‘Vibe Cities Spirit of the People Awards'

In the late 1970s, my dad, John Poulos, started "Entertainment East Magazine." Eventually, he introduced "The Jonny Awards," recognizing the people of the East Bay with a Jonny Award through his magazine. These awards celebrated those good people behind the scenes—servers, cooks, entertainers, and generally good people around the bay. While there are many great businesses, it’s ‘the people’ behind the scenes who made the business special.

Every year, there was an all-out, black-tie affair with a full orchestra featuring the famous Bob Enos Band (still playing today). The Jonny Awards were held at Centennial Hall in Hayward, including popular comedians, singers, dancers, and the awards ceremony. It always fascinated me how my dad put this together along with the magazine.

My first job with the magazine was stapling them together, then working on negatives, making ads, and printing them in his garage. I even designed the cover , "Goodbye 1982," one year before I graduated from Castro Valley High. Everything about ‘Castro Valley Vibe’ and ‘Vibe Cities’ was built around that magazine, especially making it about "The People" in an innovative digital way combining television, web, app technology, social media, and print magazine.

We intended to have an awards presentation on our first-year anniversary in 2021, but the USA was shut down for almost four years of suppression. It brought out the best and worst in people, but mostly the best and showed how resilient people are. Castro Valley needed us more than ever, and our format proved to be a significant player in helping people know which businesses were still open. Always trying to stick with the 'good vibes' in Castro Valley, we donated and produced over 150 videos that got thousands of views, helping boost small businesses. Some businesses claimed to have record business days after our videos. Until the day we can make it a event we have a on going list of recipients for each year Starting with 2019 Castro Valley Vibe Winners.

Honoring those awesome people. The event was squashed, but never forgotten. These are the "Vibe Cities; Spirit of the People Awards." Since we can't know everyone, in the beginning, the awards were based on the clear popularity of our social media posts and our experience around town with individuals. There can be more than one in each category, no more than three. Each year the categories grow, but it's always about the 'people'. And thank you for your good vibes; it's what makes life more joyful and pleasant, filling it with kindness and harmony. You can always write our social media to take a look at a community member. With a population of over 180,000 people, we are sure to overlook someone.