Hi All – It’s that time of year again when the tourists come to enjoy our beautiful scenic landscape and support our local businesses. The Avila Beach Fish & Farmers Market is attracting even bigger crowds this year with their fresh produce and the bands that make people dance in the streets. I can finally take my pink Uggs off and put on sandals when I take Casey for walks….which is a big step for me since I seem to forget that I grew up in snow country. The beaches are crowded with people laying in the sand and playing in the surf. There are lots of family barbeques and people sitting on outside patios drinking wine and laughing with friends or taking long walks along the Bob Jones Trail or biking through the countryside. Let’s face it….summer is fun and the balmy weather makes us want to get out of the house/office and smell the flowers…..and come to the Avila Beach Social…..what a way to plug our next event!

AVILA BEACH SOCIAL – The Avila Beach Civic Association is hosting the Avila Beach Social on Thursday, May 17, from 5:30 – 7:30 pm at the Avila Beach Community Center, 191 San Miguel Street. Everyone is invited to meet our local businesses and be entertained by Meet the Foppers….and, yes, I did use my family connections when I invited Billy and Charlie to play. We have six wineries for free wine tastings, and a number of local businesses and restaurants to make this a great event.  You will have the opportunity to socialize with your neighbors and other community members while the businesses are able to showcase what makes them so special. There will be hors d’oeuvres and raffle prizes and lots of fun for everyone. Due to the generosity of Bruce Howard of Otter Productions, we will have 2 VIP front row tickets to the Blues Festival on Sunday, May 27.  We also are fortunate to have 2 gounds of golf with 2 lunches at the Avila Beach Golf Resort.  We hope that you will join us for this exciting event. If you would like to get involved, please contact me at 805-627-1997 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

APPLES! APPLES! APPLES! - As you walk past the Avila Beach Community Center, you may have noticed a difference in our apple tree….no, it was not attacked as part of the Chain Saw Massacre. We are very fortunate that members of the California Rare Fruit Growers (CRFG) Central Coast Chapter met at the Community Center on March 30 to graft five different scions on to our apple tree. Scions are live twigs with buds on them from various trees. In our case, we will have Gravestein, Mutsa (Crispin), Summerfeld (half Fugi/half Gala), Braeburn, and Fugi apples, each on their own individual branches of our tree. We are grateful to Larry Hollis, Co-Chair, Joe Sabol, and Gary Epstein representing the CRFG and Angela Mueller, a Cal Poly Landscape Architecture student, who taught us how to graft the scions on to our tree and how to take care of our new family of apples. We are really excited to watch them grow and look forward to sharing our delicious apples, maybe as early as this fall!

SAVE THE DATE: PANCAKE BREAKFAST AND DOGGIE PARADE – Once again, the ABCA will be hosting our annual Pancake Breakfast fundraiser on Wednesday, July 4, from 8 – 11 am with the Second Annual Doggie Parade following the breakfast at 11 am. I know that my Casey will be proudly walking in the parade and he hopes to see lots of his friends walking with him. Even if you don’t have a dog, I think you will have a great time with all the festivities being planned for the 4^th in Avila!

PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY ELECTION – It is hard to believe that it has already been four years but it is time to exercise your right to vote again. On Tuesday, June 5, from 7 am – 8 pm, you will be able to cast your vote at the Avila Beach Community Center, 191 San Miguel Street. We hope that you will take advantage of having this freedom because you live in the most wonderful country in the world.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED – The Avila Beach Civic Association is in need of one or two volunteers who would be able to update our website (www.avilabeachcc.com) and/or our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/avilabeachcommunitycenter). As you will note, we have the basics but are really in need of a talented web master who can make them more dynamic. If you have a few hours to spare and would like to take on this task, please call me at 805-627-1997 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

AVILA BEACH COMMUNITY CENTER RENTALS – The Avila Beach Community Center offers a large multi-purpose room and a conference room to rent for parties, meetings, weddings, and other special events. Non-profit organizations, who are members, receive 10% off our rental rate. For more information, availability, and rates, please call 805-627-1997 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

 
A little known benefit available at Avila Beach is the Motorized Beach Wheelchair Program.  This wheelchair, which is called Beach Cruzr, features a joystick control that allows the rider to independently propel the chair all over Avila Beach.  It can be checked out for FREE by anyone who uses a wheelchair or has difficulty walking on the beach.  To make a reservation for the Beach Cruzr, pleae call John Lee at 805-748-2434 at least 24 hours in advance.  He will make arrangements with a Civic Association volunteer, board member, or me to meet the individual at the storage locker.  I have received letters of appreciation from current users who have said that their mom and dad had not been able to walk on the beach together in many years and the use of the wheelchair gave them back a feeing of being young again.  Without access to our "moon rover", the person in a wheelchair can be isolated from family and friends by being restricted to the sidewalk.  We are so grateful to being able to participate in this program and hope that you will rercommend it to anyone who may need it.  If you are interested in becoming a volunteer or want to make a donation to underwrite the maintenance of the wheelchair, please call me at 805-627-1997