THE NEWSPAPER OF AVONDALE, BUCKEYE, GOODYEAR, LITCHFIELD PARK & TOLLESON
Colados owner wins award PAGE
Inca principal ready for challenge
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westvalleyview.com
INSIDE
This Week
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The Voice of the West Valley for 32 years
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August 30, 2017
Buckeye Union student inspired by family to succeed By Israel Gonzalez
SPORTS ........ 13 Youngker volleyball heightening expectations
FEATURES .... 19 Elvis is in the house
9 DAYS ......... 20 Looking for something to do? Check out the 9 Days a Week calendar
LETTERS ..........................8 BUSINESS..................... 10 SPORTS ..........................12 FEATURES .....................15 NEIGHBORHOOD......19 SCHOOLS ................... 23
OBITUARIES .................26 CLASSIFIEDS................27 SOUTH
When 13-year-old Elijah Rusk didn’t make the Sundance Elementary School baseball team, he didn’t view it as a failure, but as an opportunity. “Pop, right after I didn’t make the team, said, ‘When a door closes another door opens,’” said Rusk about his grandfather. “That door just happened to be a door of opportunity. And I was able to seize upon those opportunities.” Now 15 and a Buckeye Union High School student, Rusk said the failure to make the team set off a chain reaction that led him to a resume with pages full of accomplishments – from joining the Buckeye Youth Council (BYC), Governor’s Youth Commission (GYC) and representing Buckeye at the National League of Cities (NLC), to winning just about every competition he enters. Rusk stays grounded, though, and true to his goal of bettering himself and helping others, with the support of his No. 1 mentor and grandfather. “He has gifts of being able to not only
speak without fear, but to try to help other people,” said Carl Snodgrass, Rusk’s grandfather. “That’s his whole heart. His heart is to help other people.”
The poetry kid After failing to make the baseball team, Rusk didn’t balk, and soon looked forward to his next opportunity: Buckeye Elementary School District’s poetry slam. Students were asked to recite one of their favorite poems along with one they wrote in front of Buckeye community Buckeye Union High School student Elijah Rusk hopes to a prestigious university like Harvard. (West Valley View leaders including Mayor Jackie attend photo by Kimberly Carrillo) Meck. Rusk was quick to raise his hand to go first, Snodgrass said. My Tree, both from memory. Snodgrass said “When he got up there, the mic wasn’t the other students read from notes. working, but he still went through it,” “It all started out with the poetry,” Rusk Snodgrass said. said. Rusk perfectly recited Fiddle Dee Dee by Rusk left an impression on Meck and Eugene Field, and then his poem, Me and
Student...continued on page 4
Munsey continues water safety mission By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski
Each night before Dave Munsey retired, he ended his Fox 10 weather report with, “Watch your kids around water.” He didn’t realize this message worked until he left the workforce earlier this year. “I announced my retirement on a Thursday,” he said during an interview at the Goodyear YMCA pool. “That Saturday was the first time I was able to open my phone. My wife (Bunny) and I went to a restaurant. We had some wine. She was talking to some people we knew in there. She looked over and I was crying my eyes out. The messages were so
personal—so personal.” Nearly all of the messages correctly repeated his trademark line, he says. Some also shared stories of relatives who drowned. Others just admired the work he had done to promote water safety. One organization that recognized Munsey’s efforts was the Valley of the Sun YMCA, which recently launched Safety Around Water, a program that teaches parents, caregivers and children about the importance of water safety skills and providing Arizonans access to water safety lessons. It includes a new national swim lesson
curriculum and it aims to impact 35,000 individuals. Armed with these skills, children learn how to reach the water’s surface if they become submerged, safely reach a pool’s edge, exit any body of water and respond to unexpected water situations. The Valley of the Sun YMCA contacted Munsey and its officials and the former weatherman shared ideas. Still, Munsey wanted to be sure it was the right fit. When he’s approached about potential partnerships, he wants them to “fight the fight.”
Munsey...continued on page 6