Serving the community since 1922
Serving the community since 1922
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With the Kern County Board of Supervisors adjusting the budget for the 2020-2021 year, the future may be a little brighter for some Kern County libraries that were facing permanent closure. The libraries had been facing a 22% budget cut, but the Board of Supervisors adjusted the reduction to between 7 and 8%. It is still unclear which libraries will be able to open in 2021. According to Ethan Picman, Shafter branch director, only eight libraries were going to reopen under the...
With the mercury climbing to the point where it's dangerous for seniors, several cooling centers are opening in Kern County, including one at the Walker Senior Center in Shafter. Located at 505 Sunset Avenue, the cooling center will be open from 1 to 8 p.m. on days when the high temperature is forecast to be 105 degrees or higher. With this week expected to have temperatures hovering around the 102 mark, the Shafter center will not be open unless the forecast changes to...
Fear: "An unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain or a threat" (The Oxford Dictionary) Faith: "Confidence or trust in a person or thing." (dictionary .com) Mind: "The element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel" (The Oxford Dictionary). In the Bible, fear created a giant in the minds of armies able to destroy that giant, while faith empowered the mind...
Daniel Ynostroza Escalante April 22, 1927 -- July 19, 2020 Daniel Ynostroza Escalante, known to friends as "Danny," passed away peacefully on July 19, 2020, in Shafter, at the age of 93 years. Daniel was born April 22, 1927 in Los Angeles to Juan Escalante and Nestora (Ynostroza) Escalante. He moved to Shafter with his parents and siblings at a very young age, where they settled in the Mexican Colony, just south of town. He spent his childhood helping his family pick cotton,...
Anytime Fitness has reopened after being closed during the lockdown and is welcoming back its members and says it has plenty of room for newcomers. Owners Stacy Juarez and her sister, Ginger Skaggs, take turns manning the front desk. While practicing social distancing, Juarez proudly showed off how the gym has been able to maintain the required safe distance between treadmill and stairmaster machines. Every other treadmill has a large sign, so users don't have to worry about...
Here's this week's challenge, courtesy of the Shafter Historical Society. If you know the location, circumstances, exact or rough date and/or people in the photo, send your educated (or semieducated) guess to The Press, 406 Central Ave., Shafter 93263, or e-mail it to mysteryphoto@The ShafterPress.com. Winners will be revealed here next week. LAST WEEK: From the 1965 Shafter High yearbook, the Laurion, Steve Devine looks at a popular shoe style that Wayne Wood persuades him...
Kenneth Lee German, born June 1930 in Burbank to Alfred Edwin German and Margrethe Sofia Hoffing, went home to be with the Lord July 12, 2020, in Camarillo at the age of 90. He graduated from Antelope Valley Joint Union High School and was attending Antelope Valley Junior College when Korean War began. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy on Oct. 24, 1950. He was engaged to high school sweetheart Charlotte Belle Holmes at the time, and they married Dec. 31, 1950. After being...
Ignacio Heriberto Mendez Dominguez lived a full life both in El Salvador and California. He was born in Olocuita, El Salvador, on April 1, 1939, to parents Miguel Mendez and Antonia Mendez and passed away on July 16, 2020, at age 81 from Covid-19. He was deeply loved and leaves behind his spouse, Dora Emilia Gonzalez De Mendez, as well as five of their children, 15 grandkids and five great grandkids Rest In peace, Papá Beto....
June E. Rodriguez, great-granddaughter of Christian Bohna (early settler of Bakersfield), passed away peacefully on July 20, 2020. Born June Elaine Dooley on June 2, 1926, she lived in Delano where she graduated from Delano High School in 1944. June worked as a girls counselor at Camp Chabot in Oakland, the Fresno YWCA and Camp Lake Sequoia YWCA. From 1944-1947, she attended College of the Sequoias in Visalia, receiving her associate of arts degree. She attended Fresno State...
Vera May Streiff was born in Wasco on May 6, 1929, to parents George and Sadie Emerson. Vera died on July 11, 2020, in Bakersfield. She attended local schools and graduated from Wasco High in 1947. At one of her high school dances, she met Joe Streiff, and the two were inseparable. They were wed in their hometown on Sept. 23, 1950, at St. John's Catholic Church. The couple remained in Wasco to raise their family, and as the kids grew, Vera went back to work; she handled the...
Martin Rodriguez was born in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico, on April 9, 1977, to parents Encarnacion and Lidia (Zavala) Rodriguez. His family moved to Shafter when he was still young; he attended local schools and graduated from Shafter High in 1996. Martin married his life-long love, Marina (Martinez) Rodriguez, in Shafter, on Dec. 12, 1999. Shortly after, the couple moved to the Antelope Valley area, where they started their family and Martin worked as a manager at...
The Wasco Union Elementary School District has yet to make a final decision regarding the 2020-2021 school year. However, the district has decided on several methods that will be used for teaching. In a nine-page document, the district outlined the school board's plans for the academic year. School will begin on Monday, August 10. The school year will be a combination of in-classroom teaching and distance learning in order to meet the needs of all students. Priority for on-campus instruction may be given to students with the...
With the community still trying to return to some semblance of normalcy, it is important that we still have certain constants in our lives. One of those in Shafter is the tradition of vacation Bible school. In years past, there were several vacation bible schools, but this year there have been just a couple. The one held this past week was a community effort, with several churches participating. This information came from Rachel Friesen: "Shafter Mennonite Brethren Church...
In the aftermath of the George Floyd killing, folks started saying things like “defund the police.” In the aftermath of the gang-related killing of 11-year-old Makaliah Osomo and 12-year-old Elayna Saidee of Delano July 2, I hope those conversations are put to bed. Improving the police force should always be on the table, certainly no police or sheriff’s department is perfect, but this recent media blitz on how cops are bad is a false narrative that is so much more harmful than helpful. Those poor girls deserved the prote...
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The community showed its support for and appreciation of the Shafter Police Department recently when a group presented the department with gift bags and lunch. Chief Kevin Zimmermann said the group gave the officers tote bags full of items including a water bottle, coffee mug, stress ball, gift cards and other items. Each water bottle had the officer's badge number on it, which was very special, Zimmermann said. "This means so much to me and the department, especially in this...
Jorge Daniel Flores, 21, of Earlimart, passed away July 7 in Earlimart. Basham & Lara Funeral Care, Shafter. Gordon Skeels, 87, passed away July 8. Peters Funeral Home, Wasco. Roberto Osorio Ortega, 76, of Shafter, passed away July 7 in Culver City. Basham & Lara Funeral Care, Shafter. Chelsey R. Lerma, 29, of Bakersfield, passed away July 8 in Bakersfield. Peters Funeral Home, Shafter. Rudy Estavillo, 80, of Wasco, passed away July 11. Peters Funeral Home, Wasco. Jose Montes, 21, of Wasco, passed away July 11 in Wasco....
The cities of Shafter and Wasco, which had high hopes when Gov. Gavin Newsom reopened the state with certain precautions, have seen those hopes dashed with an increase in cases that has made it necessary for the cities to take a step backward. Most of the businesses in Shafter and Wasco now require a face mask to enter, and restaurants have seen their dine-in options thwarted again. Those establishments that have outdoor dining space can offer that service for the time being,...
1 years ago: August 2010 A new Subway restaurant opened in the old Stringham Drugstore location at 301 Central Ave. 20 years ago: July 26, 2000 Ralph Fruguglietti, also known as the “Big Kahuna,” was ranked first in the world in his age group in the discus and second in shot put, at the National Masters Championships in Eugene, Ore. 30 years ago: July 18, 1990 The Kern County Fire Department upgraded its Shafter fire station to a five fire fighter station. The increase was...
July 12 Armando Nunez Jr., 23, of Shafter, was arrested in the 400 block of Rodriguez Street for disorderly conduct: alcohol. July 11 Elijah Gonzalez, 29, of Shafter, was arrested in the 400 block of Klassen Street for disorderly conduct: alcohol. Timothy Micah Sierra, 24, of Shafter, was arrested in the 400 block Klassen Street for disorderly conduct: alcohol. July 10 John Arthur Chavez Jr., 24, of Shafter, was arrested in the 400 block of South Shafter Avenue for possession of a controlled substance and paraphernalia. July...
As activities restart and businesses reopen, we will try to update readers on the status of events and activities throughout the area. Please contact Erica Soriano with additions and changes at [email protected] or call 661-292-5100 by Monday at 4 p.m. for that week’s paper. ONGOING Cooling off -- Shafter’s cooling center will be open at the Walker Senior Center, 505 Sunset Ave., from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Residents using the center are encouraged to bring their favorite nonalcoholic beverages, snacks, reading materials...
The Richland School District approved plans to begin its fall semester on August 6, with the district using an AA/BB scheduling system. Interim Superintendent Rosa Romero said the staff has been working diligently on a plan that will give students the best education and keep them safe and healthy for the school year. " In the approved plan, students would be in either Group A or Group B. Each student would go to the school two days a week and would distance learn the other...
