Glendale Star 06/15/2023

BY JOE McHUGH Glendale Star Staff Writer

The Western Maricopa Education Center (West-MEC) showed out at the Association for Career Technical Education of Arizona Awards (ACTEAZ), as the district took home nine awards out of 15 possible categories for its career and technical education programs.

“We are honored that ACTEAZ has recognized our West-MEC team members as exemplars in CTE,” West-MEC Superintendent Scott Spurgeon said in a statement. “Our team is what makes our district

special and propels us as leaders in Career and Technical Education.”

West-MEC is a CTE school district that is focused on providing programs to students that prepare them for the real world. From giving students the opportunity to earn workforce certi cations for post-education jobs to o ering classes that can earn college credits, West-MEC serves more than 37,000 students from 48 different high schools across the North and West valleys.

“Our purpose here really is

West-MEC wins big at ACTEAZ Awards

Police seek assistance investigating fatal hit-and-run

BY JOE McHUGH Glendale Star Staff Writer

Arthur Bordeau, 42, was found dead after being hit by a vehicle in Glendale.

e driver of the vehicle that struck Bordeau is still at large, and the Glendale Police Department is looking to the community’s assistance in nding the suspect.

Just prior to 4:30 a.m. June 2, o cers responded to a vehicle versus pedestrian collision at the 5300 block of Camelback Road. Bordeau was located by o cers, and he was transported to a local hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.

At the scene, another vehicle was present at the time of the collision, serving as the “suspect vehicle” in this case. It was described as a “late model Ford F-150 … white in color (with) a white camper shell on the bed of the truck.

“It also has black rims, and no step rails, and is missing a rearview mirror.”

“We are looking for the public’s assistance in identifying this vehicle,” Glendale Police Department public information o cer Gina Winn said. “If you know who was driving it, if you know who owns it is, you know which residents that reside that, so that’s kind of what we’re looking for from the public. So

that we can provide some justice to the family.”

Investigators have been working to nd more information on the suspect, and Winn said there are since leads.

“We are still investigating, but we were able to obtain surveillance footage of the vehicle, so we know the type of vehicle. We know what we’re looking for,” Winn said. “We’re just looking for the who.”

With regards to Bordeau’s family, they were noti ed of the incident, but no further information was shared.

Serving over 37,000 students across the Valley, Western Maricopa Education Center’s career and technical education programs ran away with nine out of 15 awards at the Association for Career Technical Education of Arizona Awards. (West-MEC/Submitted)

GESD students will soon have access to an expanded choice of educational opportunities starting in the 2023-2024 school year. All 12 schools will have signature programs dedicated to supporting students in pursuing a specific field of interest. The district will provide more details about each school in a special series of articles coming soon.

Glendale American School of Performing and Digital Arts

Glendale Landmark School of Fine Arts

Bicentennial South School of Career Pathways

Glenn F. Burton School of STEAM Careers

Challenger School of Exercise Science and Athletics

Desert Spirit School of Innovative Learning and Civic Leadership

Discovery School of Digital Media and Communications

Don Mensendick School of Civic Leadership, a Capturing Kids’ Hearts Campus

Harold W. Smith School of STEAM Careers, a Kids at Hope Campus

Horizon School of Spanish Dual Language Immersion

William C. Jack School of Spanish Dual Language Immersion

Sunset Vista School of Innovative Learning, a Makerspace Campus g, p p

Cindy Segotta-Jones, Superintendent

to prepare students today for the careers of tomorrow,” West-MEC Assistant Superintendent Stephen Weltsch said. “We want to be the very best at what we do, because the work we do is really what connects individuals in our communities to realizing their version of that American dream, empowering them with the technical and the professional skills to realize those dreams and really better our entire community by individuals meeting that purpose.”

Recognized statewide for its ability to help students realize their dreams, the nine awards were spread out between West-MEC’s central and satellite programs, as well as one of its connections in the city of Surprise.

From West-MEC’s central programs, there were three award winners including CTE-Post-Secondary Educator of the Year Jennifer Kline of the EMT program. e welding program was awarded the CTE Program of the Year, taught by Eric Phye and Delphina Yazz, and CTE Administrator of the Year was given to West-MEC’s Southwest Campus Administrator Aaron Parsons.

From the satellite programs there were ve awards, including Melissa Veo, CTE Teacher of the Year; Jennifer Grumbling, Career Guidance Professional of the Year; Joseph Troxel, New CTE Teacher of the Year; Kirsten Coury, CTE Junior High Teacher of the Year; and Je Samaniego, ACTEAZ Community Service Award.

Finally, the city of Surprise Economic Development O ce won the Policymaker of the Year award.

“I see how hard these people work and the hours and the time away from their family and loved ones,” Weltsch said. “And so, to see that acknowledged, to have our own Association and communities to say, ‘Wow, you really are leading the pack and inspiring others,’ makes me feel good to see their good work being acknowledged. Because they really are making an incredible di erence in our community and so they deserve this pat on the back.”

e work being done at West-MEC is helping the future generations achieve their dreams, and they are “thankful” to have the right people in place to make those dreams into realities.

“As a native of Arizona, I care deeply

about this community,” Weltsch said. “It’s humbling to work amongst these people, it really is how special our people are that have made this happen. at is allowing so many students to be successful.

“ e passion they bring to repay is what is making that happen, and it humbles me to see people care as much about this community as I do and working as hard — and then to see them get acknowledged for it, like this guy is pretty inspiring.”

With the success at the ACTEAZ awards, Weltsch said West-MEC will only look to improve upon what they have already accomplished, and hope to continue providing high-quality education through their CTE programs.

“ is is a great opportunity for us to be able to acknowledge that those long days (teachers take) really are making a di erence,” Weltsch said. “To have people that are doing what no one else is doing and it doesn’t always feel like that, because you’re just going about your day, but you are going above and beyond. And that is really making a difference.”

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HIT-AND-RUN FROM PAGE 1

In turn, the department is casting a wide net, with help from the community, and urges anyone with any information regarding the incident to o er assistance.

“If the community have any information regarding this vehicle, who was driving it, who is registered to and where it’s registered to, we’re asking that you contact the Glendale Police Department nonemergency line,” Winn said.

e Glendale Police Department nonemergency contact number is 623930-3000.

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Glendale police locate stolen puppy, make arrests

BY JOE McHUGH Glendale Star Staff Writer

The Glendale Police Department has arrested two suspects after a nearly monthlong search for a stolen puppy.

Taylor Sines, 27, and Logan Neimann, 26, were charged with aggravated robbery and animal mistreatment after police located the stolen puppy, along with another unidenti ed puppy.

“We’re incredibly grateful to the ocers and detectives that went above and beyond in this case,” Glendale Police public information o cer Gina Winn said. “ ere’s a humanizing aspect of that we really do care. And we have a heart, and we are passionate and we’re just really grateful that the dogs are OK.”

another husky puppy they had not expected to nd.

(Glendale Police Department/Submitted)

On May 11, o cers responded to a report of a robbery near the 8300 block of North 63rd Avenue. A husky breeder described an altercation between her and Sines, saying Sines had allegedly met to purchase one of the huskies. She then stole one of the dogs after pushing the victim and was driven away in a car by Neimann.

“Detectives were able to track phones that were utilized to contact the victim in order to identify Sines and Neimann,” Winn said. “ ere was also a vehicle involved, so we were able to track that vehicle.”

“ e puppies were located within the bathroom of the residence, and the conditions of this area where the puppies were was just inhumane,” Winn said. “It was not a habitable, safe or healthy place for puppies to be. … When (o cers) arrived on scene and they made contact with the animals, they (the animals) were covered in feces, and they were in a small bathtub area where they didn’t really have the opportunity to move about.”

is caused investigators to “do everything they could” to locate the suspects and, more importantly, the puppy.

Upon locating the suspects after issuing a search warrant, o cers went to a destination near 8300 N. 63rd Avenue, and located the stolen puppy, along with

After taking Sines and Neimann into custody, the initially stolen puppy was

Glendale police arrested two suspects after a monthlong search for a stolen husky puppy, finding another puppy in the process. They are searching for its owner.

TAYLOR SINES

LOGAN NEIMANN

Midwestern nursing programs get full accreditation

BY GLENDALE STAR STAFF

Midwestern University’s College of Health Sciences, Glendale Campus, recently received full accreditation for its graduate nursing programs from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

e o cial con rmation was received by the program on May 24 and is e ective for a ve-year period from Oct. 31, 2022, which was the date of the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) program evaluation visit.

e University’s Graduate Nursing Programs encompass a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree; a Master of Science in Nursing degree with an adult-gerontology primary care nurse practitioner focus; a Master of Science in nursing with a nurse leadership in global health focus; and a post-Master’s adult-gerontology primary care nurse practitioner certi cate track. Each program is o ered online.

“Successful accreditation is both a

testament to the exceptional quality of education we provide, as well as a signi cant achievement through hard work and dedication,” said Dr. Kathleen Goeppinger, president and CEO of Midwestern University. “Midwestern Uni-

versity is so proud of our faculty, sta and students, who have worked tirelessly to meet and exceed the rigorous standards set forth by the accrediting body.

“ is accreditation is a wonderful validation of our collective e orts, and we look forward to continuing to provide a high-caliber education to our students.”

For Midwestern, the programs’ accreditation comes at a critical time for Arizona health care — speci cally the nursing profession. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the United States is projected to experience a shortage of nurses that is expected to intensify due to aging, the COVID-19 pandemic and an increase in general health care needs.

Midwestern University Physician Assistant students from the Downers Grove Campus who served their psychiatric rotations at her practice.

“Online learning o ers a big opportunity for people to be able to ful ll their dreams,” Ampadu said. “ e coursework made us look more into how we can improve our patient care quality and help bridge disparities in care, as well as educate our colleagues. It also helped to build back up a little bit of that enthusiasm for what we do by giving us more tools and more outlets for us to help people.”

On June 2, Midwestern’s graduate nursing programs honored their rst graduates from the Doctor of Nursing Practice and Master of Science in Nursing/nurse leadership in global health programs. Dr. Tristan Palmer, who currently works as a nurse educator in a community and population health setting, was recognized at the ceremony.

Nursing schools are working to expand their respective capacities to meet demand, while the health care industry is struggling to meet employment demands brought about by nurse retirements and workforce exits. While the Institute of Medicine’s landmark report, “ e Future of Nursing,” called for increasing the number of baccalaureate and graduate degree-level nurses to 80%, the current workforce falls short of this recommendation with only 65.2% of registered nurses, according to a workforce survey by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing.

“Nursing professionals are the backbone of our health care system and are at the forefront of caring for some of our most vulnerable, underserved and marginalized populations,” said Misty L. Pagán, program director for the College of Health Sciences and graduate nursing programs at Midwestern University.

“I loved the exibility with the personal touch and connectedness with the professors,” Palmer said. “ e program allowed for creativity and rigor, and I knew I was challenged for a purpose — to really stretch and grow. e times we live in today don’t look like ve years ago, let alone 20 years ago. is program is really at the forefront in preparing us for the day-to-day changes in our profession.”

Dr. Rose Ampadu also graduated June 2 and completed her degree from Chicago, where she is a partner in an advanced nursing practice. Originally from Guyana, she became a nurse after receiving an undergraduate degree in graphic design. She enrolled after interacting with

“ e need for strong, capable leaders and advanced practice registered nurses have never been greater. At Midwestern University, we understand the vital role that graduate-level nursing programs play in developing the skills and knowledge necessary to meet the local, national and global demand for nurse leaders and advanced practice primary care providers.

“Our unique program o erings are designed to support our students in becoming e ective leaders in the nursing profession by providing them with a strong foundation in advanced nursing practice, complex interprofessional health care systems, global health and nurse leadership theory.”

(Midwestern University/Submitted)

Delta Dental of Arizona earns HAWP Award

BY GLENDALE STAR STAFF

For the seventh consecutive year, Delta Dental of Arizona earned the Healthy Arizona Worksites Program (HAWP) Award for its implementation of evidence-based health initiatives to improve the well-being of its employees, employees’ families and communities.

For the rst time, however, Delta Dental will be honored with the HAWP Platinum Award, previously earning the Gold Award in each of the past six years.

e Platinum Award — the highest level of recognition — is presented to businesses making an impact both within and beyond their walls addressing one or more of the many health challenges impacting communities across the state. Platinum-level awardees

demonstrate data-driven programming and are leveraging cross-sector collaborations or partnerships improving the health, well-being and equity of their community.

HAWP, a public health initiative developed through a partnership between the Arizona Department of Health Services and the Maricopa County Department of Public Health, will recognize Delta Dental and fellow honorees for their wellness e orts on Monday, June 26, at the Desert Willow Conference Center in Phoenix.

“In addition to providing cost-e ective dental bene ts to our members, Delta Dental works to help the underserved and underinsured children, adults and seniors in Arizona access the oral health care they need by funding programs fo-

cused on dental disease prevention, oral health education and medical-dental integration,” said Jolean Fleck, senior vice president of people and organizational development at Delta Dental.

“Beyond this, Delta Dental employees volunteered 839 hours at 22 events in the past year. at means 66% of our employees are actively volunteering in the community compared to the national average of 32%. We are exceptionally proud of our employees and the culture of care they have created at Delta Dental of Arizona.”

taken to the victim.

“Contact was made with the victim who responded to the police department to take custody of the dog and she was incredibly grateful; she was so fortunate and grateful that the puppy was safe,” Winn said. “And that’s really the main thing is that we were able to get these dogs back safe and healthy.”

Winn explained why she believed Sines would steal the husky puppy in the rst place.

“Huskies are expensive dogs, and if somebody is wanting a husky, but they’re unwilling to pay a price for it, that is something that they may do is steal a dog,” she said. “And it’s very unfortunate because there is a victim in this case, and this is a puppy, and we know that the public cares about puppies and we care about puppies. And so, it’s very unfortunate. It’s very sad. ey are expensive dogs; (it appears) she didn’t want to pay for it.”

Investigators’ attentions now turn to the public to nd the correct home for the other unidenti ed puppy.

“We’re looking for the public’s assis-

tance,” Winn said. “We want to say, if you’ve recently had a puppy taken, and you have a description of this dog, you have proof of ownership or you have some type of police report saying that your dog was stolen, please contact us, let us know, so we can see if this is in fact your dog so we can get the dog back to the rightful owner.”

e Glendale Police Department nonemergency contact number is 623930-3000.

PUPPY

Was there ever a lousier time to be young?

BY DAVID LEIBOWITZ Glendale Star Columnist

The family of ve sat across from us, and I couldn’t stop watching them throughout dinner. e oldest of the three kids looked maybe 13, though mostly I saw only the top of her head.

She spent dinner tapping at her iPhone. Her two siblings, perhaps 10 and 8, a girl and a boy, also had electronic devices at the table, and they stayed engrossed in their digital worlds.

Take a bite. Tap. Chew, tap. Spear a forkful of chow mein. Tap, tap, tap. ey rarely looked up. Just tapped away life.

I would have eavesdropped on the family’s conversation, except there was nothing to overhear. Dad took a call at one point. at was the sum total of their chatter.

Something occurred to me as I watched, a thought I’ve been pondering for days. I think I’m correct, though I hope not.

What a miserable childhood the 21st century provides its children. Has there ever been a lousier time to be young?

I grew up in the 1970s in Queens, New York, a time when there were no bicycle helmets. ere was no such thing as a cellphone or video games, no such thing as a GPS to track your location 24/7, no Ritalin, no cable TV, no internet, no “peanut-free” lunchrooms, no vegan snacks and no such thing as a “helicopter parent.”

For toys, I had a baseball mitt and a worn basketball, a G.I. Joe and the board game “Operation” — for an afternoon, until my brother and I lost the plastic arm and leg bones. Our Zenith TV got NBC, CBS and ABC, plus three fuzzy independent stations that ran the “Million Dollar Movie” and sports. We also got a couple of UHF channels where you could catch wrestling, provided you held the TV antenna and stood balanced on

one leg with a hand on the windowsill.

It was a great time to be a kid. I wouldn’t trade it for all the iPhones and Nintendo Switches known to man. at’s what I thought watching these kids tap on thousand-dollar devices while mom and dad split some Mongolian beef.

eir blank faces and oblivion took me back to the summer I was 12, after fth grade.

My neighborhood was gripped with terror that June, held captive by a serial killer who called himself “Son of Sam.”

e .44 Caliber Killer struck eight times in New York between the summer of 1976 and 1977, killing six and wounding seven. Sam spent the summer of ’77 burrowed deep in our brains, because of the letters he left at the scene or mailed to Jimmy Breslin at the Daily News.

“I love to hunt,” Sam wrote. “Prowling the streets looking for fair game – tasty meat. e wemon of Queens are z prettyist of all.”

My parents took extreme precautions to keep us safe that summer. Every night,

once our family nished eating meatloaf or sh sticks — TV o , no books allowed at the table — my mother said “You two be careful” and “No crossing Utopia Parkway” before sending us back out to play ball or ring-o-levio until all the good sitcoms came on at 8.

We jumped bikes over trash cans. We shoplifted baseball cards from Henry’s candy store. We ignored the warnings about Utopia Parkway and chucked crab apples at the city bus. We were kids who thought we’d live forever, Son of Sam aside.

e only thing we tapped was someone’s doorbell, before we ran and hid behind the bushes.

We never knew what it was to be bored. We never knew the silence of digital life. Childhood then was loud and fun. It was nothing like the sad childhood of 2023 — and thank God for that.

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

Late SRP president was a servant leader

BY J.D. HAYWORTH

Glendale Star Columnist

He was no “urban cowboy,” but Bill Schrader’s rst cattle drive followed a cosmopolitan course — at least by today’s standards.

And the “cattle trail” taken in 1941 sounds as if it could be a daily commute these days.

From a West Valley start at 27th Avenue and Baseline Road, Bill helped drive the herd eastward into Tempe, then north, right up Mill Avenue.

“We drove our cattle right through the middle of Tempe,” Schrader remembered. “Cows walkin’ on sidewalks … (and since) the river was running that year, and it was so full, we had to cross

the Tempe Bridge.”

Longtime Valley residents might wonder about taking such a circuitous route to the old Phoenix Stockyards, but Bill and his family weren’t in the beef business.

e Schraders were moving their dairy operation from Laveen to Scottsdale and 12-year-old “Billy” was actively involved.

“I’ll never forget it … all the way to Hayden and Indian School in Scottsdale.”

e West’s Most Western Town became Bill Schrader’s hometown, and the early morning chores on the Scott-

sdale dairy farm instilled in him a personal vision and work ethic that was anything but passive.

Active in the youth group at his Methodist Church, taking on leadership roles at Scottsdale High and in the 4-H Club, young Bill would never be called a “loner.”

As he pursued his higher education at Arizona State College (now ASU), Schrader discovered an even greater level of involvement via the ballot box.

Mid-20th century Arizona remained mostly agrarian, so Bill’s election as superintendent of the annual 4-H Fair during his ASU days wasn’t “small potatoes” to the thousands of 4-H members and their families who competed to win accolades for their farm and

home skills.

ere was a much more personal element for Schrader — his marriage at age 21 to his high school sweetheart, Bondena. Together, they would raise four children.

e ballot box again beckoned. Elected to the City Council in 1958 at age 29, Schrader four years later became Scottsdale’s rst elected mayor under the current city charter.

e young mayor charted a course that helped Scottsdale grow.

Blunting an attempt by Phoenix to annex property to the McDowell Mountains, Scottsdale annexed DC Ranch, expanded the city limits to the Carefree

READER’S VIEWPOINT

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Protect digital ads from ‘techlash’

Editor:

As a small-business owner specializing in targeted advertising for companies in the West Valley and across the state, I know rsthand how essential digital ads are to the growth and success of local businesses.

In today’s ultra-competitive marketplace, companies must utilize digital advertising to increase visibility, attract potential customers and drive sales.

e majority of my clients are family-owned and -operated businesses, representing various industries.

ey depend on targeted digital advertising to increase brand awareness and sales in their local markets. However, any disruption or upheaval to the digital advertising ecosystem could spell disaster for small businesses. Larger corporations have the nancial resources to comply with strict regulations or com-

HAYWORTH FROM PAGE 8

Highway, maintained rights to underbird Field (now Scottsdale Airport) along with Shea Boulevard and established Scottsdale Road as the boundary with Phoenix. All under Schrader’s leadership.

Following his two-year term as mayor, Bill followed the example of his father and won election to the Salt River Project Board of Directors. He served District 7 — Scottsdale, northern Tempe and eastern Phoenix — in that role until 1990, when he was elected SRP vice president.

In 1994, Schrader was elected president. His three four-year terms coincided with the six two-year terms of a certain congressman.

Personal observations attest to the fact that Bill was “everyman,” but not just any man.

Schrader seemed comfortable in any setting — whether o ering committee testimony in Washington, walking cotton elds in the East Valley or volunteering with the Charros during Spring Training at Scottsdale Stadium.

pensate through increased advertising expenditure, leaving small businesses at a severe disadvantage.

I recently traveled to Washington with part of a group of fellow businesses owners, all of whom depend on digital advertising. We arrived with a message to Congress: protect small businesses. It is imperative to safeguard small businesses’ ability to leverage digital advertising to reach potential customers.

Our representatives should support policies that prevent any devastating impact on small businesses that could result from changes to the digital advertising landscape. I urge Congress to defend small-business owners and their right to use digital ads.

Let’s prioritize the well-being of small businesses and ensure they can compete on a level playing eld with larger corporations.

Drew Ament Glendale

AROUND THE BLUHMIN’ TOWN

e past and present of cooking

BY JUDY BLUHM

Glendale Star Columnist

What’s for dinner? ree little words. Spoken over a billion times a day, in millions of places, in thousands of languages, all for one reason: people like to eat. No politics, culture, customs, religion, geography, income, age or race can divide us!

Eating is a universal human “common denominator” that brings us all together in the one place we want to be — the dining room. I almost said “kitchen,” and then caught myself, since just because we like to eat doesn’t mean we want to cook.

But his casual, congenial demeanor should never be confused with living life in “cruise control.”

Perhaps because SRP’s mission is to deliver water and power to so much of Arizona, Schrader employed a nautical metaphor to convey what energized his approach to living.

“Don’t wait for your ship to come in — swim out and meet that ship!”

Schrader met the end of his earthly existence on May 17 at age 93.

When family and friends gathered at Scottsdale United Methodist Church on June 3 to celebrate his life, they did so knowing that it was where young “Billy” rst answered the call as a servant leader.

And many in attendance also believed that if the Almighty is ever in need of volunteers for a cattle drive right up the “Streets of Gold,” William Perry Schrader will be rst in line.

J.D. Hayworth worked as a sportscaster at Channel 10, Phoenix, from 1987 until 1994 and represented Arizona in Congress from 1995-2007.

A woman emailed me to say that she is “done with cooking” from now until September. She claims it is “too hot” so she will toss an occasional salad, slice a piece of fruit, maybe chop vegetables and always pour a nice glass of wine while her husband does the rest. “His turn” is how she put it.

When I told this to my husband, Doug, he laughed and then accused me of making this up. I am a writer, so maybe sometimes I make things up. But right now, somewhere in Arizona, there are men cooking dinner, Doug! And right now, there are millions of men around the world cooking!

I was raised in an era when families sat around a table once a day and ate dinner together. Before cell phones, texting, social media or the after-school sports games that have taken over the schedule, families all shared a meal together. Every day.

My mother ruled the kitchen, and it was not a democracy in our house. She cooked, served, and we happily (most of the time) ate what was in front of us.

Except if it was liver, because then I would be sneaky and feed it to the dog. How times have changed. Now kids just refuse!

Cooking is now an “art form,” elevated by the numerous star chefs and competitive television shows. ey are supposed to enlighten us, the ordinary, on how to cook a meal.

Want to make a turkey sandwich? A world-renowned chef will take us through the steps. Just pan-sear the turkey in cranberry juice with bits of chopped apple; make a mayonnaise mixture with fresh dill, cilantro and lime; cook thick bacon; slice some exotic cheese. After baking your own bread, just arrange the blessed turkey, mayo, sprouts, bacon and cheese with thinly sliced tomatoes, then garnish with homemade cranberry sauce. Geez, so easy!

Well, there is a crazed woman (me) who will beat your hot mess of a sandwich and show you how “real people” make food. Grab a couple of slices of bread, some turkey, lettuces, a jar of mayonnaise and voila! Done in one minute! And delicious!

Sometimes, cooking is a chore and a bore. Which is why we can go out to eat. at is what restaurants are for, to help in our darkest food moments, when all the pots and pans try to ambush us into cooking.

What’s for dinner? A thousand recipes, but I am out of ideas. Shall I ask Doug to take “his turn?” Wish me luck. Bon appétit.

Judy Bluhm is a writer and a local Realtor. Have a comment or a story? Email her at judy@judybluhm.com.

ai fried chicken eatery opens in Glendale

BY JOE McHUGH Glendale Star Staff Writer

After being in the ai restaurant business for over 15 years, owner Andrew Pezhathavedwat wanted to get away from the norm and take an interesting spin on the culture’s food.

en the idea hit him — turn the ai taste he was so familiar with, and apply it to an American staple food: fried chicken. en, the basis for his new Glendale restaurant, Chickii, was born.

“I just brought a bunch of ai food and ai avor into American fried chicken, something like the typical Nashville hot chicken,” Pezhathavedwat said. “I had been in the restaurant business for a long time, in ai restaurants, and so I wanted to do something new other than traditional ai restaurants.”

Chickii opened its doors in May and has some new avors the fried chicken business hasn’t seen before.

e menu features sandwiches, tenders, wings, fries and even a rice bowl,

tapping into its owner’s traditional ai roots. e chicken is prepared with a panko crust, which gives it a more noticeable crunch than that of traditional American fried chicken.

Di erentiating the restaurant even more than its competitors, however, is the avors and sauces. e ai-inspired menu o ers the signature Chickii sauce, soy glaze, peanut, honey orange, yellow curry and green curry.

For Pezhathavedwat, the creativity comes from his experience in the ai restaurant business and his childhood.

“We have been in the ai restaurant business for a long time, so the avor that we have here is from my upbringing,” Pezhathavedwat said. “I thought it would be pretty cool to just put it on fried chicken. I thought it would be a good idea and a good way to get people to try ai food and try ai avors because typically people like fried chicken,

Taking his years of experience in the Thai restaurant business, owner Andrew Pezhathavedwat put his own spin on fried chicken by creating Chickii, a Thai-inspired fried chicken restaurant that is now open in Glendale. (Chickii/Submitted)

Echo Park 303 secures 1st tenant

BY GLENDALE STAR STAFF

The Phoenix O ce of JLL, on behalf of real estate investor and developer Echo Real Estate Capital, recently inked Echo Park 303 its rst tenant — logistics specialist Axle on Demand — on a 126,075-square-foot pre-lease.

e transaction represents Axle on Demand’s sixth metro Phoenix location and lls more than half of Echo Park 303’s Building A almost four months before the completion of the Class A industrial project.

Echo Park 303 is Echo Real Estate Capital’s rst metro Phoenix industrial development. e 676,336-square-foot project totals two buildings on approximately 40 acres at 9501 N. 151st Avenue, Glendale, and 9701 N. 151st Avenue,

Glendale.

It is located within Woolf Logistics Center, which is minutes from the Loop 303 and Northern Parkway.

Since its founding in 2016, Echo Real Estate Capital has completed more than $500 million in acquisition and development activity in eight states.

“We are huge proponents of the Phoenix market and excited to be nearing completion on our rst industrial development here,” Echo Real Estate Capital principal Jon Boyajian said.

“We are equally pleased to welcome Axle on Demand, who, like us, is looking to grow in this strategic industrial hub.

Signing this pre-lease months before project completion has us optimistic for the future of Echo Park 303 and the

tenant synergy we will create here. We are grateful to JLL and the entire project team for this ongoing success.”

With its new lease, Axle on Demand will occupy approximately 55% of Echo Park 303’s Building A, which it will use for third-party logistics services spanning warehousing, ful llment and IT operations. Building A totals 220,240 square feet with a rear-load con guration. It features 32-foot clear height, 135foot secured concrete truck court, 3,000 amps of power and 3,100-square-foot spec o ce suite.

Also under construction is Echo Park 303 Building B, a 455,936-square-foot, Class-A cross-dock warehouse featuring 40-foot clear height, 185-foot secured concrete truck court, 6,000 amps of

JOHN LYDON

power and 3,850-square-foot spec o ce suite. Building B is available for a single tenant or divisible to 225,000 square feet for multi-tenant use.

Additional features at Echo Park 303

CHICKII FROM PAGE 10

so bringing ai avors along with it, that maybe they would give it a chance rather than going to a traditional ai restaurant.”

Rounding out Chickii’s menu are two drinks — ai tea and a house-made lychee lemonade.

Picking the location, Pezhathavedwat said, was the easy part, as it was an area he knows well.

“It is close to my home, and I am more familiar with the surrounding area, so I was thinking there would be a good area for the restaurant,” he said.

Pezhathavedwat is happy for all the work that he, his friends and family put in to get it up and running.

“My family and friends were my biggest supporters in helping me start Chickii,” he said. “But I was just really excited to open it.”

Chickii

20260 N. 59th Avenue, Suite A101, Glendale 602-506-6588, chickiiglendale.com

PARK

include 163 dock-high and six grade-level doors, 743 parking spaces and 120 trailer spaces in gated yards, electric vehicle charging stations, two-story storefront windows, 60-foot speed bays, 7-inch reinforced slab, ESFR re sprinklers and PAD zoning.

Both buildings are slated for completion in September 2023.

Anthony Lydon, John Lydon and Kelly

Royle of JLL represented Echo Real Es-

tate Capital in the pre-lease transaction. John Grady with CBRE represented Axle on Demand.

“Between 2021 and 2022, metro Phoenix industrial demand grew by more than 56%,” John said. “ at growth was spurred in part by logistics and parcel delivery — a sector that tenants like Axle on Demand and projects like Echo Park 303 make happen. Each of these companies re ect the ongoing potential of our market.”

Jose Andres Hernandez happy to be in Phoenix

BY JAMES LOTTS

Glendale Star Staff Writer

Most athletes have dreamed of playing in front of their hometown crowd, and mid elder Jose Andres Hernandez is doing just that since he signed with Phoenix Rising FC in December.

Hernandez said he wanted to return and play in Phoenix at some point during his career to give back to the Valley.

“It’s amazing,” Hernandez said. “I think I’ve said it multiple times throughout my career, it was de nitely one of those things that was in the bucket list.”

Hernandez was born in Ixtapan de la Sal, Mexico, and grew up in Maryvale. He attended Maryvale High School and,

from there, he took his talents on the pitch to UCLA and then the professional level. Hernandez, 26, said he recognizes his role as a mentor in the Phoenix area.

“It’s awesome to take some of those younger guys who are coming up under my wing,” he said.

Hernandez mentioned he wants to see more kids from the Maryvale area make their way into the Phoenix Rising Academy, as he knows there is talent among the area’s youth.

Rising head coach Juan Guerra recognized the role Hernandez could play in the locker room and on the eld.

“He’s an unbelievable human being. He’s a great kid,” Guerra said. “He understands our game model very, very well,

and he also understands the culture that we want to implement outside of the eld and in that locker room. So, we’re very lucky and grateful to have him.”

Guerra coached Hernandez during their time with Oakland Roots SC and highlighted Hernandez’s skills as a leader.

“He’s a coach on the eld,” Guerra said. “He’s coaching people, he’s talking, he’s supporting people and he’s also making sure that he’s a positive impact in whatever he’s doing.”

Hernandez has made a positive impact on and o the eld. He visited three local elementary schools as a part of the Reading with Rising program and even helped build a playground for one of them.

Hernandez said he wants to continue volunteering.

Guerra said it did not take long for Rising fans to back their team’s hometown representative.

“When we rst signed him, at rst it didn’t make a lot of noise,” Guerra said. “But it only took one home game for him to play in and move around and score a goal and now everybody was talking about the kid.”

Hernandez is inspired by the fans’ energy and being near Maryvale.

“I think I’ve played two games in front of the home crowd … but it’s been amazing,” Hernandez said.

“Obviously, this club prides itself, again, on the community and the community gives back by showing up and having probably the best fan base in the league. So, just being able to represent the team, represent myself, my family and obviously Maryvale in front of them is pretty inspiring.”

Midfielder Jose Andres Hernandez, who grew up in Maryvale, signed with Phoenix Rising FC in December. (Phoenix Rising FC/Submitted)

tar The Glendale

The Glendale Star publishes on Thursday. The weekly calendar — a listing of entertainment events such as concerts, theatrical performances, events for schools, churches, county parks and nonprofit groups — runs every issue.

Shrinky Dink Take and Bake Keychains

ALL JUNE

Teens between the ages of 12 and 18 can drop by the Velma Teague Library Teen Zone throughout the month of June to make a Shrinky Dink keychain. Create a design of your own using colored pencils and Shrinky Dink transparent sheets, or select from a variety of design templates. Visit the public service desk to pick up a key chain, then take your masterpiece home, pop it in the oven and watch it shrink and harden.

Velma Teague Library, 7010 N. 58th Avenue, Glendale, free, glendaleazlibrary.com

The Open Mic WEDNESDAYS

Stir Crazy Comedy Club hosts its weekly open mic night. Those interested are likely to see new talent as well as seasoned comedians just looking to work on new material. Think you have what it takes to take the stage and make the audience laugh? Now is your chance. There are 10 sign-up spots that will become available online at noon on Monday.

Stir Crazy Comedy Club, Westgate Entertainment District, 6751 N. Sunset Boulevard, Suite E206, Glendale, visit website for ticket prices and times, stircrazycomedyclub. com

Momma’s Organic Market SATURDAYS

Featuring food trucks, local artisans and fresh produce, this weekly farmers market gives locals the chance to shop local and shop fresh. Taking place near Dillard’s, new vendors grace this event weekly. Admission is free, and furry friends are allowed if they’re on a leash. Cash and cards are accepted as methods of payment, and the market runs from 8 to 11 a.m.

Arrowhead Towne Center, 7780 W. Arrowhead Towne Center, Glendale, 8 a.m., free, arrowheadtownecenter.com

Events must be open to the public to be considered and generally must be held within the Star’s coverage area, which is in the city of Glendale.

Weekly calendar items print on a space-available basis. The only way to guarantee that an item will print is to purchase an advertisement.

Submissions must reach our o ce by 4 p.m. Thursday to be considered for the following Thursday publication. Submissions must be in writing and may be emailed to Jordan Rogers, jrogers@timeslocalmedia.com.

Honest Soulz Band JUNE 15

Join the Honest Soulz Band at Westside Blues and Jazz Club for a night of soulful, smooth-sounding jazz and drinks with all your favorites.

Westside Blues and Jazz Club, 17045 N. 59th Avenue, Suite 104, Glendale, 3 to 6:30 p.m., visit website for ticket prices and times, westsideblues.com

Bluegrass Jam JUNE 16

Bring your acoustic instrument and play bluegrass, country, folk, gospel and more, round-robin style! All levels of players are welcome. Audience and singers also are encouraged to attend. This event takes place on the first and third Friday of each month.

Foothills Library, 19055 N. 57th Avenue, Glendale, 1 p.m., free, glendaleazlibrary.com

Landry

JUNE 16 AND JUNE 17

Born and raised in Kitchener, Ontario, Landry first hit the stage in 2006, and has been on the fast track ever since. His charismatic style is kind of what you’d get if you mixed Charlie Chaplin with somebody who spoke. Rumors swirl that Landry once made an elderly woman laugh so hard she spontaneously combusted. It’s not verified, but it has been said that she later returned as a phoenix carrying baked goods. Stir Crazy Comedy Club, Westgate Entertainment District, 6751 N. Sunset Boulevard, Suite E206, Glendale, visit website for ticket prices and times, stircrazycomedyclub. com

Sunday Afternoon Bingo

JUNE 18

Join other adults and play bingo on the third Sunday of every month at the Velma Teague Branch Library. The program will take place in the library’s meeting room. There will be small prizes and books for the winners.

Velma Teague Library — VTL Waiting Room, 7010 N. 58th Avenue, Glendale, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., free, glendaleazlibrary.com

Teens’ Manga Club JUNE 18

Meet up with other teens and discuss manga both recent and old. Suggest your favorites to others, or find something new and exciting from those with similar interests. The club focuses not only on anime and manga, but around the culture that surrounds the community. Heroes Regional Park Library, 6075 N. 83rd Avenue, Glendale, 2 to 4 p.m., free, glendaleazlibrary.

com

Don Williams Sr. and Company JUNE 18

Beginning his musical career at the age of 9, Don Williams Sr. taught himself how to play the keyboard, violin, saxophone, flute, drums and bass guitar. Throughout the years, he’s combined his talent with life experiences to create a show that audiences connect with on a personal level. Williams said, “I’ve learned from my mistakes, enough

to be able to put that feeling into my music. I would like to think that people will listen and relate to it a lot better.” Over the course of his career, Williams has performed alongside acts like the Commodores and Dennis Edwards of the Temptations.

Westside Blues and Jazz Club, 17045 N. 59th Avenue, Suite 104, Glendale, visit website for ticket prices and times, westsideblues.com

Big Band Grandstand JUNE 19

Become part of a big band and practice your musical skills along with a large collection of other like-minded musicians. Any musician who can sight-read charts is encouraged to show up with their own music stand and instrument to play, getting an experience they could not get simply practicing alone at home.

Foothills Library, 19055 N. 57th Avenue, Glendale, 1 to 3 p.m., free, glendaleazlibrary.com

Arizona Rick JUNE 21

Arizona Rick is coming to the Velma Teague Library! This fun and interactive show incorporates balloon props into a variety of games and stories where you are the star. There are a lot of opportunities for audience participation, and if you are selected you might just go home with your very own balloon. Space is limited, and tickets will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis at the Public Service Desk one hour prior to the event.

Velma Teague Library, 7010 N. 58th Avenue, Glendale, 1 to 2 p.m., free, glendaleazlibrary.com

ACROSS

1 Potential syrup

4 Ship’s front

8 Dutch cheese

12 Family card game

13 One with will power?

14 Cover with blacktop

15 Kind of stove

17 Mid-month date

18 Solo of “Star Wars”

19 Pie chart divisions

21 Exact

24 Fan’s cry

25 “East of Eden” brother

26 Blend

28 Interior design

32 Curved molding

34 Signing need

36 Chicago paper, brie y

37 Irritable

39 “Mayday!”

41 Blackbird

42 Summer mo.

44 Orders of pancakes

46 Snarls

50 Annoy

51 Pulitzer winner James

52 Soup cooker

56 Katy Perry hit song

57 Hunt for

58 Wilder’s “-- Town”

59 Leer at

60 Nashville venue

61 Dead heat

DOWN

1 Dine

by Donna Pettman

2 Year in Cancun

3 Driving hazards

4 Wunderkind

5 Seminary subj.

6 Monet’s supply

7 More ironic

8 Disparaging term

9 Pedestal part

10 Declare

11 GI dining hall

16 Slugger’s need

20 Scoundrel

21 Highlander

22 Senate sta er

23 Chill in the

27 Ballot marks

Each numbered row contains two clues and

29 Eccentric

30 Sty cry

31 Baseball stats

33 Curio cabinet

35 Refusals

38 Actor Brynner

40 Viscid

43 Bas-relief medium

45 Noah’s boat

46 Poi base

47 Awestruck

48 Patricia of “Hud”

49 Dance move

53 “-- the ramparts ...”

54 Gigi’s “yes”

55 Three, in Rome

2401

For

Planet Fitness holds 1-year anniversary party

BY JOE McHUGH Glendale Star Staff Writer

Over a year ago, the Cactus area of Glendale received a new Planet Fitness, hoping to tap into the growing Glendale community.

e decision to open the new gym has proved fruitful, and the location recently celebrated its rst anniversary with a party with a number of fun activities to commemorate a successful year on June 3.

“We were thrilled to celebrate our rst anniversary here at Cactus,” Cactus Planet Fitness club manager Luis Chavez said. “It’s been a full e ort here with the community here at Cactus to integrate ourselves into the community and to bring in new members here as

well. It’s been a really nice journey here.

“For myself and all my team here, to get to know people here as well and to

make them feel at home here and a ord something new and bring them into their tness journey and to be a part of that.”

e party was held at the location and featured activities such as a DJ, ra es, prizes and food for anyone in the community that wanted to come — whether a part of the “PF family” or not.

“It was all about just bringing and showing that we’re part of the community, and helping people to give back and to make the environment, like, inviting and comfortable for all,” Chavez said. “And it just had that whole environment for them. So we had a few hours with that, too, just to have everything for all the other members and anybody that wants to join as well.”

Planet Fitness is a national organization with over 2,400 locations that members go to. Home of the “Judgement Free Zone,” the organization has been able to gain a large following in the tness community, as it prioritizes the comfort of its members over anything else.

Equipped with utilities like the “Lunk

In celebration of its first anniversary, the Glendale Cactus Planet Fitness location hosted a party for the community on June 3. (Planet Fitness/Submitted)

Alarm,” Planet Fitness encourages everyone to start on their respective tness journeys in the easiest and least intimidating way possible.

“Planet Fitness is supposed to be affordable — not intimidating — tness for anybody at all tness levels, so the biggest thing is to integrate everybody,” Chavez said. “We cater to rst time or occasional gym users. It’s a hassle-free welcoming environment.

“We believe that everybody achieving goals, making every move or workout count wins along with them as well … it’s been a thrilling experience.”

Chavez said the Cactus location has done well in regard to its new members while helping create a new community of tnessgoers and making their experience the best it can be. is community’s reception at the party is more than what Chavez anticipated, but the feeling of welcome was reciprocated.

“I’ve just been integrating everybody here as a whole,” he said. “So just making sure that everything is comfortable for everybody else. And showing gratitude for everybody to lay us in here as a community in this cactus area here.”

With the anniversary party being a success, Chavez is excited to see what the next couple of years holds for his location, his new members and the community.

“It gives me extra motivation here to keep doing what we’re doing, to create the environment and to have people to allow us to be a part of their tness journey,” Chavez said.

Westgate Wednesdays kicko 2

PHOTOS BY DAVID MINTON

Westgate Entertainment District recently hosted its rst “Westgate Wednesdays” event of the summer.

In addition to music, games, crafts and prizes, Westgate Wednesdays is a themed event, and the event on June 7 had a “Frozen Fiesta” theme where e Snow Sisters and Happy Snow Man were available for photo opportunities.

5

6

1. Raphael Segura gets wrapped in tissue paper to become a snowman by his daughter Annette, 9; 2. Families wait in line to take photos with characters from the Disney movie “Frozen”; 3. Jatzibe Medina takes photos of Mia Gamboa, 3, posing with Anna, Olaf and Elsa from the movie “Frozen”; 4. Cesar Madrigal, 4; Allison Olivares, 7; Joy Marquez, 7; and Danae Marueuz create snowflakes from pipe cleaners and beads; 5. Kids and parents volunteer for a dance contest as Westgate Entertainment District hosts the first Westgate Wednesdays event of the summer; 6. Kids enjoy Westgate’s splash pad; 7. Kids boogie during a four-corners dance contest as Westgate Entertainment District hosts the first Westgate Wednesdays.

3 7

ere are many ways to unlearn an avoidance strategy

My parents owned a cattle ranch around Forest Lakes for 40 years. One of the most memorable horses during those 40 years was a true cattle horse named Apache. In his earlier years, Apache was raised on Red Lake Ranch, 60 miles southwest of Albuquerque, New Mexico. e ranch was situated on a high-altitude plateau with very few trees. While there, Apache had the horrible experience of being bitten on his nose numerous times by rattlesnakes.

As a result of the painful bites, Apache developed an avoidance strategy. Whenever Apache saw a tree limb on the ground or anything resembling a snake, he would instantly sidestep, and sidestep fast. e problem was the rider on Apache ended up stranded in the air, four feet from where Apache sidestepped. A rider — like me — left stranded in the air with the horse and saddle missing is an issue. As far as I know, Apache didn’t want to share his problems with the rider, but he did anyway. What Apache did a ects others.

Eventually, Apache aged beyond his cowboying days and retired at my parent’s ranch, e OW Ranch, in pine tree country in Arizona. Unfortunately for Apache, there are fallen pine boughs everywhere. He had never seen so many snakes. It didn’t matter if the pine bough was long or short, brown or light brown. If it looked like a snake, it was a snake. To Apache’s mind, he would never get bitten by a rattlesnake again.

As a result, we informed anyone riding Apache about his avoidance strategy. You never know what looks like a rattlesnake to a 17-hand horse with an issue and the rider on board potentially sharing his issue. After sharing several per-

CHURCH COMMUNITY CONNECTION

Pastor Ed Delph Glendale Star Columnist

sonal experiences with Apache, I wrote him a letter. “Dear Apache, please cancel my subscription from your issues.” Apache was in a slump.

ere’s a lesson here. Many people are like Apache, bitten by awful stu happening to them in life. Maybe they have had a divorce, a business failure or lost their best friend or loved one. As a result of these types of shaping events, they have lost hope in life or developed avoidance strategies that are crippling them. Like Apache, they are sidestepping real issues in their lives, trying to avoid ever hurting again.

You can’t blame Apache. What happened to him was tough, and I mean tough. Mark Twain once said, “A cat that jumps onto a hot stove will never jump on a stove again.” e problem is the cat will never jump on a cold stove either. at’s called a slump.

But, through the years, I’ve seen many people like Apache get out of their slump. ese people learned to discern if the stove was hot or cold. ey became overcomers. To be an overcomer in life, we need something to overcome. How does one do that? How does an Apache with bad history become a history maker in a good sense?

In 43 years of pastoring people, I’ve noticed seven encouraging signs that reveal they are starting on the road to their partial or complete recovery. Having been through deep trauma, I tend to look

for these signs. Following these signs can move one from a victim to a doctor.

e rst encouraging sign is people need to be willing to change and do something di erent, and take the rst step in dealing with their issues. It takes courage to do that. It’s one thing to be a victim; it’s another thing to stay a victim. It takes a while to learn nothing changes if nothing changes. James Clear said, “ e best way to change the world is in concentric circles: Start with yourself and work your way out from there.”

accept getting out of their slump will be a process, not an event. ey are willing to give time “time.”

And nally, people become willing to let God help. ey desire to give up their self-su ciency for God’s ability and sufciency. To get out of my slump, I traded self-su ciency for God su ciency. at is the best deal I have ever made.

Second, people need to be willing to face the reality of what happened to them. at’s a hard one. ere’s some tough stu happening to people these days. As a result of hurt, many people try to suppress, repress or express what happened to them. e best way is to confess. Let light reveal what darkness is concealing.

ird, people become willing to learn about their issues and how to deal with their problems correctly and positively.

ey need to know that others have overcome the same issues they have. Hurt people aren’t doomed to hurt people. Formerly hurt people are meant to help people.

Fourth, people become willing to reach out to others, get counseling or join a small group with others with similar challenges. ey must be willing to give up being the lone ranger who is a lone stranger.

e fth encouraging sign is people become eager to start replacing destructive habits, attitudes, outlooks and thinking with constructive ones.

e sixth sign is people are willing to

If you or someone you know has several of these signs, be encouraged, deliverance is coming.

Incidentally, Apache, after learning you can jump on a cold stove, became one of the best horses the ranch ever owned. You can teach an old horse a new trick, making him a great history maker. You can do the same with people, too.

P.S. James Clear said, “Be excited for people when they succeed. When a friend or family member reaches an important milestone like getting a promotion or making their rst sale or scoring acceptance into their desired program, or overcoming rattlesnake bites, celebrate it. Buy them a co ee. Send them a card. Tell them you’re proud to know them. Being thrilled on someone’s behalf is a lovely way to be. Winning is better when shared.”

Ed Delph is a noted author of 10 books, as well as a pastor, teacher, former business owner and speaker. He has traveled extensively, having been to more than 100 countries. He is president of NationStrategy, a nonprofit organization involved in uplifting and transforming communities worldwide. For more information, see nationstrategy.com. He may be contacted at nationstrategy@cs.com.

For more youth visit glendalestar.com GlendaleStar.com /GlendaleStar

West Valley families to participate in 1st STEAM Fest

BY JORDAN ROGERS

Glendale Star Managing Editor

The Neurodiversity Education Research Center — in partnership with Arizona State University — is slated to host the rst Annual Neurodiversity STEAM Fest to help bridge neurodiversity in education and STEM education.

An event ideal for middle school teachers, students and their families, this program is given by instructors and event organizers who operate from the neurodiversity paradigm and have experience working with students with learning disabilities, including autism.

For the last two years, Science Prep Academy — a program of Neurodiversity Education Research Center — has been working with ASU on a device called the M5Stick. Cintya Arcos, program coordinator for Science Prep Academy, said the device could become important in the neurodivergent education regime.

“It’s a little device that essentially will play music, and it’s programmed in different ways, whether it’s through coding or just di erent programs that the ASU research team has provided that can be really complex or really user friendly, depending on how they want to use it,” Arcos said. “Essentially, when you move this device, it’ll make di erent noises, and this could be used for maybe those individuals who are nonverbal or have limitations within body movements.

“It could also be used within the autistic community, not necessarily to communicate, but maybe if we all do a yoga class together, that device will essentially think in harmony, and they can use it in many other di erent ways.”

e M5Stick will be introduced at the rst Annual Neurodiversity STEAM Fest, and Arcos hopes the exposure will bring awareness to the device and what it can do.

“We want to bring awareness to the device and the partnership with ASU to see how this little device can essential-

ly bring the community together within neurotypical settings and neurodivergent students, and just bridging that gap together,” Arcos said.

Aside from the M5Stick, the event will have numerous STEAM-based activities such as hands-on math fun and wearable technology to use music and sound for teaching and learning, but soon-to-

be 11th grade student at Science Prep Academy and Peoria resident Cristian Arrieta is most looking forward to the robotics demonstration.

“Just showing o the robots to all sorts of kids and how we just programmed it and how they can be interested in robotics … it’s de nitely something that I’m de nitely somewhat interested in.”

Cristian has been attending Science Prep Academy for the last ve years. Claudia Arrieta, Cristian’s mom, said she hopes the STEAM Fest brings attention to the school.

“From a parent’s standpoint, it’s hard to nd programs that you feel will help your kiddo,” Claudia said. “I’m hoping that it helps other parents become aware that there are other options and schools out there for their kids rather than trying to struggle through the public school system.”

Cristian was diagnosed with autism when he was in preschool. Ever since, Claudia said, he has been in and out of the public school system.

Since she came across Science Prep Academy, the school has been everything she was looking for, for her son.

“We’re used to making that trip from Peoria to Phoenix now for about ve years; it was de nitely worth it,” Claudia said. “I haven’t had to look anywhere since. ey expect more from their students and they set the bar higher, and they don’t just stop at learning the basics. ey really show them they can do more than what the common misconception of what they can achieve.

“Pretty much nally found a permanent school for him. I think Science Prep o ers everything I think that I was always looking for.”

For more information on Science Prep Academy, visit scienceprepacademy. com.

Peoria resident Cristian Arrieta, middle, is looking forward to showing o the robotics at the First Annual Neurodiversity STEAM Fest. (Science Prep Academy/Submitted)