SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Looking out from behind the glass doors of Kaiser Permanente Arena on Wednesday, the streets of Santa Cruz simply didn’t have the same liveliness about it that it normally has. Rain clouds loomed overhead, the sun was nowhere to be found, and the day seemed to promise a quiet, uneventful evening.
That was until around 3:30 in the afternoon, when men, women, and children of all ages began lining up outside those same glass doors, eager and ready to volunteer their time and energy in an effort to clean and beautify the Santa Cruz Riverwalk along the San Lorenzo River.