Schools near 32nd Street in Ahwatukee would be better protected in an emergency, bicyclists will get their longsought path and the city will expand its study of the South Mountain Freeway’s impact on Chandler Boulevard and Ray Road traffic, a group of local officials have announced.
That announcement came last week as the Arizona Department of Transportation said half of the “interim Pecos Road” will open Monday, April 3, between 24th and 40th streets as freeway construction activity continues to escalate.
Getting cheaper water from the south side of the freeway to Club West’s beleaguered
golf course is the major unresolved issue, and any solution won’t involve ADOT because the state constitution prevents it from doing anything, the officials said.
On the other hand, residents who have been grousing about the absence of a 32nd Street interchange with the freeway may one day see that added.
Details of the agreement with ADOT were discussed by state Sen. Sean Bowie, state Rep. Jill Norgaard, Phoenix Councilman Sal DiCiccio and Ahwatukee Foothills Village Planning Committee Chairman Chad Blostone. Mike Hinz and Bill Fautsch of the Club West and Foothills HOA boards, respectively, also participated.
All six have been meeting with ADOT – and some of them with the city as well –
Acommunity residents who have responded to Facebook posts requesting supplies.
My classroom walls and cupboards were not exactly bare when I arrived at school last July. A former teacher generously left plenty of Spanish books, posters and classroom supplies.
t takes a village to create a successful classroom.
In the nine months that I have been teaching at Kyrene Altadeña Middle School, I have been amazed time after time at Ahwatukee Foothills Villagers who have helped me create and maintain my classroom.
Donors have ranged from my own students to anonymous
But I still needed a few things – items that added up to a substantial credit card bill: Colorful baskets to hold attendance rosters, tests and worksheets; bilingual story books for students who finish their work early; Spanish music CDs; educational posters; heavy cardstock for nametags;
to resolve a variety of issues created by the impending freeway.
“I think we all agree we’re trying to make this freeway more livable,” said Bowie, who has been part of the negotiations since his election last November.
Added Norgaard, who has been leading the talks for the local officials: “This has been a long time in the making, and I’m glad we’re seeing it come to fruition.”
Blostone said he thinks citizens also had a lot to do with turning the city and ADOT around on some issues.
Bike path hailed by cyclists
The provision for a cycling path marks
lot of heart
(Lauren Clark/Special to AFN)
Five-year-old Marin Merchant of Ahwatukee was responsible for raising nearly $3,000 for use in classrooms at Estrella Elementary School. Read how she inspired donors on p. 18.
Longtime Ahwatukee resident and former professional journalist Cathryn Creno now teaches Spanish in the Kyrene School District. This is the third in her occasional reports on her new career.
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St. John Bosco’s top speller undaunted by Arizona bee loss
BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
In the end, “reboise” – a rare word for reforesting – tripped up Audrey Wood.
Up until then – for three-and-a-half hours in the longest Arizona State Spelling Bee on record in terms of time and rounds – the seventh grader from St. John Bosco Catholic School in Ahwatukee hung in there by correctly spelling “jaguar,” “gulden,” “pentathlon,” “cravat,” “blasé,” “gymkhana” and “philhellenism.”
Audrey made it to the 13th round of the bee on Saturday, technically tying with 13 other youngsters for sixth place. And despite her loss, she considered it “an amazing and very positive experience.”
The 13-year-old daughter of Dustin and Lesley Wood nevertheless earned some distinctions on her way to the state championship, which was won by Queen Creek eighth grader.
She has represented St. John Bosco at the Phoenix Diocesan spelling bee four years in a row, starting in the fourth grade. She won the school bee three times, but ended up representing it a fourth time because the first-place winner had moved out of state.
This year, she won the regional spelling bee, defeating all other contenders from schools in Mesa, Tempe and Ahwatukee and winning her one of the
(Special to AFN)
Seventh grader Audrey Wood is not only the top speller at St. John Bosco Catholic School in Ahwatukee, but also one of the best in Maricopa County.
Close-out Specials!!
Gov. Doug Ducey on March 28 paid a visit to Mountain Pointe High School, the largest school he’s visited since he became governor and the first time he’s been invited to one by a student.
Ducey’s morning visit came after he accepted an invitation from Mountain Pointe senior Alexis Bivens, who asked him to speak to her U.S./Arizona Government class.
The class is taught by longtime Mountain Pointe teacher Lane Waddell.
Tempe Union High School District spokesman Jill Hanks said Bivins and several classmates brainstormed how to phrase the invitation.
Although he’s been invited to many
schools by teachers, Hanks said she was told Ducey had never been invited by a student.
“Alexis says she is most interested in learning what a typical day is like for him,” Hanks said.
Mountain Pointe Principal Bruce Kipper and Tempe Union Superintendent Kenneth Baca greeted the governor on his arrival, along with the band, cheerleaders and several other student groups.
After speaking to Waddell’s class, Ducey was escorted on a private tour of the school and met privately with the student council.
Ducey’s visit came too late for a full report in today’s AFN, but read about it in next week’s edition and later this week on ahwatukee.com.
SUMMER FUN
Phoenix budget proposal goes before Ahwatukee residents next week
Ahwatukee residents will have the opportunity to weigh in on Phoenix’s proposed 2017-18 spending plan next week – only it will be in the daytime and not the evening.
City officials will hold the hearing at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 4, at Pecos Community Center, 17010 S. 48th St., Ahwatukee.
In prior years, the budget hearing has been held in the evening, but city Councilman Sal DiCiccio said seniors often can’t get to it. Besides, not many people showed up at night.
The Ahwatukee session is one of 17 hearings that will be held by April 20 and complete details of the preliminary budget are at phoenix.gov.
The city manager’s trial budget projects a small surplus of $1.9 million
NEIGHBOR
from page 3
27 coveted spots in the state bee.
Audrey, whose favorite subject is creative writing, said, “I do study spelling quite a bit. During spelling bee season, I study every night, even if it’s just for a few minutes.”
But she’s also busy with a lot of other things outside the classroom – including acting, Irish dancing, violin, guitar, basketball and filmmaking.
She said her secret to being a good speller is simple.
in the General Fund that will go toward hiring more police assistants to take on administrative duties that officers now handle; providing additional homelessness outreach teams citywide; making safety, security and education staffing permanent at the Central Library; and squirreling away funds for a deficit that is projected for the 201819 fiscal year.
From other funding sources, the city is proposing to add 22 new park ranger positions for flatland parks and mountain preserves; enhance aviation safety and security, including an ambulance dedicated to Sky Harbor; aadding Planning and Development Services Department positions to accommodate growth in housing and other kinds of buildings; and making improvements on some bus routes and in solid waste collections.
for spelling, she said, “I’ve always done really well.”
“I think I’ve only missed about five words ever, and that was back in the first, second and third grades.”
Audrey also reads a lot, but said, “I always have something that I’m reading, but I don’t think I read as much as other kids who are into reading do.
“I’m more into writing. I really love creative writing and using big words that I’ve used from my spelling studies.”
“Anytime I hear a word that I don’t know, I look it up and write it down,” Audrey explained. “I also have a book of difficult-to-spell words with thousands of words that my grandmother gave to me, so I have my parents ask me random words out of that book.”
Her formula works.
Although St. John Bosco doesn’t have a separate line on her report card
She likes dystopian young-adult fiction – the “Hunger Games” trilogy as well as the “Divergent” and “Maze Runner” series – and is currently reading the Harry Potter books.
As for the spelling bees, Audrey isn’t turning her back on them any time soon.
Besides the fact they have “made me really good at spelling,” they also “made me much more at ease in thinking on my feet and being in front of a crowd.
“I really enjoy spelling in front of a crowd.”
Legislature moves to further tighten laws for citizen initiatives
BY HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services
Not content to make gathering signatures more difficult, Republican lawmakers are now moving to impose new procedural requirements on voters who want to propose their own laws.
The measure, pushed by Sen. Debbie Lesko, R-Peoria, would allow a court to keep an initiative off the ballot if backers are not in “strict compliance’’ with all election laws. That would overturn a series of existing court rulings that give voters their say and let measures stay on the ballot if there is “substantial compliance’’ with the law.
Lesko said she is particularly miffed that Arizonans were allowed to vote in 2012 on a proposal that would have made permanent the state’s one-cent sales tax surcharge.
recreational use of marijuana sought to block a vote, charging charged that the summary of the measure and the text itself were too flawed to go to voters.
But Supreme Court Chief Justice Scott Bales said Arizona law requires only that ballot measures be in “substantial compliance’’ with legal requirements. And he said Proposition 205 fits within that definition.
Lesko’s move comes less than a week after Gov. Doug Ducey signed legislation making it illegal to pay petition circulators on a per-signature basis. Foes of that measure said that bar will make it far more difficult, if not impossible, to gather the hundreds of thousands of signatures needed to propose new laws and constitutional amendments.
That did not go unnoticed by Sen. Steve Farley, D-Tucson.
It is undisputed that a copy of the initiative filed electronically with the Secretary of State’s office differed from the one filed on paper and was actually circulated. But courts concluded the circulators had been in “substantial compliance’’ and allowed the vote to go forward.
But the wording of HB 2244 is far more sweeping than the kind of situation that occurred in 2012. It even would disqualify an initiative for using the wrong type size or incorrect margins.
Lesko is unapologetic.
“I think that if the law says there has to be certain things, the law should be followed,’’ she told Capitol Media Services.
She conceded the change does not apply to candidates.
It’s not just the 2012 measure that would never have made it to the ballot under the standard that Lesko wants to impose.
In 2008 homebuilders sought to keep voters from considering a “homeowner bill of rights’’ simply because some of the proposed changes in law were not in capital letters.
But the Court of Appeals said voters should be given a chance to decide the issue, concluding the petitions substantially complied with the legal requirements. The initiative was later defeated.
And just last year foes of legalizing the
“This is yet another in a series of measures by the majority to try to quash the voice of of the people of Arizona,’’ he told Capitol Media Services. “If you’re trying to make it harder to get an initiative through, then you’re making it harder for people to have their voice heard.’’
Lesko said while she believes there is a need for strict compliance with petition drives, she does not see that as necessary for politicians like herself.
“Candidates can be elected out every two years,’’ she said.
“An initiative, once it’s in, it’s in,’’ Lesko continued. “It’s almost virtually impossible to change it.’’
That’s because of the Voter Protection Act, itself an initiative drive in 1998, which forbids lawmakers from repealing what has been enacted at the ballot and sharply restricts changes.
As it turns out, though, the House already has approved a measure to ask voters to repeal that provision, with action awaiting in the Senate. But Lesko said she’s not sure that would undermine her reasoning of why strict compliance with initiatives is necessary.
An initiative proposes something entirely new, often because lawmakers refuse to take up the matter. Prior successful efforts range from banning leghold traps and outlawing gestation pens for pigs and cattle to imposing new taxes on tobacco to pay for early childhood education and smokingcessation programs.
FREEWAY
a partial victory for the area’s bicycle community, which has been lobbying ADOT for a high-speed course.
“It’s a positive development; ADOT seems to be listening better,” said Joe Struttmann of Tempe, an avid cyclist and the main player in the Pecos Action Team. He has been working for years with DiCiccio and other elected officials on the proposal.
However, DiCiccio said the city must still agree to raise the speed limit on the path from 20 mph.
Moreover, ADOT spokesman Dustin Krugel said cyclists won’t get an allweather track.
“In order to accommodate the wider and straighter path as requested from the cycling community, the length of drainage culverts need to be shortened and the facility will not be an all-weather facility,” he said.
Nevertheless, the shared-use path, originally 15 feet wide, will be expanded to 20 feet for all users, including cyclists and pedestrians, with another 10 feet of buffers and shoulders.
Struttmann said he doubts anyone but cyclists would use the path.
The path is still under design and won’t be added until the final stages of the freeway’s construction, Krugel said.
Emergency access likely
The emergency access route for schools near 32nd Street was an issue first raised last fall by former state Rep. Bob Robson
of Chandler, who wondered what would happen if a mass evacuation was needed.
Not only will an access road be provided, but ADOT also said that it would study the possible addition of a full freeway-32nd Street interchange sometime after the freeway is built.
ADOT already needed a maintenance road for the construction project, and DiCiccio said the 12-foot right-of-way, which will be dirt or gravel, will be left for city emergency crews to use when needed.
The councilman said details still had to be worked out as to what city department would control it and the precise route.
“We have to figure out the evacuation route and we have to make sure we’re thorough on it,” DiCiccio said.
Krugel said ADOT will also work with the city to discuss access points to the road.
Both Krugel and the local officials stressed that a 32nd Street-freeway interchange was not a certainty.
“Current plans have the freeway over 32nd Street with no direct access,” Krugel said. “However, the overpass will accommodate a future connection with ramps, if the region were to identify funding to add ramps as a separate project. It’s estimated the environmental and design study would take up to nine months to complete.”
Broader street study pledged Meanwhile, DiCiccio and Blostone said the city Streets Transportation
from page 1
(ADOT/Special to AFN)
Crews lay hot asphalt for the interim Pecos Road that will stretch from 24th Street to 40th Street.
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Department is widening its study of the impact of the freeway and its construction to include all of Ray Road and Chandler Boulevard within Ahwatukee.
“That will include the Ray-Chandler loop,” said Blostone, who has been pressing the city to address an interchange that he said is already overloaded and would be severely affected by traffic that tries to avoid delays on Pecos Road.
Hinz, who also had pushed for a broader study, praised the city for agreeing to it.
DiCiccio also said that ADOT has agreed to shorten the time period for dirt hauls during the freeway construction.
He said that initially, ADOT estimated it would need six months for the dirt hauls, which would interrupt traffic flow on Pecos Road. Now, that period has been shortened to 10 weeks.
Foothills
“It’s painful no matter what you do,” DiCiccio said, “but at least it’s a much shorter period of time, and a lot of it will occur on weekends.”
Still unresolved is the issue of a waterline to Club West.
Officials believe finding a source of cheap water on the other side of the freeway is only a matter of time.
But while ADOT has agreed to
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build two concrete sleeves that would house the line beneath the freeway and protect the freeway in case it ruptured, the agency said building the line would violate the state constitution’s gift clause.
“The HOAs are going to have to work together to figure out a solution,” DiCiccio said.
Blostone said the group accomplished a great deal with the concessions it did get from ADOT.
“Three out of four issues aren’t bad when you consider where we were,” he said.
But he also suggested that the reason the water issue failed is that not enough citizens had mobilized on it.
“When the community comes out in large numbers and makes reasonable demands of its government,” Blostone said, government officials will listen.
“The alternate Club West water source failed because there weren’t many active community members behind it; my opinion anyway,” he said. “The Chandler Boulevard Extension and the bike path had constituencies willing to engage the city and ADOT. They showed up at meetings. And they were rewarded for their effort.
“It was the large number of community members attending meetings, engaging government, that gave us the power to get a few small things done.”
(ADOT/Special to AFN)
Crews are putting the finishing touches this weekend on half of the “interim Pecos Road.”
Freeway work rolls into new phase: ‘interim Pecos Road’ opens April 3
BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
Construction of the South Mountain Freeway is about to impact some Ahwatukee motorists in a major way.
The Arizona Department of Transportation announced that it will shift traffic onto half of the “interim Pecos Road” on April 3.
paving to start last week, ADOT said.
Various members of the Ahwatukee Foothills Village Planning Committee had raised concerns that the interim road will have no barricade between the two eastbound and two westbound lanes.
ADOT has said it does not have enough right-of-way to allow for a barrier.
Instead, a double-yellow line will separate the lanes and the legal speed will be reduced to 40 m.p.h.
The temporary four-lane roadway –extending between 24th Street and 40th Street – will be in use until the freeway is ready to handle traffic, probably in late 2019 or 2020.
ADOT has not yet set a date for extending that interim roadway along the rest of Pecos Road, although a spokesman previously has said it would not likely occur before summer.
There will be no shoulders on the temporary road and left turns at 32nd Street will be forbidden.
“Lane restrictions and periodic closures of the new Pecos Road alignment will be necessary at times during freeway construction,” ADOT said in a release, urging motorists to use Ray Road or Chandler Boulevard instead.
Motorists will start seeing disruptions this weekend and next as crews remove existing signals and install temporary ones, restripe the thoroughfare and install barricades, ADOT said.
From 9 p.m. Friday, March 31, through 5 a.m. April 3, eastbound Pecos Road will be closed between 24th and 40th streets, diverting traffic to Chandler Boulevard; westbound Pecos will be reduced to one lane between those streets.
ADOT said access to Pecos Storage at 32nd Street will be maintained.
The 22-mile freeway will link west Phoenix with the I-10 Chandler interchange, providing a diversion around the heavily congested portion of the highway that runs through Downtown Phoenix.
Opponents of the $1.77-billion project – the most expensive highway project in state history – are appealing a federal judge’s ruling last summer that rejected their efforts to stop construction.
Crews have cleared and graded the median of the new Pecos Road alignment to create a level surface that allowed
The appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth District has not yet been scheduled for a hearing, although attorneys for both sides have filed hundreds of pages of briefs in the case.
City board approves $23-million South Mountain improvement plan
BY JIM WALSH AFN Staff Writer
The city Parks and Recreation board last week approved a $23-million improvement plan for South Mountain trails and trailheads.
The trail improvements planned for this summer in the Pima Canyon area will provide a glimpse into the makeover envisioned for the rest of South Mountain Park, now that the long-awaited trails master plan has been approved.
The renovations promise to have the biggest impact on the sprawling, venerable park since the Civilian Conversation Corps in the 1930s built
trails, the famous Rock House and other structures, said James Ritter, a spokesman for the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department.
“It will feel like a new trail system,’’ he said.
More than a year in the making, the plan will guide a series of improvements aimed at gradually developing a more cohesive and less confusing trail system, adding popular undesignated trails into the official trail system while eliminating “spider’’ trails that began as shortcuts and restoring native vegetation.
The more coherent trails and signs are
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MAG okays $12 million for Chandler Boulevard Extension lane
BY JIM WALSH AFN Staff Writer
Ahwatukee motorists can now bank on an emergency lane along the new Chandler Bouelvard Extension.
A plan to add a third lane to Chandler Boulevard, between 19th and 27th Avenue, was approved by the Maricopa Association of Governments last week, freeing up about $12 million in sales tax revenues from Proposition 400 to pay for the project.
Robert Hazlett, a senior engineer, said construction should begin soon on the widening project, which is only 1.2-miles long but is likely to make a big difference for Ahwatukee commuters fleeing delays caused by the new freeway’s construction along Pecos Road.
“The residents requested an extra lane, so that if something is blocked, they can get around it,’’ he said. “This is all being timed with the South Mountain Freeway construction.’’
Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton thanked MAG planners for their help in adding the project to a state transportation plan, making the money available to pay for the widening work.
“It’s a great thing for the people of Ahwatukee,’’ Stanton said. “It was going to be very difficult to get in and out.’’
“It will help relieve the bottleneck,’’ Stanton said.
Dustin Krugel, an ADOT spokesman praised the Chandler Boulevard widening and said the next major step in the South Mountain Freeway’s construction is coming very soon.
“It’s definitely needed,’’ Krugel said. He said an interim version of Pecos Road, which will move traffic away from the present highway so that construction can proceed, is scheduled to open in April between 24th Street and 40th Street.
“There’s not much room there. You have the utilities and the Gila River Indian Community,’’ Krugel said, but the switch is necessary because the current westbound lanes of Pecos fall into the new freeway’s alignment.
The controversial 22-mile freeway creates a new link between the East Valley and the West Valley, allowing drivers to bypass downtown Phoenix. It is scheduled to open in late 2019 or early 2020.
The MAG vote sealed a deal that Phoenix City Councilman Sal DiCiccio and Village Planning Committee Chairman Chad Blostone have been seeking from the Phoenix Streets Transportation Department since August.
DiCiccio credited Blostone’s dogged pursuit of the issue, noting that the planning panel head had repeatedly raised questions about the original plan.
The city in August told the planning committee that current traffic flow didn’t warrant four lanes, even with the impending addition of more than 140 homes in the area.
It said that two lanes could accommodate 18,000 vehicle trips per day and that there were only about 4,000 vehicle trips a day in that area.
Officials also said that if the state land
(Special to AFN)
This map shows the location of the Chandler Boulevard Extension that will be built this summer.
AFN News Staff
Freturns to Ahwatukee
or the second time in six weeks,
“The Roof Rat Guy” was back in Ahwatukee, giving residents loads of tips on how they can combat the pesky rodents – which seem to have invaded the community in record numbers this year.
This time, Barry “The Roof Rat Guy” Paceley, visited the Ahwatukee Recreation Center, where about 100 residents as well as city Councilman Sal DiCiccio appeared.
Paceley became an expert on the rodents for Maricopa County’s Vector Control Department after fighting them off in Arcadia shortly after roof rats made their first debut in the Valley around 2002.
The folks who attended last week’s session, organized by ARC activities committee chair Joan Gillespie, hung on Paceley’s every word – just as the audience did at the Ahwatukee Board of Management-sponsored session where he last spoke.
Gillespie said the critters have been the subject of numerous horror stories in recent weeks.
“One has had wiring in three cars chewed and one rat boldly chewed his
way into her enclosed porch a number of times, once while she was sitting there,” Gillespie said.
“He experienced death by golf club,” she added, noting the rats caused somewhere around $600 damage to two of the cars and reportedly several thousand dollars of damage to the wiring of the third.
Another woman found a nest under her hood.
“The last two times I’ve entertained guests on my patio, a rat has dashed across,” Gillespie said. “I bought more poison and traps.”
While Gillespie said “I’d like to see Ahwatukians rally to control these destructive varmints,” she’s heard of at least one woman who can’t bring herself to destroy them
“She has captured rats and taken them across the freeway to Tempe and turned them loose,” Gillespie said. “She also puts out blocks of bird seed – which is roof rat food – because she loves to watch the birds. Now she and the neighbors have pigeons.”
Such conduct is anathema to Paceley, who has a laundry list of ways to exterminate roof rats that range from a few dollars to maybe $50 or $60.
“Roof rats need to be eliminated on the property they are found,” he told Gillespie. “If they move a pregnant female to another area, they could start a new infestation. When an individual is unable to kill a captured rat, they need to call a pest control company and for a fee they will properly conduct a disposal.”
As for feeding the birds, seed blocks “should not be placed on the ground or climbable access if the resident believes they may be prone to roof rat visits,” he said.
Paceley explained to his audience that roof rats make most of their moves in the dead of night and can chew through insulation and drywall in search of nourishment.
One sure-fire way to detect them, he said, is to look for droppings or fruit that has been virtually hollowed out. A few holes in fruit usually suggest birds, but roof rats will suck fruit dry because it’s tasty and slakes their thirst.
Paceley also said it’s important to eliminate things that might attract the rodents.
Homeowners should keep firewood, debris and piles of stone or brick as far from the foundation of the home as
possible, protect their homes with steel wool- or wire mesh-reinforced sealant along any holes or cracks larger than a quarter inch, and install a thick weather stripping along the bottom of doors to keep rodents from entering.
He advised homeowners not to spend their money on expensive extermination companies and instead take precautions and use extermination methods outlined on roofrat.net.
And, he advised, neighbors should work together.
If a neighbor refuses to believe his or her property is a home to roof rats, Paceley advised homeowners to at least adequately defend their own perimeter with traps and poisonous bait – and letting the rodents stay with their host.
(Special to AFN) Roof rats can chew their way through some building buildings such as wallboard.
TEACHER
from page 1
prizes and stickers for game winners; and a subscription to a hilarious set of educational online music videos by a Chicago teacher who calls himself Sr. Wooly.
The IRS has a special break for teachers that allows them to write off up to $200 worth of classroom expenses annually. Still, when I recently totaled the amount that I spent to set up my room and programs, I was surprised to see it came to about $500.
It’s well known that teachers dig into their own pockets to supply their classrooms.
Teachers in middle or upper income areas like Ahwatukee Foothills tend to buy things such as books, decorations and prizes.
In lower income areas, teachers buy basics like paper, pencils and even snacks for children who don’t get breakfast before school.
Either way, experts, including the Arizona Education Association, estimate that most teachers spend from $200 to $500 annually in their classrooms.
“It’s a reality,” said Joe Thomas, AEA president. “Teachers are always going to purchase items and supplies for their kids. Too often the school doesn’t have money to reimburse the teacher.”
The most recent national study on teacher out-of-pocket spending was conducted by a non-profit trade group called the National School Supply and Equipment Association in 2013. It found that more than 99 percent
“The dynamic of our community has been changing and many students do not have the supplies they need,” she said. “It is easier to keep supplies and snacks on hand for students rather than to harp about the shortfall.”
Snyder noted that Kyrene does a better job than many districts when it comes to getting dollars into classrooms. Also, the district’s parent-teacher student organizations are active fundraisers and donors.
being met through their supplemental fundraising efforts and we appreciate it very much.”
Right before the school year began, I was thrilled to receive a collection of compact discs and Spanish language games from Ahwatukee resident and Desert Vista High School Spanish teacher Erica Encinas. She had read my request in Ahwatukee 411 for anything related to Spanish, Mexican or Latin America for my classroom.
Later, Ahwatukee residents who frequent the Facebook page donated more than 50 tablet sized white boards to my classroom. I posted a photo of one of my classroom’s old ones. Most were getting yellow and cracked with age.
of teachers spend their own money on supplies and the national average spent by teachers was $485 that year. About 10 percent of teachers spent $1,000 or more, according to the association.
Kyrene Akimel A-al Middle School science teacher Beth Snyder says she spends about $300 annually to buy extras for her students. This year, she invested in a fleet of solar cars so her students could learn the science of solar energy.
Snyder, a 2016 Arizona Educational Foundation Ambassador of Excellence, said she also spends her own money on extra supplies and snacks for her classroom.
Art supply center lets charities explore their muse for free
BY RALPH ZUBIATE
AFN Managing Editor
Hidden in a small two-building industrial park in Tempe is a treasure trove for artists, crafters, teachers and the merely curious.
Art Resource Center has rows and stacks of art supplies for non-profit charities and teachers to use for free. Sherrie Zeitlin, executive director of the center at 1860 W. University Drive, Suite 102, says others can get supplies too, for a nominal fee.
“Everything has been given to us by somebody,” she said, including buckets of paint, brushes, fabric, handmade paper and more.
“The first question anybody asks me is, ‘Are you sure it’s free?’”
There are so many free supplies that Zeitlin is having trouble finding enough room for them.
“We get way too much fabric,” she said, but then clarified. “Actually, not too much, but it comes in so often. We’ve given away a lot to this one woman who makes quilts for Ronald McDonald House.
“One theater group came in recently. They’re staging ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.’ They saw this wavy brown fabric we had, and they’re using it for the chocolate river in the play.”
Many schools don’t have art programs anymore, or don’t have enough supplies.
She said the Akimel PTSO is expected to donate money to her classroom for additional solar cars. And the PTSO at my school gave all teachers $200 vouchers for school supplies at the start of the year.
I was reimbursed for the Sr. Wooly video subscription, some posters and some story books.
Kyrene Superintendent Jan Vesely commented on the district community’s generous support at a recent governing board meeting.
“We value the support our parent organizations provide to our schools in filling gaps where district funds are limited,” she said, adding:
“Our parent community is very generous when it comes to ensuring that the needs of teachers and students are
In addition, I was reimbursed $200 for classroom books and supplies by my school’s PTSO.
Plus, individual parents have been more than generous with donations of markers, facial tissue and even bags of sugar when my classes made sugar skulls in honor of Mexico’s Day of the Dead on Nov. 2.
Another happy surprise came from one of my own students, sixth grader Emily Hummel.
When Emily noticed that the contents of the classroom prize basket were getting low – all that remained were some erasers that look like eyeballs – she and her family donated a $15 Target gift card and told me she hoped it would help.
“The credit goes to Emily,” mom Sherri Hummel said. “She came home and was concerned about your prizes getting low.”
That’s where ARC, as it’s called, comes in. “Teachers come in all of the time,” Zeitlin said.
One of their favorite items is the egg
(Kimberly Carrillo/AFN Staff Photographer)
Emily Hummel displays the prizes she bought to help Altadena Middle School Spanish teacher Cathryn Creno have enough rewards for her students.
cartons, which have many uses for the creative teacher.
(Kimberly Carrillo/AFN Staff Photographer)
A table shows some shells and artworks created with materials from the ARC. Free fabric fills a wall in back.
Ahwatukee girl, 5, opens hearts and wallets for her school
BY PAUL MARYNIAK
AFN Executive Editor
She is developmentally disabled at all levels, but 5-year-old Marin Merchant has become the heart of Ahwatukee’s support for public schools.
With help from her mom, Sarika Merchant, Marin raised nearly a quarter of the $11,711 that the Kyrene de la Estrella’s PTO generated for use in the school’s classrooms through a fundraising run.
Though she needs a walker to move around, Marin even did two-and-a-half laps around the school during the run last Friday.
“We had to help her along since the running path was on the grassy field and her walker doesn’t get a smooth roll on it, but regardless she did an amazing job walking,” Sarika Merchant said.
Marin does an amazing job, period, her teacher said.
“This little girl’s charisma, joy and inner peace are infectious,” said Sally Tully, who teaches Estrella’s integrated preschool program.
“Our program promotes that
differences and similarities are what makes this world such an amazing place,” said. “While Marin struggles to walk and talk, she is amazingly social and her smile can make your heart melt.”
It melted enough hearts for her to raise $2,865 after her mom mentioned her participation in the run on Facebook.
When Sarika Merchant first heard about the run, she said “I told the teacher I was going to keep her home that day” because she knew her daughter would be unable to keep up with her classmates, who log an average 30 to 35 laps in a run.
“The teacher told me she absolutely can participate,” she said, citing it as yet another example of the impact Estrella has had on her daughter.
“The school and the teacher have been so supportive,” she said. “I would never imagine she could do half what she does. They pushed me and I am grateful they did.”
Marin is “developmentally disabled on all levels,” her mother said. Besides her physical challenges, she has trouble remembering words. Sometimes she’ll learn a word and use it several dozen
times in a week, her mother said, and then forget it.
Nevertheless, Marin’s accomplishments on any given day continue to surprise her mom, her dentist dad, Dr. Birju Merchant; and older brother and sister.
“I can’t tell you how much this school and teacher have done for her,” Sarika Merchant said.
Half of Tully’s preschool students are developmentally challenged.
Tully, who has been with Estrella since it opened in 1999 and is a 24-year veteran teacher, said Marin’s classmates “are always excited to interact with her, smiling, bringing her toys and more.”
“They cheer her on in any small endeavor, excitedly telling teachers what she is doing,” Tully added. “Marin has been an integral part of our preschool program for the past three school years and it’s our privilege to watch her learn and grow.”
And while her mom was as surprised as she was gratified by the little girl’s fundraising success, Tully called Marin’s success “a testament to the support and love this little girl has in her life and the positive ways she touches people’s lives.”
(Chris Thorne/Special to AFN)
Marin Merchant prepares for the Estrella Elementary School run as Quinn Flanigan stands behind her.
both viewed as safety improvements to reduce the number of lost hikers, and to help rangers find those who get lost anyway
Highlights of the plan include:
• 51 miles of existing designated trails will be improved.
• 65 miles of previously undesignated trails will be added to the official trail system.
• Another 80 miles of undesignated and unsustainable trails will be restored to their natural state.
The work centered around Pima Canyon will take about eight-10 months beginning in late April or early May. It will include closing spider trails, trail alignment as necessary for sustainability, and improved signage, according to Renee Gillespie, trails coordinator and a landscape architect.
“This is our main focus and our first attempt’’ to cut off spider trails, Ritter said. The work will coincide with extensive trail head improvements at Pima Canyon, which include an expanded and reconfigured parking lot and a new ramada and restrooms.
The trail head will be closed from May to October, reducing the number of visitors to the popular area and allowing time for spider trails to revegetate to their
natural state.
“It lessens the volume of use so we can allow some vegetation to come back,’’ Ritter said.
Parks officials compromised with residents earlier this year by dropping a proposed parking lot that was considered too close to nearby houses.
Instead, the parking lot was reconfigured to accomplish the same goals, increasing the number of parking spaces from 169 to 213. A ramada will be moved closer to a trail and combining it with a new restroom facility.
Gillespie said workers hope the trail work and the trail head work will start and finish at about the same time so that the updated facilities will be ready in the fall, when the weather cools down and the number of visitors rise.
Eventually, parks officials hope to duplicate the trail work at Pima Canyon throughout the park.
The city held seven public meetings last year to gather information on how to better balance the needs and wants of the community with preserving the park and trails for future use.
Workers will likely begin work on trails in May if the parks and recreation board gives its final approval Thursday, parks spokesman Gregg Bach said.
The park has more than 50 miles of designated trails on its 16,000 acres, and it’s one of the largest municipally
such categories as “Clocks” and “Faces.”
“Those would be great for collages,” she said.
operated parks in the country, according to The Trust for Public Land.
Millions of people use the park’s trails every year. Some hikers stick to official trails, but others use unofficial ones, which aren’t always safe for hikers or the environment. This constant usage – along with flooding during monsoon season – often causes erosion of trails and damage to signage.
For the past two years, city staff has been working to conceptualize and develop a budget based off a 1989 master plan.
The voter-approved Phoenix Parks and Preserve Initiative, which sets aside 1 cent of sales tax for every $10 of purchases, will fund the improvements.
Linda Schwarez from New York said her first experience hiking in South Mountain park was “awesome.”
“It’s not too stressful,” she said. “We’re kind of on a short hike today, so we wanted to do like maybe a 2-mile hike, and this was perfect.”
Although many hikers like Schwarez are satisfied with the park, some local residents are looking forward to the improvements.
“I support any updates, any improvements to the park that will include safety and just bettering the experience for all hikers,” said Ashley Cross, a frequent hiker.
Cronkite News contributed to this report.
so they’ll see our next hours.”
Zeitlin says the one big need is not donated materials, but money.
CHANDLER BLVD
from page 14
along the road is one day developed, the city would consider building two more lanes then.
Blostone has said he still believes five lanes would have been better, “but, we’ve removed the safety issue created by what was initially planned and approved.
An accident on the Chandler Boulevard Extension won’t block access to the Foothills Reserve and Calebrea neighborhoods. The likelihood of a head-on collision has been reduced significantly, too. Both very good things.”
DiCiccio said the addition of the center lane will require negotiations with the State Land Department for some of its land along the southern rim of the new road. He said he did not expect any problem in those talks.
Construction of the extension road is expected top begin within the next month or two and take until fall to complete.
“People use them constantly,” she said. Gently used items, such as half-filled paint buckets or old markers, are still useful to the artists.
“We get to share great ideas,” volunteer Suzanna Yazzie said. “For example, old markers, you can make watercolors out of them.”
ARC has paper by the ream, some given to them from an Alphagraphics store up the street.
“They give us broken lots, and stuff they don’t need,” Zeitlin said.
ARC also gets clay supplies, broken tiles and even glass.
“Someone donated some fabulous glass for flat glass, or stained glass,” Zeitlin said. “It was yummy.”
She never knows what’s going to be donated to the center.
“We had a teacher who retired, brought us boxes and boxes and boxes of cut magazines that were categorized,” she said.
As artists retire or pass away, supplies they’ve left behind find their way into the center.
“Every year, we get an entire studio donated,” Zeitlin said. “Easels, paints, brushes – everything.”
The center also loans out bigger pieces, such as fabric looms, sewing machines or papermaking frames.
Groups come from all over the state for ARC’s supplies.
“We had a non-profit from Tucson show up. They have special-needs adults that they take care of,” Zeitlin said. “We filled their van with supplies.”
One unexpected ARC beneficiary is a local homeless woman. ARC gives her art supplies, and she paints in a nearby library.
ARC runs on volunteers – even Zeitlin doesn’t take a salary. Because of those limited resources, the center is open sporadically.
“We open when we can. We try to open at least one weekend a month,” she said. “We tell people to follow us on Facebook
“We need more money to keep the ARC afloat,” she said with a glint in her eye.
The ARC operates with 3,100 square feet now. It’s a big leap from its first location, which was 480 square feet in Phoenix. Now, staring down the barrel at a new lease, with a likely hike in rent, ARC is actively looking for a new space.
Zeitlin would like to have 10,000 square feet somewhere nearby because now, “I turn away a tremendous amount of stuff.”
“We had a vertical blind company that wanted to give us pallets of material,” she said, “But we had no place to put it.”
The struggles with space and money won’t keep the ARC from going forward, though.
“I’m not closing the doors anytime soon, that’s for sure,” Zeitlin said.
Information: artresourcecenter. org.
(Kimberly Carrillo/AFN Staff Photographer)
Yarn of all colors are available for charities and teachers at the Art Resource Center in Tempe.
Community
Kyrene de la Colina prepares to celebrate science and memories
BY COTY DOLORES MIRANDA AFN Contributor
It was January, 1987, when bright yellow school buses pulled up to Kyrene School District’s newest school – Kyrene de la Colina on 36th Street in Ahwatukee.
On Friday, March 31, three decades of memories from students, former principals and staff are on tap for the Colina 30th Birthday Celebration.
The day incorporates the school’s annual Science Day, and features a 5 p.m. hour-long celebratory gathering for the public in the school’s multipurpose room, followed by the PTO Pack-aPalooza, formerly known as the Basket Auction.
Back in 1987, excited children poured from the buses to behold their new school.
For the first semester, students slated for Colina matriculated at other Kyrene elementary schools, with primary kids sharing space at Kyrene de las Lomas on Warner-Elliot Loop, and intermediate classrooms crowded into Kyrene de la Paloma in Chandler.
late greenboards on the classroom walls and the pristine student desks with their plastic chairs neatly arranged in rows.
Throughout was that new-school smell.
Ahwatukee in 1986-1987 was a rapidly burgeoning community with many young families moving in.
Kyrene de los Lagos Elementary Schol opened soon after, said Hegebush, who had served as principal at Tempe’s C.I. Waggoner Elementary – named for the first superintendent of Kyrene School.
Following Hegebush as principal were Jane McGloughin, Shel Ettinger, Keith Falkner, Carrie Furedy and Kelvin Inouye.
Current principal Kelley Brunner has served at Colina for six years, arriving in July, 2011. She had been assistant principal at Kyrene de los Cerritos. Including her 23 years as a classroom teacher, she has been with Kyrene School District for 31 years, a fact that she says brings her great pride.
Brunner said this year’s Birthday Celebration on March 31 will include the school’s annual Science Day.
done great things for our students in the areas of science and technology,” said Brunner. “They have been wonderful partners in creating amazing opportunities of our children on Science Day.”
Brunner said Colina’s 495 students are exposed to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) daily through their hands-on opportunities in the school’s DISCOVERoom and the THINKING Lab, which fosters “digital literacy and 21st century learning.”
“I’m so very proud of Colina; I love the community atmosphere we have here and the commitment to doing whatever it takes to support student learning. Our mission of ‘Inspiring growth and achieving excellence’ is at the forefront of all we do,” said Brunner.
Bill Hegebush, Colina’s first principal, retains the memory of the students’ happy faces as they realized they now had a school of their own.
“January is when we moved into the school, and after a little ceremony, we walked into the school as a group,” he recalled. “It was quite an exciting time for all of us, and especially for the kids to move into their own space and not be crowded.”
So memorable is that school day that Hegebush can still picture the immacu-
“Science Day is an annual event we began two years ago to promote our science efforts throughout the school,” Brunner said proudly.
“It truly is a day devoted to science; it just so happens that it's on the same day this year,” said Brunner, adding that Science Day is organized by the school’s science committee, which includes community partners like Intel and Arizona State University.
“We have reached out to ASU and Intel, and through their support we’ve
Brunner is prominently visible on campus, greeting children at the beginning and end of each school day and interacting with them on the playground while sporting her signature day-glo orange vest.
Colina’s 30th party begins with an hour-long “walk down memory lane” at 5 p.m. in the school’s multipurpose room with former principals, staff, families and students attending and several speaking.
Archived photos of the past three decades will also be displayed and presented.
“We’d love our entire community to join us for this special event,” said Brunner.
RSVPs are being accepted at HappyBirthdayColina@gmail.com.
Following the speeches and presentations will be the PTO Pack-a-Palooza, featuring food trucks, inflatables, raffles, entertainment and the annual basket auction.
Formerly known as the Colina PTO Basket Auction, it is one of the parent organization’s biggest fundraisers of the year and runs from 6 to 8 p.m.
Attendees are encouraged to dress in 1980s fashions. Former principal Hegebush said he still owns clothing from that era.
Kyrene de la Colina is at 13612 S. 36th St., Ahwatukee.
(Special to the Tribune)
Colina Principal Kelley Brunner greets and says goodbye to children at the Ahwatukee elementary school nearly every day.
(Lauren Clark/Special to the Tribune)
A poster displays some memories of past years at Kyrene de la Colina Elementary School in Ahwatukee, which marks its 30th anniversary on Friday.
Desert Vista speech-debate team rocks tournament
bate Association National Championship Tournament.
Head Coach Victor Silva once told a reporter that he has two goals for the Desert Vista High School Speech and Debate Team.
“Our two goals every year are to win state and to do well at nationals,”
Recently, the team accomplished the first goal – for the 13th time in 14 years.
The Thunder rolled over the competition, besting the second-place Brophy Broncos 354-144 in the weekend-long competition and winning 10 individual state championships an accomplishment Silva called “astounding.”
“Team captains Alex Wakefield, Lucas Selby, Lauren Barney and Elise Lange provided key leadership and kept the Thunder focused and poised throughout the tournament,” he added.
Led in scoring by senior Erica Lane and sophomore Margaret Braun, Desert Vista “was bolstered by an incredible showing by its freshman class,” Silva said, noting that for the second year in a row, the Thunder had nine freshmen appear in state final rounds.
Desert Vista will now turn its attention to attempting to qualify to represent Arizona at the National Speech and De-
The Thunder debate company counts over 100 students as members along with 18 coaches and a strong booster club made up of members’ parents
Boosters president Rick Guisto said parents provide support for the team throughout its nine-month season by providing meals and snacks for their seven in-state tournaments, arranging travel for up to 50 team members and coaches to any of the number of out of state tournaments arranging fundraisers such as restaurant nights, soliciting tax-credit donations and petitioning businesses for grants.
“We are always actively seeking judges for our tournaments and have volunteers who work to arrange that we have ample judges to cover our events,” Guisto said.
Individual showings for Desert Vista team members were:
Congress House 1: Alex Wakefield, third place; Margaret Braun, second; Ethan Fiber, state champion. Congress House 2: Erica Lane, fifth; Elyssa Gosswick, third; and Monica Essig Aberg, state champion. Public Forum: Alex Wakefield and Ethan Fiber, quarterfinalists; Johanna Crowl and Aashney
Shah and Tomas Bencomo and Kyle DeLashmutt, both pairs third place.
Lincoln Douglas state champion was Lauren Barney.
In the policy category, Isaac Quah and Animesh Gupta placed third while Sana Gill, Margaret Braun and Emma Horn were semi-finalists in extemporaneous speech. Also in extemporaneous, Aashney Shah and Monica Essig Aberg placed sixth and fifth, respectively. Erica Lane was state extemporaneous champion.
Alex Parra was state champion in humorous interpretation. Other Thunder students who placed n that category were Kaitlyn Laibe and Daanish Dundi, semifinalists; Daniel Nelson, fourth; and Hanna Dawson, second.
Oratory: Sarah Jalaghi and Kathleen Maro were semifinalists; Anika Porw-
al placed fifth and Hanna Dawson was second.
Margaret Braun was state champ in impromptu speech, followed by Claire Van Doren, semifinalist; Erica Lane, fifth; and Alex Wakefield, fourth. Other showings for Desert Vista students:
Expos: Sarah Jalaghi, Aditi Chaudhari, Lucas Garnand and Lindsey Brannen,
SPEECH on page 24
ramps up swimming lessons for public, guards and instructors
to teach people and still others to be lifeguards.
As the weather gets warm, thoughts turn to the swimming pool – and that’s what concerns Vicki King
As aquatics director for the Ahwatukee Foothills YMCA, King wants to make sure that as many adults and children as she can reach know how to swim.
And she needs qualified instructors as well as lifeguards to help her.
“It is sometimes difficult to find qualified, devoted individuals to work at the Y and take seriously their job as a professional rescuer, swim instructor or even volunteer,” she said. “It is even harder to make the parents of the 5,000 new babies in Maricopa County every year think of swim lessons and water-safety education as highly important. So, the more we can educate them, or offer lessons, the better.”
The YMCA is getting ready to roll out a broad series of programs aimed not only at teaching children and adults how to swim, but also teach others how
Lifeguards can earn $10 an hour at the Y, work full or part-time shifts between 5 a.m. and 8 p.m. and keep those jobs as long as they want.
But to get the job, they need a nationally recognized lifeguard certification from the YMCA, Red Cross, Star Guard or Elilis & Associates.
The Ahwatukee Y offers regular lifeguard training programs at $160 for members and $200 for non-members. Moreover, scholarships are available and King can provide course schedules if contacted at vicki.king@vosymca.org.
To become an instructor, hopefuls must be able to swim all four different swim strokes and love children, King said.
“They must understand the importance of drowning prevention and helping the community,” she said, adding applicants must be at least 16 years old.
Instructor jobs pay $10 to $12 an hour and can be full-time or part-
time, seasonal or year-round. Instructors work in two-tothree-hour blocks of time either in the morenings or evenings during the weekend and Saturday mornings.
Swimming lessons cover all ages, starting with infants.
“Our focus is on safety skills – jump/push/turn/grab and swim/float/swim,” King said.
“The first three stages focus primarily on safety. Obviously, there are only so many strokes and skills needed to teach a child to swim,” she added. “However, the YMCA has taken a close look at all of the various methods out there, the skills necessary to be successful and safe, and the developmental stages of all people and put it together in such a way that children find success easy to achieve.”
and
King said participants “learn how to focus on skills that, when in trouble, will keep them safe until help arrives, or they can get to an exit point.
“The Valley of the Sun YMCA is very excited about this new material, and
See
(Rick Guisto/Special to AFN)
Seniors on Desert Vista High School's Speech and Debate Team who celebrated the big victory in the state tournament included, from left: Samantha Davis, Raquel Willert, Anika Gill, Rohit Rungta, Hanven Yang, Ethan Fiber, Tomas Bencomo, Lauren Barney, Ryan Kibby, Alex Wakefield, Dylan Ketchum, Lucas Selby, Hanna Dawson, Johanna Crowl, Aashney Shah, Erica Lane, Kyle DeLashmutt and Isaac Quah.
AFN NEWS STAFF
Indoor
outdoor activities await children of all ages in the Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA's summer programs.
Eagle Scouts help beautify Ahwatukee with garden projects
BY KELLY ATHENA AFN Contributor
The Ahwatukee Community Garden Project has been the grateful recipient of several Eagle Scout service projects.
Andrew MacNair was the first Scout to choose the community garden for his project. His troop built the raised garden beds in the children’s garden area in the spring of 2013.
They painted a colorful mural, shoveled gravel, installed chicken wire to keep rabbits out and built the raised beds. Three huge semi-truck tires were painted in primary colors and filled with soil.
Popcorn Acacia now thrives in one of the truck tire planting beds. Its large yellow flowers smell exactly like buttered popcorn.
The Eagle Scout rank is the highest rank in Boy Scouting of America. Only 4 percent of Scouts have reached this level since its inception in 1912. Eagle ranking requires earning 21 merit badges and planning a project.
The purpose of the Eagle Scout project is to give the Scout an opportunity to plan, develop, give leadership and benefit the community. The Scouts may enroll their troop, family and friends as part of a team effort.
Brett Alces built rolling flower beds for the Pecos Senior Center in conjunction
with the Ahwatukee Community Garden Project in 2014. The height is convenient for people using wheelchairs or having difficulty bending down.
Three keyhole gardens were built by Brett Bell in the spring of 2014.
He used landscape blocks which require neither footings nor mortar – just stacking them creates a strong wall. He also installed chicken wire fencing along the outer perimeter of the garden and one foot deep in the ground to keep rabbits, mice, squirrels and other snacking animals out of the area.
He raised $1,000 at a car wash he held to fund his project. At the end of his project, he donated leftover funds to the garden to buy seeds.
The keyhole gardens are round, raised beds with a narrow walkway to the center compost basket, giving them a keyhole shape.
Nathan Hess built and painted the burgundy fence in the West garden area in the spring of 2015. He used wooden pallets to build the fence, a sustainable alternative to buying new wood.
When you enter the community garden, you will notice beautifully rustic rebar arches spanning each of the four entry gates. Daniel Harkey designed and built these unique arches which are now covered with flowering vines.
The main entry is now bursting with over 100 passion flower buds and blossoms. The bright orange Gulf Fritillary
Desert Vista High senior relays for life, rallies community against cancer
Mountain Pointe,” she added.
butterflies are drawn to this vine each spring like steel to a magnet.
They arrived this week and started their annual ritual of flitting about and laying eggs. The eggs hatch into caterpillars that eat much of the vine. Soon, each caterpillar spins a chrysalis around themselves and hangs in a “J” shape for two weeks before emerging as a butterfly.
The passion flower is the exclusive host plant for these butterflies.
Lucas Campanella completed the latest Eagle Scout garden project in February, creating a spiral-wire cage that holds rocks and soil in place, creating an herbal spiral garden.
The Ahwatukee Board of Management generously lends part of its land to the community garden free of charge. Star Heilman, a local horticulturist, was the founding force behind the formation of the community garden project in 2012.
Linda Rominger, the community garden coordinator, said, “Our collaboration with the Boy Scouts is one of mu-
YMCA from page 21
Elena Kalina likes to get the community involved.
And last Saturday, the Desert Vista High School senior and scores of other Ahwatukee residents came together for a local Relay for Life event to benefit the American Cancer Society.
Elena was the student supervisor and main coordinator for the event, held at Mountain Pointe High School. She was assisted by Madison Gosselin, Brooke Walker and Bryson Barrow.
“We also had incredible staff members: Jane Hahn is our representative/ community manager from the Cancer Society, Ashley Mentzer is an English teacher from Desert Vista, and Tamara Reichert is an accounting teacher at
This was Elena’s second Relay for Life and she anticipates she’ll be organizing another when she starts attending Arizona State University next year at its Barrett Honors College. Besides organizing rallies, she also is a waitress at the Pomegranate Café and an instructor at Yoga Vita.
“I love to see the community come together for a greater cause,” she said.
“It’s also incredibly inspiring for me to talk to the cancer survivors who attend our event. They are very optimistic and so appreciative, and they give me hope.”
Elena said the rally raised about $56,500 through registration fees, a male pageant show called Mr. Relay, a raffle and other fund-raising activities.
through trained and certified staff, ready to make our children safer, and help them to master skills needed to keep them safe quicker and then continue to mastery of strokes. It is a continuum that is making a difference in our approach to teaching and learning.”
Videos on the Y’s comprehensive swim instruction program are at Yexchange.org.
King said that of parents who are unable to swim, only 13 percent will enroll their children in lessons.
And some statistics are even more frightening, she said:
“The inability to swim is generational and dangerous. Nearly 4,000 people die every year in the U.S. from drowning and over 20,000 suffer permanent brain damage from a near drowning. Drowning is the second leading cause of death after car accidents for children under
tual benefit to the boys, the garden and the community as a whole. It is a joy to see the boys mature as they bring their project to fruition and help the garden grow.”
See more photos of the Eagle Scout projects at ACGarden.org.
The public is invited to drop by the garden between 8-9:30 a.m. Sundays at 4700 E. Warner Road. The garden is hidden behind the playground past the guitarist, John, at the Ahwatukee Farmer’s Market.
-Kelly Athena is a sustainability advocate, garage sale enthusiast, master gardener and desert forager. Send news of upcoming garage sale or sustainable events at greengirl@kellyathena.com.
the age of 14. Arizona has the highest drowning rates for adults and children in the U.S.”
King wants to partner with preschools, charter schools, private schools and any organization with children “to work with the Y to bring swim lessons into their curriculum and bring their groups to the Y for lessons.”
“The YMCA does Safety Around Water Education presentations/education/fun at different organizations free of charge,” she said. “We are willing to bring our program to their school, organization or business for a fun day of water safety education.”
Lessons are 30 minutes long twice per week and run for eight classes. During April and May, the Y offers lessons on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, as well as Saturdays.
“The summer schedule will offer many more options. People can obtain a schedule at the Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA,” King said.
(Kelly Athena/AFN Contributor)
Eagle Scouts installed the fence, ribar archways and keyhole gardens at the Ahwatukee Community Garden as part of their community service work.
Ahwatukee playwright happy to write, doesn’t seek fame or fortune
BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
Shakespeare’s Hamlet said, “The play’s the thing wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the king.”
Robin Kramme of Ahwatukee just wants to catch another acknowledgment of her work.
The Ahwatukee playwright is hoping for a repeat of her win last year in the Minute Play Contest to be held at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 1, at the Vista Grand High School auditorium, 1556 N. Arizola Road, Casa Grande. Adminission is free.
Kramme took up playwriting after retiring “from a long and exhausting but very fulfilling 30-year career in hotel management” several years ago.
“I write for fun when I get the urge or a story idea presents itself,” she said. “I submit my work to various contests that attract my attention and don’t have exorbitant submission fees.”
Her first competition was the 2012 Pandora Festival and said her entry is still her favorite work.
“Minute play” is a misnomer, since the competition Saturday involves 10-minute plays, the only kind Kramme writes, “though I tried a one-minute monologue once.”
“I’ve tried to write some longer work but I really enjoy the short format.” She said. “You try to tell a complete story –beginning, middle and end – quickly and have something happen in just 10 pages of almost exclusively dialogue with some stage direction.
“This is a very popular format right now and allows theaters large and small to offer a variety of work which seems to please audiences and all of us with short attention spans,” she added.
So far she has written: “Bad Travel,” the story of four pieces of lost luggage told from the luggage’s point of view; “Vaculux 4000,” about a vacuum cleaner that sweeps two strangers into an unexpected romance; “Judging the Cover,” in which the digital revolution sparks an inter-generational skirmish over “What is a Book?”; and “Without a Doubt,” in which a novelist struggles with doubt and a looming deadline.
Her entry in Saturday’s contest, “The Glamour of Travel,” is about how “in the not too distant future, we will all share a fear of flying,” Framme said.
A Syracuse, New York, native and graduate of Cornell University, Kramme and her husband Allen have lived in 10 different states over 20 years before settling in Ahwatukee 15 years ago.
Kramme prefers comedies. “I love to hear the audience laugh,” she said. “Clapping at the end of a play is wonderful. Spontaneous laughter during the performance is even better.”
She got interested in writing short plays while she was “struggling with novel writing and the complexities of publishing.”
After watching a friend’s play read at a festival, she began considering playwriting. She penned her first, about lost luggage, after watching people on a cruise wearing the same clothes every day because they had lost their suitcases.
“I really like that short form play writing fits my life style,” Kramme said. “I can work on a piece but it will never turn into a full-time job. It can only be about 10 pages. And, then, if it gets chosen for stage reading or production, it gets handed to a director, hopefully someone who gets my writing and then they cast the roles and direct the play.
“The collaborative nature of this process aligns well with my previous job experience where there was a team to accomplish tasks and we all had different strengths and talents,” she added, noting one play was produced at a festival in Florida two years ago.
“I attend the performances and watch and listen as people I don’t know move around on stage and say my words and the audience comprised mostly of more people I don’t know react. It is incredible.”
Though she has tried longer forms, including a novel, Kramme said she’ll also stick to short plays because she is a “happy and active retiree.”
“I go to classes at the Ahwatukee Foothills Y several mornings a week – circuit and spin are my favorites. I am an avid reader. I have been married to my original husband for almost 36 years. We like to cook, travel, hang out together and spend time with friends and family,” she said.
Kramme has a word of caution for budding playwrights who seek fame and fortune: “It is incredibly hard to get produced!”
Dr. Kelly de Simone Dr. Monica Sawitzke
Kyrene Foundation needs dresses for eighth-grade girls
The Kyrene Foundation is asking the community for help in providing donations for its Wishes Come True drive.
Not every eighth-grade student can afford a one-time dress for a special occasion, such as an eighth grade promotion ceremony.
To help meet this need, the Kyrene Foundation is collecting gently used dresses for eighth-grade girls in need for upcoming promotion ceremonies.
New or like-new attire that is appropriate, such as semi-formal dresses, can be donated through April 27 at the Kyrene School District Office, 8700 S. Kyrene Road, Tempe, or the Kyrene Family Resource Center, 1330 E. Dava Drive, Tempe. Volunteers are needed for the April 29 dress selection. Information: tward@ kyrene.org or signup.com/go/gFJURS.
Female
bunco game featuring mystery Easter eggs
The female intergenerational bunco game held periodically at the Perk’s Café at Mountain Park Community Church, 24th Street and Pecos Road, Ahwatukee, is scheduled for 6:15-8:30 p.m. Saturday, April 1. Organizers are asking women to bring plastic Easter eggs filled with items or items that can fit in them.
The game, which organizers say takes only minutes to learn, is open to females 10 years and older.
Women can text questions to Lyn or Abby Gertis at 612-709-9671.
Desert Pointe Garden Club sets last meeting of the season
The Desert Pointe Garden Club is meeting at 9 a.m. Monday, April 3, in a special place – the Chandler Firehouse at 4110 E. Chandler Blvd. – instead of the Ahwatukee Recreation Center.
The program involves Bonsai creations with desert plants. This will be the last meeting before the group takes its summer break until September. There will be a spring luncheon May 1 with installation of new board members.
Desert Pointe Garden Club sponsors various projects benefitting the community. New members are welcome. It is not necessary to belong to the Ahwatukee Recreation Center to become a member. Information: 480 785-0061 or dpgc.org.
Ironwood Library hosting seed swap, lesson on edibles
Haley Dziuk, the Ironwood Library seed coordinator, and Linda Rominger, Kelly
AROUND
Athena and other Ahwatukee Community Garden members will hold a seed swap at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 1, at the library, 4333 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee.
At 3 p.m., the master gardeners will take questions and conduct a lesson about harvesting beans from Palo Verde and ironwood trees and how to preserve and prepare them for eating.
People can bring seeds or seedlings to share, but it is not required. There will be free orchid plants, carob beans, aloe vera and agave pups and seeds on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Church
moves popular Easter egg hunt to Chandler
park
New Heights Church has announced that its annual free Easter egg hunt has outgrown all the Ahwatukee parks it used to use.
So it is moving its 10 a.m. Saturday, April 8, hunt for kids 2 years old through fifth grade to the football field of Valley Christian High School, 6900 W. Galveston St., Chandler.
Besides 15,000 eggs, the hunt will have inflatables and characters for kids to be photographed with, along with free popsicles and other treats.
Information: kiddsegghunt.com
Parents
of
young kids can learn about language skills
Summit School of Ahwatukee is hosting a free literacy presentation for parents of preschool and kindergarten age children 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 30, at the school, 4515 E. Muirwood Drive, Ahwatukee.
The session will look at how comprehension and understanding of language make reading the backbone of learning and inquiry. It will also provide insights into strategies that teach children to do far more than read words, but to understand, think and communicate ideas from reading.
The presenter is Faith Angelakis, a 20year teacher and literacy specialist at Summit.
A complimentary light dinner will be provided. Space is limited. RSVP to kathy.konrad@summitschoolaz.org
Ahwatukee man to lead state Capitol grounds tours
Patrick Lutz of Ahwatukee, vice president of the Arizona Capitol Museum & Guild, will be leading four tours of the Capitol building and grounds. The onehour tours include little-known details about the history of the buildings and
how they related to the the city and the state.
The free tours start outside the Capitol building at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 1 and April 8. Information: patricklutz@gmail.com or mhcady@cox.net.
Republican Women seek scholarship bids
Ahwatukee Republican Women is taking applications for its annual Marjorie Miner Scholarship, named after a longtime ARW member and Ahwatukee resident.
This is the seventh year that ARW has awarded this scholarship, which will be presented in May to an Ahwatukee-area high school senior.
The application deadline is April 1.
More information and the application: ahwatukeerepublicanwomen.com or arwomen@aol.com.
On the Border supporting Pat Tillman Foundation
On the Border restaurant, 5055 E. Ray Road, Ahwatukee, is supporting the Pat Tillman Foundation on Thursday, March 30.
The restaurant will donate 20 percent of patrons’ tabs to the foundation.
Summit School to discuss math literacy for youngsters
Building math minds for kindergarten children is the topic of a free presentation for parents of young children that will be held 6-7:30 p.m. April 6 at Summit School of Ahwatukee, 4515 E. Muirwood Drive, Ahwatukee.
Molly Danforth, a 20-year teacher and Summit School’s math coordinator, will discuss how numeracy and number sense are developed in preschool and extended in kindergarten.
A complimentary light dinner will be provided. Space is limited. RSVP to kathy.konrad@summitschoolaz.org
Ahwatukee Easter Parade still needs more entries
The Kiwanis Club of Ahwatukee is still looking for more entries into its Easter Parade, slated for 10 a.m. April 15.
The parade is followed by the Kiwanis Club’s Spring Fling. Both events raise money for the club’s numerous charitable activities throughout the year, including several programs for children in group foster homes. Deadline for entries is April 6. Information: msch0007@aol.com or 480-759-0007. The Official Easter Bun-
ny is a parade sponsor so no adult-sized Easter Bunny costumes are allowed.
Tickets on sale for wine-beer fest, auction items needed
The 22nd annual Wine & Beer Tasting Festival will be presented by Festival of Lights, a non-profit organization, 6:30-10:30 p.m. April 29 at Rawhide Western Town.
All proceeds will benefit the Million White Light display along Chandler Boulevard during the holiday season.
Tickets are $50 in advance and are available at all three Safeway stores in Ahwatukee and folaz.org.
To donate auction items: contact Susan Anderton at info@folaz.org.
SPEECH
from page 21
semifinalists; Madeline Fiber fifth and Hanven Yang, third.
Poetry: Lucas Selby, first; Sana Sabuwala, second; and Joe Deignan, third.
Prose: Samantha Davis was state champ and Ashley Tse and Regina Guisto placed fourth and third, respectively.
Dramatic Interpretation: Morgann Kelly, sixth; Taylor Gilliam, fifth; Maritza Kozicki, fourth; and Elise Lange, second.
Interpretation: Lindsey Brannen and Ashley Tse placed fifth; Elise Lange and Bronwyn Doebbeling, third; Lucas Selby and Raquel Willert, second.
Duet: Sabrina Tu and Aditi Chaudhari, sixth; Sushil Sudhakar and Samantha Davis, fifth; Regina Guisto and Raquel Willert, fourth; Daanish Daudi and Llana Cruywagen third; Joe Deignan and Zach Hills, state champions.
Oratory: Anika Porwal, fifth; Hanna Dawson, second.
POI: Meiven Yang, fifth; Kaitlyn Laibe, fourth; Bronwyn Doebbeling, third; and Taylor Gilliam was state champion.
PLAYWRIGHT
from page 23
“I’m not doing this to build my resume,” she said. “I think goals would be strictly an individual question. I like creative writing and telling stories that can be performed on stage to entertain people. I understand from several websites that even in the mecca of live theater, New York City, playwrights do not make a living by being playwrights. Most have to teach, do other types of writing and have other jobs.”
CALENDAR
FRIDAY, MARCH 31
Studio hosts comics
Comedian T.A. Burrows will head up the monthly comedy night at Be An Artist Studio. Attendees are encouraged to bring a beverage and snacks. Alcoholic beverages are permitted.
DETAILS>> 7 p.m. 4025 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee. $15.
SATURDAY, APRIL 1
Spring Fling coming at church
Friendship Community Church is sponsoring a Spring Fling with family activities such as bounce houses, live music, face painting, carnival games and playground fun. Activities are free. Food trucks with meals and treats that can be purchased.
DETAILS>> 4-7:30 p.m., 9807 S. 48th St., Ahwatukee.
TUESDAY, APRIL 4
Writing Workshop planned
“How to Be Funny on the Page (even if you’re not in real life)” is the title of author Cindy Brown’s talk as she tries to explore different types of comedy, identify your own brand of humor and teach the basic tenets of comedy in this interactive workshop.
DETAILS>> 6-7:45 p.m., Ironwood Library, 4333 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee. Free, no registration required.
SATURDAY, APRIL 8
Ice cream for foster kids
Join an ice cream social to support the Friends of Foster Children Foundation that helps to provide them with activities, whichthat range from dance lessons, music lessons, sporting leagues to tutoring, school pictures, yearbooks and even bike ownership. The event will include an Easter egg hunt, raffles, live music and, of course, ice cream.
DETAILS>> 2-5 p.m., Desert Garden Montessori, 5130 E. Warner Road, Ahwatukee. Free admission. Information about the foundation: AFFCF.org
Teen Easter party set
Learn some cool egg decorating techniques and also enjoy Smash Brothers, bracelet making and a fine selection of Easter candy.
DETAILS>> 3-4:30 p.m., Ironwood Library, 4333 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee. Free, no registration required. For teens ages 12-18.
SATURDAY, APRIL 15
Annual Easter Parade rolling
The 41st annual Ahwatukee Easter Parade, presented by the Ahwatukee Kiwanis Club, will be marching through the community.
DETAILS>> 10 a.m. The parade will go down 48th Street from Elliot Road to Warner Road and will be followed by the annual Spring Carnival/Craft Fair.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19
Legion hosts hospice speaker
American Legion Post 64 of Ahwatukee community is hosting a free public education program featuring Hospice of the Valley’s Lin Sue Cooney. “We offer so much more than end of life care,” said Cooney. “We provide all sorts of expertise in dementia, have a thriving volunteer program, pet therapy and music. We also have a wonderful program called Saluting Our Veterans.”
DETAILS>> 3 p.m., Ahwatukee Recreation Center, 5001 E. Cheyenne Drive, Ahwatukee. Information: Ed Mangan, USAF Captain (former), Post 64 Commander, emangan3@aol.com 602-501-0128.
THURSDAY, APRIL 20
Peter Longo discusses golf
“The Evolution of the Golf Swing” is the title of a presentation by PGA life member, trick shot artist and golf historian Peter Longo. He will present a fun filled, dynamic seminar of golf swings from then until now. He will also demonstrate a few trick shots.
DETAILS>> 6:30-7:30 p.m., Ironwood Library, 4333 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee. Free, no registration required.
SATURDAY, APRIL 29
Winetasting fest slated
The Winetasting Festival that helps support Ahwatukee’s annual Festival of Lights show along Chandler Boulevard will be held. Tickets are going on sale soon.
DETAILS>> 6:30-10:30 pm., Rawhide in Chandler. Ticket info: folaz.org/winetasting-festival,
ONGOING
Congregation plans Israel trip
Congregation NefeshSoul is planning a tour of Israel June 10-20. Explore historical sites along with the beauty and rich culture of Israel.
DETAILS>> Rabbi Susan Schanerman at rabbi@ nefeshsoul.org.
SUNDAYS
‘TinkerTime’ open for kids
A makerspace for children to design, experiment, and invent as they explore hands-on STEAM activities through self-guided tinkering.
DETAILS>> 1-4 p.m. every Sunday, Ironwood Library 4333 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee. Ages 6-11. Free; No registration required.
MONDAYS
Chamber offers networking
The Ahwatukee Foothills Chamber of Commerce networking and leads group is open to chamber members.
DETAILS>> Noon, Native Grill and Wings, 5030 E. Ray Road, Ahwatukee. Devida Lewis, 480-753-7676.
TUESDAYS
Chair yoga featured
Inner Vision Yoga Studio offers chair yoga to help seniors and people recovering from injuries to stay fit.
DETAILS>> 1:30-2:30 p.m., 4025 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee. $5 per class. Information: donna@ innervisionyoga.com or 480-330-2015.
Toastmasters sharpen skills
Improve your speaking skills and meet interesting people at Ahwatukee Toastmasters meetings
DETAILS>> 6:45-8 a.m at the Dignity Health Community Room, 4545 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee.
WEDNESDAYS
School hosts open house
Ahwatukee Foothills Montessori holds an open house weekly. It includes a short talk about Montessori education, followed by a tour of its campus.
Freeway agreement with ADOT shows that bipartisanship can work
BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
As we watch the Great Divide grow on the national political scene, the bitter fight over the South Mountain Freeway has produced a surprising and refreshing look at what could be when politicians set aside their differences and work for the betterment of their constituents.
Perhaps only the most vehement of freeway opponents might not be applauding, but it’s hard to ignore and not commend the bipartisanship that gave birth to the agreement hashed out by a group of Ahwatukee officials with the Arizona Department of Transportation. Cyclists will get a bike path along the freeway. The city will perform a far more comprehensive study than it original planned on the impact of the freeway and its construction on Chandler Boulevard and Ray Road. There will be an emergency road available in case of a major disaster at the schools near 32nd Street. And ADOT may even consider an interchange at 32nd street and the freeway sometime in the future.
None of this was in the cards last fall.
All these enhancements were the product of work by state Rep. Jill Norgaard, state Sen. Sean Bowie, city Councilman Sal DiCiccio, Ahwatukee Village Planning Committee Chairman Chad Blostone and representatives of the Club West and Foothills HOA boards.
Democrat Bowie was something of a latecomer to the negotiations since he didn’t join in until he was elected last November. But Republican DiCiccio last week stressed “we wouldn’t be here today” had it not been for the involvement of both Norgaard, also a Republican, and the freshman senator.
Of course, the agreement didn’t solve everything.
The public officials said they hope the boards of the Foothills, Club West and Lakewood HOAs will work together to figure out how to get cheaper well water to Club West – if a source is located along the southern side of the freeway.
But the agreement still yielded some significant improvements for the Ahwatukee neighborhoods that will start feeling the freeway’s impact more and more with each passing week.
Blostone has been as aggressive as a dog with a bone on several of the issues resolved by the agreement and
one that was resolved before last week’s announcement.
That was the city Streets Transportation Department’s decision to build a third lane on the Chandler Boulevard Extension, which will be built this summer.
Back in August when the city was presenting the project to the planning committee, Blostone immediately zeroed in on the city’s plan to have only two lanes connecting the ends of four-lane Chandler Boulevard.
DiCiccio said Blostone never gave up hounding him to push the streets department to revise its plans. And while the city fell short of agreeing to the four lanes Blostone campaigned for, at least now emergency vehicles will have a lane to reach accidents on the new 1.2-mile road.
Blostone was equally aggressive earlier this year when streets officials told the planning panel they will study the freeway’s traffic impact on streets near the freeway as well as on Ray Road and Chandler Boulevard.
Blostone wanted to know why the study area wasn’t bigger and why it didn’t include the Ray-Chandler intersection, already a hazard even before hundreds more vehicles start flooding the area as motorists avoid construction along Pecos
Road.
That the city is widening the study area and taking a hard look at the RayChandler loop is a credit to Blostone and DiCiccio.
The emergency access road to the schools around 32nd Street was first raised by former state Rep. Bob Robson early last fall. Though Republican Robson lost in November, Bowie never blinked at picking up the cause and joining Norgaard in lobbying ADOT.
I thought it ironic that the agreement with ADOT and the city was announced on the same day that Washington was in convulsions over Obamacare.
I’m not saying the freeway and health insurance are equally complex. But I am saying that you can’t even begin solving something as complex as the affordability of and accessibility to health insurance without all sides working together, and setting aside ideology and political one-upsmanship for the general public good.
Thankfully, Ahwatukee residents distressed by the civil war in Washington can find some comfort in the fact that their elected representatives did exactly that when it came to making the freeway a tad more palatable to their community.
ADOT is committed to listening to your construction concerns
BY BROCK J BARNHART
Guest Writer
As many residents in the Ahwatukee area have already taken notice, major construction activities have begun on the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway.
The Arizona Department of Transportation and Connect 202 Partners, the developer responsible for designing, building and maintaining the freeway, understands that roadway construction is never easy. It disrupts your routine, slows traffic and is a nuisance at times.
Knowing that, ADOT and C202P are committed to partnering with the community during the next three years of construction and our goal is to limit those impacts as much as possible and complete
the project in as little as time as possible. Throughout the project, we are committed to informing the community by providing timely and accurate information related to work adjacent to homes and work that might impact traffic.
We encourage everyone in the Ahwatukee area to sign for construction updates/ traffic alerts at SouthMountainFreeway. com or just contact us at the project hotline 1-.855.-763-5202 and we would be glad to meet with you and understand construction impacts from your perspective.
Recently, a letter to the editor expressed frustration with the construction impacts, including concerns about the visibility of outdoor construction restrooms backing to homes, a large water tank and trucks
on Liberty Lane, removal of a block wall, trees and concrete debris.
This letter was shared with the project team and following steps have been taken to address the concerns and minimize impacts of construction:
• The project team will be relocating any outdoor construction restrooms that are near homes to locations where they can still be safely and easily accessible to workers.
• Fire hydrants are a typical supply source for on-site water tanks and currently trucks are limited in access points until permits are obtained. However, the developer is looking into solutions to move the water tank to a location where trucks have an alternate access point other than Liberty Lane.
• There are environmental commit-
ments that ADOT has made to a project stakeholder related to tree salvage. After the project stakeholder has had the opportunity to identify any trees they may want, the excess salvage will be mulched and used for dust control on the project. In addition, concrete debris will be broken down and used as fill where needed as a standard construction practice.
ADOT and C202P staff are committed to listening to the community’s concerns and making adjustments like these. There will be times where adjustments can be made to construction impacts, but there will also be times where construction impacts will be just the nature of construction.
AFN
-Brock J Barnhart is community relations manager for the Arizona Department of Transportation.
‘Are we really happy there are only three police officers?’
Are we really happy that there are only three police officers assigned to work in the Ahwatukee Foothills area?!
Three officers assigned down here? One traffic accident can keep one or two of them busy for at least an hour. That leaves one officer to serve / protect 80,000 residents! Is there any other part of our city that has 80,000 residents policed by three police officers?
I am genuinely amazed at Councilman DiCiccio for stating that there can be up to ‘30’ police officers working within Ahwatukee / Foothills: when?? When there is an active shooting? When was the last time 30 police officers were assigned to work in our community on a day to day basis?
Ask the police department how many officers are assigned to patrol our area per shift: those will be the officers actually working down here. Not detectives or others who start/finish their shift at the sub-station down here but don’t actively work in our community, nor the ones assigned north of the mountain.
With the move to hire more police
officers, what is the goal for our area for staffing and when will that occur? It takes a year to hire, train and fully deploy a police officer.
What is our population compared to north of the mountain and how many officers work there versus here? I know they have some greater violent crime issues, but we deserve our fair share of police officers in our community to protect our families.
We are not receiving the policing in our community in relation to our population or the taxes that are being paid in this area.
Anyone that lives down here knows that we have traffic and crime issues directly related to the lack of a police presence.
We should not settle for such a low police presence. Flagstaff has a population just shy of Ahwatukee’s and has more than 100 sworn police personnel working for that city / area.
The Phoenix Police Department is a great organization with amazing leadership, so I hope they can improve our police presence sooner versus than later.
Perhaps this idea has been floated before but the right thing to do with “The Lakes” may be to preserve the land, the open space. Create a walkable park with natural desert vegetation, the kind that is native, not imported. Something that attracts native wildlife, which is fast disappearing and retreating to the hinterlands.
Nature is actually good for the soul. Of course, many moved here for the golf course amenity and feel a promise is being broken, but times change. Many people now are appreciative of the ability to be contemplative and get their exercise where the desert lives and don’t need to see a green lawn just outside their green lawn.
A community garden is a good idea. Tomatoes with taste are the in thing. A community garden can be run by the community, it does not necessarily have to be created by True Life.
A golf course with its water use can, in my opinion, raise the price of water. True, the water percolates down toward the aquifer, unlike concrete or asphalt paving where the water is diverted out and away from where it fell. But it takes a long time
to recover that water as it travels down to a receding aquifer. So the price will go up assuming the availability of water remains about the same.
So, think about the quality of life, not just the value of your parcel and preserve a little bit of nature for the future. It may turn out to be more valuable than you think.
-Chris Wykoff
America should focus on improving health care
Now that the Republicans failed to come up with a new version of health care, I have to reflect back to when Obamacare was initiated. It wasn’t enough to steal $750 billion from Medicare Advantage and give it to Obama Care. Obviously, there is none left. Maybe that is why all of the premiums are going up?
We must understand that our healthcare is bad, just the way that the FDA , Big Pharma, the hospitals and the doctors want. America should not concentrate on the replacement of Obama Care, but should concentrate on improving the nations’ health care, by changing the
LETTERS on page 29
Ahwatukee Chamber rolling out new speaker series
BY NICK KNIGHT AFN Guest Writer
While technically within the Phoenix City limits, the Village of Ahwatukee is separated topographically by a mountain range, and has been called the biggest culde-sac in the world.
Some might call that isolation, but to others, it has been an opportunity to create a unique, small-town culture out of what could have been just another bedroom community.
One of the many things that contributes to that sense of community is the proliferation of locally owned and operated businesses within our community – businesses whose owners live here, send their children to school here and who have a vested interest in the community as a whole, not just their individual bottom lines.
To better serve this localized business community, the Ahwatukee Foothills Chamber of Commerce was founded in 1994.
But while most Chambers of Commerce exist solely for the benefit of member businesses, the Ahwatukee Chamber has a proud history of much greater community involvement.
From sponsoring the annual Red, White and Boom fireworks event to providing educational scholarships through Women in Business, recognizing outstanding local educators to and introducing and managing the Young Entrepreneurs Academy Program for budding middle and high school business tycoons, this Chamber reflects well the unique character of our community.
Among the many activities sponsored by the Ahwatukee Chamber, the Public Policy Committee is charged with exploring current issues that affect both member businesses as well as the community at large, and providing a forum in which to engage, educate and inform both business and community members about issues and policies that affect them directly.
As the 2017 Public Policy Committee chair, I have been working with my team to restructure the previous speaker series to provide a mixture of business-oriented topics as well as broaden our scope with speakers addressing more general interest subjects.
To that end, we are launching in April the “Intersections Speaker Series – Where Business and Community Meet.”
Some of the speakers we hope to schedule include state Representatives Jill Norgaard and Mitzi Epstein, state
Sen. Sean Bowie and U.S. Rep. Kyrsten Sinema.
Rep. Norgaard will be our first speaker, at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 6, at Foothills Golf Club. She will share news from the Capitol and key topics for the Ahwatukee area from the state perspective. She will also be available to answer questions from the audience.
Among the issues we anticipate covering during the year are water supplies and golf courses, modifications to the South Mountain Freeway plan such as belowgrade construction and extended bike lane, city infrastructure and maintenance, and personal and business health insurance.
That’s where you come in.
To better understand your interests and provide the most relevant speakers and topics, we need your input.
We have put together a short, threequestion survey that can anyone can answer at surveymonkey.com/r/TSGF6JF.
Please take a few minutes to let us know how we can make this series more relevant to your concerns and build a schedule of meetings that you will want to attend.
Parents should use discipline in a positive way
BY MARY CANNON
AFN Guest Writer
Discipline is often viewed as a form of punishment or a solution for handling a troublesome child.
Because it means to teach, discipline should not be perceived only as a way to dissuade a child from an undesirable behavior, but to teach the child the correct action or behavior for the next time they are in the same situation. Discipline can be tricky with toddlers, as they have a limited understanding, and are very impulsive beings. Here are some tips to help:
Keep rules simple: choose only three rules that can be easily followed, such as: use kind hands; couches are for sitting; food stays on the table.
Use positive statements when correcting a toddler’s behavior. These statements should describe the type of behavior that you desire to see, such as: “we use kind hands;” “we share our toys”; “we eat our food.”
When there is a safety issue at hand, use “no” to reinforce the rule. Parents can say, “No running near cars; we hold mom’s hand” or “no climbing on furniture; we keep feet on the ground.”
If you use time out, the child can sit in a chair, stand by a wall or be placed in a playpen. Use the same method each time. One minute for the age of the child is appropriate – a 2-year-old can do two minutes of time out.
Choose wisely the battles you wish to pick. Toddlers are still learning about their world. They will test their boundaries – it’s a healthy part of development. Be firm and consistent on the rules you choose to enforce. On other issues that don’t matter as much, choose to be lenient.
Give the child chances to be good – and catch them being good. Positive praise for good behavior goes a long way in preventing the undesirable behavior. Keep routines predictable and consistent.
Use logical consequences. If your child
health care structure.
I would make sure that there is competition in medicine, by forcing the FDA to test alternative medicine. Why is it OK to have cancer treatments of chemotherapy, followed by radiation, when the five-year survival rate is 2 percent? This is archaic medicine.
There are many cures for cancer in alternative medicine. I bet you can’t find one alternative medicine that is as lousy as main-stream medicine.
Why was it that President Reagan didn’t chose main stream medicine, when he had cancer? In 1985, he chose the eighth element protocol, which was an oxygen treatment. He experienced no hair loss, no nausea, no disfiguring surgeries. Putting it another way, he had no pain, nor side effects. Here it is 22 years later, and the FDA has successfully prevented information flow about alternative medicine, America having backward medicine.
There are dozens of natural cures, which the FDA has refused to test. In 1999, the FDA came out with a final ruling on colloidal silver. It banned all information flow to the public, it banned using colloidal silver in any in vitro testing of any disease. It banned the media from coming out with any article showing colloidal silver as positive.
It employed the FCC to be its watchdog. All of this is to ensure massive profits to the whole health care system, which is what is wrong with our system.
doesn’t want to change from pajamas into daytime clothes, tell the child that pajamas are for sleeping and put the child in their crib until they agree to change.
Create an environment that is conducive to being good. If the child’s play area is full of objects that they are not allowed to touch, they will be constantly told no as they explore and learn. Instead, move those types of objects to a different room so that the child isn’t tempted.
If you have to take an object away from your child, exchange it for something else instead of taking it away entirely. Make sure that you are calm before disciplining your child. This will help to avoid yelling at your child. -Mary Cannon is a program manager with the Arizona Partnership for Children (AzPAC) program, Parents As Teachers. AzPAC is a partnership between Catholic Charities Community Services and Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health Arizona that provides family support through home visits, group connections, screenings and assessments, along with needed resources. Catholiccharitiesaz.org
If America is going to fix its healthcare, it must start by replacing its present health care structure. I have written before about our problem. I mentioned that the FDA should be required to test colloidal silver, natural cancer cures, and oxygen treatments – free of charge.
-Don Crook
-Nick Knight, owner of Nick’s Computer Guys, has been an active member of the Ahwatukee Foothills Chamber of Commerce since 2010. Reach him at 480242-4997 or info@nickscomputerguys.com.
Ahwatukee’s Berry Beet Juice Bar a family affair
BY COTY DOLORES MIRANDA AFN Contributor
Healthy has been a way of life for Dr. Judi Jones and her family for decades, and these days they’re sharing that with area residents with their 6-month old Berry Beet Juice Bar.
In addition to the storefront business creating healthy and organic juices, smoothies and acai and pitaya bowls, a naturopathic doctor is in the house.
The storefront, at 4206 E. Chandler Blvd., Ahwatukee, is a shared space between the juice bar and Jones’ office. She is a naturopathic doctor and coowner of Berry Beet with her daughter, Vonda Jones, and son, Isaiah Jones.
It is a family affair that each family member firmly believes is a calling.
The youngest owner is Isaiah, 20. The 2014 Desert Vista High School graduate is often found at the juice bar’s serving
counter, smile at the ready.
“It’s actually been going really great,” he said between the customers who enter regularly. “Ahwatukee is really an easy place to market to because they do eat healthy, and they support small businesses like ours.”
Daughter Vonda Jones, 25, is a graduate of Tempe High School and Arizona State University, where she received her degree in business with an emphasis on communication and sustainability.
“We all eat really healthy so this is kind of our lifestyle,” she said. “We want to share our love and knowledge of healthy eating.”
She has been a vegetarian since childhood – as are her parents – but her partner Paris wasn’t into the lifestyle when they started dating.
“He wasn’t very healthy at first, but now he’s really into it with us,” she said.
“Some people think that healthy food can’t taste good, but that’s not the case at all as we’re able to show them here at Berry Beet.”
Besides the fresh organic juices, regular and cream smoothies and healthy tumeric/ apple or ginger/ apple shots, Berry Beet serves acai and pitaya bowls.
“I started getting into cooking and trying out new recipes,” recalled Vonda Jones. “We started thinking about opening a restaurant and it was ‘what if?’ But then we started talking about juices and smoothies. We said, ‘We could do
this!’”
Besides her and her partner, Vonda’s family includes three sons: Zion, 5; Elias, 2 and Kai, 7 months.
They are often at the Berry Beet, happily sharing an Acai Gone Nuts bowl (acai, banana, peanut butter, almond milk topped with fresh strawberries) or imbibing in favorite smoothies like offerings like Rainbows Sunshine (raspberry, strawberry, mango, banana).
“We’re all organic – all our fruits and vegetables,” she said proudly. “I grew up eating healthy as my mom and dad are both vegetarian. My dad, David, flies for
an airline so he’s involved more behind the scene.”
Her mother, however, is on site most days, busy with both walk-in clients – who want the complimentary consultation for juice recommendations – and meeting with patients.
A 2009 graduate of the prestigious Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine and Health Sciences in Tempe, Dr. Jones – sometimes referred to as “Dr. J” – first became involved with naturopathic health care as a young woman facing “some close calls on health issues.”
It was then that her desire to practice medicine took a different path than she’d originally envisioned.
“I wanted to become a physician and practice medicine, but I was a little disenfranchised with the
(Dianne Ross/AFN Contributor)
Readying up the juicer at Berry Beet in Ahwatukee are, from left, Paris Garcia, Vonda Jones, Isaiah Jones and Dr. Judi Jones.
(Dianne Ross/AFN Contributor)
Isaiah Jones tosses a pineapple to Vonda Jones at Berry Beet as they begin getting ingredients together for a healthy drink.
February data shows a strong market for buyers and sellers
BY LINDA BERG AFN Guest Writer
Welcome to the 2017 Market Action Real Estate Report for the Ahwatukee/Foothills market for February 2017.
According to the Arizona Regional MLS, the 112 February property sales in Ahwatukee’s three ZIP codes were up 20.4 percent from February 2016 and 9.8 percent higher than January total sales. February sales also ran 14.4 percent ahead of last year’s year-to-date sales.
The median sales price in February was $305,000 – up from $262,000 in February 2016 and up 11.5 percent from $273,500 in January. The average list price of all current listings is $328,009, up 15.9 percent from February 2016.
The selling price per square foot of $173, a good indicator of the direction of property values, was up slightly over February of last year while the asking price per square foot was $173 – up 10 percent over a year ago.
February’s listing inventory was 395 homes, down 11 percent from 444 in February 2016.
The number of new listings last month
was 167, down 15.5 percent from 200 in January and down 24.6 percent from February of last year.
The difference between sales price and original listing price was 96.7 percent –up from 95.6 percent in January and up from 95.6 percent in February of last year. This reveals the average percentage the sellers are reducing their home prices to get the home sold.
Looking at the market overall, new listings (169) were higher than the number sales (112).
The MLS was carrying 395 listings in February for Ahwatukee. The median list price for all current listings in February
was $369,500, while the median sales price was $305,500.
The average list price of all current listings is $479,949 while the average sales price is $328,009.
The month’s total supply of inventory increased by 17.9 percent while days on the market increased 29.2 percent.
Interest rates are continuing to edge upward. We are seeing more multiple offers on properties that are priced under $350,000. In many ways, this is a market good for both sellers and buyers.
Land deal cost $1.8 million for new self-storage site in Ahwatukee
Acompany recently spent $1.8 million on a 2.78-acre plot of vacant land at Desert Foothills Parkway and Marketplace Way, Ahwatukee, for construction of a selfstorage warehouse.
Denise Nunez, senior vice president of NAI Horizon’s National Self-Storage Investment Group, represented 1784 Capital Holdings LLC in selling the plot to Moncap, LLC, of Scottsdale.
“This parcel of land had been vacant for 32 years,” Nunez said. “A hidden gem, it will serve well as a community selfstorage project that will benefit from the expansion of the 202 just south and the extension of Chandler Boulevard to the west of this location.”
In August, the Ahwatukee Foothills Village Planning Committee voted 9-1 to recommend city planning commission approval of the self-storage facility. At the time, approval was given for a 104,000-square-foot facility to include
three floors, one of them below ground.
The commission’s action followed a discussion about the changes that the developer had made to satisfy neighboring homeowners’ concerns, although some residents still opposed it.
“My opinion, the committee believed the proposed commercial use was less obtrusive then many of the other commercial possibilities for the site,” committee Chairman Chad Blostone said at the time.Å
“Also, the developer made significant improvements to the design of the building,” he added. “He split the building into two, lowered both, and added architectural features and landscaping not required by the city.”
Though proposed for a long-vacant piece of land zoned for commercial use, the project required a special permit because it will be used for storage. The site has been vacant for the last 32 years.
In a June 10 letter to neighbors,
See LAND DEAL on page 32
-Linda Berg is branch manager for Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage. Reach her at linda.berg@ azmoves.com or 480-496-9001.
(Special to AFN)
This aerial view shows the site of a future three-story self-storage warehouse that will be built at the intersection of Desert Foothills Parkway and Marketplace Way, Ahwatukee.
attorney Jessi Thornton, who represents 1784 Capital Holdings, promised a stateof-the-art facility where outside storage would be forbidden.
“The use will provide a low-intensity, low-traffic-generating buffer to the adjacent residential uses while providing convenient storage options for nearby residents and businesses,” he wrote.
In documents originally filed with the city, his firm, Withey Morris PLC, called the project a neighborhood improvement that would eliminate a “magnet for unsafe activities and general nuisance.”
The law firm said its proposed maximum height of 25 feet is lower
than the two 30-foot high single-story supermarkets nearby.
“The proposed low-intensity commercial use is much more compatible with the adjacent residential than the more intense commercial uses that are permitted,” it said.
The firm also said that reflective glass will not be used in windows facing nearby homes and that entrances for traffic onto and away from the site would be on the building’s west side, opposite homes.
The fact that the warehouse will have 24-hour electronic surveillance also prompted the city to revise an old requirement for a round-the-clock guard at self-storage facilities. Officials said advances in technology made it unnecessary to post a person on the premises of such establishments.
JUICE BAR
medical community and the training provided by convention medical schools.
“I was a young mother at the time, my husband, David, and I felt there was a different way to raise our children,” she continued. “Their food became their medicine; they’ve never had an antibiotic in their lives. I realized that’s how I wanted to treat my patients so I entered Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine. I was a bit older, but I knew this was what I wanted to do.”
She graduated and opened a practice, but it was when she and her family started talking about opening a juice bar that she knew it would make a good combination to also have her naturopathic practice on site.
“I realized that just providing my patients with advice and a nutritional plan was just not enough,” Dr. Jones said, adding:
“They would try with the sincerest of efforts preparing the foods that I recommended, but then shortly afterward lose enthusiasm, determine that it was too time-consuming and then revert back to their old eating habits.”
“Establishing the juice bar right inside
the medical practice was the answer to my prayers. I could walk my patients right into the juice bar and introduce them to a whole new world of juicing and blending fruit and vegetable combinations that provide optimal nutrition and taste really good.
“I would hear comments like, ‘Who would ever think that oranges and celery would taste this good together?’ Not only do they taste good, they are great for inflammation and relief for our patients with different forms of arthritis and other inflammatory conditions.”
For Ricki Burleigh, 72, of Ahwatukee, the physical benefits of the juices at Berry Beet are worth visiting several times a week.
“One-hundred percent organic is pivotal to the nutritional value of the smoothie or juice purchased. The integrity and significance of top-quality, organic produce used to prepare all recipe offerings at Berry Beet is the most important element, in my opinion,” said Burleigh, a freelance editor formerly with the U.S. Diplomatic Corps in Morocco.
“When it comes to investing in one’s health, organic nutrition whenever possible is worth every cent,” he added. The ambiance of Berry Beet is equally attractive to Burleigh.
Kids Camp
Summer camps at Kyrene schools offer fun and learning
Kyrene School District will be offering a variety of summer camps in Ahwatukee, promising a fun and education environment for every child.
From a new sports camp to traditional favorites such as the Summer Community Theatre, the district’s offerings have enough variety for even the pickiest kid.
But while registration only began two weeks ago, at least one program is already full. The dual language program for kids 3 to 5 years old at Norte is already booked up, the district’s website said.
Centennial Middle School in Ahwatukee is hosting an all-day sports camp for third to sixth-grade students. The camp gives boys and girls who
Students can earn credits in Tempe Union summer programs
AFN News Staff
Forget the lazy hazy crazy days of summer at Tempe Union High School District’s summer program.
District officials don’t run a camp but rather a chance for students in ninth through 12th grades to catch up on missed credits or earn credits to advance toward graduation.
“It’s not really a camp,” said district spokeswoman Jill Hanks. “It’s our Summer Education Academy - so actual classes for credit. Students typically attend to get ahead, explore subjects they might be interested in, or recover credits.
“Students from all seven high schools and some from outside the district enroll,” she added. “Nearly 4,000 students enrolled last summer.”
The location rotates each year and this summer the program is at Marcos de Niza High School. Transportation is available from each of our high schools for $35 per session.
Information: az01901094.schoolwires.net/Page/590.
(AFN file photo)
Kyrene schools in Ahwatukee offer a variety of crafts and games at summer camp programs.
(AFN file photo) Seniors who complete their graduation requirements at Tempe Union High School District’s summer academy are feted to a ceremony. Many missed several credits for various reasons and did not get their diplomas when their classmates graduated in May.
See KYERNE on page 7
Music Makers Workshops fill the summer with tuneful lessons
Music Maker Workshops of Ahwatukee provides a different kind of summer educational experience for kids of all ages.
From preschool programs that let children’s imaginations soar while they learn about the world to rock band classes that even adults can join in the jamming, Music Makers Workshops on the corner of 32nd Street and Chandler
Boulevard, Ahwatukee, has something for just about everyone this summer.
Here are some offerings. For more information: 480-706-1224 or register at musicmakerworkshops.com
Kindermusik Around the World provides four mornings of crafts, snacks, stories, games, and instrumentation.
Family and friends join a celebration for the last 30 minutes on the last day of camp.
Taught by Kim Steedman and Shelley
Yakubow, certified Kindermusik educators.
Ages: 3-6
Weeks Offered: May 30-June 2.
Cost: $99 per week before May 1, $125 afterward. Covers snacks and materials.
Morning Music Academy allows kids to design their own camp by selecting three classes in drums, guitar, piano, voice, violin or arts and crafts.
Classes are formed according to age and ability levels.
at Cactus Jacks for an end-of-summer concert.
Ages: 9-16 Years, 16+;
When: Weekly practice scheduled according to band availability
Tuition: $100.
Call to schedule an audition at 480706-1224
Summer boot camp daily lessons are available for piano, voice, violin, viola, cello, guitar, drums, flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, French horn, tuba, banjo and ukulele for all ages and experience levels.
Milano’s Music is a sponsor of this camp and will provide every child wanting to learn violin with an instrument to borrow for camp classes. Multiple weeks are beneficial for campers but not required.
There is a different camp theme each week and campers build on their previous knowledge. Sessions are 9 a.m. to noon Monday thru Thursday.
Ages: 5-12.
Weeks: Check school schedule online.
Cost: $140 per week before May 1, $160 after.
Summer Art Camp is taught by professional artist Barbara Schoepf. Students draw and paint while learning the basic elements of art.
Camp projects will vary each week and may include drawing, printmaking, painting, collage and paper mache.
Kids attending Morning Music Academy can stay at the studio all day.
Ages: 5-14.
Weeks: Check school schedule.
Cost: $140 per week before May 1, $160 after.
Rock Band for Summer classes provide an opportunity for musicians to jam with others. Bands have a teacher/mentor for each weekly practice and have the opportunity to play
Boot camp lessons are customized for each student and include daily assignments, theory, ear-training, fluency and learning practice techniques. The time can be customized to whatever is relevant for a student, be it audition prep, music theory immersion, jump start or trying a new instrument.
(Special to AFN)
The Music Makers Workshops’ summer camps give new and experienced musicians a chance to jam and play before live audiences.
God’s Garden Preschool camp is open to
God’s Garden Preschool and Child Development Center is opening its summer camp programs to any child 2 ½ to 8 years old, regardless of whether they are enrolled during the regular school year.
School director Michelle Rhodes cited several reasons why parents should consider God’s Garden, located at 1401 E. Liberty Lane, Ahwatukee.
“As an outreach of Horizon Presbyterian Church, God’s Garden is dedicated to providing a positive and supportive Christian learning environment which nurtures spiritual, physical, social, emotional and cognitive growth through a child-centered, discovery-based curriculum,” she said.
The camp is themed weekly and runs June and July, Monday-Thursday.
Themes range from “everything cold” to dinosaurs to “summer at sea” to science and “messy art.”
Cost is $90 a week with “stay and play” costing an additional $16 weekly Information: 480-460-0081 or godsgarden@horizonchurch.com.
Voted One of the Best Preschools
Camps are Monday - Thursday from 8:45am - 11:45am with an option for Stay and Play until 1:45pm
June 5-8: Spend Your Summer At Sea
June 12-15: Discover Science and Messy Art
June 19-22: Sports
June 26-29: Explore All Things Dinosaurs and Archaeology
July 3-6: NO CAMP – 4th of July Week
July 10-13: Everything Cold
Registration is due in advance weekly. No walk-ins accepted.
480-460-0081 • www.godsgarden.com 1401 East Liberty Lane, Phoenix 85048
Ahwatukee!
(Special to AFN)
Children don’t have to be enrolled in God’s Garden Preschool during the regular school year to be admitted to its summer camp programs..
2017 Elementar y Summer Camp Regis tration is Now Open!
To Register Online, Visit Our Website www.KeystoneMontessori.com and Click on Elementary Summer Camp
Offering Four Weekly Classes June 5 – 30*
Kyrene Summer Academy offers endless opportunities to sharpen skills and explore new interests.
Classes such as Fishing, Morning Minecraft, Ceramics, Guitar, Digital Science and LEGO Code to Move teach kids to create, design and collaborate in a safe and fun classroom setting. Students can choose from a variety of subjects that will introduce them to new concepts and challenge them all summer long.
Summer Academy Schedule
Milenio, Brisas and Aprende
Session I: June 5-29; Session II: July 5-7 and July 10-20
8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., Monday to Thursday
Traditional, specialty camps await kids at Ahwatukee Foothills
Children ages 5 to 12 can find a variety of activities at the summer camps conducted by the Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA. They include the popular traditional camp but also specialty camps that focus on crafts, 3D printing and Harry Potter. Valleywide, other YMCA branches offer still more specialty camps. Information and registration are at valleyymca.org. The traditional camp costs $170 a week for members, $210 for nonmembers.
At the Ahwatukee Y’s traditional summer camp, children can discover the world through hands-on activities under the supervision of “a qualified and caring staff,” according to the YMCA’s website. Children develop social skills, make new friends and learn to express their independence. Each week offers a fun and creative theme that is woven into activities throughout the week. Activities include arts and crafts, experiential projects, field trips, games, sports, songs, skits and recreational swimming.
Themes for each week include
“Captain Y & the Superheroes,” “Giants, Wizards, & Elves,” “Sam I Am, Green Eggs & Ham,” “Go for Gold! (& Silver & Bronze),” “It’s A Thingamajig,” “From Sea to Shining Sea,” “Once Upon a Y,” “Clue– A Detective Adventure,” “Super Silly & Super Slimy!” and “Treasure Island.”
The specialty camps mix traditional favorites with activities focused on particular subjects.
“These camps are designed to allow your child to achieve more and develop new skills in a fun and upbeat environment, all under the supervision of caring staff,” the Y said. Cost is $235 for members and $275 for nonmembers, and all three are for kids in second through sixth grade.
At the Ahwatukee Y, specialty camps include one on 3D printing and technology scheduled July 10-14.
That camp examines one of the hottest new technologies, merging art and science together. In this innovative camp, children will learn to design and 3D print, while also learning the science behind it.
The Extreme Sports specialty camp,
scheduled June 19-23, features activities such as laser tag and trampoline adventures. Field trips will require parental waivers.
The Harry Potter camp July 245-28 takes children to the world of Muggles and wizardry with special activities.
SUMMER MUSIC & ART CAMPS AT MUSIC MAKER WORKSHOPS
Kick out of Karate Kamp
Mountainside Martial Arts Center founder-owner Rick Savagian has a suggestion for parents looking for summer enrichment for their kids.
Why not introduce them to a sport that aids physical fitness and teaches some self-defense?
His 27th annual Karate Kamp is structured for kids as young as 5.
Diane Sarnataro, a second-degree black belt who specialized in children as a onetime physical therapist, teaches with the help of three or four assistants.
“The curriculum is teaching basic fundamentals of traditional martial arts and motor skill development,” Savagian said. “We are very big on that philosophy. We allow a max of 15 students per class. This keeps the quality of our teachings principles intact.”
“We also use constant bio-feedback in teaching the skill set,” he added. “The parents who observe the program will a see tremendous improvement in their children’s mannerisms and confidence.”
Sessions run June 5-15 and July 1020 and are broken into three age groups: 5-7 years old; 8-12 years; and tends and adults. The $99 fee includes a uniform and white belt.
The center, 3173 E. Chandler Blvd., can be reached at 480-759-4540.
(AFN file photo)
Indoor and outdoor activities await children of all ages in the Ahwatukee Foothills Family YMCA’s summer programs.
AFN News Staff
love sports a chance to work on their skills and join a team. Each week will be devoted to a different sport and include a sports-theme field trip. The district calls that camp a way for kids to “stay active and learn how to be great teammates.
The Early Learning Center at Milenio Elementary gives incoming kindergartners and kids 3 to 5 years old a full day of activities with weekly themes. Children will participate in water days, pancake breakfasts, learn about favorite story-time characters – all aimed at developing a love of learning. Families can register by the week with multiple partial day options available. There will be special guest weekly.
Colina and Milenio are hosting Kyrene Kids Club Summer that differs from the club format during the school year.
Staff-led themes allow students to rotate hourly to different classrooms, giving them the freedom and flexibility to build their day around their interests. Rooms include construction, art, dramatic play, active games, science, cooking and performing arts. There also
is a game room.
Students also experience weekly onsite events and fields.
For students who want to travel to Chandler, Aprende Middle School is hosting Kyrene Adventure Tours for third-sixth-grade students.
Each week, students will take part in daily on-site events and field trips. While Mondays offer on-site activities such as Minute to Win It challenges, obstacle courses, computer lab projects and other programs, Tuesdays through Fridays features field trips to a variety of kidfocused places throughout the Valley.
Centennial also is hosting the Kyrene Summer Community Theatre. This year students will present “Alice in Wonderland Jr.,” with fourth-eighth graders eligible to join. Auditions are scheduled for April 22 at Akimel A-al,
Culminating with performances June 27 and 28, the program gives students a chance to hone their acting skills and learn technical aspects of the stage. Students will work with a voice coach, learn choreography and how to apply stage make up, study costume design and and discover other aspects of the theater.
For information on pricing schedules and registration: Kyrene.org.
April 28th
6:30 am Registra�on and Warm-Up 7:30 am Shot Gun Start 12:30 pm Luncheon, Auc�on and Awards INDIVIDUAL $145
Join the Ahwatukee Foothills Chamber of Commerce for an unforgettable golf experience to benefit Ahwatukee Chamber Community Foundation
Algebra 3- 4
AM/AZ Histor y Ar t & Design
Basic Freshman Eng
Basic Sophomore Eng
Basic Junior English
Basic Senior English
Basic Phys. World Biology 1-2
Chem-Physics
Comp Applications Ear th Science Economics
Basic Financial Math
Full
Geometr y
Geometr y
MA09A
MA09BM
Health Ed (On Campus)
Health Ed (Canvas)
Jr. English
Phys Ed 1-2
Phys Ed 3-4
Pre -Calculus
Senior English
Sophomore English
Spanish 1-2
Spanish 3-4
US/AZ Government
World Histor y/Geo
PE26A
PE26A
EN300A
PE06A
PE07A
MA13A
EN400A
EN200A
FL20A
FL21A
SS03
SS21A
Geometr y
Health Ed (On Campus)
Health Ed (Canvas)
Jr. English
Phys Ed 1-2
Phys Ed 3- 4
Pre - Calculus
Senior English
Sophomore English
Spanish 1-2
Spanish 3- 4
US/AZ Government
World Histor y/Geo
MA09B
PE26B
PE26B
EN300B
PE06B
PE07B
MA13B
EN400B
EN200B
FL20B
FL21B
SS03
SS21B
A turnaround course is o ered during Session 1 for students who earned a D or F second semester. Courses that are open to incoming Freshmen.
Health is o ered on-campus or as a Canvas course. TUHSD curriculum requires students to complete 10 hours of community service. This requirement must be completed to earn credit.
Rising rents driving Glow clinic from Ahwatukee to Chandler
AFN NEWS STAFF
Rising rental costs have driven another longtime business out of Ahwatukee
Jessica DeVilbiss last Saturday closed her Glow Skin & Body Apothecary/ Clinic at 4350. E. Ray Road.
She and her five employees are moving to the Phoenix Salon Suites at 3450 W. Chandler Road, across from the Chandler Fashion Center.
“My entire skin care practice, 16 years, has been in Ahwatukee,” DeVilbiss said.
“I opened Glow 10 years ago, creating a skin care practice dedicated to personalized skin care, not only services but also professional and prescription home care,” she continued. “We accomplish this by thoroughly knowing our clients and addressing all their concerns while developing long-lasting relationships.”
“Unfortunately, rental prices continue to increase in Ahwatukee every year,” she said.
DeVilbiss wasted no time moving and opened her new location March 28. DeVilbiss said she is “sad to leave Ahwatukee,” but also looking forward to her new location and the opportunities it presents.
“I am excited to continue expanding our services and retail selection in the coming months,” she said, adding:
“We’ll be expanding our selection of organic baby and children body products.”
She also said she is staying “true to my love for small business” by adding a collection “dedicated to local artists and craftsmen.”
She said they’d be spotlighting artists in wood-burned signs and art, jewelry, handcrafted skin and body products, candles and other media.
“This will be a small part of the new location we hope to grow in the coming years,” she said.
“It was a very hard decision to leave the community,” DeVilbiss said. “I feel very much a part of. My daughter attends
Several businesses have blamed rising rents for closing or relocating, including the popular Unwined restaurant, which had been located at Chandler Boulevard and Desert Foothills Parkway.
school in Ahwatukee and my husband is a UPS driver in the area. My commitment to keeping pricing competitive and continue to offer the newest innovations in skin care drove my decision to move.”
Glow offers anti-aging services, microdermabrasions, advanced chemical peels and massage and bodywork therapies. Information: 480-759-8400, glowskinbodystudio.com.
How to file a complaint against your Medicare drug or health plan
BY GREG DILL AFN Guest Writer
Having practiced pharmacy for many years, I often find myself talking to people about their Medicare prescription drug, or Part D, plans.
People with Part D usually share their thoughts about a favorite pharmacy or pharmacist, or how their plan offers medicines at affordable prices. Sometimes they report problems with a Part D plan, ranging from the cost of drugs to difficulty in getting a specific medication their doctor prescribed. A first step to correcting problems is always to contact your drug plan (contact information is on the back of your drug card). A call to the plan usually will resolve your issue. If that doesn’t work, you can file a complaint.
You can do that by calling 1-800-MEDICARE or going online at www.Medicare.gov. Complaints can
be made against Part D drug plans as well as Part C health plans, also known as Medicare Advantage plans.
The online Medicare complaint form is easy to use. Medicare takes the information you send and directs it to your plan. Then we follow up and monitor how well the plan resolves your complaint.
To find the complaint form, go to medicare.gov and locate the blue box near the top of the page that says “claims & appeals.” Place your cursor over that box until a dropdown menu appears and click on “file a complaint.” When the next page comes up, click on “Your health or drug plan.”
You can also lodge a complaint by calling or writing to your plan. Your complaint could involve a problem with customer service, difficulty in getting access to a specialist, being given the wrong drug, or being given drugs that interact in a negative way.
If you file a complaint about your Part D drug plan, certain requirements apply:
• You must file your complaint within 60 days from the date of the event that led to the complaint.
• You must be notified of the decision generally no later than 30 days after the plan gets the complaint.
• If your complaint relates to a plan’s refusal to make a fast coverage determination or redetermination and you haven’t purchased or gotten the drug, the plan must give you a decision no later than 24 hours after it gets the complaint.
In addition, you can make a complaint if you have a concern about the quality of care or other services you get from a Medicare provider. This includes doctors, hospitals, or other medical providers; your dialysis or kidney transplant care; or a Medicarecertified supplier of durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, and oxygen equipment.
How you file a complaint depends on what your complaint is about. For more information, go to www. medicare.gov/claims-and-appeals/file-
a-complaint/complaint.html.
As a Medicare beneficiary, you also have certain appeal rights. What’s the difference between a complaint and an appeal?
A complaint is generally about the quality of care you got or are getting.
For example, you may file a complaint if you have a problem contacting your plan or if you’re unhappy with how a staff person at the plan treated you. However, if you have an issue with a plan’s refusal to pay for a service, supply, or prescription, you file an appeal.
For more information on appeals, take a look at your “Medicare & You” handbook, mailed each fall to every Medicare household in the country. Or go online at medicare.gov/claimsand-appeals/file-an-appeal/appeals. html.
-Greg Dill is Medicare’s regional administrator for Arizona. Get answers to your Medicare questions by calling 1-800633-4227.
(Special to AFN)
Jessica DeVilbiss said rising rents are forcing her to relocate her skin health clinic from Ahwatukee to Chandler.
SPIRITUAL SIDE
‘Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things’
BY LISA JISA AFN Guest Writer
I’ve shared quite a few struggles in this column over the years, so it should come as no surprise to know that I look forward to Heaven one day.
That’s not to say life on earth is all bad, not by any means. But there are some days it’s easier to get through knowing that in the future, there will be no more pain, no more sadness, no more sickness, no more turmoil. “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”
(Colossians 3:2)
I have some friends who don’t believe in God and they don’t know Jesus. They have no clue about the freedom that comes with knowing you can be forgiven and that it’s forever. They haven’t experienced the peace that can invade your soul supernaturally during the most trying of times. They don’t know about the undeserved love and grace of God.
But if life has gone pretty smoothly so far, maybe just a few bumps and bruises, why should they care?
I came across a quote from William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army, where he said, “I consider that the chief dangers which confront the coming century would be religion without the Holy Ghost; Christianity without Christ; forgiveness without repentance; salvation without regeneration; politics without God; and Heaven without Hell.”
Booth also said something to the effect that if Christians were required to spend some time in Hell, they would return prepared for a lifetime of compassionate ministry and be great workers for the Lord.
Hell is a real place. It doesn’t matter if you are good and kind. It doesn’t matter if you follow all the rules, give away lots of money and strive for peace. If you don’t know Jesus, you won’t be going to Heaven.
God fulfills all of His promises, and one of them is that Jesus will return
some day. For generations, people have tried to predict when that might be.
I have no clue, but I’d rather be prepared than caught off guard. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
God doesn’t force anyone to follow Him. If he did, we’d all be like robots without the freedom to make our own choices.
In Philippians 2:3-4, Paul says, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others.”
I can’t force anyone to believe in God like I do, and I won’t beg. There are others way more gifted than I am at explaining all of this, but I am all for looking out for the interests of others, and this is too important not to share.
In the Amplified Bible, Philippians
2 continues in verses 10-11, “At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow (in submission), of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth.” The footnote says, “All intelligent beings in the universe, whether saved or unsaved, whether spirit or as mortal mankind, will acknowledge Him.”
Someday everyone will acknowledge that Jesus is indeed Lord, whether or not by choice.
God speaks to people in many different ways. He spoke to Moses through a burning bush and He spoke to Elijah in a whisper. He speaks through Bible verses, through circumstances, in dreams, through other people, and in ways we can’t begin to imagine.
If you want to know if God is real, ask Him. Seriously! He promises to answer if you truly desire to know. But don’t take my word for it. Take His:
“Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3)
-Lisa can be reached at lisa.jisa@gmail.com
Pastor fled segregationist South, started church in Mesa
BY PAUL MARYNIAK
AFN Executive Editor
Had it not been for Mississippi’s virulent racism in the early 1960s, the Rev. Jack Troutman probably would never have made Mesa his home.
But Troutman and 27 other white United Methodist pastors found themselves in the bull’s eye of the Ku Klux Klan simply because they signed a statement in 1962 that declared blacks would be welcome in their churches.
On March 25, Troutman, 90, was honored by congregants at Grace United Methodist Church – the church he founded at the intersection of Gilbert Road and University Drive in Mesa after he fled the hostile reaction
triggered by the pastors’ declaration.
The declaration, titled “Born of Conviction,” is detailed in a book of the same title that was written by a Methodist minister and published last year.
“I never thought it would be like that. It stirred Mississippi up like you wouldn’t believe. I didn’t think it was going to amount to anything but it caused 20 of us to leave Mississippi,” Troutman said. “They didn’t want us anymore. They didn’t want us to serve the people anymore.”
Asked who “they” was, he replied, “Hardline segregationists.”
“We came out of the seminary brainwashed into thinking all men are created equal,” Troutman said sarcastically. “We signed a statement
saying we believed everybody ought to be welcomed in church. Well, a lot of white people didn’t want black people worshipping with them.”
Among those segregationists were Troutman’s brother and sister, both of whom pulled their children out of public school when a federal court ordered Mississippi to desegregate its all-white public schools despite stiff opposition from then-Gov. Ross Barnett.
Barnett, who futilely defied a National Guard unit when he tried to block a black man from entering the University of Mississippi, once declared, “The Good Lord was the original segregationist. He put the black man in Africa” and that Mississippi had the
(Special to AFN)
Pastor Jack Troutman will be honored next weekend by Grace United Methodist Chuirch members for standing up to racism more than 50 years ago in his native Mississippi.
SUNDAYS
BIBLE EXPLORED
This biblical scripture study embraces a spirit-filled, intellectually honest, and understandable exploration of God’s Word. Lessons will combine Christian and Jewish theology along with Bible history, archaeology and linguistics for a rich learning experience.
High school and middle school students meet to worship and do life together.
DETAILS>> 5 p.m. at Horizon Presbyterian Church, 1401 E. Liberty Lane. 480-460-1480 or email joel@ horizonchurch.com.
KIDS CAN LEARN JEWISH LIFE
Children can learn and experience Jewish life. Chabad Hebrew School focuses on Jewish heritage, culture. DETAILS>> 9:30 a.m. to noon, for children ages 5-13 at Pollack Chabad Center for Jewish Life, 875 N. McClintock Drive, Chandler. 480-855-4333, info@chabadcenter.com, or chabadcenter.com.
MONDAYS
JOIN CHRIST-CENTERED YOGA
This Flow 1-2 class (intermediate) is free and open to the community.
DETAILS>> 6-7 p.m., Mountain Park Community Church, 2408 E. Pecos Road. Greg Battle at 480-7596200 or gbattle@moutainpark.org.
CLASS TARGETS THE GRIEVING Classes for those grieving over death or divorce.
Support group for those struggling with how to deal with a loss in life.
DETAILS>> 7 p.m., 1825 S. Alma School Road, Room C201, Chandler. Pastor Larry Daily, 480-963-3997, ext. 141, larrydaily@chandlercc.org or chandlercc.org.
TUESDAYS
GRIEFSHARE
Mountain Park Community Church’s GriefShare helps people deal with the pain of losing a loved one.
DETAILS>> 6:30-8 p.m., 2408 E. Pecos Road, Ahwatukee. To register: mountainpark.org and click on Launch. Information: Alex at 480-759-6200
FINDING HEALING FOR PAIN
HOPE, an acronym for “Help Overcome Painful Experiences,” offers support for men and women who seek God’s grace and healing.
DETAILS>> 6:30 to 8 p.m. Mountain Park Community Church, 2408 E. Pecos Road. mountainpark.org.
SENIORS ENJOY ‘TERRIFIC TUESDAYS’
The program is free and includes bagels and coffee and a different speaker or theme each week. Registration not needed.
DETAILS>> 10-11 a.m., Barness Family East Valley Jewish Community Center, 908 N. Alma School Road, Chandler. evjcc.org or 480-897-0588.
WEDNESDAYS
UPBEAT MUSIC ABOUNDS
Upbeat children’s choir with music and a message that
kids can get excited about. This choir usually sings monthly during our worship services and presents a Christmas Musical. For grades 3-8.
largest percentage of black Americans because “they love our way of life here, and that way is segregation.”
Barnett also was a cousin of Troutman’s mother, who became angry with her son when he refused an invitation to deliver a sermon at an annual family reunion held in the governor’s mansion.
“I told her mother I can’t go. He’s out there in public treating those black people like they were mules and cows,” Troutman recalled, adding that even his mother bore some of harsh reaction to the pastors’ declaration.
“It was pretty tough on my mama,” he said. “She got a lot of calls asking, ‘What’s wrong with Jack? Has he gone crazy?’”
The reaction was tougher on some of the 28 ministers.
“The Ku Klux Klan burned crosses on our lawns, slashed the tires of a neighboring pastor’s car, threatened to burn the churches of those pastors who signed the statement,” he said, adding that white congregants in many of those pastors’ churches “left in droves and never came back.”
Troutman was a circuit pastor,
presiding over three rural churches in the middle of Mississippi. Each congregation ranged in size between 60 and 100 people.
That circuit put him on the fringes of more populated Methodist churches where pastors who signed the declaration were in physical danger.
Nevertheless, he said, he feared constantly for the safety of his two young children because of the Klan.
And he had to put up with the animosity of the white non-church members where he lived.
On the first Sunday after newspapers in Mississippi published the pastors’ declaration, Troutman said, “I got into the pulpit and told my members, ‘You probably read the article I signed, and it’s an article I would expect any of you to sign.”
“I had my people conditioned,” he added. “They knew where I stood before I signed that document. So, the only reaction they had was, ‘We don’t agree with you but we love you and we’re going to stay with you.’”
It wasn’t the same with the nonchurch members.
“I was sort of ostracized as far as the community was concerned,” he said.
And the reaction from the church
hierarchy was even more dispiriting.
The presiding Methodist bishop and district superintendents “wouldn’t stand with us,” Troutman said. “They didn’t back us up.”
That was the last straw for 20 of the 28 pastors.
They began looking for approval from their bishop to be transferred to churches outside the state. The eight who remained “were like chaplains for institutions like hospitals and military bases, where I’m sure they had black members already.”
Many of those pastors fled to the Methodist district covering Southern California and Arizona.
But word of their declaration didn’t sit too well with some churches there, either.
“They wrote on the wall of one church our names and said, ‘These pastors will never serve here,’” Troutman said.
Despite the pleas of his bishop, Troutman insisted on being transferred out of his native Mississippi and was told, “I’ve got a nice five-acre piece of land in Mesa where I want you to start a church.”
He left Mississippi the day that a search began for three civil rights workers who eventually were found
shot to death. Their murders became the subject of a best-selling book and film called “Mississippi Burning.”
Troutman said when he arrived in Mesa in 1964, “I saw I had five acres of tumbleweeds.”
He started his congregation, meeting in a funeral home on Stapley Road in Mesa while he and his followers raised money to build a church.
Grace Methodist grew rapidly to 1,000 members and Troutman led the congregation in erecting three buildings on the campus before he was transferred to Anaheim, California, nine years after he arrived. After a couple years, he went back to Arizona and presided over First United Methodist Church in downtown Mesa for six years before being transferred to Sun City.
He retired in 1991 and spent his time for nearly a decade traveling the country with his late wife and volunteering for the Red Cross.
Now living at an assisted living facility not far from the Mesa church he founded, Troutman said he last visited Mississippi for a reunion of the “Born of Conviction” pastors.
“The bishop invited the pastors about nine years ago,” he said, “but many had died. There are only a few of us left.”
Get Out
Basis Ahwatukee’s ‘Mary Poppins’ is students’ biggest production
AFN NEWS STAFF
One of Disney’s most beloved characters will be coming to life this weekend and next as students at Basis Ahwatukee present “Mary Poppins.”
The school’s presentation features a cast of 55 actors and actresses as well as 10 stage hands and 23 orchestra members who have been rehearsing since December, said drama teacher Helen O’Connell.
“I’ve always loved the Disney movie with Julie Andrews, and the Broadway retelling has the most beautiful music,” O’Connell said. “There are the original songs everyone knows and loves, like ‘Spoonful of Sugar’ and ‘Step in Time,’ with some additional songs that complete the story, and show another side of the characters.”
Based on books by P.L. Travers that were written between 1934 and 1988, “Mary Poppins” was first a movie musical produced by Disney in 1964 and was reworked for the stage in 2006. The Broadway production won a Tony Award for best musical. It focuses on a series of fantasy adventures that follow the arrival of a magical nanny in at the home of the wealthy Banks Family. The children, Jane and Michael, try to pass some of Mary Poppins’ sunny attitude on to their parents, who are preoccupied by a
variety of worries.
Despite the movie’s age, most of the 88 students participating in the Basis Ahwatukee performance were familiar with it, O’Connell said, although “many had not seen the whole film until they were cast in the musical.”
Nicole Kamp, Basis of Ahwatukee head of operations, said the school’s arts
departments each year “work together to present live action and singing by our many talented young actors and actresses, accompanied by live music played by our band and orchestra students.”
“In addition, our tech club creates the staging, costumes and lighting,” Kamp added.
Basis is a free public charter school with grades 4 to 12.
This is the school’s fourth year of staging full productions and “Mary Poppins” is its biggest yet. The cast ranges in age from 10 to 17.
“The sheer volume of musical numbers was our first big challenge,” O’Connell said. “Other fun challenges have been the magic that Mary Poppins creates and also the energetic dance numbers, like ‘Step in Time’ – oh, and learning to spell ‘Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’.”
All the costumes were created by the student-driven costume team. “The students worked together to go shopping and either thrift-ed or sewed almost all of the costumes,” O’Connell said.
The sets also presented a challenge for her stage crew, which consists of students in eighth through 12the grade.
“Christopher Winnemann, clinical assistant professor of technical direction at
Arizona State University, designed the sets for us and sent us plans, which the students then built and painted after school, with some help from parents as well,” she said.
A four-year veteran at Basis, O’Connell taught theater in Wisconsin. “I’ve always loved teaching drama,” she explained. “I started teaching summer camps when I was in high school at our local theater.”
The school’s Thespian Society meets September through April and this year joined the International Thespian Society, an honors society for junior high and high school students that requires more than 100 hours in theater department work a year for membership.
“Mary Poppins” is Basis’ annual musical.
“In the fall, we produce a showcase where students present scenes, solos and group numbers from plays and musicals,” O’Connell said. “We just finished our One Acts Festival in February, and have a fourthgrade musical in May.”
Basis junior Charlene Moraleda plays the title character – which O’Connell said can be a “difficult role.”
“The vocal range required for her part is extraordinary, and then there is the fact that many people will compare her to Julie Andrews,” said O’Connell, referring to the renowned actress who starred in the movie.
“But Charlene is achieving all of this with grace and confidence,” she added, noting Charlene “has been in all our productions here at BASIS Ahwatukee” and “her past experience and dedication have helped her succeed in this role.”
Other students with principal roles are: Elliott Bennett, Benjamin Sheldon, Marie Stokman, Sophia Northup, Zubin Sidhwa, Mary Haddad and Darrell Mason.
IF YOU GO
What: “Mary Poppins”
Where: Basis Ahwatukee, 10210 S. 50th Place, Ahwatukee.
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, March 31 and April 1, April 7 and 8.
Cost: $7.
(Special to AFN)
Charlene Moraleda and Elliott Bennett play Mary Poppins and Bert.
(Special to AFN)
Portraying the Banks Family in the BasisAhwatukee production of “Mary Poppins” are, from left: top row: Marie Stokman and Benjamin Sheldon; bottom:Sophia Northup and Zubin Sidhwa.
Ahwatukee woman’s crusade against kidney ailment hits landmark
It was only a decade ago that Sharon Lagas of Ahwatukee started a special event to help victims of a chronic kidney disease, called Alport Syndrome, that took her brother’s life and that looms over her, her mother and two sons and two nephews.
On Sunday, April 2, that campaign hits a landmark when the 10th annual 5K for Healthy Kidneys is held at Kiwanis Community Park, Baseline Road and Ash Avenue, Tempe. The race is at 10 a.m. but registration starts at 8 a.m.
The run is the signature event for the Ahwatukee-based Alport Syndrome Foundation, which Lagas founded in 2007 to increase awareness of the disease and help victims and their families through education and outreach programs. So far, the runs have raised nearly $400,000. Registration for the run is $30 for adults and $15 for children 13 and under in advance, and an extra $5 on the day of the even. Dogs and strollers are welcome. Registration is at alportsyndrome.kintera. org/arizona5k2017.
Although Sharon Lagas’ symptoms
were relatively mild, her brother suffered kidney failure at age 16, endured dialysis for two years and eventually received two kidney transplants. He died at age 38, about the same time the family received a diagnosis for his condition as being Alport Syndrome.
That same month, Sharon Lagas found out she and her mother, her two sons and Paul’s two daughters also had Alport Syndrome.
As she began searching for more information, Lagas found a bleak picture for patients victimized by the disease.
“It was a very difficult time,” she said. “I felt depressed, isolated, and scared.”
She was frustrated that the information and resources to help Alport Syndrome patients and families cope with this disease were not more centralized or more positive. With the encouragement of her doctor, Sharon and her friend Margaret Blue decided to create an organization to help other Alport families.
With the help of several other people, she cofounded the foundation, aimed at providing education, advocacy, support
and research to conquer Alport Syndrome. Patient education includes family meetings where patients come together for a weekend to learn more about the condition and form a greater support network, informative brochures and website and new monthly webinars focusing on various topics related to the disease.
ASF works with the National Organization for Rare Disorders, the National Kidney Foundation and Global Genes to support legislation and has an extensive support network.
ASF also funds the Alport Syndrome Treatment Outcomes Registry.
“In 10 short years, we have created a community of patients and families that are working together to conquer Alport Syndrome,” said foundation spokeswoman Jalaire Brinegar.
“Newly diagnosed patients now have a network where they can receive support, resources and information. ASF has also created a landscape that encourages investment in research into Alport Syndrome,” she said.
While there is no FDA-approved therapy to treat Alport Syndrome, the first phase clinical trial to test a drug is currently underway and other companies are testing other therapies.
“While we are excited about the process, treatments that prevent the need for dialysis and transplantation and eliminate hearing loss cannot come fast enough,” Brinegar said, adding:
“New trials come with new challenges in terms of keeping the medical and patient communities updated about the most recent developments and opportunities.
“Once therapies are approved, we will work diligently to make sure all providers have medical guidelines and ensure affordable access to patients.”
(Special to AFN)
Lowrider bikes, pedal cars introduce kids to Hispanic culture
BY RALPH ZUBIATE AFN Managing Editor
Alezae Chavez, 7 going on 8, is the Heartbreaker.
At least, that’s what it says on her lowrider bicycle.
She and her uncle, Richard “Chavo” Chavez, were showing off her bike at the Little Lowrider Show in Phoenix. It was her introduction to the lowrider culture.
“It’s a kids’ scene,” said Enrique “Fat Boy” Maldonado, Sergeant at Arms for the Rollerz Only Car Club’s Chandler chapter. “We have some adults that build the bikes and stuff like that, but the kids are key.”
“We’re trying to get kids involved,” Chavez said. “It’s like a hobby, but passionate.”
Chavez is a member of Rollerz Only. The club was founded in 1988 in Los Angeles has 42 chapters worldwide.
Lowrider bikes were abundant at the downtown Phoenix event as were trickedout pedal cars and even retro baby strollers. The kids help build the pieces.
The Phoenix event gathered hobbyists from around the Valley. Lowrider bikes were themed to cartoons and animated features, along with other kid favorites.
Looney Tunes and Monster High bikes were shown, glimmering in the bright sun.
The way the bikes are displayed is important to judges such as Joey Calderone.
“We give points for the display,”
“We’re trying to get the kids involved,”
Some bikes were sitting on mirror tiles, and some had displays next to them with sports teams – the Dallas Cowboys seemed to be popular – or cartoon characters. Not far removed from Mardi Gras, one pedal car up on a turntable was decorated in traditional gold, green and purple; beads were strewn about.
Another holiday just passed was St.
Calderone said.
(Kimberly Carrillo/AFN Staff Photographer)
Jason from “Nightmare on Elm Street,” not a kid-friendly face, makes an appearance in a Rollerz Only lowrider bike display.
(Kimberly Carrillo/AFN Staff Photographer) Alezae Chavez and her uncle, Richard “Chavo” Chavez enjoy the lowrider culture together.
Chavo said.
LOWRIDER
Patrick’s Day, and one green pedal car was accompanied by a pot and “gold” coins. Another green pedal car had candy covering a rug underneath it.
“I also look for overall craftsmanship and cleanliness,” Calderone said. “Also, bright candy colors,” for the kids.
He also looks for functionality. He wants the bikes to be ridable, and if they feature stereo systems – yes, on a bike – he wants the stereo to work.
One pedal car looked to be pulling a retro trailer, but that was its stereo speakers.
Stock lowrider bikes can begin at $250, and their value increases as work is done to them.
Candy colors are added, themes worked into the bikes, and twisted chrome pieces are added.
When finished, kids’ street bikes can run $2,000 to $30,000, Calderone said.
Upholstery is also a big addition to the bikes. Chavez did the upholstery for Alezae’s bike through his own company,
Los Chavez Custom Upholstery. Having a skill like being an upholsterer or painter is key in the lowrider community, because hobbyists can trade their specialties.
“I did the upholstery for that bike over there,” Chavez said, pointing at another bike down the line. In return, he got Alezae’s bike painted.
Chavez works two jobs to have enough money to pay for the hobby. He also works full-time at a Fry’s Food and Drug store.
The hobby keeps his focus on good choices. He acknowledges that he had to decide what path he went down. Some family members made bad choices. That’s the reason he and his father are raising Alezae.
In the meantime, he’s working on Alezae’s bike, themed to the cartoon character Betty Boop.
It started off as a family heirloom, belonging to a cousin in New Mexico.
“It’s sentimental to us,” Chavez said. And Alezae likes it too, calling it “nice.”
The shy Alezae was enjoying the scene, loud with a DJ and kids running around oohing and aahing at the bikes. Adults were walking around impressed, too.
A couple from the Czech Republic was in Phoenix visiting family. Remko Bos walked up and asked about the lowrider bikes and pedal cars.
“We don’t have anything like this in Europe,” he said.
Slavomira Reiter agreed, saying of the scene, “It is wonderful.”
– Contact Ralph Zubiate at 480-898-6825 or rzubiate@timespublications.com.
Kimberly Carrillo/AFN Staff Photographer)
Alezae Chavez, 7, shows off her “Heartbreaker” lowrider bike that was put together by her uncle, Richard “ Chavo” Chavez, of the Rollerz Only Car Club, Chandler chapter.
Knitted Knockers Charities plan fundraising cruise
AFN NEWS STAFF
ATempe-based nationwide charity for breast cancer victims is teaming up with a yarn store to offer knitters a chance to do their thing on water.
Knitted Knockers Charities and Tempe Yarn & Fiber are hosting a two-hour “Knitting Cruise to Change Lives” aboard the Desert Belle on Saguaro Lake on Saturday, April 1.
“The cruise is to give knitters/crocheters a chance to enjoy the beauty of Saguaro Lake, as well as raise awareness about Knitted Knockers,” said the nonprofit’s executive director, Fred Neal.
Knitted Knockers Charities offers a light, comfortable knitted prosthetic breast for women who have had a mastectomy.
The prosthetics are made by a team of volunteers across the country. Over 12,000 have been distributed to cancer victims, Neal said. Several large Arizona groups meet regularly to knit the prosthetics, and some have met at Tempe Yarn & Fiber on a regular basis.
The cruise departs at 10:30 a.m. from
its dock at 14011 N. Bush Highway, Mesa, and returns at 1 p.m. Tickets are $30.
The cruise has been dubbed a way to “change lives” for a reason, Neal said, explaining:
“When you make a Knitted Knocker, you change your life by giving of your time and knitting skills to a woman recovering from breast cancer whom you will never meet. You also impact their lives by helping them feel better about themselves after a mastectomy, thus making a positive change for them.”
The group’s mission is to “help women to regain their confidence and sense of self after a mastectomy by putting a little ‘giggle’ back in their life,” he added.
Tickets: 480-557 9166.
Information: KnittedKnockersUSA.org or TempeYarn.com.
Storytelling, science and fun collide in Brain Candy Live!
BY ERICA J. THOMPSON Getout Contributor
Combine the dynamic personality of Adam Savage, former co-host of the long-running Discovery series “Mythbusters,” and the ever-questioning mind of Michael Stevens from YouTube’s popular Vsauce channel, and the result is “Brain Candy Live!”
This unabashed celebration of discovering new information, which hits Mesa Arts Center on Sunday, April 2, invites audience members of all ages to think of everyday things, such as air, in new ways.
For two hours, the duo of Savage and Stevens will “shower the audience with knowledge—literally and figuratively,”
according to Savage, as they share stories that are rooted in science and art to help the audiences and themselves understand more about the world.
“We are going to be doing a bunch of demonstrations on stage with things that we have built and with audience member to tell a story with these things,” Savage says.
Three tons of toys and equipment will help audiences “visualize things that they were never able to before.” Demonstrations and explorations include knowledge about air on a molecular level, low pressure ways to get your dad out of bed, and a machine gun that shoots sport balls.
Savage and Stevens’ relationship blossomed through social media, after they admitted to admiring one another’s work. This show is the result and they can’t wait to share.
Two days before opening the tour, Savage says, “I am champing at the bit to get an audience.”
Speaking of the audience, fans of both performers will “get what they expect,” according to Savage. However, you don’t need to know who Savage and Stevens are, or be a science whiz, to appreciate the
show. And people of any age are welcome.
“It is totally great to bring your kids to this show, but we not performing only to the kids,” he says. “The jokes will play to adults and children on a Bugs Bunny level of comedy.”
“Brain Candy Live” also features a song by Kenneth Pattengale of the alt-rock band Milk Carton Kids. That project leaves Savage “very excited. It is the first time I am trying something like this on stage.”
Swim-tennis center hosting 11th annual dog show
Ahwatukee Foothills residents and dog lovers don’t have to go far to sniff out a good time this weekend.
The Ahwatukee Swim and Tennis Center will host its 11th annual Ahwatukee Family Dog Show from 9 a.m. to noon Sunday, April 2, at 4700 E. Warner Road.
The annual event includes a vendor fair, animal rescues and local flyball teams – as well as a competition open to dogs of all shapes and sizes.
The competition includes prizes for Best Dressed, Most Talkative, Best Kisser, Best Tail Wag, Cutest Dog, Cutest Senior, Cutest Rescue, Best High Five and Most
Unusual.
Proceeds will benefit No Paws Left Behind, a rescue group.
Entries into the contest are $7 for the first category and $3 for each additional entry, when registered by Friday, March 31. On Sunday, entry prices go up $1. Admission to the event for humans is free.
Only well-behaved dogs are welcome. They all must be at least 4 months old and have current shots to compete. Owners should bring the dogs’ vaccine records.
Dogs must be on a leash that is no longer than six feet and owners must be prepared to clean up after their pet. Register: ahwatukeehoa.com or 480893-3431.
(Special
Adam Savage, left, and Michael Stevens aim to share their love of science and knowledge through their fun and quirky stage show.
Taco soup a hot meal that doesn’t heat up the kitchen
BY JAN D’ATRI Contributor
We got a little taste of what’s to come last week with the weather heating up so quickly.
Time to start looking for meals that don’t heat up the kitchen. This is going to be your new go-to dish – for any season! It just doesn’t get any easier than grabbing some cans and throwing it all in one pot!
The result is a hearty meal loaded with flavor in about 15 minutes!
TACO SOUP
Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef or turkey
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped fine
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 envelope Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing and Seasoning Mix
1 can (16 ounces) chili beans, not drained
1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, not drained
1 can (15-1/4 ounces) whole kernel corn, not drained
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) stewed tomatoes
1 can (10 ounces) diced tomato with green chilies
1 can (4.5 ounces) chopped green chilies
2 fresh Anaheim chiles, roasted, skinned and chopped (Optional)
Flour or corn fresh tortillas for garnish (or use chips)
Directions:
In a Dutch oven, sauté onion in olive oil until soft and golden brown. Add garlic and cook for another few minutes. Add beef or turkey and cook until browned. Drain fat if there is an excess.
Add taco seasoning and ranch dressing packets and mix well. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes. Recipe yields about 2 quarts. Makes about 8 (1 ½) cup servings
If soup is too thick, add a little water to thin out.
For the tortilla garnish: Heat about ½ cup vegetable oil in skillet.
ACROSS
1 Strait-laced
6 Makes dirty
11 Not wobbly
12 WWII fleet
14 Chinese dumpling
15 Chocolate treat
16 As well as 17 Flood preventer
19 UN workers’ org.
20 Unembellished
22 Turf
23 Took off
24 Practical joke
26 Lacking a cover
28 Energy
30 “Piggy”
31 Mercurous chloride
35 Is capable, Biblically
39 Follow orders
40 Felon’s flight
42 Big truck
43 Historical period
44 Cagney’s TV partner
46 Very long time
47 Castle’s inner tower
49 2012 Olympics site
51 Zen enlightenment
52 Score
53 Motherless calf
54 Ai or unau
DOWN
1 Pothead
2 Caribou country
3 Illustrations
4 “American --”
5 Units of force
6 Work on manuscripts in Britain
7 Reed instrument
8 Charged bit
9 Chemically unstable
10 Fur pieces
11 Morass
13 Hemingway’s “The of Kilimanjaro”
18 Abbr. on a book’s spine
21 Representative
23 Dog bane?
25 A Kardashian
27 A Dwarf
29 Actress Griffith
31 Dorm denizens, often 32 Overseas
33 Shed
34 Varnish ingredient
36 Has no obligation to 37 Level
38 Lacking resonance
King Crossword
41 Dissolves 44 Actress Singer
45 Loud, long, mournful cry 48 Trot
50 Ultra-modernist
Sudoku
woman
BY BRENT RUFFNER AFN Contributor
Calling all personal trainers: A new gym has opened its doors and it has one design in mind –help personal trainers run a successful business.
The Trainer’s Club is a “trainer-centric” fitness studio geared to bolster the businesses of individual area trainers by providing marketing and advertising along with new state-of-the-art equipment for their clients.
“It’s all about the trainer,” said Cabrina McAllister, an Ahwatukee resident who co-owns the business at 6906 W. Ray Road, Chandler. “We want to ensure we are making it easy for them to (have sustained success).”
McAllister said she wanted to open the gym after seeing a lack of support for trainers. In most cases, trainers have a difficult time finding a permanent location where they can operate. She said Trainer’s Club will offer the space on a 24/7 basis whenever it’s most convenient for their clients with no contract.
The 4,000-square-foot gym features a lounge, kitchen and an office space to meet one-on-one with clients.
An Apex rope-climbing machine, tireflip machine and stair climbers are part of the arsenal at the Chandler gym.
Trainers can expect more than just gym equipment to make their business thrive. They get personalized business cards, regular Facebook and Instagram posts about their business and quarterly inhouse events that feature specific fitness trainers.
McAllister said she wants her business to bring a sense of camaraderie to trainers and their clients.
The Brooklyn native said the center will offer specialized training programs such as strength training, sports conditioning and weight-loss practices. At some point, the center could offer group fitness classes.
She said trainers won’t have to spend time searching for a workout space or marketing themselves and can solely focus on their client base. Instead, the gym will provide trainers access to a website where they can blog and post profiles about themselves and their business.
McAllister said the business is looking for certified fitness experts, whether they are just starting a business or are experienced business owners.
She expects to eventually have 15 trainers at full staff.
“It needs to be a place that the trainer wants to be,”
McAllister said. “If they aren’t happy for some reason, it’s not the place for them, right? The whole goal for me is to build something that’s appealing to them all.”
McAllister’s business partner, Anson Schenk, comes from a “fitness family” as his father owns two Valley gyms. He was a college athlete at Scottsdale Community College and has been a personal trainer for the past five years.
He said having a trainer-focused gym tends to be more engaging than other kinds.
“People are getting bored of same old where you go in and work on your own and don’t really know what to do,” Schenk said, adding that at his gym “you hire a professional who can design a program
for you.”
Schenk said he wants trainers who are confident and aware of their skill set.
He said most recertification courses require trainers to refresh themselves on particular concepts while adding knowledge in certain areas. Some online courses focus on nutrition. Some look at how fats and carbohydrates affect the body and others look on weight-loss training and teach trainer effective meal preparation.
McAllister said she wants the business to have a community atmosphere and allow trainers to thrive at their craft.
She said the trainers will have a voice in which events can be hosted at the center, such as charity events like raising money
for the American Diabetes Foundation. She said trainers bring a value that is hard to replace.
“I value what they do,” McAllister said. “I believe in what they do 100 percent. There were definitely times where I didn’t work out for months at a time and I just feel terrible. I don’t feel as healthy as I do when I’m eating properly. And the trainer helps me to do that and they keep me on track.”
Schenk said he’s confident that wordof-mouth between trainers can help grow the business.
“I think they will want to come month after month,” Schenk said.
Information: 520-838-1716 or info@ trainersclubaz.com.
(Brent Ruffner/Tribune Contributor)
Anson Schenk and Cabrina McAliister of Ahwatukee want their new Chandler gym will meet the major business needs of many personal trainers.
hear The employee is required to stand; walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with
480-893-9482
Meetings/Events
Ahwatukee Foothills Friends and Neighbors (AFFAN) is a women ' s organization, dedicated to cultivating friendships, and goodwill AFFAN promotes social, charitable and educational events all year long AFFAN holds monthly luncheon meetings with varied speakers We offer over 40 monthly activities including Book Clubs, Canasta, Bunco, Euchre, and Bridge Other monthly activities are Dining Out, Stitch and Chat, Explore Arizona, and Garden Club Significant others/ spouses can attend some events For more info contact Teresa Akrish Phone: 480-518-5788, teresaakrish@gmail com
Check our website at affanwomensclub com
Meetings/Events
THE AHWATUKEE TEA PARTY
Watch For An Announcement on our New General Meeting Location, with Dates And Times in January 2017
Email: info@tukee teaparty com
BOOK GROUP!
We are a group of women, of all ages, who meet the first Tuesday of the month, in local venues, for the purpose of discussing member chosen books We do not charge fees, we call ourselves the Happy Hour Book Club and we go by the initials HHBC For more information interested women can contact Donna and the email address is happyhourbook clubahwatukee@ gmail com
y
i c e n s e d
Aegis Hospice Grief/Loss Support Group
We meet 6 pm on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month Legacy Funeral Home: 1722 N. Banning St. Mesa, Refreshments provided Contact: Rick Wesley 480-219-4790 rick@ aegishospice com
What it does require under A R S §32-1121A14(c) http://www.azleg.gov/ars/32/01165.htm, is that the advertising party, if not prope r
a c o n t r a c t o r , d i s c l o s e t h a t f a c t o n a n y f o r m o f a d v e r t i s i n g t o the public by including the words "not a l i c e n s e d c o n t r a c t o r " i n t h e a d v e r t i s em e n t
A g a i n , t h i s r e q u i r e m e n t i s i n t e n d e d t o m a k e s u r e t h a t t h e c o n s u m e r i s m a d e aware of the unlicensed status of the individual or company
C o n t r a c t o r s w h o a d v e r t i s e a n d d o n o t disclose their unlicensed status are not eligible for the handyman's exception
Reference: http://www azroc gov/invest/licensed by law html
