Category: John Spevak

Friends are an important part of our lives. Good friends are especially valued. The Los Banos Branch of the Merced County Library is fortunate to have good friends — the Friends of the Los Banos Library. This nonprofit...

Today’s column is written in appreciation of CNAs, LVNs and housekeeping personnel, especially those working in skilled nursing facilities. These are health care workers who are often overlooked and underappreciated. When we...

Los Banos is blessed with many dedicated volunteers. Among the most dedicated are those who donate their time with the Milliken Museum Society. The society is a group of volunteers who share their passion about the history of...

Readers of this column may remember a column I wrote in November about turning 80. That column generated many responses. Joanne, for example, a fellow octogenarian, told me, “John, you’re right. There is a big difference between...

I don’t know about you, dear reader, but I’m ready for February. I have had enough of January and the chilly damp fog that seemed to hang around forever, especially after an equally foggy December. I’m glad February is here, and...

With Christmas approaching like a speeding train, time is running out to get Christmas gifts for family and friends. My suggestion: give them a book. And while I’m at it, let me also suggest this. Give a printed book, what I...

What’s often missing during the Thanksgiving holiday is gratitude. Most of the emphasis seems to be on travel challenges, food preparation food and big deals on Bleak (sic) Friday. The essence of Thanksgiving –giving...

When I was a kid, I never imagined myself being 8o years old. That sounded so old, beyond my imagination. But here I am. There’s a lot to think about when a guy turns 80. You can look back over eight decades. That’s a whole...

Another rural newspaper has recently shut down– the Del Norte Triplicate, after 146 years of serving the community of Crescent City. It’s another case of an American newspaper biting the dust in a disturbing trend. Over...

The Los Banos Community Center (645 Seventh St.) is the hub today for many community activities and events. People old and young use it often, ever since it opened in 2010. But most people who use the center don’t know the...

The road to wellness often takes many twists and turns. Such was the case for the road to Complete Body Wellness. Another way to put it is this: How does a young woman who grew up on a buffalo ranch in North Dakota find her way...