🗞️ Riverside News- October 19, 2025

Sunday Gazette: October 19, 2025

Hello Riverside, and Happy Sunday! We know Sunday evenings can bring that familiar flutter of nerves about the week ahead. Whether it's taking a mindful walk, setting a positive intention for your week, or simply spending time with loved ones, there are gentle ways to ease into Monday.

Why not take a peaceful stroll through your favorite Riverside spot this evening? Snap a photo of where you go to unwind – whether it's a cozy corner of your home, a bench at Fairmount Park, or that perfect sunset view from Mount Rubidoux – and tell us what makes it special. Send your photos and stories to newsroom@raincrossgazette.com.

We're all in this together!

HISTORY

From Swedish Immigrant to Mount Rubidoux Master Builder: The Gunnar Kjellberg Story

How a 17-year-old zanjero became the foreman who shaped Riverside's most iconic landmark and built the infrastructure that still serves the city today.

In 1877, at the young age of 17, Gunnar immigrated from Sweden to the United States, settling in Galesburg, Illinois, where a Swedish enclave was already established. In Galesburg, he became acquainted with a group of people who planned to move to Riverside, California. Among them were S. H. Ferris and the Johnson brothers, O.T. and A. T., all of whom became prominent in early Riverside history. Arriving in Riverside in 1885 by the private train car of Ferris and Johnson, he took a job as a zanjero or ditch tender. He soon rose to the position of a superintendent on the irrigation systems of the Riverside Water Co.

In 1887, Kjellberg oversaw the project that brought water from the artesian wells in the San Bernardino basin to the city of Riverside. The Hotel Rubidoux Association carried this out. This association obtained a portion of the mountain and the surrounding area in exchange for this work. The plan was to subdivide lots below the mountain and construct an elaborate tourist hotel rivaling the Del Coronado in the area above Pepper (now Redwood) between Ninth and 11th streets.

Read and share the complete story...

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NEIGHBOR OF THE WEEK

Neighbor of the Week: Dr. Arturo Gómez-Pompa

Each week, we will introduce a new neighbor. This is not a who's who list. These are regular Riversiders doing exceptional things.

As part of our special weekly tradition, we recognize Riverside residents who help make our city stronger, kinder and more connected. This week, we honor Dr. Arturo Gómez-Pompa as our Neighbor of the Week, celebrating an extraordinary life of scientific achievement, environmental stewardship, and community building.

Dr. Gómez-Pompa, who passed away on September 17, 2025, at age 90, transformed UC Riverside into a West Coast center for tropical plant science during his more than two decades as University Professor and Distinguished Professor of Botany. Born in Mexico City in 1934, he was among the first voices to sound the alarm about rainforest destruction worldwide. After earning his doctorate at UNAM (National Autonomous University of Mexico), he brought his expertise to UCR, where he became not just a researcher but an institution-builder. He founded the UC Institute for Mexico and the United States (UC MEXUS), creating lasting bridges between California and Mexico that strengthened collaborative research and cultivated generations of graduate scholars.

Read and share the full tribute to Dr. Gómez-Pompa...

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CREATIVE PROMPTS

Staple Gun

A prompt to encourage your practice of creativity this week from Riversider and local author Larry Burns.

This week, we’re coming back to earth, specifically the demands and resources of our day jobs. Our hard work is supported by many people, and countless types of office supplies, but today our focus is staples. Sure, staples are a white-collar worker’s tool, a solution to a paperwork problem, but they are also a source of pure frustration. When you need a staple and don’t have one, irrational anger is one of my reactions. 

There are few things more annoying than an empty stapler, especially when the supply closet is two floors down, and yet, it seems there might be enough half-empty boxes of staples to keep offices running for 900 more lifetimes. This curious paradox of abundance and absence is where our creative nudge begins.

Read and share this week's complete prompt...

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This Week in Riverside

Sunday, October 19

• 48th Annual Mission Inn Run at Downtown Riverside ($54.98 - $97.68)
• Blue Zones Project Riverside - Mission Inn Run Cheer Squad at Mission Inn
• Free Christian Art Exhibit: Icons in Transformation at Immanuel Lutheran Church
• Women's Soccer vs. Cal State Bakersfield at UCR Soccer Stadium
• English Country Dance at First United Methodist Church of Riverside
• RCC Wind Ensemble Concert at Riverside City College
• Los Dareyes De La Sierra at Fox Performing Arts Center ($57.64)

Monday, October 20

• Volunteer Interest Hour at Riverside Meals on Wheels, Inc
• Monday Carillon Recitals at UCR Bell Tower
• Jazz Ensembles Concert at Riverside City College

Tuesday, October 21

• City Council at Riverside City Hall
• Community Response Workshop: United Against Hate Week at Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern
• Riverside County Board of Supervisors Meeting at County Administrative Center
• Tuesday Karaoke at The Hideaway
• Downtown's Decline: The Golden Age of Riverside Punk Rock at The Barn
• Two-Piece, Chain Gang and More at The Raincross District
• The Witcher in Concert at Fox Performing Arts Center

Wednesday, October 22

• Stretch & Dance Class at Janet Goeske Senior Center
• Bordwell Park Advisory Committee at Stratton Community Center
• Community Police Review Commission at Riverside City Hall
• Inland Empire Archives Fair 2025 at Rivera Library
• Latin Heritage Soccer Game at UCR Soccer Stadium
• Men's Soccer vs. Cal Poly at UCR Soccer Stadium
• Riverside College and Career Fair at Galleria At Tyler
• Riverside East Rotary Club at Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern
• Riverside Mission Belles at Victoria Presbyterian Church
• Riverside Open Mic Music Series at Back to the Grind

Thursday, October 23

• Economic Development Committee at Riverside City Hall
• Planning Commission at Riverside City Hall
• Guitar Ensembles Concert at Riverside City College
• History on the Rocks! Presented by The Mission Inn Foundation at The Mission Inn Foundation ($49.87)
• Downtown Riverside Haunted Tours Presented by The Mission Inn Foundation at Tour Starts In front of Eliza Tibbets Statue ($39.19)
• Riverside Ghost Tour - SBC at ($35)
• UC Riverside Highlanders Women's Volleyball vs. Cal Poly Mustangs at UC Riverside Student Recreation Center
• Women's Volleyball vs. Cal Poly at SRC Arena

Friday, October 24

• Mt. Rubidoux Walking Tour at Mt. Rubidoux Trailhead, a short walk from Ryan Bonaminio Park. ($21)
• All That Creeps and Crawls at Heritage House at Heritage House
• Blippi: Join the Band at Fox Performing Arts Center
• Candy Rush Trunk N Treat at Sandals Church Palm Ave
• Horror Island Downtown Riverside Bar Crawl at ProAbition
• Insane Clown Posse at Riverside Municipal Auditorium
• Murder Mystery Co. Dinner Theater Show at The Old Spaghetti Factory at The Old Spaghetti Factory ($69)
• Noche de Cumbia @ The Hideaway Riverside! at The Hideaway Cafe & Lounge
• Tragic Endings, Ghostly Meal, & Tour at A Historic (haunted) Victorian mansion in Riverside ($75)
• Tributes to IRON MAIDEN & TWISTED SISTER! at The Concert Lounge - Romano's Mission Grove
• You're a Good Man Charlie Brown at The Box Theater ($22- $25)

Saturday, October 25

• Aquamotion Aquathon at Shamel Park Pool
• Men's Soccer vs Cal State Bakersfield at UCR Soccer Stadium
• Free Christian Art Exhibit: Icons in Transformation at Immanuel Lutheran Church
• Doors Open Riverside at Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern
• Paisley Jones with Legacy of Prince Band at Farm House Collective ($20- $60)
• The Black Jacket Symphony Presents AC/DC's 'Back in Black' at Fox Performing Arts Center ($35- $98)
• Boos in the Night at First United Methodist Church of Riverside
• Friends of the Mission Inn Present: Nosferatu - a Silent Movie at The Mission Inn ($30- $35)
• Kublai Khan TX at Riverside Municipal Auditorium ($61)
• Nosferatu - A Vampire Silent Movie at The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa
• Olivewood Memorial Park Historical Cemetery Tour at Olivewood Memorial Park ($20)
• Paws and Pumpkins Halloween Bash at Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center ($25)
• Riverside Electric Light Parade Monthly Ride Experience at 4050 Main Street
• Riverside Halloween Bar Crawl at Killer Queens Social House
• Riverside Philharmonic Presents: Thrillers from Screen & Stage at Henry W. Coil Sr. and Alice Edna Coil School for the Arts
• Succulent Pumpkin Workshop at Botanic Gardens, Meeting Room
• Trunk-n-Treat at Trinity Lutheran Church

Save the Date

• October 26: Free Christian Art Exhibit: Icons in Transformation at Immanuel Lutheran Church
• November 15: NORA's 44th Annual Dinner & Auction Gala at Victoria Club ($175)
• December 6: Home and Story: Growing Up with the Museum at Riverside City College | Salvatore G. Rotella Digital Library and Learning Resource Center ($35- $50)

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