Good day, Lodi.

The Lodi Arch was built in 1907 for $500. It is now a National Historical Landmark. Some things appreciate. Most things in this town do.

In today’s Lodi Locals edition:

Let's get into it. — Hunter Talamantez

Free Grocery Giveaway + Breakfast | Saturday, May 23 | 9 am to 11 am

 This Saturday, Bread of Life and Vintage Church are teaming up to give back to the community with free groceries while supplies last, and the CommUNITY Service Team is cooking a full breakfast right there on site pancakes, eggs, bacon, and sausage. Inspire Coffee will also be on hand, so the whole family can show up, eat well, and leave with something in hand. It's free, it's outdoors, and it's a genuinely good Saturday morning for families who want to be a part of something.

📍 Vintage Church, 444 W Turner Rd, Lodi, CA 95240

Lodi Flower Festival at Jessie's Grove | Saturday, June 27 | 11 am to 4 pm 

This one is made for families, 5 acres of flowers to walk through, you-pick zinnias, fresh-cut bouquets, 50+ vendors, food trucks, and wine slushies for the adults. Kids get free activities: obstacle courses, train rides, balloon animals, a petting zoo, a photo booth, gondola rides around the grounds, giant bubble shows, and face painting. DJ Omar is hosting, and it's a full afternoon out. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for kids 6 to 17, and kids 5 and under get in free. No outside food, beverages, or pets allowed inside the gates, and food trucks are on site. Buy tickets directly through Jessie's Grove Winery - third-party tickets are not valid.

📍 Jessie's Grove Winery, 1973 W Turner Rd, Lodi, CA 95242

Haggin Museum Summer Art Workshop | Session 1: July 7 to 10 | Session 2: July 14 to 17 | 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm

The Haggin Museum in Stockton runs a summer art workshop for kids ages 6 to 12 every year, and this summer's theme is Epic Tales: From Imagination to Illustration, kids design their own heroes, build out imaginary worlds, and tell their stories through art projects inspired by comics and fantasy. Each session runs four days, Tuesday through Friday, from 1:00 to 4:00 pm. You can sign up for one or both. Pricing is $105 for members and $115 for non-members per session if you register before June 1, and $115 for members and $125 for non-members after June 1. Sign up for both and you get $20 off. Spots are first-come, first-served, so if you want summer covered, get on it. Register at hagginmuseum.org or email [email protected].

📍 Haggin Museum, 1201 N Pershing Ave, Stockton, CA 95203

This week we are doing something a little different with the spotlight. Instead of featuring one person, we are handing it to three, because Lodi has teachers right now who deserve more than a coffee mug and a thank you card. These are the ones putting in 21-year careers, launching balloons into the stratosphere, and fighting for kids district-wide before most of us have had breakfast. If any of them are your kid's teacher, consider yourself lucky.

Brian Bird — Morada Middle School

Brian Bird has been showing up for Lodi students for 21 years. Before that, he served in the military. And now, Lodi USD has partnered with VeteranHelp.net to give him the Veteran Teacher of the Year recognition, which feels like the least we can do for someone who traded one form of service for another without skipping a beat. He teaches 7th and 8th grade social studies at Morada Middle School, where his classroom runs on respect, real-world thinking, and the kind of collaboration that kids actually remember years later.

Two-for-one does not even cover it. This is a man who served his country and then came home and decided to spend the next two decades building up the next generation of it. Lodi is a better place because Brian Bird chose to teach here.

Isaiah Stowers — Delta Sierra Middle School

Mr. Stowers just won the 2025 Albert Brocchini Memorial STEM Teacher of the Year award from the North Central Valley STEM Center, and honestly, one look at what he does with his 8th graders tells you why. He launched a high-altitude balloon into the stratosphere with his students to collect atmospheric data. He organized 15 community runs drawing people from across San Joaquin County. He runs a campus-wide recycling initiative. This is not a man who phones it in.

His principal put it plainly: Mr. Stowers supports all students, in and out of the classroom. That is the thing about teachers like him. The work does not stop at the bell. The $1,000 award is a nice acknowledgment, but what he is really doing is making science feel like something worth caring about. Delta Sierra is lucky to have him.

William Yates — Lodi Unified School District

Lodi USD named William Yates the 2026-27 Teacher of the Year for the PreK through Grade 5 category, and if you know anything about how that recognition works, you know it does not come from one good year. It comes from the kind of sustained, consistent, above and beyond work that colleagues and administrators notice over time. Yates also serves as a Special Education representative for the Lodi Education Association, meaning his impact stretches well past his own classroom walls.

He is advocating for teachers. He is showing up for kids with the most complex needs. And he still gets named Teacher of the Year on top of it. That is a full commitment to this community, and it is worth calling out by name.

To all three of these teachers, and to every educator in Lodi USD doing the quiet, daily work of showing up: we see you this week. Thank you.

Fri - May 22

Sat - May 23

Sun - May 24

Fri - May 29

Sat - May 30

Sun - May 31

Thu - Jun 4 (and every Thursday through summer)

Sat - Jun 6

Fri - Jun 12

Sat - Jun 13

Sat - Jun 20

Sat - Jun 27

Sat - Jul 11

Sat - Jul 18

Sat - Jul 25

Sat - Aug 1

Sat - Aug 8

Thanks for reading! It means more than you know that you take a few minutes out of your day to stay connected with our little corner of the world. See you around Lodi! 🍇