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THE MESA TRIBUNE | FEBRUARY 6, 2022
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Mesa woman’s camera captures feathery beauties BY SRIANTHI PERERA Tribune Contributor
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ally Mesarosh aims her camera at a trio of feeding pelicans at the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch in Gilbert. Their pouches seemed full of fish but the pelicans glided towards the Mesa woman, perhaps with the hope of securing more. “It’s pretty cool when you get to see them. They are winter visitors; they are not here all the time,” Mesarosh said. “They travel together in little groups, almost synchronized when they dive for fish.” Mesarosh has been birding in the East Valley’s nature parks for nearly a decade. The urban Riparian Preserve is her favorite spot because it contains the most birds, which she attributes to its plentiful water. There she has photographed least bitterns, hummingbirds, vermilion flycatchers, night crowned black herons, cormorants, great blue herons, Canadian geese,
Sally Mesarosh has a passion for birding in the East Valley. Here she aims her camera at a pair of water fowl. (Srianthi Perera/Tribune Contributor) mockingbirds, black-necked stilts and many other species. In the spring, she has seen Gila wood-
peckers living inside saguaro cactus in the cactus garden. Often, she spots baby woodpeckers peeping from their tem-
porary homes. The males have a distinct red crown, which make for a contrasting photo when they perch on the ridges of the thorny green plant. Many times, she has also seen the coveted roseate spoonbill, the large pink waterbird with its broad, spoon-like bill, affectionately named Rosie by local birders. The bird is not native to Arizona, but has been found around the state. Rosie is not always visible in the Riparian’s sludgy waters, and tends to appear and disappear from time to time, thereby increasing its endearment and causing ripples in birders’ lives. Mesarosh is an early morning riser who prefers to bird at that time rather than the hours approaching twilight, which are the two optimal times for nature photography. The early morning hours are perfect to photograph the fluorescent colors of the
see BIRDING page 16
Two Mesa teens nominated as CTE Presidential Scholars BY DANA TRUMBULL Tribune Staff Writer
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wo Red Mountain High school seniors are among the five Arizona nominees for a prestigious U.S. Presidential Scholar in Career and Technical Education recognition. As semifinalists, Lydia Pastore and Garrett Comes, both of Mesa, now are among 200 seniors nationwide awaiting a national review by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars at the US Department of Education. Although the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program does not award a monetary scholarship, students chosen get an expense-paid trip to Washington, DC and are presented with the Presidential Scholars Medallion at a special ceremony sponsored at the White House. While in DC, students are able to network with national and international leaders, government officials, educators and
LYDIA PASTORE
GARRETT COMES
scientists, as well as like-minded peers. The daughter of Delphine and John Pastore, Lydia ranked first in class and carries an unweighted GPA of 3.98, and a weighted Core GPA of 5.0.
A finalist for the lucrative Flinn Scholarship, she plans to pursue a major in neuroscience and cognitive science with an emphasis in philosophy and a minor in public health.
As a student in the Red Mountain High School Biotechnology Laboratory, Lydia participated in a research internship at the Arizona State University Laboratory of Evolutionary Medicine, working on several different projects. She recently placed first in the state and second internationally for the Biomedical Laboratory Science Competition. Outside of school, she has embraced opportunities to shadow physicians, coauthored a pediatric radiology paper under the guidance of a medical student, and participated in the Summer and Saturday scrubs programs at the University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix. After dealing with post-viral syndrome as a result of Long Haul COVID-19 during her junior year, Lydia put personal experience into action, creating the platform Chronic Connections, an international support group that has reached kids in over 12
see SCHOLARS page 16
