The San Joaquin Partnership, in cooperation with San Joaquin County, has opened an office in the heart of Silicon Valley.

Partnership Chief Executive Mike Ammann spends a day a week at the office in Santa Clara seeking companies interested in San Joaquin County locations and making other connections between Silicon Valley and the San Joaquin Valley.

Strengthening ties between the areas is only natural, he said.

"We've been looked upon as two separate areas, but with a quarter of our labor force commuting into Silicon Valley, we are really part of it," Ammann said Tuesday.

"We've come to the conclusion that we need to be physically part of Silicon Valley by opening up an office."

That facility, at 2903 Bunker Hill Lane in Santa Clara, is leased from TiE Silicon Valley, a nonprofit entrepreneurs' network, and is near the Santa Clara Convention Center and ACE train's Great America stop and not far from the 49ers' new stadium.

If you'd like to see what you missed at yesterday's 'Long Live the Kings' rally, click HERE for loads of photos.

The tragedy of Monday’s tornado in Oklahoma may be halfway across the country, but there are still ways we can help locally.

Jordan Scott, communications director for the American Red Cross Capital Region Chapter, said the organization is accepting donations for relief efforts. People can text REDCROSS to 9099 to make an automatic $10 donation, or can visit redcross.org to make a donation.

Scott said there are no plans yet to send teams from Northern California over to Oklahoma for relief efforts, but that it usually takes 24 to 48 hours for them to receive requests.

“Our volunteers know it may happen and to be ready,” Scott said. “We’ve got the experience and the expertise here.”

Volunteers from the area have helped out through other disasters, including the 2011 tornado in Joplin, Mo., and Superstorm Sandy in 2012.