Mesquite student acts on dream in ‘Princess and the Pea’
BY JULIA DE SIMONE
Brittany Fleming is a quadruple threat.
The Gilbert resident can sing, dance, tickle the ivories and, most importantly, act.
Fleming will portray “Titiana,” a great witch, in an original adaptation of “The Princess and the Pea” at the East Valley Children’s Theatre (EVCT) in Mesa. The play runs through Sunday, Oct. 11, at the Mesa Arts Center, One E. Main St.
“It’s a very funny take on the original,” Flemming said. “It has a fun little spin to it. There’s a lot more depth I want to say. It goes into more value than just sensitivity.”
The Mesquite High School senior added that she also feels a bond between her and Titiana, the supporting character she portrays.
“I would describe Titiana as a very ambitious, purposeful woman who has made some mistakes. She just feels the need to be loved, and we all have the desire to be loved so her struggles were enticing.”
Although the 17-year-old has only been performing for a couple of years, Flemming caught the “acting bug” early on in her young life.
“I was 7 or 8 years old. I went to go see ‘Rush Hour’ and when the credits were running, they were showing take after take of the actors messing up. I just saw that they could be completely different people,” she said. “You get to experience a whole, different world when acting. It was a defining moment.”
Another pivotal moment in Brittany’s young life was joining the award-winning EVCT. She has already acted in two other plays at the theater.
“The things I do here are so unique; it’s different. It’s not the same thing you’ve seen 1,000 times. They’re so professional; it’s high quality shows,” she said. “The draw with this theater is that it’s welcoming to new people. They treat you like family. They are so good with kids. There’s no judgment. It’s a very nice place to just be yourself, and I haven’t experienced that with other theaters in the Valley.”
But it’s not without hard work and sacrifices. In addition to attending high school, Fleming and her castmates devote approximately 16 hours weekly practicing lines to upcoming plays. She said her photographic memory helps when memorizing lines, but it’s still a juggling act.
“It’s hard. It’s really hard. There are things you have to give up,” she stated.
However, she refuses to give up on her dream of becoming a professional actress in the near future. She plans to attend community college and then transfer to a university in the California or New York area to master her acting skills.
“If you want to get to that point, you have to be able to try. If it’s something you love to do, you should do it no matter what anyone said. Even though it
might hot happen, there’s still that silver lining that it could happen,” she said.
“The Princess and the Pea” runs through Sunday, Oct. 11, at Mesa Arts Center, One E. Main St., Mesa. Tickets are $15; $11 for students 17 and younger; free admission for lap children 2 and younger. For more information, call (480) 756-3828 or visit www.mesaartscenter.com.
“The Princess and the Pea” stars Tyler Briggs of Mesa as “Xander”; Rachel Primrose of Mesa as “Olivia”; and Brittany Fleming of Gilbert as “Titiana.” Photo courtesy of Penrod Photography
Bahama Buck’s party serves as fundraiser for ill teen
BY MANDY LOADER
Bahama Buck’s in Chandler is hosting a fundraiser in conjunction with its one-year anniversary celebration from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3. The event will be open to the public and will raise funds to support 18-year-old Gilbert resident Payte Brown in his battle with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL).
“We personally know a family in need,” said Colleen Bennett, who co-owns the store with her husband, Allan. “So when we decided to do a fundraiser, we knew that this was the right cause.”
The Bennetts met Payte and his family through their daughter, who played soccer with Payte’s younger sister. The families grew close over the years. Since Payte was diagnosed with ALL in July, finding ways to contribute to Payte’s cause has become a primary goal for the Bahama Buck’s owners.
Payte was admitted to the hospital recently and will spend a few weeks undergoing a stretch of intense chemotherapy treatments. Furthermore, he will need a bone marrow transplant as well, and is waiting for a match.
“There are a lot of people, kids and adults alike, who need a bone marrow transplant,” Colleen said. “Unfortunately, there aren’t as
many donors.”
The company’s goal is to raise $1,500 through donations to help Payte and his family with the high cost of his treatments. Overall, the Brown family is making efforts to raise $15,000 through Payte’s GoFundMe profile, a personal fundraising website. Payte and his parents also keep his friends and family informed about his journey on a special Facebook page, “P8 Owns All.”
The Bahama Buck’s in Chandler will be holding wristband and T-shirt sales, and will distribute buy-one, get-one free coupons. In addition, on the day of the anniversary event, the store will donate 20 percent of each customer’s check as well as tip jar funds to Payte.
The event will feature a variety of activities for the whole family, including a snowball-throwing contest, face painting, balloon artists, and a sample table.
Payte was diagnosed with ALL in 2010 at 12 years old. He spent three and a half years in treatment and remission. Throughout that time, he stayed optimistic and determined to beat cancer.
Payte remained actively involved in his favorite activities, which included showcasing his livestock animals at local fairs and participating in 4-H and Future Farmers of
America clubs.
Recently, Payte graduated from Basha High School in Chandler. He looked forward to attending University of Wyoming to study agriculture in fall 2015. Earlier this summer, one week before his planned move to Wyoming, Payte once again tested positive for ALL.
He remains determined to beat cancer a second time.
For more information about the Chandler Bahama Buck’s anniversary event and fundraiser for Payte Brown, call (480) 219-5899 or visit its Facebook page at www.facebook. com/BBAZ1114. To read more details about Payte’s story, or to donate to his cause, visit his GoFundMe profile at www.gofundme. com/6p2amdzc8.
The store is located at 4040 S. Arizona Ave., Suite 23, Chandler.
Payte is in his second battle against acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). Submitted photo
Primrose hosting family-friendly Trunk or Treat
Primrose School of South Gilbert is hosting Trunk or Treat on Friday, Oct. 30, and its mission is twofold.
This serves as a family-friendly event and also gives the public the opportunity to tour the school during the festivities. Trunk or Treat allows children a safe place to trick or treat before Halloween and will include activities such as a haunted bus, face painting, fall crafts, snacks and more.
The event is from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., Oct. 30 at the school, 3293 E. Williams Field Rd. Gilbert. Call (480) 633-5635 to RSVP. For more information about the school, visit www. primrosesouthgilbert.com.
Special visitor
Students and staff at Legacy Traditional School—Gilbert welcomed a special guest during a recent flag ceremony. State Rep. Warren Petersen visited the campus and spoke to the students about the importance of voting and the Constitution. Petersen is a third generation Gilbert resident who has been married to his wife, Michelle, for 15 years. He works as the vice president of sales for VIP Homes and has owned a real estate brokerage for more than a decade. Legacy Traditional School—Gilbert is located at 2747 S. Recker Rd., Gilbert. For more information, call (480) 397-9260. Submitted photo
Students in Danielle Edwards’ class at Chaparral Elementary School in the Higley School Unified District created a structure from toothpicks and gumdrops that can hold a book. It was part of a lesson on engineering design during sixth-grade science.
Chaparral teachers bring STEAM into lessons
Danielle Edwards’ sixth-grade classes at Chaparral Elementary School in the Higley Unified School District are learning how more about science, technology, engineering, arts and math—STEAM— challenges she is introducing this year.
During a recent lesson, students tried to build a structure out of gumdrops and toothpicks strong enough to hold a textbook for 1 minute. Many students
HIGLEY HAPPENINGS
thought the challenge would be easy.
“What they found, however, was completely different,” Edwards said.
One student said, “I thought it was going to be pretty easy, but what my group found is that the prototype starts to hold the book, but then it slowly collapses to the side...It’s actually really hard, but it’s fun.”
So far, students have put engineering techniques to the test in three building projects. Most recently, they learned about fingerprinting.
The latter project involved looking at fingerprints from a “crime scene” to try to discover the criminal. Then students enlarged their own fingerprints and created an art piece using phrases and words they associate with themselves.
Students are learning about math and science while discovering paths for their futures, Edwards said.
“We went over the different types of engineering jobs available. It engages them in potential career fields,” Edwards said. “They didn’t realize that there were people whose job is to make structures earthquake proof. It was neat to see that spark of, ‘Here is this career I didn’t know existed and hey, it’s actually fun.’”
Edwards is learning alongside the students.
“That first project was eye-opening to me. The kids who are identified as struggling found success in the project. The excitement has been my favorite, watching students open up and ask others, ‘How did you do that?’” she said.
Power Ranch Elementary School earns Go! Grant
Power Ranch Elementary School teachers aim to make students more active through a Go! Grant awarded this past summer.
Teacher Marissa Ames plans to use the $2,800 grant to operate the school’s Running Club. When students return from fall break in mid-October, the club starts its new season. There are 70 students in kindergarten through sixth-grade participating.
“This grant will allow kids of all grade levels at our school to participate in a collaborative afterschool program,” said Ames.
“Students in grades kindergarten through sixth will learn how to incorporate health and fitness into their daily lives and participate in some
fun runs. This grant gives students an opportunity to make new friends while building relationships within the community as we do our runs.”
The students are excited for the next season to start.
“Running Club helped me stay healthy by exercising regularly throughout the week,” said Colin Morgan, fifth-grade student.
“Last year before I got started I was
Photo by Danielle Edwards
Students from Power Ranch Elementary School’s running club participate in local running events, such as the D-backs Race. The school was recently awarded a Go! Grant to support the club. Photo by Marissa Ames
STUDENT CHRONICLES
Know a student who’s doing something remarkable? Send items for student chronicles to christina@timespublications.com.
Tyler Lynch has been named to the Greyhound football roster at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico. ENMU is a NCAA Division II institution, affiliated with the Lone Star Conference. Founded in 1934, Eastern New Mexico University is a state institution offering 91 associate, bachelor and master degree options. Combining a traditional learning environment with 21st century technology, ENMU provides a rich educational experience for students from around the world. Courses are offered on-campus and online.
Mark Rey has been named to the Greyhound men’s soccer roster at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico. Founded in 1934, Eastern New Mexico University is a state institution offering 91 associate, bachelor and master degree options. Combining a traditional learning environment with 21st
century technology, ENMU provides a rich educational experience for students from around the world. Courses are offered on-campus and online.
Kurt Fernandez has been named to the dean’s list for the summer term at Upper Iowa University’s Mesa Center. He is a business administration major. To be honored, the undergraduate must have earned a minimum 3.50 GPA for the semester and be enrolled as a full-time student.
Katie Repko has been recognized among more than 240 students from Valdosta State University in Valdosta, Georgia, who made the summer 2015 dean’s list. Students who achieve a semester grade point average of 3.50 or higher on nine or more semester hours with an institutional grade point average of 3.00 or higher are recognized by being placed on the dean’s list.
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not motivated to run at all. As time went by, I got the hang of it and started to run faster and faster and wanted to do more laps around our school. I actually got my stamina up and I know am ready for more running club this year,” said Jason Camaj, a fourth-grade student.
Students are preparing to run in a Tempe event—Battle of the Barriers—in November.
The PHIT America Go! Grant was awarded by Kids in the Game, Sports & Fitness Industry Association and 20 national corporate sponsors. Of nearly 360 applications, 156 grants were awarded to schools in 22 states. Power Ranch was the only Arizona school to receive the funding.
Centennial teacher takes training into classroom
With science notebooks in hand and a bucket of items on tables, Centennial Elementary School fifth graders in teacher Terri Schilling’s class are ready to learn. Today’s lesson may include rice and beans or cubes and sand to test volume.
The lessons are ones Schilling gathered this summer while attending the Mickelson ExxonMobile Teachers
Academy, run by the National Science Teachers Association.
The association created the academy with Phil and Amy Mickelson (of PGA fame) to foster more engagement in education with hopes to produce more engineers, scientists and mathematicians in the future. Schilling and her fellow teachers walked away with dozens of lessons in data, statistics, measurement, force and motion to bring to their thirdto fifth-grade classrooms.
She attended the weeklong academy in New Jersey in July.
“They kept us there daily until 4. We also had homework every night. That first night I was up until 1 a.m. I was never tired or bored. They had us as if we were students in a class. We saw that if students are not engaged, you lose them. I’ve already done several inquiry-based probes in my class this year. It opened my eyes,” Schilling said.
Each day, teachers rotated in groups through lessons with master teachers and director of the academy.
Not only do students learn science and math, but they discover skills needed for collaboration and critical thinking.
Before any lessons began, she helped students create science notebooks to track their “claims,” “evidence” and
“reasoning” through narratives and graphs.
“They’ve really impressed me. To see students who are quiet or shy, they were really getting into it. They’re learning about quantitative and qualitative,” she said. “It’s something fun for them to look forward to.”
Schilling not only walked away with dozens of science experiments, but with resource books and methods to improve her math lessons.
“It was the best experience ever. I now want to do all this new stuff. I can’t wait,” she said.
Higley Unified School District earns financial recognition
The Higley Unified School District was recently awarded a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial reporting by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA). The award was given for the comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR) completed June 30. It is the highest recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting.
Kid-friendly Halloween events for all ages
BY LEAH GOLDBERG
Boo! It’s October, which means the spookiest holiday of all is just around the corner, and it’s not just about trickor-treating. Halloween brings all sorts of kid-friendly events to the East Valley each year, and this year is no exception.
Families seeking Halloween fun are welcome to spend their October doing everything from competing in costume contests to bowling with pumpkins.
Treat Main Street
Friday, Oct. 30
The Downtown Mesa Association and participating businesses for Trick or Treat Main Street are hosting the 4th annual open trick-or-treating event. Along Main Street, children and their families can collect candy from the participating businesses while engaging in other Halloween activities throughout the afternoon. Downtown Mesa, (480) 8902613, www.downtownmesa.com
Halloween Spooktacular
Friday, Oct. 30
The city of Chandler is hosting their popular event with an evening full of games, costume contests, trunk-ortreating, face painting, food and of course,
a haunted house. Ghosts, superheroes or Disney princesses all are welcome at the Chandler Halloween Spooktacular. Downtown Library Plaza, 125 E. Commonwealth Ave., Chandler (480)782-2727, www.chandler.az/gov
Pumpkin Patch
Throughout October
At this fall festival there will plenty of room for children to run around and participate in pumpkin decorating, jump in an air bounce, navigate Alexander’s Adventure Maze and ride on the hayride.
This Halloween event is four weeks of fun you can’t miss. The admission includes hayrides, roller coasters, a petting zoo, marshmallow roasting, a 4-acre maze, a BMX extreme sports show and so much more. There is fun for every age. Discounted tickets are also available at all Fry’s food stores for $15. Schnepf Farms, 24810 S. Rittenhouse Rd., Queen Creek, (480) 987-3100, www.schnepffarms.com
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Children can participate in pumpkin decorating and navigate a maze at Mother Nature’s Farm, 1663 E. Baseline Rd. Submitted photo
Visit Schnepf’s Farm, 24810 S. Rittenhouse Rd., in Queen Creek for a Pumpkin and Chili Party with hayrides, roller coasters, a petting zoo, maze and marshmallow roasting throughout the month of October. Submitted photo
