Pescadero “angel” Wendy Taylor honored at retirement

A dinner at Puente de la Costa Sur honored founder Rev. Wendy Taylor on her retirement. Taylor founded Puente in 1998, reports the County Times.

About 100 guests — 20 of them field workers — enjoyed a hearty Mexican meal and paid tribute to Taylor in speeches, prayer and song, in Spanish and English. Two orchard ladders, one with a Mexican flag and one with an American flag, framed the kitchen entrance with a bridge of ropes between them.

Puente de la Costa Sur has come a long way from its initial mission of providing "bicycles, blankets and beans" to the field workers Taylor met as they passed by the local Protestant church where she ministered. Incorporated as a 501(c)3 charity with its own offices two years ago, Puente’s $190,000 budget covers a variety of services — English classes, welcome baskets and transportation for the men to pick up food boxes, go to the Mexican Consulate in San Francisco or visit the dentist.

The group pays for emergency surgery and utility bills for unemployed workers, and for the salaries of Puente’s one full-time and two part-time staff positions. The charity serves some 1,000 seasonal workers in the area.