East Valley Tribune: West Mesa Edition - April 9, 2017

Hospital chaplains see pain doctors can’t treat

BY RALPH ZUBIATE Tribune Managing Editor

The image of a hospital chaplain is pretty standard.

A man in a collared shirt slips into the patient’s room as machines beep and hiss.

A stole is kissed and placed over the back of the neck. Oil is applied to the patient’s forehead, and a prayer is muttered. Maybe a squeeze of a hand and a word whispered in an ear. Then, the chaplain quietly slips away.

“That’s Hollywood,” said Mario Valadez, manager of spiritual care with Dignity Health in the East Valley. “This is not Hollywood.”

Chaplains do provide spiritual care, but the reality can be more raw than that. They deal with illness, death, uncertainty, doubt and fear. Often, chaplains become counselors of a sort, a sounding board for patients and families at a critical time in their lives.

“Chaplains are trained to help any person. Those of faith, or no faith or little faith,” said Valadez, who oversees 10 chaplains at both Chandler Regional and Mercy Gilbert medical centers.

Chaplains are primarily Protestant or Catholic but are trained in different traditions, such as Muslim, Jewish, Baha’i, Buddhist, Jehovah’s Witness, Native American, Mormon, even atheist.

“There’s no agenda of me sharing my faith with you,” Valadez said. “I have to find out what you have as values.”

Chaplains are from all walks of life. All have gone through seminary and some are certified in clinical pastoral education.

“The primary reason one comes in is to help and be compassionate to those in pain and suffering,” said David Yanez, chaplain at Banner Baywood Medical Center and Banner

BY JIM WALSH Tribune Staff Writer

Dale Churchill and his family have been honoring the British aviators killed in flight training at Falcon Field during World War II for more than 30 years, carrying on a legacy established by his late father.

Dick Churchill owned a vintage World War II aircraft and was one of the first pilots to fly in a missing man formation during an annual ceremony to honor the 23 fallen Royal Air Force pilots killed during training exercises. The slain fliers are buried at the Mesa City Cemetery. The casualties also included four American instructors and an American cadet.

Dale and his brother, Brian, launched the Wings of Flight Foundation to continue the tradition, keeping alive the fallen cadets’ memory.

“It’s respect to the fallen and respect to the history of Falcon Field,” Dale Churchill said.

But the organization’s future is in peril after Mesa terminated the foundation’s month-tomonth lease at one of two vintage World War II hangars, giving them an extension until May to find a new home for two planes and countless artifacts, including some historic photos.

“I have no idea where we’re going,” Dale Churchill said.

The organization’s predicament prompted an online petition signed by more than 1,000 people on national crowdfunding website standunited.org. In addition, at least 50 supporters showed up at Monday’s Mesa City Council meeting, wearing red shirts as a political statement, to make a last-ditch plea to rescind the eviction.

“It’s more than just a hangar. This is a World War II hangar,” said Kurt Tingey, a Wings of Flight supporter. “There’s a number of World

(Jesse Stawnyczy/Tribune Staff Photographer)

Mario Valadez, manager of spiritual care with Dignity Health Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, points out a "Resurrected Jesus" on a cross in the hospital chapel. It was a gift from the Sisters of Mercy.

THE SUNDAY

Old Tempe golf course slowly becoming organic oasis

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BY PETER CHENG Tribune Staff Writer

Ken Singh knows soil. He comes from a farming family and worked in erosion control for 30 years. Now, Singh is using that knowledge to convert the 70-acre former Rio Salado golf course in Tempe into an organic oasis known as Singh Meadows.

Holding up a large clump of earth, Singh explains to a visiting group from the Arizona Green Chamber of Commerce, “See that white material? When microbes die, they create humus; humus becomes a protein. That’s what gives soil texture and structure. If this is not here, then it’s man-made.

“The whole idea is that we need to go backwards,” Singh said.

Singh already has an established reputation as a leader in the East Valley’s “green” movement. The “city, state and county all came to me. They know my farms, they know what I do,” he said. “I started a green program for ASU seven or eight years ago.”

Singh and his wife, Lee, also own and operate Singh Farms in Scottsdale, which hosted a popular weekend market until they shut it down last year due to a parking dispute. The farm now supplies the market and restaurant at Singh Meadows, just behind the Big Surf water park.

“For three whole years, I have been getting rid of chemicals,” Singh said

of the Tempe site. “Why would I do that? Because I know what it is doing to humanity. We all work hard for our families, but our families are not living with clean air, clean food and clean water, but that should be a given to us.”

The Meadows still resemble a golf course at this point, with lingering sand traps and hanging safety nets, but the pungent odor of chemical fertilizers is absent and the clubhouse has been converted into a gourmet bistro/juice bar and market.

Inside the market, organic candles, fresh breads from MJ Bread in Phoenix and plenty of seasonal organic produce and honey from the farm are sold.

The restaurant is run by chefs Frank Belosic and Jay Bogsinske, who appreciate the opportunity to get their hands dirty and cook the old-fashioned way.

“It’s a full circle. We started out in this business wanting to cook. That’s why we did this,” Belosic said. “You get bigger and bigger and then you’re managing people, but now we’re back doing what we wanted to do in the first place, and that’s cook.

“We cook what the farm gives, us so whatever grows, whatever is coming up that week is harvested and brought here. Then we wash it; we go through it and separate the leaves of the beets, roasting the beets, using the leaves in salads.”

Bogsinske said the farm location gives the chefs an advantage.

“The key to this is just freshness, freshness, freshness. The stuff wasn’t on

a truck forever, it wasn’t on a week ago, there is no truck,” Bogsinske said. “The only things that are coming in here is stuff from the monks down in Florence. They brought us, yesterday, 600 pounds of lemons, things like that. Hence, today we have lemonade.”

Tempe’s sustainability manager, Braden Kay, has worked closely with Singh on this project. He said that Singh was awarded a 50-year lease through a competitive bidding process. City documents show that the property was provided rent-free for the first three years, but that Singh Organic Soils will be responsible for improving the land during that period.

As for the future of the Meadows, Singh is keeping an open mind.

“We have a lot of other people with ideas that are inclusive, like concerts. I don’t want to deny anything,” he said.

“I’m just going to keep cleaning the earth. I want to put butterfly gardens in. I want to clean the wash, I want parking lots in the back, and then we’ll see what big guy has in store for us. Let’s see where it goes,” he said.

“If it was contrived, I could do that, but let’s see what we get if we don’t contrive it. Let’s just stumble and fall,” Singh said. “It’s the joining of the minds that might create something that we’ve never seen before. That would be my excitement because I have no clue what that might be.”

“If I can have a place where kids can roll in the grass and do nothing, I’m good to go,” he said.

(Peter Cheng/Tribune Staff)

Organic honeys and preserves are sold at Singh Meadows.

(Peter Cheng/Tribune Staff)

Ken Singh explains organic soil to a group from the Arizona Green Chamber of Commerce. He's the owner of Singh Meadows in Tempe.

MEMORY CARE with Compassion

CHAPLAINS from page 1

Heart Hospital in Mesa.

“You have to be compassionate and giving. If not, you shouldn’t be here. If you’re not sympathetic (to their belief system), you can at least listen,” Yanez added. “You need to meet them where they are.”

‘Why, God?’ precedes a call

Gene Sellards is an on-call pastor for Tempe St. Luke’s Hospital and St. Luke’s Medical Center in Phoenix.

“I make myself available for anybody who has spiritual issues,” he said. “The main thing is being available.”

For some hospital patients, it’s a time to confront the big questions.

“They’re lying in bed,” Valadez said, “and it may be the very first time they ask, ‘Why, God?’ That’s when we get a phone call.”

The most difficult cases Valadez sees are unexpected deaths.

“Those are the most challenging, personally,” he said. “That’s the hardest.”

He cited child drownings and sudden heart attacks. He recalls one time being called in on Christmas Day.

“A father with two young kids and a wife was opening presents,” he said. “Suddenly, he has a cardiac arrest and dies. That’s tough.

“For the rest of their lives, that’s their Christmas memory. Nothing you say could take away the pain.”

When he was a chaplaincy student, Valadez’s first case was a trauma call. A nurse asked him to join the family as a man who had been in an automobile

accident was brought in through Emergency.

He saw the man on a gurney with gruesome injuries, and it was apparent that he was not going to survive.

“I had to see that, then go be with the family, his two daughters,” he said. “I walked in, and they knew it was not a good outcome.

“I didn’t know the rawness of that, what I’d be getting into. But somehow, by the grace of God, I’m still here.”

Life-death mediation

Yanez, who retired from the Air Force, says he feels the most conflict when he steps into a difficult family situation.

“It doesn’t always happen, but sometimes there is a difference of opinion, even when there’s something written down,” he said.

“The family may be at odds with what to do with a loved one. It could be that Dad said no machines, but some want to keep him alive. I have to be an umpire, arbitrator between both sides,” he said.

Valadez sometimes acts as a mediator in family meetings with medical personnel.

“When you get that diagnosis – say, a cancer diagnosis – sometimes the family is like a deer in the headlights. I might interrupt and say, ‘We need time to digest this information.’

“You have to step in for the family,” Valadez said.

Sellards has been at bedside during end-of-life situations. “About a dozen times,” he said.

(Jesse Stawnyczy/Tribune Staff Photographer)

David Yanez, chaplain at Banner Baywood Medical Center and Banner Heart Hospital in Mesa, prays with patient John H. Matson. He was in Banner Baywood recovering from a stroke he suffered March 14. He said the spiritual support has helped him refocus on recovery.

War II planes in there. It’s a unique place, eclectic if you will.”

“We have historical homes that we don’t bulldoze,” he said. “I believe this needs a similar sort of protection.”

Pilot Billy Walker drew a round of applause when he asked the city to cancel the eviction notice.

“Why evict them? It makes no sense. It contradicts what the city has emphasized since World War II. They preserve the aviation history of Falcon Field,” Walker said.

Vice Mayor David Luna, who represents northeast Mesa, said he is sympathetic to Wings of Flight but that the city determined the hangar cannot house a museum because it does not meet the building code.

“We want to continue to preserve the history of the airport. We don’t want to turn our backs on them,” Luna said. “We are trying to accommodate them in another hangar. We don’t want them to leave the airport.”

He said the city gave Wings of Flight an opportunity to secure a long-term lease but ended up picking a different company because of its economic development potential. Mesa has signed a lease with

Precision HeliSupport, which has 10 employees and potential to grow to 30, and officials consider the hangar vital to turning the airport into an “economic driver,” Luna said.

Precision Heli-Support is a helicopter maintenance business owned by Native Americans in Alaska and the Kuskoskwim Corp.

“Putting them in another hangar, I don’t think, will put them at a disadvantage,” Luna said. “It’s a great foundation. They do great things. We consider them part of the Falcon Field family.”

But Dan Condon, a Wings of flight supporter, said that Precision HeliSupport should go into a modern terminal building and that an organization specifically dedicated to preserving the memory of the flying school should be located in the historic terminal.

“They are pulling the rug out from under us. Historical planes need to be in the historical hangar,” Condon said.

On a recent visit, there were three historical planes in the hangar, including a trainer flown by Dick Churchill, with

his name stenciled on the side. Historical photos displayed on the wall showed the school during its heyday, occupying what is now a city park where a fireplace one located inside the pilot’s lounge is all that survives, along with a commemorative plaque. It shows the hangars, which remain, and dormitories that are gone.

The plaque says that 1,380 British pilots were trained at the facility, along with 116 Americans. “They shall renew their strength and mount on wings like angels,” it says.

Dale Churchill said Wings of Flight believes it was treated unfairly, that a lease

offered at another terminal that is half the size of the present facility is unacceptable, and that he plans to file a complaint against Mesa with the Federal Aviation Administration. He said the foundation was assured it would at least keep half the hangar, where they are now housed, even though they applied to lease the entire hangar and to establish a vintage aircraft restoration business.

Instead, the city notified the foundation that it had lost out on the bid for the entire 20,000-square-foot hangar and was being evicted from the 10,000 square feet it has been leasing. The foundation is supposed to relocate by May 7.

“We were lied to for years. Every time I paid the lease, I asked for a long-term lease,” Churchill said. He said he was reassured that the foundation’s half of the terminal was “not in play.”

Dale Churchill said the hangar is the former location of the Champlin Fighter Museum, which disbanded when the collection was sold off and owner moved to Seattle, a great loss of a historical asset. He said city officials told him he could make some improvements to some doors and that the hangar could be brought up to code. Churchill and his supporters said that it is a mistake to think about their

(Kimberly Carrillo/Tribune Staff Photo)

Dale Churchill says Wings of Flights plans to file a complaint against Mesa with the Federal Aviation Administration. He says they are being unfairly evicted from Falcon Field Airport.

See HANGAR on page 10

•Includes8mm&Super8mmfilm •Nosetupfees.Nohassles

Hamilton defendant’s attorney blames coaches’ lack of supervision

BY JIM WALSH Tribune Staff Writer

Moments after securing a path to freedom, at least temporarily, for a 17-year-old defendant accused of committing sex crimes in the Hamilton High School locker room, defense attorney Ken Countryman fired an early salvo in the blame game bound to ensue from the unseemly hazing scandal.

Defending client Nathaniel William Thomas as a “great kid” who is innocent of sexual assault and child molestation charges, Countryman sought to pin blame on the Hamilton coaches who he said failed to supervise and control the locker room properly.

“This case is about a severe lack of supervision by the coaches,” Countryman said. “We’re not disputing there were activities that happened in the locker room. But activities of this nature in the locker room committed by Mr. Thomas, absolutely not.”

“There was clearly a ‘Lord of the Flies’ mentality going on in the locker room,” Countryman said.

Countryman was referring to the 1954 novel by Nobel Prize-winning author

William Golding. It describes the failure of a group of British boys, stranded on a Pacific island after a plane crash, to govern themselves with no adult survivors.

Despite having good educations, the boys regress into primal behavior, including murder, before they are rescued.

Countryman never named Hamilton football coach Steve Belles, who was acclaimed for his success on field before Thomas, a football player with a B average, and the others were arrested on March 30. Countryman referred to Belles as a good coach but also criticized him.

(Special to the Tribune) Nathaniel William Thomas is a “great kid” who is innocent of sexual assault and child molestation charges, said his defense attorney, Ken Countryman.

commit the sex crimes alleged in a criminal complaint, and he also sought to focus blame on the previously esteemed Hamilton coaches.

“We have adults, coaches, who let senior members of the football team enforce rules,” Countryman said. “We have a lot of contradictory evidence and nothing to support.”

Belles has been placed on indefinite leave by the Chandler Unified School District and is not allowed on the school’s campus. He has not commented since then.

bond. The decision landed Thomas in custody for about a week.

Heavily redacted records released earlier in the week portrayed the locker room as a house of horrors, saying that between fall 2015 and January 2017, “multiple assaults were committed against at least four separate juvenile victims under the age of 15 years old while at Hamilton High School.”

The report describes an incident that resulted in an aggravated assault charge, in which Thomas is accused of grabbing and holding a victim “while simulating sexual intercourse in the Hamilton locker room.”

The court document also describes a sexual assault in which a 14-year-old boy was held down in the Hamilton locker room and sexually violated.

“He’s the head coach. He clearly is someone who did not supervise his locker room properly,” Countryman said.

Earlier, during his arguments at the hearing, Countryman argued repeatedly and adamantly that Thomas did not

Before he lambasted the Hamilton coaches, Countryman won a major victory for Thomas when he persuaded Maricopa County Superior Court Commissioner Kevin Wein to impose a $25,000 bail, with electronic monitoring and other restrictions. Thomas was relased from custody Thursday.

“The weight of the evidence provided so far is paltry at best,” Countryman said.

He said there was no DNA evidence, and he alluded briefly to the existence of a video, but he said Thomas is not implicated in any sex crimes by the video.

Prosecutor Frankie Grimsman had requested a $150,000 bail, along with at least 30 days in jail, to give Chandler police adequate time to investigate whether Thomas or the three unnamed juveniles also in custody should face additional charges.

“It’s not to investigate these crimes,” Grimsman said about the month-long delay she sought in Thomas’ release. “It’s to investigate additional crimes, bad behavior by this defendant.”

But Wein set the bond only after Grimsman chose not to pursue a Simpson hearing, in which she certainly would have revealed more details about the unsavory case in an attempt to prove “proof evident and presumption great” that the crimes were committed, the legal justification for jailing a sex crime defendant without bond.

Previously, at Thomas’ early morning initial court appearance, another court commissioner had found that statements from victims about Thomas being responsible for the assault were ample justification to hold Thomas without

The complaint also describes another incident where a 14-year-old boy was held down in the locker room, his pants were removed, sexual intercourse was simulated and the defendant “touched his bare buttocks.”

Countryman commented on the charge after winning the relatively low bail, saying, “he did not violate anybody’s rectum.”

But Grimsman also elaborated on brief comments in the court records that said the victims were threatened with physical injuries if they contacted police and revealed what happened. She said many of these threats occurred on social media, and she asked Wein to bar Thomas from using social media as a condition of his release.

Although Wein refused to grant the monthlong delay in Thomas’ release, he did bar Thomas from social media as a condition of release. He also emphasized the importance in this case of a standard term of release, which bars defendants from having contact with victims or witnesses.

“Contact means everything. If that happens, release conditions will be reexamined and my guess is that he will end up in jail,” Wein said.

A week in which many details about the case emerged ended with a strong show of support for Thomas by his friends and family, on the eve of his release, with many teens standing in Wein’s courtroom to vouch for him.

At least three of the charges alleged in the complaint are dangerous crimes against children that could result in a decadeslong sentence if Thomas is convicted.

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Employee of steel company killed by falling beam

Gilbert police are investigating after a steel company employee was killed on the job April 2.

Matthew Ellsworth, 34, died after he was hit in the head by a steel beam while at work at S&H Steel, near Cooper and Guadalupe roads. Fire officials say paramedics treated Ellsworth and took him to a nearby trauma center, where he died a short time later. The investigation into the incident continues.

TRIBUNE STAFF REPORT

Teen texting-and-driving bill blocked in AZ House

A Senate-passed bill that would ban teen texting and driving won’t advance this session. Rep. Phil Lovas, R-Peoria, who chairs the House Rules Committee, confirmed last week that he is refusing to give a hearing to the bill, which would make the use of hand-held communication devices illegal for teens during the first six months they have a license.

Lovas told Capitol Media Services he is "personally ambivalent'' about making the practice illegal.

Lovas' refusal to advance the bill annoyed Rep. Karen Fann, R-Prescott, who shepherded SB 1080 through the Senate on a 24-6 margin. The bill also was approved by the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure by a 7-1 vote.

– CAPITOL NEWS SERVICE

East Valley CRIME Roundup

◆ A slow-speed chase partly through the East Valley tied up traffic on the Loop 202 and 101 freeways on April 3. The chase began as Allen K. Bartoli failed to yield on Interstate 10 west of Phoenix. After stop sticks were deployed on the 202 around Tempe, the chase slowed as Bartoli rolled for miles on the car’s rims. The car was finally stopped, and police used stun guns on Bartoli, who was wanted in Pinal County.

◆ Another wrong-way driver caused a collision on April 2. The driver was traveling south in the northbound lanes of Loop 101 and crashed with another vehicle near Broadway at about 5:30 a.m. Minor injuries were reported. The wrong-way driver is being investigated for DUI.

◆ A homicide was reported April 1 at Central on Broadway Apartments, 2145 W. Broadway in Mesa. At about 11 p.m., police were called after shots were heard. They found an unconscious man at Broadway and Valencia Road. The man, 30, was dead at the scene, and a suspect was questioned by police.

◆ A man was shot dead in Chandler, reportedly over a television, on April 1. Police were called to a residence just after 6 p.m. near Chandler Boulevard and McQueen Road. Christian Acosta, 24, had a shotgun wound and died at the scene. Delano Marquis Ortiz, 25, was arrested as a suspect.

HANGAR

facility as a conventional museum. It is not open regularly to the public, but it welcomes visitors, such as Boy Scouts and other children, by special arrangement.

Some people simply walk in when they see the doors open and have no idea Falcon Field's birth was tied to British Field Training School Number 4, even though they are Mesa residents.

“We are going to be a working flying museum,” with museum-quality vintage planes, Condon said. “We are not going

to be a traditional museum.”

He said the foundation heard the city's call for economic development and took on investors to start a vintage plane restoration business, but it has been unable to move forward becaues of the lease.

Steve Wright, a city spokesman, said the request for proposals included requirements for economic development and capitol investment in the hangar. He said there were four bids and Precision Heli-Support won out.

He said the foundation is valued by the city but “it’s just not the right fit for this particular location.”

Community

Brewer has grander mission to honor fallen, wounded veterans

BY MIKE BUTLER Tribune Staff Writer

Like any craft brewing startup, Honor Brewing’s goal is to make great beer. But this company also aims much higher with a unique mission to honor fallen and wounded veterans and give back to their families.

You’ll soon be seeing the Virginia brewery’s distinctive packaging – featuring a logo of well-worn combat boots – in East Valley package stores. Honor’s four craft beers will also be available on tap at select restaurants and bars. The beer is distributed in Arizona by Young’s Market Company.

Honor partner Dave Keuhner was in Mesa recently to launch a tap at the Brass Tap that honored the memory of Marine Sgt. Christopher Lee Flatt. With a special tap handle designed to look like a dog tag, Honor’s Night Vision Maple Porter was flowing and fueling lots of bittersweet memories.

“I was so happy to see it was a porter,” said Christopher’s father, Gordon Flatt. “I don’t drink IPAs. It pairs perfectly with my son. We drank a lot of beers together.”

Christopher, who grew up in Mesa, served in Iraq and received a medical discharge. He suffered from PTSD and

EAST VALLEY

Girl Scout Gold Awards given to 7 East Valley girls

Girl Scouts-Arizona Cactus-Pine Council has presented the Girl Scout Gold Award to the 33 scouts this year, seven in the East Valley.

The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest honor a Girl Scout can receive, and is the equivalent to becoming an Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts. In order to earn the award, a Girl Scout must create a project that continues to give back to the community long after she moves on, and often take as long as 18 to 24 months to complete.

The winners in Chandler are Amanda Molina, Claire Mushet and Kathlene Hartle. In Mesa, Lauren Hawks, Paige Brown and Rachel Spielberger were given awards. Gilbert resident Sarah Perrin also won.

had difficulty settling into civilian life.

He took his own life in 2011, leaving behind a pregnant fiancée and a 4-yearold daughter.

“It was a huge, huge, horrible shock,” said Stacy Chatham, Christopher’s sister. “It was absolutely devastating. We were all going to go to Hawaii for the wedding.”

TEMPE

Tempe hosts free lectures on cultural awareness

Learn about the people who live, work and play in Tempe at Who’s Your Neighbor, a free luncheon lecture series on cultural awareness.

The periodic lectures are intended to create a greater understanding of each other in an effort to eliminate biases.

On Wednesday, April 12, “Creating Welcoming Spaces for Individuals With Autism” will be presented at the Tempe Council Chambers, 31 E. Fifth Street. Speakers will include Arielle King, registered behavior technician, and James Hopkins, special education teacher.

This free program includes lunch. RSVPs are encouraged to assist with food count. Information: 480-350-8979.

Honor Brewing has amassed more than 1,400 soldiers’ stories in 38 states now, but this one really hit home to Keuhner. He was just 6 years old when he lost his father, who served two tours in Vietnam as a Special Operations helicopter pilot.

He, too, came back a very different man. His official cause of death was a car crash. Keuhner doubted it was an accident.

Keuhner dedicated a second tap at the Devil’s Advocate in Tempe to honor the memory of Sgt. Gene Lamie, who was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq. He said all families of heroes are encouraged to submit a tribute story at honorbrewing. com/tribute.

The company has donated more than $200,000 to veteran’s advocacy groups such as Warrior 360, Hope for the Warriors, HeroHomes, Angels of

MESA

Mesa junior high instructor named Teacher of Year

Nancy Parra-Quinlan, a STEM teacher from Kino Junior High School in Mesa, has been named the Frank Luke Chapter of the Air Force Association 2017 Teacher of the Year.

Parra-Quinlan has taught for 23 years but concentrated in science and STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) for the past 10.

At Kino Junior High, Parra-Quinlan has developed a far-reaching program that attracts students anxious to learn more than core STEM subjects. In her classes, she says, “We build rockets, dissect sheep brains, do 3-D print projects and program robots.”

America’s Fallen and the LCpl. Cody S. Childers Memorial Fund.

As the night at the Brass Tap wound down, Flatt decided to get a growler of his son’s beer to go.

“I think it’s a great tribute to them all –not just my brother,” Chatham said. “It’s a really good idea.”

“It’s not about how they died,” said Keuhner. “It’s about how they lived. We can’t bring them back, but we can say thank you.”

CHANDLER

Public invited to comment on Chandler sign regulations

Chandler is seeking public comment on proposed amendments to its sign regulations. The Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing to review and hear public comments on the proposed sign code at 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 19, in the City Council Chambers, 88 E. Chicago St. Proposed amendments to Chandler’s sign code allow for signs previously not allowed, including A-frame and T-frame signs for businesses, and allows for placement of some sign types in public right of way. In addition, the maximum number of temporary signs allowed for events occurring on private property, such as garage sales and open houses, would increase to 10.

(Mike Butler/Tribune Staff)

Jessie Rowe, who owns the Brass Tap in Mesa with his dad and brother, jokes with Gordon Flatt and Honor Brewing partner Dave Keuhner.

(Mike Butler/Tribune Staff)

A special tap handle that resembles a dog tag honors the memory of fallen soldier Christopher Lee Flatt, a Marine sergeant.

Islands Elementary nurse may become ‘America’s Greatest School Nurse’

BY SRIANTHI PERERA Tribune Staff Writer

Amy Daly, the nurse at Islands Elementary School, also functions as a school mother, counselor, social worker, teacher, homework helper, referee between siblings and more.

These secondary titles that rise above her regular duties are part of why Islands Principal Chris Birgen nominated her to become America’s Greatest School Nurse.

“We need more people like her in this world, especially in education,” he said. “She steps out of her role and acts as a caregiver.”

The nationwide competition, organized by Pfizer pharmaceutical company, has selected Daly as Arizona’s finalist. Now, it’s the public’s turn to vote for her as she competes with a representative from each state to win the grand prize: an ultimate summer vacation.

“I love what I do. I love taking care of the kids. It’s completely humbling to be recognized,” said Daly, who lives in Chandler and has three children of her own.

Islands Elementary, part of Gilbert

Public Schools, has a student body of about 530. From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Daly attends to 40 to 60 students each school day. Most of the visits are for everyday cuts and bruises, headaches, nausea and other common ailments. She also treats and administers medication to those with chronic conditions such as asthma, diabetics, heart issues and seizures.

Then, she keeps an eye on students who have broken bones and are hobbling on crutches or wheelchairs. At times, she has to attend to an emergency, such as when a teacher suffered a stroke and a child was in an accident just outside the school grounds.

“Some just come when they need a hug,” Daly said. Students hail from all socioeconomic

levels: homeless children to those from high-income families.

For those who need it, Daly has a fridge stocked with food, bathroom with a shower, washing machine and well-organized closet full of clothes. If a child does not have health insurance, she gets the family connected to free health care, and if they need eyeglasses, she refers them to clinics that help. She also routinely administers the state-

mandated hearing and vision tests.

Then there are those students she calls “frequent flyers,” those who complain of a headache at a particular time each day.

“If I do see a trend that they’re trying to get out of class, I will work with the teacher and talk with the student and find out if there’s a reason why they’re wanting to get out at the same time,” she said.

“Your goal most of the time is to get them calm and figure out what they’re in for and play that detective to figure out what’s going on with them. There’s usually a reason,” she added.

When Daly left her former employer, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix, her colleagues teased her saying she was going to “deal with band aids.”

“I assured them that there was much more to it than that, and I have been amazed at what I’ve had opportunities to do here,” Daly said. “It’s very different than hospital work. It’s one of those positions where you really have opportunities to make differences in children’s lives.”

See NURSE on page 14

Pioneer Park’s locomotive begins restoration as space gets makeover

BY MIKE BUTLER Tribune Staff Writer

The first phase of Pioneer Park’s massive makeover in downtown Mesa begins this week as a specialty crew begins to remove asbestos and lead paint from the historic Southern Pacific Engine #2355.

Officials said the abatement crew will encase the train with eight-foot hardwood panels, wrap that in double layers of plastic and install HEPA vacuums so that no harmful contaminants can escape the work area.

An oversight consultant will also be on hand to make sure safety procedures are followed.

Once the abatement work is completed – next month – Mesa volunteers will begin restoring the 1912 engine, which has been a key feature of Pioneer Park since 1958.

That’s also when work will begin in earnest on the rest of the 17.8-acre park, 526 E. Main St., causing it to shut down for several months.

“We really want this to be an active park again, but also respect the heritage,” said

Marc Heirshberg, director of Mesa Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities.

The park’s current playground, in the northeast corner of the park next to the train, will be removed to make way for a new train plaza. The plaza will include an elevated platform next to the train, patterned after the old Southern Pacific Depot in Mesa, and stairs leading to the cab. The plaza will also have benches, interpretive signs and a picnic ramada.

A water play plaza will replace the existing basketball and volleyball courts and become a focal point in the center of the park. New hardcourts will be built on the east side of the park. Existing bathrooms will be renovated and made more accessible. The horseshoes area will be refurbished.

A new play area on the west side of the park will have a rope tower and other climbing structures, as well as an elevated walkway that weaves through mature palm and pine trees.

Heirshberg said the Pioneer Monument grotto that anchors the south end of the park will also benefit from a new plaza and fresh landscaping.

Landscaping and outdoor furniture will

be upgraded throughout the park. New LED light fixtures will take over when the sun goes down. Wi-Fi will be expanded and other infrastructure will be improved to support special events.

The goal is to complete the project around Thanksgiving, in time for Merry Main Street festivities, Heirshberg said.

The park improvements, including the train’s asbestos and lead paint removal, will cost $7.5 million to 8 million and will be paid for with bonds approved by Mesa voters in 2012.

“I think people will be very happy with the final restoration,” said Jim Ruiz, chair of the Save Our Train Committee.

Ruiz said the group has collected $34,000 over the past few years. He said many individuals and businesses have pledged time and materials, but he’s not sure that will be enough to return the engine to its original glory.

“We need everyone’s help and financial donations more than ever now,” he said.

Visit saveourtrain.com to donate and volunteer.

The train’s bell, whistle and front and rear headlamps have already been restored.

Steam locomotive #2355 chugged several million miles in its 45-year career. Southern Pacific retired the engine in 1957 in the transition to diesel power. The locomotive has been fenced off since 1993 and has been deteriorating from the elements.

Residents should also note that Mesa Feastival Forest – the popular Saturday night food truck/live music event – will end after April 29. It will resume in September.

– Reach Mike Butler at 480-898-5630 or at mbutler@ timespublications.com.

(Srianthi Perera/Tribune Staff)

Islands Elementary nurse Amy Daly shows posters, Christmas cards and many messages given to her. “I read them all; I keep them,” she said.

(Tribune file photo)

The historic Southern Pacific Engine #2355 steam locomotive is on display inside Pioneer Park in Mesa.

Wolfgang’s

Business

Bug & Weed Mart has been helping attack pests for almost 40 years

BY PETER CHENG Tribune Staff Writer

Owner Jim Labrie opened the first Bug & Weed Mart in Mesa in 1979 and has been helping Valley do-it-yourselfers keep their properties weed- and pest-free ever since.

The business has expanded to five Valley locations. At 78, Jim is still very much in charge of marketing and operations, but son Joe handles most of the physical work these days.

“It was 1979 and my dad walked in the store, at a different name at the time, and a gentleman explained to him that he could easily do what a pro does, with the same stuff for a lot less money, and on his own schedule,” Joe Labrie said.

“He found a lot of success in it and went back and asked the guy if he was interested in selling his business.”

Despite its longevity, Bug & Weed Mart tends to fly under the radar.

sell, and this gave him an opportunity to sell people what they needed,” Joe said.

Joe started helping around the shop in high school.

“I’m one of six kids, and all of us at some point were involved in Dad’s weird little bug business. I’m the only one who’s returned,” he said with a laugh.

Joe considers himself a “corporate refugee” like his father. He started working for the business again about seven years ago when they were opening a new location in Phoenix.

“I thought it would be a temporary thing, but he’s aged and the business continues to grow. I enjoy it and it gives me a chance to reunite with my dad, too,” Joe said.

That original Mesa location was moved to a 1,000-squarefoot storefront in the Mesa South Center on Gilbert Road and South Avenue in 1987.

The site has recently received a head-to-toe remodel.

but now we can keep track of all of our stores, it’s all in one system,” Strong said.

and people-friendly, and the store offers organic solutions based on citric acid or other plant extracts.

“It’s one of those businesses you don’t think about much until you have a problem,” Joe said. Jim was a pharmaceutical salesman in a corporate environment for a lot of years but “always wanted to do things his way instead of being told what he had to

BUSINESS BRIEFS

New dental office opens, offers free procedure

Risas Dental and Braces is offering four hours of free dental care on Saturday, April 15, to celebrate the opening of its newest Chandler office.

From 8 a.m. to noon at 125 E. Ray Road in Chandler, Risas will be offering a free cleaning, cavity filling, extraction, or exam and X-ray on a first-come, firstserved basis.

The practice recommends that patients show up well before 8 a.m. The day will also feature music, giveaways and food. Inforn: 623-900-7596, risasdental.com

“We have renovated all of our signs and our labels; they’ve redone all of the shelves” to improve the customer experience, said store manager

Devon Strong.

The new point-of-sale system is the most significant upgrade.

“This system is great because we used to have the old-fashioned cash register,

Drury Hotels opens property at Chandler Fashion Center

The Drury Inn & Suites Phoenix Chandler Fashion Center has opened in Chandler.

The 210-room hotel includes 3,000 square feet of meeting space. It is at the Loop 202 freeway and Price Road, near the East Valley mall and commercial hub.

The Chandler property is Drury’s fourth in the Phoenix market.

Banana Republic closes store at Chandler Fashion Center

National retailer Banana Republic has closed two stores in Arizona, including one at Chandler Fashion Center.

Professional exterminators can be expensive. Strong said that with a little time and elbow grease, Bug & Weed Mart customers can save up to 80 percent of what exterminators charge.

Strong said “there’s been an increase in bedbugs in this last year, and recently termites, but overall scorpions are our biggest-selling problem.”

The professional-grade solutions offered at Bug & Weed Mart are pet-

Apparel retailer Gap Inc., which also operates Old Navy, Gap, Athleta and Intermix, had declining sales for five straight quarters last year. It had said it would shutter a number of stores both in the U.S. and internationally. It’s not clear whether or not these stores closed because of declining sales, or because of an expired lease and higher rent.

FujiFilm semiconductor facility to be expanded in Mesa

The Mesa City Council on March 20 approved a resolution laying the groundwork for FujiFilm Electronic Materials to expand its current facility, west of Mountain road and north of

Joe said the business has grown steadily over the years, and it doesn’t see many ups and downs.

“Customers like us because you come in and the same manager is there,” Joe said.

“Over time it’s proven the value of doing business the right way, and hopefully were continuing to do that.”

“My goal is to not screw up in the next 40 years what Dad’s done in the last 30.”

Pecos road, 20 acres to the west over to Signal Butte Road.

City spokesman Steven Wright said Fujifilm will determine the timeline and the estimated cost of the project. FujiFilm declined to comment on the expansion process.

The rezoning request covers approximately 50 acres and also includes the existing facility. Last year, FujiFilm expanded 5.82 acres to the north of its current facility, and the rezoning includes that.

The company manufactures chemicals for the semiconductor industry. It opened its Mesa facility in 1995, one of only two locations in North America.

(Kimberly Carrillo/Tribune Staff Photographer)

The professional-grade solutions offered at Bug & Weed Mart are pet- and people-friendly, and the store offers organic solutions based on citric acid or other plant extracts.

(Kimberly Carrillo/ Tribune Staff Photographer) Devan Strong is manager of the Bug & Weed Mart at the Gilbert and Baseline location.

The Cactus League road trippers are finally gone – thank God

BY DAVID LEIBOWITZ Tribune Columnist

It’s midmorning on a Wednesday in late March and the rock music wafts down from the big house on the hill. You’re working from home, but the sounds of Kid Rock and the drunken blare of partiers keeps cracking your concentration. The din makes you think ahead, to that blessed Valley moment when the calendar flips to April and the annual siege comes to an end.

And now the time has come. It’s over. They’re gone and those of us who remain behind – those of us fortunate enough to call Arizona home – can level with one another.

Cactus League baseball is great. But the hundreds of thousands of out-of-towners who travel here from places like Pekin, Illinois, to see their beloved Cubbies touch their toes and swing a Louisville Slugger during spring training?

Yeah, I could do without those folks for, like, say, eternity.

I’ve read the Cactus League economic impact reports and I understand how tourism revenues drive our state and local economies. Each year, according to the most recent Cactus League stats, spring training baseball creates more than $544 million in riches for the state, its employers and mom-and-pop businesses. That’s courtesy of the nearly 2 million baseball fans who flip through the Cactus League turnstiles yearly –including an estimated 53 percent who attend the games either from another state or another country.

My issue? Mostly it’s the people who feel like they’ve come here not from another state, but from another planet.

I’m talking about the vast influx of “bros” who show up each spring from Detroit and Cleveland and LA and DC for an extended “guys baseball weekend.” These weekends appear to consist of wearing backwards baseball caps, smoking cigars that smell like a Third

World nation back alley, and doing their best to get drunk each day by 11 a.m. – Eastern Standard Time. Again, I get it: Bros consume massive amounts of Scottsdale nightclub booze and Mastro’s New York strip steaks. They help Uber drivers and cabbies pay their mortgages, and they have made Sloan Park the hottest spot in Mesa since Sonic opened a drive-thru for covered wagons.

Kidding about that last one, but you get the point. Cactus League visitors are a necessary evil. We should probably do our best to be courteous, but it’s the kind of courtesy you extend to the last guests at a house party when you’re tired and it’s midnight: “This has been so great. Good to see you. Here, let me pack a Ziploc of Cheese Doodles and salami for you, for the road.”

Don’t let the door hit you on the wallet on the way out.

If I sound ungrateful for the economic contribution of grown men wearing Pete Rose jerseys so tight they resemble sausage links and the thrice-weekly

opportunity to discuss the necessity of sunscreen with Milwaukeeans slowroasted to a medium rare pink, all I can say is, there’s only so many times you can force a fake smile while explaining that, yes, the 60 and the Superstition Freeway are the same road.

I believe the civic hype: The Cactus League has been a valuable Valley tradition since 1947, and we’re lucky to host those 15 major-league teams for weeks on end. We’re lucky to have all those rental cars swerving across three lanes on the 202, and fortunate that at least once a year, there’s a reason for to people visit the fine town of Peoria. There’s at least 544 million reasons why we should grin and bear it. And we will, I’m sure.

What’s that old baseball saying? Wait till next year.

Bro, I am freaking stoked.

State Education Board’s letter grading system deserves an ‘F’

BY BETH LEWIS Tribune Guest Writer

It seems only one person in Arizona actually supports the proposed A-F school grading system – and that’s Gov. Doug Ducey.

As an educator, I’ve taught in “A” schools and in “D” schools. I can assure you that teachers work just as hard in the so-called D schools, if not harder, and the students and families are just as invested in education.

So, what are the real primary differences between “A” and “D” schools? I’ll tell you: ZIP code, wealth and skin color.

Year after year, our Legislature defunds public schools, dealing our poorest schools the hardest blow. Yet they have the nerve to ask, “Why are poor students behind the curve?”

Grading schools has a human impact, and it’s not a positive one. A “D” grade carries a stigma and becomes a self-

fulfilling prophecy. It shames kids and families into believing their schools are not worthwhile, their hard work will not pay off, and their teachers are not making the grade.

Families yank their kids out of “failing” schools and prospective families and teachers choose to move elsewhere, leaving behind only those students with the fewest resources who would benefit most from high-quality teachers and motivating classmates.

The State Board of Education recently sought input on their proposed grading system, and received vehement opposition from teachers, parents and administrators.

It has been opposed by the Arizona Chamber, Arizona school administrators and the Arizona School Boards Association. I’ve even been told that members of the ad hoc committee responsible for seeking input don’t support it – they know that this system measures poverty, not achievement.

So, who does support this grading system? It’s a simple answer: Ducey and the board he appointed – a board which has complained about the volume of calls it has received in opposition.

Members of the board’s ad hoc committee responsible for finalizing the letter grading system were directed from the outset that 80 percent of the formula would be based on AZMerit scores and 10 percent on English Language Learner testing.

In other words, 90 percent of the assessment they were seeking input on was already determined. Does that sound like the board was really seeking input?

But let’s talk about that 10 percent of wiggle room the board supposedly was willing to negotiate.

Thus far, Ducey’s board has refused to consider teacher retention rates and parent satisfaction surveys, which are excellent indicators of a school’s culture.

It rejected the notion that school

clubs or activities should count toward a grade, even though a majority of parents support such a metric. Finally, it denied awarding “bonus points” to schools in poverty, the very schools that have been denied equitable funding for decades. It seems to me the measly 10 percent they sought feedback on isn’t really up for discussion after all.

As a teacher, I wrote this column because I need your help.

Let Gov. Ducey and your local legislators know that when they say they’re seeking input, they need to honor that input. Call and tell them you want a better way to measure school success. Stand with teachers, principals and lifelong education advocates by insisting our students receive an equitable and fair education.

Remember, education never fails.

– David Leibowitz has called the Valley home since 1995. Contact david@leibowitzsolo. com.

BY RALPH ZUBIATE Tribune Managing Editor

Gilbert is one of the youngest and fastest-growing towns in Arizona. It was incorporated in just 1920 and already has more than 247,000 residents.

According to the Town of Gilbert website, it was established in 1902 when the Arizona Eastern Railway was seeking to establish a rail line between Phoenix and Florence.

A rail siding was established on property owned by William “Bobby” Gilbert. The siding, and the town that sprung up around it, eventually became known as Gilbert.

End poverty in Chandler

I am seeking to start a group of like-minded individuals to continually push our society to achieve Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Second Bill of Rights. These rights include:

• The right to a meaningful job that provides opportunities for advancement and for adequate recreation.

Now, Gilbert is one of the trendiest locations in the East Valley, home to a hopping downtown filled with restaurants, hot spots and foot traffic. Visit during any weekend and you’ll find a lively, hip community. That isn’t at conflict with the familyfriendly atmosphere of the town. The median age is 32.7, and 77 percent of the population is under the age of 45. Young families and soccer moms dominate.

What do they all know? That Gilbert has dozens of places to be proud of, more than just the iconic Water Tower. And the East Valley Tribune will let Gilbert residents brag on their town beginning April 10, as voting begins for the annual

Best of Gilbert special section. This special issue will highlight the places that make Gilbert great, voted on by the people that dine, shop and work there.

We’ll feature more than 50 categories this year, among them Best Breakfast Spot, Best Burger Location and Best Asian Food. In the services category, you’ll be able to pick Best Hair Salon/ Barber, Best Auto Repair, Best Holistic Services and more. Tell us your favorite schools and teachers. Medical favorites are available, too.

We’re adding some categories this year, like Best Landscaper, Best Deli/ Sandwich Shop and Best Orthodontics.

As always, we encourage you to vote

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

• The right of every person to earn enough provide for their family a decent living.

• The right of every businessperson, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad.

• The right of every family to a decent home.

• The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health.

• The right to economic protection from the fears of old age, sickness, accidents and unemployment.

• The right to a good education. I seek to create a group called EPIC – End Poverty In Chandler. If you are like me and you believe that these ought to be natural rights of every citizen and you are interesting in working to create a society that recognizes these rights, please send me an email at Endpovertyinchandler@gmail.com.

online for places listed, and to add your own, too. Don’t see your favorite sports bar listed? Write it in!

However, votes for businesses and services that are not based in Gilbert will not be counted.

This is your chance to tell everybody what you like best about Gilbert, and to say “Thank you” to your favorite places. Voting takes place April 10-30 online at eastvalleytribune.com. The special Best of Gilbert 2017 issue will publish May 28.

Good luck to all the best businesses and people in Gilbert.

– Contact Ralph Zubiate at 480-898-6825 or rzubiate@timespublications.com.

After gauging public interest, I would like to schedule regular meetings where we can discuss how to make these rights a reality. This would not be limited to people in Chandler; all people would be welcome. The important thing is that we come up with ideas on how to create a just society and bring these ideas to our communities to allow everyone to live industrious, meaningful lives.

– Jason Trautschold

AIA ruling to allow year-round practice leaves questions

BY JASON P. SKODA Tribune Prep Sports Director

The ruling to allow high school coaches to have practices yearround with their teams is a big unknown.

“I’m anxious to see how this plays out,” Mesa wrestling coach David DiDomenico said. “From what I know, they didn’t ask the coaches what they thought about it. It wouldn’t have mattered if they surveyed us or not. The AIA will make their choices and decisions anyway. The pendulum already swung.”

However it is viewed by administrators, coaches, parents and athletes, it is coming to Arizona high school sports.

July 1 will mark the beginning of a new era for the Arizona Interscholastic Association and the schools it serves as coaches have the shackles come off – even as states like Texas, where high school football reigns, have backed away from the idea.

Several athletic directors, who have to police out-of-season participation longer, have said too much has been made of it, and others call it a touchy subject.

The legislative council had little problem moving ahead with year-round practice, passing it with a 39-5 vote on March 3. Yet AIA Executive Director Harold Slemmer is on the record saying he is believes the ramifications will have a “ripple effect on the culture of sports” and head sports down a path “we might regret in a few years.”

Once it became clear that the idea of year-round practice was gaining steam, Mesa district athletic director Steve Hogen requested a committee to oversee the new rules.

“My goal was at the very least to come out of it with some sort of checklist that I could take back to my district saying this what you need to do in order to stay legal,” Hogen said. “A majority of schools are doing it the right way. Some

are circumventing the rules to their advantage.

“(AIA lawyer Mark Mignella) asked if you are doing what you can to get around the bylaw, why have the bylaw at all? It was a good question. I agreed in part.

If we have a bylaw creating a culture of cheating and circumventing the rules because they are getting together out of season already, why have the bylaw?”

Now, coaches can practice at all times without having to charge a $50 camp fee for offseason workouts or create a culture where a leader on the team “suggests” the players get together for workouts.

“I had a football coach see all of the other sports wearing his school colors and practicing out of season, and he said he wants to be able to do that,” Hogen said. “The same coach asked about 7-on7 (leagues) and how the other schools are doing it.

“I explained to him all that is involved with the insurance and other aspects. He said, ‘I just want to do it and not go through that stuff.’”

The new ruling will most likely lead to 7-on-7 leagues in winter and spring in addition to the current summer leagues.

Coaches such as Desert Ridge’s Jeremy Hathcock are at the forefront.

The trend is to create all-star 7-on-7s teams that travel nationally.

Hathcock, who had his projected starting quarterback go through the summer 7-on-7 season with an all-star team rather than the Jaguars’ squad last year, approves of the change.

“If we are going to do it, we better do it right,” he said. “If they are with us, it eliminates the middle man. We have the kids’ best interest at heart.”

While football is most prominent, the ruling could very well affect other sports even more, especially if the football team decides to practice outside of spring football.

“We share athletes no problem at Desert Ridge,” said Hathcock, whose son played football and wrestled. “But

people are who they are. You aren’t going to change them. You can’t stop a parent from being that person who pushes their kids to give up something for another. That’s not what we want.”

While some are claiming all hell is about to break loose, the majority are saying nothing much will change. Coaches aren’t going to get paid more (a stipend of about $4,000 in most cases) and they need breaks from the players just as much as the players need a break from them.

Most of the East Valley schools have a class during the school day already dedicated toward a particular sport.

“I really don’t think for the most part coaches are going to do it,” Hogen said. “There will be some change in 7-on-7, but overall I don’t think they want to coach year-round.

“At some point, when you practice so much, it can create negative returns, and if someone does go after it fully it might very well backfire.”

– Contact Jason Skoda at 480-898-7915 or jskoda@evtrib.com. Follow him on Twitter @ JasonPSkoda.

(Tribune file photo)

Casteel High School in Queen Creek may be one of the schools to see more coach-supervised practices in the offseason thanks to an AIA ruling.

(Tribune file photo)

Desert Ridge coach Jeremy Hathcock won’t ask his athletes to give up one sport for another with the opportunity for extra practice, but he knows it may happen. “You can’t stop a parent from being that person who pushes their kids to give up something for another,” he said. “That’s not what we want.”

Chandler Wolves volleyball challenging contenders

BY JASON P. SKODA Tribune Prep Sports Director

The Chandler boys volleyball team has been upgraded.

The Wolves began the year on no one’s short list of 6A Conference title contenders. Not after finishing .500 last year and bringing back a roster full of youngsters, including five sophomores.

Five weeks into the season, that line of thinking has changed as the Wolves continue to impress.

They have won more games than all but one previous season since 2009, thanks in large part to winning the Chandler Howl Invitational to start the season and finishing as runner-up at the Brophy Invitational last weekend.

Chandler was 22-3-4 overall through Wednesday’s action and 8-1 in power point matches to sit at No. 3 in the rankings.

In other words, any midseason list of contenders must include Chandler right along with Perry, Brophy, Highland, Boulder Creek and a few others.

been putting on the floor in recent years,” third-year coach and former Chandler plaer Bobby Robson said. “We have played at a high level at times, but we have a tough schedule the rest of the way. There is a lot of room for growth.”

One indication came early in the week, when Chandler played its first match since the Brophy tournament against Basha, a program down on its luck this year. The Wolves struggled to put the Bears away in the first two sets despite winning in three.

It was similar to their first match after winning the Wolf Howl when they were swept away by Brophy, never scoring more than 15 against the Broncos.

“We can’t let that happen,” sophomore setter Trey Weinstein said. “We have to be ready to play our best every time out or it is going to cost us one of these times. Against Brophy, we came out too confident and they showed us we weren’t ready for them.

risen to. Still, some outside the program are wondering just how good they are.

“We’ve told people Chandler is going for it this year, and we’ve kind of been laughed at,” Chandler leading hitter Jonny Bowles said. “It drives us. People don’t expect much from us, and we are trying to prove them wrong.”

One of the keys has been the development of the offense since the start of the season. Early on, the offense was geared toward getting the ball to Bowles, a 6-foot-7 junior opposite hitter, but now Weinstein is going to a number of different players at the net.

The World Belongs to Those Who Show Up

Grow

“We were surprising people early on, but I think now they know that this is a different team than what Chandler has

“We can play with anyone when we play hard the entire time.”

The Wolves haven’t had many letdowns considering they have lost only three times in the first 29 matches, but that’s where the expectations of this team have

“Our passing is getting better,” he said. “We are getting everyone involved and not just Jonny. Now, I am able to set to anyone and run the offense the way I am supposed to.”

Bowles led the way with 158 kills on a 41.6 hitting percentage. Mason Mullins and Elijah Swinton are next at 66 and 53 kills each.

Jalen Gibson-Starks (38 kills) and Tyler Haddad (25 kills) have done some damage as well.

The World Belongs to Those Who Show Up

The World Belongs to Those Who Show

April 2017 Schedule, Chamber Events Details, Register or RSVP at mesachamber.org

Grow

Women’s Business Connection

Grow your business with an engaging lineup of programming and events.

Bucca Di Beppo

The World Belongs to Those Who Show Up

Tuesday, March 28th, 11:30a-1:00p

April 2017 Schedule, Chamber Events

Feat. Kim Gauthier

Grow your business with an engaging lineup of programming and events.

Details, Register or RSVP at mesachamber.org

Women’s Business Connection

April 2017 Schedule, Chamber Events

Tuesday, March 28th, 11:30a-1:00p

Bucca Di Beppo

Welcome to the Mesa Chamber:

World Belongs to Those Who

Feat. Kim Gauthier

Member Orientation

Details, Register or RSVP at mesachamber.org

Thursday April 20th, 2017

Show

Up

business engaging lineup programming

Women’s Business Connection

Non-Profit Vitality Council Meeting

Mesa Morning Mixer

Tuesday April 11, 2017

Tuesday, April 4th, 7:30a-8:30a

Landings CU @ EVIT

Mesa Morning Live

Feat. Kim Gauthier

Non-Profit Vitality Council Meeting

Friday, April 14th, 6:45a-8:30a Feat. F.C. Arizona Football Club Welcome to the Mesa Chamber:

Taste of Mesa

Tuesday, March 28th, 11:30a-1:00p Bucca Di Beppo

*NOTE DATE CHANGE*

Thursday, April 27th, 5:30p-8:00p

Mesa Community College Performing Arts Center

Orientation Thursday April 20th, 2017 Thursday, April 27th, 5:30p-8:00p Mesa Community College Performing Arts Center 4/20- Anytime Fitness- Dobson Ranch register at

mesachamber.org

Tuesday April 11, 2017

Mesa Morning Mixer

Welcome to the Mesa Chamber:

Mesa Morning Live

Member Orientation

Friday, April 14th, 6:45a-8:30a

Thursday April 20th, 2017

Feat. F.C. Arizona Football Club

Tuesday, April 4th, 7:30a-8:30a

Taste of Mesa

*NOTE DATE CHANGE*

Welcome to the Mesa Chamber: Member Orientation Thursday April 20th, 2017

Chamber Ribbon Cuttings: 4/19- Dexcom

Taste of Mesa

4/20- Anytime Fitness- Dobson Ranch 4/25- Brain Balance of Mesa register at

Non-Profit Vitality Council Meeting

Thursday, April 27th, 5:30p-8:00p

Tuesday April 11, 2017

*NOTE DATE CHANGE* Thursday, April 27th, 5:30p-8:00p Mesa Community College Performing Arts

register at mesachamber.org

(Special to the Tribune) Chandler’s Braxton Bradbeer returns a serve against Basha on Tuesday.

Hamilton High case goes way beyond hazing

BY JASON P. SKODA Tribune Prep Sports Director

The Hamilton football program has long been at the top of the high school football landscape in Arizona.

It reached that pinnacle before Steve Belles arrived and will more than likely remain there, despite a slight downturn in recent years, whenever he has coached his last game for the Huskies.

When that will be is in flux now that he has been “reassigned” and can no longer be “present” on campus for an indefinite period after six Hamilton football players were arrested last week in connection with hazing incidents during a 17-month span.

The charges that have been levied take it way past the connotation of “hazing.”

“Pink bellies,” being made to carry someone’s shoulder pads, rookies dressing up as women or characters and getting taped to a goal post are all examples of incidents that have long been part of the culture of athletics at every level. It’s demeaning, bullying and painful, and used annually as a tool to re-establish

WOLVES

from page 19

Robson, who was a senior on the 2011 squad that made the state semifinals, says Chandler is ready to keep the winning going this year and beyond.

the hierarchy of a program. It used to be accepted, and even condoned in some cases.

Kidnapping, child molestation, sexual assault and aggravated assault step way beyond that. Even though the details of the Hamilton situation are still sketchy, the thought of someone being put through something of this manner should make everyone ill.

Arrests have been made and court dates will follow.

What follows next for the football program is far less cut and dried.

Belles, who has led the program to five state titles, is regarded as one of the best coaches in the state. He has been around Arizona football since he was the quarterback for state champion St. Mary’s in 1984.

There have been allegations of recruiting, including a direct accusation by Coolidge football coach Cayle Ferguson in 2013 involving player J.T. Gray. All top programs go through those, and there were a few smaller incidents, but all signs pointed to Belles running a solid program that won nearly every time the Huskies stepped on the field. The big question that remains is how

“We still have matches left that will push us a bit,” he said. “It will get us ready. I think what we are doing this year is what I expected next year, so we are ahead of schedule. We can have a good little run for the next few years with a

much did the coaching staff know about the incident(s)?

Coaches have to have a pulse of what is going on even if the varsity roster is near 100 players. If he doesn’t, then an assistant or two had better be tied into the locker room, letting the top man know what is going on at all times.

I’d think some kind of hint had to make its way into the coach’s office. If so, then that is one of the hardest things in this whole incident to comprehend. If anyone – especially an adult who is meant to serve as a mentor and protector of our kids while in their care – let this behavior continue, then additional charges should be forthcoming.

From the few people within the program who have shed some light on the situation, that doesn’t seem to be the case.

It appears that everyone at the coaching level was blindsided.

For the sake of everyone involved, especially the victims and the families, let’s hope that’s the case. Otherwise, there may be no coming back for Belles or anyone else tied to the program.

– Contact Jason Skoda at 480-898-7915 or jskoda@evtrib.com. Follow him on Twitter @ JasonPSkoda.

talented sophomore class.

“It’s about setting new goals. Now our thought process is we can win the whole thing if we do the right things and play hard every time.”

SPORTS BRIEFS

Mesa hosting 500 swimmers for Pro Swim Series event

Mesa is hosting one of five stops of USA Swimming’s 2017 arena Pro Swim Series Thursday-Saturday, April 13-15, at Skyline Aquatic Center, 845 S. Crismon Road. Approximately 500 swimmers will compete, including more than 20 U.S. Olympians. They include Katie Ledecky, who won four gold medals at the 2016 Olympics; Olympic champions Nathan Adrian, Anthony Ervin and Simone Manuel; Mesa native and 2012 Olympic gold medalist Breeja Larson and Olympic gold medalist Dana Vollmer, who will compete while six months pregnant.

Preliminary races begin at 9 a.m. each day of the event with final races scheduled at 5 p.m. Information: usaswimming.org.

Leading Edge Academy selects new boys hoops coach

Leading Edge Academy hired AJ Greenough as the fifth head boys basketball coach in the school’s 11year program history.

Greenough comes to LEA from South Mountain Community College, where he spent the 2016-2017 season as an assistant coach under Daven Vo. Greenough previously has been a head coach at Trevor Browne High School. I in his final season (20152016), he led the Bruins to their best record in the last 10 years.

Greenough was also the girls coach at Betty Fairfax High School as well as a JV boys coach Maryvale High School and an assistant under Jay Caserio at Gilbert High School.

The Spartans were 14-10 in their inaugural year as an AIA member and lost to eventual state champion Gilbert Christian in the round of 16 at the AIA 2A Conference State tournament.

Benedictine baseball wins two conference honors

The Wolves are not getting ahead of themselves. They know top programs like Perry, Boulder Creek and Brophy will be tough to surpass.

“We’ve done some good things, but there is more to come,” Swinton said. “If we don’t play well when it counts the most (in the postseason), then that’s on us. The talent is there, and the coaches do a good job of preparing us. We are going to have to get past some good teams.”

– Contact Jason Skoda at 480898-7915 or jskoda@evtrib. com. Follow him on Twitter @ JasonPSkoda.

Chandler’s offense has become more versatlie with players such as Mason Mullins stepping up since the season began in February.

Benedictine University at Mesa pitcher Jacob Gangelhoff has made history, becoming the first pitcher in program history to be named Cal Pac Player of the Week recently.

Now, his teammate Skyler Sylvester joined him. Sylvester made it back-to-back Redhawk pitchers to be named Cal Pac Pitcher of the Week, thanks to his efforts in his start against Marymount California. Sylvester pitched solidly in his start against the Mariners, working eight innings, allowing just seven hits and four earned runs and striking out seven batters in earning the win and helping BenU at Mesa sweep Marymount California in a doubleheader. He finished the week 5-1 record with a 3.08 ERA and 39 strikeouts on the season for the Redhawks.

NFF Hampshire Honor Society recognizes 3 Sun Devils for 2017

Three Arizona State student-athletes – Fred Gammage, Matt Haack and Laiu Moeakiola – have been named to the 2017 National Football Foundation (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society, the NFF and College Football Hall of Fame.

The NFF Hampshire Society is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college career. Gammage, Haack and Moeakiola are among a total of 1,089 players from 297 schools qualified for membership in the society’s 11th year, both new single-year records in the history of the program.

The Hillel Sandwich: Taking the bitter with the sweet

BY RABBI DEAN SHAPIRO Tribune Guest Writer

Passover is the Jewish Feast of Freedom.

Each spring, we tell the story of our people’s exodus from Egypt and eat foods that enhance the story through symbolic and sensory stimulation. One of them is the Hillel Sandwich.

The Hillel Sandwich isn’t the tastiest food, but it packs a powerful punch. Imagine two pieces of matzah – the brittle cracker we eat in place of bread. Matzah is the bread of affliction, reminding us of the many people who eat meager fare. On one piece, there’s “charoset.” That’s a sweet, reddish paste made of fruit, nuts and wine that evokes the mortar our ancestors used in their labors. The other piece holds the “maror,” or bitter herb. American Jews

FAITH CALENDAR

SUNDAY, APR. 9

TRADITIONAL PASSOVER SEDER

Chabad of Mesa is hosting an evening of inspiration, humor and song in a traditional Passover Seder. The full four-course dinner includes salmon and roast chicken, fine wine and handmade matzo. The Seder is English friendly, so you will feel right at home.

DETAILS>> 6:30 p.m., 941 S. Maple. Cost is $30 for adults, $10 for students, $5 for children under 12. RSVP to chabadmesa@gmail.com. Information: 480-659-7001 or chabadmesa.com.

MONDAY,

APR. 10

RELIVE THE PASSOVER EXODUS

Chabad of the East Valley’s community Seder will feature rich discussion about Passover, food and singing. Rabbi Mendy Deitsch, director of Chabad of the East Valley, will facilitate the inter-generational program. The advance RSVP price for the Seder is $45 for an adult and $25 for a child. Family plans are available upon request. After April 1, the price increases to $55 for an adult and $40 for a child. No one will be turned away due to lack of funds. Sponsorship available. DETAILS>> 7:15 p.m. at the Pollack Chabad center for Jewish Life, 875 N. McClintock Drive, Chandler. Information and reservations: 480-855-4333, info@ chabadcenter.com or chabadcenter.com.

TUES-SAT, APR. 11-15

JESUS THE CHRIST EASTER PAGEANT

This pageant is a drama, dance and musical story about the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Presented Tuesday-Saturday, April 11-15.

DETAILS>> 8 p.m., Mesa Arizona Temple Grounds,

generally use horseradish, a pungent sinus-clearer that allows us to taste the bitterness of oppression. It’s an odd combination of tastes and textures, but it manages to hit the spot.

Each person has their own formula for mixing the charoset and the maror. Some favor a bold bite of bitterness. Others add lots of sweet to drown out the harshness of the horseradish.

That’s not all. Matzah is thin and brittle. The stickiness of the charoset holds it together, but an over-eager bite can cause the whole thing to disintegrate right into your lap.

The sandwich is named for Rabbi Hillel, a sage who lived in the first century C.E. The sandwich he invented originally contained only bitter herb and was eaten along with lamb.

The Hillel Sandwich is a lot like life –a mixture of bitter and sweet. Although some lives appear blessed and enviable,

525 E. Main St., Mesa. Information: 480-964-7164 or easterpageant.org.

SATURDAY, APR. 15

FAMILY EASTER CELEBRATION

Snedigar Sportsplex hosts a free Easter Egg Scramble for kids up to 9 years of age. There will also be information booths, displays, interactive amusements and a family Easter basket giveaway.

DETAILS>> 9 a.m.-noon, 4500 S. Basha Road, Chandler. Information: 480-782-2735 or chandleraz.gov/easter.

SPECIAL NEEDS EGG HUNT

Compassion Church in Gilbert is hosting a free Special Needs Egg Hunt. There will be special hunts for children on the autism spectrum, for those who are blind or visually impaired, for those in wheelchairs or who have other mobility restrictions, and a general hunt for siblings and children with other disabilities.

DETAILS>> 10 a.m.-noon, Compassion Church, 919 E. Guadalupe Road, Gilbert. Registration: compassionaz. ccbchurch.com/form_response.php?id=18. Information: facebook.com/events/1809515829314082.

SAT-SUN, APR. 15-16

EASTER AT CORNERSTONE

Festivities will follow Easter services at Cornerstone Church in Chandler. Cornerstone will host an egg hunt, a giant maze and obstacle course, a petting zoo, a live DJ and family Easter basket giveaways. Food vendors will be onsite for the April 15 services only.

DETAILS>> April 15 at 2, 3:30, 5 and 6:30 p.m. April 16 at 7:45, 9:05, 10:35 and 11:55 a.m. 1595 S. Alma School Road. Information: cornerstoneonline.com/easter.

actually, everyone grapples with some degree of pain and disappointment. Others appear to lead bland lives, but have a fascinating inner world that they share with no one, or just a select few. Whatever the mixture, some people focus on the bitterness of their lives. Others primarily experience the sweetness.

What’s more, the whole concoction can crumble at any time. All that we acquire can be lost. All it takes is one burst blood vessel, one stormy night or one round of layoffs, and the foundation of our life is revealed as sand. The Hillel Sandwich reminds us that life is brittle.

How are we to live in this precarious state? Some focus only on the joy and ignore the reality of life. When loss comes to them, it hits even harder when it comes because it also destroys their worldview. They reel from the damage, having been lulled into the illusion that

SUNDAY, APR. 16

NEW CHURCH FOR EASTER

Song of Life United Methodist Church has opened a San Tan Campus at the Copper Basin YMCA, 28300 N. Main St. in San Tan Valley. The church will celebrate with a special Easter Sunday service and an Easter egg hunt on Sunday, April 16.

DETAILS>> Regular worship services are at 10:30 a.m. Sundays. Information: Jim Van Husen at jvh1111@gmail. com or 480-560-8117.

SUNDAYS

NEW CHURCH IN MESA

The Lawrence Memorial A.M.E.Z. Church has opened in Mesa with the Rev. Albert Bolden leading as pastor. DETAILS>> Sunday School at 9 a.m., worship at 10 a.m., 931 E. Southern Ave., Suite 108. Information: 480-393-3001, tlmchurch.info.com, f@ TheLawrenceMemorialChurch.

VALOR CHRISTIAN OUTLINES MISSION

Valor Christian Center in Gilbert offers “great praise and worship and great messages for today’s living,” according to Associate Pastor Thor Strandholt. “Our mission is evangelizing, healing and discipleship through the word of God.”

DETAILS>> 10 a.m. Sundays and 7 p.m. Thursdays. 3015 E. Warner Road. Information: valorcc.com.

HORIZON SEEKS YOUNG PEOPLE

High school and middle school students meet to worship and do life together.

DETAILS>> 5 p.m. at Horizon Presbyterian Church, 1401 E. Liberty Lane. 480-460-1480 or email joel@ horizonchurch.com.

today will be just like yesterday. Others focus so much on what’s missing in their lives that they miss the goodness that bursts through like spring daffodils.

This is a truth of the Exodus story, too. Even Pharaoh, king of Egypt, experiences the greatest pain. Even the Hebrews, enslaved for generations, experience jubilation. Nothing lasts forever.

The Hillel Sandwich is a reminder: In good times, don’t forget that there is pain. In trying times, remember that there is good. Neither the bitter nor the sweet can they be avoided, nor are they permanent. Taste it all, for it is the very stuff of life.

The Hillel Sandwich from the Passover Seder – all of life in a single bite.

Rabbi Dean Shapiro is the spiritual leader of Temple Emanuel of Tempe. Contact him at rshapiro@emanueloftempe.org and visit his “Rabbi Dean Shapiro” page on Facebook.

KIDS CAN LEARN JEWISH LIFE

Children can learn and experience Jewish life. Chabad Hebrew School focuses on Jewish heritage, culture and holidays.

DETAILS>> 9:30 a.m. to noon, for children ages 5-13 at Pollack Chabad Center for Jewish Life, 875 N. McClintock Drive, Chandler. 480-855-4333, info@ chabadcenter.com, or chabadcenter.com.

RABBINIC LIT COURSE OFFERED

Ongoing morning study of two classics of rabbinic literature by medieval philosopher Moses Maimonides (the “Rambam”). At 10 a.m., Prof. Norbert Samuelson, Grossman chair of Jewish Philosophy at ASU and TBS member, teaches “Maimonides’ Guide of the Perplexed: What Jews Ought to Believe.” At 11:15 a.m., TBS member Isaac Levy teaches “Maimonides’ Mishneh Torah: How Jews Ought to Behave.” Readings in both Hebrew and English.

DETAILS>> Community Room of the administration building at Temple Beth Sholom of the East Valley, 3400 N. Dobson Road, Chandler. 480-897-3636.

UNITY OFFERS A PATH

Unity of Mesa says its service offers “a positive path for spiritual living” through “transformational lessons, empowering music and various spiritual practices with an open-minded and welcoming community.”

DETAILS>> 9 and 10:45 a.m. 2700 E. Southern Ave., Mesa. Nursery available for infants through kindergarten at service times. Youth ministry classes are open in the Education Annex at 10:45 a.m. Information: 480-892- 2700, unityofmesa.org, lori@ unityofmesa.org.

ALL ARE WELCOME

All on a peaceful spiritual path are welcome and

CALENDAR

honored in this inclusive, loving, thriving Unity Community. Join us for Interfaith CommUNITY Spiritual Center’s Sunday Celebration Service

DETAILS>> 10:30 a.m. Toddlers and children meet during our service. Interfaith CommUNITY Spiritual Center, 952 E. Baseline, Suite 102, Mesa. Information: info@interfaith-community.org.

SUNDAY CELEBRATION SERVICE

Inspirational messages and music to lift your spirit. A welcoming community committed to living from the heart. Many classes and events offered. We welcome you!

DETAILS>> 10 a.m. Sundays at Unity of Tempe, 1222 E. Baseline Road, Suite 103, Tempe. Information: 480-7921800, unityoftempe.com.

MONDAYS CHURCH PRAYER

CALL

The Lawrence Memorial A.M.E.Z. Church in Mesa has a prayer call every Monday.

DETAILS>> 7 p.m., 1-712-775-7085. PIN 162106#.

JOIN CHRIST-CENTERED YOGA

This Flow 1-2 class (intermediate) is free and open to the community.

DETAILS>> 6-7 p.m., Mountain Park Community Church, 2408 E. Pecos Road. Greg Battle at 480-759-6200 or gbattle@moutainpark.org.

CLASS TARGETS THE GRIEVING

Classes for those grieving over death or divorce.

DETAILS>> 6:30 p.m., Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 739 W. Erie St., Chandler. 480-963-4127.

ANSWERS TO PUZZLES AND SUDOKU from Page 24

STRUGGLING TO FIND SUPPORT

Support group for those struggling with how to deal with a loss in life.

DETAILS>> 7 p.m., 1825 S. Alma School Road, Room C201, Chandler. Pastor Larry Daily, 480-963-3997, ext. 141, larrydaily@chandlercc.org or chandlercc.org.

PROSPERITY RECIPES AT UNITY OF TEMPE

Internationally known speaker and author Maureen G. Mulvaney brings back her Prosperity Recipes class series to Unity of Tempe on Monday evenings. Cost: $10 per session

DETAILS>> 6:15-8:15 p.m., Unity of Tempe, 1222 E. Baseline Road, Suite 103, Tempe. Information: 480-7921800, unityoftempe.com.

TUESDAYS

MESA BIBLE STUDY

The Lawrence Memorial A.M.E.Z. Church conducts Bible study on Tuesdays.

DETAILS>>6:30 p.m., 931 E. Southern Ave., Suite 108. Information: 480-393-3001, tlmchurch.info.com, f@ TheLawrenceMemorialChurch.

CELEBRATE RECOVERY

Celebrate Recovery is a Biblical program that helps us overcome our hurts, hang-ups, and habits. Through teaching, worship, and sharing in small groups, you will find genuine people devoted to help discover the power of Christ through the recovery process.

DETAILS>> 6:30 p.m., Central Christian Church, 933 N. Lindsay Road, Mesa. Information: Eric at 480-924-4946.

GRIEFSHARE

Mountain Park Community Church is offering an ongoing GriefShare programs to help people deal with the pain of losing a loved one.

DETAILS>> 6:30-8 p.m., 2408 E. Pecos Road, Ahwatukee.

To register: mountainpark.org and click on Launch. Information: Alex at 480-759-6200.

FINDING HEALING FOR PAIN

HOPE, an acronym for “Help Overcome Painful Experiences,” offers support for men and women who seek God’s grace and healing.

DETAILS>> 6:30 to 8 p.m. Mountain Park Community Church, 2408 E. Pecos Road. mountainpark.org.

SENIORS ENJOY ‘TERRIFIC TUESDAYS’ The program is free and includes bagels and coffee and a different speaker or theme each week. Registration not needed.

DETAILS>>10-11 a.m., Barness Family East Valley Jewish Community Center, 908 N. Alma School Road, Chandler. evjcc.org or 480-897-0588.

UNITY YOGA AT UNITY OF TEMPE

Center in Mind, Body & Spirit at our weekly Unity Yoga classes with Mary Jo “MJ” Kuzmick. Bring your own mat (2 blankets & blocks, if you have them). Suggested love offering: $8 a class.

DETAILS>> 10 a.m., Unity of Tempe, 1222 E. Baseline Road, Suite 103, Tempe. Information: 480-792-1800, unityoftempe.com.

WEDNESDAYS

HEBREW READING COURSE

Chabad of the East Valley is offering a Hebrew Reading Crash Course to all Jewish members of the East Valley community. The class will take place over five weeks. DETAILS>> 7:30-8:30 p.m. until April 12, 875 N. McClintock Drive, Chandler. Cost: $50. Information: 480855-4333 or rabbi@chabadcenter.com.

These egg-cellent Easter activities will leave you egg-static

By GetOut Staff

Whether you celebrate Easter at church or with brunch, the East Valley offers a number of holiday activities for the entire family. From egg hunts to pageants, here are some egg-speriences you’ll want to put on your calendar.

Kick off your Easter weekend at the world’s largest annual outdoor Easter pageant. From Tuesday, April 11, to Saturday, April 15, Mesa Arizona Temple puts on the production “Jesus The Christ.” More than 475 cast members re-enact the story of Jesus, including his life, death and resurrection, in a 65-minute professionally produced musical play.

The show starts at 8 p.m. each night and costs nothing to attend. However, you should show up a few hours early to get a seat. The Mesa Arizona Temple is at 525 E. Main St., Mesa. Learn more at easterpageant.org.

On Thursday, April 13, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., kids under 8 can enjoy the Trick-or-Treatstyle Tiny Tots Egg Hunt along Mesa’s Main Street. Stop at businesses flying a balloon to receive one egg per child. The Easter Bunny will also be around for photos. Learn more at facebook.com/kidtasticmesa.

If you aren’t averse to a drive, Schnepf Farms in Queen Creek hosts its annual

MARK YOUR

Mesa Arizona Temple Easter Pageant

Celebrate the true meaning of Easter with the world’s largest, outdoor pageant, titled “Jesus The Christ.” It features more than 475 actors, singers and dancers, plus live animals as they tell the story of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.

DETAILS>> 8 p.m., Tuesday-Saturday, April 11-15. Mesa Arizona Temple, 525 E. Main St., Mesa. Cost: Free. easterpageant.org.

‘The Marvelous Wonderettes’

Journey back to 1958 and follow four girls

Easter Egg-citement on Saturday, April 15, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Kids can enjoy egg hunts, Easter cookies, rides, a hot dog lunch and photos with the Easter Bunny. Tickets cost $25 per kid and $3 to $10 per adult. If you plan to go, however, you’ll want to buy soon as tickets go fast. Learn more at schnepffarms. com.

For a more eggconomical event that might be less of a drive, Snedigar Sportsplex in Chandler offers its free Family Easter Celebration. From 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, kids up to 9 years old can participate in age-divided egg hunts. Plus, enjoy interactive activities, rides, photos with the Easter Bunny, food and a Family Easter Basket Giveaway. The complex is at 4500 S. Basha Road, Chandler. Learn more at chandleraz.gov.

a chicken burglar?). It takes place at Red Mountain Library, 635 N. Power Road, Mesa, from 2-3 p.m. on Saturday. You can call 480-644-3100 for more info.

If you’re looking for an Easter play that isn’t of a religious nature, check out “Who Stole My Eggs?” The fun free mystery, courtesy of East Valley Children’s Theatre, scrambles to capture an egg thief (possibly

as they attend the Springfield High School prom. Learn about their lives through more than 30 hits from the ’50s and ’60s, including “Lollipop,” “Dream Lover” and “Lipstick on Your Collar.”

DETAILS>> Mondays and Tuesdays, April 10-11, 17-18. Hale Centre Theatre, 50 W. Page Ave., Gilbert. Tickets: $18-$30. 480-497-1181. haletheatrearizona.com.

Maricopa County Fair

Enjoy carnival 35 rides, fair food, shopping pavilions, and exhibits of agriculture and livestock. Entry (except parking) is free Wednesday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

DETAILS>>Times vary, Wednesday-Sunday, April 12-16. Arizona State Fairgrounds, 1826 W. McDowell Road, Phoenix. Tickets: $9 adult, kids under 8 free; Parking $8. maricopacountyfair. org.

On Easter Sunday itself, scoot over to Rawhide Western Town in Chandler for the annual Easter Egg-Stravaganza (tired of the egg puns yet?) from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Rawhide offers an Easter buffet at the Steakhouse that ranges from pancakes to top sirloin. Then the kids can wear themselves out in an egg hunt. Tickets cost $21.95 for adults

‘No Time for Sergeants’

When lovable hillbilly Will Stockdale gets drafted into the Army Air Corps (the precursor to the Air Force), he sets his sights instead on serving in the infantry. His journey turns the Air Corps upside down in this hilarious play.

DETAILS>> Wednesdays-Saturdays, April 12-May 13. Hale Centre Theatre, 50 W. Page Ave., Gilbert. Tickets: $18-$30. 480-497-1181. haletheatrearizona.com.

Marquee Brass: An American Musical Journey

Hailing from the famed Peabody Institute in Baltimore, this five-piece virtuoso brass ensemble presents an evening of unforgettable music.

DETAILS>> 7:30 p.m., Thursday, April 13. Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St., Mesa. Tickets: $30-$45. 480-644-6500. mesaartscenter.com.

and $9.95 for kids 4-12. Register your spot at 480-502-5600 or at reso@rawhide.com.

Learn more at rawhide.com.

If you want an event not traditionally Easter-related, head over to Organ Stop Pizza in Mesa on Easter Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. You can partake in all-youcan-eat pizza and salad while enjoying a special concert from the Mighty Wurlitzer. Lunch costs $12 for adults, $10 for kids 3-9, and you do not need to purchase tickets in advance from www.organstoppizza.com.

‘Disney on Ice: Dream Big’

This skating extravaganza features four stories with beloved characters that include Tinker Bell, most of the Disney princesses, and – of course – the cast of Disney’s megahit “Frozen.”

DETAILS>> Times vary, Thursday-Saturday, April 13-16. Talking Stick Resort Arena, 201 E. Jefferson St., Phoenix. Tickets: $11.25-$85. 602-379-7800. talkingstickresortarena.com.

IMP Fest

For Mesa’s regular 2nd Friday Night Out, the theme is independent music and features a range of live local bands. Plus, enjoy more than 60 art booths, food trucks and a drawing to win an electric guitar.

DETAILS>> 6-10 p.m., Friday, April 14. Downtown Mesa, Main Street between Center and Robson. Cost: Free. 2ndfridaynightout.

(Tribune file photo)

A young girl enjoys the day hunting for eggs at Snedigar Sportsplex’s free Family Easter Celebration.

Bruschetta makes

a perfect appetizer for Easter entertaining

BY JAN D’ATRI Tribune Contributor

We’re approaching Easter week, and many of you will be gathering with family and friends next Sunday the big holiday meal!

If you’re looking for a real rock-star appetizer for your Easter buffet or patio parties, you will never go wrong with bruschetta. Here’s my go-to recipe and a how-to video to take all the guesswork out.

BRUSCHETTA

Ingredients: (serves approx.8-10)

8 large ripe Roma tomatoes, sliced in half and cored and chopped medium fine

1/2 sweet yellow onion, chopped fine

4 gloves of garlic, minced or chopped fine

1/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons extra virgin oil

8-10 fresh basil leaves, chopped fine. (Do not use dry)

Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

1 baguette, sliced thin

1/4 cup olive oil and about 1 tablespoon of Parmesan cheese for sprinkling on the bread.

Directions:

Cut baguette into thin slices. Lay the pieces on a cookie sheet. Put some olive oil in a small cup and brush the slices with oil using a pastry brush or spoon. Top with a very light sprinkle of grated cheese. Broil or bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until the slices are toasted golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, onion, garlic, cheese, basil, parsley, salt and pepper and lightly toss. Add olive oil and blend all ingredients well.

Place a teaspoonful of tomato mixture on top of each bread slice. Sprinkle with a hint of grated cheese. Garnish with fresh basil.

– Check out my One Minute Kitchen video here: http://www.jandatri.com/ recipes/bruschetta/?category_id=384

ACROSS

1 Scrooge’s cry 4 Astronaut Grissom

7 Indiana politico Bayh

11 Egg

13 Fire residue

14 Predicate part

15 Thin tie with a clasp

16 Shelter, at sea

17 Corp. bigwig

18 Honey bunch?

20 Rhett’s shocking word 22 Fresh

24 Shortcoming

28 Custodian

32 Broadcasting

33 PC picture

34 Set of tools and parts

36 Singer Campbell

37 Naval prisons

39 Own

41 Rachmaninov or Prokofiev

43 -- -jongg

44 Volcanic outflow

46 Luxury boat

50 Bullets and such

53 Autumn mo.

55 Entrance

56 Serve tea

57 Pi follower

58 Napoleon’s exile site

59 Nervous

60 Evergreen type

61 Plaything

DOWN

1 Goes up and down 2 Acknowledge

3 Hawaiian dance

4 Guy’s partner

5 Secondhand

6 Bundle of wheat

7 1990s Burt Reynolds sitcom

8 Annoy

9 Exist

10 Peacock network

12 Trumpet-shaped flower

19 Encountered

21 Cow’s call

23 Stir-fry pan

25 Hay bundle

26 Falsehoods

27 Sea eagles

28 Triangular sails

29 Land measure

30 Black (Fr.)

31 Tear

35 Male cat

38 Caribbean, for one

40 Express

42 Tusk material

45 Liniment target

47 Stallion, as a child

48 Vagrant

49 Salver

50 Gorilla

51 Chic, in the ‘60s

52 Coffee holder

54 AAA job Sudoku

Gilbert producer’s film reflects LDS, ’90s life

BY CHRISTINA FUOCO-KARASINSKI GetOut Contributor

Gilbert resident Cameron Earl admits that when he was producing the movie “Tim Timmerman, Hope of America,” he asked himself why he was doing it.

But the pros outweighed the cons and he’s thrilled that the film will screen at Harkins Superstition Springs 25 in Mesa from Friday, April 7, through at least Thursday, April 13.

Garnering a 90 percent audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the family-friendly, coming-of-age high school comedy is a semi-autobiographical story of writer and director Cameron Sawyer’s experiences as a student body president in Utah in the mid1990s. He calls himself “quite possibly the worst high school student body president in high school history.”

“The director and the other producers, we’re LDS,” Earl said. “We wanted to make

not a religious film – which a lot of people do and a lot of them are our friends and we like them – but a good, clean film that was a good movie.

“Sometimes that isn’t very easy to do. Not all movies are good, even if they have a good message.”

Film ‘relatable’

“Tim Timmerman” takes place in 1994, the year that most of the producers graduated high school. Earl received his diploma in 1995.

“It really shows off a lot of the things that existed at the time,” Earl said. “Pearl Jam, Better Than Ezra and The Scorpions’ music are in the film. Our wardrobe designer made sure that everybody looked like they were from the 1990s. We had cars from the 1990s.

“That’s an era that’s starting to become popular again. A lot of the fads have turned back to the ’90s. That’s nostalgic for people our age. That resonates with them.”

Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder gave his blessing to use the song “Deep” in the movie. They Might Be Giants allowed the team to use “Birdhouse in Your Soul” in the trailers.

“Eddie Vedder was huge in the ’90s and he’s been really kind to independent filmmakers,” Earl said. “He was the first person to say that

High tea, eclectic menu enlivens restaurant

BY PAUL MARYNIAK Tribune Executive Editor

Ever since Shannon Rush of Tempe became the owner of a bistro at age 28 last October, she has been revamping the wine list and tweaking its menu.

Now, she’s introduced something at My Wine Cellar that isn’t likely found anywhere in the East Valley but a fancy resort: high tea.

Three weeks ago, Rush introduced high tea – as well as brunch.

Both are available only between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturdays at the longtime happy hour watering hole and nightspot at 5030 E. Warner Road, although My Wine Cellar will do a high tea for a private party most any time.

The high tea concept harkens back to Rush’s youth in Brunei in some ways.

“It’s something I kind of grew up with, something my mom and I did when I was growing up,” she said. “Out here, the only high-tea offerings are at the resorts, where you have to spend over $100. I wanted to offer a somewhat more approachable way to experience high tea to people who don’t want to drive that far.

“Besides, it’s cute,” she added.

My Wine Cellar’s high tea offers more than a pot of Earl Grey Tea and cucumber sandwiches.

For $55 per person, it includes four different kinds of finger sandwiches, fruit and scones and four different small desserts. Oh, and your choice of 10 different gourmet teas – or $2 mimosas.

As for brunch, “it’s something we’ve been talking about for a while and are executing now,” Rush said.

“It’s my impression people like to drive north to find a really good, unique brunch,” she said. “We worked very hard on something you wouldn’t find anywhere else.”

In other words, don’t expect a Grand Slam or assembly-line hash browns with scrambled eggs.

Her eclectic mix of cuisines produce dishes like Farmers Quiche, with cauliflower, leeks, Brussels sprouts, red potatoes, roasted tomato and mixed green salad; poached eggs with 12-spice pork bellies and blistered asparagus; praline sourdough French toast with walnuts and salted caramel cream; and two sunny-sideup eggs with roasted bell peppers and slow-braised traditional machaca beef.

About the only familiar item is chicken

and waffles – except they are green tea waffles with lychee syrup.

Rush’s climb to restaurant ownership followed an unusual path.

After moving to the U.S. when she was 18, she ended up in Philadelphia, cutting her restaurant teeth in a city known for a wide variety of innovative kitchens.

She came out west about five years ago and ended up working in Tempe’s landmark House of Tricks –and became a regular patron at My Wine Cellar.

Eventually, she got a job there as general manager, and when former owner Zoya Vora-Shah decided she wanted to do some traveling and get out of the business, Rush was there to buy the business.

he wanted to be in our film.

“They Might Be Giants was an incredible band to work with. They were super-kind and they loved the trailer and loved the idea of our film. Growing up, you never think you’re going to be able to interact with

“I knew I was going to buy it for a while,” she said. “All in all, I feel pretty good about it. I have a great team, which helps a lot.”

Being able to do it the way she wants has meant some significant changes.

“We’ve had three and they all sold out,” Rush said, noting the classes appeal to a broad cross section of people “from 21-year-olds to retired folks.”

Besides getting the word out that My Wine Cellar is a place to consider for a leisurely Saturday late-morning or earlyafternoon experience, she aims to put the restaurant on a bigger stage.

“I want to make it a destination place,” she said.

Reservations are required for high tea and recommended for brunch. More information: 480-598-9463 or MyWineCellarPHX.com.

(Special to the Tribune)

Eddie Perino and Chelsea Maidhof star in “Tim Timmerman, Hope of America,” which was produced by Gilbert resident Cameron Earl.

See

(Special to the Tribune)

My Wine Cellar owner Shannon Rush has introduced high tea and brunch at the restaurant on Saturdays.

these bands. These bands are legendary. They Might Be Giants was my favorite band from the ’90s.”

Earl was raised in Tempe, and even though he was private and homeschooled, he attended activities through Corona del Sol High School. He studied marketing at Brigham Young University after a failed attempt at Intro to Film class.

“I just didn’t fit in,” he said. “Everybody was artsy and I wasn’t. There’s nothing wrong with that, but I didn’t fit in. I had made little videos and movies and worked in video production forever.

“The director of ‘Tim Timmerman’ and I were friends at BYU. He said he was going to film school and, in my head I said, ‘What a huge waste of time.’ I felt bad about it. He did his first short film called ‘She’s a Fox,’ then I realized he was good at it.”

When Sawyer told Earl about “Tim Timmerman,” he was excited to come onboard.

“I said I would produce it, not even knowing what a producer did,” he said. “I wanted to make movies, but a producer isn’t really an ‘artist.’ A producer is a business guy. They need artists and business logistics people. That was a better fit for me.”

“Tim Timmerman” has been successful

at Utah theaters and is now expanding to markets across the country. It received acclaim on the festival circuit, too, at the Academy Award-qualifying Heartland Film Festival; the St. Louis International Film Festival and the Woods Hole Film Festival in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Harkins, Earl said, welcomed “Tim Timmerman.”

“The Harkins folks are really friendly to independent filmmakers,” Earl said. “They have been so kind and gracious. It’s cool that my friends and family get to see the film. I spent a lot of time making it.”

The movie is rated PG-13 due to a brief scene regarding marijuana.

“It’s rated PG-13, but it’s the cleanest PG-13 movie in the history of the MPAA,” he said with a laugh. “There’s an antidrug message. We have a DARE T-shirt in the movie.

“It’s about doing the right thing, even though it’s hard. In the beginning, Tim doesn’t really care about other people. He just does what he can to get ahead. As he goes on his journey, he learns that doing the right thing is hard to do but it makes you a better person.

“The life journey may not be what you wanted it to be, but a different life path can give you more than you ever thought you could get. That’s the message of the film. That’s a good message for all of us. Once you walk out, you feel good.”

CALENDAR

from page 23

Mesa Arts & Crafts Festival

Show up for the final MACFest of the season and browse handmade arts and crafts from a number of local artisans.

DETAILS>> 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday, April 15. Downtown Mesa, North MacDonald St., between Main Street and Pepper Place Cost: Free. macfestmesa.com.

Taj Express

Experience the sights and sounds of India in this colorful Bollywood review. Taj Express fuses film, dance, music and elaborate costumes to create an electrifying cinemalike experience.

DETAILS>> 8 p.m., Saturday, April 15. Mesa

Arts Center, 1 E. Main St., Mesa. Tickets: $30$50. 480-644-6500. mesaartscenter.com.

‘The Grumpiest Boy in the World’

Completely average boy Zachary wants to stand out in some way. So, he takes a magical journey to find a place he can be special. How will his journey end? Find out in this new Childsplay production aimed at kids ages 5 and older.

DETAILS>> Saturday-Sunday, April 15-16. Tempe Center for the Arts, 700 W. Rio Salado Parkway, Tempe. Tickets: $12-$26. tempe.gov

– JUSTIN FERRIS, PHOENIX.ORG

Get more ideas for fun things to do in the East Valley - and beyond - at Phoenix.org.

RETIREMENT ENGINEERING WORKSHOP™

Baby Boomers are facing a challenging new world of retirement ...and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

WHAT EVERY WORKSHOP ATTENDEE RECEIVES

• 6 hours of interactive classroom instruction

• An in-depth Social Security Benefit Analysis

• Individual workbooks for each day’s workshop

• Comprehensive list of available on line retirement resources

• Recommended reading material

• Fillable budget worksheets

• Guide to Medicare costs and benefits

• List of 8 basic estate planning documents EACH

Obituaries

CONNELLY, PatriciaGene(Moran)

PatriciaGeneConnelly(Moran)diedMonday,February27,2017in NorthglennColorado.PatwasbornonApril14,1928inPeoria,Illinois toImogeneandEdwardMoran.PatattendedBradleyUniversityin PeoriawheresheearnedaBachelorofArtsdegreein1951andwas activeinthePIBetaPhiSorority.Pattaughtschoolfor32yearsin schooldistrict21intheChicagoareabeforeretiringin1985andmovingtoMesaArizona.Patissurvivedbyher byherfourchildren,Debby Simmons,DianeSeitz,JenniferPazderski,andRobConnelly;8grandchildren;16greatgrandchildren.Sheisprecededindeathbyherhusband,FrankConnelly;son-in-law,FrankSimmons;andgreatgrandson, JustinNiyork.

PleaseSigntheGuestbookat: eastvalleytribune.com

POPPY, DavidGuy

Age60,ofLawtey,Florida,passedawayonFebruary25,2017,inJacksonville,Florida.Davidissurvivedbyhisfather,GuyC.PoppyofMesa, Arizona,hisbrother,StephenC.PoppyofLakeButler,Florida,andhi s s isters,GailM.HumeofTheWoodlands,Texas,JoEllenBurnso f ApacheJunction,Arizona,andM.ElisabethSloanofMesa,Arizona,an d m anyniecesandnephews.DavidgrewupinMesa,graduatingfrom W estwoodHighSchool,buthasbeenaresidentofFloridaforman y y ears.

A memorialdinnerwasheldforfamilyandfriendsatDavid’sfavoriterestaurantwherehewasrememberedwithmuchhumorandjoyasamanof manytalentswhooftengavehelp,knewhowtohaveagoodtime,an d livedlifesimply.

Hasapositionworkingasa LeadOperator

UnderthedirectionoftheMSIDDWellDept. Coordinator,theLeadOperatorwillworkto bepartofateamwhoisresponsiblefordaily supervisionofthePumpCrew,complete scheduledrepair/maintenancework,track& maintainreq.inventorylevels,maintenance, troubleshoot,repair,replaceand/or enhance/improvetheDistrict’sdeepwelland irrigationboosterpumps,transportofequipmentandsuppliestoandfromjobsites,state ofallmaterialsandpipesforinstalls,inspect andevaluatesalvageableequipmentforreuse,understandallsafetyandoperating functionsofpumphoistandassociated equipment.Responsibleforinspections,service,andmaintenanceonpumphoist.Coordinatewithnecessarydepartmentsforrepair,service,and/ormaintenanceofassignedequipmentand/orvehicles,operate equipmenttoincludebutnotlimitedtoforklift, cranetruckandflatbedtruck.Responsiblefor crosstrainingofassignedpersonneland maintainingasafeworkenvironment. Musthave1-3yearsofexperience,anda HighSchoolDiplomaorequivalentandCDL orbeabletoobtainwithinfirst6months. Mustbeabletooperatevehicleswitheithera stickshiftorautomatictransmission,must passbackgroundcheckanddrugscreen.

Foradetailedjobdescription,go to:www.ed3online.org Pleasesendresumeto christina.sandsness@ed-3.org

Service Directory

o s e t h a t

a c t o n a n y f o r m o f a d v e r tising to the public by

i n c l u d i n g t h e w o r d s " n o t a l i c e n s e d c o n -

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•

573, 575

Notification

• Fare Adjustment: The $2 fee for purchasing fare on board the bus will be removed as of June 1, 2017.

Provide feedback April 17 to May 19, 2017. Greater detail and an online comment card are available at valleymetro.org

Comments may also be emailed to input@valleymetro.org or mailed to:

Valley Metro Community Relations

101 N. 1st Ave., Ste. 1300, Phoenix, AZ 85003

Public Hearing: May 15, 2017

Open House: 5:00 to 5:30 p.m. / Hearing: 5:30 to 6:15 p.m.

Valley Metro Boardroom

101 N. 1st Ave., 10th Floor, Phoenix, AZ 85003

For disability accommodations and alternative formats, call 602.262.7433 or email sadames@valleymetro.org

*Service changes are proposed at this time and will be finalized following the public comment period.

valleymetro.org

FACT AND FIND: Mint Condition

FACT: Last Sunday, April 2, marked 225 years since the Coinage Act of 1792, which authorized the production of U.S. silver dollar coins. Prior to this coins from many European nations circulated freely in the colonies. The Spanish silver dollar (also known as pieces of eight) was used the most.

The Flowing Hair dollar was the first dollar coin produced by the U.S. federal government in 1794 and 1795. The coin had a bust of Liberty on one side (with flowing hair) and an eagle surrounded by a wreath on the reverse side.

In 1880 a coin publication wrote that a good quality specimen of the 1794 dollar was valued at $50. However, in 2013 a 1794 specimen sold for over $10 million, which was the highest price paid for a coin at the time.