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Dec. 15 – Jan. 4, 2013
Community
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SanTan Sun Chronicles from page 17
by Hendricks in the final laps of the race. However, in Round 2 he drove an “excellent” main, finishing first despite qualifying down the grid. As a result of his podium finishes and sweeping all four heats of the weekend, Jim gained the championship lead with a slight points advantage over Hendricks. Round 3 of Summer Nationals found Jim running in the front of the pack once again. A sudden torrential downpour delayed the start of the S5 main event, leaving the track sodden; and in his first time racing a shifter in the rain, Jim worked his way to a podium finish, surprising even himself in racing in wet conditions. Sunday saw problems for the Ruthless Karting team, as Jim’s Intrepid suffered motor problems in qualifying, which resulted in a sour end to the weekend. Jim retained his first-place position in the championship, and entered Super Nationals XVI with a 97-point lead. Having recently switched from an Intrepid to a new KGB chassis, Jim found himself consistently top three in all practices, and fourth in qualifying. A rough first heat found him taken out of the race before turn one, but strong finishes in the remaining heats secured a 12th-place grid position for the main. Contact in the first several turns of the race sent him back to 16th, where he knew he would have to “race hard and smart” in order to fight his way back up through the ranks. Within several laps, Jim climbed up through the field and was on his way to a potential podium finish, only to be punted back four positions. But Jim kept his cool, and after a harrowing final event, received a justified eighth-place finish, gaining enough points to emerge the 2012 S5 SKUSA ProTour Champion.
His supporters include Dan and Ryan Ruth of Ruthless Karting, Parolin, Curtis Ruth and Innovative Karting, Sweedtech, GMZ Wheels, Bell Helmets, Basic High Safety Tech, Performance Kart Sport and AMR Racing Graphics. Erica Sunnarborg of Chandler, on Bailey Blue Eyes, captures a World Championship title at the 2012 APHA World Championship Paint Horse Show in Fort Worth, TX. She takes the championship in Amateur Working Hunter showing the 2,000 gelding owned by the rider. In the class, horses are judged on their manners, way of going and jumping style over a course of at least eight jumps. Info: apha.com.
In addition, Koch was invited to be a Visual Judge at the Webbstock VIII Band Competition in Missouri. Info: gcu.edu.
Holly Kain, left, with VFW’s Cheri Almond Submitted photo
Kain was nominated by her fellow teachers and supervisors for her work with the VFW’s Voice of Democracy Program. Paul Koch of Chandler is the new director of bands and instrumental professor of music at Grand Canyon University. Koch, pronounced “Cook,” is former director of bands at Perry High School and is the man behind GCU’s new Thundering Heard pep band, with nearly 60 students, most of whom are non-music majors.
Erica Sunnarborg Photo courtesy of the “Paint Horse Journal.”
Holly Kain, an advanced English teacher at Hamilton High School, wins the 14th Annual VFW and Ladies Auxiliary National Citizenship Education Teacher Award, given by Commander Gene Nelson and program chairperson Cheri Almond of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post # 80543. Nelson says Kain advances to the District level, where she will compete for the State level competition.
PEP BAND: Paul Koch, center with headphones, with Grand Canyon University’s band. Submitted photo courtesy Darryl Webb
Michele Maki of Chandler is back on the East Coast, having been redeployed by the American Red Cross Grand Canyon Chapter to provide relief for Hurricane Sandy. Maki, who is retired from the airline industry, traveled recently to Newark, NJ, to work as a public affairs supervisor, again committing two to three weeks of her time. A volunteer public information officer, Maki has more than 5,000 volunteer hours with the Red Cross since 2006. In total, the Grand Canyon Chapter has deployed 31 volunteers and employees for Sandy, including three who have been redeployed. Info: redcross.org. Sandra Hudson is the new president for TrustBank Arizona. A resident of Southern Chandler, she was previously the East Valley president for Northern Trust Bank for seven years. Prior to that she was a Sandra Hudson managing executive for private client services with U.S. Bank for 14 years. She is an executive board member of East Valley Partnership, chair of East Valley Fresh Start Executive Council and a board member of the Mesa Arts Center and of Dignity Health Foundation.
Brooksies
19039 S. Arizona Ave., Chandler | Just S. of Germann Rd. 480-782-6848 | Mon. - Sat. 9 a.m - 6 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.