It was a little bit of everything, all wrapped up together, from fundraising to a retirement recognition, a Sheriff’s Department helicopter landing, and the always-frightening haunted hay ride.
Valley Home pulled out all the stops to put on a memorable Harvest Festival, staged on the campus of the school in the small hamlet on Saturday evening, Oct. 25.
People turned out for a special fundraising tri-tip dinner, with proceeds going to support local teen Jett Trunnell as he continues to battle cancer. Several members of his family, including his mother Tiffany Trunnell and his sisters, were in attendance for a portion of the event.
Longtime Fire Chief Kevin Wise was also recognized, presented with a Certificate of Appreciation by District 1 Supervisor Buck Condit on behalf of the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors, as he prepares to retire. A special prime rib dinner was served to Chief Wise and those seated at his table, and the Sheriff’s Department helicopter flew in, siren blaring, circling the school before touching down nearby. The chief later was able to take a ride in the helicopter.
“I’m very, very honored,” Chief Wise said of the special ceremony. “I’ve served this community for a lot of years; I started my career in Oakdale, a long, long time ago as a volunteer and I was very fortunate to get hired by the city of Oakdale and spend most of my career in Oakdale. This is where it all started so it’s very special to come out here and this community will always have a special place in my heart.”
Wise has spent 26 years with the fire service, first in Oakdale, then with Stanislaus Consolidated, along with spending time in Ceres, and finally the Modesto Fire Department.
In retirement, Wise plans to travel with his son, Kyle, a professional motocross racer, to events and is also looking forward to helping his wife Tara plan for their daughter Camryn’s wedding next year.
A two-time cancer survivor, Condit praised Wise for his “service, heart and resilience” in his remarks during the recognition ceremony.
“He is a champion for mental health; he helped implement peer support programs and has always put people first, both those he served and those he served beside,” Condit noted.
The supervisor added that Wise turned his fight with cancer into a mission to help others by “mentoring newly diagnosed firefighters” and taking part in stair climbs to raise funds for cancer research.
Along with the special parts of this year’s Harvest Festival, those attending also enjoyed the traditional activities, from a variety of games for kids, snacks, live music, Bingo, the costume parade, silent auction and more.
“Celebrating harvest and basically Halloween too with all the kids dressed up, it looks good, it’s a great night for the community of Valley Home,” Supervisor Condit said. “Just to get together, celebrate with a little fun and games, a little dinner, a little spooky hay ride.”
There were also plenty of visitors at the Sierra 4-H petting zoo. Llama project co-leader Cali Roberson said they were glad to bring some animals to share with the community.
Special attractions were the llamas, McClure and Don Pedro, who were decked out with some Halloween-themed lights.
“This is our first year doing the petting zoo here so we’re super excited to do that,” Roberson said. “The petting zoo is always so much fun and we always love being able to bring something that the kids will see and remember.”
She said the 4-H members staffing the petting zoo also enjoy answering questions and sharing information about the animals with the kids.
The variety of animals included llamas, rabbits, sheep, goats, turkeys and chickens.
