INSIDE THE AUGUST 2021 ISSUE: Ebike Fans Race to New Shop p. 3 Altitudes, Artists Improve Outdoor Seating p. 4 Author Reveals Family Tale Stamped with Tattoos p. 6
NAU Grad is Prescott Police Chief p. 8 Women-Owned Business Flying High p. 10 Community Profile: Sonesta GM Promotes Longer Stays p. 13
Disinfecting on the Navajo Nation As the delta variant spreads, two young men from Tennessee continue to fight the coronavirus with deep cleaning and deep caring “Delta has become overwhelmingly dominant in our state and pretty much everywhere else,” said David s COVID-19 wages another re- Engelthaler, director of the infectious disease branch of TGen North. “Delta lentless attack across the counis an extremely fast-spreading variant, try, Flagstaff, Phoenix, Peoria, Tempe and Tucson are requiring masks mostly because it infects cells faster and replicates within cells at a greater rate in city facilities for staff members and and causes higher viral loads in the revisitors – whether they are vaccinated spiratory tract. This leads to more virus or not – as the highly contagious delta being expelled into the environment by variant is being blamed for the surge.
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By Bonnie Stevens, FBN
infected individuals.” In late June, the Navajo Nation reported its first case of the mutant strain, which is believed to have originated in India. One business that has been fighting the coronavirus contagion on the reservation is Southern Solutions Environmental (SSE). Two cousins from Tennessee began their small decontamination startup in November 2019, just before the pandemic broke out globally. They moved their company to Window Rock in June 2020, with no business contract in place and no expectations
about being paid for their services. Ike Hawkersmith, 27, and Collin Anderson, 26, are SSE’s field generals. They also are warriors on the front line in the battle to wipe out infectious germs in public parks, museums, jails, police buildings, government vehicles and anywhere people can’t work from home on the Navajo Nation. Their uniform is a HAZMAT suit. Their weapon is Deacon7, a disinfectant commonly used in the agriculture industry. “It kills coronavirus in under 60 seconds,” said Anderson. “It’s safe
NEW DAILY FLIGHTS ADDED!
Continued on page 38
A Global Trail for Flagstaff Business Startups Acupuncturist Alex Tan welcomes patients to his Flagstaff clinic. Born in Australia, this former construction engineer spent 10 years refining his knowledge of Chinese Medicine in Beijing. Photo by Diane Hope
August 2021 | Issue 8 Volume 14
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By Diane Hope, FBN
lagstaff attracts tourists from all over the world – and also businesspeople who have often traveled widely before setting up shop here. Folks like Alex Tan: A native-born Australian with a Chinese father, Tan was working in Sydney as a site engineer in high-rise construction when growing interest in Eastern approaches to health took him back to university. His four-year degree in Chinese Medicine in Australia concluded with a six-week internship in a Chinese hospital. Six weeks turned into 10 years as Tan stayed in Beijing, continuing his medical studies. It was there he met his now wife, who happened to be from Doney Park. He confesses to some culture shock when his family (then three, now four kids) resettled in Flagstaff, close to his wife’s parents. Tan then spent another 18 months studying to become a U.S.-licensed acupuncturist. Continued on page 39
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