This week on Valley Edition, we look at how San Joaquin Valley residents are developing grass roots solutions to the problem of hunger, how court closures will hurt small Fresno county towns, and we'll find out what the Woodward Shakespeare Festival will bring theater lovers this summer.
Valley Edition for the week of June 26, 2012:
Segment 1: Solutions to Hunger
Across the southern San Joaquin Valley, the commercial citrus harvest is virtually over. But over the past two months, a volunteer group has been working in backyards across Tulare county to collect fruit that would otherwise go to waste, and donate it to those in need. FM89's Joe Moore has a special report on the group TC Harvest, and host Juanita Stevenson talks with Sandy Beals of FoodLink, and Andy Housler from the NOSH program at the Old Town Clovis Farmers Market to learn more about innovative solutions to food insecurity.
Segment 2: Court Closures
California's budget problems have put a strain on all state departments - including local county courts. In a special report, FM89's Gabriela Ornelas tells us how Fresno County residents may find getting to a courtroom much more difficult in the coming weeks, thanks to the pending closure of 7 courthouses in the county's smaller communities. Valley Edition host Juanita Stevenson talks with San Joaquin College of Law professor and local trial attorney Rene Turner Sample about what this means for the justice system.
Segment 3: Woodward Shakespeare
This summer in Fresno's Woodward Park, Valley residents can enjoy the sights and sounds of live theatre thanks to the Woodward Shakespeare Company. Now in its eighth season, the company features many of the Valley's top actors, and this year will feature two Shakespeare plays as well as a stage classic from the 20th century by Tennessee Williams. Executive Producer Greg Taber joins Juanita Stevenson to talk about this year's season with The Merry Wives of Windsor, A Streetcar Named Desire and Henry V.