Foothills Focus 12-18-19 Issue

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December 18, 2019 • Vol. 18, No. 4

POSTAL PATRON CAVE CREEK

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ECRWSS Carrier Route PreSorted Standard U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit No. 371 Cave Creek, AZ

Anthem | Black Canyon City | Carefree | Cave Creek | Desert Hills | New River| North Phoenix | Tramonto | Peoria

Phoenix Telephone Museum Takes Visitors Back in Time BY TRACY DEMETROPOLIS STAFF WRITER

PHOENIX - While the Telephone Museum at the Pioneer Living History Museum in Phoenix is a nostalgic good time for many adults, for younger people it’s a real eye-opener. The Telephone Museum is located at the 90-acre Pioneer Living History Museum, a place where visitors learn how the early pioneers lived and worked in a harsh desert environment. The Telephone Museum’s many displays trace the history of the telephone from Alexander Graham Bell’s time through today. Telephone Museum volunteer Steve Kronteres said many

of the young people who visit the museum have never used anything but a cell phone. Most of them don’t know how to dial a rotary telephone, he said. Visitors are able to see switchboards dating from 1895 to 1970, desk phones from the 1930s, teletypes, popular and trendy phones used through the years and more. The museum collection was started by the Telephone Pioneers of America, Arizona Chapter 66, which was formed in 1966. In 2016, the chapter lost its sponsorship and needed to find a new home. That new home turned out to be the Pioneer Living History Museum.

Volunteer Steve Kronteres helps Goodyear residents Vincent San Agustin, 7, (left) and Oskar San Agustin, 3, (right) play telephone November 24 at the Telephone Museum.

While the Telephone Museum is generally self-guided, visitors may ask one of the volunteers on duty for a guided tour, which may be available. The Pioneer Living History Museum and The Telephone Museum are open Wednesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to

4 p.m. The hours will change on June 1, 2020. Ticket prices are $10 for adults, $8 for children 18 and under and $8 for veterans and seniors. Children under 5 get in free. Parties of 15 or more are $8 per person. One ticket allows visitors to tour both museums.

The museums are closed Christmas and New Year’s Day. If you are interested in volunteering, donating money or donating an old telephone, call (623) 465-1052 or send an email to info@ pioneeraz.org. for more information, go to www.pioneeraz.org.

Phoenix Open officials disappointed Phil Mickelson won’t play, optimistic show will go on BY ERICA BLOCK CRONKITE NEWS

Waste Management Phoenix Open Chairman Tim Woods is optimistic the tournament won’t miss a beat with Phil Mickelson skipping the event at TPC Scottsdale for the first time in 30 years.

Photo by Erica Block/Cronkite News

SCIENCE:

PHOENIX – The news that Phil Mickelson will skip the Waste Management Phoenix Open in 2020 shook the Arizona golf world Monday, but tournament officials remain optimistic fans will still arrive in droves for the golf spectacle at TPC Scottsdale. Mickelson, a fan favorite who first competed in the tournament in 1989 as an Arizona State student, has won three Phoenix Open titles and is the tournament’s all-time leading money winner. His decision to play the Saudi International tournament

HEALTH:

in Saudi Arabia instead of returning to the PGA Tour event in the Valley surprised many local fans who regard the former Scottsdale resident as a hometown hero and the unofficial face of the tournament. Longtime Arizona golf writer John Davis, who has been covering Mickelson since his playing days on ASU’s golf team, said Mickelson helped create the tournament’s unique atmosphere and played an outsized role in making the Phoenix Open the unique event it has become. “The 16th hole is one of the most famous golf holes in the

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world, and it’s referred to as ‘the hole that Phil built,’” Davis said. “He was the guy who started coming out here with ASU students and fans supporting him. Crowds started to gather there and it just kind of exploded at that point.” Despite Mickelson’s influence in shaping the culture of the tournament, the Phoenix Open is bigger than any individual golfer who competes in it, according to Tim Woods, chairman of the 2020 tournament. “I’d be lying if I told you I didn’t want him in our

OFFICIALS

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OTHER :

• Bluhm Column • Movie Review • Service Directory • Classified Ads

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