The prospects for safe, in-person classes continues to brighten — with new research on the limited spread of the virus within schools as well as development of a safe, highly effective vaccines. Read more

Almost as soon as the county posted the openings, it was a sold out event for a COVID vaccination event in Pine-Strawberry — the first one held in the tiny community north of Payson. Read more

They scrambled in a mad race for eggs. Read more

The cancellation of the 2020 high school golf season because of the COVID-19 pandemic after Payson played just two nine-hole matches means a Longhorns team with just one upperclassman entered this season lacking in varsity experience. Read more

Payson Dermatology celebrated a longtime employee this week, rewarding her with a hefty bonus. Read more

Declaring the COVID-19 pandemic under control and the need for restrictions over in Arizona, Gov. Doug Ducey is abolishing all the limits that remain on businesses and public gatherings. Read more

Payson Event Center got an early start on a busy 2021 with a new rodeo over the weekend. Read more

Researchers have started to answer some of the most vital questions with whether the current vaccines can smother the pandemic — providing 80% or 90% of the population gets the shot. Read more

The number of people lining up for COVID shots has started to dwindle, which means Gila County health officials have a whole new challenge, especially now that Gov. Doug Ducey has lifted mask mandates and other social distancing restrictions. Read more

PHOENIX — More than 1 million Arizonans — approximately one in seven residents — are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, Gov. Doug Ducey and the Arizona Department of Health Services announced. Arizona is making plans to continue the momentum as temperatures heat up and in anticipation of… Read more

Moments after watching from the shadows as his junior teammate raised the index finger of both hands in the spotlight, Soto Sellis bowed his head on the mat at Poston Butte High as his dream ended on the doorstep of glory. Read more

If you have driven by the Payson Christian Clinic in the past few months, you may have noticed the building is slowly being covered in stars. Read more

Payson honored the nine seniors from last year’s team before the baseball home opener against Chino Valley on Wednesday night. Read more

New, more dangerous variants of the COVID virus have arrived in Arizona, prompting doctors to redouble their efforts to get people vaccinated — and to continue wearing masks in public. Read more

The abrupt decline in new cases and deaths in nursing homes has provided as dramatic, national proof that the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines can tame the pandemic. Read more

Testing is the best way to find out if students learned what the teacher is trying to teach them. Read more

Copper State Tax & Accounting celebrated their grand opening Tuesday with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Read more

Arizona’s jobless rate ticked down a tenth of a point in January, helped in part by more people being willing to go out to eat and drink. Read more

The Arizona Department of Transportation is making it easier to renew your vehicle registration or driver’s license. Read more

Some may only know David Daniels as Payson High’s head wrestling coach. Read more

The Payson school board this week adopted an optimistic preliminary budget plan, with lots of problems in the fine print. Read more

Approximately 165 kids showed up for Payson Little League tryouts at Rumsey Park on Saturday, March 6. It’s a much different start to the season than 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic delayed then shortened the season. Payson was one of the few leagues to play ball a year ago. So, there’s opti… Read more

The recent U.S. approval of a third safe, highly effective COVID-19 vaccine could help speed up a mass vaccination effort that represents a bright spot in the long tragedy of the pandemic. Read more

Payson can expect a $3.7 million windfall now that the U.S. Senate has adopted the House-passed version of a $1.9 trillion COVID stimulus bill. Star Valley can expect $550,000 and Gila County some $10.4 million, according to figures released by the House Budget Committee. Read more

Gov. Doug Ducey last week ordered schools to resume in-person instruction no later than March 15 after Spring Break. Read more

Kind of like filling a bucket with a hole in it. Read more

The number of riders on Beeline Bus routes has fallen off since the COVID-19 pandemic hit Rim Country about a year ago. Read more

Hunter Lee closed his career with a game high 18 points and 15 rebounds to lead a trio of Longhorns scoring in double figures as Payson pulled out a 62-60 boys basketball thriller at Show Low on Tuesday, March 2. Read more

Payson’s return to in-person classes is going much more smoothly, now that most of the teachers have gotten vaccinated. Read more

Payson closed the girls basketball season with a 59-43 loss at home against No. 3 Holbrook on Wednesday, March 3. Read more

The Arizona Interscholastic Association Executive Board voted on Tuesday that Arizona high school athletes won’t have to wear masks for spring sports and winter sports sectional and state tournaments. Read more

Mingus improved to 10-0 with a 48-31 victory in Wilson Dome on Saturday, Feb. 27. Read more

If the sign isn’t enough to attract customers, Bret DaCosta has another weapon in his arsenal. Read more

Hunter Lee walked off the court at the end of a basketball game at Dave Wilson Dome for the final time on Saturday night. Read more

Autumn Lynch scored 12 points but it wasn’t enough as No. 6 Winslow beat Payson 75-47 in girls basketball at Wilson Dome on Saturday night, Feb. 27. Read more

Trevor Cline took over as Payson’s starting quarterback midway through his freshman season and served as the Longhorns’ starter the next three years. Read more

People who lost insurance in the pandemic can regain health care coverage through a special open enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act. Read more

After missing a week, Gila County’s moving into vaccinating the general public against COVID sooner than any other county in the state. Read more

Payson’s varsity girls basketball team has seen five games postponed or canceled either by COVID-19 or weather. Read more

Easton Redford drained a three-point field goal to put Payson ahead in overtime and the defense did the rest as the Longhorns beat visiting Holbrook 70-65 in boys basketball on Friday. Read more

Monica Henderson and her husband, Jason Fogel, opened Copper State Tax & Accounting in Payson last September. Read more

Arizona’s COVID vaccination program is finally ramping up, but so has criticism of the state’s slow start. Read more

Ty Chilson dug his first fencepost hole when he opened Payson Fence in 1991. Read more

“No! Close the door!” Read more

A rush of new vaccines and the rise of new COVID-19 strains offers both hope and hardship for the effort to contain the pandemic and return to some version of normal life. Read more

If you are an essential worker or 65 and older and have not yet received a COVID vaccine, sign up for a mass drive-thru vaccination event to be held this weekend in Payson. Read more

Payson schools are looking down the barrel of a budget disaster. Read more

He paraded around the field like many NFL players do after scoring a touchdown. Read more

New COVID cases in Gila County have fallen sharply in the past week or two and the initially halting effort to vaccinate high-risk groups has picked up steam. Read more

Arizonans remain deeply concerned about the spread of the virus — but it still worries Democrats a lot more than it does Republicans. Read more

Outpacing many Arizona counties, Gila County health officials announced Friday that they were expanding COVID vaccination efforts to include those residents 65+. Read more

Senior living residents and staff of Powell Place, an Enlivant-operated assisted living community in Payson, received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccinations on Jan. 29. Read more

Payson schools remain on track to resume in-person classes on Feb. 8, Superintendent Linda Gibson told the school board on Monday. Read more

Struggling to make an appointment for a person 75 and older? Read more

Hunter Lee and his Payson High classmates used to count on high school sports opportunities every year. Read more

We got a return to normalcy last week when things like snowstorms were the biggest challenge for high school winter sports schedules. Read more

Gov. Doug Ducey’s proposed budget will shortchange schools and child welfare programs, insist child advocacy groups. Read more

Arizona remains a national hot spot for the pandemic. Read more

Schools can mostly reopen safely, providing they take precautions like ensuring everyone wears masks, gets tested frequently and quarantines when they’re infected, the federal Centers for Disease Control has concluded. Read more

Three of their first four games were canceled/postponed. Read more

While COVID has mostly claimed the lives of older residents, it has also claimed young people in Gila County. Read more

The Longhorns overcame three forfeit losses in a win over Eastmark and four more in a win over Winslow. Read more

We needed moisture, and we got it. The National Weather Service in Flagstaff reports that from early Monday morning to late Tuesday afternoon, Pine-Strawberry received 24 inches of snow, 3 inches over the yearly average for the community. Read more

The Gila County Health Department is continuing to work with community partners to administer the vaccine to the residents of Gila County. Read more

First the bad news. Read more

Great prices. Read more

Josh Skehan built a thriving photography and video business in Scottsdale thanks to specialty events like weddings, celebrations, parties, etc. Read more

Payson trailed host Camp Verde 15-7 after one quarter of its boys basketball game on Thursday night. Read more

COVID-19 precautions pushed the start of the season back about six weeks. Read more

Tuesday’s boys and girls basketball games against Winslow have been either postponed or canceled because the snowstorm led Payson Unified School District to cancel school. Read more

The Longhorns overcame three forfeit losses in a win over Eastmark and four more in a win over Winslow. Read more

Payson won eight of the 14 weight classes to beat host Winslow 40-36 in wrestling on Friday night, Jan. 22. Read more

Family is at the heart of Delicious Cafe, which opens at 512 S. Beeline Suite 1, on Tuesday in Payson. Read more

Turnarounds usually take time. Read more

A season that almost wasn’t finally started for Payson’s young wrestling team on Wednesday night. Read more

Gila County residents older than 75 can sign up now for a COVID-19 vaccine by signing up for a shot through the Banner Health Clinic in northern Gila County or the Cobre Valley Regional Medical Center in southern Gila County. Read more

A no-cost COVID testing site is now open in Rumsey Park. Read more

I was getting a little tired and soaked from wading the creek, working my way downstream in a drainage in northwestern Gila County. I retreated up the canyon-side and promptly got snarled in a catclaw thicket. I pushed my way through the brambles, shredding my shirt and bloodying the exposed… Read more

Come on out tonight and watch the Longhorns tip off another basketball season against Fountain Hills at Wilson Dome. Read more

Rory Huff knows the challenge. Read more

The Payson school board Friday decided the district should remain in distance learning mode until at least Feb. 8. Read more

Gila County Health & Emergency Management COVID-19 Vaccine FAQ Sheet: Read more

It made sense. Read more

We live in a deeply divided state. Read more

Uncertainly hangs over the upcoming girls basketball season like a dark cloud thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more

Light and dark. Read more

Gila County has set the pace for the state when it comes to moving through the COVID-19 risk groups with vaccination clinics to administer the first of two required shots, but the pace will soon slow down due to a reduction in shipments from the state. Read more

Gila County Health & Emergency Management COVID-19 vaccine FAQ sheet: Read more

On Saturday, Jan. 16, the MHA Foundation will host a COVID-19 saliva testing blitz at the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-Day Saints from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Read more

The Payson school board at a special meeting this morning will decide whether schools should return to in-person classes as planned on Jan. 19, despite the surge in infections in the community. Read more

New cases of COVID-19 continue to surge across Arizona, throwing into harsh light the unexpectedly slow rollout of a new, high-tech vaccine. Read more

Months of hope amid delay turned to despair on Friday as the Arizona Interscholastic Association announced the cancellation of all winter sports. Read more

Gila County is currently leading the state in the rate of COVID vaccinations per capita. Read more

Due to the continued presence of COVID-19 and having the nation’s highest rate of coronavirus hospitalizations, the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee (SMAC) made a recommendation on Thursday to the AIA’s Executive Board to cancel the high school winter sports season. Read more

Gila County Superior Court is looking for lawyers to provide legal representation to indigent defendants in cases of juvenile dependency, guardianship/conservatorship, guardian-ad-litem; and ‘best interests attorney’ services. Read more