Desert Times May 2023

DESERT TIMES

The Voice of Southwest Tucson

Cell tower opposition leads to proposal denial

BY VERONICA KUFFEL Tucson Local Media Sta

an Hartke was visiting his sister when a neighbor approached him, asking if they knew of the cell tower proposed next door to the sister’s ree Points home.

is was the rst either Hartke or his sister had heard of it, and it was scheduled to be approved the following week.

“I assure you, had my sister gotten any mail saying anything about this, we would have tried to deal with it a lot sooner,” Hartke said. “For the last 10 days, it’s been a massive rat race on my behalf to try and notify people.”

Hartke spent the weekend of April 14 to April 16 on West Scotland Street speaking to residents and handing out information regarding the cell tower. After distributing over 60 letters, he dis-

covered no resident he spoke to was aware of it.

On April 18, the siblings and other concerned community members attended the Pima County Board of Supervisors for a public hearing on the cell tower, proposed by applicant Vertical Bridge LLC. After many residents came forward with their concerns, Supervisor Sharon Bronson motioned to deny the proposal, following a unanimous vote from council in agreement. Hartke has worked in Tucson for over 25 years as a real estate broker, and explained how a cell tower in a residential area is likely to devalue the properties near it.

“I can tell you from experience, it does,” Hartke noted. “Every time a potential buyer comes on the street, the rst thing they’re going to see is that cell tower. It would a ect property values in the whole area, and there are a lot of houses back there.”

African diaspora dance studio at Silverbell Flex Center

BY VERONICA KUFFEL Tucson Local Media Sta

Yarrow King found African diaspora dance as a way to express her free spirit, and to maintain her physical and mental health. Now, she’s creating her dance studio on Silverbell Road to teach it.

“I believe movement is medicine,” King said. “I’ve been a long-time student and teacher of these modalities and they work so well together for strengthening, and also for tap-

ping into the innate joy of moving in these bodies.”

INjoy Movement will open this summer as a studio of Pilates and dance for the body and soul. King will teach Brazilian, Cuban and other forms created through the African diaspora. Her business is the newest addition to the Silverbell Flex Center, leased and operated through real estate agency Larsen Baker.

From massage therapy to stock brokerage, King has dipped into

e 110-foot cell tower is a project between Vertical Bridge, a private communications infrastructure company, and the phone service T-Mobile. On Jan. 17, Vertical Bridge requested a Type III Conditional Use Permit through the Ivan R. and Margery A. Wolverton Revocable Living Trust.

e Wolvertons had lived in the ree Points neighborhood for years before their home burnt down in early January. Known for “Dead Man” (1995), “Shadowhunter” (1993) and “Tombstone” (1993), the married actors have a long history in western lms. e 90-year-old couple agreed to the trust, allowing Vertical Bridge to propose the cell tower on their property. Due to a telecommunications federal mandate, Pima County sta has had to balance ll-

Yarrow King found African diaspora dance as a way to express her free spirit and to maintain physical and mental health. (Special to Desert Times)

DESERT TIMES

e Desert Times is published the rst week of every month and distributed free of charge to homes and in single-copy locations throughout south Tucson. To nd out where you can pick up a free copy of the Desert Times, please visit www.TucsonLocalMedia.com

STAFF

ADMINISTRATION

Steve T. Strickbine, Publisher

Michael Hiatt, Vice President

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EDITORIAL

Christina Fuoco-Karasinski, Executive Editor christina@tucsonlocalmedia.com

Karen Schaffner, Staff Reporter kschaffner@timepublications.com

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NATIONAL ADVERTISING

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EDITORIAL & AD CONTENT

The Desert Times expresses its opinion in the editorial. Opinions

ARTS

Hot Picks

African American Museum of Southern Arizona ONGOING

The African American Museum of Southern Arizona has opened its doors at the UA. Co-founded by Beverly and Bob Elliott, the museum presents a cultural and educational experience through items of significance and intentional storytelling to preserve African American and Black life, culture and history in Southern Arizona to benefit the community. Admission is free to the museum in room 244 of the Student Union Memorial Center. Until regular hours are established, interested visitors can schedule an appointment by emailing aamuseumofsouthernaz@ gmail.com.

African American Museum of Southern Arizona, 4511 N. Campbell Avenue, Suite 255-2, Tucson, free, by appointment only, aamsaz.org

Juried Student Art Exhibit TO MAY 5

The Spring 2023 Annual Juried Student

5-DAY WEATHER

Award Art Exhibition, hosted by the Louis Carlos Bernal Gallery, brings together the best student artwork for the summer, fall and spring semesters from any student taught at the five campuses at Pima Community College. The 237 entries were received from 104 students, and 77 entries were accepted by the jurors for this exhibition. This year, the Bernal Gallery has Tucson Art Museum staff as jurors who choose the students and award winners. The jurors were Dr. Julie Sasse, chief curator of modern and contemporary art, Tucson Museum of Art (TMA); Olivia Miller, interim director and curator, University of Arizona Museum of Art (UAMA); and Harrison Orr, education director, Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA-Tucson). The reception is 3 to 5 p.m. Thursday, April 20; award ceremony at 4 p.m.

Louis Carlos Bernal Gallery, Center for the Arts -West Campus, 2202 W. Anklam Road, free, various times, 520-206-6942, pima.edu/ cfa-gallery

“Woman-Ochre” TO MAY 20

Willem de Koonig’s “Woman-Ochre” was stolen in 1985 from the University of Arizona Museum of Art. It’s returned home and on display through May. Tickets for “Restored: The Return of Woman-Ochre” are $8 general admission; $6 seniors 65-plus and groups of 10 or more; and free for students with ID, museum members, UA faculty, staff, military personnel, AAM members, visitors with a SNAP card or Tribal ID, and children.

The University of Arizona Museum of Art, 1031 N. Olive Road, Tucson, various pricing, artmuseum.arizona.edu

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski

Linda McCartney Retrospective TO AUGUST 4

The North American premiere of the Linda McCartney Retrospective comes to the University of Arizona Center for Creative Photography, now through Friday, Aug. 4. Spanning McCartney’s entire career from 1965 to 1997, this exhibition features 176 photographs and archival materials, including Polaroid images and presents three sections such as family life, photographic experimentation and artists. The exhibit will recur weekly from Tuesdays through Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The exhibition will also feature various community events inspired by the collection.

Center for Creative Photography 1030 N. Olive Road, Tucson, various times and pricing, ccp.arizona.edu

Mini Time Museum: Steve Farley’s “Dowdytown”

TO AUG. 20

Pandemic isolation inspired artist, graphic designer and former Arizona State Sen. Steve Farley to explore childhood memories through a series of miniatures. They’re artifacts of his Ontario, California home, but their resonance with childhood reveries is universal. Farley’s youth included a fondness for building miniature models. As an adult, he’s an artist and graphic designer renowned for public murals. He found that creating these tiny structures helped to ground him in the social and emotional upheaval that accompanied our months in lockdown. An artist reception and talk take place from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, April 22.

3

Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures, 4455 E. Camp Lowell Drive, tickets start at $8, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays to Thursdays, theminitimemachine.org

Kuumba In Afrikan Arts MAY 13

For more than a decade, Barbea Williams Performing Company has offered this five-week camp experience for children ages 7 through 15. The program covers West African Dance, African diaspora culture and art, drumming, healthy cooking and beauty. For the first time this year, the program also includes STEM programming in professional development workshops.

Register now via bwpcarizona.com, class starts at 2 p.m., email bwpc2020@ gmail.com for details, $1,200, discounts and scholarships available.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Western Experience TO MAY 7

Journey into a Western Experience at Old Tucson Studios, through Sunday, May 7, and witness the spirit of the Old West come alive. Get a glimpse of a historic town in Arizona territory during the 1800s and enjoy live action cowboy gun fights, death defying stunts, rides and attractions.

Old Tucson Studios, 201 S. Kinney Road, Tucson, $34 adults, $17 children ages 5 to 11, 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thurs-

days to Sundays, oldtucson.com

Kentucky Derby Watch Party MAY 6

The Rillito Park Foundation invites us to celebrate the Kentucky Derby almost as if we’re right there at Churchill Downs. There will be live betting and Mint Juleps plus food, beverages, a raffle, prizes and a souvenir for the first 100 guests.

Attendees are encouraged to “dress to impress.” Churchill Downs may be more famous, but Rillito Park is known as “The birthplace of modern Quarter Horse racing.”

Rillito Park Racetrack, 4502 N. First Avenue, free, noon to 5 p.m., rillitoracetrack.com

Cinco de Mayo at Hotel Congress MAY 5 AND MAY 6

Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers is a Sonoran Desert band and happy to be. Fans in Arizona and Mexico flock to their shows, which often sell out, to revel in their distinctive blend of desert folk and pop rock, layered with road dust, shimmering hot sand and the light of starry nights. They perform on the plaza at 6 p.m. Friday, May 5, and will play a completely different set on Saturday, May 6. Meanwhile, in Club Congress, Santa Pachita and Salvador Duran perform on Friday at 8 p.m., and XIXA plays on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Hotel Congress, 311 E. Congress Street, various prices and times, hotelcongress. com 

ing gaps in cellular coverage with the consideration for nearby property owners. In this case, the board of supervisors received little to no public comment on the proposal and questioned the applicant’s action in notifying the neighborhood, as stated in their agenda item report on Feb. 7.

“It is further unclear from the applicant’s submitted materials as to whether they have conducted any public outreach,” the report stated. “In the form of an independent mailing nor formal neighborhood meeting.”

The law firm representing Vertical Bridge explained the third-party supervisor in charge of the company’s application, Gary

Job Fair

Cassel, died between the proposal submission and the February hearing.

Proposal applicants are required by county ordinance to notify residents within 1,000 feet of the proposed site. There are 34 people inside the perimeter, and from his outreach, Hartke spoke to two households that knew of it.

Vertical Bridge mailed notices to residents within the 1,000-foot radius for a virtual community meeting on March 31. Only four neighbors attended, with one indicating that mail was not directly delivered to properties, and residents would visit the post office monthly or bimonthly to pick it up.

resident concerns. The April 18 meeting, however, brought up enough opposition that Supervisor Bronson motioned to close the public hearing and denied the tower with a unanimous vote from council.

Vertical Bridge was not available for comment.

“Since I’ve come on the board, I have seen a pattern of behavior by these companies,” Supervisor Rex Scott said. “They do the absolute bare minimum in terms of public outreach and public contact. We hear that repeatedly, not just with this project, but every other project that has to come before the board.”

“It was clear that mailing another notice of community meeting would be ineffective,” the firm wrote in a letter. “Both before and after the community meeting, however, Vertical Bridge representatives have spoken to other community residents directly to provide information and heard out concerns.”

As cell tower proposals continue to create opposition among the residents around them, the Pima County Board encourages those in the region to pay attention to notices and act on their concerns. The board is looking at ways to approach the state of Arizona on this recurring issue. 

During the April 18 board of supervisors meeting, the public hearing for the tower included many of the residents who spoke directly to council on their opposition. Hartke helped his sister, Sandra Richardson, to the podium. The homeowner stood from her wheelchair and explained how she spends 95% of her time at home, and how the tower would affect her daily life.

“I am disabled and a single woman,” Richardson said. “I’ve invested a great amount in my property. I can’t afford to move. This is my retirement home.”

Vertical Bridge had decreased the height to 65 feet and agreed to camouflage the tower in an attempt to compromise with

many industries but discovered a calling through dance. She worked as the dance director for Batucaxè, a nonprofit drum and dance school, before returning to Body Works Pilates to trade massage therapy for dance instruction. She soon added Pilates to her repertoire.

“Once I started studying and doing Pilates my dance became even stronger, as well as all the other things I love to do in life,” King recalled. “Pilates, strengthening and stretching are so important for continuing a variety of movement throughout life and for a thriving body and mind.”

King was driving north on Silverbell when she saw the Silverbell Flex Center. She contacted Larsen Baker the same day to discuss leasing space for her studio. She explained there aren’t many dance studios that teach African diaspora movements on the west side. There’s a balance between population density and desert space, and it’s easy to access from all directions of Tucson.

Isaac Figueroa, Larsen Baker’s director of leasing and sales, also noted the area as a strategic place to operate for her new and existing customers. The Silverbell Flex

Center is close to I-10 and central Tucson area, allowing King a broader audience to market her dance and exercise lessons.

She is one of the many tenants Figueroa brought into the center after Larsen Baker took over.

“It was originally a mobile home park, that whole area,” Figueroa said. “One of our clients owns it and redeveloped it two years ago. We took over in August, and be-

tween then and now, we’re almost 100% leased with about 15 different tenants.”

Once Sunset Ranch Mobile Home Park, the property was developed into an industrial center and storage facility. It sat vacant for two years before Larsen Baker took over operations. Now, the Silverbell Flex Center is almost at full capacity, servicing the neighborhood and broader community with businesses and resources.

Figueroa indicated King’s African diaspora studio as a key recreational facility for the area, impacting those in the area with the movement of medicine. He and Larsen Baker hope to continue working with the Silverbell Flex Center’s current tenants and maintain relations for the long term.

“The goal is for it to be fully leased with good and healthy tenants,” Figueroa added. “We want the center to become an inviting place for the people in the neighborhood, and it will help provide services that were otherwise not in that area.” 

After sitting vacant for two years, the Silverbell Flex Center is almost full of business tenants (Isaac Figueroa/Submitted)

Tours share accessible farming practices in Vail

BY VERONICA KUFFEL Tucson Local Media Staff

On one of his farm tours, Michael Ismail bent down to check on a rainbow cactus starting to bloom. He explained there weren’t many when he moved to the property, but after implementing his water basin system, native plants have popped up all around and created a desert oasis. He pointed to the string of small pits along the watershed, connecting down to the farm.

“By doing this all around the property, you essentially create this lens of water in the ground,” Ismail said. “It moves down the slope and ends up benefitting the ecosystem all the way down.”

Ismail and his team at Thrive and Grow Farms host tours at their property in Vail to teach about regenerative farming. Neighboring Cienega Creek Preserve, this farm will soon be a demonstration of its new business model, where they develop land to prioritize a regenerative ecosystem and sell the final product to farmers. Ismail calls their new model turnkey farming.

Ismail is an agricultural entrepreneur, expert and educator with a focus on land conservation. He was raised in a homestead near Tucson, where his family turned a patch of desert into a thriving farm.

“I grew up growing a lot of food and learning permaculture practices,” Ismail recalled. “My father taught me land development methods through a lot of passive rainwater retention. We were very mindful of the way we existed in our little ecosystem.”

As an adult, he noticed most people believed they had “brown thumbs” and couldn’t care for plants, let alone gardens or farms. Ismail decided to use his knowledge and experience to create the Thrive and Grow brand. The company’s goal is to develop a stronger, local regenerative food system, developing land and infrastructure for farmers to walk into and succeed.

Ismail defined regenerative farming as a practice that goes beyond sustainability, it’s farming the land the way nature does. It focuses on the health of the soil and the conservation of resources, eliminating harmful

traditional methods like tillage. Especially in the desert, the priority is water retention, and he develops each farm based on water flow and keeping it in the ground.

His system not only focuses on conservation tactics but limits the amount of water used in overall farming.

“Agriculture is one of the largest uses of water throughout Arizona,” Ismail said. “The fact that we can put more water into the ground with our demonstration than

we take out is a really important step.”

Their turnkey farming project is in its initial stages of funding. Through WeFunder, Thrive and Grow Farms has raised over $125,000 to develop its properties and continues to receive support.

As Ismail and his team receive money, they will develop their 32 acres in St. David into four turnkey farms. Once the farms are complete, they hope to sell each within six months. Ismail stressed the im-

portance of developing the land and infrastructure to make it easy for farmers to conduct their business.

“We wanted to ensure people could walk into this and have a bright future in agriculture,” Ismail said. “It’s important to have a solid business plan and to know what to expect with all of the procedures in farming.”

Along with providing the land, Thrive and Grow Farms will also include their connections with local food markets and key business infrastructure. Any extra crops may be sold to the company to be freeze-dried, which will prevent spoilage and optimize sales for farmers. The company will sell the food under its new food brand, Truly Regenerative.

Ismail foreshadowed an upcoming trend toward regeneratively farmed products, much like the craze for organic foods. His mission is to help farmers see the value of these practices, not only to meet public demand but to create long-term profitability.

“One thing I believe is a common misconception is to do things right, you have to sacrifice a profitable business,” Ismail said. “We’re actually finding that it’s the opposite. These methods can create more stability for farmers and a better product for consumers.”

He noted the power of regenerative farming and its impact on the land. Along with examples of improved crop growth, Ismail’s demonstration farm is flourishing with a variety of native plants and animals.

Though in its initial stages, Thrive and Grow Farms is an opportunity for people to see the long-term benefits of regenerative agriculture, especially in a droughtprone environment. Ismail encourages those interested in recentering their business or starting new to come out for a tour and see the impact in person.

“It’s scary for a farmer to make changes and create any sort of uncertainty with growing crops and providing for their families,” Ismail said. “By demonstrating some of these practices, we can show people it’s very possible. They can create more resilient businesses while using less water.” 

Michael Ismail stands along the border between his demonstration farm and Cienega Creek Preserve (Michael Ismail/Submitted)

Michael Ismail (front) leading a tour on the farm (Michael Ismail/Submitted)

Home, health, happiness get a boost at Antsy Nancy

BY KAREN SCHAFFNER

Tucson Local Media Staff

Not everything that came out of the pandemic is negative.

Take, for example, Heidi Yribar, whose COVID-19-era brain blast has resulted in a thriving Foothills business.

Want to learn to decorate festive cookies with royal icing? Make pasta and a strawberry panna cotta? A charcuterie board? Maybe guests would rather learn to make a wreath to decorate their home or give their graduate the gift of a lei they’ve made. For all this knowledge and more, Yribar has you covered.

“I teach people a skill,” she said. “When you leave Antsy Nancy, you’ve actually learned how to do something. I always give everybody the recipes and tell them exactly where to buy the materials so they can try it out here and then decide, ‘Do I like it? Do I want to keep doing it?’”

Located at Craycroft and River roads, Antsy Nancy allows guests to learn a new skill and be able to use it at home. Yribar wants her clients to learn ways to improve home, health and happiness, according to the business’ website.

When she opened the business, Yribar expected her clientele would be active retired adults, and they are some of her students. However, she was surprised by the popularity of the children’s classes.

“The kids’ (business) is really huge,” Yribar said. “All the summer camps, winter break camps, spring break, and the parents just love it.”

Besides the camps, which begin in May, she has a once-a-month Kids Night Out, where kids 5 years old to high school age learn to make a themed food dish, then watch a movie. For example, last month the kids made fortune cookies and pot stickers, then watched the Disney’s “Mulan.” This month it’s angel hair pasta from scratch and “Tangled.” All movies come with popcorn. Yribar loves these classes.

“All the kids are so sweet and fun with each other,” she said. “It’s just so neat to watch them try.”

Each class, for adults and children, begins with a provided apron and a locker to store their stuff. Then it’s time to learn.

Naomi and Bianca Fergerson, daughters of Andrea Fergerson, have been going to

dinner and a movie since Yribar started them at the beginning of this year. However, this isn’t their first go-around at Antsy Nancy. They’ve been to plenty of activities there. Their continued attendance is testimony to how much fun the workshops are.

“It’s a cute little place; it’s very cozy,” she said, “(and Yribar) has such a variety of activities. The girls get some hands-on experience.”

It’s also Yribar

who makes the workshops fun.

“She is just very, very organized, and she connects so well with the youth, they just cannot get enough,” Fergerson said.

Antsy Nancy is named after Yribar’s aunt, Nancy Rutherford, who is a dap hand at all things baking and craft. It’s where Yribar learned to decorate cookies. It happened this way. In January 2020, Yribar found herself unexpectedly unemployed. She applied

for hundreds of positions but couldn’t find traction.

“I was bored out of my mind and then the kids were home,” she said. “I asked my aunt Nancy — she’s an active retiree in Tucson — for pointers on my yard. She came over and it turned into months of us landscaping.”

Yribar does mean landscaping. The pair put in a coy pond.

From there Yribar learned to use her sewing machine, how to recover furniture, do holiday projects, decorate cakes and make wreaths. One day after a marathon cookie decorating session, she was driving home from Rutherford’s home, “and I thought, ‘You know what? There’s a business idea in here,’ and I came up with the idea of Antsy Nancy,” she said. Ten months later she opened her classroom and she’s been teaching ever since. In fact, Yribar said, in the year and a half she’s been open, she’s making a profit.

“It’s going really, really well,” Yribar said. The first class on the calendar was how to make an herb garden. No one came. Today she has sellout classes. She also hosts private parties of all types and hires out to teach.

From the outside a casual observer would not guess how elegant the classroom looks. On a recent visit, the room was filled with several bar-high tables covered with white tablecloths and a rose vase, all facing a demonstration kitchen. Yribar said the tables are on wheels and can be rearranged to suit the class. The elegance, she added, is just to make the learning space inviting, like a visit with a very good friend. At least one reaction to the space surprised her.

“My most favorite thing is when a burly man’s man walks in here and says, ‘It’s so cute,’” she said.

More than anything, Yribar wants people to know these classes are for everyone.

“We teach master classes, but they are designed for beginners, and not to shy away from it if they’ve never done it before,” she said. 

Antsy Nancy

5655 E. River Road, Suite 101, Tucson 520-639-6458, antsy-nancy.com

Heidi Yribar owns and operates Antsy Nancy, an establishment that offers fun classes aimed at improving quality of life or just to have fun. (Antsy Nancy/Submitted)

Heidi Yribar helps Cataleya Dukes make fortune cookies at a dinner and movie, where the kids watched Disney’s “Mulan.” (Antsy Nancy/Submitted)

Naomi and Bianca Fergerson are making Chi- nese dumplings during dinner and a movie, in preparation for Disney’s “Mulan.” (Antsy Nancy/ Submitted)

Habitat Tucson opens construction hub

BY VERONICA KUFFEL Tucson Local Media Staff

With the dramatic increase in housing prices, organizations are stepping up to create solutions for Southern Arizona. Habitat for Humanity Tucson recently showcased its new CHUCK Center, a project CEO Charlie Buchanan called a comparable answer to the growing problem.

“This is a crisis we haven’t experienced in generations,” Buchanan said. “It’s not a low-income challenge anymore, it’s an everybody challenge. It’s redefined housing affordability.”

The purpose of the new Connie Hillman Urban Construction Knowledge Center is to support the lack of affordable housing in Greater Tucson and to address the need for a skilled workforce in the trades. Habitat Tucson will be able to prefabricate homes and store materials in a temperature-controlled warehouse. The center will not only accelerate housing production but the education of schools, colleges and other programs in the area.

It’s a development for the nonprofit, and Buchanan noted its potential for increasing work quality within Habitat Tucson.

“We build homes, community and hope,” Buchanan said. “This isn’t anything new to us, but it’s certainly a differ-

ent scale. The ultimate goal is to provide more housing solutions in a challenging environment.”

The CHUCK Center holds offices, a

classroom and a large warehouse. Habitat Tucson will use the space to store

Habitat Tucson celebrates the grand opening of the CHUCK Center. (Veronica Kuffel/Staff)

tools and materials for projects across the community, including prefabricated panels made in the facility.

A one-story home under 1,500 square feet takes 18 to 26 panels to build, while a two-story of the same size requires 24 to 32. Habitat Tucson plans to build at least 10 panels per day and store up to 144 panels, enough for around five to eight homes, in the CHUCK Center.

Tony Lundberg is an AmeriCorps member with Habitat Tucson, and addressed challenges in the past associated with building these panels and procuring materials.

“It would lag our construction progress,” Lundberg said. “At some point during the builds we had in Marana, we weren’t able to procure doors or windows, even lumber. It’s beneficial to have a safe, dry indoor spot for all of these sensitive materials.”

The CHUCK Center was primarily funded by the Connie Hillman Family Foundation, along with other organizations and nonprofits like The Stonewall Foundation, Bank of America and the City of Tucson. Its partners contribute to the facility with donations of money but also labor, as is the case with AmeriCorps. AmeriCorps contributes workers to volunteer with Habitat Tucson projects, one of the options for their member commitment to one year of intensive service. According to Lundberg, most organizations and nonprofits offer housing, but in past years, Habitat Tucson didn’t have the budget for it.

The CHUCK Center is building a duplex house in its backyard to meet the needs of out-of-state AmeriCorps members. Lundberg expressed his relief for future members and their access to this housing.

“The AmeriCorps members receive only a small stipend for their service, making living in Tucson hard for most,” Lundberg said. “It’s very difficult to pay rent and gro-

ceries on the stipend, so it’s a necessary means to find affordable or provided living for nonprofits like Habitat.”

Another key part of Habitat Tucson’s commitment with the CHUCK Center is to provide educational resources to assist trade students. The nonprofit has started this by partnering with the Building & Construction Technologies program at Pima Community College. Lundberg of Tucson’s AmeriCorps team was one of the program’s past students.

Due to current space constraints on campus, BCT Discipline Coordinator Himat Khalsa visits Habitat Tucson with his classes weekly. Pima Community College works to increase its facilities for the program, but for now, the CHUCK Center allows students to gain real-world experience and make an impact on the community.

“A lot of this has been facilitated through the CHUCK Center because there’s a real training focus,” Khalsa ex-

plained. “Here, there are potentially other people from different trades that will interact with the students as we’re building. Those are features that are hard to simulate in a lab environment.”

Khalsa and his students utilize the CHUCK Center to complete varied curriculums, building homes and designing plans which Habitat Tucson puts to use throughout the region. Between the college and nonprofit, their collective goal is to engage 100 student learners in construction trades in 2023.

The partnerships between programs, organizations and the nonprofit will not only create hands-on learning experiences but contribute to Habitat’s goal for universal housing. Here in Southern Arizona, Buchanan and Habitat for Humanity will continue to combat the housing crisis, developing new and innovative solutions to support Tucson.

“The CHUCK Center was our acknowledgment that the status quo wasn’t meeting the need to support the affordable housing crisis,” Buchanan said. “The potential and the partnerships are going to create opportunities for not only trade students and their careers but opportunities for families to have stability.” 

A large tool bench stocked with equipment for groups of workers, students and volunteers in the CHUCK Center warehouse space. (Veronica Kuffel/Staff)

EXTRA POINT WITH TOM DANEHY

Athlete of the Week: Jaelen Collins

Jaelen Collins is a young man on the go. A junior at Marana High School, he is an outstanding athlete with almost too many options in front of him.

On April 21, he put on quite a show, posting state-quality marks in the high hurdles, long jump and triple jump. He may score some serious points for the Tigers at the state meet in Mesa next month, but even if he doesn’t, it can be convincingly argued that competing in track and eld is just something that he does between the end of basketball season and the start of football practice, as he also excels in those.

His versatility knows no bounds (that’s sort of a long jump pun). In basketball, he’s considered a small forward and a power forward, depending on where his coach and team need him. In football, he is a stud on both o ense (as a wide receiver) and defense (at cornerback). He is part of a talented group of underclassmen who have helped coach Phillip Steward’s Tigers elbow their way into the top echelon of teams in Southern Arizona.

“I really like football,” he said. “And our team is so good. We’re losing our quarterback (Elijah Joplin), but I honestly think we’re going to be even better next year that we were this year.”

e Tigers went 9-1 this past season, with their only loss being a bizarre 59-58 loss at Mesa Westwood.

When asked which side of the ball he prefers to play on, he answers quickly. “Oh, defense. I love playing cornerback. It’s way more fun than o ense.”

At 6-foot-2, he’s tall for a cornerback. He’s very tall for a high-school corner and even taller than average for the guys in college who play that position. ( ere are actually several cornerbacks in the NFL who aren’t that tall.) He’s hoping to play the position in college. “I actually want to play football and do track and eld in college.”

Collins is originally from Florida (“the Tampa area,” he is quick to add). Does he

miss Florida? “Yeah, sometimes.” Does he miss the humidity? “Never!”

When I spoke to him by phone, he was getting ready to go to his rst period class, physics. He likes to think that he takes his studies as seriously as his sports, but that’s not always easy. He does, however, appear to use his scienti c analytical skills to his advantage when it comes to running track.

I asked him whether he would consider running the 300-meter low hurdles instead of just the 110 high hurdles. “Well, I’m taller and I’ve got long legs, so that would help with stride length in the 300 hurdles, but I also have speed and that’s (critical) in the 110s.”

Limited by rule to only four events, he runs the high hurdles, does the long jump and triple jump and is a member of the 4 x 100 meter relay team. He’s got a full plate and plenty of options for the future. 

Jaelen Collins, left, is a multisport athlete at Marana High School. (Jaelen Collins/Submitted)

HEALTH BBL is a dangerous cosmetic surgery

BY MIA SMITT Tucson Local Media Columnist

Brazilian butt lift surgery, commonly known as “BBL,” has proven to be a very dangerous, as well as costly, cosmetic surgery.

Surgeon Ivo Pitanguy first performed this procedure after he founded a plastic surgery training center in Brazil in 1960. This surgery is called gluteal fat grafting and involves liposuctioning fat from the abdomen, back, thighs or even arms and then injecting this fat into the buttocks.

According to MedPage Today, April 11, 2023, “in surgical circles, the Brazilian butt lift is known as the deadliest aesthetic procedure ever performed, and despite several calls to improve outcomes, recent data suggest mortality is only getting worse.”

This surgery has become more popular over the past 20 years and has increased 800% over the last 10 years; the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery noted that in 2011 there were 7,382 internet searches and in 2021 there were 61,387 looking for information and doctors who perform the surgery.

After the fat is liposuctioned, the syringe or a small canula is inserted deeply and repeatedly deep under the skin to distribute the fat across different areas. This is known as a “blind” procedure because the surgeon cannot see exactly where this fat is going, and it can accidentally be injected into blood vessels. The fat can travel through the bloodstream to the lungs or heart, which is often deadly from a fat embolism. This can happen during surgery, or when a patient is turned onto her back, putting pressure on the buttocks. The cost can range from as low as $3,000 to as high as $30,000 depending on location, surgeon and after care. This surgery has really taken off in the United States, especially in Miami. Dr. M. Mark Mofid, associate clinical professor of plastic surgery at the University of California San Diego, was one of two surgeons in the United States doing this procedure a

few years ago. But as the demand for the surgery grew, so did the number of surgeons, many not adequately trained or qualified. The number of BBL deaths rose and Mofid formed the Aesthetic Surgery Education Research Foundation (ASERF), which published a study in the July 2017 issue of Aesthetic Surgery Journal highlighting the growing number of fatalities associated with this surgery.

It concluded that despite the growing popularity of the procedure gluteal fat grafting had “significantly higher mortality rates” than any other aesthetic surgical procedure and called for more research into its safety.

Dr. Arthur Perry, a plastic surgeon at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, was also interviewed by MedPage. He said,” any death from an aesthetic procedure is alarming. One death in a plastic surgeon’s office and you pretty much want to retire from medicine. It’s terrible. It’s not like we need to operate because you’re going to die. The risk-benefit ratio has to be better in cosmetic surgery.”

The New York Times Magazine, May 11, 2022, published an article titled “Butt Lifts Are Booming. Healing Is No Joke.” It describes the huge increase in both the numbers of surgeries performed and the profusion of recovery houses with little oversight or regulation. Some of these facilities are good; some are not and have a high incidence of injuries and infections. The risks are great and the benefits cosmetic.

Plastic surgeon Dr. Lara Devgan, in an interview with Harpers Bazaar (September 2022) warned that the results may vary depending on how much of that fat transfer lives.

“In most cases 70% to 80% of the grafted fat survives, while some of it absorbs,” she said. She and her colleagues advise women seeking this procedure to look for a surgeon with board certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. And it is important to know where the doctor does the surgery. “A reputable surgeon will perform surgery at a certified surgery center or hospital with a board-certified anesthesiologist,” she continued.

The New Yorker magazine, April 13, 2023,

highlighted the documentary “You’ll Be Happier” about a woman who underwent a Brazilian butt lift surgery. It starts with her saying, “I want to like myself more, more than I already like myself, because I absolutely love myself. But I just want …more.”

Then later as she watched the graphic video of her surgery she said, “Like, do I love myself or do I hate myself? I can’t tell what it is.”

The female “ideal” in the ’90s was big breasts and overall thinness and now wider hips and bigger buttocks are considered the best look. Not too many years ago women tried to look like Pamela Anderson and Kate Moss. Now it’s Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Lopez.

When will we stop the nonsense of trying to be something we are not? Breast implants have been around for 50 plus years and many who underwent this augmentation suffered the consequences of silicone leaks, systemic illness such as lupus and

Mia Smitt is a longtime nurse practitioner. She writes a column for Tucson Local Media.

connective tissue disease, scarring, impaired breast feeding, breast cancer, breast implant associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma and the list goes on.

Fatigue, depression and anxiety have been associated with implants. These and other illnesses have been termed breast implant illnesses – BBIs. And the latest story circulating on social media is a woman whose (removed) breast implant was full of mold. It is easy to assign blame for conditions with no concrete tangible causes but the anecdotal evidence for breast implant illnesses is mounting and research is ongoing.

Small breasts and buttocks should not be something needing repair. “Remember, no one ever died of skinny buttocks,” remarked Dr. Perry in the MedPage interview.

Mia Smitt is a longtime nurse practitioner. She writes a regular column for Tucson Local Media. 

Across 1 Really, really

5 Palio di ___, annual Italian horse race held since the 13th century

9 Happen periodically

14 Is comforted by not being ignored

16 Research university adjacent to the C.D.C.

17 Sensory deprivation device

18 Quinceañera feature

19 Places with large nest eggs? 20 Brahman believers 21 Broadband inits. 22 Debauched sort

Bucks 24 Culture subject

28 “Bro!”

31 Part usually thrown away

32 Ramadan-ending holiday, informally

33 Co-writer of Tone Loc’s “Wild Thing” and “Funky Cold Medina”

36 Final stretch

38 Cries of frustration

39 Hennery

41 What cows and icebergs do

42 End of one’s money

46 Tahoe neighbor

47 Administrator with a list

48 Toy sound

51 Quinceañera, e.g.

53 One of a dangerous group in “Robinson Crusoe”

55 Wipe

56 Jig, e.g.

57 Some skirt options

58 Things not good to have next to one’s records

59 It’s a plus

60 Classic muscle cars

61 Informal meeting Down 1 Took out

2 Directs, in Hollywood lingo

3 Birthplace of K-pop

4 Character in “Frozen” who says “Some people are worth melting for”

5 M.L.B. team originally called the Colt .45s

6 ___ McFly, great-greatgrandfather of Marty

7 Become stiff or tight

8 Toner alternative

9 High-tech security device

10 “The ___ Show” (2002 12x platinum album)

11 Follower of an arctic blast

12 Language that gave us “cummerbund”

13 Old-fashioned options

15 Game that often ends in tears

20 First of the Minor Prophets

24 Button on a scientific calculator

25 Dragon roll ingredient

26 Schreiber of “Ray Donovan”

27 Nose (out)

28 “Stay out of it!”

29 You might perform the Creeper, the Sleeper or Rock the Baby with this

30 Novel purchases that everyone’s talking about?

34 “Aquaman” actor Jason

35 Fish with a valuable liver

37 Pine ___ (baseball player’s grip enhancer)

40 “The Daily,” to pick a popular example

43 “Technicolor ___,” nickname for Lucille Ball

44 Simple structure

45 Single-use spears

48 Take advantage of, and then some

49 Captain and lieutenant

50 “I, to you, am lost in the gorgeous errors of ___”: Sylvia Plath 51 Relief org. 52 Good name for a florist or optometrist

“Verily” 56 Nobelist Hammarskjöld

HOROSCOPE

In heartfelt recognition of the selfless giving many mothers accomplish, the poet E.E. Cummings wrote, “If there are any heavens my mother will (all by herself) have one.” Mercury affords some grace for the celebration as well, ending the retrograde. This and the lucky water trines of last week, slowly melting like ice cream in the punch bowl, will sweeten the emotional tone. Mother’s Day goes to plan.

ARIES (March 21-April 19). If you feel less enthusiastic than your optimistic friends and colleagues, it’s only because you know how much work is involved in grand plans. Also, most of the responsibility will fall to you, so your attitude is appropriate. You’ll get happier as more is accomplished.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Like wildlife and Amazon packages, moods can be tracked. It could help you to do so now because you’re about to raise your vibes and your general set point. Later, it will be helpful to look back and see how you got to the new and better place so you can repeat successful actions.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). The most profound love is unconditional love. The hardest person to give it to is yourself. The reason is that you know everything about you, and what you know about others is only what they show you. Give the mighty force of unconditional love to yourself this week and new things become possible for you.

CANCER (June 22-July 22). The urge to stereotype is a survival mechanism that maturity makes completely unnecessary. You’ve been past it a long while, but you have compassion when you see it in others. You’ll see many reasons to compliment others, and these observations come from a genuine place. Noticing talent is a talent in and of itself.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). People disappoint one another on the regular. If they didn’t, there would be no way they could surprise and delight one another. You embrace the multifaceted and complex nature of the people around you and refuse to see anyone as inherently bad or flawed. How someone is at any given moment doesn’t reflect their entire character.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) There’s a pressured aspect to the week, mostly due to an approaching deadline. The good news is, there’s no need to actively search for inspiration. You’re in a stage where creativity is primed to flow effortlessly. Ideas are readily available. All that’s left to do is let it happen.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). When life throws new circumstances to you, your mind and body comes up with a response geared toward keeping you safe. It’s a well-intended plan, but unfortunately, it can lead to a good deal of anxiety. The good news is, you can dissemble this response, too, if it’s inappropriate or unwanted by the whole of you.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). You’re on your game this week. You know where you’re going and how to get there. Your super talent is understanding others. You’re very good at this. You’ll sum up what another person wants but is not able to articulate, which is a gift that takes great empathy.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) As you adapt to meet the demands of a situation, you’ll assume you’re doing this as most people would, when in fact you probably assume this is what everybody does. Yes, everyone adapts, each in their own way, but there’s something special and unique about your particular way. This is worth looking into.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Fears will be overcome this week, mostly with exposure to their source. Whatever scares you, try a little of it. No need to dive into it, just take on as much as you can stand. Go slowly. Face the fear, retreat, recover, then repeat. By facing your fear little by little, time and again, you will become immune to it.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). An anonymous person said, “Never forget what it’s like to be 16.” There are some aspects of youth you’re happy to be done with forever and some you will actively try to keep alive today. For all your experience, there are things that come up his week that make you feel naive, and it’s not a bad feeling.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You’ll be new at something, and it won’t do you any good to pretend you know any more than you do about it. Your beginner’s status will endear you to those who can teach you more. To replay in your mind the version where you do and say the perfect thing can be a form of self-reprimand.

THIS WEEK’S BIRTHDAYS: A year of expansion -- your mind, heart, network and wallet, mostly. Relationships lighten up with mutual acceptance of one another’s whole being and extended realities. You become more playful and fun in your personal life, which requires little in the way of plots and reasons -- brilliant results from doing just as you feel. More highlights: an exotic trip you’ll document beautifully, family growth and healing, and a better way of getting around, cost-efficient and stylish 

connect@serenitybaptist.church https://serenitybaptist.church 520.822.2026

Mark