Birthday celebrant Martha Mendoza wears a tiara and sash as she joins with her family and friends to make quick work of stuffing bags with food at Second Harvest Food Bank in Watsonville this weekend. Mendoza, a double Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist based in Santa Cruz, wanted to bring meaning to her 59th birthday so she invited her loved ones to pitch in to provide for those in need. Second Harvest officials said this was the first birthday party they’ve hosted but would love to make it a common occurrence. The organization sources more than 10 million pounds of food each year from farms, grocery stores, food manufacturers, distributors and individuals and distributes it to over 100 food pantries, schools, soup kitchens, group homes, youth centers and Second Harvest program sites. To a

See Full Page