Water Management in Borrego Springs: The Role of the Watermaster

A new BenefitsCal feature called Truv now helps CalFresh, CalWORKs, Medi-Cal and County General Relief applicants save time, reduce paperwork and avoid mailing costs. The tool launched July 20, 2026, and verifies income and employment electronically during the e-application process. How Truv Works When applying through BenefitsCal, customers can securely sign in to their employer, payroll provider or financial institution. Truv uses secure, encrypted channels, and no information is shared outside the County of San Diego. If the employer participates in Truv, the system automatically pulls available income and employment information. Applicants can then review and confirm the information before submitting their application. “With Truv, it is easy for customers to opt in while applying through the online application tool BenefitsCal app,” said Alberto Banuelos, Interim Director of County Self Sufficiency Services. “It is a win-win, helping our customers save time and money and staff manage higher workloads.” Why It Matters Using Truv means customers don’t need to search for documents, manually enter income details or pay postage to mail paperwork. It also reduces the chance of manually entered errors. Application processing timelines vary: CalFresh reviews can take up to 30 days. Medi-Cal reviews can take up to 45 days. When income information is verified upfront, processing time can be shortened, helping eligible households get connected to critical resources faster. Self-Sufficiency Services supports more than 1.2 million San Diego County residents by providing access to essential public safety net programs. With customer-focused tools, multilingual help and community partnerships, Self‑Sufficiency Services works to make applying for benefits easier, faster and more accessible. Our mission is simple: to help people stay healthy, safe and on a path toward long‑term self‑sufficiency. Cassie N. Saunders is a communications specialist with the County of San Diego Communications Office. Contact

Borrego Springs-made short film screens Oct. 11 St. Barnabas Episcopal Church will present the award-winning short film George & Rosa on Sunday, Oct. 11, from 1–2 p.m. as part of its “Who Is My Neighbor?” film and discussion series. Written, produced and directed by Borrego Springs resident Matt Bosson, the 24-minute drama follows George and Rosa, two people living on the margins who form an unexpected bond despite speaking different languages. The story explores loneliness, companionship and human dignity. George & Rosa was produced entirely in Borrego Springs, with local talent involved in the production and the Anza-Borrego desert serving as its backdrop. The film won Best Medium Short in the Reale Film Festival’s June 2026 Monthly Awards. Bosson worked for many years in television video playback on productions including 24, House MD and Grey’s Anatomy before relocating to Borrego Springs, where he teaches English and continues his filmmaking and music work. His previous short BAD was also filmed and premiered in Borrego Springs. The screening will be held at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, 2680 Country Club Road, followed by a community discussion as part of the ongoing “Who Is My Neighbor?” series.

Dozens of residents from Fallbrook and surrounding communities attend an open house at the Fallbrook Community Center on Aug. 26, 2026. SDG&E hosted the event for its proposed Golden Pacific Powerlink. Two other open houses are planned in October. Originally published by KPBS.org on August 20, 2026.

Anniversary celebration set for Nov. 21

Borrego Springs artist featured in regional landscape exhibition.

The season’s first exhibition will feature artwork inspired by the plants and animals of the natural world. The Borrego Art Institute is inviting artists to submit work for Of Earth & Sky, an exhibition centered on the plants and animals of the natural world. The exhibition will run October 17 through November 29, 2026 , at the Borrego Art Institute gallery, 665 Palm Canyon Drive in Borrego Springs. Artwork in any medium may be submitted. Artists may enter a maximum of two pieces, with work received at the gallery on October 10 and 11 from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Wall art must have wire on the back so it can be displayed using the gallery’s cable-and-hook system. All work must be clean, presentable and reasonably priced. BAI members pay no entry fee. Nonmembers pay $20 for each accepted work. The institute will not accept artwork that has previously been shown in the gallery. For questions or entry forms, contact Cody at gallery@borregoartinstitute.org. Summer Show Artwork Must Be Picked Up by October 11 Artists with work remaining in BAI’s Celebrating the Summer Show must pick it up no later than Sunday, October 11. Artwork may also be collected before that date. Beginning October 1, gallery hours are: Thursday–Saturday: 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Sunday: 10 a.m.–4 p.m. BAI Membership Borrego Art Institute members pay no entry fees for BAI exhibitions, with the exception of the Plein Air Invitational. A variety of membership levels are available.  Borrego Art Institute 665 Palm Canyon Drive Borrego Springs, CA 92004

Two amazing movies are coming to BSPAC in September! On September 9 th , we have the winner of last year’s Cannes Film Festival’s Grand Prix, Sentimental Value. And on September 23 rd , it’s John Huston’s finest – The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, for which he won the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars, starring Humphrey Bogart and Huston’s father, Walter Huston (who also won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor). It was the only time a father and son both won Academy Awards during the same ceremony! All screenings are held on Wednesday evenings at 7pm at the Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center, 590 Palm Canyon Drive, Borrego Springs, CA 92004. Our full schedule for 2026 is posted on the BSFI website: www.borregospringsfilminstitute.org . Please check the website for the most up to date information. Here are the movies coming to BSPAC in September: Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 7pm – Sentimental Value – 2025 – Rated R – 2h 13m Sentimental Value (Norwegian: Affeksjonsverdi) is a 2025 Norwegian drama written and directed by Joachim Trier, the acclaimed Danish-Norwegian filmmaker known for The Worst Person in the World and Oslo, August 31st, in collaboration with his longtime writing partner Eskil Vogt. The film follows sisters Nora and Agnes as they reunite with their estranged father Gustav, a once-renowned director who offers stage actress Nora a role in what he hopes will be his comeback film. When she turns it down, he gives the part to an eager young Hollywood star, forcing both sisters to navigate their complicated relationship with their father while contending with an American outsider dropped into the middle of their family dynamics. The film stars Renate Reinsve and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas as the sisters, with Stellan Skarsgård as their charming but complicated father and Elle Fanning as the Hollywood star dropped into the middle of their world. Sentimental Value won the Grand Prix at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and went on to win the Oscar for Best International Feature Film at the 2026 Academy Awards — the first time Norway had ever won in that category. It also received nine Academy Award nominations in total, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Original Screenplay. In Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, and English with English subtitles. Wednesday, September 23, 2026 at 7pm – The Treasure of Sierra Madre – 1948 – Not Rated – 2h 6m The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is one of the towering achievements of American cinema, widely regarded as John Huston's masterwork and one of the greatest films ever made. Written and directed by Huston and based on B. Traven's 1927 novel of the same name, the film stars Humphrey Bogart, with Walter Huston (John Huston’s father), Tim Holt, and Bruce Bennett in support, along with Alfonso Bedoya as the menacing bandit Gold Hat. The story follows two hard-luck American drifters, Dobbs (Bogart) and Curtin (Holt), who team up with a wily old prospector named Howard (Walter Huston) and head into the Sierra Madre mountains of Mexico to mine for gold — only to find that the treasure they uncover unleashes suspicion, paranoia, and murderous greed. The film is notable for Bogart's extraordinary willingness to subvert his own star image, as his character diminishes steadily into madness and delusion. Huston insisted on filming in the harsh Mexican mountain terrain — making it one of the first Hollywood productions to shoot primarily on location outside the United States — and the rugged setting lends visceral authenticity to the tale. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre was a critical triumph: Pauline Kael called it "one of the strongest of all American films," praising its "powerful cumulative effect." At the Academy Awards, the film received four nominations and won three: Best Supporting Actor for Walter Huston, and both Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for John Huston — the only Oscars he ever won. Notably, Bogart was not nominated for Best Actor, a decision that modern critics and Academy members have since widely condemned. In his Oscar acceptance speech, Walter Huston said, "Many years ago I brought up a boy and said to him, 'Son, if you ever become a writer, try to write a good part for your old man sometime.' Well, by cracky, that's what he did!" And looking forward, here are the scheduled movies coming in October and November: Wednesday, October 7, 2026 at 7pm – Diabolique – 1955 – Not Rated – 1h 47m Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot and set in a decrepit French boarding school, the film follows the wife (Véra Clouzot) and mistress (Simone Signoret) of a cruel, abusive headmaster (Paul Meurisse) who conspire to murder him — only to find his body mysteriously vanishes after the deed is done. Based on a novel by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac — whose work would later provide the basis for Hitchcock's Vertigo — Clouzot expertly builds a feeling of mounting dread, culminating in a twist ending that pushes the film into the realm of nightmare. With its unprecedented narrative twists and outstanding performances, Diabolique is considered a benchmark in thriller filmmaking and one of the most influential films of its kind. In French with English subtitles. Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 7pm – Poor Things – 2023 – Rated R – 2h 21m Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite, The Lobster) and set in a whimsical version of Victorian England, the film follows Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a young woman brought back to life by an eccentric scientist (Willem Dafoe) who implanted a baby's brain into her body — sending her on a globetrotting adventure of self-discovery with a sleazy lawyer played by Mark Ruffalo. Wildly imaginative and exhilaratingly over the top, the film is considered a bizarre, brilliant tour de force for both Lanthimos and Stone, and it announced itself immediately upon its debut at the Venice Film Festival, where it was awarded the prestigious Golden Lion. At the Academy Awards, Stone won Best Actress for her performance, while the film took home additional Oscars for Best Costume Design, Best Hair and Make-up, and Best Production Design — a sweep that cemented Poor Things as one of the most celebrated and visually inventive films of the decade. Wednesday, November 4, 2026 at 7pm – Babette’s Feast – 1987 – Rated G – 1h 42m Directed by Gabriel Axel and adapted from a short story by Isak Dinesen, the film tells the lovingly layered tale of a French housekeeper with a mysterious past who brings quiet revolution in the form of one exquisite meal to a circle of starkly pious villagers in late nineteenth-century Denmark. The title role of Babette is played by Stéphane Audran — with Birgitte Federspiel and Bodil Kjer as the two devout sisters into whose isolated lives Babette quietly, transformatively arrives. Babette’s Feast became the first Danish film ever to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Among its many admirers is Pope Francis, who named it his favorite film of all time. In French, Danish, and Swedish with English subtitles. Wednesday, November 18, 2026 at 7pm – The Daytrippers – 1997 – Rated R – 1h 27m Written and directed by Greg Mottola in his feature debut, the film follows the distraught Eliza (Hope Davis), who discovers a love letter written to her husband (Stanley Tucci) by an unknown woman and turns to her tight-knit Long Island family for help — sending the whole clan, including a strong-willed mom (Anne Meara), a taciturn dad (Pat McNamara), and a jaded sister (Parker Posey) with her pretentious boyfriend (Liev Schreiber) in tow, piling into a station wagon and heading into Manhattan to find out the truth. With its droll humor and bittersweet emotional heft, The Daytrippers announced the arrival of an unassumingly sharp-witted new talent on the 1990s indie film scene. Critics were largely enthusiastic: the Washington Post called it proof that "a great movie isn't a matter of dollars, so much as creativity," while Newsweek noted that "thanks to the superb cast and Mottola's deft touch, this modest-looking comedy proves quite memorable." This season’s BSFI movie screenings are being generously underwritten by the Borrego Valley Endowment Fund (BVEF). See you at the movies!

A scene from rescues effort and investigation in Northern California at Miranda’s Rescue. Photo courtesy Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office