October 1 - October 14, 2016 www.SanTanSun.com
Mayor’s Day of Play promotes health, wellness and fitness BY MEGHANN FINN SEPULVEDA
To Mayor Jay Tibshraeny, “playing” means much more than hanging from monkey bars or chasing friends around a playground. “Play is one of the primary ways kids come to understand the world around them,” he said. “It allows them to release energy, push boundaries and connect with others.” Tibshraeny is encouraging this with the Mayor’s Day of Play from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, at Tumbleweed Park, 2250 S. McQueen Rd. The free event will include health-minded games, exhibits and interactive activities to encourage fun and fitness for the entire family. The Day of Play is a Chandlerproduced event that is part of a nationwide celebration recognizing the importance of fitness, health and wellness for kids of all ages. “Our city continues to invest in our wonderful public parks, playgrounds and affordable recreational facilities as they bring communities together and enrich lives,” Tibshraeny said. “Not only has this commitment helped us retain the prominent ‘Playful City USA’ designation, but most importantly, it helps Chandler remain a family-friendly community that offers our residents numerous opportunities to play, live, learn and thrive.” More than 50 vendors will be on hand
Chandler’s Day of Play encourages fun and fitness for the entire family.
for the event, that also features Dignity Health’s Hello Humankindness FUNZone with exhilarating obstacles, temporary tattoos and cool giveaways. The Youth
Work continues on freeway despite court fight and Native American protests BY PAUL MARYNIAK
In the shadow of a court fight and mounting anger among Native Americans, the Arizona Department of Transportation is accelerating pre-construction work for the South Mountain Freeway. The 22-mile stretch will provide Interstate 10 motorists with a detour around downtown Phoenix, linking West Phoenix with Chandler near the Loop 202 Santan Freeway interchange. ADOT unveiled some of its latest design plans for the freeway at a meeting Sept. 27 that drew more than 500 people, mostly Ahwatukee residents concerned about the loss of their desert views and increased noise and pollution from the 190,000 vehicles ADOT estimates will be using the
freeway by 2035. ADOT began taking a number of steps leading to the start of major construction early next year. It has begun moving desert plants from the right-of-way from the Chandler I-10-Santan Freeway interchange and along Pecos Road to a makeshift nursery for replanting after construction is complete. Crews have been setting up concrete barricades along a portion of the Santan Freeway near Pecos Road and I-10, and have also been digging to determine the location of utility lines. The department issued a press release that repeated its longtime assertions about see
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& Teen Fitness Challenge also returns this year, challenging kids ages 10-17 to race through giant inflatable courses that bounce, bump and slide participants.
Prizes will be awarded to top finishers across various age categories. Patrons can enjoy high-flying acrobatic workshops and sporty inflatables, dance lessons, musical entertainment and local community performances. A variety of healthy food will be available throughout the day. All activities are free and encourage folks to interact with fellow community members. “Day of Play is a celebration of Chandler’s diversity and encourages neighbors, communities and families to have fun, build relationships and be active together,” said Hermelinda Llamas, Chandler’s special events coordinator. “It gives everyone the opportunity to rediscover each other and the city they call home through joyful interactive play.” In its 10th year, Day of Play is a celebration of the city’s designation as a Playful City USA, organization by KABOOM!—a national nonprofit, parks and recreation advocacy organization. This is the 10th consecutive year Chandler has received this honor, an accomplishment shared by only 12 other cities since KaBOOM! initiated the program in 2007. Chandler’s unwavering focus on the importance of play in the development of healthy families and the provision of its vast network of recreational amenities see
Sun Lakes woman makes a difference with AmeriCorps BY ALISON STANTON
About a year ago, Carey Allen left her busy job in finance. Allen, who recently moved to Sun Lakes after residing in Chandler for 25 years, quickly realized that she had a lot of time on her hands. “I believe it is important that when you are a member of a community you give of your time, talent and treasure,” Allen said. To do something to positively impact the community, Allen contacted Experience Matters, an organization that matches the skills and talents of experienced adults with local nonprofits and programs. “One of these programs is our AmeriCorps program, which places people with a lifetime of experience and desire to give back with local schools who need their time and talents,” said Lisa Rolland-Keith,
marketing and communications manager for Experience Matters. Allen is now a member of the Arizona State Program for AmeriCorps. “Experience Matters spent time to understand my skills and what I was looking to do with those skills, which was to help kids in the East Valley,” Allen said. “A couple of meetings later and, voila, they created a project for me at Hamilton High School.” Allen said the 300-hour project, which she recently completed, involved working with a social worker at the Chandler school to help raise awareness and assistance for their homeless students. Allen said she is continuing to stay very busy through her connection with AmeriCorps. see
F E AT U R E STO R I E S
Check out our Family Fun Section! You will not want to miss any of the fun events listed on Family Fun calendar this month.
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Mayor’s Day of Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tex Earnhardt’s folksy charm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chronically ill boy headed to Disney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Black Bear Diner serves old-fashioned favorites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dane Cook is ready to unleash new material on festival fans . . . .
Page 1 business . . . . . . . . . Page 20 youth . . . . . . . . . . . Page 28 neighbors . . . . . . . Page 43 arts . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 56 community . . . . . . .
SANTAN FAMILY FUN . . . . . . . . . . . . Center Section
AMERICORPS page 4 More Community . . . . . . . 1-19 Business . . . . . . . . 20-26 Youth . . . . . . . . . . 27-32 Opinion . . . . . . . . 33-34 Neighbors . . . . . . 43-55 Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . 56-64 Spirituality . . . . . 65-67 Directory . . . . . . 68-69 Classifieds . . . . . . 70-71 Where to Eat . . . 72-74