Toni Castro, president and CEO of the Capitola-Soquel Chamber of Commerce, will retire on March 1 after 32 years with the organization.
Her philosophy was to build relationships and work with the community.
She started several popular community events that have become Capitola traditions enjoyed by generations of families, such as the Children’s Halloween Parade, Easter Egg Hunt on the Beach, Kite Flying Classic on the Beach, Surfing Santa and Vintage Motorcycle Show.
She worked to build the Capitola Art & Wine Festival, now going into its 38th year. A major fundraiser for the chamber, the event has expanded to feature 160 artists, 22 wineries plus entertainers.
The festival also has raised funds for Soquel High School, Harbor High School, Pacific Collegiate and New Brighton Middle School.
She worked with the City of Capitola on economic development and special projects such as the 2011 pipe break in Capitola Village that flooded streets and left elderly residents of the Pacific Cove Trailer Park scrambling to get to safety.
The chamber started a grassroots effort to raise money to help merchants clean out their stores and replace carpet and merchandise so they could reopen. The chamber worked with the community in providing meals for Pacific Cove residents.
Toni Castro
Castro started out in a small office at the corner of the Capitola Museum with a telephone and desk, growing the membership and adding unincorporated Soquel in 2006. Today the chamber office is at 716-G Capitola Ave.
As chamber CEO, Castro has served on the City Finance Committee and Capitola Public Safety Board and completed the City of Capitola Government Academy.
She also served as past President of Leadership Santa Cruz, Council of Chambers Executive Board, past President of Boys & Girls Club, past Board Member of the CVC, past Chairperson of Santa Cruz County Graffiti Task Force and served on the Santa Cruz County Business Disaster Relief Task Force for the 1989 Earthquake Relief.
Her plans for retirement: “wide open with no plans to work,” she said.