Mayor takes more heat
Gilbert chef wows ladies
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An edition of the East Valley Tribune
STARTING SEPTEMBER 1ST IT’S TIME TO VOTE 2021
Chandler • Gilbert • Mesa
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Sunday, August 29, 2021
Mask rage in GPS even without a mandate BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor
M
asks remain optional at Gilbert Public School campuses for now but that could change as the highly contagious Delta variant runs rampant here and elsewhere in the world. The GPS Governing Board last week discussed face covering and mitigation strategies already in place to slow the spread of COVID-19. No action on masks was to take place yet people packed the board room and six of the nine speakers voiced opposition to
a mandate. “For the past two years the situation has been fluid,” Board President Charles Santa Cruz said after hearing from the public. “And we continue to monitor and adjust as we would in a classroom if we were teaching. “Should things change drastically there may be a need for this board to revisit some things that might be contrary to what has been said or stated or intimated this evening. I don’t know that for sure but it certainly is a possibility given the fact that we have endured this thing for the better part of two years or more.”
According to Dr. Santa Cruz, the board received and read by the dozens 680 emails regarding masks, a majority of them against a mandate. Emails and speeches inundated other school boards in the region that met last week – including some, like GPS that had no mandate. Chandler Unified and Mesa Public were among them. Amber McAffee asked the board to keep masks optional and let parents decide. “The reality is kids don’t need these inter-
see MASKS page 8
Gilbert football boosters keep fingers crossed
NEWS................................ 6 Arizona poised to be sports betting capital.
COMMUNITY......... 16 She helped EV Children’s Theater grow.
COMMUNITY....................................... 16 BUSINESS............................................. 18 SPORTS..................................................20 PUZZLE.................................................. 22 CLASSIFIED..........................................23
See Page 9
BY DREW SCHOTT GSN Staff Writer
A
s high school football players in Gilbert and throughout Arizona kick off the 2021 season, they won’t be the only people in stadiums throughout town who will be keeping their fingers crossed for COVID-19 to stay far away. Scores of adults in town will be hoping for the same thing. They’re people like John Seelye, vice president of the Campo Verde High School Coyote Club. In his role as a member of the school’s booster club, Seelye helps keep the games running smoothly – and remind the players that they have off-field support. Seelye and his fellow boosters throughout Gilbert are intimately familiar with their respective football programs’ operations, whether that involves making sure the scoreboard lights are on or
see BOOSTER page 3
John Seelye, the vice president of the Campo Verde High School Coyote Club, said the pandemic was tough on the club. (Courtesy John Seelye)
Mesquite Touchdown Club President Amy Daly, with her son Brayden, who plays for the Wildcats, said she hopes to see the games’ family feel return this season. (Courtesy Amy Daly)
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