No eviction ban extension
Epicenter plans rolling forward
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An edition of the East Valley Tribune
INSIDE
This Week
QC project roils Gilbert community.
COMMUNITY......... 16 Gilbert author pens children’s book.
Sunday, December 13, 2020
Failed Welcome Home group closes its books BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor
NEWS. ...............................3
FREE ($1 OUTSIDE OF GILBERT) | GilbertSunNews.com
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nonprofit that shut down after failing to build a veterans memorial park in Gilbert has finally closed its books after handing back nearly $100,000 to donors. Shortly after Operation Welcome Home announced in September 2019 it was folding, it cut cashier checks totaling $97,038 to individuals and veterans group that gave toward the $3-million project, according to Justin Yentes. Yentes sat on the board and responded to questions from Gilbert Sun News that were sent to his wife, Councilwoman Aimee
Yentes, who was the vice president of the nonprofit. The bulk of the returned donations went to the Roney Family Foundation, which received $49,539 of the $100,000 it donated, according to a copy of the check Yentes provided. “Mary Roney was a big donor with OWH and so we felt that it was best to send as much as we could to her foundation,” Justin Yentes said in an email. Other recipients, according to Justin Yentes, included the Vietnamese Community of Arizona, which received $26,618; Knights of Columbus Friar Adrian Assembly, $250; Knights of Columbus St. Anne’s Coun-
cil, $250 and Sons of the American Legion, $500. The Merrell Mitchell American Legion Post 39 received $1,250, according to Cmdr. Chris Ellis, who could did not know the amount of the original donation. Justin Yentes added that $10,000 went back to Southwest Gas Corp., which was confirmed by a company spokeswoman. The remainder of the funds went to individual donors, according to copies of cashier checks Justin Yentes provided the Gilbert Sun News. Others, however, didn’t see a penny of their
GPS loses nearly 4K Garden of calm students, millions in state funding
see WELCOME page 4
BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor
SPORTS...................... 23 2 schools on verge of titles.
COMMUNITY....................................... 16
BUSINESS.............................................20 SPORTS....................................... 23 GETOUT.................................................26 PUZZLE....................................... 27
CLASSIFIED..........................................28
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ilbert Public Schools has lost 3,883 students so far this academic year, which translates into a $26 million drop in state funding. The Governing Board in a special meeting Dec. 8 voted to amend the budget it adopted in June because of COVID19’s impact. “This is a tricky year when it comes to finances,” Superintendent Shane McCord said. GPS’ enrollment loss appears greater than the larger Mesa Public Schools district, where officials last week put their loss at 3,500 students at a cost nearly $28 million in
see GPS page 8
Micah Muaya, left, and Brayden Sams, both 9-year-old students at Oak Tree Elementary in Gilbert, worked with educators, Greenie’s Garden and Phoenix Children’s Center for Family Health staffers last week on a garden aimed at helping kids’ social-emotional well-being. The school is partnering with Phoenix Children’s to train educators in to deal with stressed kids through a program funded by Kohll’s Mindful Me Initiative. (Pablo Robles/GSN Staff)