Family Fun at Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm in Wheatland
Three generations have run the popular attraction for more than 50 years
Wayne Bishop of Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm in Wheatland claims the farm is the largest pick-your-own pumpkin patch in the world. It remains a true family-run business, with Wayne, his wife Ann, his sons Lee and Austin, and his daughter-in-law Courtney leading the farm his parents started more than 50 years ago.
Valley Rail on Track
A new commuter rail service is coming to the Capital Region
In the notoriously car dependent Central Valley, a new public transit option could have significant impacts on mobility and quality of life, as well as economic development. But delays to the Valley Rail project are reflective of the challenges involved in building intercity passenger rail anywhere in the United States.
A Piece of the Pie
Family business spotlight: The Fruit Bowl has been providing peaches and more to Stockton for 76 years
Over the course of summer and the first weeks of fall, over 60 varieties of peaches and nectarines pass through The Fruit Bowl, a 76-year-old produce stand on the rural outskirts of Stockton.
Submersibles That Run Deep
Family business spotlight: World leader in marine tourism is buoyed by family values
The Mayfield siblings grew up in the charmed nautical world of their father’s imagination. At the Sub Sea Systems workshop in Diamond Springs, power tools whir as two generations work side by side to build custom submersibles that resemble something out of a Jules Verne novel.
The Connection Point: Women of Sacramento Founder Bri Norberg
WATCH: How Bri expanded her business by providing a safe space for women
Women of Sacramento is an organization that gathers the next generation of entrepreneurs, businesswomen and creatives to initiate conversation around the topics they are passionate about. From building a business to raising money, they hit all the topics for modern working women.
Let’s find out in today’s discussion.
A Fire in the Sky
Family business spotlight: From Macy’s Fourth of July to the Space Needle, Pyro Spectaculars produces more than 400 fireworks shows a year
The show producer opens his laptop, and with a touch of the keyboard the magic begins. Music swells, and a spectacular vision of multicolor sparkling flowers explodes in the night sky, along with golden starbursts and shiny cascading waterfalls.
Gambling on Gaming
Family business spotlight: How an Auburn-based company cornered the gambling market
In his lifetime of entrepreneurship, Don Whitaker has managed to mostly avoid competitors. “You try to find a niche where you have no competition,” Whitaker says of his approach to business. He found his niche market with Ceronix, which he started in 1984 out of his Auburn home.
Pipeline to Success
Family business spotlight: Ramos Oil delivers bulk oil to farms, ranches, construction companies and more
The oil industry doesn’t typically evoke warm-and-fuzzy words like kindness, compassion and unconditional love. That is, unless, you’re speaking of the Ramos Oil Company.
The Wage of Innocence?
Comstock’s president and publisher reflects on minimum wage and the value of work.
The Bay-Delta Ecosystem Is Collapsing. California Just Unveiled Rival Rescue Plans
CalMatters: With the Bay-Delta watershed in the throes of an ecological crisis, California’s water regulators Thursday unveiled several controversial options for managing the heart of the state’s water supply.