Ocean Beach winery wins gold medal Gianni Buonomo Vintners in Ocean Beach was awarded a gold medal for its 2013 Blaufra?nkisch at the Hilton Head Island International Wine Competition, which played host to the event that brought in the heavy hitters from the international wine world. Wines were judged by master sommeliers, advanced sommeliers and certified wine educators. “Winning a gold medal right next to Tuscan wine god Marchese Piero Antinori is really unbelievable, but it happened,” said Keith Rolle, winemaker of Gianni Buonomo Vintners, located at 4836 Newport Ave. “They’ve been making wine for more than 600 years. I’ve been making wine for just a bit less than that.” Gianni Buonomo will be hosting a celebration event and the release of their 2014 vintage Blaufra?nkisch from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 2. Traditional Austrian bites will also be served. The ticketed event is open to the public. Barons Market launches community-intensive website
Barons Market, an independent, family-owned grocery that numbers a Point Loma location among its seven Southern California stores, has announced the launch of its new website, featuring interactive elements designed to reflect the communities it serves.
The site features community events calendars; recipe sections; announcements on weekly price deals; and photos, videos and a social media feed that showcases daily activity at the stores.The Point Loma Barons, noted for its specialty, organic and natural foods, is located at 4001 W. Point Loma Blvd. The group also has a North Park franchise and five other outlets from Alpine to Murietta. The site address is baronsmarket.com. Mariachi at OB Library
Tavo Alcoser and Mariachi 3.0 to celebrate the diversity of popular border music through an eclectic mix of genres including Mexican folk, Latin rock and reggae-cumbia at 2 p.m on May 19 at the Ocean Beach Library.
Now touring nationally as lead vocalist for the band Jarabe Mexicano, San Diego-native Alcoser exhilarates with soaring vocals and a soulful delivery that have gained him the attention and admiration of audiences across the country. Alcoser now brings the show home, joined by fellow touring bandmate Chris Behrens on guitarron alongside local mariachis Jessica Barragan on violin and Rene Velazco on vihuela. Peninsula Singers concert
Peninsula Singers will present “Over the Rainbow,” on Friday June 1 at 7 p.m. at All Souls Episcopal Church, 1475 Catalina Blvd. This “Ireland Tour Sendoff Concert” features selections that will be performed during the Peninsula Singers’ June concert tour of Ireland. Songs from Broadway like “Over the Rainbow,” “Edelweiss” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone/Climb Ev’ry Mountain,” will join many songs with American roots and others with international origins. Peninsula Singers will also perform a Pentatonix song and a rendition of “Africa” by Toto. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for students, seniors and military. Children age 10 and under may attend for free. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit peninsulasingerssandiego.org. OB Kite Festival The annual OB Kite Festival to be held Saturday, May 12 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Robb Field, 2525 Bacon St., is observing a major milestone this year.
“This is the 70th annual Ocean Beach Kite Festival, and it is the oldest kite festival for children in the country,” said Melanie Nickel, spokesperson for the Kiwanis Club of Ocean Beach, which co-sponsors the event along with Ocean Beach Recreation Center.
Nickel noted the fun event is multi-faceted. “Children are taught how to make and fly a simple kite, and there are prizes for the best decorated kite,” she said, adding, “It’s all free.”
The event is new and improved for another reason.
“It is moving to a new location this year – Robb Field instead of Dusty Rhodes Park,” Nickel said. “This should give us more room for the professional kite fliers to do their spectacular displays, more room for the kids to fly their kites, and much more parking.”
Kite festival attendees can expect:
– To make and decorate kites;
– To get materials, instructions and help with kite making;
– Receive prizes;
– Fly and show off their kites;
– See exotic kites and watch professionals do tricks;
– Participate in a carnival to include artisans, booths and food trucks;
– Groove to the live music of Beer Feat from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
For more information, visit oceanbeachkiwanis.org. Portuguese Festa do Divino Espirito Santo Perhaps San Diego’s oldest ethnic celebration, the 108th Portuguese Festa do Divino Espirito Santo (Feast of the Holy Spirit) will be held Friday, May 18 through Sunday, May 20 on the grounds of UPSES Portuguese Hall, 2818 Avenida de Portugal, and St. Agnes Catholic Church, 1140 Evergreen St.
The Festa Parade, the highlight of the event, begins at 10 a.m. May 20 and follows a route from the UPSES hall to St. Agnes. The celebration of High Mass and the coronations of the festival king and queen take place at St. Agnes at 11 a.m., with singing by the church choir.
The Portuguese people have been celebrating the feast for the last 700 years amid the lore of Queen St. Isabel, who was said to have rescued her countrymen from starvation. 
The festival has been mounted in San Diego since the city’s first Portuguese families settled here in 1884. It was formally organized in 1910.
“The event pays homage to and is our Portuguese dedication to the Holy Spirit, and her belief in God and serving the people,” said Diana Balelo, president of UPSES Hall. “On May 18-19, there will be booths at Portuguese Hall where people can buy ethnic foods, like authentic Portuguese bread with meat and potatoes, and be entertained.”
The 2018 festival president is Ermelinda Jorge and family.
Today, as it has been since 1922, the Chapel next door to the UPSES Hall is used to house the Crown of the Holy Spirit during the Festa. On Pentecost Sunday devotees of the Holy Spirit visit the Chapel to pray and offer a donation of monies or Portuguese sweet breads (sold to raise funds) to continue the religious celebration. Early voting begins for Primary Election
Voters interested in casting their ballots early for the June 5 Primary Election can now do so at the County Registrar of Voters office at 5600 Overland Ave. Early voting began May 7 and will continue from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and until the polls close at 8 p.m. on Election Day. The office will also be open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 2 and Sunday, June 3 for voting.
Also, more than 1 million mail ballots were sent out through the U.S. Postal Service, and voters could find them in their mailboxes as early as that same day. Mail ballots are convenient for voters who’d rather not make a special trip to the Registrar of Voter’s office to cast their ballots or wait for the polls to open on Election Day. Registered voters can request a mail ballot until May 29. Poll workers needed Poll workers, especially those who are bilingual in any one of six specific languages, are needed for the June 5 Gubernatorial Primary Election. The Registrar’s office is required by federal law to provide bilingual speakers and voting materials to voters who speak Spanish, Filipino, Vietnamese and Chinese. In addition, a survey conducted by the University of California, Berkeley showed a need for speakers of Arabic and Korean at just under 90 precincts across the county, so the Registrar’s office is also recruiting poll workers who are bilingual in those languages.
To become a poll worker, applicants must be a U.S citizen and registered to vote in California, or lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States. Poll workers must have transportation to their assigned polling location, access to the internet to take an online training and attend a two-hour class in person.
Poll workers receive a stipend ranging from $100 to $175 depending on the assignment, and those who are bilingual receive an additional $15 if they are assigned to provide language assistance.
Apply online at sdvote.com. For more information, call 858-565-5800. ‘Clean SD’ removes rubbish from San Diego River Continuing with the “Clean SD” initiative to remove trash and debris from public areas, Mayor Kevin L. Faulconer recently announced that crews have cleared all of the City-owned property along the San Diego River at least once and the City will work proactively with other adjacent property owners to clean up the remaining portions of the riverbed.
The City owns about one-third of the property along the San Diego River and has removed nearly 99 tons of waste from 32 locations since September. PLNU’s has ‘America’s Most Scenic Ballpark’
The nickname of Carroll B. Land Stadium, “America’s Most Scenic Ballpark,” was not one that was handed out lightly. The phrase was coined in an article by Baseball America’s writer Kevin Kernan when he visited the PLNU campus back in 1993, and it has stuck ever since.
However, it should not be taken for granted that because Point Loma had “America’s Most Scenic Ballpark” nearly 25 years ago, it would still be the best in 2017. An independent poll was conducted in by HERO Sports earlier this season, and it was confirmed by nearly 3,000 voters that even today the Sea Lions are playing on the most panoramic park in the NCAA.
The Sea Lions received 55 percent of the 2,862 votes to edge second place Angelo State by 815 votes, as PLNU totaled more votes than the other three teams combined. Point Loma Pirates win
The Point Loma Pirates (6-0) beat the Red Devils 16-0 in San Diego Adult Baseball League action last week.
Notable players: Jake Magness was 3-for-3 with 1 HR, AJ Rodrigues went 3-for-4, and Matt Correia was 3-for-4 as the Pirates exploded early on, ending the game by the 4th inning with 16 runs on the board. Jacob Coleman pitched a shut out. Next game: 1:30 p.m. May 20 at Castle Park High School against the Diablos Rojos MX (3-4).