The California History Center at De Anza College hosted the third annual Taste of History event on Saturday, Oct. 26, honoring former Cupertino mayors from 1955 to present day.
Guests included various men and women who have committed their time and services to building the city of Cupertino and De Anza College over the past few decades.
The event served as a fundraiser for local history projects and was organized by Dean of Social Sciences and Humanities Carolyn Wilkins-Greene and California History Center director Tom Izu.
Former Mayor James E. Jackson, who served two terms from 1975-’76 and ’78-’79, spoke about various obstacles and triumphs he and his team accomplished, including opening Vallco Mall.
Another speaker was Michael Chang, who served two terms as mayor in 1997 and 2002, and is now a professor at De Anza teaching Asian American studies and intercultural communications.
He spoke about the changes over the years as De Anza became more of an international community college.
“What has changed is that Cupertino and the Silicon Valley has become globalized,” Chang said. “We are part of this large interconnected world because of the high tech products being produced in the city.”
The current mayor, Orrin Mahoney, gave a presentation at the Media and Learning Center about the history of the city and all the mayors’ contributions to the city.
