Back to Val Verde, an annual community celebration honoring its history and people, was held on Saturday at the Val Verde Community Regional Park with food and performances for people of all ages.
Val Verde, which is an unincorporated area of the Santa Clarita Valley, turned 100 years in 2024, and they continue to keep “celebrating, and keeping the memories and history alive,” of the area, said Paula Coleman, a former resident and recreation leader for the Ryan M. Clinkunbroomer Castaic Sports Complex.
Tim Williams, a longtime local resident and president of the Val Verde Historical Society, enjoys the annual event because he has the chance to reconnect with people who at one point lived in the small town. Today, it has an approximate population of 3,000.
With a smaller population compared to the other areas of the SCV, it allows local residents to connect and be there for one another
“We’re all like a close-knit family. We all know each other, we help each other when somebody’s in need, we try to help them out or check on them,” Coleman said.
Throughout the event, people enjoyed food in the open green space of the park, while they watched live musical performances and spent time socializing with approximately 150 people coming and going throughout the day, according to Williams.
For Coleman, who not only lived in the area but also worked at the community center a few years ago, it allowed her to be of service to a community in need with resources, so coming back to the annual event is a way for her to look at the growth of where it’s at now.
But with the Chiquita Canyon Landfill causing ongoing issues for local residents, and the ongoing odors, Coleman relocated as a precaution for her and her family’s health.
“We just have to persevere through it. Been like that a long time,” said Williams, who lives just across the street from the community center.
As they continued to celebrate another year of Val Verde, Coleman hoped that within the next five to 10 years, it becomes a “safer community. I want it to remain unincorporated, and I would like to see itscharm and its homey-ness, its community stay intact and its history,” she said. “We’re losing that.”
