The last month or so has worn me out.
There has been a lot to do here at the Independent and at our sister newspaper in Reno. I’ve also been spending a ridiculous amount of time in meetings and discussions dealing with the proposed California legislation that would force Google and Facebook to pay news operations for the links to news on their platforms. (I’ll have more to say about this at a future date; while I’m told changes are coming to what’s being called the California Journalism Preservation Act, I am not a fan of the bill as it stands as of this writing.) Throw in some family obligations, and my schedule has been nuts.
However … I am lucky. I am blessed. The trials and tribulations I’m dealing with right now are nothing compared to the mess—figuratively and, especially, literally—the businesses and homes in the Panorama area of Cathedral City have had to endure since the arrival of Tropical Storm Hilary last August.
For this month’s excellent print-edition cover story, Haleemon Anderson talked to the owners of three businesses that were upended when a mudflow, caused by rain from the tropical storm, crept through their corner of the Panorama area on Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023.
(As an aside: It blows my mind that we’re reporting on tropical storm damage here in the Coachella Valley. This is just the latest addition to the list of unbelievably surprising things we’ve all had to deal with in recent years.)
In a related vein: Kevin Fitzgerald recently covered awful news regarding the April 14 fire that destroyed four businesses in the Bristol Farms shopping center in Palm Desert, including two restaurants: Papa Dan’s Pizza and Pasta and, a personal favorite, D’Coffee Bouteaque. I can’t even imagine what it would feel like to watch my business literally burn. I feel queasy just thinking about it.
However, both of these stories, as terrible as they are, also have a positive side.
Anne Ambrose, Cathedral City’s assistant city manager, told Haleemon that she was wowed by the community’s response to help those harmed by Tropical Storm Hilary. “The community just came out in force to help (these) very small geographic areas of our community that were impacted so dramatically,” Ambrose said. “… There has been such a great response from the private sector, public sector, nonprofit and individuals that I thought was just very special, and I’d not experienced to the extent that I did here and throughout the Coachella Valley,” she said.
A fundraiser largely put on by real estate agents brought in more than $14,000 to help Frazier Pest Control, one of the businesses ravaged by the mudflow. Another, Desert Promotions, was helped by a GoFundMe campaign that netted more than $32,000.
A similar community response is developing to help the Palm Desert businesses destroyed by the fire on April 14, with multiple crowdfunding efforts emerging to raise funds for the victims.
I am taking these stories as a reminder that I need to be thankful for what I have. Two more lessons: Life is unpredictable—and we’re fortunate to live in an amazing place with a lot of good people.
Note: This is a slightly edited version of the editor’s note that appeared in the May 2024 print edition. Much of this column was originally published online in the April 18 Indy Digest.