November 3–16, 2018 | www.SanTanSun.com
Relentlessly local coverage of Southern Chandler and our neighboring communities
Will ‘year of the teacher’ impact Chandler races? BY PAUL MARYNIAK AND CECILIA CHAN Staff
It’s the year of the teacher this midterm election year as hundreds of current and former educators run for state offices around the country. And to a small degree, that’s playing out in one of the two legislative districts covering Chandler, where the lone Democrat in a three-way race for the two State House seats is a longtime teacher – and a teacher of would-be teachers – hoping to score an upset against one of the two former Chandler City Council members running on the Republican ticket. In LD 17, Jennifer Pawlik is taking on incumbent Jeff Weninger and newcomer Nora Ellen. Pawlik taught for 17 years, the last nine of which have been in the Chandler Unified School District, and is a trainer of both public and charter school teachers for Spaulding Education International. She also teaches undergraduates in NAU’s College of Education on the campus of Chandler Gilbert Community College. Ellen also is trying to make history by in effect creating a rare mother-son team in the State Legislature. She is the mother of J.D. Mesnard, who is termed out of the House and is seeking to succeed retiring Republican Sen. Steve Yarbrough. Trying to blunt that move is Steve Weichert, a Democrat who is clinical support director for the clinic in the Gila River Indian Community. Weichert and Pawlik will be depending heavily on independents for any chance
of a victory, since Republicans hold a 2-1 registration lead in District 16. Latest figures show 36,487 registered Republicans to 19,473 Democrats and 31,364 independents. Republicans also hold an edge over Democrats in the Legislative District 18, the other district including the rest of Chandler as well as all of Ahwatukee and parts of Mesa and Tempe. In LD18, Republicans dominated registration with 53,751, while registered independents number 49,711 – significantly higher than the 40,080 registered Democrats. In that race, incumbent Democrat Mitzi Epstein of Tempe and Chandler nonprofit consultant Jennifer Jermaine are running against incumbent Ahwatukee Republican Jill Norgaard and Tempe attorney Greg Patterson, who is fighting to return to the legislature where he served in the mid-1990s. But all eyes will be on that district’s Senate race where the most expensive of any legislative contest in the state is playing out. In a replay of the 2016 election, incumbent Democrat Sean Bowie is vying for a second term against a fierce challenge by Tempe Republican Frank Schmuck. Combined, their campaigns have attracted more than $550,000 and have spent almost as much, according to the latest finance reports filed Oct. 29. While none of the candidates in LD 18 are educators, all have been waging aggressive campaigns seeking to portray See
ELECT on page 8
Jason Stone/Staff
Olli has set up a plant in Chandler to manufacture these shuttles and because the company does a 3D printing, almost all the parts of these vehicles are plastic.
EV leaders seeking answers Olli shuttles into Chandler to teen suicide crisis with new driverless cars BY JIM WALSH Staff
A grassroots movement of East Valley mothers – saddened if not terrified by a growing cluster of teen suicides – has captured the attention of influential leaders united by their desire to prevent more heartbreaking deaths. While the movement has accomplished a growing amount of awareness, it is unclear where the community mobilization efforts will lead – and whether it will involve changes in state law, greater school emphasis on teens’ emotional health, or community organizations focusing more energy on the problem. A broad array of business, political and community leaders reacted strongly to a report in SanTan Sun News last month that detailed how 31 East Valley teens – 29 of them boys – have taken their lives
in the last 15 months. The movement is striking a common nerve, with no relation to political or personal gain, as the mothers search for answers and solutions. “It’s going from a point of being sad to being angry,’’ said Christina Nguyen of Gilbert, president of projectconnect4.org, who has been working with education consultant Katey McPherson of Chandler on mobilizing the community. Nguyen said the status quo needs to change. “Obviously, it’s sad that we have to have this movement. It’s heartbreaking,’’ Nguyen said. “On the other hand, it’s very heartwarming that people are very receptive and are coming together,” working to prevent additional suicides. The Gilbert Sun News drew an almost immediate response from concerned See
SUICIDE on page 20
BY JASON STONE Staff Writer
It’s hard to believe now, but once upon a time, the general public was terrified of automobiles. In fact, marketing campaigns wouldn’t even call them cars.
Instead, they were referred to as “horseless carriages” to help ease the public’s transition into what would eventually be an ubiquitous part of everyday life. Those early companies even had to put a replica of a horse’s head on the hoods to help riders feel
F E AT U R E STO R I E S Crayola opening activity center at mall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Community . . . . Page 03 Macy’s goes full-tilt on re-do . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUSINESS . . . . . . . . . Page 25 Compadres to “Rock the Cause” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .NEIGHBORS . . . . . . Page 44 Eternal holiday favorite coming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ARTS . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 55 Rita’s Burritos a big hit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .EAT . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 68
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OLLI on page 7
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