Gilbert Sun News - 04-26-2020 by Times Media Group

Area farm ready for peachy time

Gilbert athlete stranded in Italy

PAGE 17

PAGE 21

An edition of the East Valley Tribune

INSIDE

This Week VOTING ENDS THIS WEEK!

Vote for your favorites! Visit GilbertSunNews.com to vote.

NEWS............................. 14 Gilbert Council fills final vacancy.

COMMUNITY..........15 Pandemic inspires Gilbert artists.

COMMUNITY........................................15 BUSINESS..............................................17 OPINION................................................20 SPORTS...................................................21 PUZZLE.................................................. 22 CLASSIFIED..........................................24

FREE ($1 OUTSIDE OF GILBERT) | GilbertSunNews.com

Sunday, April 26, 2020

Remote learning has drawbacks for Gilbert kids BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor

ighland High School sophomore Gage Dayley says he’s seen a few snags with distance learning – especially when it comes to his honors chemistry class. “It’s not really lab work anymore,” said the Gilbert teen. “It’s lot of watching videos and learning off that way. She’s still teaching but we don’t get to play with fire.” Gilbert Public Schools officially rolled out online lessons March 23 after the governor closed campuses statewide due to COVID-19. With over eight in 10 parents in the country reporting their children are learning remotely, 49 percent of them worry the pan-

demic will affect their children’s education, according to a Gallup Poll conducted April 3-5. That percentage increased from 42 percent when the poll was conducted March 24-29. GPS, the fifth largest school district in the state, acknowledged limitations with remote learning. The district, like virtually all in Arizona, is following the state Board of Education’s advice that bad grades not be given to junior high and high school students during their last quarter of the year. Elementary school students aren’t even receiving grades; their assignments are solely to enhance their learning. “It’s really important for us to remember

Money flowing into Gilbert mayoral race

lots of these things that have been happening are out of the control of our students and families,” said Barbara Newman, GPS executive director of teaching and learning. “And so, we don’t want anything that we’ve implemented to negatively impact our students in any way,” she said. Newman, who gave an overview of virtual learning to the Governing Board in early April, said that because younger students don’t have as much experience with independent learning their assignments are “more of enhancement and enrichment.” “So, we’re not going to start the new year expecting that our kids already have mastered all these standards,” she said.

Wonder boy

see REMOTE page 10

BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor

wo mayoral hopefuls who may lack in name recognition more than made up for it with hefty campaign war chests. Four candidates are vying for mayor in the Gilbert Town Council primary in August – Lynne King Smith, Matt Nielsen, Brigette Peterson and Gary Livacari. Mayor Jenn Daniels is not running for re-election. King Smith, who owns and operates several businesses in Gilbert, led the field with $52,000 raised, according to recently filed campaign finance reports. The political newcomer loaned herself $50,000 and $2,000 was donated by businessman Jim Hayden, who is her campaign strategist. King Smith’s team also includes Howard Morrison, a partner at Morrison Ranch who serves as treasurer, and Michelle Kauk,

see CAMPAIGN page 4

To look at that smile on 4-year-old Cruz Mendonca of Gilbert, you wouldn’t know he had a brain tumor removed this month and faces possible chemotherapy and radiation treatment. There’s a reason he’s smiling and you’ll read why on page 3. (Facebook)

Are you expe

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Are you ready to Are you ready to Research shows that even a mild Are you ready to start living decline in hearing can lead to Are you ready to Are you ready to start living better? better?

Y N      

startstart living better? “Finally having the volume living better?

start living better? social isolation, anxiety or, worse, dementia1. Treating hearing loss with hearing aids has been shown to help.

You’ve noticed a People seem to You have difficu You need others You strain to he You remain quie

on the TV normal for my wife is pretty cool. And Research shows that even a mild to you ready Are you ready to If you checked “ Research shows that even aAre mild The good news? Studies also to stream the TV sound decline intohearing can leadAre to advantage o you ready to decline inyou hearing can lead start Are ready to start living better? Research shows that living even a mild better? Are you ready to conclude that treating hearing Research shows that evenanxiety a loss mild“Finally social isolation, or, worse, wirelessly, without having a “Finally having the volume social isolation, anxiety or, worse, having the volume living better? decline in hearing can lead to start start living better? Joi 1 start living better? 1 Are you ready tofeels decline in or hearing can lead tohearing . Treating loss dementia can combat delay many of these . Treating hearing loss with dementia on the TVvolume normal for my social isolation, anxiety or, worse, on the with TV normal for myhaving the cord“Finally hanging over me, 1 to help. “Finally having the volume hearing aids has been to help. social isolation, anxiety or, worse, hearing aids has been shown living better? . Treating hearing loss wife with dementia “Finally having the volume negative consequences — and Research shows that even a shown mild is pretty on the TVwife normal for mycool. And isstart pretty cool. And very free and natural to me.”for my Space is limited, so c on the TV normal Research shows that even a mild Research shows1 .that even aaids mild hearing has been shown to help. Treating hearing loss with dementia The good news? Studies also wife is pretty cool. And The good news? Studies also on the TVmild normal forTV mysound lead to improved relationships, stream the to stream the TV sound decline in that hearing tocan lead declinelead in hearing to Research shows that even ato decline in hearing can lead to can wife is pretty cool. And Research shows even a mild hearing aids has been shown to help. The good news? Studies also conclude that treating hearing loss conclude that treating hearing loss to stream TV sound Research shows that even a worse, mild decline in hearing can lead to thethe social isolation, anxiety or, worse, social isolation, anxiety or, “Finally having volume wirelessly, without having a wirelessly, without having aAdvanced invisible* tech confidence and quality of life. wife is pretty cool. And “Finally having the volume decline in hearing can lead toanxiety or, worse, to stream the TV sound social isolation,

1 “Finally thehaving volume social isolation, anxiety or, worse, decline in 1hearing can lead toof conclude that treating hearing loss . Treating loss with dementia the volume shows that even a having mild .or Treating hearing loss with dementia can combat delay many these can combat or also delay many these on thewithout TV normal for mya“Finally wirelessly, having the hearing TV normal forResearch my social isolation, anxiety or, worse, “Finallyon having theof volume cord hanging feels 1 over me, The good news? Studies cord hanging over me, feels is now to stream the TV sound . Treating hearing loss with dementia wirelessly, without having a foravailable! social isolation, anxiety or, worse, decline in hearing can lead to 1 hearing aids has been shown to help. “Finally having thecool. volume hearing shown to help. on the TV normal my 1 aids has been can combat or delay many of these With everything we know, there’s wife is pretty cool. And . Treating hearing loss with dementia wife is pretty And . Treating hearing loss with dementia negative consequences — and negative consequences — and cord hanging over me, feels on the TV normal hearing for my aids 1 has been shown to help. social isolation, anxiety or, and worse, on the TV normal for my “Finally having the volume . Treating hearing loss with dementia Our latest Miniscopic™ Syn very free and natural to me.” conclude that treating hearing loss very free natural to me.” wife is feels pretty cool. And on— the TV normal my wirelessly, cord hanging over me, The good news? also hearing aids has been shown to help. negative consequences and The good news? Studies also without having a to stream the sound stream the TVfor sound wife to is Studies pretty cool. And . Treating hearing lossTV with dementia lead to improved relationships, lead to improved relationships, very free and natural to me.” no reason to let hearing loss go on the TV normal for hearing aids has been shown to help. The good news? Studies also hearing aidsmyare designed stream the TV sound hearing aids has been shown to isthe help. wife pretty cool. And conclude that treating hearing loss conclude that treating hearing loss very and natural to me.” wirelessly, without having a tocool. can combat or delay many of these hearing aids has beenfree shown tois help. lead to improved relationships, The good news? Studies also wirelessly, without having a to stream TV sound wife pretty And is pretty cool. And cord hanging over me, feels confidence and quality ofof life. conclude that treating hearing loss confidence quality ofmany life. wirelessly,wife without having aan invisible * fit The news? Studies also canand combat or to delay of these stream the TV sound can good combat oranymore. delay many these • Give you untreated conclude that treating hearing loss cord hanging over me, feels cord hanging over me, feels The good news? Studies also wirelessly, without having a confidence and quality of life. to stream the TV sound negative consequences — consequences and can combat or delay many of these conclude that treating hearing loss negative — and cord hanging over me, feels negative consequences and wirelessly, without having a verythat can combat or delay many of—these The good news? Studies also free and natural me.” conclude treating hearing lossto to very free and natural me.” With everything we know, there’s • without Deliverhaving pristine audio and to stream the TV sound cord hanging me, feels wirelessly, a very freeover and natural to me.” negative consequences — and With everything we know, there’s can combat or delay many of these lead to improved relationships, very free and natural to me.” lead to improved relationships, With everything we know, there’s leadconsequences to improved negative — and relationships, can combat or delay many of these cord hanging over me, feels cord hanging over me, feelslistening clar very free and natural lead to me.” to improved relationships, exceptional no reason to and let hearing loss confidence go negative consequences — and andfree quality of life. no reason to let hearing loss go conclude that treating hearing loss negative consequences — and confidence quality of life. lead to improved relationships, no reason to let hearing loss go very and natural to me.” very free and natural me.” wirelessly, without having a toeffortless confidence and quality of life. confidence and quality of life. • Provide transiti lead to improved relationships, lead to improved relationships, untreated anymore. confidence and quality of life. With everything we know, there’s With everything weuntreated know, there’s untreated anymore. anymore.

Up to $400 OFF 1

Up to Up to Up to When you’ r e ready, OFF With everything we$400 know, there’s $400 can combat or ofdelay many of these UpOFF to OFF confidence and quality life. Up$400 to no reason to let hearing loss go With everything we know, there’s

you go about your day Up to cord hanging over me, feels Up to Up to to $400 OFF $400Up negative consequences and $400 OFF Up to OFF When you’r—e$400 ready, very free and natural to me.” OFF untreated anymore. $400 OFF When you’ r e ready, lead to improved relationships, When you’ r e ready, $400 OFF When you’ r e ready, $400 OFF ® When us you’rtoday e ready, on NuEar Call to help! schedule we can WhenMSRP you’re ready, confidence and quality of life. When you’ r e ready, we can help! MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTE wecan canhelp! help! we can help! Premier level hearing aids ® ® we can help! MSRP we on NuEar MSRP on NuEar Call usustoday toschedule schedule Call us today to schedule awe free consultation. ® MSRP on NuEar Call us today to MSRP onschedule NuEar MSRP on NuEar Call today to Call us today to schedule MSRP on NuEar Call us today to schedule can help! CALL (480) 964-2 With everything we know, there’s MSRP onPremier NuEar Premier level hearing aids usconsultation. today toaschedule level aids MSRP on NuEar Callhearing us today tolevel schedule Premier hearing aids free consultation. Premier level hearing aids Premier level hearing aids a Call free a free consultation. afree free consultation. a aids freeaconsultation. Premier level hearing aids Premier level hearing Premier level hearing aids a free consultation. MSRP on NuEar free consultation. a consultation. Call us today to schedule no reason to letACCEPTED hearing0% loss go Premier level hearing aids MOST INSURANCES FINANCING AVAILABLE HOME VISITS AT NO CHARGE aMOST free consultation. MOST AVAILABLE INSURANCES HOME ACCEPTED 0% FINANCING AVAILABLE HOME VISITSAT ATNO NO CHARGE HOME VISITS AT NO CHARGE MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTED 0%VISITS FINANCING AVAILABLE INSURANCES ACCEPTED 0% FINANCING VISITS AT NO CHARGE MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTED 0% FINANCING AVAILABLE CHARGE MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTED 0% FINANCING AVAILABLE HOME VISITS AT NO CHARGE MOST ACCEPTED 0% FINANCING AVAILABLE HOME AT NOHOME CHARGE MOSTINSURANCES INSURANCES ACCEPTED 0% FINANCING AVAILABLE HOME VISITS AT NO CHARGEVISITS untreated anymore. 0% FINANCING AVAILABLE HOME VISITS AT CHARGE ® MSRP on NuEarNO Call us today to schedule

we can When you’rhelp! eWhen ready,you’re ready, we can help!we can help! When you’re ready, we can help!

Up to $400 OFF Call (480) 964-2386 today! today! Call (480) 964-2386 today!Call (480) 964-2386

MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTED

0% FINANCING AVAILABLE

HOME VISITS AT NO CHARGE

Call (480) 964-2386 today!

ABC Hearing Centers – Mesa 7165 E. University Dr. Bldg. 17, Suite 167 Mesa, AZ 85207

When you’re ready, we can help!

0% FINANCING AVAILABLE

Callaids (480) 964-2386 today! Dawn Sanchez Call (480) 964-2386 today!CallPremier level hearing (480) 964-2386 today! consultation. Call (480) 964-2386 ABC Hearing Centers – Mesa ABC Hearing Centers – Mesa ABCtoday! Hearing Centers – Mesa Hearing Centers – Mesa ABC ABC Hearing Centers – Mesa Call (480) 964-2386 today! 7165 E. University Dr. Bldg. 17, Suite 167167 7165 E. University Dr. Bldg. 17, Suite Call (480) 964-2386 today! Centers 7165Hearing E. University Dr. Bldg.–17,Mesa Suite 167 7165 E. University Dr. Bldg. 17, Suite 167ABC

MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTED

a free

confidence and quality of life.

no reason to everything let hearingwe loss go there’s With know, untreated noanymore. reason to let hearing loss go

no reasoneverything to let hearing loss go know, there’s With we everything we know, there’s noWith reason to let hearing loss go untreated anymore. untreated anymore. no reason to let hearing loss go untreated anymore. no reason to let hearing loss go untreated anymore. untreated anymore.

E ST . 1 98 5

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

32 • Y

32 • YEARS

R• FO

G • TH EH

E ST . 1 98 5

R• FO

VING • TH SER EH

YEARS Amieva, H., Ouvrard, C., Giulioli, C., Meillon C., Rullier, L., & Dartigues, J. F. (2015). Self-reported hearing loss, hearing aids, and cognitive 1 H., Ouvrard, C., Soc. Giulioli, Meillon C., Rullier, L., & Dartigues, J. F. (2015). Self-reported hearing loss, hearing aids, and cognitive decline in elderly adults: AAmieva, 25-year study. J Am Geriatr 2015 C., Oct;63 (10):2099-104. doi: 10.1111/jgs.13649.

VING • TH SER EH

32 • YEARS

VING • TH SER EH

YEARS

32 • YEARS

VING • TH SER EH

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

R• FO

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

R• FO

E ST . 1 98 5

32 • YEARS

YEARS

E ST . 1 98 5

32 • YEARS

E ST . 1 98 5

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

E ST . 1 98 5

YEARS

E ST . 1 98 5

32 • YEARS

YEARS

32 • YEARS

R• FO

32 • YEARS

E ST . 1 98 5

YEARS

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

R• FO

E ST . 1985

MSRP on NuEar Call us today to schedule Most 32 Bldg. 7165 E.www.abchearingaids.com University Dr. 17, Suite 167 Premier level hearing aids Insurances Accepted a free consultation. Most 32 Mesa, AZ 85207 YEARS

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

R• FO

YEARS

32 • YEARS

R• FO

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

R• FO

Call (480) 964-2386 today! G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

G IMPAIRE D RIN • EA

VING • TH SER EH

7165 E. University Dr. Bldg.Hearing 17, Suite 167Centers – Mesa ABC AZ 85207 Mesa,Mesa, AZ 85207 Mesa, 85207 ABC Hearing Centers Mesa Mesa, AZ 85207–Dawn DawnE. Sanchez 7165 University Dr.AZ Bldg. 17, Suite 167 Sanchez Mesa, AZ 85207 Dawn Sanchez (East of Power on University at Baywood Dawn Sanchez (East of Power on University at Baywood ABC Hearing Centers – Mesa Board Certified Hearing Dawn Sanchez *Individual results may vary. Invisibility may vary bas 7165 E. University Dr. Bldg. 17, Suite (East of Power167 onVISITS UniversityAT at Baywood Board Hearing (East ofUniversity Power on Dr. University atCertified Baywood 7165 E. Bldg. 17, Suite 167 MOST INSURANCES ACCEPTED 0% FINANCING AVAILABLE HOME NO CHARGE of Power on University at Baywood Board(East Certified Hearing Professional Square. Look forWHITE the WHITE Flags!) Board Certified Hearing Mesa, AZ 85207 Instrument Specialist Board Certified Hearing Professional Square. Look for the Flags!) Instrument Specialist Professional Square. Look for Dr. the WHITE Flags!) Professional Square. Look for the WHITE Flags!) Instrument Specialist Dawn Sanchez Professional 7165 E. University Bldg. 17, Suite 167 Instrument Specialist Square. Look for WHITE Flags!) Mesa, AZthe 85207 Mesa, AZ 85207 Instrument Specialist www.abchearingaids.com www.abchearingaids.com (East of Power on University at Baywood Sanchez DawnDawn Sanchez www.abchearingaids.com Board Certified Hearing (East ofwww.abchearingaids.com Power onof University aton Baywood www.abchearingaids.com 32 Board Certified Hearing (East Power University at Baywood Most 32 Mesa, AZ 85207 Dawn Hearing Sanchez Professional Square. Look for the WHITE Instrument Most Flags!) Board Certified 32 Professional Square. Look for the(East WHITE Flags!) Insurances Accepted Instrument Specialist Dawn Specialist Sanchez Most Most 32 of Power on University at Baywood MostProfessional 32 32 Accepted Square. Look for the WHITE Flags!)onInsurances (East of Power University at Baywood Instrument SpecialistHearingBoard Certified Board Certified Insurances Accepted www.abchearingaids.com Amieva, H.,www.abchearingaids.com Ouvrard, C., Giulioli, C., Meillon C., Rullier, L., & Dartigues, J. F. (2015). Self-reported hearing loss, hearing aids, and cognitive Insurances Accepted Insurances Accepted Hearing ® 10.1111/jgs.13649. Amieva, H., Ouvrard, C., Giulioli, C., Meillon C., Rullier, L., & Dartigues, J. F. (2015). Self-reported hearing loss,doi: hearing aids, and cognitive decline in elderly adults: A 25-year study. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2015 Oct;63 (10):2099-104. Professional Square. Look for the WHITE Flags!) Professional Square. Look for the WHITE Flags!) Instrument Specialist H.,Self-reported Ouvrard, C.,hearing Giulioli,loss, C.,www.abchearingaids.com Meillon C., Rullier, L., &and Dartigues, F. (2015). Self-reported hearing loss,Geriatr hearing aids, and cognitive Amieva, H., Ouvrard, C., Giulioli, C., Meillon C., Rullier, L., & Dartigues, J.Amieva, F. (2015). hearing and cognitive Instrument Specialist Amieva, H., Ouvrard, C., Giulioli, C., Meillon C., Rullier, L., & Dartigues, J.Most F. (2015). Self-reported hearing loss,aids, hearing aids, cognitive decline inJ.Hearing elderly adults: A 25-year study. J Am Soc. 2015 Oct;63 (10):2099-104. doi: 10.1111/jgs.13649. 32 ABC Centers – Mesa Most 32 decline in elderly A 25-year study. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2015 Oct;63 (10):2099-104. doi: 10.1111/jgs.13649. decline in elderly adults:adults: A 25-year study. Jstudy. Am Geriatr Soc. 2015 Oct;63 doi:adults: 10.1111/jgs.13649. decline in elderly A 25-year J Am Geriatr Soc. 2015(10):2099-104. Oct;63 (10):2099-104. doi: 10.1111/jgs.13649. Insurances Accepted Insurances Accepted www.abchearingaids.com VING • TH SER EH

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

An edition of the East Valley Tribune Gilbert Sun News is published every Sunday and distributed free of charge to homes and in single-copy locations throughout Gilbert.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Main number: 480-898-6500 | Advertising: 480-898-5624 Circulation service: 480-898-5641 Publisher:

Steve T. Strickbine

Vice President:

Michael Hiatt

ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT

Display Advertising:

480-898-6309

Classifieds/Inside Sales:

Elaine Cota | 480-898-7926 | ecota@timespublications.com TJ Higgins | 480-898-5902 | tjhiggins@timespublications.com Steve Insalaco |480-898-5635 | sinsalaco@timespublications.com Advertising Office Manager:

Lori Dionisio | 480-898-6309 | ldionisio@evtrib.com Advertising Sales Executive:

Jane Meyer | 480-898-5633 | jane@timespublications.com NEWS DEPARTMENT

Executive Editor:

Paul Maryniak | 480-898-5647 | pmaryniak@timespublications.com Managing Editor:

Cecilia Chan | 480-898-5613 |cchan@timespublications.com Reporters:

Jim Walsh | 480-898-5639 | jwalsh@timespublications.com Kevin Reagan | 480-898-5638 | kreagan@timespublications.com Get Out Editor:

Christina Fuoco-Karasinski | 480-898-5631 christina@timespublications.com Photographer:

Pablo Robles | probles@timespublications.com Design:

Christy Byerly | cbyerly@timespublications.com Production Coordinator:

Courtney Oldham | 480-898-5617 production@timespublications.com Circulation Director:

Aaron Kolodny | 480-898-5641 | customercare@evtrib.com Sports Editor: Zach Alvira | 480-898-5630 | zalvira@timespublications.com Gilbert Sun News is distributed by AZ Integrated Media, a circulation service company owned by Times Media Group. The public is permitted one copy per reader. For further information regarding the circulation of this publication or others in the Times Media Group family of publications, and for subscription information, please contact AZ Integrated Media at circ@ azintegratedmedia.com or 480-898-5641. For circulation services please contact Aaron Kolodny at aaron@azintegatedmedia.com.

NEWS

Sick Gilbert boy, 4, gets Superhero visit BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor

OVID-19 couldn’t keep a superhero away from the bedside of a sick Gilbert child at Cardon Children’s Medical Center in Mesa. Unsuspecting Cruz Mendonca, 4, received the virtual visit from his favorite hero, Captain America, during his 13-day stay at the hospital’s pediatric intensive care unit. “He was surprised and excited,” said dad Matt Mendonca, who has two other sons, 10 and 3. “He’s a little shy so he was very intently watching him and listening and he gave him some smiles. “He was very happy to see him and thought it was pretty cool. He was Captain America for Halloween last year.” Banner’s Child Life Services team staged the visit with Comicare, a Goodyear nonprofit that brings costumed characters and comic books to children in hospitals. With COVID-19, the visits are now virtual. Captain America’s alter ego is Mesa resident Andrew Gordon, a seminary teacher by day, who also takes on the role of Batman. “Comicare visits Cardon Children’s patients once a month and Banner Thunderbird Medical Center in Glendale at least once a month,” said Banner Health spokesman Corey Schubert. “They are a huge support to Banner Children’s and the Child Life Program. They are amazing advocates for us and are always willing to make special individual visits, as well.” Cruz has medulloblastoma, a common type of cancerous brain tumor in children. “We kind of noticed it, the headaches a few weeks ago,” Mendonca said. “He has allergies and so we thought it was sinus headaches. It was off and on and being in the house, watching TV maybe it was straining his eyes. “There’s a lot of different things that could have caused the headaches. When we noticed his hands shaking, we decided to get it checked out.” His parents brought him to the emergency room at Cardon Children, where scans detected the tumor.

Cruz was delighted to watch his favorite Superheroes online during his hospital stay. (Banner Cardon Childrren’s Medical Center)

Cruz underwent brain surgery April 10. “They got all the tumor out,” Mendonca said. “But he needs to undergo chemo and radiation. We’re still figuring that out.” Cruz returned home last week and is still recuperating. “I think he is glad to be out,” Mendonca said. “It was kind of a long stay and he missed his family. They allowed only one parent in there at a time. With COVID he would see one of us and then we would trade off. He didn’t get to see his brothers for a couple of weeks and his grandparents but we did do face-time.” Due to the pandemic, Banner Heath is prohibiting visitors from all its locations with exceptions, including pediatric pa-

tients under 18, who are allowed one adult visitor a day. Mendonca said they’ve shared with Cruz limited information about his medical condition. “It’s a lot to take in,” he said. “He doesn’t know all the things. He knows we fixed his head. It’s hard to explain to a 4-year-old.” One of the things Cruz did when he got home was to dress up as Captain America. “He’s recovering and trying to get back to normal,” Mendonca said. “It’s still kind of hard doing everything – getting his hands to do what he wants and his neck is still sore from surgery but he definitely has made a lot of progress and continues to get better.”

NEWS

CAMPAIGN from page 1

founder of MODE Public Affairs and the campaign’s manager. According to the first quarter report that covers Jan. 1-March 31, King Smith so far spent $2,146 with $1,300 for professional petition gathering and the remainder for office supplies and signs. Nielsen, who works for Charter One, a management company for charter schools, came in second with $19,390, according to his filing. His donations, except for $40, were all from Charter One administration – $6,450 from CEO Glenn Way; $6,450 from COO Brent McArthur and $6,450 from COO William Gutterly. Nielsen’s $1,590 in expenditures went mostly toward petition gathering. The third-highest fundraiser with $11,139 was Peterson, who served over 14 years on the town Planning Commission and sat on Council for five years until she resigned to run for mayor. She started off her mayoral bid with $6,714 in the bank and raised $4,425 during the filing period. Donors included Gilbert resident and retiree George Dottl, who gave $2,000; Walter Delecki, former Gilbert Public Schools superintendent and professor at Northern Arizona University, gave $250; Jennifer Yang, a senior business analyst, $100 and Don Skousen, a former Gilbert councilman and former Gilbert Unified School District governing board member, gave $50. Peterson also received money from two political action committees. Arizona Association of Realtors gave $1,000 and Salt River Project Political Involvement Committee donated $900. For the reporting period, Peterson spent $1,452, including $804 for signature gathering services, $183 for photography and $230 for a website. Livacari, a commercial banker, received $4,734. The political newbie’s committee treasurer is former Gilbert Councilman Victor Petersen. Livacari loaned his campaign $2,729, a family member gave a $1,000 loan and Vincent Mercuri in Pennsylvania gave a $1,000 loan.

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

$200. Resident Dottl gave $500; former Gilbert Town Manager Kent L. Cooper gave $100 and former Councilmen Les Presmyk gave $100 and Skousen donated $125. Brigette Peterson Fo u r te e n Gary Livacari Salt River Project employees separately gave money totaling $1,870 to Tilque’s election bid. Tilque also received donations from Ann Gill, president and CEO of Tempe Chamber of ComLynne King Smith Matt Nielsen merce, $100 and from the Livacari’s $1,759 in expenditures in- Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce’s cluded $683 to a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Todd Sanders, president and CEO, and company for graphic design and printing Michael Huckins, public affairs vice president, who each gave $100. and $741 to Facebook for ads. The campaign also received PAC Council race In the race for the two Council seats money – $1,200 from Gilbert Firefighters; that each carry four-year terms are $800 from Salt River Project Political candidates Kathy Tilque, Bus Obayomi, Involvement Committee and $500 from Tyler Hudgins and incumbent Scott Arizona Public Service’s Pinnacle West Anderson. Councilman Jared Taylor PAC. The bulk of Tilque’s expenditures opted not to run for his seat again. involved $1,400 for signature gathering. Tilque, the CEO and president of Gilbert Not far behind her in donations was Chamber of Commerce, led with $10,465, of which she spent $1,639, leaving her Tyler Hudgins, CEO and president of a consulting company who sits on the with $8,673. Donors to Tilque included land-use town’s Redevelopment Commission. He reported $10,104 for the election attorneys Sean Lake, who gave $200, W. Ralph Pew, who gave $200 and Reese cycle, with most of the fundraising and Anderson, who works with Pew, gave expenditures occurring in the fourth

quarter reporting period of 2019. That filing showed donations from former Councilman Petersen, who gave $100 and Councilman Taylor who gave $350. Hudgins also received $500 from land developer Jason Barney and from attorneys Lake, $200 and Anderson, $450. Hudgins loaned his campaign $4,000. In-kind donations included $5,000 from James Adams of Epic Light Media and $350 from Dan Dodge, a Gilbert retiree. Hudgins’ $4,483 in expenditures included $600 for a golf cart, $1,076 for golf cart repairs, $150 to the town for Gilbert Days Parade fees and supplies from Home Depot and Harbor Freight. In third was Obayomi, a digital consultant, who raised $1,528 for the election cycle, of which $1,196 came out of his pocket and $100 from David Awe in Texas. Obayomi reported no expenditures. Coming in last was Anderson, with $2,725, of which he spent $1,038 for operating expenses that were not detailed. His donors included Dottl, who gave $2,600 during the election cycle and $100 from Thomas Verploegen, a Gilbert retiree. Anderson, who is vying for his second term, retired from the town as its planning and zoning director. Running for a two-year term are Councilman Bill Spence and Laurin Hendrix. The seat was vacated by Eddie Cook, who was appointed Maricopa County assessor in February. Spence, a retired Navy commander, was appointed in March to serve on Council for nine months until the seat is filled by election. According to his filing, Spence loaned his campaign $1,330. Spence’s $533 in expenses included $504 for shirts and $28 to GoDaddy for a website. Hendrix reported no money raised or spent for his campaign. Hendrix is an entrepreneur, sits on the Maricopa County Community College District Board and is a former state representative.

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

In these trying times, we are open and ready to serve you!

Door OPEN. Door CLOSE.

Guaranteed. CALL TODAY!

480.635.8114 Free Phone Quotes! We Can Fix Anything!

FREE Service Call (with repair)

65 Value!

21-Point Safety Inspection

With coupon only. May not be combined with other offers. Exp: May 15, 2020

ArizonaGarageDoors.com ROC# 173822

75 OFF

A Pair of Springs

Broken Spring REPAIR!

With coupon only. May not be combined with other offers. Exp: May 15, 2020

Garage Door Opener

369

.95

+LABOR

www.gilbertsunnews.com

6 APRIL 26, 2020

Garage Door Repair

Chamberlain Door Opener

265

1/2 hp Chain Drive with 2 remotes 3 YEAR PARTS & LABOR WARRANTY

Repairs or New Doors • Broken Springs Panel Replacement • Remotes or Openers • • • •

We Service and Repair All Major Brands Night & Weekend Service Available Family Owned & Operated • Insured Discounts: Military, AARP, AAA

Get the Royal Treatment with Spring King Spring King Small Business, Huge Savings!

“VOTED” BEST OF CHINESE!

INSTALLED

Broken Spring?

150

INSTALLED

2 Standard Cycle Oil Tempered Torsion Springs 3 YEAR PARTS & LABOR WARRANTY

Noisy Door? Tune

up with Roller Replacement

602.391.0978

Includes: Lubrication, Set of 13 Ball Nylon Precision Bearing Rolers • Minor adjustments to Door & Opener

www.springkingaz.com

Offers Expire 5-31-20

5.00 OFF

with purchase of $30.00 or more for Lunch or Dinner. One coupon per table, per visit. Not valid with any other offer, expires 5/31/20

10.00 OFF

$ 727 W Ray Rd # B1, Gilbert, AZ 85233 (SE Corner of Ray & Cooper) www.dragonwok.biz

with purchase of $50.00 or more for Dinner. One coupon per table, per visit. Not valid with any other offer, expires 5/31/20

DINE IN • CARRY OUT • DELIVERY

480-782-6889

Chandler’s Affordable Full-Service Veterinary Clinic

4811 S Arizona Avenue Chandler, AZ 85248

(480) 681-6866

www.petdoctoraz.com

50% OFF Spays, Neuters, and Dentals!

Call to set up an appointment for your pet’s customized procedure plan

Walk-ins Welcome/Appointments Available General Services

Canine Vacines

Feline Vacines

Spay & Neuter

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

NEWS

Petition challenges fly in Gilbert JP race

BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor

ormer Gilbert Town Councilman Jordan Ray’s bid for justice of the peace is being challenged by one of his opponents in the Aug. 4 primary. Ken Sampson filed a complaint against Ray’s nomination petitions for the Highland Justice Court election by the April 20 deadline. A date to hear the lawsuit at Maricopa County Superior Court was scheduled for Wednesday, April 29. Other Republican candidates for the office are Aaron Burroughs, Gregory Kelly and Loren Rohner. No Democrats are running. “I noticed Jordan Ray’s petition stated ‘Gilbert Highland District’ when the actual name is ‘Highland Precinct,’” said Sampson, an attorney. “He is using a different office than what he is being elect-

ed for.” Sampson said the wording raises the issue if voters who signed the petition were misled. Ray, who resigned from Council in early April, doesn’t think the challenge has merit. He explained the top of the nomination petition has several fields for a candidate to manually fill out such as name, address and position sought. “So, the third field asked for precinct or district in which you are running and on mine I put Gilbert Highland District,” Ray said. “And, just like that, he challenged me. I added ‘Gilbert’ and in his mind it’s inappropriate, that some how I tricked the voters into signing my petition, they were tricked for what office they were signing for. “The five of us who are running, of the five, three different names were used – one called it ‘Highland District,’ one called

Billie’s Custom Jewelers 33 YEARS EXPERIENCE

Southwest Corner of Gilbert Rd & Riggs Rd 2945 E Riggs Rd #11, Chandler, AZ 85249

it ‘Highland Justice Court District.’” Ray said two lines down in his nomination petition, it states what position he was seeking, namely justice of the peace. Generally, nomination petitions are challenged over signatures. They often involve claims that a signer wasn’t a registered voter in the electoral district for the office the candidate is seeking, or was underage or signed more than once. Candidates for the Highland Justice Court race had to turn in a minimum of 1,111 signatures. Ray turned in 2,125 signatures, followed by Kelly with 1,437 signatures, according to Maricopa County Elections. Burroughs collected 1,412 signatures; Sampson, 1,373 and Rohner, 1,174. Sampson’s petition is being questioned by Gilbert resident and pest control business owner Harrell Trey Boyster. “It was kind of a surprise,” Sampson

said. “I am aware of the lawsuit and I’m currently reviewing the petition but it’s very unclear to me what he is doing trying to challenge my signatures.” Boyster also filed challenges against Burroughs and Rohner, saying he was doing so to check if the three candidates collected enough valid signatures to be on the ballot. “As a concerned citizen I want to make sure we have a fair election,” said Boyster, whose father Harrell H. Boyster is a former justice of the peace. “As long as they got all the signatures that are required we should be fine.” Kelly also field a challenge against Rohner’s petition. The justice courts oversee small claims, civil trials for awards under $10,000 and traffic and criminal misdemeanor hearings. The presiding Highland Court judge is Steven Urie, who is retiring.

Sunday, May 10

Have a special message engraved on your mom’s existing jewelry or create a one-of-a-kind custom gift.

Now Offering

(480) 388-6967

www.BilliesCustomJewelers.com Recommended by Lenny & Jane retired from Rakhman Jewelers

Celebrating 5 Years at this location

Watch Battery Replacement

One coupon per customer Tax & Labor Included. Some Restrictions Apply. Expires 6/30/20

NEWS

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Recycling fees could rise in Gilbert in future BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor

ilbert residents are heading down the road of paying more to keep their blue barrels. In last week’s financial retreat, Town Council authorized staff to proceed with a solid waste rate study during the discal year beginning July 1as it wrestles with the escalating cost of recycling trash. “It costs us more to recycle than to just take it to the landfill,” Public Works Director Jessica Marlow told the council. Marlow said the town has funds to continue the program for fiscal year 2021 without a rate increase but the following year is another story. The town’s contracts with its two ven-

dors for processing and selling Gilbert’s recycled materials this fiscal year increased to $1.04 million from $370,140, according to Marlow. Historically, the town’s recycling program generated revenue, including $629,000 in fiscal year 2017 and $343,000 in fiscal year 2018. But in fiscal year 2019, the program ended up costing the town $272,000, which jumped to $1.04 million this fiscal year with an anticipated $1.16 million price tag next fiscal year, according to Marlow. Town staff has taken steps to reduce the program’s operational costs. It modified collection schedules to five days from four days that reduced overtime by 33 percent, began more preven-

tative maintenance of equipment and intensified more public outreach and education that reduced recycling contamination to 10.5 percent from 16 percent. The measures resulted in a total savings of $380,000 for the town. Gilbert arrived to this point after China in 2018 implemented steep restrictions for the percentage of allowable contamination in the global recycle stream. Because China imported about 45 percent of the world’s total waste, the action sent the recycle market into a downward spiral, impacting Gilbert and other municipalities negatively. The market is shrinking and the types of materials purchased also are shrinking, Marlow said. So far, Surprise and Mesa have nixed

their recycling programs and Chandler, Phoenix and Tempe have raised rates. Over 60 percent or 3,000 Gilbert residents in a town survey last fall said they would still participate in the recycling program if the town increased the monthly fee by $2 or less, according to Marlow. Marlow added that 20 percent of the respondents indicated they didn’t want recycling if the cost increased. The other 20 percent were unsure. She said the town was looking at partnering with Deloitte and the Institute for Digital Progress on a study to explore alternate ways to manage waste long term and that staff will return with a request to apply for a grant to fund that study.

Gov. Doug Ducey, the state’s revenue picture remains no clearer than it was when lawmakers went home. Absent some need for a special session, Fann said lawmakers would be gone until a new session in January. One lawmaker told the GilbertvSun News that the Legislature has taken final action on only about 60 bills, leaving hundreds in abeyance. At the same time, he said, “Some of these guys want to hold committee hearings and floor discussions . And some are over 80 years old.” Fann called the 2020-21 budget “secure” for now, noting lawmakers having adopted what amounts to an $11.8 billion “baseline’’ spending plan. That assumes continuation of all agencies with adjustments for growth in population and inflation. Lawmakers added $105 million before packing up both in direct funds for the Department of Health Services to deal with the virus as well as for aid to renters, the homeless and small business. Meanwhile, legislative budget staffers said they cannot predict how badly state revenues will be impacted from the shutdown of local businesses and the sharp drop in tourism. The most recent estimate put the

shortfall at $1.1 billion for the upcoming fiscal year. But Richard Stavneak, staff director of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, said that could be as little as $600 million or as much as $1.6 billion. Nor can they accurately determine how much more the state will have to spend as the recession being created is making more people eligible for governmentfunded programs like Medicaid. “There’s no way we’re really going to have a good handle on any new numbers until we really know where we’re going to go with this,’’ Fann said. “Are we going to be able to start opening things up little by little over the next couple of weeks?’’ she asked. “Or is it going to take longer.’’ Anyway, Fann said, the state is in line to get about $2.8 billion in federal aid due, something she said can be used to plug a lot of holes until next January. The state also is expected to end this budget year on June 30 with close to $1 billion in surplus, with a nearly identical amount in its “rainy-day’’ fund. Not everyone is on board with the plan. “This is the most God-awful, embarrassing thing we’ve ever done,’’ said Rep. Kelly Townsend, R-Mesa. “What kind of policy is not going to happen

this year because we decided we were afraid?’’ Townsend said there’s no reason that lawmakers cannot meet online to finish the session. She pointed out the House already has set up a process that allowed several lawmakers to vote without being on the floor. “We managed to do it for the budget,’’ Townsend said. “But we can’t manage to do it for the rest of the people’s business?’’ Townsend said that lawmakers can be creative, just as have other businesses. “Walmart managed,’’ she said. “Why? Because Walmart is considered essential. But the people’s business is not essential enough?’’ Fann, however, said that the fate of these bill left in the process is no different than it would have been had lawmakers gone through a full session “and next year we’ll take them up again.’’ Townsend, however, pointed out that Arizona law prohibits legislators from raising money from lobbyists during the legislative session. This is an election year. That prohibition would go away on May 1 if the session is over, providing time for seeking donations before the Aug. 3 primary.

Lawmakers may call it quits for 2020 BY HOWARD FISCHER Capitol Media Services

egislative leaders may pull the plug on the 2020 session with the intent of not coming back to the Capitol to deal with outstanding financial and policy issues until next January. Senate President Karen Fann told Capitol Media Services Tuesday that lawmakers will vote on May 1 to shut down the session that began on Jan. 13. They have been in recess since March 23, hoping to return once the COVID-19 pandemic had passed. While Fann favors ending the session, House Speaker Rusty Bowers has told her that Republican lawmakers in the House oppose the move. Lawmakers originally planned to return not only to put the final touches on a budget for the new fiscal year but also to deal with some remaining hot-button and potentially controversial measures. These range from changes in water laws and re-regulating vacation rentals to ending social promotion, higher gasoline taxes and whether transgender females can legally participate in high school and college athletics. And with non-essential businesses shuttered and a stay-at-home order by

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

NEWS

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

REMOTE from page 1

Instead, teachers for the remainder of the school year are “cycling back into some of our priority standards and giving additional support,” Newman said, adding: “Our teachers are providing remediation for students perhaps after the end of the third quarter they still saw there might be some deficits and that is going to be the focus.” Students in grades 7-12, are getting their work graded but if they don’t turn in a remote assignment, it won’t count against them, Newman said. She said students who are currently passing their class should not fail because of fourth-quarter remote work. “This is an opportunity for improving grades, not penalizing students for not completing work,” according to Newman. She explained while the district is successful with its online Global Academy, students there only take two courses at a time. “So, for us to all of a sudden expect students to work on six classes all at one time in a different setting and perhaps not even having access to all the resources – that would not be kind,” she said. She said many GPS campuses have established schedules to spread out the learning content where it could be science and math one day for students and language arts and social studies the next day. “So that way they are not expected to do six hours of work every day,” Newman said. “We know that is an unreasonable thing for us to ask.” The district is focusing on graduation requirement in core classes as a priority, according to Newman. Gilbert mom Danaleigh Sheehan said her daughter Lily, an 8th grader at Highland Junior High School has had no problems so far with remote learning. “Lily is participating well with online learning and is following a good routine each day to remain engaged with learning and school activity,” she said. Although there are no studies yet on the coronavirus’ impact on learning, the pandemic is highlighting the imbalance

Canyon Rim Elementary students embraced remote learning after Gilbert Public Schools rolled out its online programs when schools closed last month. (Gilbert Public Schools)

in education, according to Jonathan Supovitz, University of Pennsylvania professor of Leadership and Policy at the Graduate School of Education and chair of the Education Policy Division. “I think that there’s an exacerbating inequality” he said. “Obviously, more wealthy parents and kids from more wealthy homes have more readily access to both technology and internet access. I don’t think schools were obviously prepared to send out electronic equipment with kids.” All GPS students in grades 7th-12th are provided a Chromebook, a standard routine by the district. And with the closure, Higley Unified School District has loaned laptops to students who needed them. Students in both districts who did not have internet access were provided their lessons on paper. Although most schools in general turned to remote learning as a solution, Supovitz said it has its stumbling blocks. “Kids who are really young aren’t mature enough to be online,” he said. “And there’s issue with special education, too. “Parents can’t treat their kids like college kids, as independent learners. They have to do a lot of monitoring.” He said a child’s attention span and parental involvement play a role in the success of online lesson plans. Gilbert mom Kimberly Carrillo said she is keeping an eye on her son Ian’s

learning, a seventh grader at Mesquite Junior High. “I have him start at 8 or 8:30,” she said. “We start on his emails and things he has for the day and what is due. He works in his room and shows me his assignment and then he goes on to the next assignment. I’m pretty involved.” Carrillo said her son do lessons for about four to five hours a day with a 30-minute break. She also makes sure he does his P.E. classes by setting aside two days with 30 minutes each for full exercise. “He can’t do video games or watch a movie if he’s not done something in school,” she said. “He’s reading or something so he’s just not sitting here on vacation. I’m sure they would be learning more in class but it seems like he’s getting lot of information.” Carrillo also credited her son’s teachers being easily accessible. “There are a variety of ways teachers are able to connect with their students,” Supovitz said. “You hear great stories of teachers calling individual kids who need extra work (but) it’s not the same intensity as it would be in school.” And, he said, by bringing the classroom into the home it changes the dynamics by putting more emphasis on the parental role. “The parents are essentially substituting for the teacher’s role,” Supovitz

said. “When we have kids in a structure environment, the teacher has a huge influence. Teachers have much less influence now that it’s being distributed to parents and naturally that produces a different kind of consequence. “First of all, parents do not have the experience of teaching kids. So, if we believe, and we do believe educators have the expertise and experience to help kids gain understanding of content. Parents don’t have that background.” Supovitz said eventually there will be concrete studies showing student learning during the pandemic was likely impeded. And, school districts in Arizona aren’t taking official headcounts. “As far as attendance, the state is not requiring nor allowing us to submit daily attendance so we are not tracking participation this way,” said Michelle Reese, spokeswoman for Higley Unified, the smaller district in Gilbert. “We are encouraging teachers to connect with families directly.” At its monthly meeting last week, the Arizona Board of Education granted a request from the Department of Education that it not be required to collect absence data, stating it “is not a prudent or feasible way to measure student engagement during a school closure and so represents an administrative burden without a purpose.” Supovitz compared learning under COVID-19 with that of “summer melt,” which typically refers to learning loss suffered by students over summer break. “I think that there will be probably more of a range in student abilities in entering next year,” he said. But, he added, he didn’t think students will see their learning detrimentally affected. He explained the remote learning is basically three months, so for a high school senior who’s had 12 years of studies under the belt, it’s not a huge impact. And for the younger students, “they have much more time in front of them to acquire those knowledge and skills,”

see REMOTE page 11

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

REMOTE from page 10

he said. Also at a disadvantage are more than 200 Gilbert vo-tech juniors and seniors who split their class days between their GPS school and the East Valley Institute of Technology and had been working toward earning a certificate that qualifies them to work in their chosen trade. EVIT spokeswoman CeCe Todd said they’ll have to wait to get that certification. “For those who wish to enter the workforce and need industry certifications to do that, EVIT will provide additional hands-on training once students are allowed back on campus to help ensure they can pass industry certification exams,” she said, adding: “While it’s not our ideal way of training students, EVIT administrators and faculty believe the online learning opportunities they have created for students during the campus shutdown will enhance, rather than supplant, the quality hands-on learning we offer on campus.” Distance learning could become a

Thanks for voting for us for Best of the Best 2019!

about another wave of the coronarivrus that could happen in the fall,” Supovitz said. Right now, school districts are in crisis mode with online learning but they will have the summer to prepare for a possible second wave of COVID-19 outbreak, the severity of which depends on herd immunity and if there is a vaccine, according to Supovitz. According to an education expert with the Rand Corporation, the COVID-19 crisis is likely to push schools Younger children can exercise as part of their online instruction in GPS. to get serious about (Gilbert Public Schools) the use of online learning. norm for K-12 students in the future. “There’s lots of brick-and-mortar “The medical establishment is talking schools, which before the COVID crisis

NEWS

offered online courses – in other words, they took a hybrid approach of offering both face-to-face and online instruction,” said Heather Schwartz, Rand’s director of Pre-K to 12 educational systems program. “I expect that this will be far more common post-pandemic. Does that mean that brick-and-mortar schools go away? No. But I could imagine that online learning will be a much bigger feature in both the pre-K through 12thgrade span as well as in higher education.” For the time being, student Dayley says he spends about an hour a day on remote learning. “You still learn a lot,” he said. “But in a classroom there’s definitely a big difference. There’s a lot more interacting in the classroom.” Dayley said he can see some students falling behind their peers when they start the next school year. “Teachers are going to realize that and dumb it down a bit and review what we’ve missed,” he said.

WE ARE NOW TAKING NEW ENROLLMENT AND AUDITIONS FOR OUR PERFORMING GROUPS. CALL FOR A TOUR.

NEWS

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Higley arts center reinvents itself as TV studio GSN NEWS STAFF

he pandemic gave the Higley Center for the Performing Arts a stark choice: close or reinvent. “We had two choices in recent weeks as the new normal overtook life in Arizona and in particular the East Valley, which is our main service area,” explained center Manager Robert Zucker. “We could furlough staff and lock our doors like so many others have done.” Instead, Zucker and his staff chose the second option. They created Higley Center Television, an online streaming platform that “will allow us to create and present original programming, including entertainment, educational and informational broadcasts for residents of the East Valley.” “There is so much more you can expect over the next few months as we build what we hope will be enduring service to support the community,” he said.

The staff spent several weeks converting the concert hall into a professional TV studio that Zucker said will be “capable of producing all sorts of programming.” A local company loaned the center $75,000 worth of equipment and donated the streaming service platform. A local video production company is providing expertise in running the equipment while, Zucker said, “our entire staff has worked through a large learning curve.” Zucker said “doing concerts and theater is very different from doing TV.” Because of that, he expects the first few broadcasts to be “a little rough as we get used to running video cameras and doing sound and light.” But Zucker has confidence that his “dedicated and professional team” can pull it off. “All of us are learning every day,” he said. Viewers can access the shows by going to higleycenter.org and clicking the

Compassionate Care! Exceptional Medicine!

Wellness Care Sick Pets Call Now to Surgery Schedule an Appointment! Dental Care 480.470.4700 Laser Therapy trilogyveterinarymedicalcenter.com 2801 E Ocotillo, Suite 5 • Chandler, AZ 85249 Mon-Fri: 8 am-6 pm • Sat: 8 am-1 pm • Sun: Closed

Robert Zucker, manager of the Higley Center for the Performing Arts, has transformed the theater into a TV studio so that in the age of social distancing, people can enjoy live entertainment as well as informative shows. (Higley Center for the Performing Arts)

HCTV logo. This week, the center has a host of offerings: Monday, April 27, at 9 a.m., noon and 4 p.m. “Rhythms of the North” for children with Johnny B is a fun show combining a sizzling piano, breathtaking scenes and environmental issues in Alaska. The show also will be broadcast at the same times Wednesday and Friday. Tuesday, April 28, 8 p.m. “The Music of the Moody Blues” will be discussed by the band’s drummer Gordy Marshall, whose new band will perform some of the group’s songs. It will repeat at 11

a.m. May 2 and 4 p.m. May 3. Wednesday, April 29, 7 p.m. Guitarist Lee Rocker from the group Stray Cats will perform with his new band. The show repeats at 4 p.m. May 2. and 11 a.m. May 3. Thursday, April 30 at 7 p.m. Singer-songwriter Hannes Kvaran presents “A Musical Tribute to the Life of Galileo.” Kvaran has been singing, playing guitar and writing songs since his childhood in Sri Lanka, India, and the Philippines. He has written musicals with material from the life Christopher Columbus, an Icelandic saga, economics, European philosophy and American history.

Locations In Queen Creek, Chandler and Gilbert

• Wellness Visits • Immunizations

• Sports Physicals • Same Day Sick Appointments Available • Most Insurance Accepted Including AHCCCS Mon-Fri 8-5, Some Saturday Appts. available

3420 S Mercy Rd, Suite 124 Gilbert 85297

| 480-821-1400 | www.healingheartspeds.com

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Town Council fills its last vacant seat BY CECILIA CHAN GSN Managing Editor

own Council appointed a civil engineer last week to its last vacant seat. Yung Koprowski, who owns Y2K Engineering with 13 employees, will serve the remaining two years left on former Councilman Jordan Ray’s term. Ray resigned in early April to run in the justice of the peace race for Highland Justice Court. Koprowski, a 12-year resident, serves as vice chair on the town’s Citizens Transportation Task Force. The vote was 4-2 with Councilman Jared Taylor and Councilwoman Aimee Yentes opposing Koprowski’s appointment. Taylor and Yentes did not explain their vote. Council unanimously appointed Bill Spence in March and Scott September in early April for the first two vacancies. Spence is serving nine months in the

Yung Koprowski seat vacated by former Councilman Eddie Cook, who was appointed Maricopa County assessor and September is finishing out the remaining two years

of former Councilwoman Brigette Peterson’s term. Peterson resigned to run for mayor. Koprowski, September and Spence were three of the eight finalists Council selected from a field of 103 applicants who originally applied for Cook’s seat. After Spence’s appointment, Council kept the list of remaining finalists with the intention to fill the anticipated vacancies of Ray and Peterson. In her March interview with the Council, Koprowski said one of her top priorities include educating the public on the importance of a $465 million transportation bond for a town that’s outgrowing its infrastructure. Recently, the transportation task

NEWS

force, which Koprowski served on, recommended the Council delay taking the bond to a public vote by a year due to the economic fallout from the pandemic. “I wish to serve as a Town councilmember in order to contribute towards developing solutions that will continue to make Gilbert an amazing place to live, work and play,” Koprowski wrote in her application. “My experience as a successful business owner and employer will lend well to economic issues,” she continued. “My roles as a mother of two elementary-age children and being a child of aging parents may add credibility and representation of these populations when it comes to decisions related to quality of life, schools, and parks and recreation.” With a full Council, members can now tackle difficult decisions as it heads into budget talks beginning at a May 5 meeting.

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

KARL B. HIATT, MD, FACS PLASTIC SURGERY

feel beautiful

inside and out

PLASTIC SURGERY OF

Tummy • Breast • Face • Ears • Nose • Eyelids • Male Breast Removal Liposuction • Laser Hair Removal • Mommy Makeover

ANSWERS TO PUZZLE AND SUDOKU on Page 22

All injections are administered by Dr. Hiatt Botox • Juvederm • Voluma

call for a complimentary consultation

(480) 844-1410

4540 E. Baseline Rd., Ste 117 Mesa, Arizona 85206 | DRHIATT.COM

Patient’s Choice Award Recipient

Got Medicaid and Medicare? Get the only 4-star plan for you, Arizona. UnitedHealthcare Dual Complete®.

Enroll now. Talk to a licensed agent today.

1-877-749-3139, TTY 711 UHCCP.com/AZdual Plans are insured through UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company or one of its affiliated companies, a Medicare Advantage organization with a Medicare contract and a contract with the State Medicaid Program. Enrollment in the plan depends on the plan’s contract renewal with Medicare. Every year, Medicare evaluates plans based on a 5-star rating system. Valid on UnitedHealthcare Dual Complete H0321 plans. Other Physicians/Providers are available in our network. Benefits, features and/or devices vary by plan/area. Limitations and exclusions apply. Y0066_191113_040827_M CST28104A

CST28104_DU20_AZ_Q1_4Star_Ads.indd 7

1/17/20 12:12 PM

Community

COMMUNITY

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

GilbertSunNews.com

@Gilber tSunNews

For more community news visit gilbertsunnews.com

/Gilber tSunNews

Gilbert, other EV artists inspired by virus pandemic said. “Let’s party when this is over.” For some, the pandemic and the new normal life of seclusion led to detachment and sorrow. “Visual artists tend to work alone creating artworks. However, our ideas don’t form in a vacuum. They are influenced by the world around us,” said Donna Finter, who found it difficult to paint until a fellow artist invited her to a challenge. Now, she’s back in the groove. “Bright Moment” is a trio of red flowers giving a cheerful nod to the world at large. “I’m trying lots of subjects and

BY SRIANTHI PERERA GSN Contributor

ast Valley artists are finding a somewhat brighter side of sheltering in place. With long, uninterrupted hours to be creative, many area artists are using the unexpected free time to appeal to their muses. Members of Gilbert Visual Art League have also taken up brush and pencil to portray their emotions. Sharon Hess’s watercolor of a theater mask draped with a string of Mardi Gras beads, titled “Let’s Party,” speaks to how we associated the object in the past – more with a festive or entertainment element rather than with a security or life-saving component. After Covid-19, our memories of masks will change forever. “The mask I wish I could wear,” Hess

Gilbert artist Barbara Tibbits said her watercolor, “Salmon Run,” depicting fish swimming upstream, reminds her of people during the pandemic.Special to GSN)

painting methods. Creating gives me feelings of peace and accomplishment. I hope my artwork gives others a little lift,” Finter said. Barbara Tibbits has embarked on a series of watercolor abstract paintings. “Salmon Run” illustrates in blues, greens and gold-reds salmon swimming upstream. “What meant the most for me was a calming body of work that helped rest my mind and lower my stress level, plus, surrender to the fact that our plans for a month-long visit to Washington State was cancelled,” she said. Chandler artist Shachi Kale, whose art show in Scottsdale scheduled for April was postponed, is among them. “A lot of my current art is centering around home, oddly, a subject that was

see

ARTISTS

Gilbert seamstress turning out face masks BY JIM WALSH GSN Staff Writer

ette Spilotro of Gilbert was inspired to start making handmade face masks a month before the federal Centers for Disease Control started recommending them to protect against the spread of COVID-19. “When I saw it on the news about the shortage of masks, I said, what’s wrong with fabric?’’ Spilotro said. An amateur seamstress, Spilotro soon put her skills with a sewing machine to good use, getting some fabric from JoAnn’s Fabrics in Gilbert and making masks for friends and relatives and mailing them to her grandchildren attending college out of state. When she heard Banner Health was short on masks, she made some more for its employees. She said JoAnn’s joined in the community project by donating the

fabric to her. As of early April, Spilotro estimated she had made about 1,000 masks. Soon, she had set up a small neighborhood cottage industry, motivated more by a desire to help neighbors protect their health than by profit. She made some cardboard signs advertising “fabric masks,’’ instead of the usual yard sale or missing dog signs. She posted them near stop signs in close proximity to her home in Gilbert’s Laguna Shores neighborhood in The Islands master planned community, north of Warner Road and Islands Drive east. Her prices are reasonable for an item that was suddenly in sharp demand as the pandemic spread – $10 for adults, $8 for children. She said 20 percent of her sales will go towards charities for the homeless. “It’s just a hobby. It’s a mission for me,’’ Spilotro said. She said she only charges for the masks because she found herself consumed by

her new mission, working long hours on the project. Her daughter, Sondra Monchunski, who is working from home like many other people during the pandemic, cuts different colors of cotton fabric into the size of masks. Spilotro sews the cloth into masks of various designs, including sports teams such as the Chicago Cubs, White Sox and Bears, and the Arizona Cardinals. The selection is not exactly akin to shopping on Amazon.com, but many national and international sellers were backed up for weeks while Spolotro had a limited selection of masks ready for sale. Spilotro is from the north side of Chicago. The Cubs were a hot seller, naturally, even though Major League Baseball has suspended operations. “It just went crazy,’’ Spilotro said. “I think of it as my mission and people need it.’’ Monchunski added, “We just want every-

page 16

body to be safe, that’s the biggest thing.’’ The fabric masks are not as effective as the N95 masks that health care workers from coast to coast have been seeking during the pandemic. But healthcare authorities consider the cloth masks as a way to prevent someone from unwittingly transmitting an infection to others in public places, such as supermarkets and pharmacies. Banner requested donations of such masks, saying that employees could wear them when walking around hospitals, but that they were inappropriate for medical use. The CDC recognizes the value of cloth masks on its web site and even lists directions on how to make them. The recommendation includes a warning against diverting the N95 away from medical workers who desperately need them to protect their health while treating victims of COVID-19.

COMMUNITY

ARTISTS from page 15

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

part of my show too,” she said. “So I do have art that deals with home and shelter that would have been in my show.” Kale’s watercolor on paper, “Shelter in Place,” depicts a bird’s eye view of a Valley neighborhood, a cluster of cookie cutter houses with backyards and swimming pools, where all seems calm and orderly. “But as all of us try and shelter in place, home takes on a whole new significance,” she said. “Is it a place where you feel safe? Or a place you feel stuck? So many of us having very individual experiences and responses to this crisis, but all of us sheltering in place till this dark cloud passes over and we can finally be free to soar.” In another painting titled “Aware,” she depicts from above a young woman lying on the bed with her hand on the stomach. “I find myself becoming hyper-aware of my hands, my face, my breath, my thoughts, my existence,” she said. “Yet, strangely, it has also made me hyper-aware of my blessings, my home, my family, food, friends, art, nature and how critical they all are to keep the anxiety of

Her nine inspirational pieces featuring bold, universal colors are visible from the large windows that face South Hibbert Street. Each piece has a deeper meaning that falls in line with the current situation. A 4’x3’ painting features “Our Deepest Fear,” a powerful poem by Marianne Williamson. “It’s an inspirational drive-by, that’s what I want it to be,” she said. “I’ve watched people fightDonna Finter of Gilbert dubbed this watercolor of brilliant red flowers “Bright Moment.” (Courtesy of Barba Finter) ing in grocery stores over toilet paper. That’s a little bit of a loss of humanity. That’s a fear mode, it’s not a faith mode…we are bigger than these times in check.” Therosia Reynolds, a professional artist the current circumstance.” Paul Soderquist, a Navy veteran and rewho resides at Mesa Artspace Lofts, an affordable housing complex in downtown tired Presbyterian minister in Mesa who Mesa, created a drive-by art show in the paints for leisure, painted his vision of the virus, inspired by the media’s depiction art gallery within the complex. The gallery is closed, but Reynolds has of it, rather than painting his usual landpositioned the artwork high above the scapes and nature scenes. He obtained an easel, brushes and floor, making it possible to drive by and canvas and set out to paint in his quiet view her work without leaving a vehicle.

WATCH LOCAL

LIVE ONLINE FIND THE LATEST IN YOUR DISTRICT & WATCH ON YOUTUBE. Citizens Clean Elections Commission hosts virtual legislative debates across the state, for you to see where candidates stand on the issues that matter to you. Find the debate schedule and submit questions before or during the debate at AZCleanElections.gov/debates or call 877-631-8891 for more information.

backyard. “Something just stirred within me,” he said. “I sensed a need to express outwardly something of the stress and anxiety I was feeling inwardly. Painting relaxes me. Maybe painting for me is a kind of prayer. The spiritual masters write about spiritual practices of solitude and silence. I think it’s that.” Soderquist’s painting depicts the virus as seen through a microscopic slide, surrounded by a number of smaller satellites. He named the acrylic painting “Corona Chaos.” “I think it probably represents my own anxiety regarding the corona virus and what it’s doing to everyone around the world,” he said. Everyone seems to have made up their minds to make the most of the precious commodity of time. Said Soderquist, “I am going to count my blessings, which are many. I am going to take time to slow down, to breathe deeply, to appreciate, to hug my family, to pray. And I’m going to keep painting.”

BUSINESS

Business

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

GilbertSunNews.com

@Gilber tSunNews

/Gilber tSunNews

Staffing firm races to help virus patients GSN NEWS STAFF

Gilbert staffing company is working around the clock to get healthcare providers to the front lines of the battle to save the lives of COVID-19 patients. Since mid-March, AB Staffing Solutions at 3451 S. Mercy Road has sent over 200 registered nurses, physicians and respiratory therapists to areas hit hard by the coronavirus. “Our mission is to get providers where they are needed as quickly and efficiently as possible,” company President Evan Burks said. “We don’t have time to waste.” Since 2002, AB Staffing Solutions has been supplying travel nurses, physicians and allied health professionals to hospitals and clinics throughout the United States. Over the past five years the

Evan Burks privately-held company, which employs 75 at its Gilbert headquarters based, has placed thousands of providers via a national database of 200,000 qualified

healthcare professionals. Burks said that before the pandemic, his company would typically see requests for labor and delivery registered nurses, medical surgical and telemetry RNs, family practice physicians and a variety of other healthcare specialties. Now they are getting urgent requests for “emergency room RNs, intensive care unit RNs, pulmonologists and respiratory therapists.” Travel nurses and other providers typically work assignments for 13 weeks at locations throughout the country and around the globe. COVID-19 Crisis Response healthcare providers are working shorter contracts, roughly two to eight weeks in length, at a higher pay scale. Assignments include travel expense, lodging, per diems for food and other benefits. While the travel nursing industry has

often appealed to individuals seeking adventure, the pandemic is now motivating healthcare workers who simply want to help, Burks said. “Providers are reaching out to us. They want to help by going directly into COVID-19 epicenters where they are needed the most during this pandemic,” he said. To get providers to destinations quickly, AB Staffing has worked actively to expedite the credentialing process that establishes the qualifications of licensed medical professionals and assesses their background and legitimacy. What would normally take weeks is now only taking the company days to complete. Once a crisis response position is filled, the company arranges travel and lodging. In some cases providers are

see STAFF page 19

Schnepf Farms’ peach season adapts to pandemic BY PAUL MARYNIAK GSN Executive Editor

he COVID-19 pandemic has made life anything but peachy for Carrie and Mark Schnepf, but the Queen Creek farmers aren’t about to let it destroy one of their favorite times of the year. In a week or so, Schnepf Farms will be letting the public into its peach orchard – Arizona’s largest with 5,000 trees – but with some new rules appropriate to this age of social distancing. Until last year, the Schnepfs held a Peach Festival every May to celebrate the advent of the ripened fruit. But even before “social distancing” became part of everyday vocabulary, the Schnepfs saw a need for crowd control, so “we quit the Peach Festival last year because it was just getting too big for us to do anymore and we couldn’t make sure we

Longtime Queen Creek farmers Mark and Carrie Schnepf say people can share in their harvest of succulent peaches by either ordering them online already picked or registering online to drop by and pick them. (Special to GSN)

had peaches on the trees every time,” said Carrie. “So, now we’re doing peach season come on every weekend,” she said. Through most of last May, Mark estimates, between 40,000 and 50,000 people flocked to Schnepf Farms at 24810 E. Rittenhouse Road, to wander through the orchard and pick as many peaches as they wanted. Before the change, Mark said, “We had too many people coming on one weekend. And so we stopped doing it to help spread out the crowd over four or five weekends and it worked brilliantly. We loved it. We still did everything in terms of all the baking and that kind of stuff, but it just worked out a lot better because we didn’t have 10,000 people all in one day.” This year, with social distancing still a

see PEACHES page 18

BUSINESS

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Isagenix details progress on zero-waste packages GSN NEWS STAFF

ilbert-based Isagenix International marked Earth Day last week by announcing its progress toward a zero-waste packaging goal. The company continues “making significant progress toward its zero-waste packaging goal, including transitioning more products to 100 percent post-consumer recycled plastic,” the company said in a release. The global health and wellness company said it recently reached three milestones in its plan to convert all packaging components to be made with recyclable, reusable, compostable, or recycled materials by 2028. Effective this quarter, Isagenix is transitioning IsaFlush and Natural Accelerator bottles to PCR plastic. “The change will save 1.2 million bottles of recyclable virgin plastic from being produced during the next 12 months,” the company said, adding it also is changing canisters to PCR plastic, a process that started in 2018 with its IsaLean Shake and IsaPro. “In total, more than half of the company’s products packaged in bottles and canisters are now made with 100 percent PCR plastic,” the release said. Isagenix is discontinuing plastic bottle neckbands for future production of nine products, removing about 2.3 million neckbands per year – which the company said equals 53 miles of plastic. More than a quarter of the company’s

products that once had plastic neckbands will no longer have them. In November, Isagenix stopped placing plastic shrink-wrap around boxes of Chocolate Decadence and Lemon Passion Crunch IsaLean Bar and Fiber Snacks, eliminating the wrapping for approximately 550,000 boxes this year. “It’s exciting and gratifying to consider that what we’ve accomplished so far and what we’ll achieve moving forward will help current and future generations enjoy a healthier planet,” said Isagenix Chief Visionary Officer Erik Coover. “We’re committed to setting an example for how companies can take being sustainable from dream to reality.” “For Isagenix, going green involves not only its packaging choices but also its shipping and world headquarters operations as well as its product choices,” the company release added, noting it is absorbing the cost of all sustainability improvements. Isagenix also expects to use 75,000

fewer eco-friendly, insulated coolers for heat-sensitive products this year because it now ships to the Pacific Northwest from a recently opened Reno, Nevada, distribution center instead of an Arizona distribution center. “Due to the Reno center’s more moderate temperatures, Pacific Northwest customer shipments will require coolers for a shorter amount of time this year, the company said. “The expected reduction of 75,000 coolers, when stacked on top of each other, is 14.2 miles high, more than two times the height of Mount Everest.” When Isagenix moves shake canisters from its third-party manufacturers to its distribution centers, it no longer will use cardboard boxes and plastic shrink-wrap. It instead will use cardboard trays without the wrap. “Over one year, this will result in a 3.2-million-square-foot reduction in cardboard and a complete elimination of plastic shrink-wrap,” the release said.

necessity, the Schnepfs are giving people two ways to get a hold of their succulent fruit. From Tuesday through Sunday, they can sign up at schnepffarms.com for a onehour chance to pick their own starting at 6 a.m. “There’s going to be a reservation system for a date and a time where people can come and pick,” Mark explained, “So, for instance, where before we might have 1,000 people showing up at the same time, we’re now going to have a reservation system …we will allow 10 cars and

10 cars only to drive out to the orchard to pick peaches and when they’re gone, there will be a new group that is allowed in. That way, we can completely control the number of people that are in the orchard at any one time.” People also will be able to go online at schnepffarms.com to place an order for pre-picked peaches. “We’ll be picking the peaches ourselves with our crew and boxing them in our regular peach boxes and, like we do now with our vegetables, people will be able to pre-order and prepay online and then lit-

erally drive through and pick up the box or boxes. That will be kind of a time situation too, so depending on what time of day they place their order will depend on when they can actually come and pick them up. “We’ll pick peaches in the morning on one day. And if we have, say, 300 boxes of peaches, then that’s what we’ll put online the next morning as available so we don’t oversell. People won’t be able to just drive to the farm on the spur of the moment and buy a bunch of boxes of peaches.” The Schnepfs aren’t sure exactly when the peaches will be ready for picking or

PEACHES from page 17

Isagenix International, headquartered in Gilbert, produces more than 100 products and programs aimed at improving people’s health and wellness. It also is helping Mother Earth by reducing packaging that just ends in a landfill. (Special to GSN)

The company recently resized its cardboard boxes, resulting in a 15 percent reduction in the amount of air pillows used in its U.S. and Canada distribution centers when preparing shipments. At its Gilbert headquarters, Isagenix installed photovoltaic solar panels on parking lot shade structures at the 166,000-square-foot building in 2018 are expected to provide approximately 463,000 kilowatt-hours of renewable energy annually. “This amount is enough to allow clean energy to power nearly onefourth of the building’s energy needs,” the company said, adding: “Since their installation last year, three electric vehicle charging stations have helped 12 drivers with electric vehicles avoid 12,472 kilograms of greenhouse gas emissions, which is the equivalent of planting 320 trees and letting them grow for 10 years.” Isagenix also seeks out ingredient suppliers “who demonstrate a focus on sustainability” and offers several plant-based products, such as Harvest Thins, a protein snack; IsaPro Plant-Based Protein, which offers vegans, vegetarians and flexitarians an alternative to whey-based IsaPro; and Plant-based IsaLean Shake, a whey- and dairy-free shake. Established in 2002, Isagenix provides systems for weight loss, performance, vitality and well-being, personal care and beauty and financial wellness to more than 400,000 customers worldwide with 100 products, packs and systems. Information, visit Isagenix.com.

picking up and said people should start checking their website daily for updates. “We want everyone to have that experience of picking their own peaches off our peach trees, but we literally can get a couple thousand at one time, so we have to be careful this year,” Mark added. But he didn’t simply go to a drivethrough system like he’s been using the past several weeks for the other vegetables he grows and the breads, cinnamon rolls, pies and other baked goods that Car-

see PEACHES page 19

BUSINESS

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

PEACHES from page 18

rie and her team make each day and sell from their on-site country store. For more than a month now, Carrie each morning posts on the website what’s available, so people can order and prepay and just drive through to pick up their order Thursday through Sunday from 9 a.m. To 4 p.m. Some people are still allowed to wander onto the farm and pick available vegetables themselves, Mark said, but social distancing rules still apply. Peach season holds a special fondness for Mark, who with his wife over the years has turned the farm into the state’s biggest grower of the fruit – an accomplishment in

which he takes great pride. “When I was a kid. There were fruit orchards all over the place and they’re just all gone,” he said. Asked what’s so special about peaches, he replied, “Because they’re beautiful, first of all. I mean, the orchards are beautiful. They’re shady, they’re quiet, the fruit is so nice to look at. “But then it just tastes so doggone good. We don’t pick until it’s ripe. I mean it just has amazing flavor. You know, I’m not bashing any grocery store but grocery stores have to pick the fruit green in order to give it a two-week shelf life. We don’t do

that at the farm. We let it tree-ripen so it has more sugar, more flavor.” The pandemic has put the season and the farm under the same cloud most businesses have been under since social-distancing guidelines were imposed. One of the biggest impacts has been on the farm’s wedding business. “We had 48 weddings postponed,” Carrie said. “That was the tough. We already had the food purchased. I had a freezer full of meat.” “Our event business has come to a screeching halt. The Good Life Festival has been postponed for a year.”

For the first time since they started their Easter “Egg-Citement event on their 300acre farm 23 years ago, the Schnepfs had to cancel. The couple is thinking of inaugurating some special activities if social distancing goes on much longer – including drive-in movies and even drive-through graduations. “What is doing well is our UPICK Garden,” said Carrie, who said at least people can pick up fresh vegetables and baked goods and then “stay at home, enjoy themselves, slow down.” Information: schnepffarms.com.

asked to get on a plane the next day. “Some facilities are in such dire need that we have to act fast while making sure all healthcare providers are qualified and will provide quality care,” he said. Burks, a certified public accountant, joined the quickly growing staffing company in 2011. The Arizona State Univer-

sity graduate has been leading organizations at the executive level for over 30 years and is active in various nonprofit organizations, including the Arizona Healthcare Executives and Arizona Humanities. AB Staffing Solutions works extensively with federal healthcare facilities,

including those operated by the V.A., Indian Health Services and the Department of Defense, as well as commercial hospitals. Recently, the company donated 20,000 KN95 masks to several of their Indian health and tribal clients in Arizona and other states due to the shortage

of protective gear at many facilities. “Our goal is to create the best possible experience for our providers, assist healthcare facilities and also serve our communities,” Burks said. “We are here to help.” Information: abstaffing.com or 888515-3900.

STAFF from page 17

HiFU (New Prostate Cancer Treatment) Contact our ofﬁce for a second opinion for you newly diagnosed prostate cancer • • • • •

Dr. Alvi has performed the most HIFU procedures in the Valley Minimally Invasive Low Risk Of Incontinence or Erectile Dysfunction Quick Recovery Outpatient Procedure

NOW OFFERING APPOINTMENTS IN OUR NEW GILBERT OFFICE

3501 S Mercy Rd Ste 101 Gilbert, AZ 85297

Urologic Surgeons of Arizona 6750 E Baywood Ave Ste 507 Mesa, AZ 852006 Phone: 480-409-5060 azurologicsurgeons.com

OPINION

Opinion GilbertSunNews.com

@Gilber tSunNews

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

For more opinions visit gilbertsunnews.com /Gilber tSunNews

How will future Americans regard the pandemic? Depends BY DAVID LEIBOWITZ GSN Columnist

t’s dangerous to contemplate history when an historical moment remains ongoing, but when your days stretch to infinity under quarantine, what else do you have to do? Lately, I’ve taken to pondering this: Once the COVID-19 pandemic is over, how will we argue about it for the next century or so? Because let’s be real: Argument has replaced baseball and football as our national pastime. As I write this, the U.S. has more than 840,000 coronavirus positives and nearly 47,000 dead. Arizona has reported about 5,500 cases and 231 dead. Forecasts assembled by the health researchers at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation look ahead into summertime. The IMHE’s national projection for the Fourth

of July – which they warn has a high degree of uncertainty – is for about 68,000 dead across the country. The worst-case national scenario for Independence Day? More than 123,000 dead. The IMHE’s model for Arizona predicts the number of daily deaths in the state falling throughout May and reaching zero in mid-June. All told, the model for Arizona predicts just short of 600 deaths by July 4, with a worst-case scenario of about 1,700 lives lost. While it feels gruesome to me to talk purely in mathematics about dead human beings, it surely will be essential to our future arguments – which will likely break down, as does everything in America these days, into three camps. Here are thumbnails of those arguments: “What a tremendous waste of time!” These folks are already out protesting the lockdown outside the state Capitol. They’ll point back to the CDC’s initial worst-case estimates of 1.7 million American deaths and argue that they were deprived of their freedom for nothing.

Signature quote, offered by a guy in a MAGA cap waving a Don’t Tread On Me flag: “For the same number of dead as a really bad flu season, we let liberal wussies crash the whole freaking economy!” “Social distancing worked!” These optimistic arguers will point to America and Arizona having fallen short of the CDC’s dire death estimates and congratulate themselves for having sheltered in place while using massive stashes of Charmin’ as impromptu end tables. For them, spending two months at home watching Netflix and washing their hands raw ranks as a sacrifice alongside the Greatest Generation sending 16 million soldiers to fight World War II. Signature quote: “I’m going to celebrate with a spa day and some red, white and blue acrylic nails during the best mani-pedi ever!” “Imagine if!” The imagine-ifers will start every argument with that phrase, to detail why all of us have blood on hands. For them, our response to the pandemic, from the White House

to the Copper Dome, has been a series of screwups that can only be measured by lives lost. “Imagine if people had taken social distancing seriously?” Or: “Imagine if Trump hadn’t been out there lying about testing?” Or: “Imagine if Doug Ducey had closed every business in the state back in February?” Their signature quote: “One life lost is one life too many.” So where do I stand when it comes to the history of this pandemic? It’s early yet, but I believe I will end up in all three camps simultaneously. Our response to COVID-19 has been erratic and marked by some worthless gestures – and many intelligent, noble actions. Social distancing has saved lives, though not as many lives as might have been saved by a more comprehensive, less screwed-up response. After arguing a bit, I imagine I’ll make the only point that matters: Arguing about COVID-19 is a luxury, because the alternative is not being alive to argue.

WHY WORK AT HOME WHEN YOU CAN WORK HERE?

COMMUNITY OFFICE SPACE FOR THE MODERN BUSINESSWOMEN RENT SPACE STARTING AS LOW AS $99/MONTH

(480) 320-3900 www.thriveaz.com

Sports & Recreation

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

GilbertSunNews.com

@Gilber tSunNews

/Gilber tSunNews

SPORTS

Check us out and like Gilbert Sun News on Facebook and follow @GilbertSunNews on Twitter

Gilbert athlete stays upbeat in Italy lockdown BY ZACH ALVIRA GSN Sports Editor

Zack Shepherd’s time away from football has made him realize how much he truly loves and misses the game. When he returns from his church mission next year, he will resume his career at Southern Utah University. (Pablo

hen Zack Shepherd departed for Italy in January 2019 for his two-year church mission, his main focus was to share his faith with the Italian people. A year later, his goals remain the same, even though the world around him has seemingly come to a halt. “It definitely hit very fast,” Shepherd said. “It’s been a very different lifestyle, like it’s become for everyone else in the world. Over the course of a few days it just went up and up. We’ve been inside ever since.” The former Williams Field quarterback was called to serve his mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Lombardy, the region at the center of the outbreak in Italy. As of Tuesday, April 21, more than 67,000 cases have been reported in Lombardy with more than 12,500 deaths. The church acted quick when the virus began to spread in Italy, immediately mandating a lockdown for missionaries in Italy two weeks before the Italian government did the same for everyone. Shepherd and his roommate have remained in their apartment since ever since. They only venture out once a week to a local grocery store nearby. There, they are met with long lines and only a certain number of people are allowed in at a time. Shepherd said he typically waits about 45 minutes before he is allowed in the store. Gloves and masks are required. He spends his time reading, watching Ted Talks and working out at least twice a day. His apartment complex has an outdoor courtyard in the center of the building where he and his roommate are able to go when they do not workout inside. As has been seen across social media platforms since the lockdown in Italy began, Shepherd said he can see flags being flown on other balconies and from windows. He can also hear people singing. “It’s cool, I’ve seen it,” Shepherd said. “It’s

Robles/GSN Staff)

Former Williams Field quarterback Zack Shepherd has been in lockdown for more than 60 days while serving his two-year church mission in Lombardy, Italy, the center of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

(Photo courtesy Zack Shepherd)

definitely been hard at times but it’s cool to see how people are obeying the laws put in place to reduce the spread. They’re really taking the coronavirus seriously.” Shepherd spent three seasons as the starting quarterback for Williams Field, leading the Black Hawks to an undefeated season and state-championship win as a sophomore in 2016. He led Williams Field back to the playoffs the next two seasons, including a semi finals appearance as a senior in 2018. He finished his career with 6,640 passing yards and 57 touchdowns. He also rushed for two more scores in his career. He earned scholarship offers from Brown University and Southern Utah, as well as a preferred walk-on offer from Arizona State. Shortly before he left for his mission in Italy, he committed to Southern Utah. “To get back to SUU, I’m so excited for it,” Shepherd said. “Taking a step away from football, I think, has helped me in many ways. I’ve regained the true love I have for it. I miss it so much and I haven’t really had a chance for that since I’ve never really been away from it.

“I’m excited for the future of SUU football.” Shepherd said he’s also found a new love in soccer, which essentially goes hand-inhand with Italian culture. But he and his roommate have occasionally shared their love for American football, playing catch with the local children. It’s rare if Shepherd brings up the fact that he will soon be a quarterback at the collegiate level. Many times, the other missionary does that for him. Shepherd’s time in Italy has also allowed him to travel all across the country. He’s constantly been surrounded by breathtaking views while becoming immersed in the Italian culture, learning to speak the language and also sharing his own faith with the people. “My time here has been amazing, it’s hard to even put it into words,” Shepherd said. “It’s an experience not a lot of people get to have. I’ve fallen in love with the Italian people. Wherever I am, I love to serve the people. We often go feed homeless people or help people move but on top of that, I get to spread my beliefs. “It’s been an amazing time with all of

that combined.” While involved in an unfortunate circumstance surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, Shepherd is remaining positive. Part of his ability to keep that mindset has come from the support he is receiving from those back home. He is able to talk to his family more than what would normally be allowed during his mission. “Being in contact with my family more has helped keep me healthy mentally,” Shepherd said. “It’s been nice.” The number of new cases reported daily in Italy has been on the decline since midMarch. The Italian government has started to come up with plans to gradually lift the lockdown beginning in early May. There’s no telling as to when life can completely return to normal in Italy, the same struggle that is facing the American people as protests across the country to reopen the economy have begun to surface. But if there is one thing Shepherd hopes to express to his friends and family back home, it’s to remain positive and realize there will eventually be an end to this unfortunate situation. “I’m just trying to have a lot of hope for the future that things will get better and I know they will,” Shepherd said. “That’s what keeps me going. It may seem like there isn’t hope, but I know that there is. We just need to keep doing our best to hope for the future.”

difficult times. We thank you and we support you!. We support our community who support our community who are We hard at work during these Ortiz, AAMS®, CRPS® are hard at workJoseph duringB these Financial Advisor difficult times. thank you and difficult times.We We thank you and 8950 S 52nd St Suite 209 we we support supportyou!. you!. Tempe, AZ 85284 ACROSS 480-753-7664

32 22

A-1 Golf Carts

Happy Mother’s Day

SUN LAKES, AZ

Joseph B Ortiz, AAMS®, CRPS®

Joseph BAdvisor Ortiz, AAMS®, CRPS® Financial Financial Advisor 8950 S 52nd St Suite 209

MKT-5894H-A-A1

edwardjones.com

Tempe, AZ 85284 8950 S 52nd St Suite 209 480-753-7664 Tempe, AZ 85284 480-753-7664

MKT-5894H-A-A1

We support our community who edwardjones.com are hard at work during these difficult We THE thank NEW you andE-Z-GOedwardjones.com ASK times. ABOUT ‘LITHIUM’ we support you!. MKT-5894H-A-A1

POWERED CART

2020 Joseph TXT B Ortiz, AAMS®, CRPS® Financial Advisor

2020 RXV Lithium

8950 S 52nd St Suite 209 Tempe, AZ 85284 480-753-7664

MKT-5894H-A-A1

edwardjones.com

6 Passenger RXV

1 6 11 12 14 15 16 17 19 20 22 23 24 26 28 30 31 35 39 40 42 43 44 46 47 49 51 52 53 54

AHWATUKEE FOOTHILLS NEWS|| APRIL 22, GILBERT SUN NEWS 26,2020 2020

King Crossword

Resided Things Demosthenes or Cicero Cancel out Ubiquitous fastener Early spring bloom Feedbag tidbit -- the manger Owns Press Ballet step -- song (cheaply) Force measures Decorum Quite some time Actor Stephen Went sour Contents of some trays Responsibility Court Story Donkey Impostor Sudden turn Traditional usage Love apple Medical prioritization Portuguese island group Stationery brand Is inclined (to)

36 37 38 41

Risk Cheers up Some lilies Lash -- (berate)

44 45 48 50

Sudoku

DOWN

CALL US! WE HAVE REDUCED THE PRICE ON BATTERIES!

FINANCING AVAILABLE

When you purchase a NEW E-Z-GO!* Finance offers only available at participating E-Z-GO dealers. Approval, rates, applicable fees, and terms provided are based on credit worthiness. Offers only available in 50 U.S. states and District Columbia. Financing offers void where prohibited. Finance terms are also available for pre-owned E-Z-GO products. Please see your local E-Z-GO Authorized Dealer for details.

480.895.2000

www.A-1GolfCarts.com 25820 S. Arizona Ave. • Sun Lakes, AZ 85248

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 13 18 21 23 25 27 29 31 32 33 34

Comic strip possum Nap Body art, for short Calendar abbr.

Cheerless “The Compleat Angler” author And so on (Abbr.) Tennyson title Cavalry unit Canine’s neighbor Sea bird Id counterpart He-men George Washington portraitist Egg-shaped English composition Leg, slangily Must have Banquet Scale member Part of the Justice Dept. Cronkite, Rather, et al. Work together Doubtful Neighbor of Georgia Female deer

PUZZLEANSWERS ANSWERS on on page PUZZLE page25 14

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Best Dentist at Affordable Prices!

Missing Teeth? Embarrassed to Smile? Tooth Pain? Loose Dentures? We Can Help, Call Us NOW!

SUPREME DENTURES starting at

EXPIRES 5-31-2020

999

PORCELAIN CROWNS from

699

Before

IMPLANTS from

799

each EXPIRES 5-31-2020

SNAP ON LOWER DENTURE With Two Implants

from

EXPIRES 5-31-2020

3,999

FREE $ Exam & X-Rays 120

EXPIRES 5-31-2020

After

DESIGN CENTER

EXTRACTIONS

from

POOL MAINTEN A NCE SPECIA L! Try the BEST Pool Service in Ahwatukee!

FREE

FOR TWO WEEKS

EXPIRES 5-31-2020

*With one month commitment Exp. 4/30/2020

*All offers for New patients without insurance only.

We Accept Most Major Insurances • Interest FREE Financing with Low Monthly Payments Emergencies Welcome & Same Day Appointments Available

1722 E University, Mesa

480.833.9942

www.TRUVALUEDENTAL.com

SEE STORE FOR DETAILS

Pool Resurfacing Experts Specializing in pool service, maintenance & repair

602-546-POOL (7665) (W of Gilbert on N side of University)

BRING IN A WAT ER S A MP L E F OR A F RE E A N A LYSIS.

1241 E. Chandler Blvd., Ste. 124,

www.barefootpoolman.com Ahwatukee!

Phoenix, AZ 85048

(SW corner of Desert Foothills Parkway & Chandler Blvd.)

Owned & Operated “Voted Best Pool Service” Ahwatukee Licensed, Bonded & Insured now in your neighborhood ROC# 272001

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Announce

ment

ments

Merch

Employment General

Childcare Providers

Wanted to Buy

Employ Obituaries

Karen Jean (Casperson) Prelog

Karen Jean (Casperson) Prelog, 75, from Gold Canyon, Arizona went to be with our Lord and Savior on April 7, 2020. Karen was born November 14, 1944 in Menominee, Michigan, daughter of Roy and Hazel (Dionne) Casperson, where she grew up and graduated from Menominee High School in 1962. On August 1,1964 Karen was married to Kenneth Prelog in Marinette, Wisconsin. They resided in Cudahay, then Waterford, Wisconsin where together they built their first home and started a family. Years later they moved to Chandler, Arizona where they raised their four sons. Karen soon became a Registered Nurse specializing in caring for burn patients. After her sons went off to college, she became a traveling nurse working all over the country until her retirement nearly a decade ago. Karen was preceded in death by her parents, her former husband Kenneth, her brother Clifford, and her closest Aunt Mildred (Lawrence) Hultman. She is survived by her sons Eric (Carol) Prelog, Joel (Diana) Prelog, Andrew (Rachel) Prelog, Samuel (Kären) Stevens, and 17 amazing grandchildren. Survivors also include three brothers and two half-sisters Gordon (Vi), Robert (Elaine), and Kenneth (Lynn) Casperson, Carol (Jamie) Sanchez, Cheryl (Terrance) O’Donnell and sister in-law Alys Casperson. In addition to countless nieces, nephews, and other relatives, Karen has endless friendships throughout the country as a result of her work and travels. She will be remembered by all as someone who gave every part of herself to anyone who needed it. She found joy in giving and making other people happy was her greatest love. One of her many gifts from God, was her ability to create amazing meals. She baked and cooked for others, and showed her love to them by making them something she knew would fulfill them. From pies to Family Supper, and jellyroll to Christmas Eve dinner, her love of sharing her meals was beyond compare. She cared for people unconditionally and lived without regrets. The spirit of the Lord moved through her to be a blessing, and a shining light to all who met her. Her kindness and neverending love will be missed by all. Cremation will take place in Arizona with an AZ memorial service in the fall of 2020, and MI/WI memorial service in the Summer of 2021. Details will follow at a later date.

For obituary questions please call 480-898-6465 or visit obituaries.EastValleyTribune.com

Mary Jane Leason Mary Jane Leason, born July 22, 1934, passed away peacefully on April 16, 2020. She is survived by 2 sons, Leslie “Mike” Leason of Phoenix and Timothy (Virginia) Leason of Chandler. 5 grandchildren: Derick, Mac, Joseph, Ryan, Adam, and 7 great- grandchildren: Blake, Bella, Emma, Ethan, Autumn, Adaline, and Skylar. Mary is also survived by her sisters-in-law Barbara Thelander, and Carol Silliman, as well as many nieces and nephews. Mary moved to Arizona in 1949 from Winterset, Iowa. She worked for Pleko Southwest as a bookkeeper and Allied Concrete Company. Mary was a member of Epsilon Sigma Alpha and with a various number of projects also did volunteer work with Mesa ARC. In her retirement, she volunteered for Arizona CASA and for the City of Tempe Police Department. Mary loved playing cards and family gathering along with meeting with Echo Polio Group on a monthly basis. She enjoyed knitting blankets for family, friends, and hospital projects for preemie babies. She is preceded in death by her parents, James and Mildred “Tokie” Silliman, former husband Leslie R. Leason, brother John Silliman, sister Margaret “Anne” Silliman, and son Richard Leason. The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, donations, in memory of Mary, be directed to Hospice of the Valley at www.hov.org/donate/. Bunker Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements and the family will announce, at a future date, the date and location for the memorial service.

Aviation Training & Development Manager (Chandler, AZ). Responsible for the dvlpmt of Quantum Helicopters' pilot training prgm & curriculum. MA in Business Admin, Aviation, or related; 3 yrs of related exp in aviation training dvlpmt & mktg or related; Strong organizational, leadership, communication & interpersonal skills; Problem-solving skills, sound decision-making skills, & demonstrate the ability to work independently, as well as on a team; Highly-motivated team player w/ the ability to handle multitasks w/in deadlines. Apply to Delta Leasing, I n c. D B A Q u a n t u m Helicopters, 2401 S. Heliport Way, Chandler, AZ 85286

MISSED THE DEADLINE? Place your ad online! Call 480-898-6465

OUR JOB BOARD HAS THE TALENT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR. FIND THE BEST TALENT. EASILY POST JOBS. COMPETITIVE PRICING AND EXPOSURE More info: 480-898-6465 or email jobposting@evtrib.com

andise

LAS SENDAS HOME CHILD CARE Las Sendas Mom, Newborn & Up, 16 Yr Exp, CPR Certified, Homemade meals and healthy snacks, Loving, safe envir., No pool, Flexible schedule, Early childhood, development activities offered. Many References Call Lina 480-3248466

Cash 4 Diabetic Strips! Best Prices in Town. Sealed and Unexpired. 480-652-1317 Diabetic Test Strips by the box, unused. Any type or brand. Will pay top dollar. Call Pat 480-323-8846

Real Estate

For Sale

Lessons/ Tutoring PROFESSIONAL TUTORING Individualized, at-home instruction for grades K12. Multiple subjects including Math, Reading and Writing. Preparation for college entrance tests. Assistance for home-schooling, behavioral, organizational and special education concerns. Call Philip N. Swanson, Ph. D. 480-677-9459

Manufactured Homes BRAND NEW NEVER LIVED IN 2 BED / 2 BATH HOMES $58,900 Financing Available Also Available Affordable Homes Between $5K - $15K 55+ Mobile Home Park in Great Chandler Loc. Call Kim 480-233-2035

Manufactured Homes

THE LINKS ESTATES Why Rent The Lot When

YOU CAN OWN THE LAND And Own Your New Home

Most jobs also appear on Indeed.com

J BS.EASTVALLEYTRIBUNE.COM

HEADSTONES

FROM THE UPPER 100’S

ASK US HOW YOUR $105,000 CASH INVESTMENT AND OUR SENIOR LOAN PROGRAM ENABLES QUALIFIED 62+ SENIORS MAKING THE LINKS THEIR PRIMARY RESIDENCE HAVE NO MORTGAGE PAYMENT & NO LOT RENT AS LONG AS YOU LIVE IN HOME.

Gawthorp & Associates Realty

Make your choice Everlasting

EVERLASTING MONUMENT Co.

Meetings/Events?

www.everlastingmonumentco.com info@everlastingmonument.phxcoxmail.com

Submit to ecota@timespublications.com

MONUMENTS • GRANITE & BRONZE • CEMETERY LETTERING • CUSTOM DESIGNS

480-969-0788

602-402-2213

www.linksestates.net

Get Free notices in the Classifieds!

“Memories cut in Stone”

75 W. Baseline Rd. Ste. A-8, Gilbert, AZ 85233

40667 N Wedge Dr • San Tan Valley, AZ 85140

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Gilbert Sun News

1620 W. Fountainhead Parkway #219 • Tempe, AZ 85282 480.898.6465 class@timespublications.com

Deadlines

Classifieds: Thursday 11am for Sunday Life Events: Thursday 10am for Sunday

The Place “To Find” Everything You Need | GilbertSunNews.com

Real Estate

For Rent Commerical/ Industrial/Retail Outdoor commercial/personal Storage Yards for lease. Secure, gated 24 hour access, and much more. Call 480-926-5957 for details

Apartments

Cleaning Services

Garage/Doors

ALMA SCH & MAIN UTILITIES INCLUDED Bad Credit OK. No Deposit Close to Lightrail $700 (602) 339-1555

CLEANING SERVICE Bi-weekly, Monthly. Move-in, Move-out. Ten Years Exp. 602-459-2481

GARAGE DOOR SERVICE

Crismon/Apache Trl Cottage Lg 1br 1ba duplex, New AC, fenced yard, $780. Bad Credit ok. No Deposit. Water/trash incl'd (602) 339-1555

Service Directory

East Valley/ Ahwatukee

Broken Springs Replaced

Classifieds 480-898-6465

Appliance Repair Now

If It’s Broken, We Can Fix It!

Air Conditioning/Heating

FREE Service Call

We Also Buy, Sell & Trade Used Appliances Working or Not

Bob B AC, LLC

480-330-5117 (Over 40 Years Experience)

Not a licensed contractor

Appliance Repairs

• Same Day Service • On-Site Repairs • Servicing All Major Brands • Quality Guaranteed

($50 Service Call* Waived with any repair)

Nights/Weekends Bonded/Insured 480-251-8610

480-659-1400 Licensed & Insured Cleaning Services

ROC 318210

Licensed-Bonded-Insured

QUALITY, VALUE and a GREAT PRICE!

Lifetime Warranty on Workmanship Seasonal AC Tune Up - $99 New 3-Ton AC Units - $3,995 We are a Trane dealer & NATE-Certified! 0% FINANCING - 72 Months!! ‘A+’ RATED AC REPAIR FREE ESTIMATE SAME DAY SERVICE

RESIDENTIAL & SMALL BUSINESS CLEANING SPECIALISTS SINCE 2007 Weekly, biweekly, tri-weekly, or monthly; same talented crew each visit Flexible, customized services to meet individual needs of each client GREEN eco-friendly products used to clean and sanitize Move-in/move-out and seasonal deep cleans Small, family-owned company with GUARANTEED high quality services Always dependable, excellent references, bonded, and insured

FreeFree estimates estimatesat at 480-802-1992 480-802-1992 or or dennis@simplygrandcleaningaz.com reed@simplygrandcleaningaz.com Bonded/Insured • ROC #289252

480-405-7588

ItsJustPlumbSmart.com

MORE CLASSIFIED ADS ONLINE! www.GilbertSunNews.com

Handyman HANDYMAN 37 years experience. Drywall, framing, plumbing, painting, electrical, roofing and more. Stan, 602-434-6057

Car for Sale?

Advertise It Here!

Call 480.898.6465

CLASS@TIMESPUBLICATIONS.COM

Concrete & Masonry

Block Fence * Gates

602-789-6929 Roc #057163 Lowest Prices * 30 Yrs Exp Serving Entire Valley

Drywall

JOSE DOMINGUEZ DRYWALL & PAINTING House Painting, Drywall, Reliable, Dependable, Honest! QUICK RESPONSE TO YOUR CALL! 15 Years Experience • Free Estimates

480.266.4589 josedominguez0224@gmail.com Not a licensed contractor.

Electrical Services HONESTY • INTEGRITY • QUALITY

YOU’LL LIKE US - THE BEST! - Ahw Resident Since 1987 -

DESERT ROCK

CO NC R E T E & MA S ON RY CONCRETE BLOCKWALL RETAINING WALL BLOCK FENCE PLANTER BBQ

FOUNDATION DRIVEWAY SIDEWALK PATIO

PAVER • CONCRETE REMOVAL • HARDSCAPE BONDED & INSURED • ROC#321648 SATISFACTION GUARANTEED! FREE ESTIMATES • 16 YEARS EXPERIENCE RESIDENTIAL CALL JOHN: 480.797.2985 COMMERCIAL

Contractors

SIR JOHNS CONTRACTING HOME IMPROVEMENTS REMODEL& REPAIR Painting of All Types Interior & Exterior Cabinets Stains & Paints Over 30 Years Quality Experience

HIG

UAL Lice ITY ns ROC ed & B 251 ond 661 ed

• Panel Changes and Repairs • Installation of Ceiling Fans • Switches/Outlets • Home Remodel

ALL RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL ELECTRICAL Call Jim Endres 480.282.7932 Over 28 Years Experience • ROC #246019 Bonded/Insured

Handyman LLC

• Drywall Repair • Bathroom Remodeling • Home Renovations

• Electrical Repair • Plumbing Repair • Dry rot and termite damage repair

GENERAL CONTRACTOR / HANDYMAN SERVICES SERVING THE ENTIRE VALLEY

All Estimates are Free • Call:

520.508.1420

www.husbands2go.com

Licensed, Bonded & Insured • ROC#317949

Est Free ima tes

Ask me about FREE water testing!

See MORE Ads Online!

602-315-5470

4960 S. Gilbert Rd. Suite #1 Unit #260 John McMillan-Owner Chandler, AZ 85249 sirjohn53@gmail.com

www.GilbertSunNews.com

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Home Improvement HOME REMODELING REPAIRS & CUSTOM INTERIOR PAINTING Move a wall; turn a door into a window. From small jobs and repairs to room additions, I do it all. Precision interior painting, carpentry, drywall, tile, windows, doors, skylights, electrical, fans, plumbing and more. All trades done by hands-on General Contractor. Friendly, artistic, intelligent, honest and affordable. 40 years' experience. Call Ron Wolfgang Office 480-820-8515 Cell 602-628-9653 Wolfgang Construction Inc. Licensed & Bonded ROC 124934

Home Improvement MESA HOME MAINTENANCE & REPAIR Plumbing, electric, irrigation, garage doors, water heaters, tile and drywall repairs, carpentry, handyman lists and other services. Not a licensed contractor. All work guaranteed. Sean Sornberger 480-699-7990

Your newspaper. Your community. Your planet. Please recycle me.

“No JobSmall Too Man!” Small Man!”

“No Job Too Small Man!”

“No Job Too Work Since 1999 Quality le,Small 2010, 2011 Affordab Man!”

2010, 2011 2012, 2013, 2012, 2013, “No Job 2010, 2011 2014 2014 2012,92013, Too Small Man!” 199 e Ahwatukee Resident/ References/ Insured/ Not a Licensed Contractor Sinc k Wor ality 2014

7038 8

Call Bruce at 602.670.7038 2010, 2011 2010, 2011 2012, 2013, 2012, 2013, 2014 2014

BSMALLMAN@Q.COM

Call Bruce at 602.670.7038

es/ Insured/ Not a Licensed Contractor

Ahwatukee Resident/ References/ Insured/ Not a Licensed Contractor

One Call, We Do It All! 602-339-4766 Owner Does All Work, All Honey-Do Lists All Remodeling, Additions, Kitchen, Bath, Patio Covers, Garage, Sheds, Windows, Doors, Drywall & Roofing Repairs, Painting, All Plumbing, Electrical, Concrete, Block, Stucco, Stack Stone, All Flooring, Wood, Tile, Carpet, Welding, Gates, Fences, All Repairs.

Irrigation Repair Services Inc.

Call Lance White

480.721.4146 www.irsaz.com

ROC# 256752

RAMIRO MEDINA LANDSCAPING ➧ LANDSCAPING ➧ TREE TRIMMING & REMOVAL ➧ IRRIGATION ➧ YARD CLEAN-UP ➧ GRAVEL COMMERCIAL ➧ RESIDENTIAL ➧ LICENSED • INSURED OVER 25 YEARS EXPERIENCE

Bath & Kitchen Remodels • Car-Port to Garage Conversion Drywall & Stucco Repairs • Plumbing • Electrical • Can Lights Windows • Doors • Cabinets • Painting • Block Fences Wrought Iron Gates • Remodeling • Additions • Patios Tenant Improvements

A+

I -S

aaaActionContractingInc.com

Your Ad can go ONLINE ANY Day! Call to place your ad online!! Classifieds 480-898-6465

S E R V I C E

L L C

LANDSCAPING, TREES & MAINTENANCE

Tree Trimming • Tree Removal Stump Grinding Storm Damage • Bushes/Shrubs Yard Clean-up Commercial and Residential PMB 435 • 2733 N. Power Rd. • Suite 102 • Mesa dennis@allprotrees.com

480-354-5802

ROC 304267 • Licenced & Bonded

Pest Control

Our family would be proud to be your pest control solution. ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Painting

HOME IMPROVEMENT & PAINTING

AZ Shield Pest Control

(480) 257-4640 Rodent Control Mosquito Control (480) 255-4949 Scorpion Control azshieldpestcontrol.com Ant Control azshieldpestcontrol@gmail.com • Owner Operated

LIC#15751B

Interior/Exterior Painting 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE Dunn Edwards Quality Paint Small Stucco/Drywall Repairs

We Are State Licensed and Reliable!

Free Estimates • Senior Discounts

480-338-4011

ROC#309706

Specializing in

Scorpion Hunts & Management CALL FOLSR! SPECIA

East Valley PAINTERS

480-688-4770

www.eastvalleypainters.com Bonded/Insured • ROC#153131

480-600-1713 Plumbing

Free Estimates! Home of the 10-Year Warranty!

Family Owned & Operated

Sterling Smith, Owner

Scorphntr@cox.net

We Beat Competitors Prices & Quality

480.345.1800

Not a licensed contractor

Prepare for Spring Season!

10% OFF

LIC/BONDED/INSURED Res/Comm’l ROC#218802

ALL Pro

T R E E

Paint Interior & Exterior • Drywall Repair Light Carpentry • Power Washing • Textures Matched Popcorn Removal • Pool Deck Coatings Garage Floor Coatings • Color Consulting

WE DO IT ALL!

480-833-7353 - Office 480-430-7737 - Cell

Jose Dominguez Painting & Drywall SEE OUR AD IN DRYWALL! Quick Response to your Call! 15 Years Exp 480-266-4589

Voted #1

ACTION CONTRACTING INC.

8 97

Insured/Bonded Free Estimates

Specializing in Controllers, Valves, Sprinklers, Landscape Lighting, P.V.C. & Poly Drip Systems

Call or Text Today for a FREE ESTIMATE

East Valley

Painting

Licensed • Bonded • Insured Technician

Carlos Medina - 602-677-3200

Home Improvement

Landscape/Maintenance

Licensed • Bonded • Insured • ROC118198

Landscape/Maintenance

the Spot for ALL Your Handyman Needs! • Drywall • Carpentry Plumbing Painting • Flooring • Electrical • Plumbing inting • Flooring • ElectricalDecks • Tile • More! Drywall mbing • Drywall • Carpentry• Carpentry • Decks • Tile & More! Decks • Tile • More! “No Job Too

nsed Contractor ractor 602.670.7038

General Contacting, Inc.

Free Estimates with Pride & Prompt Service!

Handyman L Your Handyman Needs! Handyman Needs! oring • Electrical • Electrical ywall • Carpentry Marks the Spot for ALL • Carpentry Tile • More! Marks the Spot for ALL Your Handyman Needs! Your Handyman Needs! More! Painting • Flooring • Electrical

1999

Home Improvement

Now Accepting all major credit cards

Affinity Plumbing LLC 480-487-5541 affinityplumber@gmail.com

www.affinityplumbingaz.com

Your Ahwatukee Plumber & East Valley Neighbor Anything Plumbing Same Day Service Water Heaters

24/7

Inside & Out Leaks

Bonded

Toilets

Insured

Faucets

Estimates Availabler

Disposals

$35 off

Any Service

ACCREDITED BUSINESS ®

Not a licensed contractor

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

Plumbing

Roofing

Window Cleaning

HYDROJETTING

480-477-8842

SEWER CABLE

COMPREHENSIVE DRAIN CLEANING, SEWER SCOPING, AND MINOR PLUMBING REPAIR SERVICE

Tiles, shingles, flat, repairs & new work Free Estimates • Ahwatukee Resident

BOOK ONLINE! STATE48DRAINS.COM Your leaks stop here! New Roofs, Repairs, Coatings, Flat Roof, Hot Mopping & Patching & Total Rubber Roof Systems

FREE ESTIMATES & MONSOON SPECIALS

Knowledgeable, honest plumbers that always have your best interests in mind. No matter what kind of plumbing issue it may be, we have you covered. Give us a call, and find your Plumber for life.

SAME DAY SERVICE 30 Years Experience References Available

Call 602-702-4267 Bonded/Insured • ROC#328047

Licensed Bonded Insured ROC 286561

Pool Service / Repair

Senior & Military Discounts

Juan Hernandez

Pavers • Concrete • Water Features • Sprinkler Repair

480-280-0390

PPebbleOcracking, O L Plaster R Epeeling, P ARebar IR

Sell Your Stuff!

showing, Pool Light out? I CAN HELP!

Call Classifieds Today! 480.898.6465

FALL SPECIAL! $500 OFF COMPLETE REMODEL! 25 Years Experience • Dependable & Reliable

CLASS@TIMESPUBLICATIONS.COM

Call Juan at

480-720-3840

Plumbing

Not a licensed contractor.

4995

DRAIN CLEANING

189

GARBAGE DISPOSAL $

3,995!

Public Notices

DATE SIGNED: April 20, 2020 Electronically signed by Gregory Huber Circuit Court Judge STATE OF WISCONSIN, CIRCUIT COURT, MARATHON COUNTY Notice and Order of Hearing (For Publication) Case No 20TP8 IN THE INTEREST OF Laiken-Kai Wicks *Child's name (if ordered by the court) or girl/boy child Born to: _____ TO: Brian Morgan 8142 East 5th Avenue Mesa, AZ 85208 Physical Description of alleged parent: and any unknown parent at unknown address. Additional identifying information: Date of birth: 8/23/2010 IT IS ORDERED: Case No. 20TP8 Physical Description of alleged parent: This Notice be published advising you that a Petition for Termination of your parental rights to the named-above child be heard at the Marathon County Courthouse, Wausau Wisconsin, Rm./Br. address Branch 2 Courtroom 500 Forest Street Wausau WI 54403 on [Date] May 12, 2020 , at [Time] 3:15 PM IF YOU FAIL TO APPEAR, the court may hear testimony in support of the allegations in the Petition and grant the request of the petitioner to terminate your parental rights. You have the right to have an attorney present. If you desire to contest the matter and cannot afford an attorney, the state public defender may appoint an attorney to represent you. If you fail to appear and the court terminates your parental rights, a notice of intent to pursue relief from the judgment must be signed and filed in the trial court within 30 days after the judgment is entered, in order to preserve the right to pursue such relief. If you require reasonable accommodations due to a disability to participate in the court process, please call 715-261-1300 prior to the scheduled court date. Please note that the court does not provide transportation. Published: East Valley Tribune Apr 26, 2020 / 30132

DATE SIGNED: April 20, 2020 Electronically signed by Gregory Huber Circuit Court Judge STATE OF WISCONSIN, CIRCUIT COURT, MARATHON COUNTY Notice and Order of Hearing (For Publication) Case No. 20TP7 IN THE INTEREST OF Joley Morgan Born to: _______ TO: Brian Morgan 8142 East 5th Avenue Mesa, AZ 85208 Physical Description of alleged parent: and any unknown parent at unknown address. Additional identifying information: Date of birth: 8/23/2010 IT IS ORDERED: Notice and Order of Hearing (For Publication) Case No. 20TP7 Physical Description of alleged parent: This Notice be published advising you that a Petition for Termination of your parental rights to the named-above child be heard at the Marathon County Courthouse, Wausau Wisconsin, Rm./Br. address Branch 2 Courtroom 500 Forest Street Wausau WI 54403 on [Date] May 12, 2020 , at [Time] 3:15 PM IF YOU FAIL TO APPEAR, the court may hear testimony in support of the allegations in the Petition and grant the request of the petitioner to terminate your parental rights. You have the right to have an attorney present. If you desire to contest the matter and cannot afford an attorney, the state public defender may appoint an attorney to represent you. If you fail to appear and the court terminates your parental rights, a notice of intent to pursue relief from the judgment must be signed and filed in the trial court within 30 days after the judgment is entered, in order to preserve the right to pursue such relief. If you require reasonable accommodations due to a disability to participate in the court process, please call 715-261-1300 prior to the scheduled court date. Please note that the court does not provide transportation. Published: East Valley Tribune Apr 26, 2020 / 30130

Roofing The Most Detailed Roofer in the State

(advertised offers cannot be combined)

We are A+ Rated by the BBB and stand behind our work with a Lifetime Warranty. Call us for the BEST SERVICE and PRICES in the East Valley! Thank you Mesa for Voting us #1

& Insured

Public Notices

starting at

480-405-7099

Find us on Facebook too!

Licensed/Bonded/Insured • ROC #236099

($85 Value)

ITS NEW A/C UN

Water Heaters $

799

FREE SERVICE CALLS

480-584-1643Bonded

480-706-1453

LLC

NOT A LICENSED CONTRACTOR

Plumbing Heating & Air

APPEARANCE COUNTS

Over 30 yrs. Experience

20+ YEARS OF EXPERIENCE FAMILY OWNED & OPERATED • BONDED & INSURED

PlumbSmart

Staying home and avoiding public contact? Brighten your view with an exterior Window Cleaning only $75! 2 story exterior only $100! Up to 30 panes Screens cleaned $3 each WE WILL HAVE SEVERAL PAYMENT OPTIONS, NO NEED FOR FACE-TO-FACE CONTACT.

COUNTS

APPEARANCE

Experience, Service and Price

Find out why our customers become customers for life! Over 700 five-star Google reviews!

FREE ESTIMATES

ItsJustPlumbSmart.com

Tim KLINE Roofing, LLC Roofs Done Right...The FIRST Time! 15-Year Workmanship Warranty on All Complete Roof Systems

www.timklineroofing.com

480-357-2463

FREE Estim at and written e proposal

R.O.C. #156979 K-42 • Licensed, Bonded and Insured

GILBERT SUN NEWS | APRIL 26, 2020

ARIZONA’S LARGEST GROWER DIRECT NURSERY FOR FOUR GENERATIONS!

s? uestion Plant Q e Whitfill Th Call ow arden Sh Nursery G7-9 am Sat KFYI 550AM m Sun 7-9 a KTAR 1230FM

You’ll See The Difference As Soon As You Arrive!

TREE SALE!

Now’s The Time to Plant & We’ll Do the Diggin’

GIANT HUGE 24” BOX TREES Mesquite • Oak • Pistachio Ash • Elm • Acacia

PLANTED & GUARANTEED

379

YOUR CHOICE

• Best Plants In Town • Friendly, Knowledgeable Nurserymen • No Commissioned High-Pressure Sales People • Best Price In Town On Quality Trees!

149

CITRUS TREES $ BIG 5-6 Year Old Many With Fruit!

Includes Dwarf Trees:

36” UPBOX TREES TO 15’ TALL

Lemon • Lime Grapefruit • Oranges

15 GAL.

CASH & CARRY

Mesquite • Thornless Mesquite Palo Verde • Acacia • Palobrea • Ironwood Sissoo • Oak • Ash • Elms & more

599

PLANTED & GUARANTEED

FROM

Compare at $1000

UNIQUE TIMES... • Shop our nurseries and maintain Covid-19 protocol for your protection and ours. • Order by phone • Contact website

Hours: Monday - Saturday 8AM - 5:30PM • Closed Sunday

Valleywide delivery just $75 MAIN TREE FARM • 602-268-9096

EAST VALLEY • 480-892-2712

2647 E. Southern Ave. (Phx)

Cooper (Stapley) & Guadalupe

• Lemon • Lime • Tangerine • Tangelo • Oranges • Grapefruit and more!

SHADE TREES Monster 48” Box Trees 1000’s to Choose From

1800

From

• Ash • Elm • Mesquite • Palo Verde • Pistachio • Pines

UP TO 25’ TALL

Planted & Guaranteed • Compare at $3000+

PALMS

Arizona’s Best Selection Grower-Direct From Our Farms

Dates • Bismarkia California and Mexican Fan • Cycads • Blues And More! NORTH PHOENIX/ SCOTTSDALE • 602-944-8479 824 E Glendale Ave. (Phx)

All offers limited to stock on hand. • No other discounts apply. • Not valid on previous sales. Multi trunk, jumbo size, and field dug trees slightly higher. LICENSED, BONDED & INSURED • RESIDENTIAL - C-21 - 125878 • COMMERCIAL - A-21 - 125879

SALE ENDS 5/15/20

Price is good with ad only.