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San Diego Zoo float wins top prize at 135th Rose Parade in Pasadena

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San Diego Zoo float wins top prize at 135th Rose Parade in Pasadena


Floral floats, marching bands and equestrian units took to the streets under a sunny California sky as the 135th Rose Parade drew hundreds of thousands of spectators on New Year’s Day.

The Pasadena tradition on Monday featured Broadway legend Audra McDonald as grand marshal and the theme “Celebrating a World of Music: The Universal Language.”

After recent rains and gray skies, there was plenty of sun for the 8 a.m. start of the spectacle with a military flyover of a B-2 stealth bomber.

Among the fanciful floats was Kaiser Permanente’s colorful “Symphony of You,” which featured 8,000 roses and received the President Award for most outstanding use and presentation of flowers.

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The top prize, the 2024 Sweepstakes Trophy, went to the San Diego Zoo for the 55-foot (16.8-meter) float “It All Started With a Roar,” depicting its mascot Rex the Lion and celebrating wildlife conservation.

The scheduled performers included Destiny’s Child singer Michelle WIlliams, “The Voice” winner Cassadee Pope and “American Idol” champion Jordin Sparks.

Huge crowds lined the 5.5-mile (8.8-kilometer) parade route. Many camped out on sidewalks overnight, staking out their spots in the afternoon on New Year’s Eve.

The parade was briefly interrupted by about 50 pro-Palestinian protesters carrying a banner demanding a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. They blocked the route before peacefully dispersing under police orders, said city spokesperson Lisa Derderian.

McDonald was set to toss the coin before the 110th Rose Bowl college football game between Alabama and Michigan.

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Sharon “Sherry” Mary Coffey – San Diego Union-Tribune

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Sharon “Sherry” Mary Coffey – San Diego Union-Tribune



Sharon “Sherry” Mary Coffey


OBITUARY

Sharon “Sherry” Mary Coffey passed away peacefully with her family at her bedside on October 6, 2025. Sherry’s life will be remembered for her kindness to all and love for her family, friends, and community.

Sherry was the second child of Jack and Florence McKian. She was born on June 5, 1939 in Traverse City, Michigan and preceded in death by her brother, Peter McKian. She grew up on the family cherry farm, attended Traverse City High School, and earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business from Central Michigan University at Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Upon graduation she ventured west to San Diego, California with a group of her sorority sisters. She was initially employed as an Executive Secretary at Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical and later transferred with her boss to General Dynamics where she was actively involved in the historical days of Apollo 11 and the Lunar Landing.

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Sherry and her husband, Tom, met in South Mission Beach in the ’60s. After Tom’s completion of his active Naval service they wed in 1971 in Sherry’s hometown on the “Old Mission Penninsula in Traverse City, Michigan. The happy couple returned to San Diego to begin their “54 year Honeymoon”.

Sherry is survived by her husband, Tom; son Matthew and grandson Kingston; and daughter Aimee and granddaughter Elliot.

A celebration of a life will be held by her family in later months. In lieu of flowers, donations in Sherry’s memory to the Alztheimer’s Association are encouraged.



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Victim of El Cajon hit-and-run urges drivers to be cautious

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Victim of El Cajon hit-and-run urges drivers to be cautious


EL CAJON, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — A 70-year-old man from El Cajon is recovering in the hospital after a hit-and-run incident that left him with serious injuries.

Julio Arreola was struck while crossing the street near US Bank on Fletcher Parkway and Pioneer Way around 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

“I was lucky not to get killed or paralyzed,” said Arreola, reflecting on his survival from the hospital.

He suffered fractures in his ribs and spine, and required staples for a head injury, according to his sister, Luz Arreola.

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The suspect, 19-year-old Brian Guevara, fled the scene but was apprehended by police using license plate readers. He was booked on hit-and-run charges.

Arreola is currently unable to work at his TV repair shop due to his injuries, but he is focused on recovery and paying his bills.

This incident is part of a troubling trend of hit-and-runs in the area, including a recent case where a 6-year-old boy was killed near City Heights and another in El Cajon where a 12-year-old boy was hospitalized.

Arreola and his family are urging drivers to be more cautious to prevent further tragedies.

FOX 5/KUSI’s Jennifer Franco contributed to this report.

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All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by KSWB. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by KSWB staff before being published.



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Timbers and San Diego set for decisive Game 3: ‘We Can’t Wait for It’

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Timbers and San Diego set for decisive Game 3: ‘We Can’t Wait for It’


If you were at Providence Park on Saturday, Nov. 1, when the Timbers defeated San Diego in penalties, you walked away with one unshakable feeling – hope.

Both teams are more than familiar with each other — and maybe a little tired of the sight. This will be their fourth meeting in less than a month, and emotions have already run high. In the last game, Timbers’ Kristopher Velde and San Diego’s Chuky Lozano exchanged heated words multiple times, a reflection of how fierce this rivalry has quickly become.

READ ALSO | Valakari, Dreyer lead San Diego to 2-1 victory over Timbers in club’s 1st postseason match

Now, with the series tied and a trip to face either Seattle or Minnesota on the line, everything comes down to this final showdown. Portland Head Coach Phil Neville knows exactly what’s at stake.

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“I think whoever handles that emotion, whoever handles that occasion, whoever goes out there and sticks to the game plan, is the team that’s going to win,” Neville said. “And I think the third game is going to be an absolute classic. We can’t wait for it.”

Neville, who has guided the Timbers through a gritty and tactically complex playoff run so far, didn’t shy away from the importance of this matchup.

“It’s probably the most important game I’ve coached for the Portland Timbers for sure,” he said. “But I hope there’s an even bigger one in two weeks and in three weeks.”

That confidence stems from what Neville has seen in his squad over the past two games — a growing belief that they belong among the league’s best.

“I see a team that’s got all those qualities and we’ve just got to go out there and perform again,” he said. “And what I said to them before the last game is that we have incredible belief in this group of players. And sometimes you need to go out there and perform at a certain level for them to start believing in themselves. And I think what you saw in the second game, you saw a group that started to believe that they can compete in this playoff. And the playoff run so far, the two games we’ve had have been really, really outstanding games, tactically sort of like a chess game. And I think the third game will be the same.”

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On the field, defender Dario Zuparic echoed that mindset. When asked what it will take to withstand San Diego’s early pressure, he didn’t hesitate.

“Put some pressure on them, make some chaos,” Zuparic said. “Because if we play calm, like past games against them, it’s going to be hard to win this game. So we need to play in something like not playing their game. So we need to find the way to play our own game. So play direct, play aggressive. Press them when we can. When we can’t, so drop and wait for counterattacks.”

In the end, Zuparic summed up the focus perfectly: “The only thing I care is to win the game. I don’t care how — just to win the game. Even on big games, I’m fine with that.”

Kickoff is Sunday at 6 p.m. The winner moves on. The loser goes home. After four weeks of tension, tactics, and tempers, it all comes down to one final night.



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