez said. “The role of Miss Ripon is to serve the community and give back and I think that it’s important to emphasize that – not only in going to events to represent the city, but also in being there for the other candidates – serving as a mentor, helping them understand the process, and see things with different eyes.

“I remember where I was at this time last year and now, I get to help calm the nerves of another – it means everything to me.”

While lots of cities in the Northern San Joaquin Valley programs like the Almond Queen court, Ripon’s is unique in the fact that the title shifts after the weekend – as does the focus.

In reflecting on her time serving the community she loves, Perez said that she began to see the strength of that transition and how it keeps the titleholder focused on the job of service – something that stresses the responsibilities that come along with wearing the sash and crown.

“What’s unique about Ripon is it is kind of a dual-title role – for one weekend it’s amazing because you’re the Queen and everybody wants to see the Almond Blossom Queen, but after the weekend you become Miss Ripon and the responsibilities begin to set in. It becomes about being a volunteer and helping in the best ways possible and it’s so much fun.

“It’s amazing to see the impact that the role can have if done correctly, and it’s so much fun to see the community and it’s traditions from a different perspective.”

Perez is currently awaiting hearing back from colleges and lists both UCLA and UC Davis as her dream schools.

To contact Bulletin reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.

DENNIS WYATT Editor

Skeleton orchards start to shiver after losing the last rays of semi-warmth as the sun slips behind the Diablo Range as winter uses the chill of night to try and prolong nature’s slumber.

But then as the sun rises over the snow draped Sierra in the east the light of a new day backlights the most glorious sight ever created by Mother Nature — billions upon billions of delicate white and pink almond blooms bursting everywhere you look.

Spring doesn’t simply arrive in the countryside around Manteca, Ripon, and Escalon. It bursts open seemingly all at once but not in an in-your-face way. Rather it caresses the senses.

Feast your eyes on delicate creations that make cherry blossoms seem rough by comparison. Touch the delicate beauties and you are suddenly as nervous as a guy holding a newborn baby for the first time. They are so soft and new that you fear you may hurt them.

But then the biggest treat comes along. The bees have been busy. As the mercury inches up ever so slightly toward the magical 70 degree mark, the sun’s warmth gently bakes the blossoms creating a delightful scent that is more intoxicating than Chanel No. 5 announcing the arrival of a sweetheart. The air you breathe is filled with delightful reminders that the cold and sometimes gray days of winter were worth every second.

But it isn’t until night falls when the warmth of the mid-February day slips away and a slight coolness slip over the land that the real treat begins. On the perfect night, there is an ever-so gentle breeze. The steady stream of air washing ashore from over the Pacific Ocean makes its way across the Altamont Pass and through the meandering Delta to nudge the scent along as a gentle caressing breeze makes its way through orchard after orchard. It is best this time of year to leave your bedroom window ajar before you retire for a late winter slumber even if you still need to bundle against the cold.

That’s because there is not a more glorious way to drift off to sleep than taking in breath after breath of the sweetest perfume ever concocted — almond blossoms in bloom. As your body goes into sleep mode and your mind drifts away they help create the sweetest dreams of the year. And if you happen to awake in the middle of the night, your senses led only by your nose make you feel as if you are in Mother Nature’s arms bundled up with covers as you smell the sweet scent of rebirth. And, if you are lucky, the fragrant elixir will wake you in the morn. Who needs to smell the coffee when you can inhale the soft fragrance of almond blossoms?

It is little wonder millions of bees have no issue with being as busy as a bee. How can it be work when you get to zip from one almond blossom to another getting intoxicated with the sweetest smell on earth?

Once you’ve taken in the first act of spring in the Northern San Joaquin Valley it is easy to understand how insects that can hurt so much when they sting can produce such a sweet golden treat that we call honey.

The days of February are the days that try the souls of almond growers. While we revel in the return of almond blossoms, growers fret about rain and high wind striking at the most inopportune time.

The early almond varieties started popping blooms here and there a week ago. Almond growers will tell you this is a week ahead of time. Mother Nature, if she could talk, would likely laugh at such a statement knowing full well that almond blossom time starts always on the terms of the brave buds that give the first signal that the glorious symphony of smells and sights she is cueing up is about to fill the countryside with a blazing celebration of life.

It’s a spectacle that makes the great works of arts such as Vincent Van Gogh’s “The Starry Night” look drab and mechanical. Nothing flows as free or inspires as much as what the almond blossoms and what follows brings to the valley.

Forget about waking up and smelling the roses. That’s for people landlocked by asphalt and concrete. Get out and savor the almond blossoms.

Drive south or east from Manteca in the coming weeks and roll down your windows. You won’t be disappointed. Better yet park the car, get out, and walk along an orchard’s edge that is in full bloom. Unless you are unfortunate enough to be cursed with an allergy to almond blossoms, there is nothing than man has yet to bottle that can bring as much bliss to your nose.

This is the time of year I trade my 2 to 3 mile jog for a 6 to 8 mile excursion into the countryside heading down orchard lined country roads such as Manteca Road, Sedan Avenue, Alice Avenue and Veritas Road not as much to exercise my lungs and heart as it is to lift my soul.

In fields where growers still let grass grow in almond orchards, the dew moistened blades you jog pass that form green stripes between rows of white and pink blossoms creates a delightful scent of its own as the month slips closer to March.

It’s a decadent treat.

Almond blossom time also heralds the start of an endless parade of blooms and scents that the Northern San Joaquin Valley’s Mediterranean climate coaxes out of some of the most fertile soil in the world. By the time March arrives and almond blossoms have reached their crescendo, Mother Nature unleashes the final performance of the production that will lead to the shaking of several billion pounds of nuts up and down the Central Valley when summer draws to a close.

The sweet scent is waning as delicate white and pink blossoms start softly falling to the ground. The “Manteca Snow” — or “Ripon Snow” if you live in the self-proclaimed Almond Capital of the World — is the final act that brings down the curtain on the almond blossom season coating the earth with a gentle blanket of blossoms. Enjoy now unfolding in our backyard. It’s heaven on earth.

This column is the opinion of editor, Dennis Wyatt, and does not necessarily represent the opinions of The Bulletin or 209 Multimedia. He can be reached at dwyatt@ mantecabulletin.com

By VINCE REMBULAT The Bulletin

Dr. Debbie Daniels is current board president of the Ripon Chamber of Commerce.

The owner of the Ripon Veterinary Hospital, she along with Chamber CEO / President Kelly Donohue accepted a proclamation from the City of Ripon – as presented by Mayor Michael Restuccia at Tuesday’s City Council meeting – publicly congratulating the Chamber’s centennial birthday.

In celebration of 100 years, the Chamber was named the official grand marshal of the 61st annual Ripon Almond Blossom Parade scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25, along the historic downtown.

The Ripon Chamber of Commerce established articles of incorporation dating back to July 1923 – the City of Ripon didn’t become incorporated until 1945.

It was Daniels who realized this was an important year for the Chamber to thank Connie Jorgensen of the Ripon Historical Society.

Jorgensen showed her the 1923 newspaper article from the Ripon Record about a group of Ripon businessmen who decided to form a chamber of commerce and had this organization incorporated with the state of California.

“This was too big an achievement and too big an opportunity not to celebrate,” said Daniels on her board’s decision to honor the Chamber at the 2023 Almond Blossom Festival.

She added: “Throughout 2023, we will be recognizing and honoring all those who worked hard to keep our chamber successful and vital for 100 years.”

Daniels is a graduate of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. In 1984, she founded the Ripon Veterinary Hospital and has long been active in the community, and is a past president of both the Chamber and Soroptimist International of Ripon.

Daniels also has had a Relay for Life Team for eight years.

Other members of the Chamber board are vice-chair Janet McMahon of Realtor-Keller Williams Realty; treasure Chad DeGraff of DeGraff Development Inc.; secretary Kyndra Wilson, owner of The Vine House wine bar & bistro; Darryl Bartels, State Farm Insurance owner; Jeremiah North, special projects coordinator / Ripon Consolidated Fire District / Kid Red Entertainment / MyRipon.com owner; Heather Hernandez, owner of Divine Salon; Jan Nowak; Carrie Sweet, owner of Discover Ripon Magazine; Rachel Venema, owner / photographer of Rachael Venema Photography; and retired Ripon Unified School District superintendent Leo Zuber.

All share Ripon’s best interest and it shows.

“This is the best Chamber that I’ve been associated with,” said Restuccia, a longtime resident.

He recognized the Chamber as being “successful in education, promotion, and municipal relationships,” including the establishment of the Ripon Community Center, being instrumental in several economically beneficial businesses relocating to the City, and acquiring 365 acres for Caswell

Memorial State Park.

Along with the Almond Blossom Festival, the Chamber also plays host to annual events such as Main Street Day and Taste of Ripon.

Restuccia, in reading from the proclamation, said: “With a century of achievement behind it, the Ripon Chamber of Commerce is looking forward with a continued commitment to ensuring a vibrant and prosperous community for future generations.”

Staff and board members will be featured as the grand marshal of the parade.