A magical moment at Fairmount Park, where the lake shimmers through a canopy of sweeping trees. (Vicky Ross) Have a photo that captures the spirit of Riverside? Share it with us and help celebrate the beauty of our community!
Sunday Gazette: June 28, 2026
Hello Riverside, and Happy Sunday! For nearly two weeks, I've been telling you why I do this work. My 44th birthday is this Tuesday (the last time you'll hear from me about this membership drive), and I asked 44 of you to become paid supporters before I blow out the candles. We're close.
But today I don't want to talk about me. I want to talk about our neighbors who've said yes. Every Sunday we publish the names of the readers who became supporters that week, and you'll find this week's list right below this note. I hope you'll actually read it, because it's the most Riverside thing I can show you.
Look at who's on it. Former elected officials, leaders of local nonprofits, students and educators, executives who run some of the largest institutions in this city. And a whole lot of names I'm guessing you won't recognize, sitting right next to the ones you will.
Our system sends me an email every single time someone chooses to move from being a free subscriber to a paid supporter, and for the first several years of this newsroom's life, I knew every single person who chose to support it. Every name. They were friends, colleagues, neighbors, people who knew me and decided to take a chance on a guy with no journalism experience and a big idea. This week, I looked down the list and I know almost none of them.
I cannot tell you what a gift that is.
It means the Gazette no longer simply runs on the goodwill of people who know me. It's building momentum powered by the trust of people who know the work. Neighbors, yes, but strangers, mostly. Riversiders who have never met me, reading the Gazette every morning, deciding this is worth paying for so their neighbors can keep reading free. That is the makings of a newsroom that belongs to its city instead of to its founder, and that is honestly the real thing I've been aiming to build.
So, please, today: read the names below. I'd be honored to include your name in next Sunday's. There's still room before Tuesday. The Gazette stays free for all of Riverside, always. Supporters are just the neighbors who keep it that way.
Thank you to the Subscribers who became paid supporters this week: Tish Bradley, Jim Alexander, Rusty Bailey, Deborah Barles, Suzanne Breault, Courtney Budicin, Sue Ottosen Carter, Simone Decruyenaere, Heather Dickenson, Richard Lemire, Marie Lipa Cote, Andrew Plumley, David Radtke, Nate Rauba, Larry Robillard, Doug Robinson, Kevin Sherrell, and Ruthan Smith. Your ongoing financial support is vital to our success in serving Riverside with the news it deserves!
Riverside's Centennial: How a Young City Marked the Nation's 100th Birthday
On July 4, 1876, a town of 1,000 threw a celebration fit for the ages — carriages, concerts, toasts and all
Photo of Riverside in 1875, looking southeast from Main and Eighth (University).(Courtesy of Local History Archives of the Main Library)
Riverside was not even six years old when our country marked its Centennial celebration on July 4, 1876. Festivities, parades, speeches, fireworks, picnics, and other events across the United States proclaimed our freedom. Riverside and its citizens knew they had to join in and show that they were part of this joyous occasion. Having grown to a population of approximately 1,000 people, the town was ready to join in the patriotic celebrations.
An enthusiastic group of citizens met at the schoolhouse on Sixth Street on Wednesday, May 17, 1876, to plan the Centennial and the Fourth of July arrangements. Judge John W. North, one of the city's founders, was the meeting's chairman, and Walter Lyon served as secretary. North "stated in the meeting how important it was for our people to display our patriotism and celebrate in a becoming manner the Centennial anniversary of our country's independence." Committees were formed for arrangements, music, and finances. The names listed only gave the last name, but with other early accounts, many can be identified.
Neighbor of the Week: Andrew and Samantha Melendrez
Neighbor of the Week is a series profiling the hidden heroes of Riverside, doing incredible works of service throughout our different neighborhoods.
Andrew and Samantha Melendrez stand on a Wood Streets side street lined with the American flags they installed on light poles throughout the neighborhood. (Brenda Flowers)
On a Saturday morning earlier this summer, Andrew and Samantha Melendrez were up early and on the job – climbing ladders and installing American flags on more than 100 light poles along the side streets of the Wood Streets, including Beechwood Place, Castle Reagh Place, and, new this year, Larchwood Place. When summer ends, they take the flags down and store them in the backyard shed until next year.
Andrew will be a sophomore at Poly High School in the fall. He plays soccer and runs cross country and track. Samantha will be a seventh grader at Woodcrest Christian. Together, they took over the effort from their father, Aurelio, and his friend, former Neighbor of the Week Dominic Luna, who continue to watch over them as they work.
Aurelio said it all simply: "They are doing this out of love for the city and community." And it appears to have taken root. The evening after this year's installation, Andrew told his dad that flag day has become one of his favorite days of the year.
In this 250th year of American independence, these two early-teen siblings are finding their own way to mark it – one light pole at a time.
The World Cup Is Here - Riverside's Soccer Future Is Next
Watch parties, colorful jerseys and conga lines are filling Riverside during the World Cup. The question is whether that passion carries over when the city's first pro soccer team takes the field.
World Cup watch party crowds fill the Farm House Collective as Mexico faces South Africa in its opening match. (Ken Crawford)
A conga line breaks out, winding through the Farm House Collective in Riverside. Fans dance, throw their hands in the air, sing along to the music and, yes, enjoy a few drinks as the celebration weaves through a sea of green jerseys.
The viewing of Mexico's opening match against South Africa at the World Cup turned into more than just a soccer game. It turned into a carne asada, a barbecue with fans ready to kick off the tournament.
As the song underscoring the chain dance, "El Za Za Za," declares in its opening line: "Que comiense la fiesta!" Let the festivities begin. Soccer fever is moving through the United States as relentlessly as Lionel Messi charging at a back line, and Riverside is feeling it.
From jerseys representing countries across the tournament seen all around town to watch parties popping up around the city, the World Cup is physically making itself felt. This is the kind of vibe Riverside needs to continue once its professional team joins the United Soccer League.
This week, we move from holding our place to holding our beverages. Our creative nudge is an aluminum can.
Or, if you are reading this outside of North America, the aluminium can. I admit I enjoy that extra “i” tucked into the British spelling. It feels fancy, like the word accessorized to impress at the party.
As someone who spends plenty of time scouring the outdoors for found objects to make art, I come across aluminum cans regularly. Roadsides, desert trails, parking lots—cans are everywhere. They are among the most common objects (chip bags is still far and away #1) littered by people. I don’t find them interesting as raw material.
A brand-new can is nothing special. But give that can a few months in the sun…
Let our semi-arid desert climate fade the colorful print, add a few dents, let a spider or three move in. Then I start paying attention. They are really only interesting once they’ve aged, shown some wear and tear. I hope the same can be said for me.
See something? Say something. Your tips and ideas are what fuel The Raincross Gazette. If you know of something newsworthy happening in our city, please share it with us.
