By Margaret Lavin San Mateo County Times     Through Operation Recognition, the San Mateo County Office of Education will award diplomas to San Mateo County veterans whose high school education was interrupted because of wartime circumstances. Five San Mateo County residents who served in the U.S. Armed Forces in World War II and the Korean War will be recognized at a ceremony held at 1 p.m. Nov. 12 at the San Mateo County Office of Education, 101 Twin Dolphin Drive, Redwood City.

Josh Koehn of the San Jose Metro takes an in-depth look at the reasons for the slow vote count in Santa Clara County (the same conditions apply in other counties) and what it will take to make the process more efficient without sacrificing accuracy. He notes that election workers have been working 12 hour shifts every day last week to sort and count the 140,000 ballots on hand; meanwhile the Mayor's race continues to tighten.

I had the honor and distinct pleasure of participating in Operation Recognition, a special commencement program for veterans of the Korean War, World War II, and the Japanese Internment, whose high school education was interrupted due to wartime circumstances. San Mateo County Superintendent of Schools Anne Campbell...

The San Mateo County Human Services Agency hosted the summit to assess the needs of veterans living in the county. With about 33,000 veterans living in San Mateo County, the summit also acted as a platform for attendees to also share their thoughts on what they need. “While the federal government provides health care and other services at the VA, we know there are unmet needs,” Supervisor Warren Slocum said. “It’s time to take stock, understand the gaps in care, and do right by the veterans in our local communities.”

San Mateo County for fiscal years 2013-2015 will spend more than half a billion dollars of federal, state and local funds for programs that directly benefit children and their families, according to the newly released San Mateo County Children, Youth and Family Budget.

On Halloween, Supervisor Horsley and I had a great surprise! Darci Palmer of CORE Affordable Housing called to say that she was coming to Redwood City to record the long-term ground lease that will make it possible to build the first major veterans housing development in San Mateo County. We joined Darci to County Recorder's Office to savor this moment. ..

These two remarkable Sequoia High School students were appointed by our Board of Supervisors to serve as Youth Member/Alternate Youth Member on the North Fair Oaks Community Council (NFOCC). They will take their oath of office before this evening's meeting and begin serving in their official capacity on the NFOCC tonight. They will serve with full voting rights because I sought and our Board approved a change in the bylaws to grant full voting rights to the Youth Member.

Today was a historic day for the community of North Fair Oaks! The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve the North Fair Oaks Community Council’s 3-lane redesign recommendation for the stretch of Middlefield Road between Pacific and 5th Avenues. The Council's vision is to create a vibrant downtown section with wider sidewalks for pedestrians, space for park benches, greenery, and public art and bike lanes to encourage cycling...

LeAnn Thornton was named as the USO Volunteer of the Year for the Continental U.S. Region. She was selected out of 29,000 other nominated volunteers from all over the U.S. for her dedicated support of veterans and their families who pass through the San Francisco International Airport. More...

The County held its first ever ¡Si se Puede! conference where information and resources on domestic violence were provided to survivors, family members and friends. The safety network of agencies attending the conference included the Sheriff's Office, the Probation Chief John Keene and his department...