Resident Spotlight
The collective wealth of life experience, personal and professional knowledge, and wisdom of our residents should not be taken lightly. Our residents hail from many geographical locations, and from many different backgrounds.
These residents were kind enough to share their stories with us. We hope you enjoy these posts and, in the process, get to know your neighbors just a little better.
Who knows – this could be the beginning of a fantastic new friendship!
Meet Robbie!
Robbie Shoemaker grew up in San Jose, where she had a wonderful childhood with two brothers. After graduating from high school, Robbie went on to study Social Sciences in several colleges in Utah, Colorado and San Francisco, as well as here in Santa Cruz at Cabrillo. She married in the early 70’s and moved to…
Meet Frank
Meet Frank Tabula! Frank was born in Watsonville and has been a part of the Watsonville/Santa Cruz community all his life. He has a brother, six children, and eight grandchildren! He loves to play football and basketball with the older kids. His family is very close, getting together on holidays and birthdays. In his younger…
Meet David
My name is David Carota, and I am one of thirteen adopted children. I grew up in Aptos, moved with my family to Canada at fourteen, and then back to California around my thirtieth birthday. I fell in love with hockey, while living in Canada. The Boston Bruins is my favorite team, and Bobby Orr…
Meet Margarite
Margarite Tuchardt began writing poetry while attending Weber State College in Ogden, Utah in the late Seventies. After moving to Santa Cruz in 1979, she enrolled in a class at the YWCA, taught by Ellen Bass, author of “The Courage to Heal”. Later, she met Natalie Goldberg, who wrote “Writing Down the Bones”. She attended…
Meet Lillyam
Lillyam Tabares was born in Medellin, Colombia, known as the City of the Eternal Spring, due to its mild climate. She is one of 4 children. Her Dad was a Firefighter and her Mom was a Teacher and Artisan. Lillyam obtained both her Undergraduate and Postgraduate Degrees in Sociology and Project Management from the University…
Meet J. Summer
The youngest of four girls, Summer was born in Santa Barbara County and raised in Hemet, California, a farming community over the hill from Palm Springs. “I got married right out of high school, partly to keep my husband from being drafted. Several of our friends were sent to Vietnam and they did not come…
Meet Flo
Flo was born and raised in Waukegan, Illinois, north of Chicago. After getting married, she and her husband, Bill, spent four years in Valdosta, Georgia, where Bill, who was in the Air Force, was stationed. During that time Flo worked as a receptionist at an Air Force dental clinic. Her son was born during this…
Meet Joy
Joy was born in 1944 in Minneapolis, Minnesota during wartime. Her father was away serving his country in the army, so she lived with her grandmother and her mother, Dorothy Easter. Joy’s brother Richard also lived with them. Her father, Richard, was a Captain and a medical doctor. Joy remembered that her mother and father…
Meet John
John was born in Watsonville to Dorothy and Russ. John’s father owned a service station, a car lot and a liquor store. He also served as County Board of Supervisors in Santa Cruz for 8 years. John’s mother was a homemaker and worked as a bookkeeper for the family business. She later opened a flower…
Meet Daryle
When talking with Daryle, you really get a sense of his vast knowledge and experience. He seems to have an anecdote for most topics and has great delivery as a storyteller. Daryle, who sometimes goes by Bob, was born in Hayward, CA to a Mormon family. His father, Wilford Thomas Webb Jr., was a Bishop…
Every Picture Tells a Story
Rod Stewart