Serving the community since 1922
Serving the community since 1922
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Mary Jean Leslie was born on March 9, 1931, to Bertha and Bernard Heitkotter. Her sister Bernadine shared her birth date two years later, and they enjoyed celebrating their mutual birthday together over the next 85 years. Mary Jean, Bernadine and later their brother Bernard lived with their parents, moving between Fresno and Bakersfield several times. Mary Jean recounted watching Bakersfield grow from fields of wildflowers and farmland to the sprawling city it is today. She...
At the votes continued to be counted in Tuesday's general election, it appeared that Mayor Cathy Prout is headed to reelection to another term, receiving over 500 votes, easily outdistancing the rest of the field. Newcomer Gustavo Olvera was leading incumbent Cesar Lopez by 30 votes for the second open seat on the council, with more than half the votes to be tabulated on Wednesday night. Olvera is currently serving on the Shafter Planning Commission and is a retired police...
Super Students Karl F. Clemens Elementary School announced its weekly Super Students. Criteria for selection were based on significant math improvement, showing kindness to all friends, respect and hard work, following class procedures, helping other students understand new concepts and improving learning English. Front Row (L-R): Leia Hignajoz (K), Abigail Sanchez (1st), Lucas Garza (2nd) Middle Row (L-R:) Alex Herrnandez (3rd), Jasmin Antonio Cruz (4th), Johnny M. Lopez...
Agustin Sierra Raya, 93, of Wasco, passed away Oct. 30, in Bakersfield. Peters Funeral Home, Wasco. Jovita Espinoza, 74, of Bakersfield, passed away Oct. 16, in Bakersfield. Basham & Lara Funeral Care, Shafter. Dennis Dean Meyer, 69, of Shafter, passed away Nov. 1, in Bakersfield. Basham & Lara Funeral Care, Shafter. Camilo Lopez Jr., 41, of Shafter, passed away Oct. 14, in Shafter. Basham & Lara Funeral Care, Shafter. Teresa Tejada de Castro, 78, of Shafter, passed away Oct. 30, in Shafter. Basham & Lara Funeral Care,...
Julie Ann O'Brien Thullen, a long-time Shafter resident, passed away on Nov.r 3, 2022, at the age of 82. Julie was born in Billings, Mont., on March 15, 1940, the first of five children. She lived in Butte, Mont., most of her early life, except for three years when the family lived in Monterey, while Julie's father served in the Army Dental Corps at Fort Ord. Julie graduated from Butte High School in 1958. She attended Montana State University, where she met Robert Thullen,...
Patsy Kelly went to meet her Lord on October 25, 2022, surrounded by family who loved her so much. There was a viewing on Nov. 1, and she was laid to rest at the Shafter Cemetery on Nov. 2. Patsy was born on Aug. 14, 1941, in Boonesville, Ark., to Johnny Mae Milam and W.D. Milam. They moved to Shafter when Patsy was a small girl. Patsy grew up in the North Camp homes, beginning in the large tent homes, eventually going into the regular houses in the labor camp. Patsy loved spo...
The Wasco High Tigers saw their season end after an opening round playoff loss to North High on Friday night. After beating rivals Shafter last Friday, the Tigers got the #5 seed going into the Division IV playoffs. Wasco hosted the #12 Stars of North, but couldn’t complete the comeback, after falling behind the Stars by two scores in the second half. The Tigers scored a touchdown with under two minutes left in the game, but failed on the two-point conversion, losing the g...
The Wasco High School varsity girls golf team made history after winning the Valley Championship in Visalia. This was after taking first place at the South Sequoia League Championship. The girls played hard to take home the win against many other highly ranked schools, including private schools that have more funding and better resources. Coach Ed Moreno also coaches the boys golf team. He brings many years of experience as a WHS history teacher, prep support teacher and...
Scrappy came into the Wasco Animal Shelter as a stray. He is approximately a 3-5-year-old male corgi pug mix and is great with staff and other dogs. It is unknown if Scrappy is house/crate trained at the time. Dogs are not tested with children. His behavior towards children is unknown. Scrappy will be available for adoption on Nov. 15. Everyone is welcome to adopt from our facility, and we like to give everyone the same opportunity to adopt. Adopters can be from out of town...
As a young pastor in a small tribal village in Guatemala, I was always amazed at both the deep faith and the profound generosity of the Kaqchikel people I served. For what seemed to me even the smallest favor, they responded by filling my pantry with baskets filled with handpicked fruits and vegetables or fresh eggs. One dear brother insisted on gifting me with his prize pig, possibly his most valuable possession. In this month, when we are most likely to focus on being gratef...
The Shafter Generals earned a matchup with top seed Liberty-Madera with a victory over #9 seeded Strathmore on Friday night, 42-21. The win for the Generals, who came in seeded #8, was without running back Koa Rhodes, who was out with a knee injury suffered against Wasco. Christopher Espinoza was up to the challenge and had an outstanding game for the Generals, chewing up yards on the ground, getting key first downs and a long touchdown run. The start of the game was a boxing...
Wasco High School held its Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Saturday. It was a night of celebration honoring some of the best sports players and teams in the school's rich history. Seven individual alumni were recognized for their superb athletic skills, while students at WHS, leaving their mark on the school. They were Lawrence Demery (class of 1971), Jose Luis Medina (class of 1986), Christina Munoz Salinas (class of 1990), Greg Romo (class of 1993), Tracy...
The Wasco Recreation and Parks District held its first annual 2022 Art Festival at Barker Park. Guests enjoyed a jam-packed day of creative activities and performances in all artistic genres, including dance, music, live painting and singing. Vendors also sold an array of arts and crafts and tasty food like pastries, tacos, bacon-wrapped hot dogs, aguas frescas (fresh Mexican cold drinks), kettle corn and funnel cakes. Alice Meyer said it was a great event. "The art was amazin...
The Wasco Recreation and Parks District, the City of Wasco and Bike Bakersfield hosted a morning bicycle ride for the community Saturday. It was a day of fun while learning about bike riding safety. "Bike riding is good for your health, but it can be dangerous," said Mayor Gilberto Reyna, who spearheaded the initiative. He said he was motivated to organize the event due to recent incidents in which two riders collided with two vehicles. One resulted in the death of one of the...
The Minter Field Air Museum is holding their annual Wings n Wheels event this Saturday, Nov. 12, featuring hundreds of vehicles, aircraft and fun activities for the entire family. Museum President Ronald Pierce said that this year's event will be one of the largest ever, with over 100 planes on display, from vintage military aircraft to sleek jets. Also on display will be over 150 cars and trucks, everything from classic cars to souped up trucks. The car show will also be...
Toys for Tigers held its annual chicken lunch fundraiser on Saturday. Many residents supported the organization's effort to brighten the holiday season for those less fortunate in Wasco. Dale Nicol was part of the barbecue crew. "Today, we give back to the community. We got here at 7 a.m. to light the grills and cook some chicken," Nicol said. He has been doing this volunteer work for the last ten years. "It is special because we are making money for Toys for Tigers, which in...
Shafter's Ford Theater will host David Payne's "Christmas with C.S. Lewis" show this Sunday, Nov. 13, performing at 2:30 and 6:30 p.m. Payne has been portraying the acclaimed author for over 20 years. He started playing Lewis after answering a casting call over two decades ago. Over 20 years and over 1,000 performances later, Payne is still wowing audiences with his accurate portrayal. Payne has performed in Shafter twice previously during the Colours Festivals. The first...
The Shafter Planning Commission approved conditional use permits for businesses looking to improve and expand their services in the city. The owners of True Value Hardware are looking to construct a fenced-in area in their parking lot that would house soil, lumber and materials. This would be additional storage space only and would not be a part of the retail store. Asked if customers would be allowed in the fenced-in area, applicant Yahya Mohamed said, "No, no customers...
Oct. 30 Faustino Aboytes Arredondo, 36, was arrested on Poplar and Central Valley Highway for driving without a license. Adrian Chiniforoush Gonzalez, 32, was arrested on Willow and Redwood Drive on a bench warrant/failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge. Oct. 31 Eric Hopkins, 53, of Shafter, was arrested in the 500 block of South Shafter Avenue on a bench warrant/failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge. Nov. 1 Joseph Daniel Gonzalez, 34, of Shafter, was arrested on Stone Ave and South Shafter, Avenue for possession of...
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, 455 Kern St., Suite E, Shafter, CA 93263, or e-mail it to mysteryphoto@The ShafterPress.com. Winners will be revealed here next week. LAST WEEK: Dora Estrada Sabedra (top middle) on the stairs at Richland School in the 1950s....
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. ANNOUNCEMENTS NEW: Thanksgiving lunch – First come, first serve. Saturday, Nov. 19, at Barker Park at 12 p.m. Hosted by New Generation Church, Grace Community Church & True Light Baptist. NEW: Clean up – City of Wasco and American Refuse Commu...
Wasco Independence High School participated in the Bakersfield Museum of Art's annual Via Arte event, an Italian street painting festival where students demonstrated their artistic skills. Art and English teacher Monica Adams selected six of her top art students to attend. "My art teacher at Wasco High, Mr. Art Sherwyn, took me years ago, and as a teacher, it was something I wanted to do with my students," Adams said. "I've been taking them since 2016." Artists from all over...
It was a busy day of voting on election day. Poll workers in Wasco reported a busy flow of voters throughout the day, with an even bigger stream of people that came to drop off their mail-in ballots. Many expressed that they voted for numerous reasons, mainly sharing that they thought it was their duty to do so as Americans. Jacky Moreno said it was her second time voting. "I was motivated to vote because of Proposition 1, which would affect women's reproductive rights. I...
It was a tight race for candidates in local elections. As votes continue to be tallied Wednesday night, Valentin Medina appeared to win out against incumbent Mayor Pro Tem John P. Pallares for a seat on the Wasco City Council in District 3. Medina said he feels good about winning because he will give back to the community. "What I look forward to most is being able to engage with the community of Wasco and be a leader representing the people." He added, "I appreciate the...
A trial date has been set in the sex crimes case against Matthew Maldonado. The trial is scheduled to begin on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 9 a.m. Maldonado has been charged with five counts of annoying/molesting a child. Maldonado had a different attorney who appeared in court on his behalf on Thursday morning. Previously, Maldonado was represented by Kyle Humphrey, who has appeared in several high-profile sexual misconduct cases in the Central Valley. On Thursday, his attorney of...
