No teacher layoffs
The Payson School Board Monday night approved a passel of new administrative contracts as well as 128 teacher contracts that will mark the first time in three years the district has avoided teacher layoffs.
Chilson triumphs, other Longhorn teams fall
Longhorns’ soaring hopes came crashing to earth on Friday after a storybook season in golf, track and field, softball and baseball. For complete details, see Sports on 1B.
Love hurts
Payson Wildlife Fair offers lessons in nature and the pitfalls of being in a relationship with an eagle
You’d think Jerry Dstwinkle would hate golden eagles. One tore out a bunch of his teeth. One punched a hole nearly clear through his arm. One left three long scars on his wrist. But people are funny — much harder to figure than eagles.
Corvette lovers line the lot
Thousands of Corvette lovers on Saturday flocked to the Chapman Auto Center to ooh and ahh at nearly 100 corvettes line up in all their gleaming glory. Members of the Rim Country Corvettes meet regularly to share their passion for the General Motors sports car first unveiled in 1953.
Think twice before taking money out of your pension
John has always dreamed of owning his own ice cream shop: Homemade cookie dough, cake batter, vanilla and chocolate would be the flavors of the day. For years, he puts the dream off. First it is college, then it is business school, and then it is his boring, desk job.
Local chapter names ‘Bigs’ of the Year
With volunteers dwindling, BBBS celebrates impact of those who give of themselves
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Payson honored its high school and community matches last week during its annual Big Event at Chaparral Pines. The event is the highlight of the year for many matches, who dress up in glittery garb and dine on the roast beef buffet, toast Shirley temples and indulge in an all-you-can-eat ice cream bar in the stately clubhouse.
Benefit raises funds for Mounted Posse
The Gila County Mounted Posse’s annual fund-raiser drew an enthusiastic, albeit smaller crowd, to the Oxbow Saloon in Payson Saturday. The group’s Vice Commander Gary Chitwood said while the turnout wasn’t as good as last year’s event, it was still a success.
Desperate Gila County road officials hope public will give ADOT an earful
Gila County officials have issued a desperate call to arms in hopes residents will appeal to the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) not to abandon a highway project on a deadly stretch of road. Faced with the loss of local gas tax money and federal funding, ADOT has come up with three versions of its five-year plan for highway improvements.
AHCCCS plan triggers Republican Civil War
Governor faces opposition from fellow party members on Affordable Care Act
Gov. Jan Brewer’s effort to accept federal money to cover about 380,000 low-income Arizona residents has touched off a Civil War within Republican ranks, with normally ignored Democratic lawmakers standing by in bemusement. The latest twist in the strange saga turns on efforts by some Republican lawmakers to add a provision to ensure the expanded, federally funded plans don’t provide money for abortion or any services offered by Planned Parenthood.
Lighthearted play profound
Some of the special needs students at Payson High School recently put on a play about the Musicians of Bremen Town, ranchers who no longer need these animals and are going to get rid of them. The animals consist of a donkey, two dogs, two roosters, and two cats. The Donkey, played by William Howard Mortis, decides to go to Bremen Town and be a musician.
Payson doctor in legal tangle with former partner
A civil dispute is underway between two Rim Country medical professionals. Registered nurse Deborah Nichols has filed a civil suit against Dr. Michael Lowe after the two had a falling out earlier this year. Nichols claims Lowe blocked her from access to medical and financial records, potentially jeopardizing patient’s health.
Turkey hunters become the hunted
The Arizona Game and Fish Department in cooperation with the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office is currently investigating a hunting accident that took place on April 27. One hunter was shot by another hunter in the shoulder with #6 shot from a 12 gauge shotgun, the wounds were not life threatening and the victim was taken to Flagstaff Medical Center for treatment.
New ‘average’: wildfire seasons growing worse
FLAGSTAFF – As the 35-acre Fisher Point fire burned in a canyon just a few miles south of his office, Coconino National Forest fire information officer Dick Fleishman said he anticipates an average fire season. But average means something far different than when he started with the U.S. Forest Service 33 years ago. Persistent drought and denser forests make even a routine fire season more severe.
Dreams come true with Dreamscape book
Local writer, artist collaborate to publish luminous book about a girl and her dog
On a Monday morning, artist and mother of four, Amy Abney drove from Pine to meet writer Ken Crump at Green Valley Park by 90 a.m. — without really knowing why. “Did I tell you why we are here?” Crump asked the artist for his children’s book, “The Last Moment,” as they posed for Roundup photographer Andy Towle.
“Turn Out the Lights, the Party’s Over”
“Turn Out the Lights, the Party’s Over,” is the song Dandy Don Meredith would have crooned had he been announcing the final innings of the PHS baseball and softball teams’ state semifinal tournament losses on Friday evening.
