Folsom plans inaugural Family Pride and 12th Community Service Day; council honors volunteers and hears safety concerns

At the Sept. 9 meeting, Folsom residents and staff promoted several community events, the council recognized longtime volunteers and heard public safety concerns from parents and neighborhood leaders.

Sarah Perrin, a Folsom resident and member of the LGBTQ+ community, invited residents to the inaugural Folsom Family Pride event on National Coming Out Day, Oct. 11, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Lions Park. “It’s free, family friendly, and open to everyone,” Perrin said, and asked the council and city staff to help amplify the event and consider sharing details on appropriate city channels. Perrin listed resources and event details at folsomcapride.com.

Parks and Recreation staff and volunteers detailed the city’s 12th annual Folsom Community Service Day, set for Sept. 20. Tom Hellman, parks and recreation lead, and Sandy Economy, the event chair, said the day needs roughly 2,000 volunteers though about 25% of slots remained open at the time of the presentation. Economy outlined sponsor support totaling about $135,000 (cash and in-kind) and named presenting and tiered sponsors, including Dignity Health (presenting), Lakeside Church, Folsom Times, Lennar Homes and the Folsom Telegraph (visionary), and other organizations at leader, partner and neighbor levels. “Make a difference. Get your 2025 shirt and be a part of Folsom’s biggest day of service,” Economy said; volunteers can register at the city’s community service page.

The council also presented the Spirit of Folsom awards, recognizing five residents nominated by council members for sustained volunteer service. Honorees and their cited contributions included Beth Graybill (library volunteer who helps with holds and shelving), Tom Handy (longtime youth-sports and community volunteer), Kathy Cole (historic-district volunteer leader and water-legislation expertise), Michael Raffeto (youth sports coach and Athletics Association volunteer), and Joanne Brosh (parks volunteer and Castle Park rebuild leader). During public remarks, Richard Heiler, chair of the Landscape and Lighting Advisory Committee, highlighted a neighborhood street-and-sidewalk renewal project in Los Ceros and presented certificates to engineering and maintenance staff members who worked on the repairs.

Several speakers raised neighborhood-safety concerns. Tiara Dominguez told the council she is a Folsom parent who has experienced repeated “close calls” with e-bikes and electric motorcycles near shopping parking lots and on city streets while driving with her children. “It’s really scary driving on those streets,” she said, urging coordinated action. Mayor Aquino noted that an earlier 2-by-2 meeting with two school board members and two council members had already discussed e-bikes and e-scooters and the city is treating the issue as a priority.

Two residents from the South of 50 neighborhoods, Gopinath and Ganesh, described repeated harassment and physical aggression at Prospector Park affecting youth who use the volleyball courts. They said they compiled witness reports and asked for follow-up from the council. Mayor Aquino responded that she would follow up and that the location falls within her district.

Staff and the city manager also announced parks news: the Castle Park play structure is closed for replacement and will remain closed from Sept. 5 through April 2026 while the city rebuilds the playground. Staff said residents who want to volunteer for the Castle Park rebuild can contact the volunteer group at rebuildthecastle@gmail.com.

Next steps and sign-ups: Community Service Day volunteer registration is available on the city website; blood-drive sign-ups were available through Vitalant; and staff said food-drive bags would be distributed to residences with pickup on Sept. 20.