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General Assignment Reporter Monserrat Solis is departing from BenitoLink to join San Joaquin Valley Water to cover water issues in Kings County. She will continue as one of 75 journalists in the California Local News Fellowship program.
Solis played a role in furthering BenitoLink’s mission to inform the community about local issues. Since her arrival in September 2023, Solis has mostly covered Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital and Hollister City Council.
“I’ve enjoyed my time reporting in San Benito County,” Solis said. “Especially covering the hospital.”
Solis said her favorite story written in her time with BenitoLink was the breaking news of the major update of Hazel Hawkins bankruptcy filing. In March, bankruptcy judge Stephen Johnson dismissed San Benito Health Care District’s petition for bankruptcy as he found the hospital ineligible. That story has continued to develop.
Another of Solis’s favorite stories is the San Benito County Planning Commission’s rejection of the John Smith Landfill expansion project’s environmental impact report, conditional use permit and General Plan amendment.
In Solis’s first week at BenitoLink, she reported on a lockdown at Hollister High School. It was described by the school as resulting from a “possible drug transaction” in which a school resource officer found a student in possession of a loaded gun.
BenitoLink Executive Director Leslie David and the BenitoLink team thank Solis for her dedication and contribution. “We appreciate Monserrat and the reporting she has done for BenitoLink and the community in general,” David said. “We are excited for her and congratulate her on her new position.
“BenitoLink is very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with young journalists like Monserrat through the fellowship,” David said. Referring to the California Local News Fellowship, she added, “This fantastic program brings entry-level and early career journalists into communities like ours giving them more experience and helping us cover more local issues.”
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