Author: Tommy Acosta

By Carla Trujillo, PWG President Cottonwood AZ (January 8, 2015) – The local Chapter of Professional Women’s Group has their first quarterly luncheon of 2015 on January 20, 2015. Luncheon will be at the Cottonwood Recreation Center from 11:30am – 1:30pm and include a speaker presentation, networking opportunities, catered lunch, and raffle/door prizes. This month’s luncheon will be catered by Café Jerona based out of Cottonwood.  Pre-registration for this event is required and you can sign up at www.pwgaz.org.

Cottonwood AZ (January 8, 2015) – The Cottonwood contra dance will return on Saturday, January 17th with dancing to the live music of Traditional Blend and calling by Seth Levine.  The pre-dance lesson is at 6:30 PM and the regular dance is 7:00-10:00 PM.  Wear comfortable shoes and clothing you can move in. Snacks to share are appreciated!  All dances are taught and called and you can come alone or with friends—no experience necessary.  Location is the Cottonwood Civic Center, 805 N. Main St. in Old Town, Cottonwood AZ 86326. Donations are $9 per dancer and $7 for students. Contact Mark Alexander…

Sedona AZ (January 8, 2015) – Sedona-­Oak Creek Unified School District (SOCUSD) is pleased to announce Mr. David Lykins has been named All Arizona Superintendent of the Year for Medium Size Districts in the State of Arizona. Lykins has served as the Superintendent at SOCUSD since July 2011. Lykins has worked collaboratively with staff, parents, and community members to develop a strategic and systematic focus for the skills and knowledge of the District’s students both now and in the future.

Little Red Riding Hood Lied:  The Real Tale of Wolves in Arizona Sedona AZ (January 8, 2015) – Keep Sedona Beautiful, Inc., at its Preserving the Wonder™ Speaker Series on Wednesday, January 14 at 5:30 pm, will feature Emily Renn, Executive Director of the Grand Canyon Wolf Recovery Project. Would you like to know about the current status of wolves in Arizona?  Join KSB to discover their history, biology (including diet, family life and behaviors) and the key role they play in Southwest ecosystems.  Learn about the captive breeding program, reintroduction into the Blue Range Wolf Recovery Area, current efforts…

An exciting opportunity to help others and hang out with horses! Cornville AZ (January 8, 2015) – Connections Equine Therapy is a non-profit organization located in Cornville, AZ offering Therapeutic Riding and other services designed to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals with disabilities.   This is your opportunity to get involved with a great group of people, get to know some wonderful horses and help a worth-while cause! We need volunteers for Horse Care and to assist clients in our Therapeutic Riding Program. 

Cottonwood AZ (January 7, 2015) – Last month, a 66-year-old Cottonwood resident reported fraud by mail but avoided any financial loss by being suspicious and confirming the fraud with law enforcement. The victim had just received an envelope containing a letter indicating she had been selected as a “mystery shopper.” The envelope included a $2200 cashier’s check which the victim was instructed to deposit, purchase (4) $500 Green Dot credit cards, and keep the remaining money as “salary.”

By Ted Grussing One of the really fun things I find in photography is the beautiful abstract patterns present nearly everywhere you are, whether it be in the fractal type designs in leaves, drops of water coming off icicles, patterns in clouds or a view from on high looking at the earth itself. I got this photograph yesterday and the colors, patterns and shadows all combine to give truly neat abstract … I like the volcanic cone in the upper left too … looks like it has not aged very well, but it is trying. Not sure if this cinder…

By Warren Woodward, Sedona Resident(January 6, 2015)  I have appealed the Arizona Corporation Commission’s decision to charge people who refuse “smart” meters an extortion fee. From the appeal: The so-called “Findings of Fact” section of the Decision should be more aptly named “Errors and Omissions of Fact & Findings of Fantasy.”

Sedona AZ (January 6, 2015) – Home for Hopi people is rich in meaning and function within the cultural cycle of the year. Hopis are known for their ancestral multi-story plastered stone homes on mesa tops in northeastern Arizona. Today, with growing population and changing building styles, many Hopi families face overcrowding, have substandard housing, indoor air quality challenges with the coal heaters, inadequate plumbing, and much higher than average housing disrepair.

By Ted Grussing …  a friend went flying with me this afternoon and the avowed purpose was to get some great aerial shots up north. We took off around 3:30P and cranked left in a climbing left turn heading for the peaks. The air has generally been of a pretty high quality and we expected to see the San Francisco Peaks come into view with crisp clarity as we climbed up and out of Sedona and the canyons. As the peaks came into view they were totally hazed out with a brownish smoke that filled our vision, left, right and…

Cornville AZ (January 6, 2015) – On January 3, 2014, just before 7 PM, a concerned motorist reported an erratic driver on Cornville Road near Mountain View Road. The vehicle, a 2001 Mazda Miata, was serving all over the roadway and had hit a curb as it created a danger for other motorists. A short time later, a YCSO deputy was able to locate the Mazda as it swerved into the opposite lane of travel in this area. Once behind the Mazda, the deputy turned on his emergency lights but the driver failed to yield. After pursing the vehicle for…

By Ted Grussing Saturday morning Derek and I were talking about a plan he had to shoot the moonrise over the San Francisco Peaks that afternoon. Seemed like a fun idea with him shooting from the ground and me getting it from the air from approximately the same position but about a mile higher. There is a fantastic amount of planning that has to go into getting a shot like that from the ground as you have to position yourself to get the moon rising and traversing the specific area you want to get it. Since you cannot change elevation…

Sedona AZ (January 3, 2015) – Sedona St. Patrick’s Parade & Festival will be held on and along Jordan Road in Uptown Sedona on March 14th, 2015. Both are free to attend. The festivities are presented by Sedona Main Street Program, NAU Parks and Recreation Management Program and the Sedona Green Team. The parade starts at 10:30 a.m. from Jordan Historical Park and proceeds south on Jordan Road to Mesquite Avenue. Parade entrants include dignitaries and civic, social, cultural and religious organizations with area businesses. The Festival begins immediately following the parade, featuring live entertainment, free children’s and family activities,…

By Ted Grussing … welcome to my world as it exists in this new year … as you can see in tonight’s photo, a partnership of sorts has been formed … about the same voluntary nature as a shopkeeper who is forced to pay protection money so he can continue to operate … this is my workspace in my office and the tablet that One is resting on mimics the monitor that I work on with my images on screen … the mouse and the pen allow me to have very precise control over the work on screen. The working…

Sedona AZ (January 2, 2014) – Join Zenprov Comedy for their one-night only completely improvised show “ALOHA-HA-HA SEDONA!”  This luau of laughs starts 7:30 PM on Saturday, Jan. 17 at the Mary D. Fisher Theatre in Sedona. “Zenprov Comedy is the best improv troupe in Arizona,” said Mr. Patrick Schweiss, Executive Director of the Sedona International Film Festival. “People were laughing so hard their cheeks were hurting!”