Globe Miami Times September 2021

LLC

SINCE 2006

What’S next for Gryphon Ranch?

Globe-Miami Sports

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The Tucson 1 DOC fire crew watched over Gryphon Ranch and its cattle during the Telegraph fire. Courtesy photo.

Old Dominion Mine Park

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This month we bring you two feature stories on how the flooding has impacted two local ranch operations. The impacts of the fire in June and flooding throughout July and August have been intense, and widespread, spanning over 200 acres from Superior to the west of us, to San Carlos Apache Reservation to the east. The Gryphon Ranch, owned by the Ptaks, is located just off Hwy 77 as you head towards Tucson, and the Hale homestead is east of Miami near the turn off to Pinto Valley Mine.

BY PATTI DALEY

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ince 2014, Carol and Jim Ptak have lived a peaceful life on Gryphon Ranch with their horses and highland cattle, running a grass-fed beef operation that the two of them could handle on their own.

“It was a high quality of life,” says Carol Ptak. “It’s why we moved to Arizona.”

In a thunderclap, all that changed.

Bruce Berry: Banjo Man 37th ANNUAL

BY THEA WILSHIRE

“I’m living my dream,” Douglas Bruce Berry says.

He’s just opened a new banjo studio and music space in Miami.

He exclaims, “This is an amazing and crazy story.”

It all began when he was a teenager. Douglas started to play banjo when he was 15, and quickly decided to build his own instrument.

“Right when I started to cut into a piece of really nice curly maple, I realized I didn’t have either the experience or tools to get this done right,” he recalls. “So I put it down.”

Douglas went on to spend 20 years in the construction industry. At first, he worked with contractors and “did a little bit of everything.”

He learned to work with a variety of materials. Later, he transitioned into doing more detailed, precision work, with very expensive materials.

Humane Society

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Gila County Fair

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GRYPHON RANCH, Continued on page 14

Bruce Berry and Courtney Odom are the newest additons to Miami’s business district. Photo by LCGross

BERRY BANJOS, Continued on page 26

APACHE JII FESTIVAL

Celebrating Native American Culture in Downtown Globe Discover Native American food, art, entertainment, and more in the heart of Globe, Arizona! Page 7.

A Yellow Bird dancer performs at Apache Jii 2019. Photo by LCGross

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SEPTEMBER 2021

www.GlobeMiamiTimes.com

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CELEBRATING WONDERFUL YEARS! School Day

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 9:00 a.m.

Judging Entries in Hall Noon–7 p.m. Receive & Weigh In

Gate entry

8.00 a.m.

10.00 a.m.

11.00 a.m.

Noon 12:30 p.m.

2:00 p.m.

4:00 p.m.

4:30 p.m.

5:00 p.m.

6:00 p.m.

6:30 p.m.

7:00 p.m.

$10 Per Car Daily $20 Per Car After 3pm Friday and Saturday *Event times subject to change without notice.

Showmanship Horse Show Longhorn Show Small Animal Show Fair Opens to Public Longhorn Show Open Goat/Lamb Show Goat Show Mutton Bustin’ Lamb Show Swine Show Mutton Bustin’ Music by DJ Ryan 4-H & Open Timed event Horse Show

Rodeo Arena Main Entry Small Animal Barn Main Entry Livestock Barn Livestock Barn Main Entry Livestock Barn Livestock Barn Main Entry Lower-Level Stage Rodeo Arena

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24

Veterans Day 9:00 a.m.

Noon 1:00 p.m.

2:00 p.m.

3:00 p.m.

4:30 p.m.

5:00 p.m.

6:00 p.m.

7:00 p.m.

8:00 p.m.

8:30 p.m.

Fair Opens to Public Shine By the Mine Truck Show Opens Youth Cattle Show Livestock Barn Open Cattle to follow Youth Livestock Barn Mutton Bustin’ Main Entry Dog Show Upper Race Track Longhorn Show Main Entry Round Robin Livestock Barn Mutton Bustin’ Main Entry Power Elite Dance Lower-Level Stage Old Fashioned Fair Night Livestock Barn Mutton Bustin’ Main Entry Harry Luge Lower-Level Stage Goat Roping Main Entry

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 9:00 a.m.

Fair Opens to Public Shine By the Mine Truck Show Opens 10:00 a.m. Longhorn Show Main Entry 11:30 a.m. Mutton Bustin’ Main Entry Noon Buyer’s Appreciation Luncheon Livestock Barn 1:00 p.m. Junior Livestock Auction Livestock Barn 2:00 p.m. Mutton Bustin’ Main Entry 4:00 p.m. Mutton Bustin’ Championship Main Entry 5:00 p.m. Miami High School Cheerleaders Lower-Level Stage Globe High School Cheerleaders Lower-Level Stage 6:00 p.m. Bull Riding & Ranch Rodeo Rodeo Arena 11:00 p.m. Fair Closes to Public

gilacountyfair.com

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 26 *Exhibits are available for pick up after 8:00 a.m

Sept. 23–25, 2021

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23

SEPTEMBER 2021

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SEPTEMBER 2021

www.GlobeMiamiTimes.com

A Note from the Publisher

This September we’re in the midst of several big community events that have returned this year after canceling or going virtual last year due to Covid. It’s been good to see people again - many of whom I’ve hardly seen in over a year. It feels good to share community.

And yet, I’m acutely aware that our Covid numbers are climbing back up thanks to the Delta variant. Yes, we have the vaccine readily available now, and yes, the science is clear on the value of masks and still we are divided as a community on these things.

While I believe in both vaccines and masks, I find I don’t always follow my own guidelines. I’ve been vaccinated for months, but I find myself going maskless on rare occasions even when I know I should have one on.

Gila County is now over 50% vaccinated. It wouldn’t take much to get to 70%, which would make a huge difference in finding “normal” again in our communities. I hope we can come together as a community...and get there.

This issue brings you two stories on the impacts of first fire, then flooding events that have devastated the land and livelihood of two local families: the Ptaks (p. 1) and the Hales (p. 12).

These families are resilient and determined, as are so many in our area who have been impacted by the floods in July and August, but their comeback cannot rest solely on their own shoulders.

It will take a host of resources, leadership, and federal and state monies and policies to effect a change and allow people to recover. There is much more to cover here, and we look forward to bringing you more in-depth coverage of the people and policies affecting our ability to recover as a community from both fires and floods.

On the bright side, we’re happy to feature Douglas Berry and his wife Courtney Odom, who recently chose

Miami over Mesa as the place to continue to follow their dreams. They’ve brought considerable talent and enthusiasm with them (p. 1).

And look no further than the project update from the City of Globe to see the progress being made on several fronts by the City, including the “Trash Mobs” led

by Regina Ortega-Leonardi as part of the local Clean and Beautiful program. All of these programs are designed to make a positive difference.

So despite, or perhaps because of, the challenges facing us, we have many people in this community stepping up to make a difference, whether it’s the 4-H kids who came to the rescue at the Ptaks’ after the flooding, or the army of friends who showed up at the Hale ranch, or Laurie Manzano (p. 20) stepping in to run the cat shelter after the director quit, or May Sullivan and Mindy Lively creating a seed library for the community (p. 8).

Stepping up is what we do.

Good job all.

Linda Gross Publisher

Publisher Linda Gross Creative Designer Jenifer Lee Editor Patricia Sanders Contributing Writers Patti Daley Linda Gross Patricia Sanders Thea Wilshire Contributing Photography Patti Daley Linda Gross Thea Wilshire

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Published Monthly Copyright@2021 Globe Miami Times/ Globe Miami Visitors Guide

175 E Cedar Street Globe, AZ 85501 Office: 928.961.4297 Cell: 928.701.3320 editor@globemiamitimes.com www.GlobeMiamiTimes.com All rights reserved. Reproduction of the contents of this publication without permission is strictly prohibited. Globe Miami Times neither endorses nor is responsible for the content of advertisements.

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The Superior Burro Race in 2019 kicked off in downtown Superior.

Photo by Robert Licano.

ON THE COVER What’s Next for Gryphon Ranch?

Bruce Berry: Banjo Man 37th Annual Apache Jii Festival 2 Gila County Fair 5 Opinion: Just Breathe 6 Mayor’s Monthly Report/ Local Events 7 37th Annual Apache Jii Festival 8 Seed Library at CVCA/ Run to the Rez

Annual Subscriptions: $48 per year. Please send name of recipient, address and phone number, plus a money order or check made payable to Globe Miami Times 175 E. Cedar St., Globe, AZ 85501

11 Miami High School 12 Floodwaters at the Hale Ranch 16 Superior Events 17 Recognition 18 Globe-Miami High School Sports 19 San Carlos Unified School District 20 The Struggles of Sheltering Animals 22 A Look at COVID in August

9 City of Globe Project Update

23 San Carlos College

10 Old Dominion Mine Park Closed

25 In Loving Memory

24 Service Directory

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OPINION

SEPTEMBER 2021

Just Breathe

Free Guided Imagery Apps and Websites

Insight Timer is very popular, with thousands of options, and works on iOS, Android, and web browsers. This app offers help-you-sleep recordings, yoga sessions, nature sounds, and even 10-day courses on subjects like stress reduction and sleeping better.

Smiling Mind is run by a non-profit and offers recordings as short as 2 minutes. It has a great selection for children and young people. For iOS, Android, and web.

UCLA Mindful was created by University of California researchers based on the science of mindfulness. It offers a good “getting started” section and has recordings in English and Spanish.

For iOS and Android.

The Healthy Minds Program was developed by a neuroscientist at the University of Wisconsin.

The app helps you work on mental focus, immune health, and reducing stress, as well as personal qualities like resilience and compassion. This app is more thinking-based than meditation-based.

MyLife Meditation customizes sessions to how you feel right now. It has recordings for specific purposes, such as breathing, mindfulness, and body awareness. It’s for people more open to meditation.

For iOS and Android.

How to Reduce Anxiety in the Age of COVID

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BY PATRICIA SANDERS

don’t mean to stress you out, but there’s a second pandemic going on along with the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s probably affecting everyone, to one degree or another.

It’s a pandemic of stress and anxiety.

If you’re experiencing trouble concentrating, sleep problems, irritability or nervousness, or constant worrying, or if you have little interest in pleasure or in doing things, or are feeling down or depressed, you’re far from alone.

Most people are experiencing these symptoms during the pandemic.

Trouble concentrating is the most common difficulty: Before the pandemic, about one in ten people reported trouble concentrating – or “brain fog” – but during the pandemic, it’s been three out of four people. Trouble concentrating has become much more common among young people, and is probably interfering with their schoolwork.

Increases in anxiety and depression

Before the pandemic struck, anxiety and depression were affecting about 11% of people – a little more than one in ten. By June 2020 – a few months into the pandemic – that number had skyrocketed to 42%.

For working adults, in particular, the number reporting anxiety tripled during the pandemic – from about one in four to about three in four people. Depression, sleep problems, and irritability have all more than doubled in

“Fear and anxiousness about [COVID] is normal, real, human.

This cannot not affect your emotions. This is you being human. It is uncomfortable, not weak or unhealthy.”

– Therapist Monica Blume

prevalence. Low energy, loss of appetite, and feeling bad about yourself have also increased.

These symptoms seem to be caused mostly by isolation, fear of infection, and the tensions of being in lockdown. On top of these stressors, people are also experiencing economic worries, uncertainty (including constant changes in health guidance), and the pain of watching other people suffering.

The symptoms are worst for young people.

Close to 10% of young people in the United States are experiencing severe depression. Thoughts of suicide or self-harm may be happening to more than half of 11-to-17year-olds.

The symptoms of stress and anxiety can translate into reduced performance at work, at school, and in caregiving.

Anxiety and other symptoms aren’t likely to go away by themselves, even after the pandemic wanes. After 9/11, the stress that that event caused was still affecting people’s mental health 14 years later. So it’s important to take action to reduce your symptoms and feel better.

It’s always difficult to ask for help with mental health, but even more so during the pandemic, with restrictions and limitations on health services in place in many locations.

But there are simple things you can do to improve the way you feel.

An Antidote: Relaxation

Listening to music you love, doing art, adding pleasant scents to your environment (aromatherapy), or taking a warm or hot bath can help you relax, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Just doing something slowly every day can help your nervous system reset, according to family therapist Emma McAdam. You might choose to dress slowly, walk across the room slowly, do the dishes slowly, or some other activity. Slowing down tells your nervous system you’re safe, even if you don’t necessarily feel that way.

All of the following suggestions are evidence-based techniques for relaxation. Although some might sound a little esoteric, these techniques have all been researched and recommended by the Harvard Medical School.

They’re simple and require no equipment, just a few minutes of time.

Take a few minutes to focus on your breath. Whether sitting, lying down, or standing, focus on taking long, slow breaths deep into your belly. Try to move your mind away from distracting thoughts. (If you have existing difficulties breathing, this technique might not be appropriate for you.)

Do a body scan. Sit quietly and move your mental focus to one body part or group of muscles at a time. Notice any physical tension in that part of your body and release it. Tensing those muscles for a few seconds, and then releasing, can help.

Do guided imagery. Use an app or online recording to guide you through picturing a soothing place or experience.

(If you’re a person who doesn’t easily picture things mentally, this one might not work so well for you.)

Do mindfulness meditation. Research shows mindfulness meditation could help with anxiety, depression, and pain. Simply sit or lie down in a comfortable position, focus on your breathing, and bring your attention quietly to the present moment. When thoughts intrude, don’t berate yourself, just let the thoughts slide away, and go back to your quietness. (If feelings come up, don’t try to fight them – this can add to your anxiety level. Just let yourself weep or feel afraid until the feeling passes. It’s normal to feel grief or fear during the pandemic.)

Try yoga, tai chi, or qi gong. People have used these practices for thousands of years to create mental focus and improve balance and flexibility. Start gently, and if you have existing issues that might affect doing these activities, please check with your doctor first.

Use a repetitive prayer. If prayer appeals to you, choose a short prayer or devotional phrase and repeat it silently over and over while you sit or lie down comfortably. Try to focus on your breath while you do this.

These recommendations all come from the Harvard University Heart Letter. The authors suggest trying several of the techniques to see which ones work for you. Just a few minutes a day can make a difference. If you can do more – 20 minutes or more daily – you’ll get even more benefits.

Give yourself time to let relaxation work its magic.

Relaxing is a skill, and it takes time to learn how.

The stresses of the pandemic may be with us for months to come. By taking control of your own stress response, you can carve out a space for yourself to be a little calmer and clearer. And that can make all the difference. u

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SEPTEMBER 2021

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MAYOR’S MONTHLY REPORT AL GAMEROS CITY OF GLOBE COVID UPDATE Covid cases continue to rise with Arizona reaching another milestone at 1 million cases recorded, and an alarming number of children being infected nationwide.

Hospitalizations are at their highest numbers since February, at 2,005, with an increase in pediatric cases.

Gila County has recorded a total of 816 new cases for the month. The breakdown by area in our community is as follows: Globe 191, Miami 33, Claypool 44, and San Carlos 203.

Medical science has proven that the vaccines do work.

I recommend that you consider getting vaccinated to help slow the spread. If you would like to get vaccinated, call the Gila County Health Department and make an appointment at (928) 910-4009. You can also get antibody or COVID testing by calling (928) 961-1284.

The CDC is recommending that masks should be worn in indoor settings whether you are vaccinated or unvaccinated. Our City COVID team has updated their guidelines requiring anyone from the public entering any City facilities to wear a mask. In-person City Council meetings are now limited to 50% capacity.

FLOODING UPDATE A Town Hall meeting was held August 26 to update the public on information on how they can apply to request assistance. HB 2001 allocated $10 million to property owners to apply for funds for damage to infrastructure due to the Telegraph Fire and suppression efforts. The

Join us for a fun morning!

funds are not for replacement of personal property lost due to post-fire flooding. The funds can be used by local government for the cleaning of waterways and for debris cleanup and removal caused by flooding.

I want to recognize the United Fund of Globe-Miami for their leadership role in the creation of a “Join the Flood Raising Challenge.” They will be partnering with the Salvation Army to bring relief to local families affected by the post-fire flooding. Eligible families may apply for up to $2,500 for repairs, supplies, or household needs.

The program was set up to help meet the gap between residents and available resources from the state, county, and emergency services that are limited to cleanup outside and around their homes. You can apply by calling the Salvation Army at (928) 275-7211.

To date, there has been $258,019 donated. The United Fund of Globe-Miami put a $50K challenge amount that they would match dollar for dollar, making their total $100K. The three local mines, Freeport McMoRan, Capstone Pinto Valley, and BHP Billiton, each committed $50K to the program, bringing it to the current amount.

There have also been additional donations from the Southwest Gas Corporation, Globe Lions Club, and many individuals. If you would like to donate to this program, you can go to the United Fund of Globe-Miami Inc. website at UFGlobeMiami.com and hit the “Give Now” button, or you can mail your donation to P.O. Box 2160, Globe, AZ 85502.

STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS A date has been set for the first annual “State of the City” address: September 30, 2021, at Veterans Park in Globe at 5:30 p.m. The address will focus on celebrating our community wins, recognizing areas of improvement, and discussing current economic conditions, capital projects, and City finances.

A Citizens Academy is in the planning stages, set to begin in October of 2021. This will be a six-week course offering a comprehensive behind-the-scenes perspective of the City of Globe’s structure and operations.

Applications for the academy will be announced sometime in September.

PROJECTS IN PROGRESS City staff has been directed to complete an agreement with Arizona Public Service and Electrify America for the installation of four charging stations for electric vehicles. This project is totally funded by the APS and Electrify America contract. The City will only need to provide the property to have the units installed. The location chosen for this project is the parking lot north of the library. There are only five cities in Arizona that have a destination for charging electric vehicles. This project will bring statewide economic development and marketing opportunities to our city.

On August 26, a workshop was held to review the progress of the Connie’s Bridge project, which is now at 95% completion in the design phase. Council approved to move to 100% design and go out for bid on the award to a contractor for completion of the project. We were also informed that another $1.3 million was approved at the state level for the addition of upgrades to South Broad Street from Cottonwood to the intersection of the new bridge. Thank you to Jerry Barnes and Representative David Cook for getting this proposal through the legislative process.

PERSONNEL Congratulations to Police Commander AJ Castenada and Human Resource Director Chris Collopy, on their retirement this month from the City of Globe. Good luck on your future ventures.

Please continue to pray for the Globe Police Department and the officer who sustained a gunshot wound during an incident the weekend of August 28.

Keep him, his family, and the entire department in your thoughts as they work through the healing process.

UPCOMING EVENTS • September 23-26 – Gila County Fair • September 30 – State of the City Address

Dogtoberfest Celebration 2021 Sunday, October 23 • 9am–Noon at Globe Dog Park

Costume Booths • D Contest emo Races and nstrations, a dog walk !

SEPTEMBER 2021

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37th ANNUAL APACHE JII FESTIVAL Celebrating Native American Culture in Downtown Globe

Crown dancers perform on Broad Street. Photo by LCGross

Douglas Miiles Jr. takes to the air with an Apache Skateboard demonstration. Photo by LCGross Douglas Miiles Jr was featured in Umber Magazine in 2020.

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o keep the experience authentic, all vendors, performers, and speakers belong to a Native American tribe. Our poster this year was designed by San Carlos Apache artist Rebekah Miles, and we will again be featuring a demonstration by the team at Apache Skateboard. The nationally recognized father/son duo of Douglas Miles Sr. and Jr have “fostered a skating scene that encourages creative ambition on US reservations” and have been featured in national magazines including Vice, Umber, and National Geographic.

Dance and singing performances will run throughout the day, including traditional crown dancers, hoop dancers, and performances of native flute by Robert Wilson.

Back again this year is the internationally renowned Yellow Bird Dancers. This professional dance company, under the direction of Ken Duncan, a member of the San Carlos Apache

Tribe, specializes in cultural presentations that celebrate the unique spirit of the American Indian. Based in Phoenix, this family dance company has garnered many championships while performing all over the world.

In addition to live performances throughout the day, Apache traditional dishes like fry bread and acorn soup will be available. Artisan booths featuring fine art, crafts, jewelry, and more - all representing Native American art and culture - will offer an exceptional opportunity to explore the richness that is Apache Jii. We have an entire day of fun, celebration, and education planned for the whole family.

We look forward to seeing you on Saturday, October 16, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Historic Downtown Globe!

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SEPTEMBER 2021

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Seed Library at CVCA Sharing Seeds

STORY AND PHOTOS BY PATTI DALEY

The Seed Library at the Cobre Valley Center for the Arts (CVCA) has a huge assortment of flower and vegetable seeds available free to anyone with an interest in growing. The library currently holds more than 300 packets of seeds, alphabetically sorted and located in an antique file cabinet in the corner of the gift shop.

“It is all stuff that will grow locally,” says May Sullivan, the seed library’s co-creator.

In fact, most of the seeds in Globe’s Seed Library are from plants that have grown here: sunflower seeds from Bob Zache’s garden, artichoke seeds from Flat Four Farms, and more.

“When we came up with the idea, I asked all of my friends who have flowers to save me seeds,” says May. “There are people who have gardened for a long time and have lots of seeds.”

“We just want people to be home gardeners and grow things...and eat healthy food,” says Mindy Lively, a master gardener and co-owner of Flat Four Farms.

Mindy partnered with May to bring the seed library idea to fruition and encourages people to help themselves to the seeds of their choice. Each envelope has enough seeds for a home gardener. For those starting winter gardens, there are carrot seeds, swiss chard, arugula, and more.

“Seed libraries have been around for a

long time,” says Mindy. “That’s what people did. They exchanged seeds.”

Unlike a seedbank, in which the main purpose is to store seeds against possible destruction, a seed library’s goal is to disseminate seeds to the public and preserve plant varieties through propagation and ongoing seed-sharing.

Payson and Bisbee each have seed libraries, both housed in their public libraries.

May and Mindy were looking for a location and a way to house the seed library when Mary, a CVCA board member, learned that

May Sullivan and Mindy Lively stand in front of a vintage card catalogue which now serves as the seed library.

an old filing cabinet from the assessor’s office could be used to great effect. It now stands in the corner of the CVCA gift shop, time-period appropriate and accessible to all.

“It was her great idea of having it here,” says Mindy. “It’s the hub of town. A lot of things happen here. “

Saving Seeds “We want it to be an exchange,” says Mindy. “Take some seeds from the library, and when you have extra seeds of something, share them.”

Contributors can leave their seeds in envelopes or plastic baggies in the top drawer of the cabinet. Include your name, the name of the seed, and when it was harvested.

They’ll be sorted into seed packets and file drawers for others to find.

Mindy also purchases seeds in bulk through the Great American Seed-Up (https://greatamericanseedup.org) through donations she receives for the seed library.

More information about seed-saving and winter gardening is available on YouTube in a series of Garden & Country webinars facilitated by Chris Jones, with the University of Arizona Gila County Cooperative Extension (https://bit.ly/3yOCfiO).

“What’s most important to know about seed-saving is that there are species that are true-to-parent and easy to save, such as beans, peas, lettuce, arugula, and broccoli,” Chris says. “Plants that hybridize readily require isolation, and there are special techniques for ‘wet’ species, like tomatoes, cucumbers, and melons.”

Now is a good time to begin seed-saving, according to the seed librarians. Summer flowers are spent and the autumn harvest is upon us.

“You cut into a pumpkin for Halloween, you save the seeds,” Mindy says.

It’s not always that simple, but sometimes it is. Mindy’s neighbor threw a rotten squash out into his yard and now has acorn squash growing.

“I told him to save the seeds,” Mindy says, “because those are going to be hardier than most seeds you can get.” u

The 18th Annual Run to the Rez is back after taking last year off due to COVID-19!

John Bush, San Carlos Apache and Tribal councilman launched the event with friends in 2003 and he says it has just grown since then. It is now one of the largest Native American rides in the country and Bush says he is expecting around 500 riders this year. He adds that the event will follow all CDC guidelines.

“People are just ready to get out and ride,” he says. Hotels in Globe have already begun to fill up.

The event includes a traditional Apache dinner ride, blessing of the Bikers Ceremony, an Apache Street Fair, Poker Run, Bike Show and live concert performances by several bands.

With “big support” from the Tribe, Bush says they have been able to bring in great talent and will be giving away a Harley-Davidson on Saturday.

The big event will be the run to San Carlos honoring all veterans, followed by a poker run which starts at Burdette Hall.

All attendees receive a long sleeve T-shirt, wristband for the event and a ticket for the Grand Prize Harley Davidson. Tickets are $30 for 2-days and $25 for Saturday only. For more information contact John Bush at 928-9616002 or email johnrezrider@yahoo.com For complete details on the two day event visit www.runtotherez.com.

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GOOD NEWS AROUND GLOBE

PROJECT UPDATES SPONSORED CONTENT

Regina Ortega-Leonardi and the “Trash Mob” are helping to clean up Globe-Miami. Courtesy Photo

BY THEA WILSHIRE

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his monthly feature takes residents behind the scenes to find out about projects at the City of Globe as staff advance their four pillars of community wellbeing - specifically public safety, infrastructure, quality of life, and economic development. This month highlights work being done to make our city business-friendly and our community attractive as a means to encourage new business recruitment.

Melissa Steele is the Economic Development Specialist for the City. She works to help local businesses thrive and new businesses get started. However, she says business owners have told the City it has not always been easy to do this in Globe.

“Because the public report this process is confusing, with needless delays, we want to streamline it,” Steele says.

To that end, the City looked at its new business recruitment process, researched how other communities try to support local businesses, and decided to reorganize its community development structure. A month ago, City Council passed a resolution that created a new Economic and Community Development position and appointed Linda Oddonetto as director to oversee the work being done by four city departments: Economic Development, headed by Melissa Steele; Development Services, with Michelle Yerkovich as code enforcement officer and Carl Hacker as building inspector; Besh ba Gowah, with Leana McGill as museum supervisor, overseeing both Besh and community recreation requests along with her clerks, Elizabeth Beltran and Aubree Silverburg; and Zoning, with Dana Burkhardt as zoning administrator.

Councilman Mariano Gonzalez explains, “The new planning department is basically a one-stop shop. We can see when a business is coming into town, we can hold them by the hand as they do startup. As they do development and purchase property, we can walk them through all of those procedures and ordinances. We can help them all the way to the opening, and then as they go through their business life cycle, we can help with inspections, maybe even grants. We have a full-service department now.”

“Council is trying to cut red tape and make things easier, so this reorganization is part of that,” explained Steele. “We are making it more user-friendly. If everyone is under the same umbrella, nobody gets dropped and nobody gets confused. It’s one department through the whole process until opening day.”

To support this coordination, Steele says, “I’m working on a packet which is basically a flowchart: here’s where you start, here’s how you get through the City requirements, here’s all the information and phone numbers, and

here’s everything else you need to know if you are new to the City of Globe.”

Though the reorganization was done to reduce confusion, a few aspects might seem a little perplexing. When asked why Besh ba Gowah, the City’s archeological park and museum, is in this department, Steele says, “It’s so we can support their marketing. They bring in a lot of tourism and are the reason some people discover Globe.” Steele says the City sees Besh ba Gowah as an amazing ambassador for the community and wants to support their efforts. “If we are working to promote the entire area, this partnership makes sense.”

Code enforcement, also now under the umbrella of economic and community development, is about a lot more than helping new businesses start, and the reason for its inclusion is not immediately clear. Steele clarifies, “It’s a whole economic rising. Code enforcement is about economic development, if you think about new people moving here. If they see broken windows, they won’t want to choose us.”

A step prior to promoting Globe to new businesses or tourists is to make Globe more visually appealing to newcomers.

This is accomplished by both reducing blight and adding beauty. Blight - such as trash, weeds, broken windows, collapsing fences, and inoperable vehicles - blocks positive community connection and growth, and community beautification supports economic development.

Councilman Fernando Shipley says, “If we want others to invest in our community, we need to invest first, and this can be sweat equity and labor. As my mom always told me, ‘You don’t have to have money to be clean.’”

His sentiments are shared by many. To this end, there have been a number of blight reduction projects in town, including the historic cemetery clean-ups organized by Vice Mayor Mike Stapleton and Supervisor Woody Cline, community clean-ups organized by Regina Ortega-Leonardi with the Trash Mobbers and Globe Clean and Beautiful through the City of Globe, and the code enforcement efforts of Yerkovich. In nine months’ time, these groups have cleared over 4 million pounds of trash from our local streets, washes, and historic sites.

If you’re interested in learning more about business support, community cleanups, and other local resources, please contact the Community Development Department through the City of Globe at (928) 425-7146.

You might also consider attending Mayor Al Gameros’s State of the City event scheduled for September 30 at 5:30 p.m. in Veterans Park (the park outside the Municipal Building).

The mayor will update the community on all that’s being done in response to recent challenges (e.g., COVID, fires, floods), share

community improvement campaigns, and answer questions about City priorities and planning.

Shipley is a big supporter of this event, stating, “I think most people aren’t aware of what’s actually happening at the City. It helps to know what the challenges and hopes are.”

This event is being held outdoors to support social distancing and will be made available for viewing after the event on Facebook and YouTube.

Stapleton sees tremendous possibilities

for economic growth for our community.

“It’s huge! Within the last few years, it’s really moving. Things are happening that most people don’t know about, like the Mickelson Building project. People are coming and walking around town and interested in our community.” Steele agrees and feels the recent business support reorganization will support the process. “It’s part of the new wave coming. There are people moving here already, and we can’t keep houses on the market!” u

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SEPTEMBER 2021

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Old Dominion Mine Park Closed Until February

The Mine Park has been popular with visitors and locals alike as both a walking education on our mining history as well as a recreation area. Photo by LCGross taken in 2017.

BY THEA WILSHIRE

Signs went up at the Old Dominion Mine Park (ODMP) on September 1 stating the park will close from September 12 through January 31 for drilling activity. Residents are asking for more information about what’s going on, why the entire park is impacted, and even if they are in danger.

For some background on the situation, BHP owns the property and holds ultimate responsibility for EPA compliance. The City of Globe holds a legal easement for the park, but the language of the easement allows BHP to close the park at any time for safety concerns. On February 29, 2020, half of the park was closed due to international concerns over tailings dam safety and a blanket decision by BHP to prohibit the public from access to tailings dams at all of their sites worldwide.

The ODMP tailings dams are stable, safe, and dry. Extensive mitigation work was already undertaken about 20 years ago.

However, BHP made no exception to their safety proclamation. This meant closure of the northern part of the park, which removed access to the park’s most accessible walking trails and the disc golf course. (For more information, please read the in-depth coverage of the situation in the February 2020 GMT article Chasing Our Tailings, www.globemiamitimes.com/chasing-ourtailings/.)

Since then, BHP has been working steadily to get the entire park back open.

They started with 79 possible tailings dam remediation strategies in March 2020,

A playground for kids which includes a zip line was installed in 2018. Photo by LCGross. narrowed this to 35 plans in March 2021, and now are looking at just a few remaining options. These include relocation of the tailings, partial relocation, buttressing the dams, and in situ stabilization (reinforcing the dams internally).

As to the new all-park closure, BHP needs to gather additional site characterization information to make the technological decisions required before choosing a final remediation plan. This will involve a lot of heavy equipment and drilling at sites around the entire property. To protect local residents

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(particularly small children who might be using the playground), they need the whole park to briefly close.

After this, BHP plans to reopen the southern half of the park while they spend months analyzing the site characterization data, subsequently pick a preferred remediation strategy, and then begin developing detailed engineering plans. BHP has a corporate commitment to complete high-risk tailing remediation work at all of their properties by summer 2026, a deadline the ODMP team is trying to meet.

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The local BHP team is aware of how important the ODMP is to Globe-Miami residents and has actively supported alternative recreation in light of the closures during the mitigation work. Maricela Solis De Kester, BHP Manager of Corporate Affairs for Legacy Assets, says, “We are committed to addressing the recreational needs of a cross-section of the community - the elderly, kids, families, the fit - because COVID has really changed the way we think about our interactions and opportunities to connect with others.”

In the past few months, BHP began investing about $600,000 into regional recreation. They are building a one-mile walking path in Miami Gardens, investing in two new playgrounds and a splashpad for children, purchasing outdoor senior fitness equipment, and working to make Globe’s historic downtown into a preferred walking venue with watering stations and public art.

The park closure creates some unexpected opportunities. Solis De Kester explains, “While the park is closed, this can be a great time to bring in contractors to work on the playground.” She is referencing the much-needed replacement of safety surfacing in the playground, which BHP is stepping up to provide. The closure may also allow time to move the disc golf goals into the soon-to-be-reopened half of the park.

“For us, having the opportunity to be a partner and participate in recreation development is really a privilege,” says Solis De Kester. “We can contribute to the health and wellbeing of the overall community.”

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HIGH SCHOOL

Vandals Attend the League of Towns & Cities

Luis Curiel, Dennis Davis, Josephine Klindt and AnnMary Terrence attend a presentation at the conference. Photo: Rhiannon Oldfield

Four Miami High School students and their teacher, Rhiannon Oldfield, attended the annual Arizona League of Towns & Cities conference in Phoenix.

Held at the historic Biltmore Hotel, the conference brings together more than a thousand mayors, council members, appointed officials and guests.

Each year the Town of Miami hosts student leaders to accompany the Miami delegation. Students attending this year were Luis Curiel, Dennis Davis,

Miami delegation: Front – AnnMary Terrence, Josephine Klindt, Dennis Davis, Luis Curiel; Back – Councilman Michael Sosh, Councilman Dan Moat, Councilman Michael Black, Mayor Sammy Gonzales. Photo: Rhiannon Oldfield

Josephine Klindt and AnnMary Terrence. The Town’s support permits students to observe municipal leaders in action and to understand the complex issues facing rural communities.

In a year that has seen a pandemic, fires and floods, the students at Miami High School are grateful for the continuing generosity of Mayor Gonzales and the Town Council.

Computer Science Mastery Begins with Teachers Longtime aides Lisa Schiefert and Leslie Mora have completed their teaching degrees through EAC and ASU, and are heading up a new computer coding program at Miami High. They recently completed the first round of training with TechSmart and are implementing the first year of coding with our sophomores, who will be learning Python, Java and HTML. Thanks to a Computer Sciences Professional Development grant from the Arizona Department of Education, along with donated curriculum from TechSmart, Miami is now able to offer coding training that leads directly to industry credentials and job placement. The program is based on three main principles: Computers don’t teach. Teachers do. Knowledgeable teachers are essential to learning. TechSmart gives educators the knowledge and confidence of a software engineer through intensive coding bootcamps, complete curricula, a platform that scaffolds and supports them, and live support.

Students should learn everything needed to become a coding professional. A single course can’t give students the depth of knowledge they require to compete for jobs in the coding industry. Students will immediately have the chance to take three full years of coding, and the program will eventually roll out to include students beginning in second grade.

Coding powers the future. No one should be excluded. Computer science is the great equalizer. We accommodate and engage students of all backgrounds with full differentiation across our curriculum to ensure every student has the opportunity to learn to code, and make their mark on the world.

The skills and credentials Miami students are acquiring are important for every student – for the student who wants to stay in Miami after graduation, for the kid who wants to pursue advanced studies in the computer sciences, and for the graduate who will take these advanced coding skills into other 21stcentury pursuits.

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Jane and Tom Hale have set up a travel trailer to live in until they decide what to do.

They have lived on this land for over 32 years. Photo by LCGross

Debris from the burn scar and the flooding shows the enormity of the flood waters. Photo by Ellie Petty

Floodwaters at the Hale Ranch Our two stories on flooding take place on opposite ends of the Pinals, but both were drastically impacted by first the fire in June and now the flooding which began in July and continued to wreak havoc throughout the month of August.

The Ptak’s ranch in El Capitan is located off Highway 77 on your way to Tucson. The Hale homestead is located off Highway 60 mid-way between Miami and Superior.

BY LINDA GROSS

J The mangled remains of Hedges truck was pulled from the creek where it had rolled down by McSpaddens ranch. Photo by Ellie Petty

ane and Tom Hale have lived on their property in the Pinals for over 32 years, in a home built by the McKusicks – whose craftsmanship in home building, dating back to the Great Depression, was legendary in the area.

It’s a good thing. A lesser house might not have survived.

The flood waters, which hit the Hales’ house on July 29, were part of the third major flooding event since the monsoons brought the first rain to the area on July 3. A rainy season like this would have been welcomed with openarms after 14 months of record drought, had it not come on the heels of the massive Telegraph Fire. The burn scar left a hard crust where once there was ground cover, and with every rain the runoff was massive and mixed with burned debris and mud.

Furniture from the home was soaked and had to be taken to the dump. Photo by Trena Grantham.

The Pinals, which typically see 2 inches of rain per year, have had over 14 inches just in July and August.

The Hales had prepared for the flooding by deepening the creekbed channel, creating higher berms, and lining the bend with 4,000-pound jersey barriers – the kind used in road construction.

The first several flood events of the monsoon season, including the one of which overtopped the banks and flooded Six Shooter Canyon, were contained at the Hale ranch with the barriers they had erected after the fire.

But the microburst that hung over the mountains to the west of them and dropped over 2 inches of rain in less than an hour was too much for any man-made barriers.

The mix of flood waters and burn debris quickly overtopped the banks of the creek bed, destroyed the new earthen berm, and blew through the jersey barriers, lifting them up effortlessly and rolling them downriver. It took out the couple’s large gazebo on the back patio and their white picket fence before bursting through the windows and doors of the porch and through the house.

Jane had set the table for lunch that day and had steaks on the counter. Friends Dawn and John Hedges had come to help them move some hay. Even though the sky was clear at the ranch, Jane moved her car and truck to higher ground when she saw it raining to the west. When she went back to get the couple’s 4x4 she saw the wall of water and stopped.

“I was probably thirty seconds from being in that water,” she says. “John (Hedges) didn’t get there fast enough to move his truck, and it rolled up like a tin can behind McSpadden’s.”

Water, mixed with mud and debris – including massive tree trunks the size of a man’s torso – crashed through the back of her home and flooded every room in the house and for nearly an hour, Jane stood on her front porch, barely above the raging waters, and filmed it all.

Inside, her husband, Tommie, along with Dawn and John Hedges, worked to keep the couple’s small dogs safely on top of the now-floating furniture in the living room.

The couple would discover one of the older small dogs had drowned in the back room where the flood first burst through the windows and doors of the home.

“She was old and hard of hearing, and probably didn’t even know it was coming,” says Jane.

Three of her large dogs were in the garage when it collapsed. Two of the dogs made it out of the floodwaters.

One has still not been found.

Jane’s video, which was picked up by news stations in the Valley, shows a wide expanse of fast-running water and debris spanning nearly 100 feet. She estimates it was 20 feet deep in places. Later photos show debris piled at least that high in places.

FLOOD, Continued on page 13

SEPTEMBER 2021

13

Udon McSpadden lives in a house above the couple. He lost two dogs in the flood and was one of the first people on the scene helping to muck out the home. Photo by Trena Grantham.

MAJOR FLOOD EVENTS The Telegraph Fire began on June 4, 2021.

The fire burned 180,757 acres (73,150 ha) and was fully contained on July 3, 2021. On July 4th, the first monsoon rain of the season floods the canyon.

July 4 Six Shooter Canyon floods sending water over the banks of the creek damaging homes, bridges and properties in the canyon. The water flooded the road and floated a 40ft container a mile downstream.

Mud could be found inside electrical outlets and in all the plumbing. Photo by LCGross

July 29 A microburst which hung over the mountains west of Miami, dumping 2” of rain in less than 45 minutes floods Miami, with water overtopping the bridges and flooding Hwy 60 and sending water into businesses lining the highway and Sullivan Street. The Hale and Ptak ranches are hit hard (pp. 1)

FLOOD, Continued from page 12 The following day, nearly 50 people showed up to help, including Jane’s daughter Ellie and her long-time neighbor Udon McSpadden, whose house sits above Jane’s. He lost two hunting dogs in the flood, but his house was safe.

Volunteers hauled debris-soaked furniture and belongings to the dump, shoveled out mud from all corners of the house, retrieved what was left of John Hedges truck, located the jersey barriers they could find and brought them back to the ranch, checked on the 40 head of Jane’s cattle that had survived, and attended to the couple’s need for food, water, and shelter, providing temporary housing and feeding them.

Friends Allan Walpole and Trena Grantham, who are retired from custom home building, walked through the house and told Jane and Tom what they needed to do to save the house: rip off drywall to the waterline, tear up the flooring to the concrete foundation, scrub down the framework, take apart the electrical, and clean every bit of mud and silt out of the places it had settled.

Jane is unsure whether, even if she were able to save the house, she should try. It depends on the creek. All the experts warn of similar kinds of flood events from the burn scar for another three to five years.

“I could do a complete remodel,” Jane says, “but this ain’t over. Far from it.” She hopes to consult with an engineer to see if something can be done that would ensure the home’s safety, but it’s hard to look at photos of the monster wall of water and debris that hit the house on the 29th and imagine anything man-made could bend the will of Mother Nature and turn the flood away from the house.

In the meantime, the cleaning continues. The mud is everywhere; in electrical outlets, down the toilet, underneath the floors. Jane points to a bathtub that floated off its foundation. The Hales have been using their savings to make repairs. But without a Federal Disaster Emergency designation for the flooding, they won’t be able to get their money back. Nor can they replace the house, she says, if they have to tear it down without the designation. There is also the issue of the garage and the miles of fencing that was taken out by the flood. It’s $35 per foot of fencing says Tom and he has lost thousands of dollars in fencing alone from the flood. That too will have to come out of the couple’s savings for now.

Her daughter Ellie would like to see the house sit for a year with the walls exposed to see if mold shows up. There is a travel trailer set up on site which the couple uses as a temporary home.

They still have dogs and cattle on the property which depend on them. Jane is hoping the forest service will allow their cattle back on the land in a year. If they don’t she doesn’t know what they will do with their herd. u

August 18 Jane and Tom’s daughter, Ellie Petty scrubbing mud from kitchen cabinets. Photo by LCGross

Another monsoon rain which begins at 2 a.m. and rains throughout the morning, floods the Little Acres Mobile Home Park, sending a river of water which upended homes, cars and sheds.

Carl Melford, head of Emergency Management for Gila County, explained in an email that a state emergency declaration was issued on July 29, which made $200,000 available for local governments to recuperate response costs in an emergency. In the event of flooding, this would be applicable to reimburse debris removal costs at a 75% cost match – essentially a reimbursement rate. This means 75 cents of every dollar spent would be eligible for reimbursement, not to exceed $200,000.

However, Gila County has been utilizing the $100 million made available through House Bill 2001, issued by Gov. Ducey. This funding source is statewide, so counties across the state will be drawing on it. It also has no cost match – it’s a 100% reimbursement. Gila County (supporting the City of Globe and Town of Miami) has already used $3.8 million. But this funding is available only to local governments – not individuals like Jane and Tom Hale.

A screenshot of the video taken by Jane Hale on the day of the flood shows its massive size.

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The outline of the Telegraph/Mescal Fire which burned over 200,000 acres in June has led to the destructive flooding the area has experienced.

GRYPHON RANCH, Continued from page 1

Made it through the fire

Carol and Jim Ptak with the fire crew who helped save their house and livestock during the fire. “If anyone would have told me on June 13th that the fire would be the easy part, I would have said ‘You’re nuts!’ Carol Ptak.

“If anyone would have told me on June 13th that the fire would be the easy part, I would have said ‘You’re nuts!’”

Gryphon Ranch got the GO call at 5:38 a.m. on June 14. Carol and Jim Ptak were packed – two suitcases by the door, documents, cash, firearms, and a trailer stacked with hay hitched to Jim’s truck.

“We contacted our ranching buddies to bring trailers,” Carol says. “We have 50 head of cattle and three horses.”

They expected their friends around 7:00 a.m., but by 7:25, the only one to arrive at Gryphon Ranch was Todd Abel from Central Arizona Fire. At that point, Highway 77 is engulfed in flames. The trailers have been turned back.

“We had to leave all the cattle and the horses,” Carol says. “We high-tailed it out of there with a wall of flames coming over the hill.”

The fire burns through the night at great intensity.

Manzanita, mesquite, scrubby pinion pines go up in flames. A motor home blows up. Winds shift. The fire blows through the primary line north of the Ptaks “as if it didn’t exist.” Ranch Creek Road is devastated from the south.

The Tucson 1 DOC fire crew watches over their ranch, which is positioned between the two fires. The fire swings and rages, and before it’s finished, all of the ranches around and 70% of Gryphon Ranch have burned. It stops 100 feet from the pasture where they left their highland cattle.

Two days later, Jim and Carol return to Gryphon Ranch. They are greeted by their horses and the sight of the only piece of green left in the area. Their house and barn are standing. All their animals are there.

“We feel like the luckiest people on the face of the planet,” says Carol. “Hallelujah, right?”

Then came the floods

Brent Cline, Roads Manager with Gila County’s PublicWorks Department. Courtesy photo.

July 3. It rains hard. Water slips off burnt peaks and comes barreling down the canyons of Ice House, Six Shooter and El Capitan. The Ptaks wake up in their bright blue house to find the last of their green space covered in black mud.

Two of the buildings saved by the firemen are now twisted around trees. There are tangles of fence and water lines littered in random places, and a lot more rocks in the lower parts.

“We flooded 18 times before Miami got hit on July 29th,” Carol recounts.

First they yanked 48-inch culverts from the crossings. A thousand feet of water lines were ripped up and replaced, the corral was repaired (six times), and help was hired to fix the perimeter fence. Jim pulled leg ligaments in the effort and landed in the hospital.

“Since the flood, it’s been 12- to 15-hour days of real physical work,” says Jim Ptak, “and when you’re 66, that gets old.”

He lets out a good-natured laugh, but he means it. When the flooded barn threatened their feed, Carol asked the 4H leaders for help. That night, she and Jim prayed.

“Nothing happens but for the will of God,” says Jim, grateful for his faith. “If you truly believe there’s a purpose, it helps you get through the day.”

The next morning their prayers are answered.

Two truckloads of 4H kids arrive to save the hay. A squeegee appears just in time. Together they get the barn mucked out. A hard day’s work. Everyone is exhausted. But the hay is still outside. Then two more trucks arrive.

“Fresh kids!” Carol exclaims.

They stack all of the hay back in the barn. It rains again that night.

SEPTEMBER 2021

The grown-ups get involved “The priority is getting the roads passable and keeping them that way,” says Supervisor Woody Cline of District 3.

It’s August 26, more than a week since the last rain, and Gryphon Ranch is humming with heavy equipment.

Brent Cline, Roads Manager with Gila County’s Public Works Department, is there with a tractor. J.L. Dixon is clearing culverts, making roads passable, and building berms. They work feverishly. Thunder rumbles.

A week later, the debris is gone and they’ve started final grading. The pens are being rebuilt, and the Ptaks are working towards getting the ranch operational.

Thousands of dollars have gone into the disaster and recovery efforts.

“This is our life now,” says Carol. “Earth work.”

County people have been “absolutely incredible,” Carol says. “Still, our lifestyle has been destroyed, and our life savings are going with it.”

On June 18, Governor Ducey signed a $100 million bipartisan relief package. The funding is to support firefighting efforts, ensure Arizona communities have the resources needed for post-fire disasters such as flooding, and reduce the risk of future wildfires.

Of the $100 million, $10 million is dedicated to local aid, including payments to local contractors for cleanup, removal of debris, demolition directly attributable to fire or flooding, and waivers for dumpster, landfill, and debris/sediment haul-off fees.

This state money is being distributed through the Department of Forestry and Fire Management (DFFM) in local collaboration with public works departments and Gila County Emergency Manager Carl Melford. Property owners can call (928) 910-4009 during business hours or fill out a form online at the Gila County website.

As Carol Ptak awaits a response to her online application for the state flood recovery aid, she is strident about the need for a federal response – accountability for choices that intensified the fire, and possibly the actions that sparked it. The National Guard confirmed they were training in the area the day the Telegraph Fire started.

“They ordered those pilots to that training exercise when there were severe fire restrictions and high winds, and they’re out there with heat flares,” says Carol, incredulously. “And they’re still out there!”

Near-term outlook “Our issues today with the flooding are not going away,” says Woody Cline. “There will be winter, spring, and next summer.”

A crust of baked clay forms when the land burns with such intensity, he explains. It needs to be broken up so water can seep into the ground and plants can seed.

“Put the cattle on the burn,” says Carol Ptak. “Feed them native hay and let the cattle go to work. Their feet will break up the crust. They eat, they poop, they reestablish the topsoil. We could reduce the restoration time by half and reduce the flooding in town.”

Adam Bromley, Globe District Ranger, says that while the vegetation burn was intense, the soil burn was primarily moderate, and few areas of the Telegraph Fire produced this hard layer.

“The best available science says that in these areas, especially after a long drought, it’s best for long-term vegetation production to keep cattle off the burn,” he says. “It’s largely about forage per acre. We need two growing seasons.”

Bromley says the U.S. Forest Service utilizes peerreviewed data from a wide variety of resources and often works in partnership with the University of Arizona to make their decisions. As private landowners, the Ptaks are not subject to federal forest regulations. They have their cattle back on the burn and have offered their ranch as a research site for the University of Arizona.

Carol and Jim bought 1,000 acres in El Capitan, southeast of Globe, seven years ago. But before Arizona was a state, a stagecoach route passed through the terrain, according to Carol. She points out the foundation of the original homestead. An old stone slaughterhouse, once filled with ice from Ice House canyon, stands not far from the corral where Blacky, a black angus, finishes off the last of a 1,500-pound bale. He’s been sold. He’ll go in the fall.

“We’re going to do our best to meet customer orders through October, and then we’re shutting down the retail operation,” says Carol, “which will be tough on the revenue side of things.”

In the depths of the devastation, Carol says they’d sell “in a heartbeat,” but Jim doesn’t think that’ll happen without roads and basic infrastructure. The Ptaks have over a decade of breeding in their herd and won’t destock, so perhaps they’ll be back in business before too long.

“Both Carol and I enjoy the animals. We enjoy our customers. We enjoy the relationships we have with our butcher and the people we buy animals from. We enjoy all that. So it would be hard to walk away,” Jim says.

Right now the biggest loss they’ve suffered is the sense of peace one gets living in the country. Sitting around the crackle of a campfire, and the thrill of a thunderstorm.

“Those were two of my favorite things,” says Carol, “and both of those things right now send me into a terror.”

Carol Ptak stands next to a tree showing debris over 8 ft high. Courtesy Photo

The horses were happy to see the Ptaks return after the fire.

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SEPTEMBER 2021

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Burros share top billing at Mining Festival: October 22-24 T he Superior Chamber of Commerce is excited to bring back two of the town’s most popular events: the Superior Burro Run and the 33rd Annual Apache Leap Mining Festival. Held over the weekend of October 22-24, 2021, these one-of-a-kind events will celebrate Superior’s rich history as a mining town with a series of fun, family-friendly activities, ranging from pack burro racing to a hands-on mining competition and more.

Pack burro racing has a long history in Colorado, where it’s recognized as the state’s official summer heritage sport.

Pack burro racing debuted in Arizona in 2019 with the inaugural Superior Burro Run. The sport is a throwback to mining days, when “burros” (the Spanish term for donkeys) were used to pack supplies and ore. In years past, burros were the “big rigs” that currently haul the ore from the mines. For this year’s event, teams consisting of one human partner and one burro partner will compete for glory — and gorgeous custom prizes! — in three course lengths: three-, six-, or twelve-mile. On Saturday, October 23, the teams will race down Main Street through the town and out onto

Forest Service trails, navigating together to see who has the best partnership and the fastest feet. The 12K race will start on Main Street at 7 a.m. and the other two races at 8:30 a.m.

Each course will conclude back on Main Street, where spectators can watch the teams dash across the finish line.

Spectators are encouraged to attend this exciting event, which will also feature a beer garden, live music, and close-up visits with the burros.

A long-cherished annual tradition in Superior, the Apache Leap Mining Festival showcases the town’s history, with a focus on the past, present, and future of the mining industry.

The Festival will launch on Friday, October 22, with a carnival, vendors selling handcrafted goods, and music and dancing on Main Street. The fun will continue on Saturday and Sunday.

Live entertainment will contribute to the upbeat atmosphere throughout the event. Attendees of all ages will not want to miss the Festival’s popular hands-on activities, including a

mining competition in which participants perform grueling tasks such as sawing, mucking, spiking, and drilling in a battle to win $3,500 in prize money. Fun will go on all weekend for young and old with many things to do for all ages. Ever made your own pair of burro ears or been on a “rock burro” scavenger hunt? In addition to all the fun, the Apache Leap Mining Festival offers fascinating educational opportunities, such as historian speakers bringing to life the area’s mining stories from the past.

Superior locals and visitors alike are encouraged to experience these unique, entertaining events, both of which are free to the public (with the exception of race participants in the Burro Run and a few hands-on activities). Festivities will run from 5 to 11 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, visit www.superiorarizonachamber.org, call (520) 689-0200, or stop by the Superior Chamber of Commerce at 165 W. Main Street.

Burros and dogs inherently do not care for each other, so we ask that you leave Fido at home. u

The Bungalow

* Wa l k *Dine *Shop *Sit *Relax *Explore Historic Downtown GLOBE

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at CedarHill

Discover us on AirBnB https://bit.ly/3kSmD9c or call

H i s t o r i c D i s t r i c t 928-701-3320 The Bungalow at CedarHill * For the times you want to escape.

COMMUNITY RECOGNITIONS

SEPTEMBER 2021

17

The Globe Police Department recognizes the following officers:

Commander A.J. Castenada retired on August 31, after 25 years of service to the department.

PROMOTIONS AS OF SEPTEMBER 1: Detective Sergeant Steve Williams was promoted to Lieutenant.

Detective Ivan Kaminsky was promoted to Detective Sergeant.

More donations and support roll in for Making a Splash!

Lieutenant Charles Haines was promoted to Commander.

Flood funds

Cobre Valley Regional Medical Center has pledged a 1.5 million match to donations which come in from the community. So for every dollar donated, the amount going toward building an aquatic facility is doubled! Here are some of the people making a splash:

Frank Holder, a 1986 GHS grad, donated $1,986 in the match up for dollars pitting Globe Alumni against Miami Alumni.

Gila County Supervisor Woody Cline presented a check from Gila County for $30,000 to Frank Dalmolin, President of the Gila County Cattle Growers. The funds are to help ranchers with losses they suffered due to the recent wildfires and flooding.

Sarah and Erika of Pretty Kind Boutique. 10% of sales on Aug 28.

Cheryl and Bob Taylor. $1,000

Fernando Shipley with State Farm, shown here with Leitha Griffin/ EAC donated $1,000 a year for 5 years.

Matt Storms of American Family Insurance and wife Shelbi donated $1,000.

Seen here with Evenlyn Vargas and Shantae Hunter with CVRMC.

Residential, Commercial and Custom Glass Work

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18

SEPTEMBER 2021

GLOBE-MIAMI HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS

www.GlobeMiamiTimes.com

PHOTOS BY TORY SATTER

MIAMI HIGH SCHOOL VARSITY FOOTBALL

September 3, 2021 vs Bisbee High School

Senior Quarterback Gabe Escobedo rushed for three touchdowns in the game Freshman Wide Receiver Deray Mathis caught a 29 yard touchdown against Bisbee. He also had a 94 yard touchdown on a kickoff return as well as the Junior Running Back Larenz Combs had an amazing game rushing the ball including a reception from Escobedo.

59-yard touchdown run to score the first touchdown of the game for Miami. passing touchdown.

GLOBE HIGH SCHOOL VARSITY VOLLEYBALL August 31, 2021 at Ray High School

Junior Paxton Hansen was consistent with her passes from the back row for Globe.

Senior Kadence Key had a solid match as the weak side hitter for Globe registering several kills and aces.

Junior Kaydence Tober jousts at the net against Ray’s middle hitter. Tober had several good hits during the match as Globe went on to win 3-0.

MIAMI HIGH SCHOOL/GLOBE HIGH SCHOOL VARSITY CROSS COUNTRY September 3, 2021 at High Desert Middle School

Globe’s Boys Team only had three members competing at their home meet. (L to R) Vaughn Lomayaktewa (Junior) finished 12th, Trey Satter (Senior) finished 16th, and Andy Tarango (Freshman) 21st.

Would you like to become a sponsor?

Call today (928) 961-4297

Globe High School’s Kendra Baughman finished first in the first meet of her junior year. She completed the 5k race with a time of 24:47.

Chapter One wellness center

– DR. PETTITT – Offering an integrative approach to health.

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Miami High School’s Jalen Pike looked good in one of her first races of her senior year. Last year she made it to state. She took second at the Globe Cross Country Meet with a time of 24:49.

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SEPTEMBER 2021

19

We exist to educate and empower students to become culturally responsive, global Nn’ee.

COVID 19 MITIGATION STRATEGY – VACCINATION & TESTING REQUIREMENTS FOR ALL SCUSD STAFF

Staff at Rice Intermediate Elementary School are tested for COVID-19 to demonstrate a united front in keeping staff, students and the community safe.

San Carlos Unified School District moves to a hybrid schedule to ensure the safety of staff, students, and community.

San Carlos Unified School District is implementing a hybrid approach to learning to help mitigate the risk of Covid-19 exposure. Half of the students report to school for two days of in-person instruction, either Monday/Tuesday or Wednesday/Thursday.

When students are not at the brick and mortar site they work online and receive extra assistance and reinforcement activities.

San Carlos Unified School District Takes A Proactive Approach to Maintain the Safety and Health of Faculty, Staff, Students and Community.

Procedures were established requiring all staff of SCUSD, who do not have a medical, religious or other verifiable and legitimate reason, to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

Those staff with legitimate reasons must be tested weekly to comply with district policy.

San Carlos Unified School District offers parents classes to strengthen relationships, foster culture, and address the social emotional needs of families and students.

Please join virtual classes with San Carlos High School parent educator Heather Haozous

l Monday Strengthen Relationship class: https://zoom.us/j/4913576971 password:58QZsc at 4pm l Tuesday Financial Literacy class: https://arizona.zoom.us/j/84011395246 at 3pm l Wednesday Apache Parenting class: https://scusd.webex.com Password:ApacheParent 4pm l Thursday FH/MH Parenting class: https://zoom.us/j/4913576971 password:58QZsc at 4pm

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Heather Haozous San Carlos High School: (928) 475 – 2378; Cell – Phone: (928) 812 –1057

Need to Find Us? Warehouse Delivery Address 100 San Carlos Ave., San Carlos, AZ 85550

San Carlos seniors under the direction of graphic design teacher, Devyn Dennison, share with staff at teacher orientation how they developed the school brand and how it represents Shilgozhoo, “Be Happy” with elements from nature and Apache culture

Mailing Address 27010 E. Highway Rd., Peridot, AZ 85542 Phone (928) 475-2315 P.O. Box 207 San Carlos, AZ 85550

www.sancarlosbraves.org

San Carlos High School Seniors Present To District Staff During Teacher Orientation

20

SEPTEMBER 2021

www.GlobeMiamiTimes.com

The Struggles of Sheltering Animals in Rural Gila County

The High Desert Humane Society is operating out of a 5000 sq ft historic building on Mesquite street having turned the back yard space into dog runs, with a thrift shop in the front and living space above. Photo by LCGross

BY JENN WALKER

A

ny animal who ends up at an animal shelter has a story to tell. Perhaps its previous home was overcrowded with animals, and the owner was forced to let go of some pets.

Oftentimes, people surrender their pets to shelters because they’re moving, and pets aren’t allowed in their new homes.

“I’ve seen grown men cry because they can’t keep their dog,” says Cheryl Brazell, who has been president of the High Desert Humane Society since its reorganization 12 years ago.

Sometimes animals are simply abandoned, like the puppies who were left alone in a crate in Dripping Springs during the Telegraph Fire. Four of the seven puppies survived and were taken in by High Desert’s dog rescue.

On the other hand, well-meaning people will stumble upon litters from feral (wild) animals, especially litters of kittens, and assume the young animals need to be taken to a shelter, not realizing the mother will return to care for her young.

The greatest challenge is meeting the demand to shelter and adopt out all these animals in rural Gila County – from Globe, Miami, and San Carlos to Roosevelt and Tonto Basin. There are only two locations to take them locally: High Desert Humane Society in downtown Globe, or Gila County’s Animal Care and Control Division, which just opened a new facility at the county fairgrounds.

High Desert cycles roughly 170 dogs and 200 cats through its shelters each year, Brazell estimates. This doesn’t include the 500 or so feral cats who have gone through High Desert’s “Trap-Neuter-Release” program since 2019. The program helps members of the community catch feral cats, have them altered, and return them to the neighborhood they came from.

(Unless socialized with humans as a kitten, a feral cat is nearly impossible to handle enough to ever become a household pet, and neither High Desert nor Animal Care and Control can successfully adopt these animals out. Trap-neuter-release is the next best option.)

High Desert’s dog and cat rescues are intended to hold about 35 animals at a time each. When this article was being written, both shelters were full­.

In July, High Desert’s cat rescue, nicknamed Cat House, was housing 56 cats.

Thanks to guidance from the former director, Cheryle Mariscal, who resigned earlier this year after holding the position since July 2019, the new director of Cat House brought the population down by reducing cat adoption fees from $40 to $5. The fees include vaccinations and alterations.

“We need to have a [population] limit so we can offer better care for the animals, rather than taking too many, and then some

RIchard Brazell cleaning out dog pens at HDHS dog shelter.

Laurie Manzano (L) has found herself helping out the cat rescue again despite crippling pain in her hips and joints.

Now in her late 70s, Manzano continues to foster kittens which need extra care at her home, paying for food, litter and supplies out of her pocket, Ann, a volunteer who drives from Florence quit coming under the former Director, but is back helping Manzano and the Cat Rescue until a new Director can be found. end up suffering,” says Megan Chism, who took over as director of Cat House in April.

Overcrowding can lead to the spread of highly contagious illnesses and parasites in shelters, ranging from ringworm to parvovirus to upper respiratory infections.

“Cats died there at the shelter,” Mariscal says, recalling her time spent as director at Cat House. “Some of them were so sick, even after trying to save them for months.”

It’s also increasingly difficult to keep a shelter clean in overcrowded conditions.

On numerous occasions during high occupancy, Cat House has struggled with sanitation issues and complaints about smells. Globe local Laurie Manzano stepped in on numerous occasions in the past to help clean up the building. At one point, Cat House was holding up to 90 cats without enough cages for them all; they were left to roam freely.

“It was filthy there,” Manzano recalls.

Prior to Cat House’s inception, Manzano

housed and cared for High Desert’s cats in her art gallery, the Blue Mule, in downtown Globe.

Cat House is in a better place now. Cats no longer roam the building freely.

Now that Cat House is just at capacity, Chism hopes to keep things this way. People get angry when the shelter refuses an animal, she says, yet preventing overcrowding of the shelter is critical for its survival.

“It’s not easy or cheap to take care of this many animals,” she says.

At Animal Care and Control, the requirements to surrender an animal are more stringent. If a person has fed an animal for more than six days, that person is considered the owner, and Animal Care and Control is unlikely to take the animal.

The organization is particularly pressing dog owners to not “surrender” their dogs.

“We’re trying to make owners more liable for their dogs,” department head John Castaneda says.

Last year, the organization reunited hundreds of animals with their owners. They impounded another 400 animals. Many were transferred to the Valley to prevent overpopulation, and between 40 and 50 were adopted out, according to Castaneda.

As it is, they have often been full, he says.

Ideally, Animal Care and Control should always have space to house animals, especially in the event of a natural disaster or emergency, like the fires and floods that occurred this summer.

Sometimes, shelters don’t have a choice, though. People have been known to drop off animals outside Animal Care and Control and High Desert shelters in the middle of the night.

This doesn’t always end well. Last winter, volunteers showed up to Cat House one morning to find dead kittens at the door; they were too young to regulate their body temperature in the cold without the warmth of their mother.

“People think they are doing the right thing,” says Manzano.

Actually, abandoning an animal that you have been caring for is a criminal offense, punishable by Arizona state law.

Manzano is all too familiar with abandonment stories. During her 12 years running the Blue Mule Art Gallery, she cared for approximately 1,700 cats. People constantly abandoned cats at her front door.

Manzano, who is 76 now and struggles with physical ailments, recently resumed fostering kittens for Cat House – even kittens with ringworm and upper respiratory infections. Kittens are highly dependent upon their mothers and need frequent, specialized care (even more so when they’re sick), and Cat House doesn’t have the staffing to bottle-feed and tend to kittens around the clock.

Beyond time consuming, caring for kittens, and for animals in general, is costly.

Between getting an animal spayed or neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, treated for any ailments, and transported, High Desert may spend as much as $3,000 to $4,000 on a vet bill for a single animal.

To make ends meet, the nonprofit relies on revenue from its thrift and furniture stores in downtown Globe, financial support from United Fund and Southwest Gas, adoption fees, cash donations and fundraisers.

However, the nonprofit hasn’t been able to hold any fundraisers or auctions as of late.

“We are struggling, yet managing, to stay in the black through COVID, fires, and floods,” Brazell says.

In addition to cash donations, food and other tangible donations help keep the nonprofit afloat. Southwest Gas recently donated an air-conditioned truck for High Desert to transport animals.

RESCUE, Continued on page 21

SEPTEMBER 2021

There are currently 27 cats at the High Desert Humane Society cat shelter located on North Broad Street, including this big guy with the fancy hair cut. Photo by LCGross

Supervisor Tim Humphrey and JC Castenda cut the ribbon on the new County facility.

RESCUE, Continued from page 20 This is especially critical, because High Desert relies on a contracted veterinarian in Thatcher to provide animal health services.

“It was much simpler when we just worked with Jeff,” Manzano recalls, referring to when High Desert used to work directly with Jeff Eubank at Samaritan Veterinary Care, the only veterinary center currently in the area.

Animal Care and Control continues to work with Dr. Eubank for veterinary services.

Building maintenance is yet another expense. Having the proper facility and amenities to accommodate all these animals is critical.

Animal Care and Control was blessed with a new $2.8 million facility last month after years of operating out of a building constructed in the early 1970s. The former location offered 18 kennels, while the new, larger facility includes 27 kennels, 10 cat cages, and a “catio.” At the time this article was going to press, within a week of the facility’s grand opening, nine of the 27 dog kennels had been filled.

The new location makes cleaning and sanitizing much easier, says Castaneda, providing more space and a high-pressure wash system. Cameras are mounted around the facility to prevent people from abandoning animals there.

The funding for the facility came from the county’s $10 million Capital Investment Plan bond that the Gila County Board of Supervisors allocated for several county projects.

High Desert could benefit from new facilities and amenities.

“We’re going to have to bite the bullet,” Brazell says. “We need building repairs and rescue repairs.”

For instance, the dog rescue has a yard that doesn’t drain well, which has meant muddy dog kennels during the monsoons.

This has caused concern among some, including Trina Becksted, who purchased the old green bank building at Mesquite and Broad Street with her husband last March.

The building is directly across the street from High Desert’s thrift store, which also functions as the dog shelter. “[I] want to emphasize the plight of [these] dogs in these hot, outdoor, humid conditions [with] mud flooding into their crate areas,” she says. “These dogs are just not happy.”

“High Desert does care for these dogs…

They’re really good people,” she adds. “I want to be part of the solution here.”

In Becksted’s opinion, the dog rescue has outgrown the space in the thrift store. She advocates for the dog rescue to obtain a new, larger facility that would provide climate-controlled, indoor space for the dogs.

“How can we rally support?” she asks.

“Let’s get some volunteers. Let’s have fundraisers.”

Brazell acknowledges the problems at the dog rescue. At the moment, she says, since High Desert can’t afford concrete inside all of the kennels, the nonprofit is working to put pavers inside each.

Cat House has its own facility issues. It’s difficult to quarantine sick cats from healthy

The new dog kennels at the Gila County Animal Control are designed to make cleaning easy.

21

cats, Manzano points out.

Both High Desert’s cat and dog rescue facilities also need air conditioning.

In addition to facility costs, the nonprofit’s budget pays six directors and two assistant directors. The pay doesn’t amount to much; it’s certainly not enough to live on, says Brazell.

As this article was being written, Brazell and the board were planning to discuss salary increases for directors at their next meeting.

“We’re not going to keep people if we don’t,” Brazell says. “These people are going to eventually say, ‘I have to get a real job and make money.’”

Mariscal, who has many cats of her own at home and suffers from MS, had already retired when she assumed the position of Cat House director in 2019. Eventually, she just couldn’t handle the emotional and physical toll that the work was taking on her.

“Seven days I was coming in to clean,” she says. “I would think, ‘My body hurts, I can’t move.’”

She was putting in as many as 70 hours a week.

The dog and cat shelter directors ensure the animals are vaccinated and in good health, eating, and altered when the time comes. Additionally, directors track which animals have been adopted and remind owners to bring in their animals to get altered once they are of age.

“The challenges I had became more and more overwhelming,” Mariscal recalls.

The last straw was when she had to bury yet another kitten that died.

The new cat cages at the county facility. Courtesy Photo

Meanwhile, Animal Care and Control has been understaffed throughout the summer.

The organization has been relying on just four people, including Castaneda. One officer has been handling calls on the north side of the county (Payson, Strawberry, Pine, and Punkin Center). The other three have handled the rest.

With the summer heat, the team has been busy answering dog neglect calls – owners leaving dogs in their cars in the heat or not providing water. This left one employee available to care for the animals at the facility, which includes watering, feeding, washing, and handling.

Fortunately, the team is now in the process of training two new officers.

Additionally, Castaneda says the organization recently received approval to contract with Arizona’s Department of Corrections so inmates can assist with feeding the animals and cleaning.

There is “new blood” coming into High Desert as well. In addition to Chism, the dog rescue also got a new director, John Loos, this summer. Both Chism and Loos are young people who had previously been volunteers.

Loos showed up on his first day as director at 8 a.m. to a dog having just birthed puppies.

“There they were, brand new,” he laughs.

Young animal lovers give shelters some hope, Brazell says. u UPDATE: As the paper was going to press we learned Megan Chism had resigned as director of the Cat House. Laurie Manzano is serving as an unpaid interim director until a new director can be hired.

22

SEPTEMBER 2021

www.GlobeMiamiTimes.com

A LOOK AT COVID-19 SEPTEMBER 2021

BY THE NUMBERS ✦ Globally, total reported cases of COVID stood at 222 million on September 8, and total deaths had reached 4.6 million. (1) ✦ As of September 8, total reported cases in the USA reached 40.3 million and total deaths exceeded 650,000. (2) ✦ Arizona has seen a total of 1,034,790 cases and 19,053 deaths attributed to COVID. The state passed 19,000 known COVID-19 deaths on Sept. 7. (3, AZ Central) ✦ Gila County has had 8,464 reported cases and 250 deaths, with 1,712 cases in zip code 85501. (4)

ACROSS THE COUNTRY ✦ During August, hospitals in many states, especially in the South, were filling up again with COVID-19 patients due to the highly contagious Delta variant. Nursing staff, exhausted from the longrunning battle, remain in short supply. States and hospitals are competing for the services of traveling nurses. In Texas, travelers can now earn more than $120 an hour and can get contracts for over $5,000 per week. Hospitals are using federal COVID relief money to pay them. (5)

“Medical science has proven that the vaccines do work. I recommend that you consider getting vaccinated to help slow the spread.”

– Globe Mayor Al Gameros was a hotspot during the second half of the summer and continues to see high numbers. In July, the State of Tennessee had declared a state of emergency due to surging COVID numbers, and then extended the state of emergency through the end of August. As of Sept. 8, 16 hospitals in Tennessee are still receiving staffing help from the Tennessee National Guard. (7) ✦ Children are being hit especially hard in this phase of the pandemic. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children now make up more than a quarter of COVID cases nationwide. Since the start of the pandemic, more than 5 million children have tested positive. According to the AAP, “After declining in early summer, child cases have increased exponentially, with over 750,000 cases added between August 5 and September 2.” (8)

✦ Nationally, the Labor Day holiday led to a spike in cases – the single day of Sept. 6 saw 76,000 new cases, which is three times the number of cases reported on Labor Day last year. This was partly due to much more travel taking place than last year. (6)

✦ While most children don’t get very sick from COVID, they can have severe cases. Babies under a year old are vulnerable to severe illness because of their undeveloped immune systems and small airways. And recent research shows COVID can cause long-term losses of intelligence – between 3 and 7 IQ points, on average – even if a person doesn’t get severely ill. This is especially concerning for children. (9)

✦ Seven states reported record case numbers in September – higher case rates than at any time since the pandemic began: Alaska, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Washington. Tennessee

✦ People across the country took to ingesting ivermectin, used as a livestock dewormer, in hopes of heading off the virus. Feed store owners started asking people to prove they owned horses. (10)

✦ Meanwhile, Republican governors squared off against teachers and the federal Department of Education over masking requirements in public schools. (11) ✦ Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine received full approval from the FDA – and Donald Trump got booed at a rally in Alabama for encouraging people to get vaccinated. (12)

IN ARIZONA ✦ The first week of September, Arizona is seeing a surge in cases.

Case numbers are over 3,000 per day for the fourth day in a row by Sept. 5. ICU beds occupied by COVID-19 patients increase to 563 – the highest number since last winter’s spike. (13) ✦ The Phoenix Fire Department lost a firefighter to COVID in September. Miguel Angulo, who died on Sept. 6, was 42 years old and worked at the Maryvale station. Angulo was the first firefighter in Phoenix to be lost to COVID-19. (14) ✦ At Mesquite Elementary School, a parent confronted principal Diane Vargo after his son was instructed to quarantine because of possible exposure to the coronavirus. Accompanied by two other men, the parent brought zip ties and threatened to make a citizen’s arrest. (15) ✦ The Arizona Department of Education, Arizona Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association issued a joint statement on the COVID surge. The president of the Arizona chapter of the AAP said, “An alarming increase in the proportion of cases and hospitalizations are occurring in young adults and children… To protect our children and their families, AzAAP recommends that all students and school staff wear face masks indoors. Universal masking in the school setting has been shown to greatly reduce the risk of COVID-19 so that schools can safely deliver face-to-face education for children and adults, even when social distancing is difficult.” (16)

“If we are going to continue to allow this virus to spread, we’re going to continue to allow these variants to be created.”

– Pediatrician Dr. Paul Offit, Director, Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

GLOBE-MIAMI ✦ Mayor Al Gameros issued an update noting that COVID cases are continuing to rise, with Arizona passing the milestone of 1 million cases recorded. He said Gila County has recorded a total of 816 new cases for the month, and the breakdown by area is as follows: Globe 191, Miami 33, Claypool 44, and San Carlos 203. ✦ The situation at schools is fluid. Due to an increase in cases, San Carlos USD is closing for two weeks starting August 19 and will reopen on September 2 with a hybrid schedule. At Miami Unified, Principal Glen Lineberry says masks are required on campus and sanitizing protocols are being maintained.

Lineberry says, “At the high school, we have seen the number of quarantined students drop from around 50 to fewer than a dozen since we implemented the mask requirement.” The rules will be revisited after courts rule on the state ban, which is set to take effect on September 29.

1,2 https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html, 3 https://www. worldometers.info/coronavirus/usa/arizona/, 4 AZDHS, https:// bit.ly/3nfraFw, 5 https://bit.ly/3hgAV2a, 6 https://bit.ly/3jRQFub, 7 https://bit.ly/3BRpBS3, https://reut.rs/2X6tpQw, 8 https://cnn. it/38P0kvc, https://bit.ly/3BVjfBo, 9 https://mayocl.in/3BNagls, https://bit.ly/3jTQUFl, 10 https://nyti.ms/3zU1Po4, 11 https:// nyti.ms/3hc1zJA, 12 https://cnb.cx/38NAzeS, https://nbcnews. to/3nf9dqE, 13 https://bit.ly/3yOZ1Hv, 14 3TV/CBS5, 15 https:// nbcnews.to/3kYtAW0, 16 https://bit.ly/3txtI2U

SEPTEMBER 2021

FOSTERING COMMUNITY HEALTH THROUGH EDUCATION

Nnee da'ółtad hí baa goząą “Here is where we pursue an education.”

r Student Success Services fo Fall 2021 at Apache College ts to wish our Fall students a San Carlos Apache College wan iness has opened up the School of Bus successful semester. The College ch is directly across the street from and Economic Studies building whi to . It is open for current students the Tribal Administration building and l as a computer lab for Canvas access a quiet study area as wel r own space also has wifi, so bring you Aleks coursework. The student , and ning lear in age eng e time to study, devices! Successful students mak . here s vitie can do all of those acti keep up with the readings -- you rsday, 8:00am-7:30pm, Monday to Thu The student space is open from d in the A staff member will be statione and 8:00am-5:00pm on Fridays. building to assist students. the that students can get a snack at We are also excited to announce , and crackers, fruit cups, granola bars student study space area. We have n. ope is ding buil the Food Pantry any time more. Students may access the r a tutor if you need help with you Don’t forget that you can contact to Zoom or you can set up a time class. Free tutoring is available via ent study space. meet in person in our new stud Email

tutoring@ apachecollege.org or call/text

928-200-2067 to

set up an appointment.

ApacheCollege | www.apachecollege.org

Contact admissions@apachecollege.org or

928.475.2016 for any questions or to meet with an advisor.

23

24

SERVICE DIRECTORY

SEPTEMBER 2021

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WHERE THE PAST HOSTS THE FUTURE

Your complete one-stop shop for creating your outdoor yard/garden!

THE LOCAL PAGES

Bullion Plaza Cultural Center & Museum in Miami has reopened to the public with limited hours, Wednesday through Friday, from 11am to 2pm Please visit our FB page or call 928-473-3700 for more information.

BullionPlazaMuseum.org

“When you buy from a small business, an actual person does a happy dance!”

Helping to secure your future.

Fernando Shipley, Agent

928-425-7656 1400 N Broad Street • Globe, AZ 85501

discover

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Globe-Miami Community www.globemiamitimes.com

SEPTEMBER 2021

JOSIE PACHECO ALONZO, December 27, 1953 – August 31, 2021, age 67, of Superior, passed away at her home.

(BM)

STEPHEN THOMPSON, December 12, 1992 – August 19, 2021, age 28, of San Carlos, passed away at Banner Baywood Medical Center in Mesa. (LM)

ANDREW BREAD, June 24, 1971 – August 31, 2021, age 50, of San Carlos, passed away at his home. Andrew was a self-employed heavy duty equipment mechanic. (LM)

JAX ETHAN FORMO, April 17, 2020 – August 18, 2021, passed away at 16 months. (BM)

DAVID BROWN, August 3, 1964 – August 8, 2021, age 57, of Globe, passed away in Globe. (LM)

MICHAEL GRANT NALTAZAN, October 12, 1932 – August 17, 2021, age 88, of San Carlos, passed away at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix. Michael was an assistant manager at the San Carlos Tribal Store and was on the pageant committee. (LM)

LELANI ROSE ROMERO, August 20, 1985 – August 29, 2021, age 36, of San Carlos, passed away in San Carlos. Lelani worked at Apache Gold Casino, San Carlos Marketplace, Basha’s Deli, McDonald’s, San Carlos High School, and Motel 6. (LM) MICHELLE “PINK” HODSON, August 3, 1974 – August 28, 2021, age 47, of Globe, passed away at her home. Michelle was a secretary for Resolution Copper and Fresenius Dialysis Center. (LM)

KESA SIREN, July 21, 1954 – August 17, 2021, age 67, of Globe, passed away at CVRMC. Kesa was a logger in the timber industry and managed the convenience store at San Carlos Lake. (LM)

INGABORD MCINTOSH, September 1, 1955 – August 27, 2021, age 65, of, passed away at Honor Health John Lincoln Medical Center in Phoenix. (LM)

LETICIA ANN BLACK, October 22, 1974 – August 17, 2021, age 46, of Glendale, passed away at Banner University Medical Center in Phoenix. Leticia was born in San Carlos and worked as a housekeeper. (LM)

ANTHONY NOSIE, August 21, 1965 – August 27, 2021, age 56, of Phoenix, passed away at Select Specialty Hospital in Phoenix. Anthony worked in construction as a window glazer. (LM)

MELVIN LEROY PRICE, April 8, 1941 – August 16, 2021, age 80, passed away at his home. LeRoy was a locomotive mechanic. (BM)

FRED EDWARD RUIZ, April 23, 1937 – August 14, 2021, age 84, of Mesa, passed away at his home. Fred was born in Miami and lived in Globe until 2012. He worked in mining for over 50 years. (BM)

EMMA LEE PEARCE, January 21, 1940 – August 24, 2021, age 81, of Globe, passed away at her home. Emma operated an accounting business. (BM)

MISTY LYNN ALLINSON, March 28, 1972 – August 14, 2021, age 49, of Globe, passed away at her home. Misty worked in several departments at the County, including the recorder’s office and the Sheriff’s Department. (LM)

DENISE MARIE CRAM, December 10, 1961 – August 23, 2021, age 59, of Globe, passed away at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Phoenix. Denise was a special ed teacher for Miami Unified School District. (LM)

GABRIEL ANTHONY ACOSTA, August 1, 1965 – August 13, 2021, age 56, of Globe, passed away in Globe. Gabriel was originally from Phoenix and worked on helicopters.

(LM)

JOSEPH L. JAMES, January 8, 1976 – August 23, 2021, age 45, of Globe, passed away in San Manuel. Joseph was born in Miami and worked as a safety construction foreman for Dalmolin in Globe. (LM)

VERA JUANITA SCHUTT, April 16, 1946 – August 12, 2021, age 75, of Roosevelt, passed away at her home.

Vera was a homemaker. (LM)

VAUGHN DEON HORLACHER, January 2, 1934 – August 22, 2021, age 87, of Globe, passed away. Vaughn enjoyed baking, hosting parties, and traveling. (BM)

JIMMY A. BEJARANO, February 13, 1948 – August 12, 2021, age 73, of Miami, passed away. Jimmy worked for Inspiration Copper Company for 42 years. (BM)

KAY WARE, August 16, 1937 – August 22, 2021, age 84, of Dudleyville, passed away. Kay was originally from New Mexico. (BM)

JESUS NAZAREO RIVAS SR., June 12, 1959 – August 10, 2021, age 62, of Globe, passed away. Jesus worked in construction and mining, then became a case manager for DES and later worked at Horizon. (LM)

BARBARA ANN IRVING, May 12, 1954 – August 22, 2021, age 67, of San Carlos, passed away at her home. Barbara was a housekeeper and nursing assistant. (LM) TERRY DON HOOKE, October 12, 1996 – August 21, 2021, age 24, of San Carlos, passed away. Terry Don worked at Oddonetto Construction and was about to start a new job at Freeport McMoRan. (LM) LANFORD ALLEN, September 12, 1954 – August 19, 2021, age 66, of San Carlos, passed away at Heritage Healthcare Center in Globe. Lanford was a security guard and a laborer at the Whiteriver Sawmill. (LM) ROBERT CHARLES PORTO, August 19, 1969 – August 19, 2021, age 52, of Claypool, passed away in Columbia, South Carolina. (LM)

STEPHANIE DILLON, November 22, 1982 – August 10, 2021, age 38, of San Carlos, passed away at Banner Baywood Medical Center in Mesa. Stephanie was a nurse’s assistant. (LM) ROBERT DUBER, March 1, 1929 – August 8, 2021, age 92, of Globe, passed away at his home. (LM) MARY MARGARET BUTTERWORTH, June 28, 1944 – August 8, 2021, age 77, of Globe, passed away at her home. Mary was a customer service rep for several restaurants in the Globe-Miami area. (LM)

SANDRA SUE MILLET MELLOR, November 28, 1942 – August 7, 2021, age 78, passed away at her home.

Sandra was originally from Bell, California, and was a primary teacher. (LM) JAMES PAUL OVERBY, August 20, 1956 – August 7, 2021, age 64, of Globe, passed away at CVRMC. James was originally from Oak Park, Illinois, and worked for Avnet. (LM) SONYA SHAW, October 17, 1972 – August 7, 2021, age 48, of Mesa, passed away at Banner Baywood Medical Center in Mesa. (LM) ALBERT M. WADE, December 10, 1936 – August 6, 2021, age 84, of Kearny, passed away at his home. Albert was an accomplished musician and talented craftsman. (BM) DALE CURTIS MILES, August 21, 1949 – August 6, 2021, age 71, of San Carlos, passed away at his home. Dale was the first San Carlos Apache Tribe Cultural Center Administrator and Apache Historian. (LM) AMANDA RENEE MEZA, April 13, 1982 – August 6, 2021, age 39, passed away at her home. Mandy was originally from Tucson. (LM)

MADOLINA FLORES PORTO, August 15, 1938 – August 15, 2021, age 83, passed away. Madolina was originally from Chihuahua and was a seamstress and cook. (LM)

GARY LYNN ANDRESS, September 17, 1946 – August 26, 2021, age 74, passed away. Gary worked at Inspiration Copper as a heavy duty mechanic and safety coordinator for 37 years. (BM)

25

RANKIN NOSIE, April 2, 1949 – August 5, 2021, age 72, of San Carlos, passed away in San Carlos. He was an operator at BHP Magma and later custodian at San Carlos Prevention and San Carlos Apache Healthcare.

(LM) HAROLD HOPKINS JR., March 27, 1973 – August 5, 2021, age 48, of Stilwell, OK, passed away at Banner University Medical Center in Phoenix. He was a ranch hand. (LM) ESAI DALE BENDLE, June 8, 1990 – August 5, 2021, age 31, of San Carlos, passed away at Banner Baywood Medical Center in Mesa. He was a maintenance worker at Apache Gold Casino. (LM) CLIFF WAYNE BELARDE, October 27, 1958 – August 4, 2021, age 62, of Globe, passed away at his home. Cliff was a senior sales rep for AutoZone and a member of Gila County Search and Rescue. (LM) THOMAS VANEK, March 17, 1944 – August 3, 2021, age 77, of Miami, passed away at his home. (LM) JOSE JESUS ARBIZO, August 27, 1949 – August 3, 2021, age 71, of Aravaipa, passed away at his ranch. Joe was a rancher, horse trainer, roper, singer, and Vietnam vet.

(BM) ROBERT ANTHONY ASANOVICH, June 17, 1952 – August 3, 2021, age 69, of Chandler, passed away at his home. Bob was born in Miami and worked for the Christmas and Inspiration Copper mines. (LM) MARY J. SIMMONS, March 7, 1946 – August 2, 2021, age 75, of Buckeye, passed away at Abrazo West Hospital in Goodyear. Mary worked as a branch manager in banking. (LM) SABRINA EASTRIDGE, December 15, 1957 – August 2, 2021, age 63, passed away at CVRMC. (LM)

LM–Lamont Mortuary / BM–Bulman Miles

All 6 Concerts for $40!

March 15 Jackie Lopez and Nuance

December 16 – MC6 A Cappella

February 10 – The 4 Gents

Get your concert tickets now by calling:

928-812-0635 or email us at: globemiami concerts@ gmail.com

Sticks and Tones – April 20

November 19 – Cisco and the Racecars

January 13 – Nicole Pesce

26

SEPTEMBER 2021

www.GlobeMiamiTimes.com

“Living here, this is our dream.”

Courtney and Douglas at home in Miami. Photo by LCGross

BERRY BANJOS, Continued from page 1

Douglas Berry: “Living here, this is our dream. I’m still working on it, but it’s all in my trade. The craftsmanship in this building is incredible!” Photo by Thea Wilshire

“I didn’t realize I was developing all the skills I needed to finish the project that I started so many years ago,” he marvels.

Thirty years after he’d given up banjo making, he found himself back at it.

He recalls finishing his first instrument in 2019. “It was the best instrument I had ever owned,” he says. “I realized that all the mistakes I had made over the years on a $6 piece of marble rather than a $60 piece of ebony had helped me.”

“I wasn’t expecting that level of quality when I finished my first build.” All his mundane construction work had prepared him to be a luthier.

Douglas says, “I was hooked! I thought, ‘I want to do it again.’”

He made another banjo and posted videos on the Internet. People started paying attention. And some of them wanted to buy their own. Douglas was still doing construction work, but now he unexpectedly found himself in the banjo-making business.

Then COVID-19 hit.

“Right about then comes the lockdown and I’ve got people who want instruments.

I thought, ‘It looks like I’m not going to be setting tiles, but I’m going to be building banjos.’ So I started leaning into it like crazy. I built the first six in my laundry room and then realized that this is a viable source of income.”

That wasn’t the only surprise 2020 brought.

At the time, Douglas and his wife, Courtney, were living in Mesa.

“Everything’s locked down, but the real estate market started going crazy. Our home value in Mesa started creeping up.” He asked Courtney, “I’m not in love with this house, are you?” Fortunately, she wasn’t.

They had long thought of moving to Miami, but the time had never been right. They had six kids, and Douglas and Courtney didn’t want to uproot them. Plus, he depended on construction work in the Valley for his income.

Yet Douglas had fond childhood memories of visiting the Dairy Queen in Miami whenever his family came up to see his grandfather, who had worked in the mines in Morenci and Clifton. He and Courtney had talked about retiring to Globe or Miami eventually.

“I always thought this was the place I wanted to be,” Douglas says.

So with their house increasing in value, the construction industry on hold and their older children more independent, Douglas and Courtney started looking at buildings in Miami. At first they were discouraged by all the boarded-up structures, but one building caught Douglas’s attention.

“I took a picture through a tiny crack in the wood,” he recalls. In the photo, he saw a wood floor, a mezzanine, a tin ceiling… “This one picture was enough. I fell in love with it!”

Douglas and Courtney purchased the 1924 Popular building on Sullivan Street, along with a few houses on the hill behind the building that needed renovation.

They now live in the back of the Popular building. They’ve turned the middle section into work space. The front has become a showroom for Douglas’s instruments, as well as a gathering space for musicians.

The Internet makes it possible for Douglas to make a living from a specialty craft while living in a small rural town. And his customers come from all around the world. His last delivery went to a person who had ordered the instrument from Ukraine.

A bespoke banjo is not cheap. Douglas explains that much of the cost results from the time involved in making the instruments - 40 to 60 hours per banjo, depending on their features. Douglas’s banjos sell for between about $1,000 and $2,000. He says he tries to undercut his competition by a few hundred dollars while using better materials.

BERRY BANJOS, Continued on page 27

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Berry often works on several instruments at a time in various stages. His workbench is the first thing you see when you enter the building. Photo by Thea Wilshire

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27

Douglas and daughter Emilee strike a pose with his vintage car parked in front of the building. Photo by LCGross

Berry doesn’t give away his secret to how he achieves the sound in his banjos, but says “how you transfer vibration from the neck to the body (of the instrument) and vice versa is huge.” Photo by Thea Wilshire

BERRY BANJOS, Continued from page 26 Douglas’s banjos are all hand tooled.

“I really enjoy putting my hands on the instrument,” he says. “I do all this by hand based on how it feels and how it looks.”

He’s interested in the science behind the sound. “Resonance is a whole body vibration,” he explains. “You have to think about the mass of the instrument in total.

How you transfer vibration from the neck to the body and vice versa is huge.”

“I’m kind of guarded about some of my secrets,” Douglas says. “I have had a lot of people ask me how I achieve the sound I do, and sometimes I will tell them a little bit of it, but not go into detail.”

But for both Douglas and Courtney, the Popular building is about more than an occupation - it’s also their home, a place of creativity and inspiration, and a gathering space.

“This is my art studio,” Douglas says. “It’s where I create and you can come meet me.”

“We could never go back to living in a regular house. Not only is it an open concept, but it’s an integrated life. I get up while I’m still achy and drink some coffee and look down on the space and see what I have to work on. Courtney gets up earlier than me and is usually working already, and I’ll come talk with her, then head to my banjos. Seriously, it’s an integrated life and there’s nothing better than that.”

Courtney writes music, sings, plays instruments, and programs electronic music. Recently, with connections made in the Miami area, she tried something new:

she wrote and performed the music for the just released Travis Mills movie about Pearl Hart, The Woman Who Robbed the Stagecoach.

Douglas hopes his passion for Miami will inspire other people to purchase and restore some of the classic buildings in town. “I’m hoping to see other people have some faith and take a leap.”

“It breaks my heart to see so many places going downhill. I understand that the community has gone through a lot with busts and boom, and people did what they had to do, but it’s worth taking care of it. There’s got to be a move for some preservation. You’ve got to take care of these old places. There is history here. You can’t rebuild history. When it’s gone, it’s gone.”

Douglas believes downtown Miami can be a draw for tourists, and he hopes the Popular building will be part of that.

“That’s what we have to offer: we have a place that makes people want to stop. Even if they aren’t interested in instruments, it’s a place they want to see. The boards are off the windows and there’s something to look at.”

To enhance the draw, Douglas and Courtney purchased a 1927 Ford Model-T and keep it parked in front of the building.

He says, “Every day, there’s people who stop in the middle of the street with a tripod and do photo shoots.”

“The idea is if we can get them to just stop, then they might use the bathroom or get something to eat or check out the other shops. Instead of just driving in and driving on, we want anything that can slow the traffic down and get people to interact.”

Courtney Odom writes music, sings, plays instruments, and programs electronic music. She recently wrote and performed the music for the soundtrack for the just-released Travis Mills movie about Pearl Hart, The Woman Who Robbed the Stagecoach. You can find it now on Spotify! Courtesy Photo.

Douglas also believes music will be a magnet that brings people to town.

“It’s going to happen organically,” he says. “A lot of my competition builds in their home shops in remote locations, but I have a historic backdrop.”

“Now there’s a lot of people saying, ‘I want to come see your shop.’”

Douglas says musicians from Tucson and the Valley are interested in coming to Miami to gather and play together.

“That’s the reason we have this front space with chairs. It’s a jam space and we

can get people in here playing. If we start to have gatherings that are too much for our front room, then we can ask about moving over to the park. I think it’s going to happen.”

In the meantime, Douglas will keep making banjos and getting to know his new home town.

“We’ve been welcomed into this community,” he says. Even Sammy Gonzales, Miami’s mayor, dropped by to say hello.

“Everyone has been so awesome. It’s like a red carpet and they’re greeting us with open arms.” u

Hours: Mon-Sat 8am-6pm; Sun 9am-4pm GLOBE • OVERGAARD • PINETOP • SHOW LOW

1930 E Ash, Globe 928-425-0060

LLC

September 2021

Burro Race is on!

Flooding Devastates Ranch Operations

THE BANJO MAN