SanTan Sun News | March 27, 2022

March 27, 2022 | www.santansun.com

Relentlessly local coverage of Southern Chandler

An edition of the East Valley Tribune

Chandler may give university $1M for new digs

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

The University of Arizona wants to expand its operations in Chandler – and wants taxpayers to shell out $1 million to do so.

UArizona already has been operating several ventures in the city. It recently opened its Global Campus, an online school that is in the process of becoming an official part of the university. Its Eller College of Management is an MBA program that combines both online and in-class learning.

It also offers a limited number of

in-person classes as part of its Near You program. The in-person classes have been taught at the Chandler Community Center, which the city agreed to lease space to the university in 2012.

Now, university officials say they are ready to expand and want to move into 10,000 square feet of office space inside the Johnathan building in downtown.

They asked City Council to approve an intergovernmental agreement with the state Board of Regents to pay up to $1 million for tenant improvement costs, relocation, and reimbursement for rent for the Johnathan lease.

In exchange, Chandler would receive

discounted tuition fees for city employees, the university’s participation in the city’s annual Innovation Fair, hosting at least six open houses and/or athletic events at the Chandler location each year to promote programs to residents.

Like its companion The Alexander office building, Johnathan is an upscale five-story office building that boasts 107,500 square feet of modern workspace “tailored to the next-gen employee and forward-thinking employer.”

It offers a host of physical fitness-related and other amenities, including a dog-friendly patio, library, billiards room, on-site concierge and outdoor

gaming area. Its health-related amenities include “spa-inspired showers,” on-site yoga, an “outdoor tranquil garden,” a juice-and-coffee room and even a room for mothers to tend to their babies’ needs.

Chandler Economic Development Director Micah Miranda said it has been part of the city’s plan for years to bring more post-secondary opportunities to Chandler.

He said the city will benefit from the leasing relationship because it would work with the university on which See

UARIZONA on page 10

Chandler Historical Society is fading into history

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

Daniel Tolliver and the Travelers performed recently at Bourbon Jacks – one of many downtown Chandler venues for live music. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)

Downtown Chandler is alive with the sound of music

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

If you’re looking for live entertainment in the Valley, then downtown Chandler is the place to go.

So says Mary Murphy-Bessler, the executive director of Downtown Chandler Community Partnership. She has held similar positions in both Tempe and Scottsdale and says they can’t compare with Chandler.

In the past year, five new businesses have started, or announced they will, showcasing live music downtown. They are The Stillery, Recreo, La Rista, Peddle Haus and The Uncommon. That brings the total number of venues offering live entertainment downtown to 14.

“We’ve seen that live music has become

an integral part of what’s happening in Downtown Chandler,” said John Owens, the city’s downtown redevelopment specialist.

“It’s become a hub for the Southeast Valley.”

And nearly every type of music is available most weekends, from folk to jazz.

Looking for some country music, then Bourbon Jacks has someone on stage nearly every night. If rock is more your taste, you can usually find a band playing at Murphy’s Law Irish Pub. If you prefer a comedy show, then head over to ImprovMANIA. If you want to see a drag show, get tickets early at Black Sheep because they go fast.

“They post it, and it’s sold out in 10 minutes,” Murphy-Bessler said. “Who knew?”

See

DOWNTOWN on page 6

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The Chandler Historical Society is very close to becoming history itself.

After 53 years of chronicling the growth of Arizona’s fourth-largest city from farming community to major metropolitan community, the Chandler Historical Society will come to an end probably this summer.

“It was time,” said Michel Larson, the Society’s current secretary and a past president. “The membership was waning and it was hard to attract new members. Even people who were born, and raised, and educated in Chandler, weren’t all that into it. The membership was declining, the support was declining, it was time. It served a good purpose.”

A lot of what the Chandler Historical Society has done since it began in 1969 will be done by the Chandler Museum Foundation in the future.

It’s a bittersweet moment for those who volunteered for years. While they are sad to see the end come, the main goal they strove for became reality at the end of 2018 when the Chandler Museum finally opened.

“The real thing that motivated it was when the city, a few years, we kept trying over the years to get the city more involved, and finally they decided they would be more involved, but they want-

ed their own situation,” said Jim Patterson, a past Historical Society president and mayor. His mother was one of the Historical Society’s founding members.

Both sides agreed it made no sense to have two different nonprofits competing against each other for funds to do basically the same job. So, the board of the Historical Society began taking steps toward its end.

“There just wasn’t a place for us anymore,” Larson said, “and we decided the better thing to do than to keep beating our head against that wall was just to wrap it up, close the door and donate the money we have to additional” nonprofits.

Jody Crago, the city’s museum administrator, gave credit to the Historical Society for helping get the museum built.

“The Chandler Historical Society was instrumental helping to pass the two bond elections in 2004 and 2007 that provided the funds to build the new Chandler Museum,” Crago wrote in a prepared response to the SanTan Sun News.

“Once the Museum Foundation was established, it allowed the Chandler Historical Society Board to contemplate retirement. The City of Chandler applauds the 50-plus year effort of the Chandler Historical Society to preserve

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

3

Left: Tyrone Baptist oversees Feed the Children’s new warehouse and distribution facility in south Chandler. Right: Margie Armendariz, librarian at Shumway Leadership Academy, packs a box with books and other school supplies in the Teacher Store area of the Feed the Children warehouse and distribution facility in south Chandler. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)

Nonprofit’s Chandler warehouse fills big need

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

Distribution Center Manager Tyrone Baptist says there seems to be a lot of interest in what’s going on inside the Feed the Children warehouse on McQueen Road in Chandler.

“I legitimately have several people a day that literally stop by and ring the bell and go, ‘Hey, I saw when they were putting this building up, I’ve been kind of seeing it for a while from the street and I’m just curious what this is.’”

Feed the Children is one of the largest nonprofits in the world dedicated to feeding hungry people. Founded in 1979 and based in Oklahoma, it has five distri-

bution centers around the country.

It moved a center in Ontario, California, to Chandler last summer. Perhaps the best way to understand what Feed the Children does is consider the group a middle man of sorts.

Major companies that want to donate large quantities of food and goods to people in need send the products to Feed the Children, which also purchases food from contributions it receives.

“It’s coming from Frito Lay, it’s coming from Dole, it’s coming from Starbucks – these are the top of the food chain that everybody knows,” Baptist said, “We get stuff from Walmart from time to time.”

So how did they settle on Chandler when moving their western distribution

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

distributed about 98.9 million pounds of food and essential goods to more than 10 million people around the world.

Eight million of those people are in the U.S., and they received goods worth about $445.7 million.

That is not all they do.

Feed the Children also partners with local school districts to help teachers from Title I schools. Those are schools recognized by the federal government with having a large percentage of students from low-income families.

Feed the Children has a selection of school supplies at its Chandler warehouse, and occasionally sets up days for See

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center out of California?

“We were looking at ways to expand our impact, and we were looking at Phoenix as an option,” Baptist explained. “Chandler was just one of those fast-growing, really major cities that was coming up and we thought it would be a great opportunity to have reach throughout the East Valley, but also proximity to Phoenix. It just seemed like a great place to be.”

The other distribution centers are located in Oklahoma, Illinois, Tennessee and Pennsylvania.

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NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Study looks at arts enrollment in CUSD schools

BY PAUL MARYNIAK Executive Editor

A statewide study released last week shows that the percentage of Chandler Unified School District students enrolled in arts education programs exceeded the state average until the pandemic-disrupted 2020-21 school year.

Still, the data compiled by Quadrant Research with the state Department of Education and three arts-related organizations show that even as COVID-19 threw class schedules into chaos at times last school year, CUSD students at all grade levels flocked to arts instruction – with music classes the hands-down favorite.

Last school year, the study indicates, 35% of students – more than 15,600 kids – were enrolled in a music class while 11% were enrolled in visual arts, 3% in theater, 2% in dance and 10% involved in other arts courses. That last category included TV/film and digital media technology, graphic design and digital photography.

The total percentage of arts enrollment last school year in Chandler Unified was down from 77% in 2019-20 and below the statewide average of 60% for 2020-21.

The study was commissioned by the Arts Education Data Project, a consortium of the Education Department, the State Education Agency Directors of Arts Education, the Arizona Commission on the Arts and the Arizona Citizens for the Arts.

The study also measured access to arts education and found that statewide, 89% of the state’s 1.1 million public and charter school students had access to one or more arts disciplines in schools. However, 20% of charter students had no access to any arts courses – more than nearly three times the 7.9% of public-school students who had no arts classes to enroll in.

The study was released in advance of the National Arts Action Summit March 28-30, called by the nonprofit Americans for the Arts to will discuss “developing strong public policies and appropriating increased public funding for the arts and culture.”

Leaders of the Arizona project cited a 2016 study by Americans for the Arts, the largest arts advocacy organization in the nation, that found students with four years of high school arts and music classes had higher SAT scores than students with a half year or less of such

FEED

from page 3

teachers from Chandler, Gilbert and Mesa to visit to get what they need at no cost.

“It’s our first year, Ww’re just dealing with these three cities for right now,” Baptist said. “The plan is to include as many cities as possible from here to Tucson.”

Teachers can take home a bag’s worth of small supplies, a small box worth of bigger supplies and a large item, such as a chair or file cabinet.

Baptist said many of the goods were donated by Avery, Staples and Office Depot.

The Chandler warehouse only has five employees (a sixth one is scheduled to be hired soon) in the 104,000 square foot building. Only about 1,000

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classes.

Statewide, the study found that music classes drew the highest enrollment percentage at 43%, followed by 39% in visual arts. After that, enrollment falls considerably, with only 4% of students involved in theater, 2% in dance and 4% in other arts categories.

High school enrollment in arts classes varied from campus to campus, according to the study.

Casteel High school students favored visual arts, with 20% enrollment, followed by music at 14%, theater at 9%, other arts 14% and dance, 3%.

Visual arts also was a favorite among Arizona College Prep Oakland Campus, drawing 27% of students, with music attracting 27% Enrollment in Hamilton High’s arts programs included 17% in visual arts, 11% in music; 14% in other types and 3% each in dance and theater.

Music had a slight edge in popularity among Basha High students with an 18% enrollment, followed by visual arts at 15%, 14% in other arts categories, 5% in dance and 3% in theater.

Visual arts drew more students at Chandler High than other types of arts

classes with 17%. Music drew 10% of students while other types of arts instruction topped that with 12%. Theater and dance drew an enrollment of 3% and 5% of students, respectively.

Other art forms attracted more Perry students than any other type. The study showed 24% of Perry students were in those classes while visual arts attracted 16% and music 11%. Dance and theater accounted for 7% and 3% of students, respectively.

As of 2018, Arizona requires that K-8 students be offered courses in at least two different arts disciplines. Courses in visual arts and music were required at those grade levels before 2018.

High school students under state regulation must take at least one arts course or a vocational education course as a graduation requirement.

“Arts enrollment was highest among students in schools serving mixed-grade levels (67%) and lowest at high schools, 37%,” the study stated.

The study also found that statewide, arts enrollment was higher at schools with higher percentages of students who are eligible for free and reduced price lunches – generally an indication of lower income levels among households.

square feet are for office space. Feed the Children relies heavily on volunteers to keep food boxes flowing to their partners for distribution.

The volunteers help fill up three types of boxes on an assembly line. The first is food. They also hand out hygiene products as well as cosmetics. Baptist said cosmetics can be important for a needy person to get and keep a job.

“When folks are disenfranchised, they’re down on their luck, maybe that’s the difference between them being able to decide if they have the cosmetics they need to present themselves properly to go out and interview for a job,” he said.

Baptist said some goods do go to adults, even though their mission is to feed the children.

“Somebody needs to take care of the children,” he said. “So, if we’re able to take care of mom and dad, they can in turn take care of the children.”

Baptist said it’s not just large companies that contribute to their supply. He said they often get private donations, which they are happy to take.

He said the best way for local residents to get involved is to volunteer.

“A lot of times to put on these major events, they help of the community is greatly needed,” Baptist said. “We have volunteer opportunities set up weekly.”

How to help

To volunteer or contribute, visit feedthechildren.org.

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Downtown primed for 22nd annual Chandler Jazz Fest

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

There’s been a trend at a number of recent Chandler events as crowds have returned after staying away for a couple of years because of the pandemic.

“We expect a huge turnout,” said Hermelinda Llamas, the city’s cultural director. “We’re seeing at all events people are just excited to be out again.”

She was speaking about the two-day Jazz Festival on April 1-2 that the city is sponsoring downtown. Friday is dedicated to the blues. Jazz takes center stage on Saturday. The free concerts begin at 5 p.m. both nights at A.J. Chandler Park.

However, the music will start before that. There will be sidewalk concerts playing around downtown starting at 2 p.m. There will also be food trucks and the Downtown Chandler Community Partnership is hosting a beer and wine

DOWNTOWN

garden for those old enough to drink.

“There are about 3,000 to 4,000 people each night,” said Samantha Jackson, the events and operations strategist for DCCP. “Bring out your blankets, and it’s family friendly. You come out and relax and it hasn’t got too hot yet.”

The main stage lineup for the Friday blues night is Sugar Thieves at 5 p.m.; the Tommy Grills Band at 6:15 p.m.; Sir Harrison Band at 7:30 p.m.; and Dennis Jones at 9 p.m.

The Mike Ozuna Band starts the jazz on Saturday at 5 p.m. They are followed

by Jazz con Alma with Beth Lederman at 6:15; Roxy Coss at 7:30 and Josiel Perez’s MambAZ Orchestra at 9 p.m.

Llamas said getting Roxy Coss back was important.

“Roxy Coss and her group in New York were scheduled a couple of years ago but had to cancel,” Llamas said.

“We’re excited they’ll finally be here.”

This is the 22nd year of the festival.

It was started by a group of jazz fans and grew a little each year. Llamas said eventually it became too big for them to handle so they city stepped in to help.

She said the Jazz Festival, which leads into Jazz Appreciation Month in April, is the second most attended event the city puts on each year, trailing behind the Tumbleweed Christmas Tree lighting and parade of lights.

Last year the festival was limited to four days of sidewalk concerts.

“We were able to do the social distancing that way,” Llamas said. “That’s how we modified it just to keep the event going.”

This year it is back to the original format.

“It really kind of generates a vibe for the whole downtown,” said Mary Murphy-Bessler, the DCCP executive

director.

She said traditionally when the city puts on events on the east side of AJ Chandler Park, the businesses on the west side don’t get too involved. That won’t be the case for the Jazz Festival.

“They’ll have music on the sidewalks here leading up to the actual concerts on the stage,” she said. “And afterwards, there are going to be some music venues that also have jazz.”

If you go

What: Chandler Jazz Festival When: 2-5 p.m. for sidewalk concerts; 5-10:15 p.m. for main stage shows, Friday, April 1; Saturday, April 2 Where: Downtown Chandler/AJ Chandler Park Cost: Free

from page 1

West Alley BBQ and The Stillery have earned reputations for bringing in performers with national followings.

“The Stillery it’s so packed on a Friday, Saturday night, [the owner] said

them have “kindA lotof ofcreated this

sort of Nashville style, where their putting the stages up in front, so when you’re walking the sidewalks if you’re coming up, you can literally see the band, hear the band and decide which venue you want to go in.

”

– Mary Murphy-Bessler

that the overflow goes on the grass over here, and people just dance on the grass,” Murphy-Bessler said.

There’s Latin music at La Ristra, and blues and R&B at West Alley. All those options have have helped Chandler claim to be the place to go for live music, even more so than a college town like Tempe.

“Mill (Avenue in Tempe) used to be known for the music, it transitioned over here,” Murphy-Bessler said. “I think Mill ... transitioned to the deejay thing, which is more the student kind of vibe.”

Another trend she said she has noticed is that Chandler’s downtown bars and restaurants are following the lead of one of the nation’s hotbeds for live music.

“A lot of them have kind of created this sort of Nashville style, where their putting the stages up in front, so when

Kristen Merlin sang for the crowd at The Stillery in downtown Chandler on March 18.

(David Minton/Staff Photographer)

you’re walking the sidewalks if you’re coming up, you can literally see the band, hear the band and decide which venue you want to go in.”

The Uncommon, which hasn’t opened yet, is currently building its stage on the sidewalk outside the building.

All that music brings out the crowds on weekend nights.

“Packed,” said Samantha Jackson, the DCCP’s events and operations strategist. “I wouldn’t even say like Friday night, Friday afternoon you start to see people who just left work, or you have people who are doing like a long weekend, and staying at either the Hilton or San Marcos and they’re just making a weekend out of it.”

Another draw is that people can come as they are.

“I love that everybody is comfortable too,” Jackson said. “You don’t have to necessarily get dressed up to go somewhere.”

Murphy-Bessler said Chandler’s music scene recovered quicker than most other cities from the pandemic. One of the keys is there are several outdoor venues, so once the summer of 2020 ended and temperatures came down, they were able to put on shows again.

“I think we were the first city to really get the street patios out there, so we allowed all the restaurants to be able to build street patios, to kind of expand and spread people out. I would say we were definitely in the sooner crowd.”

Live action

Here’s a list of the current and future downtown Chandler venues that offer live entertainment: Bourbon Jacks American Tavern Chandler Center for the Arts ImprovMANIA La Ristra New Mexican Kitchen The Local Chandler Murphy’s Law Irish Pub Pedal Haus Brewery The Perch Pub & Brewery PURO: Premium Cigars QuartHaus Recreo The Stillery The Uncommon West Alley BBQ & Smokehouse

NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

7

Chandler to allow video hearings for protection orders Chandler Municipal Court will now allow victims of domestic violence to file for protection orders by video conference, allowing them to speak to a judge remotely.

The announcement drew praise from Alicia Paddock, a program manager with My Sister’s Place, a shelter program run by Catholic Charities for domestic violence victims that operates about 30 beds in the Chandler region.

“Navigating the legal system as a victim can be complicated,” Paddock said.

“It can be overwhelming. This allows them to not have that traumatic experience of having to see their abuser.”

She said it also helps them overcome one of the main barriers her clients face, transportation to and from the court.

Court Administrator Ken Kung ran a similar program during his tenure in the

HISTORICAL

from page 1

the history of Chandler for future generations. Their work should be lauded and celebrated.”

Four members of the Chandler Historical Society’s board are serving on the 11-member board for the Chandler Museum Foundation.

Martin Sepulveda, the current

es continue at a high rate. She said My Sister’s Place rarely has vacancies in their shelters and when one materializes, the bed is usually filled within 24 hours.

About 70 percent of the people needing shelter have children. Paddock said the statistics show that a victim will return to their abuser seven times before leaving them for good.

“The No. 1 reason why people don’t want to leave is because of finances, and the No. 1 reason why they want to go back is because of finances. Economic abuse is a big part of domestic violence. A big part of our job is to educate on how to manage your money, how to be in control of what’s yours.”

Paddock said My Sisters Place did not see an increase in domestic violence cases during the pandemic, but said she suspects the cases were up.

With many parents both working from home, it would make reporting and leaving harder to do, she said.

same position at Scottsdale Municipal Court and saw a need for it in Chandler, so he began working with My Sister’s Place to make it happen.

“We are focused on ensuring the safety of all patrons in domestic violence cases by leveraging technology to extend access to the court,” Kung said.

Kung said Chandler and the state Legislature beefed up their video conferencing capabilities during the pandemic, enabling the switch.

“For the victims of domestic violence, we want to make sure they are safe,” Kung said.

Chandler Municipal Court handles about 70 protective orders each month.

Paddock said domestic violence cas-

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

Alicia Paddock, a program manager for My Sisters Place, said domestic violence victims will be helped by Chandler Municipal Court’s video conferencing for protection from abuse orders. (Ken Sain/Staff Photographer)

Historical Society’s board president and a former city councilman said the city and his group have not always worked hand-in-hand – which might explain why it took so long to get the museum built.

“The magic in these organizations is when you have a city and the leadership, the elected and professional leadership, that are really in sync, pushing these public-cultural programs,”

Sepulveda said. “We have not always had that – I’ll just cut to the chase.”

The Historical Society recently presented a $50,000 check to the Chandler Education Foundation to provide scholarships to worthy students. The Society plans to give away the rest of the money they have raised over the years to other worthy causes.

They expect to finish giving the money away and closing their books for

good this summer.

“You have to have a purpose, you know, for your members, … and that purpose kind of went away with the city’s involvement and the city going out in their own direction to build a museum,” Patterson said.

“A lot of purpose for a long time was to build a museum, brick and mortar, and here it is,” Sepulveda said.

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Chandler wrote off $3.3M in unpaid utility bills

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

The City of Chandler has written off about $3.3 million in unpaid utility bills in the past seven years.

While that total sounds high, city officials say it is actually better than most cities.

“The industry standard is about 1%,” said Jason Hafen, the city’s utility services manager. “Our average annual revenue is about $100 million and over seven years we’ve written off less than half a percent.”

That total is for all of the city-provided utilities, including water, solid

waste, sewer and reclaimed water.

The city announced on March 15, 2020 that it would stop disconnecting residents who did not pay their bills because of the pandemic. That lasted for little more than a year before they began disconnecting customers again last May. Hafen said Maricopa County offered grants to the city to help keep the water flowing during the pandemic. A lot of that money was part of the money the federal government gave states and counties to keep the economy going through the pandemic.

Hafen said they continue to receive grants from the county.

Before writing off any unpaid bills, Hafen

said the city has a robust collection effort.

He said officials do their best to try and collect before shutting off the water. If needed, they will forward the bill to a collection agency.

“I like to think we do have … we make good efforts to try and collect on every bill,” Hafen said.

Most of the more than $3.3 million written off were charges for water use.

Sewer fees were close behind. Only about $500,000 was written off in solid waste fees and about $3,600 in reclaimed water fees.

Hafen said anyone struggling to pay their bills should call the city as soon as possible.

“Contact us before it gets disconnect-

ed,” Hafen said. “We’re able to make payment plans, and work with our customers to get them into a situation where they are still able to have the water service.”

The city is currently considering raising its utility rates because of inflation and the need for several capital investments. The increases will vary as the city tries to even billing out so the people who use a service most are paying a fair share.

The increase could be as little as 1.21% or as high as 8.3%, depending on which category a homeowner or business belongs. For a detailed look at the different increases, visit chandleraz. gov/ProposedUtilityRates.

Former CUSD board member Karen Clark dies

SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

Former Chandler Unified School District Governing Board member Karen Clark died Feb. 28 after a battle with cancer.

A board member from 1996 through 2008, Mrs. Clark was an advocate for the arts, often heard telling students “every person is an artist.” The art gallery at the district’s office was named after her in 2010.

“Through her leadership CUSD’s arts programs flourished,” a statement from the district said. “She was especially instrumental in the start up and expansion of the Art Masterpiece program, an enrichment program that enhances students’ awareness of art and helps to

Karen Clark enhance their imagination and creativity as well as developing problem-solving, decision-making, communication

and self-expression skills.

“The Art Masterpiece program has incorporated thousands of classroom volunteers who benefit children with their vast array of experiences and knowledge.”

Mrs. Clark died at her Gilbert home.

A celebration of her life is planned for 2 p.m., April 2 in the Karen Clark Art Gallery at the district office, 1525 W. Frye Road.

“She was a person who really helped with getting our Art Masterpiece program started in the schools and was instrumental in doing that,” said board President Barb Mozdzen during last week’s meeting.

Mrs. Clark earned her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in counseling from Oakland University in Michigan.

“Mrs. Clark, through her passion and persistence, has positively touched the lives of so many students,” the district statement said. “Our schools are better thanks to her effort.”

Ahe is survived by her husband of 44 years, Michael L. Clark; sons Justin Clark and Ryan Clark; daughter Sarah (Greg) Littleton; and granddaughters Courtney Johnson and Eleanor Littleton. Also surviving her are sisters Constance “Connie” (Richard) McCarthy, Michele Negley, Jennifer Katz and Lisa Katz; and brothers David (Shantell) Katz and Jacob Katz; along with many nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Karen Clark Art Masterpiece Fund.

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10

UARIZONA

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

from page 1

programs are available, giving U of A a chance to educate a workforce to fill many of the tech jobs needed by all the companies expected to move to the city.

“We really work with them to increase their service offering within the community, to really focus on tech-oriented training to closely align with our goals as a community and our economic development framework,” Miranda said.

Council members expressed some concerns during Monday’s study session. The final vote on the proposal was scheduled for Thursday, after the deadline for this story.

“This is an innovative idea,” said Councilman Mark Stewart. “It’s not very

University of Arizona President Robert Robbins was in Chandler earlier this year for the opening of the school’s Global Campus. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)

often that cities give dollars to help universities which get state funding. It falls under the umbrella of economic development.”

Miranda said the university hopes to start classes inside the Johnathan in August. It would be a five-year lease, with an option for another five years.

Most of the Council appeared to be supportive.

“Let’s continue to move this thing forward,” Councilwoman Christine Ellis said. “I think I’m hoping to see more of that coming through.”

Councilman Matt Orlando said he’s intrigued by the proposal.

“The high schools are doing these cyber security, cyber ops,” he said. “Now we have the community college, I just love this linkage to the higher education scenario.”

Mayor Kevin Hartke pointed out that Intel is working with local community colleges to do training, not just for high-tech jobs but also for manufacturing positions.

Miranda assured him that would also be part of what UArizona offers.

He told Council that the school currently offers 10 certificates for training in tech fields that Chandler employers are looking to fill.

“This is a great opportunity for Chandler residents to get involved,” said Councilman OD Harris.

Tumbleweed ballfield plan not all Council wanted

in both youth and adult leagues.

“One of the things we talked about in the planning of this and talking about It appears Council will not to get its the needs for fields, was ensuring that wish for the new softball fields at Tumthese are multi-purpose fields, meaning bleweed Park to be truly multi-purpose. that they had the ability to be used for Council was scheduled to vote baseball,” he said.

Thursday on a proposal to hire Gavan & But city staff told Stewart that was Barker as a consultant in designing four unlikely. softball fields in the southwest corner “There is only so much space within of the park. (The vote came after the this area,” said John Sefton, the city’s deadline for this newspaper.) community services director.

Councilman Mark Stewart said he Sefton said the contract calls for at Right click was hoping the new fields would be COLOR: least 300 feet from the swatch, plate to the and outable to host both softball and baseball field fence. He said that would accom-

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

modate some youth baseball leagues, but would not be enough for older ages.

“Depending upon the age group,” Sefton said, “at 300 feet you can use Little League and under play on a field like this with portable mounds and others. As you talk about sports at the higher-age group and to get the 90-foot field, with the 400-foot outfield at center, 350 at the wings, you’d have to sacrifice either the number of fields in order to achieve that space, or it’s a shorter field.”

“OK, that’s a concern,” Stewart find and replace with correct responded.

“We don’t get the opportunity to build fields often, so we want to

be able maximize that space.”

Sefton said his staff does want the fields to be adaptable and multi-functional. And since the design phase would go on for about a year, they would have opportunities to change them before building begins next year.

Councilman Matt Orlando pointed out this proposal has been in the works for years and that it was originally brought forward because of the need for better softball facilities.

Meanwhile, Council held its first pub-

color

See

COUNCIL on page 16

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NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

11

Texts for Black, Mexicans electives can be reviewed

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

The textbooks for two new elective classes coming to Chandler High School are now available for the public to examine.

The U.S. history classes – The African American Experience and the Mexican American Experience – are scheduled to be offered this fall for sophomores, juniors and seniors.

Chandler High is the only school so far to express an interest in adding the classes, but the other five district high schools could offer them if there is enough enrollment to justify it, CUSD officials said.

Both classes were approved by the governing board, which earlier this month tentatively approved the textbooks. They must be made available for public review for at least 60 days.

Dr. Craig Gilbert, CUSD assistant superintendent for secondary education, said the process for adding new electives usually starts at the schools.

“Sometimes courses may come up a couple of years, and we’re waiting for them to get more information,” Gilbert said.

From there, he said, new course recommendations go to a committee

These books would be part of CUSD's new electives on Blacks and Mexicans. (CUSD)

for review.

Both new electives are dual classes, meaning students can earn Chandler-Gilbert Community College credits while completing their high school requirements.

The African American Experience is designed to engage students through inquiry into the rich and diverse past of American history. Students will devel-

op an understanding of the role and contributions of African Americans to the growth and development of the United States, according to the course description.

The Mexican American Experience examines “the origins and development of Spanish-American and Mexican-American peoples and their contributions to the culture, history,

and development of the United States,” according to the course description.

The text book chosen for the African American Experience is “The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross.” It was the companion book to a six-part PBS 2013 documentary of the same name.

For the Mexican American Experience, the board reluctantly endorsed “North to Aztlán: A History of Mexican Americans in the United States.” A couple of board members expressed concerns that the book was published in 1996.

“This book is over 25 years old,” said Board President Barb Mozdzen. “Most of our books that we have even in our district are not that old.”

Staffers told the board the books were recommended because they matched what the college course was using in their classes. However, they said they will continue to look to see if there is a better option available.

Parents and students can view both suggested textbooks at the Melinda Romero Instructional Resource Center, 500 W. Galveston Street.

“I’m very excited that we have these two courses coming through, and we are expanding what kids can take in our classes,” Gilbert said.

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NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

City’s alley experiment wins neighbors’ approval

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

Some Chandler residents got a taste of what life might be like if the city made alleys more pedestrian friendly.

And the city figured out what the biggest issue will be going forward: Parking.

Thanks to a $50,000 grant from Healthy Urban Environments, the city temporarily converted Wall Street between Frye Road and Chicago Street into a pedestrian walkway for a week.

The alley runs between Arizona Avenue and Oregon Street that also the entrance to The Perch restaurant.

The grant was split among Arizona State University’s School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Pinnacle Prevention and the city.

The city plans to convert the Wall Street alley into a pedestrian-only space in fiscal year 2023-24 and John Owens, the city’s downtown redevelopment specialist, said the grant gave planners a chance to do a trial run before they make the conversion permanent next year.

“The city has always viewed alleys as an opportunity,” Owens said.

Deborah Salon, an associate professor at ASU, said the main issue they kept hearing about was parking. Cars that pulled into some lots were having a difficult time turning around without access to the alley.

“Some of the things we’re interested

Left: Resident near the alley between Arizona Avenue and Oregon Street in Chandler enjoyed its conversion into a more pedestrian-friendly walkway. Right: Judging by the messages left on a chalkboard near Wall Street, people liked the idea of the alley becoming more pedestrian-friendly. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)

in feedback about, is to what extent does the closure to cars mess with local business, parking, and otherwise uses of the alley,” Salon said. “We definitely discovered people are uncomfortable in this parking lot.”

She was speaking of The Shops at Wall Street parking lot, which is directly across from City Hall.

Owens said some of the other alleys being considered for possible transformation in the future are near California Street near San Marcos Place and Washington Street south of Frye.

Kenneth Steel, the healthy communities project manager for Pinnacle Prevention, has been running focus groups with residents to get their feedback on the Wall Street transformation. He said removing cars from the area is a good idea because it’s not safe.

“Our business used to be right here on this corner, you would see people flying around the side without pausing to be able see if anyone’s walking,” Steel said. “When you’re walking here, usually you have to look over your shoulder. Usually you have to stay to one side. And where there are blind spots, you have to be cautious.”

In addition to getting feedback about the Wall Street transformation, Steel also asked his focus groups about other areas of the city where alleys might be transformed.

The city put the Wall Street transformation into its capital plan for next year. That is currently the only alley targeted for transformation into a pedestrian space. It won’t be cheap.

“The full project is undergrounding all the utilities, which costs a lot of

money, repaving everything, doing full landscaping, so it’s a little daunting how much money you got to put in,” Salon said.

Steel said the feedback changed. At first, people didn’t understand what was happening and were mostly upset at the potential loss of parking. However, opinions began to change as the transformation took place.

“Where initially we were getting people kind of frustrated, now we’re seeing people walking with their families and they don’t have to hold their child’s hand anymore,” he said. “They can roam freely and check out what’s going on and enjoy it.”

Steel said parking is the biggest issue.

“We’ve heard loud and clear from some of the businesses – most of the See

ALLEY on page 14

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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14

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

$15M in land deals for S. Chandler industrial parks SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

Two large south Chandler land sales this month totaling $15 million are paving the way for two industrial parks.

Also last week, the building housing the Ginger Monkey in the Fulton Ranch Towne Center was sold to a San Diego, California, company that is marketing it even though the bar has a lease that won’t expire until 2026.

Both industrial park projects are along Germann Road, according to the Valley real estate tracker vizzda.com.

On the northeast corner of Arizona Avenue and German Road, a nearly 17-acre parcel was sold by William Valentic to WDP Chandler Owner LLC for $6.27 million – a price that boils down to $375,599 an acre, according to vizzda. The buyer is a subsidiary of WDP Partners The sale paves the way for construction of the Arizona Avenue Commerce Center, documents show.

The center will comprise two buildings –one just under 70,000 square feet and the other just shy of 200,000 square feet – that are being designed for both multi- and sole-tenant occupancy, according to planning docu-

ALLEY

from page 12

businesses are totally fine, they get it, they understand more foot traffic

ments. No tenant has been named.

Chandler City Council on Feb. 10 approved rezoning the parcel to light industrial. Records show that in October 2020, City Council rejected a request by the seller to rezone the land from business park to high-density residential to make way for a 396-unit apartment complex.

Staff at the time advised Council that the proposed rezoning to multifamily “is not compatible” with the area.

“The site is surrounded by existing industrial land uses, as well as self-storage and a commercial nursery,” the staff report stated. “The typical expectations of residents for low levels of noise, visually orderly surroundings, and non-offensive odors conflict with the existing land uses and land uses recommended by the general plan.”

The new owners told the city in their application for a light industrial rezoning for the entire parcel that they are proposing “a high-quality development that will promote commercial, office, business park, and light industrial uses including flex warehouse, manufacturing, and warehouse distribution uses.”

Most of the parcel already was zoned for liught industrial development

but a small piece of county owned land being annexed by Chandler was not.

The developers said they wanted a uniformed zoning for the entire tract.

The developers also noted the land is within the airpark area plan, which encourages the kind of uses they are anticipating for the site.

“The overall architectural character for Arizona Avenue Commerce Center is contemporary,” they added. “This will be established through the use of clean edges and forms, with architectural accents that create an underlying common connection between the buildings while allowing opportunities for individual uses and identity>” The other industrial park parcel that was sold this month is an 18.3acre parcel on the northeast corner of Germann Road and Hamilton Street that was sold by HF Twelve LLC to LGE Design Build for $7.2 million, according to vizzda.com. The sale price amounted to $392,000 an acre.

LGE submitted a description of the project to the city in January, saying it would include three buildings totaling 302,000 square feet for light industrial use with truck bays and dedicate storage in each building.

“A clean, modern aesthetic is intended for the overall building design utilizing colors and materials that are common in the area,” the planning document said. The exterior lighting for the buildings and parking area within the proposed project will be integrally designed as part of the building and outdoor pedestrian spaces. The intent is to provide adequate safety while avoiding glare, hot spots and will comply with the dark sky ordinance. All lighting will be LED lighting.”

City staff recommended approval by the city Planning and Zoning Commission, saying the site’s proposed use conformed with the Airpark Area Plan and that it “will enhance the area by completing Armstrong Way from Hamilton Street east to McQueen Road.”

Meanwhile, the sale of a 1.3-acre parcel housing the Ginger Money was reported by vizzda.com last week.

Capital Real Estate Ventures of San Diego paid $2.4 million for the site, including the 6,618-square-foot building housing the bar-restaurant. The marketing brochure for the property says the site generates about $122,000 of income a month and touts its location to the Intel campus and other facilities.

means more patrons at their businesses, but of course the initial concern right now and into the future is how to make sure people can still park here, and get in and out safely. That’s something that

we’re feeling some tension on right now.”

He said they will take that information and let the city know what did work, and what didn’t as they move forward with their plans to transform

Wall Street into a pedestrian walkway.

“When we go to design it, this will help,” the city’s Owens said. “We don’t often get a chance to try projects before we design them.”

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

15

Chandler woman joins music nonprofit as fundraiser

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

Chandler resident Darcy Hill learned how to raise money out of necessity.

“I was actually in the performing arts, as a director, behind the scenes,” Hill said. “I went to school in Chicago, Columbia College Chicago and after that they don’t really give you a business plan. They tell you all about the art, they tell you all about how to deal with actors, but they didn’t tell you how to deal with producers, managers, executives. They didn’t tell you how to get yourself paid a living wage.”

So, if she wanted to put on her own shows, she had to secure the financial backing first. That led her on a path that became her career.

“I can pay my rent with this. This is a day job I can do,” she realized.

Now she raises money for Rosie’s House, a Phoenix-based nonprofit that provides free music lessons to youth. It takes a lot of money for a worthwhile cause to do good in the community.

It’s Hill’s job to make sure Rosie’s House has the funds.

Rosie Schurz saw a need in her community in 1996.

“Lots of kids with nothing to do after school, lots of crime,” Hill said. “She had left Germany after the war, and had to leave her instrument behind. She really felt like that was a missed opportunity in her life. So, she wanted to make sure

Chandler resident Darcy Hill has joined Rosie’s House, a non-profit in downtown Phoenix that provides music education to low-income students.

(David Minton/Staff Photographer)

that was available to the kids in her neighborhood.”

Schurz was 7 when her family left Germany after the war and she had just started taking violin lessons at the time.

She and her husband bought a house in Central Phoenix and renovated it. Then she started giving saxophone lessons out of a bedroom in that home.

They quickly outgrew that space and soon started renting a room at a local church.

Rosie’s House moved into their new facility about a year ago on 9th Street and Jefferson in Downtown Phoenix.

Hill said they raised about $5.5 million of a $6.5 million goal to move into that building. Most of the renovations to their new space are complete. The rest of the money that is raised will go to furniture and signage.

“This is our first permanent facility,” Hill said.

The facility includes a digital music lab and a recording studio.

She said her main goal now is to get some sustainable funds so Rosie’s House can expand for the long term.

There are currently a little more than 500 students taking classes at Rosie’s House and could only accommodate about 350 students before moving into the new space. That meant turning down half the students who applied, Hill said.

Now, she said, the new space should be able to house about 1,000 students once they finish the fundraising.

Hill said the students come from all over Maricopa County, but a majority of them are in South Phoenix. She said some students come from the East Valley, although parents usually have to drive them back and forth.

Only children in families considered low income by the U.S. Department of

Housing and Urban Development are accepted.

One of the reasons there is a waiting list to get into Rosie’s House is because it has been successful helping the students it works with to graduate from high school.

“We have a college pathway program,” Hill said. “So, we not only are giving kids a high-quality music education, but 97% of our students graduate from high school and go on to college.

The rate of their peers is like 55%. We’re really proud of that.”

Students also need to commit to practicing and attending lessons. One of their parents also needs to commit to work a few hours. There is also an audition process during the application process.

Rosie’s House will begin producing shows at its new location in April. It normally puts on about four to five shows a year.

Another thing Rosie’s House does is provide meals to the students through a partnership with St. Mary’s Food Bank.

“I think that’s an important part of education, is making sure they’re fed,” Hill said. “They don’t necessarily know where their next meal is coming from, but they know they can get it at Rosie’s House.”

Rosie’s House will hold a big fundraising gala May 7. Information on tickets and other ways to help is at rosieshouse.org.

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NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Chandler man elected to Toastmasters International board SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

A Chandler man has been elected to the Toastmasters Internal Board of Directors.

Michael J. Holian will be a “working ambassador” for Toastmasters International, a 98-year-old nonprofit that aims to “empower individuals to become more effective communicators and leaders. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, it boasts a membership of more than 300,000 in over 15,800 clubs in 149 countries.

“Mr. Holian’s journey through levels of Toastmasters leadership and his career advancement are a testament to the benefits of the personal and professional growth Toastmasters experience,” said Nancy Duckett, District 3 Toastmasters spokeswoman, saying he “generously gives back, speaking on the topic of leadership building to local audiences and volunteering with local organizations through his employer Holian will be discussing his role as an international director in an upcoming Radio X - Phoenix Business Radio interview at 3 p.m. Tuesday, March 29, with Karen Nowicki, and will appear at the District 3 Toastmasters Arizona Conference on May 20-21 at Harrah’s Ak-Chin Resort in Maricopa. He will present a keynote on May 20 and moderate a panel of leaders on May 21.

As with most Toastmasters, Holian’s relationship with the nonprofit began at the club level as a member and eventually

Michael J. Holian he took on club officer leadership roles.

“Practicing and developing strong communication and leadership skills brought him to the highest level within the District 3 organization when he was elected District Director 2018-2019,” Duckdett said, calling him a “standout” in the way he “he supports fellow Toastmasters, volunteering to lead clubs as an area and division director, helping to support district activities such as speech contests while sharing his insights on leadership.”

Holian said he has benefitted in many ways from his membership.

“My Toastmasters experience has

also expanded my understanding of other people and cultures, providing opportunities for friendships and increasing my understanding of diverse experiences and perspectives,” he said.

As an international director, Holidan will work to develop and support the policies and procedures that guide Toastmasters International in fulfilling its mission, Holian has been a member since 1992 and has received the designation of Distinguished Toastmaster, the highest level of educational achievement in the organization.

He is a member of Leader’s Plus Toastmasters in Mesa and AZ Motormouths Toastmasters, a club at his workplace.

Holian is an information technology specialist for CSAA Insurance Group for the past eight years. He is the product owner and administrator for a suite of software collaboration and developmental tools. He is the chair of the governance board, responsible

for identifying best practices, reviewing proposed changes, and communicating the product roadmap.

He earned a certification in computer programming from Chubb Institute of Computer Technology.

He also is a community impact champion for his employer and coordinates volunteer activities for fellow employees and volunteers for the Special Olympics, a local foodbank, and other organizations through his employer.

In Chandler, there are approximately 13 clubs. Nine are community clubs and open for anyone to join, such as East Valley Echoes, Ocotillo Breakfast Club, Valued Voices, and TALKotillo. These clubs different times, from early morning to the noon hour and evenings, offering members club meetings that fit their needs and busy schedules.

Information: aztoastmasters.org or toastmasters.org.

COUNCIL

the growth of that sport’s popularity. It came up in a discussion over improvements at the Tumbleweed Tennis Center.

Council members said they were eager to vote for the proposal to rename the center stage at the Chandler Center for the Arts after Steena Murray, treasurer of the Chandler Culutral Foundation and a longtime supporter of the arts in Chandler.

That proposal has already been endorsed by the Chandler Unified School District Governing Board. The District co-owns the center with the city. Final approval was expected Thursday.

City officials also said they are planning a party to coincide with next year’s Super Bowl, which will take place in Glendale. They are calling it the 2023 End Zone Experience.

from page 10

lic hearing to put the Home Rule option on this year’s primary ballot. Every four years the city must ask residents to vote for Home Rule so the city can exceed state spending limits that were voted into the Constitution in 1980.

Dawn Lang, the city’s deputy city manager, said if voters do not approve it this year, the city will have to cut about $216 million in spending. Chandler voters have approved Home Rule all 10 times it has been on the ballot.

The second public hearing was scheduled for Thursday and Council was expected to vote to put it on the ballot later that night.

Council also discussed the need for better pickleball facilities to keep up with

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CITY OF CHANDLER INSIDER

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

NEWS

19

Left: Let’s Pull Together, a coalition of faith-based organizations and volunteers from major local employers, helps homeowners in need of minor code compliance issues. Right: Chandler’s Tools to Go wagon allows residents to borrow tools to spruce up their property and eliminate code compliance violations. (City of Chandler)

Chandler provides help on code compliance problems

BY THE CITY OF CHANDLER

Chandler’s Neighborhood Preservation Division has a team of code inspectors that are assigned areas throughout the city.

Part of their job is to ensure each home and business in their area is kept free from blight and in compliance with city code. Last year, our team of code inspectors completed a total of 41,679 inspections.

As part of their work in the community, code inspectors often discover homes in need of extra care. In many cases, the homeowners aren’t able to maintain their property because they might be elderly, or physically unable to

care for their property.

In these situations, our inspectors work with staff from Neighborhood Programs to help match a group of volunteers to assist the homeowner through our Let’s Pull Together initiative.

Let’s Pull Together works with local faith-based organizations and major employers’ volunteer groups to enlist their help with homeowners in need with minor code compliance issues.

The City has worked closely with Amazon, Antioch Community Church, Compass Christian Church, Home Depot, Proof. Pest Control, Target and Zovio, to name a few.

We’re grateful for these partnerships

that benefit our neighborhoods and help avoid further deterioration in our community. Last year, Let’s Pull Together volunteers assisted 60 households, up from 14 last year, with yard work, alley cleanup and painting of homes’ exteriors.

Last fall, the City unveiled its rebranded tool lending program to “Tools on the Go” with a new eye-catching trailer wrap design.

Residents or community volunteer groups may check out a compact trailer at no cost that’s filled with tools and supplies for a cleanup project. We provide all the tools and are just in need of volunteer manpower.

If you know of a resident in need of

the Let’s Pull Together program, or if you are willing to volunteer as an individual or part of a group, or to borrow our Tools on the Go trailer, contact the City’s Neighborhood Programs Office at 480-782-4348 or email neighborhood. programs@chandleraz.gov.

Another key area of the Neighborhood Preservation Division includes the Graffiti Elimination Program. We have one dedicated staff member who’s committed to removing reported graffiti within 24 hours.

In 2021, there were 978 reported graffiti incidents, and our team of one removed 41,354 square feet of graffiti – See

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20

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Arizona film industry growing after a stagnate decade

BY TROY HILL Cronkite News

Sean Oliver sat in front of three monitors in his Mesa home, editing the first cut of his new independent film.

“Forever Home” is Oliver’s first feature-length narrative film, a haunted-house movie he co-wrote and co-produced with a friend during the pandemic. All the preproduction and filming took place in Arizona, which has become fertile ground for independent productions after years of neglect.

Oliver isn’t a big-time filmmaker, but an editor, writer and director for Amoroma Productions, which makes commercials.

Many local filmmakers are part-timers and much of the real money to be made in film in the state is in commercials. The market for films that tell stories in a narrative fashion – like “Forever Home” – is very small.

At one point in the 20th century, Arizona was the third most popular film location in the industry, trailing only California and New York. It made a name for itself as the preferred location of Westerns, as far back as 1920.

Productions filmed in the state included “3:10 to Yuma” (1957), parts of “Psycho” (1960) and “Planet of the Apes” (1968), and “Night of the Lepus” (1972). The peak came in the 1980s, with such popular films as “National

Sean Oliver last year edited his film “Forever Home” on his home-office setup in Mesa.

He and a friend wrote the horror film during the pandemic. (Troy Hill/Cronkite News)

Lampoon’s Vacation,” parts of “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure” and “Raising Arizona.” “Thelma & Louise” put the Grand Canyon in full frame in 1991, and “Jerry MaGuire” showed us the money in 1996.

The state’s moviemaking industry sustained itself through tax incentives for locally shot productions until 2010, when the Legislature ended the program in response to the Great Reces-

sion. That gave an advantage to New Mexico, with landscapes similar to Arizona’s, which retained its tax incentives.

When the state Senate shut down the Arizona Film Office later that year, the state’s film industry all but died.

In 2016, however, the idea of reviving the film office gained support, and the Arizona Commerce Authority reopened it and hired Matthew Earl Jones to direct it.

Earl Jones – who has worked in the

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industry for more than 30 years, creating and acting in commercials and music videos – had to rekindle relationships and establish new connections with film production units.

A film office’s main role is to help productions by putting them in contact with potential crew and providing information on local amenities, such as specific locations to shoot, hotels to house cast and crew, and restaurants to cater. This also makes the area more attractive for prospective productions.

In 2016, however, Earl Jones didn’t have much to go with.

“I inherited a hat and a pen, and not much more,” he said.

When Earl Jones – whose half-brother is acting legend James Earl Jones – gets on the phone with prospective clients, they often talk about past experiences filming in Arizona and how much they enjoyed working with the people and places in the state.

Banking on building strong relationships to revitalize the industry, he has reached across the border, to the Mexican state of Sonora, to offer production companies beach locations that aren’t available in landlocked Arizona.

Jones also signed a deal with the Navajo Nation to train Indigenous production crew members to create jobs and attract more economic opportunities in See

FILM on page 21

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

FILM

from page 20

the region.

He regularly pushes Arizona to production companies that are looking for a place to shoot their next movie or TV series. His efforts have paid off: HBO announced plans to shoot “Duster,” a series co-written by J.J. Abrams and LaToya Morgan, in Tucson. The series is expected to bring $65 million into the state.

That’s the big-money stuff, though.

Even in the toughest or driest times for filmmaking in Arizona, communities of small in-state filmmakers managed to build their own networks, sustainability and relative success.

Oliver said there is freedom that comes from being small and “off the map.” Independent filmmakers have greater latitude to make the kind of films they want, such as a Western sci-fi series with vampires, by Michael Flores, which Oliver found among the mostly slice-of-life features in the LA Web Fest two years ago.

“A lot of filmmakers here are like, ‘This is what I want to make. I’m going to make it,’” Oliver said.

The Phoenix Film Festival has been a significant part of the film industry in the state, giving space and community to small-scale productions. Each year, the festival hosts a competition of Arizona features that usually has at least three films. A few more films are shown

out of competition, and the festival includes short film programs. It also provides local filmmakers the opportunity to come together, learn from each other, share ideas and network.

“We have so many stories of people meeting up at our festival and then

What we do with the “festival is try to breed that networking and that creative community. ”

– Francisco Meneses

ending up working together making films in the future and starting businesses,” said Jason Carney, the director of the Phoenix Film Festival. “What we do with the festival is try to breed that networking and that creative community.”

In 2021, the festival named Oliver as the Arizona Filmmaker of the Year.

“Part of what I like about (the Filmmaker of the Year) award is knowing who it comes from, and that they’re genuinely supportive individuals that have basically watched my career grow over 10 years,” Oliver said. “This is kind of their way of encouraging me to keep growing and keep going. Keep getting better.”

Oliver and his friend wrote “Forever Home” during the pandemic. After

raising enough money, in part through a wefunder.com campaign, they entered preproduction – the phase in which cast and crew come aboard and directors and producers prepare all that’s necessary, from meeting schedules to shoot dates to set design, for the film to succeed.

A major development that made the production of “Forever Home” possible were local connections he made in the industry – his bosses at Amoroma Productions, Daniel and Kellie Mendoza.

They believed in Oliver’s idea enough to come on as producers, and Daniel acted as director of photography.

Daniel Mendoza brought all the cinema camera equipment needed for the Oliver’s film, which saved Oliver tens of thousands of dollars in rental costs.

Oliver and his partner cast the roles and brought on enough crew to film the movie. Most of them agreed to help in exchange for little or deferred payment.

They shot the movie in chunks, on different trips to Flagstaff, because everyone involved had full-time jobs needed to pay their bills.

Arizona State University’s recently renamed Sidney Poitier New American Film School has been educating students for more than two decades.

Although many have landed jobs in the industry, they’ve often had to leave the state to do so.

The Poitier School is opening a stateof-the-art building in Mesa next year, with four soundstages, multiple editing

bays, post production facilities and scene and costume shops.

The school’s associate director, Jason Davids Scott, said he envisions the facility “not only as a place for our students, but a place for the community to come and learn about media making and moviemaking.”

During summers, school officials hope to use the building to train community members to work various crew positions. This will build a stronger production workforce, which the Arizona industry lacks, Scott said. Along with ASU’s advanced facility, that should attract professional filmmakers and TV shows to the state.

Oliver and his team shot much of “Forever Home” at a Flagstaff Airbnb, requiring many early mornings to make the drive north. They were there for a holiday weekend, again for three days and then a final eight-day stretch. Other days were devoted to minor scenes shot in and around Phoenix.

Now, with all the footage “in the can,” Oliver has begun the arduous process of piecing together his movie. The script is more than 80 pages long and has about 100 scenes.

The future of any independent film is always precarious, as there is no distribution deal or guaranteed way to make money back on the investment.

This is true of Oliver’s film. He wants to do well, of course, not only to return money to his investors but to pay the crew.

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NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Senate panel wants detailed classes on patriotism

BY HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services

A Senate panel voted last week to dictate what Arizona schools have to teach students how communism and totalitarianism are in conflict with freedom and democracy.

And HB 2008 spells out in some detail what this new civics education will include.

The measure was crafted by Rep. Quang Nguyen, R-Prescott Valley who told members of the Senate Education Committee of his own family’s experience escaping Vietnam as the communists took over following the war there.

But the measure does more than mandate a comparison.

It also requires the state Board of Education to develop standards that instruct students about “`the civic-minded expectations of an upright and desirable citizenry that recognizes that accepts responsibility for preserving and defending the blessings of liberty inherited from prior generations an secured by the United States Constitution.’’

And the state board also would have to establish and maintain a list of oral history resources to provide “portraits in patriotism based on first-person accounts of victims of other nations’ governing philosophies’’ who can compare those with the United States.

Nguyen said that’s based on more than 100 million people being killed in a century of communism.

“And the voice of these victims and survivors, such as myself, need to be heard,’’ he said. “We have so much to share with those who live in the greatest nation God has given to humanity.’’

Barbara Jennings, a Scottsdale parent, said the measure makes sense.

“It’s very disturbing, what we are seeing with our young people today, their lack of appreciation for where we live,’’ she said.

But Jennings had some other reasons she thinks there need to be changes in curriculum.

“We know the Chinese government has infiltrated our higher education,’’ she said.

Sen. Sally Ann Gonzales, D-Tucson, said she agrees that communism should

be taught.

“It’s part of our history and it’s part of what my brother went to go fight in the Vietnam war,’’ she said.

But Gonzales said lawmakers are being disingenuous by saying they want students exposed to more history even as they have taken actions in the past to curb them. She said that includes a 2010 vote by lawmakers to outlaw ethnic studies programs, including one on Native Americans, “a very powerful and effective program that was open to everybody at the high schools in Tucson.’’

And Gonzales, who is Native American, said it didn’t stop there.

“This legislature is currently prohibiting the history of the U.S. being taught to our children and what happened to the indigenous people of this country,’’ she said. That refers to current proposals to limit how certain subject can be taught in ways she believes are designed to limit how racism and its history can be taught.

“And it hurts me because, as an indigenous woman, I live through that discrimination on a daily basis,’’ Gonzales told her colleagues on the commit-

tee, saying people of color face discrimination not only at grocery stores and banks but even in the halls of the legislature. “And yet, we do not want to hear the truth and allow schools to teach the history of the U.S.’’ Sen. Teresa Hatathlie, D-Coal Mine Canyon, went a step farther, saying there has been bias and discrimination even on the dais of committee hearings.

And Sen. Christine Marsh, D-Phoenix, who is a teacher, questioned why legislators believe it is their role to dictate exactly what has to be taught and how.

She said lawmakers are free to make policy decisions. But those details, she said, are best left to the state Board of Education which regularly brings together educators to review and alter curricula.

But Sen. Tyler Pace, R-Mesa, said the legislation simply spells out what he believes to be true.

“Communism and democracy are at odds with each other,’’ he said. “Totalitarianism is at odds with freedom.’’

The measure, which already has been approved by the House, now goes to the full Senate.

Chandler native serves as Navy mechanic

BY SENIOR CHIEF PETTY OFFICER JAMES THORSON Guest Writer

SAN DIEGO – Construction specialist Jarrett Edelen, a native of Chandler, serves the U.S. Navy at Amphibious Construction Battalion One (ACB 1) operating out of San Diego, California.

Edelen joined the Navy two years ago. Today, Edelen serves as a construction mechanic.

“My desire to see the world inspired me to join the Navy,” said Edelen.

Growing up in Chandler, Edelen attended Perry High School and graduated in 2019. Today, Edelen uses the same skills and values learned in Chandler to succeed in the military.

“Growing up in Chandler, I learned that if a job needs to get done, then you should do it and do it without complaining,” said Edelen.

Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE’s primary mission is to provide logistics over-the-shore support for Amphibious Ready Group, Marine Expeditionary Force, and Maritime Prepositioning Force operations, including ship-to-shore transportation of combat cargo, bulk fuel/water, and tactical camp operations.

INSIDER

from page 19

a 178% incident increase compared to the previous year.

We’ve received compliments from numerous residents on the response time of graffiti removal and how communicative and understanding our

Chandler native Jarrett Edelen is now a U.S. Navy construction mechanic.

(Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Bryan Niegel)

inspector team is when working with residents.

Residents and our team of code inspectors and the sole graffiti eliminator work hand-in-hand to keep Chandler clean and beautiful. By taking pride in our community and keeping it blight free, we can keep property values high and ensure our city stays vibrant and safe.

With a combination of Seabee and Fleet rates, ACB-1 is skilled at offloading equipment through Improved Navy Lighterage System (INLS) operations, as well as providing camp support, perimeter defense, and limited construction support.

Fleet rates qualify as craft masters and deck engineers and are proficient in operating and maintaining INLS. Seabee rates such as builders, steelworkers, electricians, equipment operators, construction mechanics, and engineering aides provide construction services. additional deployable seabee units include naval mobile construction battalions, construction battalion maintenance units, and underwater construction teams who all make up the U.S. Naval Construction Forces.

“ACB One is a force multiplier that allows for rapid, joint-service operations around the globe, wherever our country needs us,” said Capt. Rafael A. Miranda, commanding officer, Amphibious Construction Battalion One “Our unique mix of hard-working Seabee, surface Sailors, and equipment means we are able to bring capabilities to an area that no one else can.”

Serving in the Navy means Edelen is part of a world that is taking on

new importance in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances and reforming business practices in support of the National Defense Strategy.

“Our Navy is not looking for a fight, but it keeps future fights from happening,” said Edelen.

With more than 90 percent of all trade traveling by sea, and 95 percent of the world’s international phone and internet traffic carried through fiber optic cables lying on the ocean floor, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity and security of the United States is directly linked to a strong and ready Navy.

Edelen and the sailors they serve with have many opportunities to achieve accomplishments during their military service.

“I am most proud of being able to wear the Seabee patch on my uniform,” said Edelen.

As Edelen and other sailors continue to train, they take pride in serving their country in the U.S. Navy.

“To me, being in the Navy means putting others before myself,” added Edelen.

“I sacrifice some small freedoms for the freedoms of the American people.”

How to report blight in Chandler To report code violations, call or text 480-782-4320 To report graffiti, call or text 480-782-4320 Download Chandler’s PublicStuff app and report any city maintenance issue (streetlight outages, street repairs, code issues, etc) using the app Residents also may email blight@

chandleraz.gov It’s important to provide a clear description of the violation, along with an address or cross streets with as much detail as possible.

You also may include your name or phone number in case staff has any follow-up questions.

23

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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NEWS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Bill would require schools to post lesson details

BY HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services

State senators voted last week to enact specific new requirements for what schools and teachers have to make available to parents.

As approved on a 16-13 party-line margin, SB 1211 requires a listing of all materials and activities for student instruction.

This ranges from textbooks and digital materials, to online applications and school assemblies and guest lectures.

Sen. Paul Boyer, R-Glendale, said this will not be a hardship on teachers as they need post only the titles and information within seven days.

Separately, SB 1211 requires school districts and charter schools to provide information on their websites the procedures for parents to access, in advance, to review the current learning materials and activities being used. The materials would have to be organized, at a minimum, by subject, grade and teacher as well as be displayed in electronic formats that can be searched or sorted.

All the Democrats on the Senate floor voted against the measure.

"I am 100% in favor of transparency and parental involvement," said Sen. Christine Marsh, D-Phoenix.

"I know first-hand that open communication between parents and teachers

allows for better instruction and adaptability for the students," she said. "But there are other ways to facilitate that without this particular bill which will have ... unintended consequences on both students and on teachers."

Marsh said the additional requirements will create more work for teachers that ultimately will result in them being able to spend less time with their students.

"They’re going to be busy loading thousands of points of data online every week or two," she said.

But Boyer called SB 1211 "one of the most important, if not the most important bill of the session."

"It’s painless," said Boyer, who indicated he is returning to full-time teaching next year.

"As teachers, we’re always submitting lesson plans every single week," Boyer said. "It’s so simple teachers can just upload to a Google Doc or a Word Doc, just the titles of whatever it is."

"Some of you know that parents, not all of them, but some of them do distrust their school districts," Boyer said.

"This bill helps to alleviate that."

He also said it actually will help teachers, enabling them to see what others in the field are doing. "Maybe, just maybe, I can apply some of the same kind of teaching materials in my

classroom," Boyer said.

But Sen. Tyler Pace, R-Mesa, questioned whether what’s in the bill is workable, particularly at the elementary school level.

For example, he said his son is in the third grade where they give him his choice of what to read from perhaps a thousand books.

"Which one of those thousand books is required reading?" Pace asked, and has to be listed online. Still, Pace voted for the measure, saying he hopes there are changes when the measure is considered by the House where it now goes.

Sen. Michelle Ugenti-Rita, R-Scottsdale, also voted with all the Republicans to approve the measure. But she questioned whether this was little more than window dressing –"to look like we are doing something" – to deal with a deeper problem.

"Putting up loads and loads and loads of information isn’t really going to solve the problem that we have in K-12," Ugenti-Rita said.

"We have a leadership problem in K-12," she continued. "We have a problem with teacher unions. We have a problem with board members who sit on school boards who are elected in non-partisan races and nobody knows who they are."

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"This will leave parents with the impression that something is done when nothing is done," she complained. Instead, Ugenti-Rita said, SB 1211 will "add a lot of busy work for teachers."

The measure outlines enforcement procedures, including requiring a response from the school principal to a complaint with 15 days and then, if the parent is not satisfied, gives the governing board another 25 days. It also spells out that parents can pursue legal action, as can the state school superintendent, the auditor general, the attorney general or the county attorney.

Not everything that teachers would have to post would come afterwards.

The measure spells out that materials on certain subjects actually have to be put on display at least 72 hours before first use. These include issues of discrimination and diversity and bias based on race, ethnicity, sex or gender.

Also covered by this 72-hour rule is "action-oriented civics," defined as assignments or projects that require students to contact elected officials or other outside entities, whether to advocate for a political or social cause or to participate in political or social demonstrations.

25

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Seek legal help in cases of property title disputes

BY BEN GOTTLIEB Guest Writer

The following situation is not uncommon: John and Barbara get engaged and live together. The home the couple lives in is titled in Barbara’s name. Before the wedding, Barbara conveys the property to John and Barbara as tenants in common. John does not contribute any money to the property and Barbara is still the sole mortgagor making the monthly mortgage payments.

Several months after the title transfer, John and Barbara call off the wedding. To Barbara’s chagrin, when she asks John to convey back his 50% interest in the property to Barbara, John requests to be “bought out” for fair market value. Can John legally make this request, and will John prevail in court?

In these types of property disputes, the court is going to review the facts carefully. Several arguments can be asserted in these kinds of disputes. If

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the parties had a written agreement or memorandum of understanding regarding the property, that could impact the outcome of the dispute. Even in the absence of a written agreement, the parties may claim an implied agreement existed.

Placing John on title may create a rebuttable presumption of ownership.

When a deed is unambiguous, a court might decide not to look at other evidence outside of the actual deed instrument.

On the other hand, evidence outside the deed could be considered by the court and could alter the outcome of the dispute. Further, in this type of factual scenario, it is not entirely clear whether John paid any consideration for the property. John could cite to other acts of kindness and claim they were consideration for the property transfer.

Even assuming John did not pay any consideration for his property, that fact

by itself does not necessarily warrant a court invalidating the property transfer.

Barbara, on her end, could claim fraud or duress, but she would be required to prove that John duped and/or forced her into transferring the property interest to him and make out her fraud or duress claims.

Barbara may also claim that John was unjustly enriched and that it would be inequitable for him to retain title under the circumstances. Barbara also could claim contribution or reimbursement for the monies expended towards the property after the parties became co-tenants.

It is important to understand the parties’ legal rights in this situation because the prevailing party in a quiet title dispute has the right to request reimbursement of lawyer fees from the court. Of course, the above title dispute is not limited to engaged couples; oftentimes friends living together, business partners, or family members,

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could own property jointly.

The situation can get messy quickly when one of the co-tenants wants to sell his or her interest in the property.

In all cases it is important to be as strategic as possible before taking action.

Co-tenants on title together also generally have other financial ties that may get brought into the title dispute. For instance, in the example above, John may countersue for return of “conditional gifts” he provided to Barbara. Therefore, Barbara will need to evaluate all of her rights and obligations with respect to John before proceeding with the title dispute.

Ahwatukee resident Patrick MacQueen and Chandler resident Ben Gottlieb are founders of Arizona’s top real estate law firm, MacQueen & Gottlieb PLC. If you have any questions about transferring title, you can contact Ben Gottlieb at ben@mandglawgroup.com or call 602-533-2840.

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

For more community news visit SanTanSun.com

Book calls Chandler businesswoman ‘intriguing’

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

Kris Mill says people come up to her all the time surprised and happy to see her and her food truck at events around the Valley.

“When we’re at events, I get a lot of feedback from customers, like, ‘Thank goodness you’re here, because we’re tired of the greasy food,’” Mill said.

“People are trying to eat healthier.

There are more people now who are vegetarians and vegans than when I … started this about six years ago.”

Mill serves vegetarian and vegan food from her truck, Wok This Way. She is co-owner with a young man she calls her nephew, Jake Lipovitch. They aren’t actually related: he’s the first-born son of her best friend from sixth grade. Still, they might as well be related with how close they’ve become.

Mill said they both share a passion

Kris Mill operates a food truck called Wok This Way, which serves healthy options.

(David Minton/Staff Photograpehr)

for cooking. Jake, who will soon be 16, has Down syndrome and that has motivated Mill to help. She said teaching people with Down syndrome how to cook healthy meals and providing them those meals is one thing she can do, because people with that condition often tend to be overweight.

“He loves to cook with auntie,” Mill said. “He’s one of the many reasons, he’s the largest reason, why I have this food truck.”

Another thing she can do is give them jobs. She said they make excellent workers and half of her staff have Down syndrome.

“It’s a way for them to feel empowered,” she said.

Mill says she is working to make her food truck business fully sustainable, including zero waste. She hopes to get a second food truck in the coming years, See

48WOMAN on page 31

Chandler group aims to help Black-owned businesses

BY KEN SAIN Staff Writer

There may have been some progress in efforts to improve opportunities for Black business owners, but that doesn’t mean there still remains a lot to do.

Just ask Keasha Beach of Chandler, who started BASE Arizona, an acronym for Black Alliance & Social Empowerment.

Beach recalled a woman telling her how she walked into a bank 10 years aho to secure a loan.

“She said, ‘You know, about 10 years ago when I had just started my business, she goes, ‘I walked into the bank and I had everything all put together. Everything sounded good on the phone, but the moment I walked into the bank, they just denied it. They didn’t even ask me any questions about it.’”

Experiences like that strike close to home for Beach.

“My dad has had issues with that,” she said. “I remember sitting with him, kind of talking to him about that, and he said, ‘Look, I just try not to walk into the bank. I don’t even give them my full name. I give them like an initial. I don’t want them to be able to recognize as being a Black applicant … because I know right away it’s going to be denied.”

Beach started BASE Arizona after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

She was on a video conference with other Black activists who were detailing many of the problems they face.

“I remember getting off of that call and going, ‘Man, there was nothing to really take away from the call besides we have all these issues, we have all these problems,’” Beach said. “I felt like we didn’t do anything and I wanted to do something with this call.”

Her brother started BASE of South-

continues. “It updates this legacy and honors the current collective of change makers and activists who strive for inclusion and equity that is real.”

It adds that it “serves to create a welcoming and supportive community where Black people in Arizona feel safe, respected, and comfortable being themselves when expressing any aspect of our many cultural ethnicities.”

Since Beach grew up in Chandler, graduating from Dobson High School, her initial focus is this city.

However, her goal is to grow beyond it.

The funding for BASE Arizona has come from Keasha Beach started BASE Arizona, an acronym for Black three individuals, but Alliance & Social Empowerment, to help Black business Beach says they are owners. (David Minton/Staff Photographer) growing fast and need corporate funding going ern Oregon and the two of them forward. worked out what they wanted this orThat money goes to a variety of ganization to be. Beach reached out to events and programs. For example, others in Arizona to form BASE Arizona. BASE started offering $1,000 scholarShe said its mission is to empower ships to high school seniors. the Black community.

It runs several other programs as well.

As its website, basearizona.org, Afro Skoutz helps youngsters ages explains, it aims to “provide a space to 5 to 13, to become “culturally knowlpromote solidarity, empowerment, and edgeable, empowered and respected economic development that might be members of the community.” imagined for this generation and the BASE Worx is an incubator program next, given the realities of the history of for Black-owned businesses that “emArizona. phasizes strategic planning, operational “BASE respects the past by drawing efficiency, and maximum profitability from the wisdom of the Civil Rights with a heavy emphasis on business Movement and acknowledging the strategy and planning. organizational genius that resulted in Additionally, each month BASE equality for Black people nationally,” it Arizona sponsors events to celebrate

the community. It started as Food Truck Friday. Beach said hundreds of people turned out and it has become one of their more popular events.

“We don’t see ourselves as the whole pie, but we see ourselves as a piece of the pie,” Beach said. “We collaborate a lot, that’s huge for BASE.” She estimated there are about 50 Black-owned businesses in Chandler.

Beach said BASE helped 25 of them acquire paycheck protection program loans during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. All of them are still open today.

Beach attended Mesa Community College and then graduated from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State. She also serves on a committee with the Chandler Chamber of Commerce.

Even though she set out to help the Black community in Chandler, Beach said others have reached out to her and their events are drawing even more people. That’s why she’s looking for corporate sponsors.

In the meantime, it is doing what it can to support Black-owned small businesses.

“Access to capital, that’s the biggest issue,” Beach said, recalling how one Black business owner couldn’t get funding to fix a company truck that had been vandalized.

“This company has been in business, they’ve gotten through COVID, you know they’ve been around for the last four years, and here they are asking for some capital to get their truck taken care of so they can continue their business, and they haven’t been able to do that,” Beach said. “They set up a GoFundMe. So, yeah, it’s something that’s still happening.”

Information: BASEArizona.org.

30

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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BUSINESS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

48WOMAN

from page 29

one dedicated to vegetarian burgers.

And then possibly a third truck after that, which she hopes will be electric.

Her efforts to provide healthy food choices, employ people with Down syndrome and work toward sustainability have been noticed. The Arizona Historical Society and 48 Women chose the Chandler resident as one of the 48 most intriguing women in Arizona this year. The book, titled ““48 Women: Arizona’s Most Intriguing Women,” is being published next month and can be ordered at48women.org/thebook.

She is the only Chandler resident on the list.

“It surrounds my passion for what I

do for the community,” Mill said. “I’m very involved in sustainability, zero waste, hiring special needs, especially Down syndrome, for employment.”

She is also working with others to create a nonprofit to get people with special needs involved in the culinary arts.

Mill said she believes her truck is the first in Arizona that specializes in vegetarian and vegan dishes. She said it’s also the first in the state to become zero waste.

“When the truck was built, from the start, it was built to be a green food truck,” Mill said. “All of the appliances that are on the truck, including the lighting (were built that way). We do compost.”

She said she is working with Arizona State University on a project to use her

greywater for agriculture.

Mill said she started with the dream of opening her own restaurant, one that was healthy that she would want to eat at. After trying some pop-up restaurants, she and Jake decided on a food truck. She said all of the meals they offer are 550 calories or less and all of the food is fresh. She said there’s nothing frozen on the truck.

In keeping with the wok theme, the dishes are Asian influenced.

The pandemic has been just as tough on the food truck industry as it was for restaurants. Supply lines continue to be a problem, Mill says. And on top of that now, there are concerns over gas prices that restaurants don’t need to worry as much about.

“The last two years were devastating to us,” Mill said. “Absolutely devastat-

31

ing. The industry is still getting hit. I’m trying to get people to work on the truck, people don’t want to work. They don’t even show up for interviews. I have a lot more success with my Down syndrome workers.”

Mill said there are signs that the pandemic is winding down.

“In the past six weeks, we have had multiple events,” Mill said. “And we’ve had people calling us to show up for events. It has totally changed.”

And Mill said she hopes other food trucks will follow her model and start offering more healthy options.

Where to find her

To find locations where the food truck will be, visit wokthisway.today.

Area Realtors group packs food for kids SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

As kids prepared for spring break March 10, the West and SouthEast Realtors’ WeSERVE Leadership program teamed up with the Rise and Dream Foundation to pack food for 75 children facing food insecurity.

“Some less-fortunate children look forward to school because it provides them with a meal they would’ve otherwise not had due to financial circumstances,” noted a spokesman for the West and SouthEast Realtors.

Items were to students at Gateway Pointe Elementary School in Gilbert.

The children are received backpacks filled with food to supplement their meals throughout the break. Food consisting of breakfast, lunch, and dinner items were discreetly placed in the backpacks.

WeSERV’s Leadership Program conducts a service project designed to assist the community each year.

Sarita Hill, a WeSERV Leadership participant, passionately spoke about the Rise and Dream Foundation’s Harvest for the Hungry initiative and persuaded the Realtors to help out.

“A lot of these children and their See

REALTORS on page 32

Members of the WeSERV Leadership group packed meals on March 20 at VIP Mortgages in Gilbert for 75 local school students who risked not having enough food during spring break. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)

Senior Lockbox Program Chandler Police offers a Senior Lockbox program, providing lockboxes for emergency personnel to gain access to the senior’s home after being summoned for emergency purposes. chandlerazpd.gov/communityprograms/lockboxes-for-seniors

BUSINESS

32

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Gender wage gap has not narrowed – may widen

BY EMILY SACIA Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – The wage gap that had been narrowing between men and women stalled in 2019, according to new numbers from the Census Bureau, and advocates fear the situation will only get worse when pandemic-era data is released.

The gap improved in both Arizona and the U.S. as a whole over the last five years, but the pace of change has been slow and is getting slower.

“The most recent research has shown that women in the labor force are at a 33-year low following the pandemic,” said Elizabeth Barajas-Román, president and CEO of the Women’s Funding Network. “At this pace, we won’t close that wage gap until 2157.”

On average, women who worked full time and year-round in the United States earned 81 cents in 2019 for every dollar their male counterparts made.

That was down from 81.1 cents in 2018, but still represented a better than 1-cent increase since 2015.

In Arizona, men’s wages averaged $50,069 in 2019, compared to $41,617 for women that year, according to the bureau, or 83 cents of income for a man’s dollar. While Arizona women did better than the nation as a whole, their gain since 2015 was only 0.4% – and the state’s wage gap actually widened by 2 cents since 2017.

“On a national scale and in Arizona, it hasn’t really been closing that much and it’s been a fairly slow process,” said Hayley Brown, a research associate at the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

The gap is wider and the pace of gains is slower for women of color, disabled or LGBTQ women who experience pay disparities disproportionately to non-Hispanic white women.

“Women earn 83 cents on the dollar, but really that breaks down when we happen to look at race,” said Christian F. Nunes, president at the National Organization for Women. “It’s really a white woman earning 83 cents on the white man’s dollar.”

Nationally, there’s no industry where women’s earnings exceeded men’s,

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going to be more pay parity there,” Brown said. “There’s definitely a gap for example, in health care and social assistance and in education, where you would theoretically expect that gap to be small to nonexistent.”

The Census Bureau data showed that women educators made 87 cents to male educators’ dollar, and female customer service representatives made 89 cents per dollar.

But experts pointed out that those numbers were from before the pandemic, which hit women workers harder than men.

“Women were impacted, both at the beginning of the pandemic, and now two years in, we’re seeing women at a whole different kind of range also being impacted by the pandemic,” Barajas-Román said. “We know that’s going to have a deep impact on wage equality in the future.”

Experts agree that the pandemic had a negative effect on women

workers across the board, but they say it disproportionately affected working-class women, some of whom were furloughed or reduced to working part time, or who were forced to take on extra responsibilities at home.

“The labor force effects were much, much bigger for working-class women than for women with at least a bachelor’s degree,” Brown said.

During his State of the Union address this month, President Joe Biden touted several initiatives he said would help get women back in the workforce, including proposals to cut the cost of child care and expand pre-K education.

Nunes welcomed those efforts, but said much more needs to be done. And soon.

“This is a whole-system issue. There are things that Arizona can do … at the state level to make sure that they’re taking care of their residents,” she said.

“You don’t always have to wait for the federal government to do things.”

REALTORS

donated. Being a father of two young boys, Paden was eager to help the Rise and Dream Foundation because he couldn’t imagine a young child not having food.

“This my opportunity to give back to my community that has given me a lot,” Paden said.

West and SouthEast Realtors of the Valley, established in 1946, is a member-driven, nonprofit trade association that serves over 26,000 Realtors and affiliates throughout Cochise, Maricopa, Pinal, and Santa Cruz Counties.

Association volunteers and the member services team work together to deliver resources, services, and education with a vision to be “one premier association” and a mission “to provide services that lead to member prosperity.”

Information: riseanddreamfoundation.com.

from page 31

families don’t really have access to a lot of food. They rely on the school to provide breakfast and lunch,” Hill said.

“You don’t realize how hard it is for people to support these types of initiatives because they can’t really wrap their heads around the fact that some families don’t have food at home,” she added. “You don’t realize how many children come to school hungry.”

WeSERV’s Leadership Program students worked together to package the boxes of items.

Bill Paden, who is part of the Leadership Program, said his company VIP Mortgage was able to make a $5,000 donation through the VIP Foundation to help support Harvest for the Hungry.

The group purchased the items to be

BUSINESS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has a sweet new sponsor – Gilbert-based SweetLeaf.

(Special to STSN)

Gilbert sweetener company joins NASCAR driver

BY ASHLYN ROBINETTE Contributor

One way that JTG Daugherty Racing is preparing for the sweetest NASCAR series yet is by adding Gilbert-based SweetLeaf to their Kroger Racing family of brands.

SweetLeaf, the first and oldest stevia sweetener in the U.S., is partnering with NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. to reach a new audience – NASCAR fans.

While NASCAR may not be known for nutritious offerings, SweetLeaf

“

SweetLeaf is new to our series and I think it’s good for them because they’re getting out in front of a different market of people but also SweetLeaf’s normal users can tune in to our races.

”

– Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

President Michael May said he wants to expand SweetLeaf’s presence to people who probably haven’t been exposed to his brand previously in order to give them the opportunity to make healthier choices.

“We have a marketing slogan and it goes ‘Making the World a Sweeter Place,’” he said. “But for us it’s not our slogan, it’s our mission. We want to improve the world and we want to do it one person at a time by improving the things that are taken into their bodies.”

People can’t choose “better-foryou products” if they don’t know they exist, May said. With NASCAR’s national reach, SweetLeaf’s sponsorship

will introduce their products to a new demographic.

“We have to democratize our products,” May added. “The natural channel where we’re number one in, there’s a certain type of consumer that goes into that store. We need to get our brand in front of people who have never heard of SweetLeaf before.”

As someone who has to be in good shape to race, Stenhouse shares the same goal as SweetLeaf in encouraging people to make more health-conscious decisions.

“Our sport is always changing and on the driver’s side there’s a lot of effort in working out and eating healthy,” he said. “But that trickles down to our crew and fans as well. On the race track you’ll see a lot of fans get up in the mornings and camp out there. Some will even run and work out around the track.

“Having SweetLeaf be a part of our group is a healthier way to sweeten our food.”

SweetLeaf sweeteners, which are available in granular and liquid forms, have zero calories, zero sugars, a non-glycemic response, and no artificial ingredients. Stenhouse personally enjoys the different flavors available and often puts SweetLeaf drops in his coffee and sprinkles SweetLeaf on top of plain yogurt for extra flavor.

Stenhouse’s partnership with SweetLeaf will further his promotion of a healthy lifestyle for his fans. Besides getting more products in people’s hands, Stenhouse said that SweetLeaf will help grow NASCAR’s audience as well.

“SweetLeaf is new to our series and I think it’s good for them because they’re getting out in front of a different market of people but also SweetLeaf’s normal users can tune in to our races,” said Stenhouse, who has two victories, three pole awards, 19 top-five and 40 top-10 career finishes in the NASCAR See

SWEETLEAF on page 34

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BUSINESS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Veteran-owned dance studio growing after pandemic

BY JOSH ORTEGA Staff Writer

February 2020 probably wasn’t the best time to open any kind of business, much less a dance studio.

Two years later, Country Nomads at 835 E. Southern Ave., Mesa, not only lives but continues to expand its reach as military veterans Joel Bartlett and Gabriel Dubois – along with Kacee Crandall – teach country swing through what they call “a simple and easy format.

“The Fundamentals we teach are Frame, Connection, and Control (FCC),” they explain on their website. “FCC will not only allow you to dance safely, efficiently, and effectively but you will look stylish and smooth.

“With our progressive learning approach, you will always be learning something new and building on your skills from the ground up. Every lesson builds on top of each other until you reach your desired goal.”

The trio teach throughout the country as well as in their studio – hence their name “Country Nomads.”

“Dancing saved all of our lives in some way,” Crandall said.

They started teaching 20 private lessons a week in their living rooms.

Eventually, taking apart Crandall’s apartment living room and shoving the furniture into kitchen became too much for them – and her roommate.

In February 2020, the group went to look at a studio and by the end of the day had struck a deal with the previous tenant that cost $6,000 and their name on the lease, Dubois said.

Three weeks later, what they considered a dream deal turned to “heartbreaking and stressful” when they had to close due to the pandemic.

“There was no rent relief,” Crandall said. “There were bills that had to be paid.”

Their country music and nomad lifestyle evolved from their common background.

SWEETLEAF

from page 33

Cup Series.

Stenhouse looks forward to amplifying SweetLeaf’s brand message while May is excited for new people to recognize SweetLeaf, try it for the first time, and hopefully make that better-for-you choice time and time again.

SweetLeaf is celebrating 40 years in business.

It is now the country’s leading stevia sweetener in natural food stores and has won 38 awards for taste and innovation.

May’s father, James May, started the company in 1982 with the idea that he wanted to bring people a better quality

t? o G ws Ne

Dubois has split his nine years of service in Army Intelligence between active duty and Reserves, taking him to Alaska, North Carolina and Arizona.

He said he became interested in country swing the way any 21-year-old young man does: for a woman. His interest quickly grew as he wanted to learn more and make sense of the dance movements.

“I started learning different ways of doing these dance moves in a way that made sense, felt good and didn’t hurt,” he said.

Bartlett had some dance experience growing up, having taken ballet as a kid and some hip-hop as a teen.

His time working on a farm in rural Illinois – along with his four years as a Marine rifleman at Camp Pendleton, California – introduced him to country music and the lifestyle that accompanies his journey.

“Dancing saved my life,” Bartlett said “So, being able to pass that love on to other people is beyond amazing for me.”

Crandall grew up in a military family in Sierra Vista and considers herself “game-taught” from learning the small technical skills and abilities from the other two.

“My dance experience came strictly from being their follows,” she said. “I think I went from being a social dancer to a dancer when I met them, and then a professional dancer over the last four years for me.”

Now, they have the studio, the bills have gotten paid and they’re still doing what they love: teaching people how to become confident on the dance floor.

That’s what Dubois and Bartlett said brings them the biggest thrill – besides traveling across the country and meeting other people in the country-swing dance community.

“I’ve done so many different things in my life,” Bartlett said. “And this by far is beyond anything that I could ever ask or dream of, just simply having fun and being able to dance.”

Information: countrynomads.com

Top: Country Nomads, from left, Joel Bartlett, Gabriel Dubois and Kacee Crandall own Country Nomads dance studio in Mesa but also travel around the country teaching people country swing. (Josh Ortega/STSN Staff) Bottom: Gabriel Dubois and Kacee Crandall demonstrate one of the more elegant country swing moves. (Special to the STSN)

of life, not just longer life. Making easy, healthy lifestyle swaps with stevia in place of sugar can lead to a dramatic change in overall health.

“My father introduced stevia to the U.S. market and really to the world in the early ’80s,” May said.

Now known around the world as “the father of stevia,” James was first introduced to the stevia leaf in Paraguay.

After learning more about the possibilities of naturally replacing sugar, he followed his dream of making the world a healthier and sweeter place.

“When my father started SweetLeaf, he started it outside of his garage,” May said. “He left his previous job and didn’t have a salary for the first few years. My

parents really gave everything they had to build this company.”

Although his parents have passed away, May said that it’s wonderful to be able to carry on what they established and build on that legacy. His own children are even taking an interest in taking over the company one day.

“It’s always been a family business,” May said. “We try to maintain that character. We try to include all of our team members in this idea that we are all just one big family.”

May is excited for SweetLeaf to enter different markets and to introduce new products in the future. “We have a long-term plan to really grow and develop different types of better-for-you

products that hopefully our current consumers and new consumers will enjoy,” May said. “We really want people to be able to choose healthy and you can’t have that choice unless you know that product is out there.”

Stenhouse’s vehicle was decked out with SweetLeaf’s logo at the NASCAR Ruoff Mortgage 500 at Phoenix Raceway on March 13. The brand will also take over Stenhouse’s vehicle during the Folds of Honor Quiktrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway today, March 20, in which he’s driving No. 47 Camaro ZL1.

SweetLeaf products are available at: sweetfeaf.com, health food stores, natural grocers, supermarkets, and online retailers.

Contact Paul C Contact Paul P l Maryniak Maryniak M y i k at at 480-898-5647 480 898 5647 or or pmaryniak@timespublications.com p pmaryniak@timespublications.com pmaryniak@timespublications y i k@ i p bli i com

35

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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36

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

For more community news visit SanTanSun.com

Left: Hamilton senior pitcher Logan Saloman, an Arizona State signee, pitched a complete game as a freshman to help the Huskies win the title. Now, he hopes to get back there and cap off his high school career with another championship. Right: Hamilton senior Gavin Turley, “right,” and junior Roch Cholowsky, “left,” are two of nine total Division I recruits for the Huskies this season as they embarked on a redemption tour after last year’s semifinal loss. (Dave Minton/Arizonan Staff)

Hamilton baseball hungry for redemption

BY ZACH ALVIRA Sports Editor

The last time Hamilton right-handed pitcher Logan Saloman took the mound in a state title game, he was a wideeyed freshman that had earned the trust of his coaches and teammates.

Saloman threw a complete game back in 2019 as the Huskies went on to beat Corona Del Sol 8-1 at Tempe Diablo Stadium. That is arguably one of Saloman’s best memories from his time at Hamilton.

Now a senior, he hopes to have that same feeling this season with a star-studded lineup alongside him with the Huskies. But what makes this team perhaps more dangerous than in year’s past is the redemption they all seek after falling in the semifinals last season.

“We want it bad,” Saloman said.

“That loss last year hurt a lot. We want it even more now.”

Hamilton was the favorite to repeat in 2020 following its latest state championship in baseball. But the season was cut short due to the beginning of the pandemic.

At the time, Hamilton had just wrapped up the Boras Classic and was the top-ranked team in the nation in MaxPreps’ baseball rankings. When spring sports were given the go-ahead in 2021, Hamilton again emerged as a favorite. But the Huskies ran into a talented Alhambra team led by a stellar pitching staff in the semifinals.

Liberty, another powerhouse baseball program, went on to win last year’s state title.

That feeling after the semifinal loss hasn’t subsided for Hamilton’s players. Roch Cholowsky, a junior infielder that committed to UCLA before his

sophomore year, knows that pain all too well. Also a member of the Hamilton football team, he was the backup quarterback when the Huskies fell in the final on a missed field goal to rival Chandler two years ago and when they were upset by Saguaro last season. “(Winning the title) is all we are working for, honestly,” said Cholowsky, who figures to be the starting quarterback in the fall. “We are going to do everything we can to get there. We had

ments the Huskies will partake in during the 2022 season. In April they will travel across the country to North Carolina to face off against some of the nation’s best at the USA Baseball National High School Invitational. Head coach Mike Woods said it’s a unique opportunity for his team to compete against some of the best.

“It’s an opportunity to show what we can do,” Woods said. “We try not to get too far in front of us. On paper, this

Our chemistry on the field translates to off the “field, we’ve all become really good friends and we are always picking each other up and we’re all hungry. We got so close last year and didn’t go all the way so this year, we’re going after it.

”

– Gavin Turley

the talent last year, we had the coaching. We just saw a good pitcher who had a good day.”

Hamilton’s redemption tour has so far started out strong.

The Huskies began the season on a six-game win streak before entering the Boras Classic against Legend High School from Parker, Colorado. The fourday tournament brings together some of the best baseball programs in Arizona along with a few from out of state.

Hamilton is the headline program playing in the Classic as the sixthranked team in the country. Bishop Gorman from Las Vegas, the No. 7 team, is also participating.

Boras is one of two major tourna-

may be one of our best teams. But you don’t win games on paper. I’m excited because of the potential these guys have.”

Woods doesn’t read too much into his team’s national ranking. For the most part, it’s expected.

The team’s motto is “Compete.” It’s plastered along the walls of the Hamilton baseball field and on team-issued shirts. Being the best isn’t a trait that comes and goes with Hamilton, it’s the standard. The high level of coaching players receive and the ability to play alongside other top players is what draws in talent.

And this year, Hamilton has plenty of it.

The Huskies have nine Division I recruits on the roster this season. Saloman signed with Arizona State before his senior season. Junior utility player Josh Tiedmann and junior pitcher and outfielder Zach Wadas are committed to play for TCU. Senior pitcher Kole Klecker signed with the Bullfrogs before his senior season began.

Junior infielder Ryan Kucherak is currently committed to Baylor, while fellow junior infielder Will Shelor is committed to Arizona. AJ Diaz, a sophomore infielder, has already made his commitment to the Wildcats in Tucson.

Senior outfielder Tanner Holland is currently signed with Central Arizona College, one of the top junior college programs in the country.

The talent is spread out across the field and especially at the plate. That’s part of what makes this team so dangerous this season. Not to mention the camaraderie.

“Our chemistry on the field translates to off the field,” senior outfielder and Oregon State signee Gavin Turley said. “We’ve all become really good friends and we are always picking each other up and we’re all hungry. We got so close last year and didn’t go all the way so this year, we’re going after it.”

Cholowsky and Saloman share the same mindset as Turley. The team is a close-knit group that knows how to have fun while being the best. That was made clear in the home dugout after a win over Chandler when they began dancing to part music.

But most importantly, this team has one goal in mind.

“We need one before the seniors leave,” Cholowsky said. “We need to get a ring.”

SPORTS & RECREATION

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

37

Baseball is back but Valley casualties remain

BY MICHAEL GARAFFA AND COLE BRADLEY Cronkite News

Reports of a new collective bargaining agreement have left baseball fans giddy, but the lengthy haggling hasn’t been without casualties.

Out-of-state fans who already had booked travel turned to golf or lamented their unfortunate fate. Valley workers who counted on Cactus League competition had to find other means of income. Players lost valuable workout time and opted to create their own spring training in Mesa.

“Think of all those jobs impacted across all the facilities. People really depend on spring training to keep their revenue going,” said Erin Schneiderman, a clinical assistant professor in Arizona State’s School of Community Resources and Development. “It’s definitely impacting a large number of people within our state.”

During the negotiations, players turned to the Valley for help. Mesa’s Bell Bank Ballpark, the new, sprawling state-of-the-art facility, attracted dozens of MLB players who gathered to stage their own version of spring training as they awaited resolution to the work stoppage.

Players worked out on fields sporting black T-shirts with the MLBPA logo.

“Brotherhood” is etched on the back, written in different languages, to signify the group’s camaraderie. Cody Bellinger, Kiké Hernández and Trevor Bauer were among the several dozen shagging fly balls, fielding grounders and tossing bullpens.

“Huge kudos to the PA and the players for putting this on and having this type of facility for us to come down,” said Cubs third baseman and 2021 Rookie of the Year candidate Patrick Wisdom. “You get to know (players on other teams) on a personal level instead of (just) number so-and-so on the other team.”

The facility is high-end, with perks including cryotherapy, a nutrition room and a catering service.

Former Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Anthony Banda, now with the Pirates, said the makeshift gathering provided a brotherhood atmosphere that made it feel like the real thing.

“It’s been like normal big league spring training, really,” he said. “It’s always fun to see guys out here that I really didn’t (know).”

Slater said a deal was needed because “over the last 10 years, industry revenues have grown by close to 70%.

Meanwhile, in the last four years, player salaries have stayed stagnant,” adding, “It’s unfortunate that the fans are the innocent bystanders in all of this and the game of baseball has to suffer.”

So do those attached and attracted to the game.

“People want events,” Schneiderman said. “For the third year in a row, spring training is disrupted, and it’s making a big impact on tourism. The stadium workers, the umpires, think about all the people affected jobwise. It’s really hurting our state.”

Schneiderman, who is a former vice president of events for the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee, referenced a past study by the L. William Seidman Research Institute at ASU’s W. P. Carey School of Business that revealed $644.2 million in economic impact from the 2018 Cactus League campaign.

That same study in 2020 showed that 3,202 jobs were creatRich Labbate of Gilbert on March 14 posed for a picture with his son Rocco, 7, in front of the Wrigley Field ed before COVID-19 replica marquee sign at Sloan Park with a custom message. (Josh Ortega/ Staff) shutdown spring training on March 12, paying $128.3 million in upsetting not to see anybody on the His trip had been planned for total to those workers. field, but we were going to come out months, one that he hoped would The lockout sparked discussions on here no matter what.” include getting to watch his beloved how those same employees will be paid Brewers prepare for the season ahead Stephanie Klein, a Brewers fan from during negotiations. In 2020, the fallout as so many other fans do this time of Dubuque, Iowa, tried to make the best of the pandemic saw thousands of of the situation. The way she sees it, year. stadium operations workers laid off by watching minor leaguers train from afar “There’s a lot of people to blame MLB and its teams. is still baseball. and it’s out of our control and it kind The Kleins decided to improvise and attend an Arizona State baseball game as well, watching the Sun Devils play No. 4 Oklahoma State at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

“My husband and my son have been huge baseball fans their whole life so in that sense we’ll always like baseball,” Klein said. “We’ll probably try and go to some more minor league games to kind – Erin Schneiderman of get our baseball fix another way.

“At the end of the day it’s still a game and it’s still baseball. It’s never An initial $1 million relief fund – going to go away. We’ll do whatever we of makes you lose interest a little bit,” announced on Tuesday by MLB – for need to just to experience baseball.”

Mueller said. “It’s frustrating, no doubt spring training employees will help Prior to the start of the pandemic, about it.” soften the blow.

912,956 fans attended Cactus League The native of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Before Thursday’s news, many fans has made the trip each of the last three games according to the ASU study. visits ballparks in the hope of seeing Those numbers took a dip in 2021 with years to Phoenix but has been turned minor league players, anything.

Covid-19 restrictions on attendance, away by the pandemic, limited tickets Outside of American Family Fields of and now a lockout. limiting ticket sales, but coming into Phoenix – the spring training home of “I understand how it can ruin others’ 2022 it seemed that those figures were the Milwaukee Brewers – Paul Mueller primed for an uptick. outlook on the game, because it did sauntered outside the locked gates of They’ll be better. But in the Valley, at back in (1994),” Cubs fan Chuck Dreixler the unusually quiet complex. least, damage was done. said. “It will never be ruined for me. It’s

Have an interesting sports story?

Contact Zach Alvira at zalvira@timespublications.com and follow him on Twitter @ZachAlvira

“People want events, for the third year in a row, spring training is disrupted, and it’s making a big impact on tourism. The stadium workers, the umpires, think about all the people affected jobwise. It’s really hurting our state.”

38

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

For more community news visit SanTanSun.com

Neighbor’s suicide leaves regret, questions in its wake

BY DAVID LEIBOWITZ Columnist

The white house sits across the street from the window fronting my desk. Not much distinguishes the place from the rest of the block where I moved two weeks ago. Four orange trees, their trunks painted white, line the east edge of the driveway.

The side gate has a sign that reads “Beware of the Dog” in faded orange letters. On the porch sits a white pot sprouting a metal replica of a sunflower.

The flower’s bright yellow adds a little cheer to the scene, but this is not that kind of story.

I met the woman who owned the house once, a few days after I moved in. I was unloading the last of my boxes.

She walked over from across the street and introduced herself as Linda. She looked to be approaching 80, and blunt in the way people of a certain age can

pull off.

“It’s a nice street,” she assured me, with a hard glance that seemed to suggest I had better keep it that way. I learned Linda had lived in the small white house for decades, beside Carolyn, her best friend and forever neighbor. There was rarely traffic on the block. Dogs barked on occasion. I told her my name. Then my phone rang. It was a work call I needed to take.

We said goodbyes and I thought nothing more of it for a few days, when I came home to a street full of police cars and an ambulance. The low white house had police crime scene tape blocking the driveway. Officers milled about. Carolyn, the forever neighbor, sat on her porch talking into her phone.

I could see her shoulders heaving.

The sergeant running the scene met me in the street. He had little to say except there had been a death. Now a death investigation was happening. I

asked whether there had been a crime.

He said he didn’t think so, that it looked like an older woman, the home’s only occupant, had taken her own life. No, not with a gun. It appeared she had hanged herself.

“That’s sad,” was the best I could do. “Very sad,” he agreed. A thought occurred to me: “I guess she might have been lonely.”

A couple of visitors have come and gone from the house since that afternoon, and I have looked for excuses to bump into Carolyn from the house next door, to ask if there’s anything I can do.

Each morning, I glance through the obituaries, to see if there might be more to Linda’s life – loved ones left behind, a memorial service scheduled, a charity where one might pay tribute.

Possibly, that’s the reporter in me, wanting to know “the rest of the story,” as Paul Harvey used to say. But more likely, it’s the human being in me, the

new neighbor who wishes he hadn’t answered his phone, who regrets not being warmer, who wonders how he might have made some small difference.

This is magical thinking, I suppose.

The world may feel small today, with everyone in each other’s business on Facebook, on Twitter, online, but the truth is, we have never been more isolated.

Buried under the outward self we show the world, the #blessings and proclamations of gratitude, each of us has endless hidden nuances, stories we take pains to keep locked away.

Now I write a story about a neighbor no longer here to read it, while I stare at the house she left vacant and wonder what happened behind those closed curtains, that front door with the iron security grate.

So it goes. We are here until we’re not, and sometimes we take the rest of the story with us.

Group offers new reports, tips for consumers

BY DIANE E, BROWN Guest Writer

The threats facing consumers seem to be increasing every year. Consumers are burdened by identity theft risks, robocall scams, and the difficulty of navigating our credit reports. Arizonans are facing surges in counterfeit products, dark apps that compromise our privacy, erroneous medical bills, and financing traps with gotcha clauses.

And then there are products we pay good money for that are difficult, if not impossible, to fix when something small goes wrong.

Arizona PIRG Education Fund has released a series of consumer protection tips and tools to help Arizonans address some of the most common consumer issues.

Top consumer complaints. In 2021, a record number of individuals from across the country filed complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection

Bureau (CFPB) Complaint Database.

Topping the list of the issues that Arizonans complained about: credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports, including incorrect information or a problem with a credit reporting company’s investigation into an existing problem; and debt collection, including attempts to collect debt not owed.

Check out our tips on freezing your files, requesting your credit reports, and other steps you can take to protect yourself.

Failing the fix. Chances are you don’t walk into an electronics store and think, “I’m wanting to buy something unfixable.” But how do you know which products you’ll be able to repair to last?

We compiled repairability rankings for 186 phones and laptops, grading manufacturers on whether they are Failing the Fix. Our resource guide is designed to help consumers who want to purchase easily repairable products.

Dark patterns. Apps, especially

social media apps, collect an incredible amount of information about us without us realizing it. The Arizona PIRG Education Fund has compiled step-bystep instructions, using screenshots, on how to change your settings on leading apps to protect your privacy on both iPhones and Androids.

The ‘buy now, pay later’ phenomenon. The new ‘buy now, pay later’ financing scheme is causing complaints to soar. Consumers making purchases as small as $50 online are offered payment plans, which can turn into debt traps.

We offer tips to avoid the interest and fees that often come with ‘buy now, pay later’ “deals”.

Counterfeit products. Often consumers associate counterfeits with luxury items such as bags or shoes; however, the variety of counterfeit products includes medicines, hygiene products and COVID-19 tests. See our tip guide on the best practices to avoid counterfeits when shopping online or evaluating reviews.

Surprise medical bills. Beyond illness or injury, being a patient isn’t easy financially. Arizonans need to know their new consumer protections against unexpected and unavoidable out-of-network medical charges. This hard-won Arizona PIRG-supported consumer law can save insured Arizonans from paying hundreds to thousands of dollars in surprise medical bills.

No doubt scammers are going to try to find new ways to scam. Consumer Protection Week may be over, but protecting consumers is never over for us.

Sign up to receive our emails and keep up-to-date on our work: arizonapirgedfund.org/contact and @ArizonaPIRG on Facebook and Twitter.

Diane E. Brown is the executive director of the Arizona Public Interest Research Group (Arizona PIRG) Education Fund, which conducts research and education. Reports and tips for consumers can be found on ArizonaPIRGEdFund.org.

Letters Vote for legislators who care about public schools

In multiple surveys, well over 70% of Arizonans agree we need a robust K-12 education system for all students.

But what have legislators like our State Senator JD Mesnard of Chandler chosen to do? Repeatedly work to move our public taxpayer dollars to unaccountable private schools and also to cut taxes, both of which reduce the funds available for fully funding our public schools.

Then, underperforming schools are criticized for less than stellar test scores. (Private schools’ performance?

Who knows?) There’s also a claim that they have put a lot of money into school funding, and anyway, “You can’t

just keep throwing money at the problem.” While it’s true that money won’t resolve all the challenges facing our schools, there are problems – like woefully underpaid teachers, crumbling buildings, out of date technology, and many others – that ONLY money can remedy.

But that’s not focused on. One wonders if they actually want the next generation of Arizonans to be less educated than their parents. That is harmful for Arizona and plainly unacceptable to most of us. Election season is coming.

Remember Mr. Mesnard and other candidates who say they value education yet support more vouchers for private schools and cuts to public education … and vote instead for someone

who supports public schools.

- Judith Simons

Congress must make apps market fairer to public at large

Hopefully we will finally see Congress take action to make the app markets that we all use fairer and more affordable. I remember reading about the Open App Markets Act in an Op/Ed back in the fall (I think it was by Rep. Jeff Weninger).

I am happy to see it moving forward, as the Senate Judiciary passed the bill out of committee with a super majority. This legislation, that would rein in the tech giants who have been using draconian and monopolistic methods to control their app stores and make it

hard to get an app into the store, and even harder to turn a profit once they are available there.

Currently, Apple and Google require the app developers use their payment system for in app purchases, and then charge them 30% to do so. When Apple and Google have a similar app, this makes it practically impossible for the small app developer to compete in the market. Apple and Google also promote their apps over those of independent developers.

This bill needs to be passed to create a level playing field, foster innovation, and protect us, the consumers, from price gouging.

-James A. Smith

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

For more community news visit SanTanSun.com

Chandler Girl Scout helps youths discover skating

BY JUSTIN LIGGIN Guest Writer

When 15-year-old Chandler resident Maria Gonzalez isn’t on the ice practicing for her next figure skating competition, she is out in the community making a difference.

By combining her passion for helping others with her love for figure skating, this Girl Scout has become a changemaker, inspiring youth to find their footing on the ice and to pursue new physical activities through her project that earned her the highest honor in Girl Scouting, a Gold Award.

“Being a competitive figure skater for 10 years, I felt compelled to take action and address the issue of physical inactivity of the youth in my community,” said Maria.

The first part of Maria’s efforts to address this issue were through her Skate for Fitness instructional event at Ice Den Chandler, a place she frequents regularly for practice. The event started with a free 20-minute lesson where almost 70 children were able to learn the

Maria Gonzalez basics of figure skating like how to start and stop on skates.

“I wanted to create an environment

where kids could ask questions and receive direct instruction from the coaches that have helped me improve my abilities as well,” said Maria.

Shortly after the lesson, Maria gave a 10-minute speech highlighting the importance of her Gold Award project, introducing all the skating coaches that volunteered and shared her experiences as a competitive figure skater.

The event finished with a bang, as ten of the volunteers put on an exhibition for attendees, skating their competitive programs and introducing new styles of skating to the crowd like free style, ice dance, synchronized skating and more.

“Overall, this event was a big success,” said Maria. “I have received messages from parents telling me about how impactful my event was and have heard from instructors that some of the public skaters who attended the event have signed up for the program and began taking lessons.”

Another element of Maria’s project was her blog, skateforfitness.net, a site dedicated to answering unique skating

questions and addressing the health benefits the sport of figure skating has to offer.

“Because my project was all about education, it was important to me that I created a place where people could visit and learn something they didn’t know before, whether it was about buying your first pair of skates or the benefits the sport has on our health,” said Maria.

Maria’s efforts earned her a Gold Award, an honor given to a Girl Scout who displays leadership and creates sustainable solutions to challenges in their community.

“Through my efforts, I was able to learn a lot about myself and my perseverance, especially when it comes to something I am so passionate about,” said Maria. “Even though I experienced some challenges along the way, I was still able to achieve my goal of putting on a fun and educational event for the youth in my community.”

See

SCOUT on page 41

Chandler artist Laurie Fagen receives 3 awards SANTAN SUN NEWS

Chandler artist Laurie Fagen received three Juror’s Choice awards in the upcoming Art for Land’s Sake online auction sponsoring the nonprofit Desert Foothills Land Trust.

Her “Ahh, Sedona” fiber art piece got third place from glass artist Laurie Nessel in the mixed media category and an honorable mention from symbolist painter A.H. Smith. Nessel also gave her third place for “Desert Vessel,” a clay sculpture entered into the sculpture and glass category.

The online exhibit will be open for public preview starting tomorrow, March 28.

The opening reception, which is free and open to the public, will be held from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursday, March 31, at The Holland Center, 34250 N. 60th St., Scottsdale. Wine and light hors d’oeuvres will be served, and there will be live entertainment by Jack and Maryla Tirin.

The auction will open for online bidding at noon April 1 and closes at noon April 11.

Desert Foothills Land Trust has been working in the Desert Foothills communities north of Phoenix for more than 30 years to connect people to nature and protect and steward sensitive lands and species of the Sonoran Desert. T The Land Trust has permanently protected nearly 1,000 acres of valuable conservation lands. Many of the preserves are open to the public for exploration and light recreation.

The Land Trust also offers guided tours, volunteer opportunities and educational programs to build awareness

Left: Chandler artist Laurie Fagen’s piece, “Ahh, Sedona” is a digital photo on fabric, then thread-painted Above: Fagen’s “Desert Vessel” is a polymer clay sculpture on glass. (Courtesy Laurie Fagen)

about the importance of land protection for the survival of the Sonoran Desert and for future generations to enjoy.

To register for the online auction: dflt. org and click on Art for Land’s Sake icon.

Both Nessel and Smith lauded the auction entries.

“It’s heartwarming to see the outpouring of artwork donated to the Art

for Land’s Sake annual fundraiser to benefit the Desert Foothills Land Trust, with many artists submitting multiple entries,” she said.

“Every artist deserves recognition for their generosity and dedication to conservation,” she continued. “Sifting through the art to highlight outstanding talent is difficult. There were many won-

derful pieces and I suspect more than a few will have rousing bidding wars.”

Smith was enthusiastic as well, stating, “The quality of work, the high level of craftmanship, and the diversity of styles and subject matter are such an inspiration. There is something for everyone in this show: paintings, pastels, photography, fiber arts, 2-and 3-D mixed media pieces, sculpture, glass work, fiber art and jewelry. I found the work this year to be exceptional in its diversity and execution.

“All in all, this show is a fun mix of a variety of mediums that celebrate the desert and all of its beauty.”

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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NEIGHBORS

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Care advocate named at Sun Lakes Methodist SANTAN SUN NEWS

Polly J. Smith RN, BSN, LNC has been named Sun Lakes United Methodist Church’s new community care advocate.

Smith has an extensive background as a registered nurse, heath care advocate, and social services volunteer.

“She will lend support and assist individuals with their challenges by advocating for them as a liaison among our ministers and ministries, counselors, and other service providing entities,” a church spokeswoman said. “The goal is to see that services provided are both transitional and a transformative benefit for the individual’s circumstances.”

She added that Smith “has experience and knowledge in assisting people making difficult health care decisions, coping with life-limiting diseases, transitioning from independent home care to various types of care facilities, and coping with financial concerns regarding health care insurance and provisions of care.”

Other areas of need she may address include palliative care, assessment and

Polly J. Smith planning for end of life, and bereavement or grief support.

“Polly will be addressing everyone’s concerns with compassion, confidentiality, and respect,” the spokeswoman said.

She can be reached at 480-895-8766 or email at Polly@sunlakesumc.org.

Sun Lakes Church names new part-time pastor

BY GIL HENDRY Guest Writer

The search committee of Sun Lakes United Church of Christ has unanimously voted to call Rev. Derrick Elliott as pastor for an initial designated term of six months – which he has accepted.

Rev. Elliott will begin his pastorate with our regular weekly service on at 4 p.m. April 2 in the Sun Lakes Chapel. All are welcome no matter where you are on life’s journey.

Rev. Elliott will continue to also be the part-time pastor at Desert Heritage UCC Church in Mesa. Both churches are relatively small and will be participating in a unique arrangement that will provide a part-time pastor for each church and at the same time, full-time work for one minister.

If, at the end of the six-month period, both churches are comfortable with the shared arrangement, Rev. Elliott will be called as the part-time settled pastor of both churches.

Rev. Elliott was ordained as an

SCOUT

from page 39

Maria, who has been a part of Girl Scouts for nine years, was also able to apply her important skills she has learned over the years through her other community projects.

“I have learned how to use my leadership skills of collaboration, decision making, and communication by selling Girl Scout Cookies to make my community an overall better place,” said Maria.

In addition to learning important

authorized minister within the United Church of Christ in 2016. In addition to being the part time pastor of Desert Heritage Church, he is an Air Force Reserve chaplain stationed at Schriever Space Force Base at the rank of captain.

Before serving as an Air Force Reserve Chaplain, he spent 12 years in the Louisiana National Guard as an enlisted administrative assistant and a military intelligence officer. Rev. Elliott has been an elementary school teacher, community outreach specialist for homeless veterans, a correctional chaplain, a hospital chaplain, a youth worship leader and a member of the board of directors for United Church of Christ and Global Ministries.

He holds a master of divinity from United Theological Seminary and master of education and bachelor of arts degrees from the University of Louisiana at Monroe. He has completed four units of clinical pastoral education and is pursuing his doctor of ministry at Wesley Theological Seminary with an anticipated graduation date of May 2024. qualities about herself, the Hamilton High School student was also able to learn about the field of public health, which she plans to major in at college.

As for other Girl Scouts who are looking to take on their Gold Award project, Maria suggests sticking with what you love.

“I would advise Girl Scouts to pick a topic they are truly passionate about!

That way even if they encounter roadblocks, they will be able to push through and continue on with a project they care about that will also make a difference.”

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

Climbing stairs shouldn’t feel like climbing Camelback.

Get back to the little things you love with stronger joints.

Whether it is climbing Camelback Mountain or climbing your stairs without joint pain, we’re here to get you back to the life you love. Our highly specialized physician and patient care staff works with each patient to establish a personalized treatment and rehabilitation program.

Discover how we can get you back to living your life your way.

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

For more community news visit SanTanSun.com

Chandler Museum offers two major new exhibits the farmers’ enduring hospitality and a glimpse into the hardships and joys of their way of life – one that once defined our national identity.

This exhibition is a program of ExhibitsUSA, a national division of Mid-America Arts Alliance, and The National Endowment for the Arts.

SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

Chandler Museum, 300 S. Chandler Village Drive, Chandler is offering a variety of free programs next month as well as a new exhibit.

The museum is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday.

It is closed Mondays. Information: 480-7822717 or chandlermuseum.org.Exhibits.

Most of the programming events offer a chance to reserve a seat. Go to eventbrite.com/d/az and search by “Chandler Museum.”

Dust Bowl Migrants in Chandler (Through Aug. 13, 2023) In the late 1930s Chandler had an influx of Dust Bowl migrants who fled their homes in search of a better life. Government photographers Dorothea Lange and Russell Lee documented unique stories showing these migrants and their dwellings, which were often temporary.

This exhibition is a history of Dust Bowl Chandler through unique black and white photographs. It examines what home looked like and makes connections between 1930s Chandler and Chandler today. It includes themes of housing, migration, agriculture, technology, self-sufficiency, and empathy.

American Farmer (April 6- May 25) This exhibition features forty-five

This portrait is one of the entries in the Chandler Museum exhibit titled “American Farmer. (Courtesy of Chandler Museum)

iconic portraits showing the geographic and cultural diversity of the American Farmer. This vivid portfolio from photographer Paul Mobley is accompanied by anecdotes and memories in the farmers’ own words. The images and words are both a testament to

PROGRAMMING History Bites, noon-12:30 p.m. April 5 There were two Chandlers in the 1930s. One revolved around the San Marcos Hotel, where the rich and famous enjoyed leisurely winters and spent time in carefully managed areas nearby. The other was a town already a decade into economic hardship, where most residents were small-scale farmers struggling to find a new cash crop after the 1920 cotton market collapse.

Find out more as Collections Coordinator Nate Meyers tells the story of a town with a more complicated history than you may think, and describes the Dust Bowl migrants who would soon add their own chapters to the tale.

The New Deal in Arizona, 10:30 a.m.noon, April 30 President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s ambitious initiatives also produced sidewalks and stadiums, outhouses and

amphitheaters, roadside monuments, and remote stock tanks. Federal investment in 1930s Arizona accounts for much of our current infrastructure. In Chandler, New Deal programs modernized water delivery, improved school buildings, operated a 320-acre farm, and provided apartment housing for workers.

Join us as historian and Arizona Culture Keeper J. J. Lamb brings Arizona’s New Deal to life, revealing the local politics that brought in federal dollars.

How Chandler Helped Create Modern Country Music, 7-8:30 p.m. April 7 When the Dust Bowl pushed a wave of migrants toward Chandler, music came with them. Travelers who settled down pulled family and friends out West over the decades, each new wave bringing more music in its wake. The Valley became a top destination for artists to play, or even stay: a place far from Nashville where they could blend traditions and create their own styles.

Listen in while local historian William Holly reveals how patterns of migration led to a new kind of music, as artists from Buck Owens to Waylon Jennings put Chandler and the Valley on the country music map.

See

MUSEUM on page 45

Book pays homage to Mesa Temple’s Easter pageants

BY PAUL MARYNIAK Executive Editor

As excitement begins to build over next month’s return of the Easter Pageant to the Mesa Arizona Temple after a three-year hiatus, a newly published book offers a detailed look at its evolution across eight decades.

For nearly three years, writers Jill Adair, a Mesa resident and the Temple’s communications director, and Cecily Condie, a former Mesa resident and editor-owner of Inglestone Publishing, combed through hundreds of photos, interviewed scores of people and burrowed through microfilm to produce an homage to a production that draws over 100,000 people over the course of its multi-day presentation.

Adair and Condie teamed up with Gilbert book designer Leslie Thompson to produce “The Mesa Easter Pageant – 80 Years of Sharing the Story of Jesus the Christ,” a 280-page hardcover book that details both the pageant’s history and its community impact and historical significance.

From a humble Easter sunrise service, it has evolved into a work that depicts the life of Jesus Christ with a cast of more than 400 people and another 400 other volunteers.

The free pageant this year features a revised script, a new soundtrack specially recorded by the London Sympho-

would be well-established.

But Adair and Condie discovered multiple gaps in the collective memory of pageant and church leaders and decided a meticulously documented history was in order.

They interviewed more than 50 principals in past pageants – such as directors, men who played Jesus, pageant presidents, crew members and costume designers – and sifted through a variety of documents to achieve that goal.

“We also had hundreds of photos,” said.Adair, whose husband, Scott, took many of the photos over the years. “We said we could do 10 volumes, so we included as much as we could, particularly the photos, to make it more than just a historical book.”

Added Condie: “To take 80 years of history and boil it down would Co-authors Jill Adair, left and Cecily Condie, center, credit book designer Leslie Thompson, right, be a challenge under any circumwith the engaging look of their book, “The Mesa Easter Pageant - 80 Years of Sharing the Story stances. But in this case, you add of Jesus the Christ.” (Special to STSN) the hundreds of individual stories from a cast of nearly 500 and a Christ of Latter-day Saints held on the ny Orchestra and a massive stage with crew of almost that many every year and new props. It will be presented at 8 p.m. Mesa Arizona Tempe lawn. you start to see the magnitude of what Its popularity has grown so much April 6-9 and 12-16, on the north lawn it would take to put it together.” that 9,600 folding chairs will be set up of the Mesa Arizona Temple, 101 South The two women struggled to decide for each of the nine performances next Lesueur. No tickets are needed. on the best way to present all the inforAs Adair and Condie show, the color- month. mation they had acquired, finally opting For a show that has grown in size and ful spectacle started in 1938 as a Easter sunrise service that the Church of Jesus stature over time, you’d think its history See on page 44

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

The ImproVables show coming to Sun Lakes SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

The ImproVables comedy improv show is coming to Cottonwood Country Cliub and tickets are now available.

The show on April 22 will be held in the Saguaro Room and will have a nightclub-style atmosphere.

Doors will open at 5:30 pm. and dinner will be at 6 p.m. The show itself is new and its producers say “laughter is guaranteed.”

A buffet dinner is included in the $25

ticket price. Seating is limited. The ImproVables’ last show was sold out in five days. For ticket information, email emaillist@slctinfo.com or call 480-382-6290 The Sun Lakes ImproVables began in 2011, as a class in improvisation and the next year felt confident enough to perform publicly and offer shows around the Sun Lakes area.

They have also performed for community groups, senior citizen centers, community colleges and even on board a cruise ship in 2014. “As far as we know,

we are the only performing improv troupe composed entirely of senior citizens, so who says old folks don’t have a sense of humor,” the group says on its website.

“Generally the seniors in our group find the activities to be mentally stimulating and a wonderful way to play and grow with like-minded seniors.”

Improvisational comedy relies on suggestions and ideas from the audience. The performers then create scenes and sketches based on these

suggestions and all off the top of their heads. There are no scripts and no rehearsal.

The ImproVables had a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. The re-organized troupe of 20 performers is comprised of former members and members who are new to the art of improv.

“We meet and practice every Monday morning,” said Phyllis Novy, one of the troupe’s founders. “It is a joy to begin each week with laughter.”

Ocotillo Artists Group shines in annual spring show SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

Just in time for Easter and Mother’s Day, area residents and art collectors can enjoy fine art and craft by Chandler area artists as the Ocotillo Artists Group presents its spring art show.

The show in downtown Ocotillo will be held 9 a.m.-2 p.m. April 2.

Artisans include ceramicists, jewelers, painters, digital artists and more, creating one-of-a-kind art for collectors as well as for gifts.

“We are so pleased to present another art show and sale in Downtown Ocotillo,” said organizer Sandy Ashbaugh of Ocotillo Artists Group. “And we’d like to thank Spike Lawrence for providing the space for us.”

Look for the white tents along 2547 W. Queen Creek Road between Price and Dobson roads on the west end of the shopping center.

Admission is free, and there is ample parking.

The Ocotillo Artists Group is an organization of high-quality artists, crafts people and makers who live in or near Ocotillo.

The members are dedicated to supporting each other with monthly meetings, programs, networking and art exhibits.

The group promotes a number of area artists, such as Larry Larson of

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from page 43

for a chronological approach.

Among the interviews – which will be donated as oral histories along with a profusion of all kinds of memorabilia to the Mesa Public Library and the Church Historical Museum in Salt Lake City – is a chat with the oldest person they could find with a connection to the pageant.

He is Grant Gunnell of Mesa, who sang at the sunrise service when he was a senior at Mesa High School in 1944.

Through a painstaking review of microfilmed editions of the Mesa Tribune for 80 years – “We found at least something published about the event from every year,” Adair said – the two women also clear up some historical ambiguities and misconceptions about the pageant.

They found that the pageant has been held every year between 1938

The Ocotillo Artists Group will present its show April 2 along West Queen Creek Road between Price and Dobson roads. (file photo)

Caribou Glass Studio, who uses “the techniques of crackle, murrini and reactives he strive for the wow factor in every unique piece,” according to the group’s Facebook page.

It also includes Erin Warner, a fused glass artist who is “inspired by the natural beauty around her home and led by a lifelong love of art she explores new

techniques to create unique pieces of art” as well as Sue Roake, who creates “amazing purses,” each of which “have a tale to tell of where it has been and what it has endured. Using vintage cowboy boots, horse tack, cowhide and saddle blankets, each purse is a unique work of art that has been branded, signed and numbered.”

Ashbaugh “is inspired by the colors and artistry of sushi, the many flavors of sake’ and their corresponding serving pieces.

Using the juxtaposition of bold colors and light clay, her pieces are a modern interpretation of traditional flasks and cups.”

Information: facebook.com/ocotilloartistsgroup or ocotilloartistsgroup@gmail.com.

and 2018 except for 1975 – the year the Mesa Temple held an extended open house prior to its rededication after its first major renovation – and became an evening event in 1977.

Prior to embarking on their project, Adair said she and Condie discovered in conversations with former pageant leaders that they didn’t know answers to some basic questions.

“Cecily and I would look at each other and say, ‘Someone should document the history of the pageant before it’s lost,’” Adair recalled.

“As we uncovered the vast number of articles written in the Tribune and other newspapers, found personal mementoes and letters, and then interviewed individuals who had made contributions over the years, we were able to collect and to verify facts and to even sort out some of the mistaken ideas about the pageant that had been passed down over the years,” Condie said, adding:

“The result is not only a clear history of the growth of the annual Easter celebration, it is also a chronicle of what the event has meant to those who have participated and attended and, also, how it has impacted the community as a whole over the past 80 years.”

“From the time I first worked as the communications director,” Adair said, “I wondered about the beginnings of the pageant and was inspired by the stories I heard of people sharing their talents and time to be involved in this event.

From my earliest involvement with the pageant, I have been impressed with the way that people sacrifice and donate their time and resources to join in sharing the story of Jesus Christ in this way. It’s a unique and very beautiful and touching experience for the cast and crew and one that causes the audience to reflect on the meaning of Easter and of Christ’s mission and life as well.”

Both women, mothers of now-adult children, have been in past pageants, as

have some of their immediate family.

They are happy with the outcome of their labor, crediting book designer Thompson with making the book “visually beautiful with her careful placement of photos, text and decorative touches,” Adair said.

“It was one of our goals to make the book beautiful because the pageant is so visually beautiful and we wanted to represent that with our book,” Adair added.

Condie, the author of a children’s book titled “If I Made A Bug,” feels the book “will mean a lot to those who want to reminisce about their own pageant experience, but, also to anyone who wants to know more about Mesa’s history or about the sharing of the story of Jesus the Christ in this way. “ The book is published by Condie’s Inglestone Publishing and available at inglestonepublishing.com and amazon. com. More information about it is at mesaeasterpageantbook.com.

GET OUT

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

MUSEUM

from page 43

Trivia Night , 7-9 p.m. April 14 From the obvious to the obscure, go head-to-head with other trivia teams as you test your musical history skills! Pencil in one hand and delicious nibbles in the other, it’s a guaranteed good time.

LaShay Marks conducts the fun as you compete solo or with a team of two to six. Vie for prizes, try your luck in a raffle, and enjoy small bites and self-serve mocktails, compliments of the Museum!

Swing Dance Night, 7-9 p.m. April 21 Come join us at the Chandler Museum for a night of swing dance with the Arizona Lindy Hop Society. Check out a routine from some Lindy Hop dancers, take part in a small lesson, and then show off your moves during a social dance experience.

Folk Music Night at the Chandler Museum, 7-8 p.m. April 28 Experience an evening of folk music from the 1930s as sung by Squires Studios premier student vocalists. Expres-

This overview of downtown Chandler during the 1930s depicts half of the city’s true character as the other half comprised migrant farmers who scraped and scrapped for a living. The “two Chandlers” during the 1930s will be the topic of a History Bites lunch at Chandler Museum. (Courtesy of Chandler Museum)

sive and eloquent, these performers will transport you with the sounds and stories of the Great Depression.

Volunteer Information Session, 3:30-5 p.m. April 12.

The Volunteer Information Session is a required step for becoming a Chandler Museum volunteer or intern. The information-rich, 90-minute session will help you discover what areas of Chandler Museum interest you the most. You will learn how Museum volunteers and staff serve the community every day, and get a peek into areas visitors seldom see.

Learn how you can use your current skills, or develop new ones, while volunteering at Chandler Museum.

Play Day, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. April 23 Enter the courtyard to play croquet and other outdoor lawn games that will be sure to satisfy even the most competitive groups.

Bring the family and toy with classic games and toys. Brush up on the classics or explore something new. Each month features a different set of games and toys. Out-

45

door games and activities will be available in the courtyard weather permitting.

C-Town Suitcase Club, 10:30 -1:15 a.m.

April 6.

A melodic program will be held in conjunction with the City of Chandler’s Jazz Festival.

These 45-minute programs are led by friendly educators who compare everyday items, then and now. With new themes each month, program participants will begin together with a central topic and then break off into family groups to engage in several activity stations. Geared toward ages 3-5. Register as space is limited.

Art Tots, 10:30-11:15 a.m. April 13 Celebrate nature with us by creating art with natural materials and decorating a upcycled bird feeder.

The 45-minute program is an age-appropriate introduction to different art styles and concepts. With new themes each month, program participants will begin together with a central topic and then break off into family groups to engage in several art-centered activity stations. Geared toward ages 3-5.

Annual Corvette show coming to downtown Chandler SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF

The Corvette Club of Arizona will host its free annual Corvettes in the Park Car Show 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m. April 3 in A.J. Chandler Park on S. Arizona Avenue in downtown Chandler to benefit the Packages From Home nonprofit.

The group’s Chevys in the Park show drew 140 vehicles and raised $2,200 and

it’s hoping to break those records with the spring Corvette event.

The Corvette Club of Arizona encourages all Corvette owners in the area to come out and display their cars.

Last year’s show displayed over 100 gleaming Vettes, The club donates donate $10 from every car registration to “Packages from Home” and has raised over $25,000 over

Thank you for supporting our students Please call ahead to book appointment.

Watch on our social media for monthly specials.

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the course of its previous 11 shows.

Packages from Home provides personal care and support items to military personnel stationed abroad and representatives will be on the premises to discuss the program while children and adults will have a chance to decorate the boxes.

“Corvettes in the Park” is a “participant’s choice” judged show with awards for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in each gen-

eration (C1-C8). Presentation of Awards will begin at 1:45pm.

Pre-registration for the show is $35 and the form must be received by March 28.

Day-of-show registration is $40 from 8:309:30 a.m., based on space availability.

Registration forms and additional information are available on the website: Showcorvetteclubofarizona.com, or by contacting Ron Gliot @ 779 777 0857.

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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Scripture reminds us to adapt to change RABBI IRWIN WIENER, D.D. Guest Writer

There is no question that change is difficult, nearly impossible at times.

We humans are creatures of habit. What is more we seem to constantly refer to the past as though it was something magical.

Our past is glamorized for any number of reasons; not least of which is we were, of course, younger. Things were new and exciting, and in most cases, being younger meant we were also healthier.

Our past reminds us of a time when life was not yet revealed. As we get older, our dreams tend to fade into the reality that this is now our life.We come to grips with the realization that some of our earlier ambitions will forever go unfulfilled.

What is true for an individual is often true for a community. One of the chapters in Scripture illustrates this point; the People of Israel have been escorted out of Egypt by God. They have witnessed firsthand the 10 plagues inflicted upon the Egyptians that eventually

freed them from their captivity.

While in the desert on their journey to freedom, to a new land, and a new beginning, they were protected by God with a “pillar of cloud” during the day and a “pillar of fire” at night. (Exodus 13:21-22) That generation had witnessed God’s presence in the most intimate way imaginable: from the Exodus to Mt. Sinai and beyond. Regardless of all that they had witnessed, the Israelites’ yearnings for life as they once knew it in the slavery of Egypt overpower them. They yearn to return to their familiar, safe, although miserable lifestyle. (Numbers 14:4) When the opportunity for change confronts the Israelites, a change that will only enhance their lives and national standing, they romanticize their past, as unbearable as it was, and they object to the change.

So, after having witnessed the most amazing experiences one could possibly imagine, the Israelites complain bitterly to Moses saying: “Were there no graves in Egypt that we were taken to die in the desert? What have you done to us by taking us out of Egypt?” At this point in the narrative we have to feel sorry for God. No matter what God does not

seem to matter. (Exodus 14:11) Some of us can identify with the reluctance to make changes. The unknown can be daunting. It is easier for most of us to travel the familiar route through life. Slavery may be lousy, but at least our next meal was guaranteed. Honestly, with all our 21st century sensibilities, are we any different?

We know how hard it is to change, and we see it in ourselves. Bad habits and destructive behavior constantly repeat themselves.

Our chosen profession may be terribly stressful, even painful, but it pays the bills. We, like our ancient forbearers, are caught between two inseparable tensions in life: Constancy and change.

The unknown of the future entices us while at the same time scares us.

In fact, sometimes it is painful. Is it not ironic that, for example, moving is considered one of the most stressful things a person or family can do, especially later in life. Scripture – in its subtle way is teaching us this most difficult lesson, and it is experienced by our own generation today.

Even here, in our little corner of the world, we see change-taking place right

before us. Our understanding of our lives has changed dramatically. Some of our friends have left us either through death or because of the need to move on.

What was necessary yesterday does not seem necessary today. The one constant, however, is that we are a vital link in the chain of continuity. For that reason alone, we need to cherish and maintain that which we inherited.

As we get older, perhaps we should remember that change is necessary for continuation, not stagnation. If we stayed the same – well, there certainly would be no excitement or anticipation.

So, now, more than ever, we need to adjust our thinking to accommodate all the change we can absorb.

That is the lesson of growth and evolution Scripture endeavors to translate for us. And for sure, it is the path we should be involved with in these later years of our life. We connect because of comfort, and we expand those relationships because, as Scripture reminds us through various exchanges: There is no future without change.

Rabbi Irwin Wiener, D.D., is spiritual leader of the Sun Lakes Jewish Congregation.

Persistence is key to most any kind of success

BY REV. MARVIN ARNPRIESTER Guest Writer

I was invited to a dinner with the current president and two former board members and their spouses of Saint Paul School of Theology. It was neat to hear both memories of the past and current matters of the school.

In the course of the evening, we learned one of the couples shared they

had been married 70 of their 91 years.

They had met and became childhood sweethearts. They married at 21.

They were asked the secret of their long marriage. Without a moment’s hesitation she replied, persistence. There was total silence for a few moments and then we moved on to other subjects.

But I have been thinking about it ever since. Persistence is defined as firm or obstinate continuance in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.

Synonyms include: perseverance,

tenacity, determination, resolve, resolution, staying power, purposefulness, firmness of purpose, patience, endurance, application, diligence, dedication, commitment, doggedness, steadfastness, tirelessness, indefatigability, and stamina.

I believe the key to success of most any kind may be summed up in persistence. It is about being intentional and not giving up quickly when things don’t go one’s way. It is about being focused on what is most important in a relationship.

It is hanging tough when everything

is saying quit. I suspect persistence is seen in having faith in oneself and the other to see it through and discovering depth and meaning in discovering new levels of intimacy, growth and joy in one’s life and relationships.

May you and I grow in our persistence quotient in a positive and healthy way that adds to the quality of one’s life.

Rev. Marvin Arnpriester is senior pastor of Sun Lakes United Methodist Church.

Creation is designed for renewal, as is spring

BY LYNNE HARTKE Guest Writer

Spring always comes.

Staring out across the forest near our cabin where a major tree-thinning project was being done by the Forest Service in northern Arizona, I had to remind myself of that truth.

Sliced-through lengths of pine trees littered the ground. Discarded boughs and pinecones mingled with the mud puddles on our gravel driveway.

In hopes of reducing the risk of a future wildfire and to improve the health of remaining trees, the project began this winter during the off-season. I worried what it would mean to the wildlife in the area at the felling of so many trees.

Spring always comes, I thought.

Would it be true in this case? As I stared at the ground covered with stumps and broken branches, I reminded my heart, Creation is designed for life. For renewal.

For resurrection.

Even with that inner pep talk, I went to bed discouraged. Surely the small woodland animals and birds had fled to someplace safer, if they had survived at all.

During the night, under the light of a half moon, we heard the bugle of the elk across the lakebed. Two coyotes greeted the dawn with a call-and-response yipand-yowl in the blue-gray morning light.

Not to be outdone, a flock of stellar jays descended on the back deck demanding with a united shook shook shook that the empty feeder be filled with birdseed. Soon we spotted juncos, acorn woodpeckers, and the head-firstdown-the-trees nuthatches. Our grand-

kids’ favorite character, the neighborhood red squirrel, chattered from the boughs of the still-standing ponderosas, encouraging the tassel-eared Abert’s squirrel to wake from his winter’s nap to see what all the commotion was about.

With war happening in Ukraine and the displacement of more than three million Ukrainian people, it seemed petty to be concerned about a small corner of the Coconino Forest and the tiny creatures that lived there.

But maybe the ordinariness of our lives is something that draws us – teachers, doctors, plumbers, parents, children, and engineers – to make a difference for kindness and goodness in our own spheres of influence, to be place makers and not place un-makers, as so aptly put by writer Christie Purifoy.

In a weekly email to my inbox,

Purifoy wrote, “War ‘un-makes’ places in devastating ways. I don’t know what to do other than pray, but I take hope knowing that my place is connected to every other place in the world. When we pray and when we cultivate goodness and beauty in our places, we resist the ‘un-making’ of violence and death.

With God’s help, every seed we plant grows a tree of life.”

Later that day, as we packed up the truck to head back to Chandler, I caught a glimpse of orange in the branches of a cedar. The bird flew off before I could snap a photo. My heart leapt.

The first robin of the season.

Spring. Always. Comes.

Lynne Hartke is the author of Under a Desert Sky and the wife of pastor and Chandler Mayor Kevin Hartke. She writes at lynnehartke.com.

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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

47

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EOE

51

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

FIND YOUR PURPOSE Keeping College Affordable GENEROUS SCHOLARSHIPS

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*Average tuition after scholarships is approximately $8,600. Scholarships may be awarded based on 6th semester transcripts. At the time in which final, official transcripts are received, GCU reserves the right to rescind or modify the scholarship if it is determined that eligibility was not achieved. GCU reserves the right to decline scholarship awards for any reason. If a student does not meet the minimum renewal criteria, their scholarship will be forfeited. GCU reserves the right to change scholarship awards at any time without notice. If a student does not meet the minimum renewal criteria, their scholarship will be forfeited. Prices based on 2019-20 rate and are subject to change. **GCU students graduate with less debt on average ($18,750 according to College Scorecard) than the average at public and private nonprofit universities ($28,650 according to 2017 data from the Institute for College Access and Success).

Please note, not all GCU programs are available in all states and in all learning modalities. Program availability is contingent on student enrollment. Grand Canyon University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org), an institutional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Pre-licensure nursing students who begin or resume attendance in Fall 2020 and beyond will be ineligible to utilize most GCU institutional aid/scholarships for tuition and fees once accepted into the clinical portion of the program.

Important policy information is available in the University Policy Handbook at https://www.gcu.edu/academics/ academic-policies.php. The information printed in this material is accurate as of JULY 2021. For the most up-to-date information about admission requirements, tuition, scholarships and more, visit gcu.edu. ©2021 Grand Canyon University 21GTR0681

52

THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | MARCH 27, 2022

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