January 2016
Relentlessly local coverage of Gilbert and our neighboring communities
12k’s of Christmas
A group of runners prepare to take off for the 6k, one of the races at the 12k’s of Christmas. For more photos, see page 12
Outpouring of support continues for crash survivor
Mayor to head East Valley Partnership
BY SRIANTHI PERERA
BY SRIANTHI PERERA
As flight paramedic Derek Boehm of Gilbert recovers from his injuries following a harrowing crash into the Superstition Mountains, he continues to receive an outpouring of support from the community. Operating independently, three of Boehm’s friends established GoFundMe online crowdfunding campaigns in the aftermath of the accident to help pay his medical bills and other expenses. At time of press, one campaign had raised $27,840. The account, set up by Lena Walker and Jenna Camberlango, collected $10,000 within the first 12 hours. The other campaigns, established see SURVIVOR page 13
Derek Boehm, the sole survivor of the recent Native Air helicopter crash, is healing. Submitted photo
Mayor John Lewis applied to become the next president of the East Valley Partnership on the night before applications closed. He was selected. After nearly eight years of helping drive economic development in Gilbert, he will take up the challenge to advocate on behalf of the entire Southeast Valley in the summer. This means that he will leave his mayoral assignment six months early; the term is expiring in December 2016. “I’m sure there were a lot of good candidates,” Lewis said. “The feedback that was given to me is that I’m a known entity, I have displayed a lot of great passion for the East Valley, and so see LEWIS page 6
2 Community 14 Neighbors 24 Business 28 Neighborhood Map
John Lewis is leaving his mayoral post after eight years. Submitted photo
34 Youth 42 Spirituality 44 Arts 52 Opinion
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