Courreges Ranch

My name is Roch Courreges, and I am the Great, Great Grandson of the Roch Courreges that settled here in Fountain Valley in 1878. More importantly, I am the Grandson of Joe and Hazel Courreges. I was born in Huntington Beach in 1969 and grew up less than 1/4 mile away from the Ranch. I spent just about every day that I wasn't in school (or grounded) up at the farm helping my Grandpa. I was lucky enough to play in the fields before the houses were built off Newland, before the streets were widened and Talbert and Newland got a stop light, or the condos were put up. Fields were full of crops, the produce stand was open 5 days a week, and the baseball fields across the street were packed on weekends. I was one of 8 grandkids and we all spent quite a bit of time at the Ranch some helping Grandma in the house or out in the stand and others helping Grandpa in the fields riding shotgun on the tractor. The Courreges Ranch was much more than a farm; it was a meeting place. The house was never locked and you never had to knock, you just walked on in. Hazel always had something for you to eat and Joe always had a little "snake bite medicine" close at hand. The produce stand was like a social club with a mix of customers and friends stopping by to chitchat. Holidays were always a big event. Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas were known for a large turnout of friends and family. With the passing of Joe in 1987 and Hazel in 2011, we lost a window into the past. With the last of the Greatest Generation gone, I am going to do my best to keep the history of our great family alive.