Spring 2014 - InMaricopa

Transcription

THE MAGAZINE
Vol. 9 Issue 1
CRAZY PETS
Zany antics
from animal friends
JACKPOT
Casino changes
Ak-Chin’s future
ROCK STAR
NEXT DOOR
Maricopa musician
tours the world
THE
WILD ONE
STALLION THEY CAN’T CORRAL
THANK YOU!
Thanks to our readers and advertisers, InMaricopa.com
is celebrating 10 years of service to Maricopa.
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Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
1
Fun in Real Estate
Since 1974
Contents
VOL. 9 ISSUE 1
Serving
Maricopa and Pinal Counties
• New Homes • Resales
• Short Sales • Foreclosures
• Investment Properties
• Commercial Property
• Rentals • Property Management
21300 N. John Wayne Parkway, Suite 120
Maricopa, AZ 85139
(520) 568-3572
AhwatukeeRealty.com
18
8
Kyle Daly
32
DEPARTMENTS
4
8
10
Craig Cummins
Community gallery
FEATURES
Pet personalities
23
24
36
38
Business
Garage
Door
Service
CAC student leader
Duke vs. Dunes
Heavy Metal
Talented teen
23
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InMaricopa.com | Vol. 9 Issue 1
Submitted
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20
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Real estate
Education
Sports
36
Craig Cummins
ON THE COVER: Horny Henry is a wild horse that has made the domesticated horses at Koli
Equestrian Center on the other side of a fence his herd. Story on page 26.
Photo by Jake Johnson (JakeJohnsonPictures.com)
THE MAGAZINE
Publisher
SCOTT BARTLE
Editor
CHRISTIA GIBBONS
Affordable Family Care!
Writers
CRAIG CUMMINS
KYLE DALY
BETH LUCAS
KATIE MAYER
KATHLEEN STINSON
Photographers
CRAIG CUMMINS
KYLE DALY
JAKE JOHNSON
KATHLEEN STINSON
Designer
CARL BEZUIDENHOUT
Operations
KATHY DEBEVEC
ANGELINA HAVERMAHL
Sales
SCOTT BARTLE
JASON SALMANS
Volume 9, Issue 1
InMaricopa The Magazine
P.O. Box 1018
Maricopa, AZ 85139
520-568-0040 Tel
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Published advertisements are not an
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claims by InMaricopa. No part of this
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without the prior written permission of
InMaricopa. Copyright 2014.
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520.413.0480
Community
Gallery
2
1
3
4
6
1. MHS DECA winners heading to Atlanta International Career
Development Conference in May from left Gretchen Lauterbach,
Nicole Troyer, Amber Isbrandt, Sydnee Akers, Christian Palafox,
Aliyah Turner, Daniel Hersey, Alex Seddon. Submitted
2. Marilyn Leffler pins the badge on her son new Fire Chief Brady
Leffler. Kyle Daly
3. Tortosa covenants coordinator Diane Zavala sees to it that
resident Rick Luna gets a Valentine’s Day gift bag. Ellen Buddington
4. MHS freshman midfielder Katherine Siebert in action. Craig Cummins
5. Province resident Shirley Puffer views posters detailing the
history of the community during its 10th anniversary celebration in
March. Kyle Daly
6. Xavier and Sarah Martinez walk down the red carpet during
UltraStar’s Oscars viewing party. Kyle Day
4
5
5
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Community
Gallery
1
1. MUSD held its first sixth-grade intramural basketball tournament
in March under the direction of district volunteer Jim Irving and
district athletic director Cory Nenaber. Craig Cummins
2. Rams win Krystin Diehl Softball Tournament in March. Tena Dugan
3. Melanie Antone, museum technician at the Ak-Chin Him-Dak
Eco-Museum, points to a photograph of members of the Ak-Chin
Community taken in the 1950s. Kathleen Stinson
4. The Mudhens joined 27 other teams showing off their pride before
6
2
hitting the field in February as Little League season got underway.
Craig Cummins
5. Sixth-grader Aleina Estrada, far left and one of five basketballplaying sisters, helped lead her Sequoia Pathways junior high team
to victory. Craig Cummins
6. Sydney McDill, left, and Kacie Swaffield, both 11, collected nearly
1,000 signatures to name a baseball field after Tommy Fitzgerald, ,
who died of a staph infection in August. Kyle Daly
4
3
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6
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Pets
Personalities
Maricopa
PET PROFILE
NAMES: Madison, Molly
OWNERS: Karen and Gary Myers
Pekingese/Yorkshire Terrier
(Madison), Yorkshire Terrier (Molly)
AGES: 4 (Madison), 9 (Molly)
NEIGHBORHOOD: Province
BREEDS:
WHERE THEY MET THEIR OWNERS:
Minneapolis, Minn. (Madison);
Surprise, Ariz. (Molly)
PERSONALITIES: Molly is braver and
more outgoing but dislikes strangers;
Madison is reserved, gets nervous,
the stroller is her safe place
FAVORITE SLEEPING SPOT:
Wherever Karen Myers is.
INTERESTING FACT: Karen Myers
makes clothing for small dogs. The dogs
have at least 30 outfits. “They have more
clothes than I have clothes,” Myers said.
Kyle Daly
Facebook Question:
What’s the
craziest thing
your pet has
ever done?
(Answers have been edited
for grammar and clarity)
8
Zulema Avis: Our dog Max, who is a pug,
used to love the pacifier. He sucked on it
like a baby would!
Mike N Robin: Our mixed dog peed
while he was sleeping when he was a
puppy!
Danielle N Spence: In the middle of the
night, our dog’s tummy started bothering
her and instead of just going No. 2 on the
floor like a normal dog, she jumped into the
bathtub and did her business there! She is a
1-year-old Golden Retriever.
Ann Rosati: Our cat Petey climbed up and
sat in our artificial Christmas tree.
Ceej Carla Byers: Our Miss Molly
(Yorkie) takes all the laundry – clean or dirty
– out of the laundry basket. Why? Because
she thinks it’s her personal bed!
Kristie Miller: My daughter feeds our
horse as part of her chores. When I go out
to check on things, May, the horse, comes
up behind me and puts her nose on my
neck and nuzzles me every time. Horsey
kisses make having a horse amazing.
Marty McDonald: My dog ate about 30
square feet of carpet in our apartment, a
pair of sandals and the corner of a mattress
– all in the same day.
Kings Court: Our cat likes to turn lights
on and off. Our little Chihuahua once got
picked up by a dust devil and carried over
our back wall. She was injured. Our pit
loves to give hugs standing and placing her
paws on your shoulders, and our pit-mix
actually smiles.
Jennifer Kirk: I have a cat that loves carbs
– steals loaves of bread, bagels and rolls
from the pantry and grocery bags, eats them
and hides the remainder in my closet.
Morgan Bullard Vanderwall: We do
not believe it to be crazy, but everyone else
does. Our dogs ring a bell when they need
to go outside.
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Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
9
Business
Gaming
Kyle Daly
The gamble
that paid off
20 years ago Ak-Chin Indian Community
opened a casino and changed everything
By Katie Mayer
T
he land was remote, dry and
fewer than 22,000 acres in size,
but for decades it sustained
life for the Ak-Chin Indian
Community.
Despite a nearly 20-year struggle to gain
reliable access to water, the community
endured. Members transformed their
designated parcel of land into stretches
of growing gardens and productive
fields. Families shared their harvests, and
together they survived.
While life was never easy, it was simple
— and for a while, it was enough.
10
But in the late 1980s, life began to
change.
The falling prices of farm commodities
and the community’s remote location in
the Santa Cruz Valley created barriers to
prosperity, driving people into increasing
poverty.
“At first the funds were just not
available, and we were doing the farming
and it wasn’t enough to support some of
the programs we were running at the
time,” says Leona Kakar, who has served
as tribal council chairman and in other
leadership roles since 1980.
Submitted
Needing to raise money for their people
when the tribe’s farming operation was
struggling, the Ak-Chin Tribal Council
decided to transform 20 acres of hay fields
into a casino and chose Harrah’s to manage
its new venture.
So with an urgent need to raise money
for their people, the Ak-Chin Tribal
Council took a gamble.
They transformed 20 acres of hay
fields into a casino, and after a nationwide
search, selected Harrah’s to manage the
new venture.
“We didn’t know anything about the
casino business,” Kakar says. “We knew
it made money here and there, and we
thought it would be a way out, and it sure
turned out right.”
Hoopla 20 years ago
as the Ak-Chin Indian
Community built and
opened its casino paving
the way for improved
government, housing
and social services.
A CRITICAL TURNING POINT
On Dec. 27, 1994 after nine months of
construction, Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino
opened its doors for business.
A grand opening celebration drew
crowds from near and far looking for fun
entertainment and a chance to win big.
This year marks the 20th anniversary
of the casino, which has now proven to
be a critical financial turning point for
the Ak-Chin Indian Community and a
vital contributor to the local and regional
economy.
With a fast and steady infusion of cash,
the Ak-Chin Indian Community expanded
critical
government
infrastructure,
ramped up the development of homes for
community members and funded much
needed social services, Kakar says. The
casino also implemented a leadership
development program, which prepares
community members for high-level jobs
in the casino and on the reservation.
The casino’s economic impact also
extended outside the community,
accounting for more than 1,094 jobs and
generating more than $205.3 million in
economic activity in 2010, according to a
2011 study commissioned by the Ak-Chin
Indian Community and prepared by ESI
Corporation.
The casino is one of the leading
employers in western Pinal County
and has brought external dollars into
the region that have circulated back
through the greater Maricopa economy,
says Maricopa Economic Development
Director Micah Miranda.
“People go to Harrah’s, spend money
and the money then goes to employees
and many of them reside and shop in
BY THE
NUMBERS
Submitted
20 1,089 205.3M
$
table games
slot machines
750 6
employees
poker tables
dollars in economic activity
generated in 2010
50,000
square feet in casino
Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
11
Maricopa,” Miranda says. “Those dollars
directly come in and contribute to the
quality of life in Maricopa.”
Tribal Councilman Terry Enos says
he and his community value the role the
casino has played in his community and
the region.
“The choice that was made to be in
the gaming world is a successful one …
and has made an impact in contributions
statewide and also our own selfsufficiency,” Enos says.
CELEBRATING CASINO-STYLE
While the casino’s actual anniversary is
still months away, management has kicked
off a year-long celebration featuring what
many players want most — more chances
to win.
“We’ve got a monthly customer
promotion … to remind everyone that it
has been 20 years,” says Robert Livingston,
casino vice president and general manager.
On Tuesdays in April, Harrah’s is
holding a hot seat promotion, in which
players are randomly selected to win
hundreds of dollars in free slot play
and the casino is organizing a direct
mail promotion offering free play on
Wednesdays. The casino also is preparing
to display a traditional old coin-operated
slot machine and other memorabilia. A
larger celebration will be held closer to the
anniversary, but Livingston says details
have not yet been finalized.
Submitted
The courtyard swimming pool area features
a Jacuzzi, swim-up bar that serves lunch
items and margarita Sundays during the
summer.
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The casino resort
features four
restaurants
including Pinal
County’s only
Dunkin’ Donuts
and The Buffet.
Submitted
The casino offers slot machines, video
poker, video Keno, statewide progressives,
live-action poker and black jack and also
has the only bingo hall in the Caesars
organization.
Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc., which
manages the business, operates casinos on
four continents primarily under the brand
names Harrah’s, Caesars and Horseshoe.
“We are the only nationally branded
casino entertainment in Arizona,”
Livingston says.
This means customers can use a
rewards program linked to all of the
company’s casinos in Las Vegas and
across the country.
Every five years, the Ak-Chin Indian
Community re-evaluates its agreement to
maintain Harrah’s as the casino’s manager.
This year, the contract is once again up for
renewal.
Louis J. Manuel, Jr., chairman of the
Ak-Chin Indian Community, would not
say if the contract would be renewed, but
he says tribal gaming is competitive and
acknowledged the strong partnership his
community has with Harrah’s.
In addition to gaming, Harrah’s AkChin Casino also attracts customers
through 300 hotel rooms, expanded and
remodeled in 2011, an entertainment
lounge and a variety of restaurants.
A PLACE OF MEMORIES
Maricopa resident Jackie Plumley
remembers fondly the first time she and
her husband Gordon visited Harrah’s AkChin Casino in 2005.
The couple lived in Maryland at the
time and had stopped for a visit on the way
to see their children in San Diego.
“We had such a wonderful time that
we came back two years in a row,” Plumley
says.
During their second visit to the casino,
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13
the couple noticed new homes under
development in Maricopa and made the
decision to purchase one.
“Harrah’s was our determining factor in
buying our home in Maricopa, and seven
years later, we still go there,” Plumley says.
She adds, “When we got back to
Maryland and told our family and friends
… we were moving in October, they told
us we were nuts.”
Plumley says she and her family have
always felt “at home” at Harrah’s Ak-Chin
Casino and the staff has always treated
Promotional Products
them “like family.”
Sadly, Plumley’s husband Gordon died
in August, but like family, one of Harrah’s
slot hosts attended his memorial service.
While Plumley holds the casino
especially close to her heart, other
InMaricopa readers shared their own
memories on Facebook.
Reader Vincent Manfredi says he likes
spending date nights at the casino with his
wife, because it is close to home.
“I just wish the buffet line was shorter
on weekends,” he wrote.
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Another reader, Maryann Spaulding,
says she remembers attending the casino’s
grand opening as a child and taking a ride
on a tethered hot air balloon.
“I would love to go in the summer
for the margaritas,” adds reader Kimmy
Baker-Phillips
HOPE FOR THE
NEXT 20 YEARS
As the casino celebrates 20 years of past
success, the Ak-Chin Indian Community
also looks forward to the future.
Councilman Enos says he and the
Ak-Chin Indian Community continue to
“count our blessings.”
Chairman Manuel says he is also grateful for the revenue stream the casino provides and the economic opportunities,
which have helped his community “progress when other funding opportunities,
such as grants, do not.”
In the future, Manuel says, “We look to
enhance our medical services (and) educational and cultural resources.”
While the Ak-Chin Indian Community
continues to generate revenue from its
casino, on a national level many Indian
communities are seeking similar success,
but with mixed results, experts say.
Half of the Indians on or near
reservations now belong to tribes that have
opened Las Vegas-style casinos, according
to research from The National Bureau of
Economic Research, a nonprofit economic
research organization.
Positive results attributed to casinos
include tribal population increases,
adult employment increases, a decline in
poverty and increased economic activity.
However, some national studies also
attribute a slight increase in local crime to
the presence of casinos.
According to a 2008 study conducted
by Stephen Cornell, director of the
University of Arizona’s Udall Center
for Studies in Public Policy, “gaming
has dramatically increased the revenues
flowing into Indian Country. However,
these revenues are very unevenly
distributed with the largest sums going to
nations located close to major markets.”
The social and economic impact of
these increased revenues also is largely
positive, but vary according to the
investment choices Indian communities
make, the study states.
With two decades of success behind
them, owners and management of Harrah’s
Ak-Chin Casino hope the business
continues to thrive for years to come.
However, an increased number of
Indian casinos competing in Arizona
and the slow economic recovery have
created challenges.
“The pie is only so big … especially
the last few years with the economy,”
Livingston says. “I’m no economist, but
Arizona has had its struggles.”
Still, Livingston says Harrah’s Ak-Chin
casino is uniquely positioned to compete
in the marketplace, largely because of its
national Total Rewards program.
“I’d love to have the economy of 2007
again, but I’m glad that we’re able to
have this relationship with the Ak-Chin
Community,” Livingston says. “It’s an
ever-growing, ever-changing business
that’s been very successful for 20 years.”
He adds, “And hopefully it will be
success for 20 more.”
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15
Real Estate
Commercial
Eat here
More restaurants opening
in Maricopa as commercial
real estate market rebounds
By Kathleen Stinson
M
ore restaurants are on their
way as the market for retail
development in Maricopa
is improving.
Chris Gerow, senior vice president of
NAI Horizon Commercial Real Estate
Services, a Phoenix-based company, says
the commercial real estate market in
Maricopa is doing well.
“I think Maricopa has rebounded as
far as its residential housing (market),
and I think its commercial development
is following,” Gerow says.
“I think Maricopa is definitely on a
resurge,” he adds.
A Freddy’s Frozen Custard and a
Chipolte Mexican Grill have plans to
open on the northeast corner of SmithEnke Road and John Wayne Parkway in
the first or second quarter of 2015, says
Brad Douglass, associate vice president
of Cassidy Turley, a real estate services
company based in Phoenix.
A Plaza Bonita Mexican food
restaurant is coming to Fry’s Marketplace
in three to four months, says Gabe
Ortega, vice president, NAI Horizon
Commercial Real Estate Services.
Maricopa Economic Development
Director Micah Miranda says the future
for Maricopa’s retail development looks
“bright — we are chronically underserved
in a number of retail categories. As
we share information with potential
retailers, the interest grows in the city as
a destination.”
16
Kathleen Stinson
Fry’s Marketplace is one of several areas in the city showing signs of new commercial
development.
A number of commercial sites are
planning to move forward, Miranda says.
“We are talking with about a half dozen
restaurants about locating here.”
Gerow says Vintage Partners is trying
to secure an anchor tenant for its 15-acre
parcel south of Fry’s Plaza. Holiday Inn &
Suites has plans to locate on John Wayne
Parkway south of Edison Road.
“We are talking
with about
a half dozen
restaurants
about locating
here.” — Chris Gerow,
senior vice president of NAI
Horizon Commercial Real
Estate Services
Although Maricopa’s commercial
development prospects continue to
grow, developers say the city has some
challenges to overcome.
Dignity Health has purchased 18.56
acres at the intersection of John Wayne
Parkway (State Route 347) and SmithEnke Road on which it plans to build
a free-standing emergency hospital,
according to a company press release.
Initial plans call for a 34,800-square-foot,
two-story hospital.
But, Miranda says Dignity’s plans are
“tentative” and the health-care provider
has not submitted any formal plans to the
city.
William French, vice president
of Cassidy Turley, says before more
commercial development happens in
Maricopa, “housing has got to continue
to get better,” referring to homeconstruction expansion.
“(Commercial development) has
definitely improved,” French says, but
“there is still a lot of room to improve.”
He says the city has some challenges to
commercial development. Constucting a
road across the railroad tracks to open
north and south access would be very
expensive.
“There’s only a handful of access
points from north to south,” he points
out.
Also, widening John Wayne Parkway,
although necessary for the city to develop,
would be expensive and “who is going to
pay for that?” he asks.
Primary co-owner and designated
broker for The Maricopa Real Estate
Company Steve Murray says one challenge
the city faces with its commercial
development is that the state owns State
Route 347 and to acquire easements on
and off the highway is difficult.
The city’s floodplain issues also affect
commercial development, Murray says.
“The bottom line is we don’t see
anything getting done,” he says, adding
it may be that the city is not talking about
projects.
Miranda says the city is aware of a
“couple of project (that) are coming out of
the ground –projects in the works I can’t
detail. As a point of policy, the city doesn’t
comment on businesses locations until
we’ve been given the green light from the
businesses or the developer.”
French says Maricopa lost some time
working on commercial development as
it focused on its fast-growing residential
development, he says.
“I don’t think anyone anticipated
Maricopa would have taken off as quickly
as it did.”
“In general,
commercial
activity is on
an up trend in
Maricopa.”
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“In general, commercial activity is
on an up trend in Maricopa,” Miranda
points out. “We’ve had quite a bit more
interest (lately) from commercial
developers and retail.”
He says Maricopa’s commercial
development would have grown more
rapidly but for the timing of the recession. “Maricopa was the last (metro) city to
take off in growth spurt,” he says. By the
time the city had a big enough population
to attract commercial development, the
recession unfolded.
Also, impacting Maricopa’s development was that metro cities had developed
an overabundance of retail before the
recession, affecting the demand for more
local commercial development.
And, the city is “not large enough for
a regional mall,” Miranda says. “The soft
goods – clothing apparel will be the next
retailers, not the big box stores.”
Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
17
Ian Steenkamp did not have a background
in photography before starting Maricopa
Real Estate Photography.
Real Estate
Photography
Picture-perfect
business idea
Kyle Daly
Local entrepreneur offers professional photography
services for real estate By Kyle Daly
T
he idea came to Maricopa
resident Ian Steenkamp when
his in-laws were looking for a
place to move.
His wife’s parents wanted to sell their
home in South Dakota and relocate to
Virginia. His wife, however, convinced
them Arizona was the place to be.
The 29-year-old and his spouse began
searching for houses online — hitting
websites such as Zillow, hotpads, realtor.
com and Trulia. As with any real estate
portals, photos of homes popped up.
“Just looking at ‘em, I seemed to notice
some of the pictures (were) horrendous,
and this was all between $175,000 and
$200,000 homes,” he says.
That’s when the thought hit Steenkamp:
“Maybe that’s something I could pursue.”
In the real estate business, professionals
say online photos people view when
searching for a home to buy really do
make a difference.
18
“It’s very important,” says Suzie Rotter
of Maricopa-based Clear Skies Realty. “It
tells the story about the house.”
A report released in 2010 from Redfin, a
Seattle-based online real estate brokerage,
showed that in an analysis of more than
100,000 home listings, houses shown
online using professional photographs
received 61 percent more page views and
had a 47 percent higher asking price per
square foot.
Maricopa resident Pat Lairson, a
Realtor at Coldwell Banker Residential
Brokerage, says as the prices of the home
increases, a professional photographer is
likely to be hired to take the photo. But
normally, that doesn’t happen.
“Most realtors I know would tell you
take their own photos,” she says.
The reason for this is the real estate
agent can save money.
Rotter of Clear Skies Realty is of the
same mindset.
“I would use a photographer if I was
listing a half million dollar house or more,”
she says.
Rotter explains the charge for a
professional photographer can eat into an
agent’s paycheck, along with other costs
such as signage, lockboxes and advertising.
“As the list gets bigger and bigger, it’s
taking from the agent’s commission,” she
says.
Larry Lohrman is an Oregon resident
and real-estate photography expert who
runs the blog photographyforrealestate.
net, which he says receives 30,000 visitors a
month. He’s been involved in the real estate
photography business since the 1980s and
has two ebooks on the profession.
“If you don’t have good marketing
photography, it’s just damn hard to sell a
house,” Lohrman says.
If you’re good at taking photos,
the money can be good also, he adds.
Lohrman says he knows five or six real
estate photographers who are making six
figures. But that doesn’t mean you have to
be a professional photographer to get into
the business.
“You can be a real estate photographer
without being a real top-notch
photographer,” he says.
Steenkamp did not have a background
in photography before starting his
business,
Maricopa
Real
Estate
Photography, in January. Within the first
month, Steenkamp says he took photos
of about 14 houses for different real estate
businesses.
Some he did for half price. Two he did
for free. It was a way for him to get in the
game.
Steenkamp works a full-time job in
Casa Grande in addition to running his
one-man business. To help build his small
company, Steenkamp is working with the
Maricopa Center for Entrepreneurship, a
local start-up incubator.
The Maricopa resident got into the
world of real estate photography by
reading up on the profession. He spent
Steenkamp uses a
Canon digital SLR
camera he bought
for his wife who
wanted to try
photography as
a hobby.
Kyle Daly
experience with the camera.
“I would say most people do have some
background,” he says
In his opinion, jobs such as
shooting photos at weddings or taking
portrait photos aren’t as consistent for
photographers as getting work in real
estate.
Steenkamp uses a Canon digital SLR
camera he originally bought for his wife
who wanted to pursue photography as a
hobby. But his wife ended up not having
the time.
three to four months doing research
— experimenting with the camera and
watching YouTube videos — before going
out into the field.
“You can practice all you want, but
unless you take that first step, you’re
always going to (say), ‘You’re not ready,’”
he says. “A picture doesn’t necessarily have
to be a million bucks. It just has to be good
enough.”
Although you don’t have to be a topnotch photographer, Lohrman says many
who get involved in the business have
His first attempt at getting a realtor
interested in his work initially appeared to
be a letdown.
He says he spoke with a guy at a local
real estate business who told him he wasn’t
interested. Three hours later, the agent
contacted Steenkamp.
“He says, ‘Hey, I have a shoot for you,
can you do it tomorrow?’”
Steenkamp spoke to Realtors at open
houses and sent emails to people with
samples of his work. He also created a
Facebook page for his business.
Steenkamp anticipated getting three or
four shoots at most during the first month.
He ended up completing three jobs the
first week — even before his website was
complete.
“I was like, ‘Wow, this got real real fast,’”
he says.
Steenkamp’s prices are listed on his
website, maricoparealestatephotography.
com. Prices range from $99 to $119. plus
tax depending on the home size. Special
photo requests such as taking photos of a
house at twilight cost extra.
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Vol. 8 Issue 4
| InMaricopa.com
19
Education
Language
Quick
studies
No matter what
language they speak,
English Language
Learners adapt rapidly
By Beth Lucas
Kyle Daly
I
nez Ramirez knows what it’s like to be
the new kid in school.
And, for that school to be filled
with peers and teachers speaking a
language foreign to her small ears; for that
school to follow customs far more liberal
than her upbringing.
Today as a teacher of English Language
Learners at Butterfield Elementary School,
she understands what her students are
experiencing. Ramirez was an English-asa-second-language student, before English
immersion became the law of the state.
“I understand what students are going
through. The fears of the culture shock
when they come to our country,” she
explains. “Their lack of understanding
of this country, the regulations and the
system of what’s expected of them.
“I lived it when I became a citizen.”
But she says she knows something
that has proved helpful as the number of
languages spoken changes every single
year, as families move in and out from
all over the world: No matter what the
language of origin, children adapt fast to
English.
The Maricopa Unified School District
currently has 24 different spoken
languages; a number that at times rises
into the 40s, as one family can add an
entirely different language as they move
20
Butterfield Elementary School teacher Inez Ramirez listens to second-grade student Bryan
Armenta, 8, read in class.
in. While the number of languages is
lower than its peak, the district is still
experiencing new languages, with a
growth in Asian languages.
Spanish is the most significantly
spoken language, explains Gretchen
Brown, who oversees the district’s English
immersion programs. The second most
common is Vietnamese, which has 16
student speakers.
District schools regularly celebrate
all of the cultures in a variety of ways.
Teachers can receive a benefit from the
parents who may struggle more than their
immersed students: gifts of food from
around the globe.
Other languages in the district are
Afrikaans, Cambodian, Creole, Dutch,
Pilipino, Finnish, French, German, Italian,
Korean, Laotian, Mandarin, Navajo,
Papago, Polish, Portuguese, Serbian,
Swahili, Tagalong, Thai and Marshallese.
Every student who enters the school
system with another prominent language
spoken at home is tested for language
proficiency. Some students may speak
English well but need assistance with
grammar or reading, which puts them
into the largest category of Maricopa
English immersion students, listed as
“intermediate.”
Students who speak and understand
little English are placed into more intense
classes “below proficient” programming,
which is usually for a limited time as they
learn.
The two schools with the highest
population of English immersion students,
Butterfield and Maricopa elementary
schools, may often offer classes of all
English immersion learners, if there are
20 or more English immersion students
in a class. If there are fewer than 20 such
students, each student receives individual
plans the teacher uses to ensure they
understand a lesson and embrace the
English language, through student pairing,
repetition and other techniques Ramirez
says are valuable to proficient English
speakers as well.
Student plans could direct, for
instance, how many times a word or
lesson or action should be repeated, as
the student picks it up.
Spanish-speakers are the most
common, with 522 students of the
district’s total 5,838, who speak fluent
Spanish. Brown says while Latin families
have support among each other as a
larger group, families from other parts
of the world often come with a stronger
immediate family support system, which
moved to the states in advance.
Many students already are proficient
bilingual speakers, with 219 currently
tested as ELL students, 124 of whom are
considered “intermediate” in needing
support to become proficient speakers,
but able to communicate above “below
proficient.”
“They pick it up super fast, especially
among their peers,” Brown says. “They
are all English speaking when they go out
to play on the playground. We can only
provide English instruction and that is
by state law.”
Because students are immersed in
English in school, oftentimes the parents
have more needs when it comes to
adjusting to U.S. culture, where students
and parents have more rights and are
encouraged to be more involved. Parents
from other cultures may often feel
uncomfortable being involved in their
school, so it is encouraged.
Schools regularly hold parent nights
led by the students themselves in a way
to encourage parental involvement and
level of comfort, Brown says. Translation
services are available for parents.
“We have a lot of cultures here in
Maricopa,” she adds. “In November,
we focused on cultural diversity in our
schools. We brought in guest speakers,
have family nights about diversity, and
showcased all of the different languages or
countries. It does make us unique.”
Bianca Lopez is mother of four
children who have immigrated with her
to Maricopa, where she says the school
system opens a much brighter future for
her children.
“There’s a huge difference in the
educational system between Mexico and
the U.S.,” she said, through a translator.
“We moved here for a better future. A
better future for our children.”
But, she added, it’s one that doesn’t
have to leave behind her ethnic culture.
“Our culture, our desires, are just
like in any country,” Lopez said. “When
we come here, we bring our history, our
culture, our food, and teach our children
never to forget where we came from, to
be open, heard and to become part of this
country’s future.”
Ramirez uses her personal experiences
to reach students, in her class which
includes English Language Learners. As
they learn a new word or subject, she
wants them to touch or see examples.
“Coming from a culture where the
customs are definitely different, the food
is different. Coming from Mexico, the
education system is so drastically different
— going to school up to a certain level is
not mandatory,” Ramirez says. “And then
it’s more of a privilege to get education, it’s
so expensive. The culture, the traditions —
they tell me that the United States is a little
bit more liberal than other countries. Even
our students who come from Vietnam —
they’re just shocked how liberal it is.
“Our freedom of speech that other
countries don’t have. Our freedom to
dress — they get a little bit shocked, and
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21
withdrawn … what can I say or not say,
or speak up? They are shocked that they
get to participate in computer lab, physical
education, choir, music and band.”
With support, the quickly embrace the
school, she adds, and the language.
“By December, they will be talking
their ears off,” she said. “And now I have to
give warnings. It’s beautiful to see that with
the kiddos, an amazing blessing to be able
to be part of that with the students.”
Teri Ponticello oversees Native American education programs, which bring to
light another challenge for some youth
beyond language: cultural adaptation.
Many Native American families teach
their children to learn in a manner very
different from the educational system.
“Because culturally and traditionally,
they’re used to the whole picture, where
everything is important,” Ponticello
explains. “So we have a real challenge
bullet-pointing and summarizing — it
goes back several generations, with
storytelling, and the way they are used to
telling stories very verbally.”
Abstract math concepts for Native
American populations can be a challenge,
after being raised to count tangible objects,
and Ponticello uses federal grant money to
help students transition.
“Our focus this year is primarily on
math, and how doing simple addition
without having our hands on something
to manipulate,” she says. “It’s a challenge,
taking that abstract concept — how do you
make it real?”
“It’s a whole child approach,” she adds.
“Looking at all of their needs, and being
very sensitive to their cultural upbringing
and heritage.”
Angelia Ebner teaches English Language Learners at Maricopa Elementary,
and as a single language speaker herself, she says she appreciates the value
students gain from retaining bilingual
speech. But she also cautions the labels
as being entirely about language — as
language proficiency test questions can
at time confuse a student from a very different cultural background.
“Maybe if they just got here, they used
symbols and not letters,” she says. “It’s
a completely different system. Some test
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questions are based on cultural background, questions like ‘what ingredient
is missing from applesauce,’ or questions
about owls that to Native Americans have
serious religious connotations.”
Ramirez says students themselves
bring a new level of education to their
peers, as they learn on so many levels in
their new home.
“As a parent myself, these students
just enrich our lives,” she says. “They
expose our children to culture, to their
traditions. They’re able to share with
them what other countries are going
through — political, religious and in
education, to show pictures, videos and
their history is amazing.”
Maricopa Elementary School principal
Jennifer Robinson agrees that while the
diverse cultures provide a challenge to
ensure every student’s individual needs
are met — “we feel very fortunate to have
diverse cultures, diverse abilities. It makes
us more well-rounded.
“We know that each child is unique
and different and each brings something
special to our school.”
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CAC Maricopa campus student
leader Socorro Carrillo
Education
Student leader
Student leader
emerges on new
CAC campus
Kathleen Stinson
By Kathleen Stinson
S
ocorro Carrillo is in the thick of
things as an emerging student
leader at Central Arizona College’s
year-old Maricopa campus.
Once so dissatisfied with high school
she transferred to online learning, today
Socorro finds herself starting CAC’s
Anime Club, writing for the college
newspaper The Cactus, working parttime in the campus library, contributing
as an unpaid intern in the college’s public
relations office and heading the campus’
first Student Leadership Organization as
president.
In March, the 18-year-old was
named Student of the Month because
of her contributions in getting the
leadership organization started and for
recently representing the campus at the
annual Student Public Policy Forum in
Washington, D.C.
Socorro began her student leadership
experience at Sequoia Pathway Academy.
When she finished her sophomore year
at Maricopa High School, Socorro says she
was dissatisfied with her experience and
enrolled in Sequoia Choice for its online
instruction program.
“I studied at home (online) for my
junior year but got tired of being home
all the time and not being around people,”
Socorro says, adding she went to classes at
Sequoia Pathway her senior year.
“When I first went to Sequoia, I wasn’t
on track to graduate,” she says, adding she
got involved in student leadership because
she was advised it would be “a way to stand
out.”
Carrillo ran for student government
at Sequoia and was elected vice president.
She then decided to take early enrollment
classes at CAC along with her high school
curriculum. She graduated in May with 12
college credits.
Megan Brown, student government
college adviser at CAC, says Sorocco “has
strong leadership skills, and with more
time and opportunity these skills will
become stronger.”
Socorro has the maturity to relate well
to faculty and staff and also to her peers,
Brown says. She is “driven” and articulate.
The young leader says CAC Maricopa
campus students got the word out they
wanted to form clubs and she found out
which ones interested them.
“Student clubs are an attempt to bring
people together to foster communication
and make friendships,” Socorro says. “(It’s
a way) to build a sense of community at
the college.”
Several students were interested in
forming an Anime club, where they watch
Japanese animation and then discuss each
movie and the culture behind it.
“A lot of our clubs are under
construction,” she says, adding the
students plan to form an Honor Society, a
DECA business club, a culinary club and
a communications club by the end of the
semester.
Socorro is working toward an associate
in arts degree in liberal arts, which she
plans to complete in December. She says
she wants to attend a four-year, out-ofstate university to earn a bachelor’s degree.
“I have always been interested in
journalism,” she says. “I would like to earn
a double major in new media and public
administration.”
She says she hopes to go on to a career
in political writing and do something
like “anchor at CNN or write for the New
Yorker magazine.”
“A number of people in the millennial
generation don’t appreciate all the
Republican-Democratic” banter in the
news, she says. “I would like to see more
independent voices in the media.”
Her experience helping to develop
student organizations at CAC has been
challenging since the age range on campus
is so diverse, she says. It has been difficult
at times getting students together to plan
events. It has improved this semester.
“Student clubs may not have such an
impact on any individual student but
they impact the quality of student life on
campus,” she says.
Sports
Golf
AK-CHIN SOUTHERN DUNES GOLF CLUB
The tale of two courses
and their golfers
Submitted
By Kathleen Stinson
M
aricopa’s two golf courses
— The Duke at Rancho El
Dorado and the Ak-Chin
Southern Dunes Golf Club
— complement each other, experts say.
“We couldn’t be more different
— Southern Dunes is more of a
championship course and The Duke is
more player-friendly and easier to play,”
said Jon Bacon, head golf professional at
The Duke.
“For six months out of the year, there
is plenty of play for both courses,” Bacon
says. “March is one of our busiest months
— June, July and August are slow.”
The course does most its business in
January, February, March and April, he
says.
24
Both 18-hole courses are open to
the public. The Duke offers annual
memberships.
The Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf
Club is located on State Route 237, 2.5
miles west of John Wayne Parkway. It is
a 7,307-yard course from the back tees,
and is rated No. 6 in Best Courses You Can
Play in Arizona by Golfweek and No. 87 in
the Top 100 Courses You Can Play by Golf
Magazine, according to the club’s website.
The Duke, located within the Rancho
El Dorado community, was built in 2002
and covers 7,011 yards from the back tees.
Southern Dunes was also established
in 2002, first as a private club, and later
becoming a public course, says Brady
Wilson, general manager. The Ak-Chin
Indian Community purchased the golf
club in 2010.
“Southern Dunes is considered one
of the premier championship venues in
Arizona,” Wilson says. “It attracts the
highest caliber event.”
Southern Dunes has hosted the PGA
Tour’s Qualifying School. Golfers must
do well at the Q-School to quality for the
PGA Tour.
Great golfers from around the world
play at Southern Dunes, Wilson says.
Steve Jones, winner of the 1996 U.S. Open
Championship, shot a hole-in-one in
February on the par 4, 14th hole.
“We are a little more expensive than
The Duke because of our championship
caliber,” Wilson says.
THE DUKE AT RANCHO EL DORADO
Submitted
The club advertises nationally in
Golfweek, he says. Ninety percent of the
course’s players come from Phoenix,
Canada, the Pacific Northwest, Denver or
Chicago.
Bacon describes The Duke at Rancho
El Dorado as a resort-style course in
the sense that the fairways are wide, the
greens are big and “you don’t have to be
experienced to play here and still have a
good time.”
“I think almost everyone in the
community probably plays at both
courses,” he says. “The city of Maricopa
— for the size of the community — is very
lucky to have two golf courses of such
high quality.”
He said most golfers at The Duke come
from the community.
As with other sectors, golf has suffered
economically in the past several years.
The golf industry has seen minimal
increase in revenues over the past three
years, Wilson says. The years 2007 to 2009
were “hard” on the industry, but 2011,
2012, and 2013 were “better minimally.”
“I don’t feel we are back to where we
were in 2006,” he adds.
He said the Southern Dunes has
benefitted over the years from the AkChin Indian Community’s support. The
community provides the club with “all the
tools and resources, equipment and capital
improvements necessary to continue to
grow the brand of Southern Dunes and
Ak-Chin,” Wilson says.
Rob
Pederson,
visiting
from
Wisconsin, plays at Southern Dunes and
describes the course as “manicured.”
Maricopa resident Jim Henke, who also
plays there, calls the greens and fairways
“pristine.” “When you putt a putt here, it
goes where it is supposed to go.”
Brenda Heibein, of Saskatchewan, says
she prefers to play The Duke because she
has made friends there.
For Marilee Bell, of Wyoming, the 109
sand traps at Southern Dunes sway her to
prefer golfing at The Duke, she says.
“Playability” for the average golfer
matters to Ans Kiewin, from British
Columbia, who golfs at The Duke.
THE DUKE AT RANCHO EL DORADO
Par 72 - 7,011 yards from back tees
42660 Rancho El Dorado Parkway
Maricopa, AZ 85138
480-844-1100
www.TheDukeGolf.com
AK-CHIN SOUTHERN DUNES
GOLF CLUB
Par 72 - 7,307 yards from back tees
48456 State Route 238
Maricopa, AZ 85139
480-367-8949
www.GolfSouthernDunes.com
The Wild One
WHITE STALLION WON’T BE TAMED, BUT
LIKES HANGING OUT BY THE CORRAL
By Kyle Daly
26
Photos by Jake Johnson
It was actually Henry’s love for the ladies
that attracted the stallion to the center in the
first place, and eventually landed him his name.
Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
27
Roger Pablo, shown, and his brother Chuck run the Koli Equestrian
Center where the domesticated horses have attacted the attention
of a wild stallion.
LIFTON “CHUCK” PABLO, OWNER OF THE
family-run Koli Equestrian Center on the
Gila River Indian Community, has heard
the comment before.
“Hey, one of your horses got out,” he
says, repeating the phrase people utter when they see the white
stallion on the center’s land.
But as Pablo explains, the horse hanging around the center’s
corrals every day is not one of his. Henry — as he’s called — is wild.
“He hangs out here all the time,” Pablo says.
One Monday afternoon, Henry, who’s estimated to be in his
early 20s, stood between two of the center’s corrals with his head
leaning inside some of the metal fencing — giving an odd picture
of a free horse taking a peek at the domestics caged within.
The 12-year-old center — located west of the Interstate 10 and
State Route 347 intersection near the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass
Resort and Spa — has about 30 horses used for trail riding. Horses
are kept in three large corrals. Henry, one of more than 1,000 wild
horses estimated to live on the Gila River lands, has been coming
around nearly since the beginning.
With a dirty white coat and a blond mane that has patches of
red, Henry’s wildness is apparent. And the horse has the scars to
prove it.
Pablo pointed out one scar near the horse’s rear end — a bite
28
wound he received in a scuffle with another wild horse.
“We tried to catch him to like doctor him, but we couldn’t catch
him,” he says.
Camie Heleski, an instructor in the department of animal
sciences at Michigan State University, says horses are herd animals,
meaning they live in groups.
At first glance, Henry seems like a unique case — a wild horse
without a social group.
But that’s not how Chuck Pablo and his brother Roger view
Henry.
“To him, this is his herd,” Chuck Pablo says, referring to the
domesticated horses inside the center’s fencing.
More than that, the domesticated horses are Henry’s family —
literally.
Spirit, a young female horse around 7 months old, whose coat
is beginning to transform from gray to white, is Henry’s child. She’s
domesticated, and lives in a corral.
When the female horses — or mares — “go into season,” they
simply back up into the fence in an attempt to mate with Henry,
the brothers said. A mare is generally ready for sexual activity
during the longest days of the year — in spring and summer.
Although Henry was successful in mating with one of the
center’s horses, allowing the wild stallion to breed with the
domesticated horses is not something the center’s operators’ desire.
“We try to avoid that,” Chuck Pablo explains.
He says having a pregnant horse essentially puts that horse
out of commission for a while, which isn’t ideal for a trail-riding
business.
It was actually Henry’s love for the ladies that attracted the
stallion to the center in the first place, and eventually landed him
his name.
Pablo says Henry originally was part of a herd of about 18 to
20 horses. Two big draft mares at the center apparently caught
Henry’s eye.
“He started hanging around because of those mares,” he says.
A woman who works the front desk at the nearby Sheraton
started calling the wild stallion “horny Henry,” Pablo says.
“So Henry’s just kind of stuck,” he says.
At least one attempt has been made to chase Henry off.
The stallion was pulling up and munching on the fresh sod
that had been laid down near the center’s main buildings and also
leaving hoof prints on the wet grass.
Center workers trapped Henry between two corrals and then
stuck him into a fenced-in area.
“He freaked out at first, then after a while, people started
coming up and they were looking at him, and he realized that
‘They’re not going to bother me,’” Pablo says. “So that’s kind of got
him more used to us being around.”
The horse was later taken out into the desert and dropped off.
“And he just made his way back,” Pablo says.
The Pablos says Henry doesn’t like other wild horses coming
around the center and has gotten into scuffles. Roger Pablo says
there were actually two wild horses that hung around the center at
one point — Henry and a horse they call Dusty.
Dusty was chased off by other wild horses, Roger Pablo says.
Henry, on the other hand, has managed to stay and fight.
Center workers do not feed Henry or give him water. The
stallion munches on the center’s grass and hay that’s been left lying
around.
“As soon as we leave, he’s the clean-up crew,” Roger Pablo says.
He gets water from a manmade water hole just north of the
center made for the wild horses in the area.
Heleski, the instructor from Michigan State University,
speculated the resources available to Henry is what keeps him
there — the food, water, and of course, the ladies.
“He sees that he’s got a pretty good gig going on,” Heleski says.
Chuck Pablo has a similar theory.
He owns a female horse that at one time ended up running off
with the wild horses. Four years later, the horse came back. Pablo
put a saddle on her and it didn’t take long for the horse’s memory
to kick in. But Pablo says he wasn’t sure if the female horse was
happy.
“I took her out to the wild horses one day, and I let her go,”
he says. “She went with the wild horses. I said ‘Yep, there’s your
answer.’”
But the next day, the horse came back and he put her in a corral.
“They know where home is,” Pablo says. “If they get home, if
they get somewhere happy or whatever, they’ll just come back.”
Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
29
Maricopa equestrian
garners national award in
distance trail-riding
Trail-rider Jill
Worley uses her
backyard complete
with barrels and
poles as a training
ground.
Long
haul
Story and photos by Craig Cummins
LOCAL WOMAN AND HER
steadfast stallion were given
a national award for their
outstanding season-long performance in
competitive long-distance trail riding.
An Arizona native and resident of
Maricopa for 11 years, Jill Worley makes
her living as a software designer working
out of her home in Thunderbird Farms.
For nearly a decade, Worley has been an
active competitor in different formats of
horse racing competitions. She uses her
backyard as an amateur training ground
to prepare her horses Rio and Zeus for
competitions.
30
Her gated stable is lined with barrels
and poles to train her horses.
“We started doing poles and barrel
racing last year. I’m trying to make them
as versatile as possible. I take them out to
chase the cows and have taken them to play
horse soccer, which if you haven’t seen you
should really check it out,” Worley says.
When Worley started riding nine
years ago, she started in short-distance,
obstacle-based
competitions.
Now,
Worley participates in some of the longest
trail riding competitions in the country
within the North American Trail Ride
Conference.
The conference is an organization
that runs national trail-riding horse
competitions in a format that offers long
distance, timed races that judge rider and
horse on their performance. For novice
riders, a single event consists of a 30 to 40
mile course over a two-day period.
Events last an entire weekend with
scoring and evaluations beginning when
riders first arrive on Friday. Veterinarians
and judges do a scored pre-evaluation on
the riders set up and the physical condition
of the horse.
Riders head out on Saturday morning
to start the actual riding portion of the
competition. Rider and horse are judged
on safety, performance, fitness and ability
to stay within the time limits. Rides offer
a grueling test of endurance for both the
rider and horse, Worley says.
“During competitions, on Saturday
you basically check out at 7 a.m. You have
maybe a 40-minute break for lunch where
you’re actually off of your horse. Then you
ride into camp around 6 p.m. So you’re
out there all day,” Worley explains. “You
have speed expectations so you trot, which
for many riders is harder than walking or
running because when you’re trotting you
do what’s called a post where you’re in
front of the saddle, and it’s basically like
doing squats all day.”
When riders finish their rides on Sunday, a final scored post evaluation is conducted to determine the condition of the
horse. After the evaluations are done both
the rider and the horses will receive scores.
“One of our top riders at Bumblebee
this year got first place as a rider, but her
horse got third place. There’re separate
awards between the two, as well as an
award for combined scores,” Worley says.
In Arizona, which is part of the conference’s Region 2, there are three main rides
— Bumble Bee Ranch, San Tan Mountain
Regional Park and McDowell Mountain
Park. Together these three events make up
the Arizona Triple Crown.
Casa Grande Regional
Medical Center
Back surgery has kept
Jill Worley off the trail
this year, but she is
the 2013 winner with
her horse Rio (white
stripe) of the Region
2 Lighweight Novice
Division of North
American Trail Ride
Conference’s National
Novice Division Region
Team Award.
After the 2013 season, Worley and
her 12-year-old stock horse Rio won the
Region 2 Lightweight Novice Division of
North American Trail Ride Conference’s
National Novice Division Region Team
Award, which is given to the team that accumulates the most total points throughout the season. Award winners are honored
at the organization’s national convention.
“They had the national banquet in
Oklahoma, but I wasn’t able to make it.
But they held an informal banquet for me
before the Bumble Bee Ranch ride where
they gave me my awards,” Worley says.
Still recovering from back surgery in
August, Worley was unable to compete in
races this year but attended the Bumble
Bee Ranch event to receive the award.
While recovering Worley still attends
events as a volunteer point rider who
goes out on the trails before competitors
to make sure they are ready and properly
marked.
“When you’re training to ride a 30-mile
course, you have to get out there and push
yourself to ride further and further on your
own,” she says. “I’m riding again, but not
up for pushing it 30 miles. We don’t have
our next event until October, so we’ll see if
I’m ready to take that ride. But I’m looking
forward to competing in 2015.”
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Vol. 8 Issue 4
| InMaricopa.com
31
1
COPPER SKY RECREATION COMPLEX
Swimming
4
32
Skateboarding
Cardio
3
Fishing
Basketball
FISHY FACTS
Rainbow trout
• 250 currently stocked, 1-lb. each
• Distinguished by long reddish line on
its side
• Subspecies of salmon
• Flavorful nutty meat
1. Anthony and Carly Hall stand
inside a second-floor fitness studio
looking out over the Copper Sky
Recreation Complex. Photo by Kyle Daly
2. Resident Daniel Gutierrez fished
with his 7-year-old daughter at the
5-acre lake located at the Copper Sky
Recreation Complex. Photo by Kyle Daly
3. Aquatics centers includes a leisure
pool, a competition pool, a rockclimbing wall for swimmers and a
splash-pad area. Photo by Craig Cummins
4. Steel Lewis, 12, in orange shirt and
Hunter Scott, also 12, get in some
playground time at Copper Sky. The park
includes eight multi-purpose sports fields,
seven ramadas, a dog park, a skate plaza
with stairs, benches and curved walls, four
baseball fields, tennis and volleyball courts
and an amphitheater. Photo by Craig Cummins
Fishing tip: Use Power Bait or something
similar. Get different colors and if the fish
aren’t biting one color after letting your
line sit for 45 minutes, change the color
of bait and recast.
Channel catfish
• Most fished species of catfish
• Average between 2 and 4 lbs.
• In the wild can grow to be over 40 lbs.
• Catfish smaller than 16” are said to be
the best to eat
Fishing tip: Use your sinkers; channel
catfish are bottom feeders so it is
important you get your bait as close to
the lake floor as possible.
Bluegill fish
• Type of sunfish
• Range from 12 to 16”
• Manage crustacean and insect levels
low in lakes
• White flakey meat
Fishing tip: Bluegill have great eyesight so
use 4-lb. test line to hook them in.
White Amur
• Variety of carp
• Body is dark olive with a white belly
• Average length is 24 to 39”
• Used to regulate undesirable
vegetation in water and keep stock
lake clean
Fishing tip: Use kernels of corn as bait, it’s
a secret of the pros.
2
Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
33
What are your thoughts on
Maricopa’s new Copper Sky
Recreation Complex?
Ramiro Mejia
5
“I think it’s a great piece
to the Maricopa
family. As you can see
there’s a lot of families
here that bring their
kids – a lot of activities
that they do here. This is my
third time (here), and I think it’s a
great thing.”
Valerie Reinecke
5. Skateboarder Danny
Barrera rides his board
in the new skate plaza
at the Copper Sky
Recreation Complex.
Photo by Kyle Daly
6
6. Inside Copper
Sky visitors can find
a gymnasium with
basketball courts, a
catering kitchen, two
multi-purpose rooms
that can be rented,
a movie screen, an
upstairs walking track,
a fitness area and
two studio rooms
for fitness classes.
Photo by Craig Cummins
7
34
7. Individuals and
families can buy
memberships to
Copper Sky Recreation
Complex.
Photo by Craig Cummins
“I think this is the best
thing that could
have happened
to Maricopa. I just
moved here in January
from Alaska and that’s the
biggest thing I missed was my
local YMCA. … It’s wonderful. I
mean, every part of it. I can’t wait
for the lap pool to open because
I’m a lap swimmer.”
Chad Molyneaux
“I was really impressed
by everything
especially the cardio
equipment and just
the general size of
this place. I think it’s
going to be really good for the
community. So I’m impressed.”
Don Ubarski
“To me it’s one of the
nicest facilities that
I’ve seen in Arizona.
Whoever designed
this, they did a heck of
a job.”
Sergio Monzon
“I take my nieces
over to the park
over here. I think
that’s pretty cool.
But the skate park is
my thing. I come here
every morning. I really like this
skate park better than the one
that’s across the street (in the
Ak-Chin community).”
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Amanda Mcvay (with her son
Alexander, 1)
“It’s a really nice
facility. It’s really nice
to have so much
green space and
have a skate park
for the kids, have the
playground for younger kids.
And I’m looking forward to
hopefully getting a membership
so that we can use the facilities
– especially over the summer
with the splashpad and pool
and stuff.”
Maricopa
21083 N. John Wayne Pkwy, Ste C105
Maricopa, AZ 85139
(520) 568-5600
Casa Grande
1968 N. Peart Rd., Ste 24
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(520) 421-0880
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SUMMER
ENERGY
SAVING TIPS
1.
Do not set your A/C thermostat
to a colder than normal setting
when you first turn it on. It will
not cool your home any faster.
2.
Energy Star® qualified A/C units
are about 14% more energy
efficient than standard models.
3.
Remember to turn off ceiling
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Fans cool people not rooms.
4.
Ensure that furniture and other
objects are not blocking air flow
in your home.
George Rock
“We’re excited.
We like the size
of the lake, the
playgrounds for the
kids. My boy did the
ceremonies for the tee
ball this year, so that was pretty
awesome. I’m glad to see the
growth. … I’ve been out here
28 years so getting to see
something like this come into
our neighborhood is real nice.”
Source: www.energy.gov
(520) 424-9021
www.ed3online.org
Vol. 8 Issue 4
| InMaricopa.com
35
HEAVY
METAL
HEAVYWEIGHT
Maricopa musician rocks
his way around the world
By Craig Cummins
HE GUY DOWN THE STREET
might just be a rock star.
Maricopa resident Antony
Hämäläinen is a well-known
vocalist in the heavy-metal
music scene who made a name
for himself as a singer and performer
touring around the world. Now, the
33-year-old is using his Maricopa home
as headquarters for his new band, which
is trying to bring something new to the
world of metal music.
Soon after he was born in Finland
in 1980, Hämäläinen’s family moved to
Ohio where he first showed his passion for
music.
“My mom says I was 4 when I started
banging around pots and pans trying to
do John Mellencamp songs,” Hämäläinen
says. “When I was about 11, I picked up
my first guitar and that’s when I really
started to learn.”
Hämäläinen’s life in Greater Phoenix
started in 2002 when his father took a job
as a professor in Arizona State University’s
aerospace program.
After spending some time studying
at ASU’s W.P. Carey School of Business,
Hämäläinen left the program to start his
own European clothing outlet in Tempe.
After successfully running the business for
36
a few years, he sold the shop and used the
money to buy his Maricopa home.
Through the years Hämäläinen
continued pursuing his passion for music,
learning to play a variety of instruments
and playing with many bands, but he
realized singing is his true talent.
“I can play the guitar, bass, drums and
keyboard, but I suck at everything other
Submitted
Finnish-born musician Antony Hämäläinen
has traveled the world playing heavymetal, but makes Maricopa his home.
Antony Hämäläinen shown with Swedish
death metal band Nightrage. He recently
started the band Meridian Dawn.
Submitted
than singing,” he says. “But it’s good to
know instruments as a songwriter and be
able to speak someone else’s language. If
you don’t know anything about the bass,
it’s hard to sit with your bass player and
come up with the idea.”
In 2007, after years of honing his craft,
Hämäläinen joined the already established
Swedish death metal band Nightrage as
lead vocalist. For five years, he recorded
and toured the world with the group
performing shows in venues big and
small, in countries and cities that cover the
spectrum of economic development. The
band even had offers to play in locations
many would say are unreachable.
“South Korea was cool. The promoter
told us that he could get us a show in
North Korea. He said there is a part of
the border that he knew a guy that had
a little bar, with a little drum set up and
a practice amp and was like, ‘If you guys
want to go and create some history and get
the hell out of there.’ But we didn’t do it,”
Hämäläinen says.
Submitted
“We were trying to
step out of the box,
but still stick to our
European metal roots.
It’s a futuristic and
precise record with a
lot of heart.”
– Guitarist CJ Cussell
“In some of countries we played shows.
They didn’t speak English, but they sang
the lyrics to our songs perfectly, which is
funny. It was weird seeing someone who
lives 100,000 miles away or whatever it
was, singing our songs.”
Even though Hämäläinen made
Maricopa his home and the rest of
Nightrage’s members were scattered across
Europe, they still managed tour across
Europe, Asia and North America.
“When we were in Nightrage, it was a
bit of a challenge to get everyone together
because everyone lived in different
places. We used the budget we had and
merchandise sales to get where we needed
to go. It was challenging, but we made it
work,” says Anders Hammer, bassist for
Nightrage.
In 2012, Hämäläinen and drummer
Johan Nunez left the band to start
Meridian Dawn.
The brain child of Hämäläinen, Nunez
and Arizona guitarist Brandon Johnson,
Meridian Dawn aims to create new and
innovative styles of music that aren’t
solely inspired by metal but many musical
genres. To help the trio on their rhythmic
crusade, they recruited Florida musicians
CJ Cussell, a guitarist who toured with
Nightrage in 2012, and Nick Ziros, former
bassist of Remembering Never.
In March 2013, Cussell and Ziros
loaded up their gear and started their
2,000-mile drive from Florida to Arizona
to record the album. After reaching
Maricopa in 33 hours, the band started
setting up their studio in Hämäläinen’s
house and got right to work.
“When we came in to record the album
we brought all of our gear; instruments,
recording equipment, video screens, Pro
Tools and basically turned the kitchen into
a professional recording studio,” Johnson
says.
Drummer Nunez couldn’t make it to
Maricopa so he recorded his drum sets in
Luxemburg.
“We basically locked ourselves in the
house with beer and equipment and went
Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
37
to work. It was great to be able to write the
music together and hang,” Cussell says.
After two weeks of nonstop
collaboration and recording they finished
Meridian Dawn’s first album Fever
Syndrome.
“We were trying to step out of the box,
but still stick to our European metal roots,”
Cussell says. “It’s a futuristic and precise
record with a lot of heart.”
But even after finishing the album and
creating music they loved, they still had
some questions to answer.
What were they going to do with the
album? And where does Meridian Dawn
go from here?
Hämäläinen says, “We’ve been talking
to a few labels and we’re fortunate to have
a really great management company with
us right now. We actually have a couple
options. We have a label in Japan where we
would release it strictly with them. Then
we have a couple of labels in Europe and
one in the U.S. that want to put it out to the
rest of the world.”
While releasing the album under a
label was important, Hämäläinen and the
band saw another option that fulfilled the
group’s goals for the future.
“We have another option,” Hämäläinen
says. “The management and myself have
talked about maybe just doing a fivesong EP. So we worked with four different
people on four different song selections
and picked the best ones from those
mixers and producers to put out. No one
else is doing this in metal right now.”
After considering the options the band
decided to release their first five-track EP
March 25, with a release of Fever Syndrome
later this year.
TEEN
of MANY
TALENTS
Eighth-grader plays six
musical instruments and has
a penchant for poetry By Craig Cummins
38
Allene Dugan plays at least six instruments,
draws, and participates in a local poetry
slam. Shown here at Tortosa’s St. Patrick’s
Day event.
T 13, ALLENE DUGAN MIGHT BE
considered a Renaissance girl. She
plays numerous instruments, is
an accomplished artist and writes
poetry.
Growing up on a small farm in the Hidden
Valley area, the eighth-grade Sequoia Pathway
Academy student is like many other teenage
girls: She likes spending time with her friends,
riding horses and playing with her pets.
However, Allene also gets out in the
community and performs whether as a
musician at the Tortosa St. Patrick’s Day
festivities or Thursday nights at a local
poetry slam.
“When I was little I really wanted to play
piano,” Allene says.
She started taking lessons when she was 5
and eventually met Maricopan Trevor Jones,
who has become her musical mentor.
“We met Trevor one day, and he really took
an interest in her,” Allene’s mother Maureen
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says. “That’s where she really started
learning to play music. He’s a great man.”
Jones taught Allene how to play the
guitar, which has since become her
instrument of choice.
“I can play them all, some better than
others, but I can play at least one song on
the guitar, mandolin, banjo, pennywhistle,
piano and ukulele,” Allene says. “ But I’m
best at guitar.”
Allene’s talents don’t end with music.
“She’s a very talented visual artist,”
says Lauren Miller, Allene’s advanced art
teacher at Sequoia Pathway.
Miller says she was able to sneak the
young artist into her high school level class
because of the skill and sophistication she
shows in her creations, especially in her
ink and watercolors.
“I forget all the time that she’s only in
the eighth-grade,” Miller says. “I joke all of
the time that she is a 35-year-old stuck in a
13-year-old’s body.”
Allene says she steers away from the
trends that envelop her peers, and that
it is just easier for her to relate to older
generations.
“She’s always been a caring person.
She’s never really tried to fit in. She’s her
own person, and she flaunts it,” her mother
says. “My adult friends always tell me I
should bring her around. She’s just able to
relate to adults.”
Millers adds: “You can always spot her
because she’s the one in the amazing outfit
that is awesome, and she doesn’t care what
anyone else thinks. ... She doesn’t care
about the status quo or conformity.”
With a voice that seems ready-made for
the Indy rock scene and smooth delivery
on the acoustic guitar — whether it’s
country, rock or folk — she makes each
song she covers her own.
“I love all of it, hearing her practice and
sing is amazing to me,” her mother says.
“I love when she can express herself in her
music.”
While she primarily plays cover songs
during performances, she is no stranger to
writing. She is a regular at the Honeycutt
Coffee poetry slams Thursday nights.
Miller caller her “an incredible poet.
Very strong.”
ADVERTISER INDEX
A1 Garage Door Service.....................2
Adobe Blinds and More...................22
Ahwatukee Realty..............................2
Banner Health Center.......................9
Camino Montessori..........................15
Casa Grande Regional
Medical Center.................................31
Casa Grande Trap and Skeet............17
Children’s Learning Adventure.........5
Cobblestone Dental...........................3
Comfort Keepers........................... IBC
Dignity Health................................. 19
Electrical District No. 3................... 35
Four Seasons Mechanical................ 35
Graysmark Academy........................21
Grille109..........................................29
Be
formed
Hula Dance Studio........................... 14
InMaricopa.com...............................40
K’Bella Salon and Day Spa................13
Lizard Heights Glass.........................15
Machado’s Landscaping
Construction.....................................12
Maricopa Eye Care.............................6
Maricopa Real Estate Company
- Anthony Schumacher....................22
Outside the Box Marketing............. 14
Pinal County Federal Credit Union..17
Premier Orthodontics..................... 35
NEWS • OPINION • YELLOW PAGES
COUPONS • CLASSIFIEDS • EVENTS
Santa Cruz Commerce Center........ BC
Sun Life Family Health Center...........7
UltraStar Multi-tainment Center........1
UPS Store..........................................14
40
WE ARE COMFORT KEEPERS
®
Our Family Is Here To Give Comfort To Your Family
Comfort Keepers® provides the kind of trusted,
in-home care that helps people maintain full
and independent lives, right in the comfort of
their own home.
Our Comfort Keepers® are carefully screened,
trained, bonded, and insured.
Your Maricopa resource for senior and home care
Maricopa and Surrounding Areas
SERVICES
520-233-2848
• Medication Reminders
• Respite
• Bathing
• Grooming and Dressing
• Meal Preparation
• Housekeeping
• Laundry
• Incidental Transportation
• Errands and Shopping
• Companionship
W W W. C O M F O R T K E E P E R S . C O M
Vol. 9 Issue 1
| InMaricopa.com
41
P.O. Box 1018
Maricopa, AZ 85139
42
ECRWSS
Postal Customer
Local
PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
DENVER, CO
PERMIT NO. 5377

Spring 2014 - InMaricopa

Transcription

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