By Casey Castillo, CEO, San Diego Food Bank

August 26, 2025 (San Diego) - When people think of hunger, they often imagine faraway places or extreme poverty. But hunger is a very real issue right here in San Diego County. It’s in our neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces affecting families, seniors, military households, and children in every ZIP code.

This September, during Hunger Awareness Month, the San Diego Food Bank urges our community to look closer and recognize the hidden faces of hunger.

Story and photos by Josh Stotler

August 25, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Just before 3:30 p.m. , a structure fire broke out in the under-construction building slated to house  T. J. Maxx and an Ulta beauty store on the former site of the Toys “R” Us at 8800 Grossmont Center Drive in La Mesa.

As the first engines arrived, thick, black smoke and flames could be seen coming from the roof of the structure with stranded construction workers shouting and waving for help.

An employee of a nearby business claimed she “heard a loud explosion” before the fire broke out.

Source: San Diego County Sheriff

August 24, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Last weekend, the San Diego County Sheriff’s department teamed up with local law enforcement agencies to help get unwanted weapons off our streets through a Gun Safety Event in La Mesa.

By Miriam Raftery

August 22, 2025 (San Diego) – On Tuesday, Aug. 26, San Diego Supervisors will consider a proposal to revise the county’s reserve policy to allow use of some reserve funds to cover critical services being cut by the federal government. The plan, Item 23 on the agenda, is proposed by Supervisors Monica Montgomery-Steppe and Terra Lawson-Remer, but has drawn opposition from Supervisor Joel Anderson.

According to the agenda item overview, “The County now faces threats from deep cuts due to the passage of H.R. 1, or the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”—a law that hands massive tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations while slashing the critical services thousands of our residents rely on. In San Diego, the impacts are immediate and severe: over $300 million in new annual costs to the County, and significant cuts to food assistance, healthcare, and core social services that put local families, seniors, and veterans at risk.”

We still have room for a few more at tonight's wonderful event!

You’re invited to our East County Dining Club special event at Zest Wine Bistro in Lemon Grove on Thursday, August 21 at 6:30  p.m.

20% of dinner proceeds and100% of raffle proceeds will benefit East County Magazine’s reporting and wildfire alerts.

Savor gourmet charcuterie served family-style (gourmet cheeses and deli meats, olives, crostini and fresh fruits) paired with three wines (red, white, and rosé).

This exclusive event is expected to sell out quickly, since seating is limited, so please RSVP to: info@eastcountymedia.org with your name and number of guests (with guest names if possible).

By Tracy DeFore, County of San Diego Communications Office

Photo:  California State Capitol Building.  Image credit:  Shutterstock

August 20, 2025 (San Diego) - The community is invited to a virtual meeting on August 27 to learn about the County’s state and federal legislative priorities and give feedback on what they think is important for the 2026 Legislative Program.

By Miriam Raftery

August 20, 2025 (San Diego’s East County) – The National Weather Service has issued an extreme heat warning for desert areas including Borrego Springs, where temperatures could soar to 116 degrees today through Saturday.

In addition, a heat advisory is in effect for San Diego County’s inland valleys, where temperatures could hit 103 degrees in areas that include El Cajon, La Mesa, Escondido, Poway, San Marcos, and Santee.

The fashion show enriches lives of disabled students from St. Madeleine Sophie’s Center

By Heidi Hope

Photos by Heidi Hope and Miriam Raftery

August 7, 2025 (San Diego) –  Haute with Heart, a fashion show themed “London Calling,”  evoked English fancy style while supporting students with disabilities and pivotal programs at St. Madeleine Sophie’s Center, an El Cajon-based nonprofit. 

Presented at the Hilton Bayfront Hotel in San Diego on August 2, Haute with Heart brought a day of free-flowing champagne, an enjoyable luncheon, live music, live and silent auctions, and the London-themed fashion show. All proceeds from the show will go towards expanding the center and supporting its students  as they keep striving to achieve their greatest potential.

By Miriam Raftery

August 19, 2025 (San Diego) – Carfentanil, a synthetic opioid that is 100 times stronger than fentanyl, has been found in the San Diego in fake M-30 oxycodone (pain killer) pills. District Attorney Summer Stephan warns, “Even tiny amounts can be deadly.”

Just one pill can kill.  Fentanyl test strips may not detect carfentanil, which was developed originally as an elephant tranquilizer. So a negative result does not mean a drug is safe.

East County News Services

Aug. 18, 2025 (La Mesa) -- As part of a broad effort to get unwanted firearms off the street, the San Diego County Sheriff's Department is holding a "Guns for Gift Cards" event in La Mesa.

The sheriff's department is partnering with the city of La Mesa for the event, set for 9 a.m. until 2 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 23 at the La Mesa Civic Center, and is offering $100 gift cards for handguns, rifles and shotguns, and $200 gift cards for assault weapons that are turned in.

Guns must be in working order and be placed, unloaded, in the trunk of the owners' vehicles. A deputy will provide instructions at the event. All weapons collected will be destroyed.

The gun safety event will also offer free gun cable locks while supplies last, and there will be no questions asked, according to the sheriff's department.

Health experts slam action as irresponsible, putting Americans’ health at risk 

By G. A. McNeeley 

Photo: mRNA vacines help prevent diseases such as COVID-19; cc via Bing

August 17, 2025 (Washington D.C.) -- Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, recently announced that the government would cancel at least $500 million of federally funded mRNA vaccine development, which could potentially affect the United States’ preparedness for future pandemics. It also stands to crush enthusiasm for technology that has been seen as a potential promise for cancer vaccines, HIV vaccines, and more, according to ABC News. 

Kennedy also pulled back recommendations around the COVID-19 shots, fired the panel that makes vaccine recommendations, and refused to offer a vigorous endorsement of vaccinations even as a measles outbreak worsened, according to NPR. 

Both states convene legislators expected to vote August 18 on drawing new Congressional district lines

By Alexander J. Schorr      

Miriam Raftery contributed to this report

Photos, left:  Texas Governor Greg Abbott and California Governor Gavin Newsom push dueling redistricting plans

August 17, 2025 — It's a race against the clock between California and Texas, with governors of both states striving to draw new Congressional district maps promptly, instead of waiting for the next census as is customary.

The two states have the most Congressional seats in the nation (52 and 38 respectively), so the results of reapportionment could determine which party will control Congress after the 2026 midterm elections.

Key votes in both state legislatures could occur as early as Monday, August 18. Both states seek a partisan edge, instead of utilizing independent, nonpartisan redistricting options, though California's Governor contends his effort is a necessariliy response to a partisan gerrymandering battle launched by pro-Trump Texans.

By Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna

This is no shot in the dark

August 16, 2025 (San Diego) -- Viruses and bacteria that cause illness and death still exist and can be passed on to those who are not properly vaccinated reminds Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna. The Center for Disease Control recognizes August as National Immunization month.