Bowen Chiropractic Celebrates Growth, Expansion

By Stan Bindell, QCBN

Bowen

Chiropractic and Wellness

Center in Chino Valley recently had a reopening ceremony, even though it never closed. The reopening was celebrating the expansion of the building to almost 5,000 square feet and adding chiropractor Dr. Chad Ellis to the team.

The large building is needed because the Wellness Center offers a wide array of services, including massages, acupuncture and physicals for scholastic sports and truck drivers, in addition to the chiropractic adjustments.

Dr. Robert Bowen, who has been providing chiropractic care in Chino Valley for more than 20 years, said the building was remodeled in 2020 just as COVID-19 hit and they didn’t have a chance to show it off. In addition, the Wellness Center has been so busy that they needed another chiropractor.

Bowen, who was in the first graduating class at Chino Valley High School in 1990, is proud that the Wellness Center is active in supporting local youth sports, as he has often been on the sidelines to help when injuries occur.

The Wellness Center has grown with the community and has 12 workers, including the two chiropractors. “Chino Valley still has the small-town feel, but it’s growing quickly,” he said.

Bowen has been at this location for 10 years. He is certified for high school sports, and at one point served as the Chino Valley High School team doctor. He served on the school board for four years. Recently, he reached out to the school’s new athletic director, as they are planning to work together.

Bowen has many loyal patients, including some who have been seeing him for 23 years. He also treats tourists and a lot of injuries from car accidents.

A large Medicare population comes to Bowen mostly for either old injuries acting up or wear and tear on their bodies. Medicare covers some chiropractic adjustments.

He says chiropractic treatment keeps the nervous system functioning. “The Wellness Center includes nutrition, weight loss, exercise and rehabilitation. We look at the whole person. Not just the spine.”

Sometimes herbal supplements are recommended. “It depends on the patient needs,” he said.

Bowen, who played high school football, said he was following in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps because they were both chiropractors.

Dr. Ellis, who was a chiropractor for more than 20 years in Phoenix, said he was glad to become part of the Wellness Center.

“The community has been very friendly and welcoming,” he said. QCBN

Managing for Renewable Energy and Wildlife

Wildlife managers and researchers highlight Babbitt Ranch Energy Center

By Bonnie Stevens, QCBN

Wildlife managers and researchers from across the country gathered in Flagstaff last month for the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) conference to discuss deer and elk movement and the latest technology being used to track the ungulates as projects are planned for land uses such as public recreation and renewable energy. The conference at Northern Arizona University included a field trip to the Babbitt Ranch Energy Center north of Flagstaff.

“There were overwhelmingly positive comments about the conference and especially the field trip,” said Flagstaff-area Terrestrial Wildlife Program Manager Rob Nelson with the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

“The Babbitt Ranch Energy Center is certainly a project we can highlight broadly. Babbitt Ranches is a champion for planning renewable energy projects while maintaining deer and elk corridors. That sweet spot of coexistence is what we are trying to find in changing landscapes – landscapes that are impacted by drought, fire, recreation, climate and renewable energy projects. Workshop participants were really receptive to the strategies offered and the pathways Babbitt Ranches has spearheaded by working with various renewable energy companies and folding in the wildlife components.”

Construction began for a substation and wind turbines at the Babbitt Ranch Energy Center site for NextEra Energy in January. “After we had record snow in January, February and March, we were extremely satisfied to have drier weather in April and May. Everybody’s moods lifted,” said Prairie Handyside of Blattner Energy, who is overseeing the construction project.

NextEra officials said the 161-megawatt

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