April 2015
Relentlessly local coverage of Gilbert and our neighboring communities
Superhero Strong
Catherine Brimie, Tracy Bowman, Maggie, Lisa and William Brimie show off their super powers before the Ka-Pow Superhero Adventure Race. More on page 10
Visionary and developer is far from an ‘Average Joe’ BY CURT BLAKENEY
In a landscape of strip malls and chain restaurants, it’s nice to see an independent restaurateur having success in Gilbert. But what Joe Johnston—a 2014 Arizona Culinary Hall of Fame inductee—has created in Gilbert is so much more than a string of popular dining destinations. He’s also developed Agritopia, a master-planned community built around a neighborhood farm that resonates with not only its residents, but visitors from across the Valley who admire the neighborhood’s quaint charm, farm-to-table sensibilities and spirit of kinship. “Oh I like it, and thankfully, the residents like it too,” said Johnston of the agrihood on the northwest corner of Higley and Ray roads in Gilbert. “I live in this community. My folks live here. Restaurateur and businessman Joe Johnston, the namesake and founder of My brothers live here. My kids live here. My grandkids live here. We have four generations Joe’s Farm Grill. GSN photo by Tim Sealy SEE VISIONARY PAGE 4
Transplant month celebrates life Things weren’t so positive for the Three-year-old Jordan Drake is a Gilbert girl. Two months after her regular little girl, playing dress up, diagnosis, doctors replaced her own running and jumping with a boisterous valve with a mechanical one. The energy that rivals any other youngster. transplant required medications, like But, by her parents’ blood thinners, that were admission, she’s a little hard on her little body. different. On June 23, 2013, “All the blood thinner Jordan underwent a heart did was lead to intestinal transplant at Phoenix bleeding, a brain bleed, Children’s Hospital when seizures and a stroke,” other attempts to heal Gonzalez said. “She had a severe mitral valve to have brain surgery. regurgitation failed. That was a five-hour “I freaked out,” said Esther surgery.” Gonzalez, Jordan’s mother That led to more about her daughter’s complications. A diagnosis at age 3 months. stomach infection was so “Now that we’re two years Jordan Drake underwent heart severe that her doctors out, she’s doing great. This is surgery in 2013. GSN photo by didn’t know if she would Kimberly Carrillo the best thing for her. Since make it through the then, we have only been to the hospital night. An aneurysm formed under the once.” SEE TRANSPLANT PAGE 8 BY CHRISTINA FUOCO-KARASINSKI
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