Winter Sk8 Jam 2011 !

  Saturday January 29th saw the Winter Sk8 Jam return to Buckeye’s skate parkon 9th Street next to the public swimming pool.  More than 30 rippers of all ages descended on the park for a morning of hardcore shredding.  Contestants hit the pipes and rails to the pulse-pounding sounds Bedlam’s Architect who provided the live entertainment.

  Skate boarders competed vigorously in front of an audience of 250 spectators for hundreds of giveaways including  skate clothes, skateboard decks, wallets, stickers and other gear all donated by event sponsors Pulse Boardshop, Cowtown Skateboards and Volcom.

  For any rippers needing to refuel, Chipotle got down to the park to give awa free burritos and water.

  Skate artist  DeNone brought his talent and some color to the event, painting ’board decks for those who wanted something to remember the day by.

  Those not competing were not to be left out of the festivities with the event sponsors extending their giveaways to include a free ‘mega raffle’.



  Top prizes, and the respect, went to the winners of two classes in the Best-Trick Contest.  Winning the Advanced Division was Dierell Parker, aged 21, who took the trophy with his Switch 180 Hurricane on the handrail.  Taking the prize for the Under-14 Division was Matt McDermoit who, at 9 years of age, won it with his Indy 180 Transfer on the quarter-pipe bank.  All in all, a scorching contest with some had shredding from all the competitors.

  Speaking on behalf of the Town of Buckeye, event organizer Ben Florine was pleased with the day’s competition adding that the park is always open to ‘boarders, ‘bladers and BMXers to come and rip it up or just hang out.  There’s usually a friendly, easy-going crowd of locals who like to show what they’ve got ands hare their knowledge with any newbies who want to pick up a few  skills.   Go rip it!

Robbery in Downtown

The entrance to the National Bank of Arizona, on 4th Street, was cordoned-off from  approximately 11:45am onwards, last Friday, 21st January after the bank had been robbed.  Law Enforcement agencies were unable to divulge much information at the time but it is known that there were two perpetrators: a man and a woman.  According to independent information, the two walked to the bank and shortly after entering, handed a note to cashiers informing them of the robbery being in progress.  Police were quickly on the scene, but the criminals had made their escape on foot only moments before.  Quite understandably, representatives of the bank were unavailable for comment at the time.   Management at the bank was able to confirm only a small amount of cash was taken.

86th Expeditionary Battalion ... No News is Good News...

Sarah Fumicello sent in an email saying that things had thankfully been pretty uneventful for her son's unit.  Her message is copied below:-

"Not much to report this week...seems to be quiet over there....I do know that Greg posted a thank you on the blog spot [see below - BVN]...also, another member of the platoon posted this pic on his facebook page...just thought I'd share....my son is on the far left....this group of men are all bunking together in the same "shack", for lack of a better term.  These young men are, of course, recipients of the donations along with numerous others...they were in charge of passing them all out though"



Keep up the good work, guys.

Riding Along In My Automobile...

February 12th will be the last of this season’s monthly Classic Car & Hot Rod cruise-ins at the Westgate Center, starting at 10am.  Last weekend we took our own retro-mobile down to the Westgate, just east of the 101, off Glendale Avenue to see what it was all about.

After a warm greeting from the event organizers, we drove straight in since the event is free.  We got to the show quite late  but there were still a hundred or so cars to be seen, including a KITT-2000 Firebird, autographed on the dash by The Hoff himself!

It doesn’t have to be ‘retro’ to be cool.  Cars of any era were welcome. Event hosts added that it’d be great to see more motorcycles also.

Beautiful paint and pin-striping was the order of the day, with his particularly fine Impala as an example.

A variety of concessions were also in attendance offering services including, bodywork, detailing insurance and gift items.

 A posse of  low-riders dropped in and later delighted visitors with an impromptu bouncing  contest off to one side of the lot.

If four-wheelin' is your thing then bring your rig and add to the variety! All in all, it was a great cruise-in and an excellent start for those new to the classic car and hot-rod scene.  The easy going friendliness between  rodders and visitors made the event even more  enjoyable.  The next one is 10am, February 12th, between 10am and 3pm, so if you’ve got a car truck or bike, be sure to come on down.  It’s a great way to visit the Westgate and do something free. See you next time!

I've been a bit naughty: we haven't gone to press with this article yet but I thought it was worth publishing right away since it makes menion to individuals who are highly thought of in Buckeye, and deservedly so.

Buckeye Lions Club backs

86th ESB

 

Recently we reported on the arrival of goods donated by Buckeye residents at the 86th Expeditionary Signals Battalion’s camp in Afghanistan..  Of particular note is Eloise Dean who, at 78 years of age, had spent days making cookies and other treats for the men and women of the 86th.  Pictured below is Sgt McDowell benefitting from her efforts.  Weighing 30lb, her donation was included with a  large number of packages shipped to the Army unit by the Buckeye Lions Club.  Mr. Roland “Dutch” Dean, a member of the Lions Club since the 60’s, and regrettably deceased, had brought the matter to the Club’s attention and it was then that the $150 was donated to ship the care packages. 

  Interviewing on behalf of the Buckeye Lions Club, President Brent Huddleston agreed that this kind of undertaking is routine: “Our organization’s focus is always giving back to our community through service projects and fundraisers.  Lions are the largest service organization in the world.”  The Lions Club has been involved with Buckeye for more than 50 years including a number of notable endeavors, “Our activities raise  funds for the Lions Vision Center, Lions Sight and Hearing, Camp Tatiyee and much, much more.  When the members of our community come to our club, we do everything we can to help”, adds Mr. Huddleston.  Will there be  further shipments to the 86th Expeditionary Signals Battalion?  “As our budget allows we are always open to these types of assistance,” he concludes.

   Roland “Dutch” Dean held a number of positions in the Lions including service as Club President 1993 and1995, board member and Krazy Kar Chairman for 15 years.  He was also selected Lion of the Year in 1991.  Commenting about “Dutch” to Buckeye Valley News, 2nd District Vice Governor White said, “Dutch was  a Lion who served in the true spirit of Lionism he loved helping others in our community.”  He continues, “He knew everyone and everyone new him. Dutch embraced and lived the Lions motto, “We Serve”. Some men's lives are measured by there acquired monetary wealth, Dutch can be measured by the foot print he has left on the Buckeye Community.”

  Those interested in joining the Lions Club are welcome to come to meetings, held on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month in the Buckeye Chamber of Commerce building, 508 E Monroe Ave.  Meetings start at 11:30am.  Or try http://www.buckeyelions.org/ the website for your local club.

  To support the 86th Expeditionary Signals Battalion email to: srafumo@msn.com

  For those who’d like to support the Army, Air force, Navy or  Marines, try:  http://www.uso.org/ for the USO, or  alternatively ww.anysoldier.com to choose any military unit and send donations, care packages or letters.

86 Expeditionary Signals Battalion

Buckeye Valley News has been assisting an Army mom, Sarah Fumicello, with the support network she manages with as much reporting an publicity as possible.  To get the ball rolling an excerpt from the latest report is copied below.

From the start, the guys of the 86th have had it pretty rough,  building their own accommodation, Arizona-like  climate with no air con',  lack of basic amenities that most folks take for granted.  In the face of these living-conditions, which match those of may troops in the field, they've continued to execute their primary duties including guard-duty and permiter patrol with a cheerful attitude that would leave most feeling ashamed.  To obtain basic necessities involves helicopter rides, which are carefully  limited for a variety of reasons.

A recent donation drive has seen the arrival of a number of basic consumer items such as toiletries and what might be considered luxuries, such as candy, cookies etc.  Copied below is a report including part of a message that the Buckeye Valley News received from Sarah, outlining the impact made by the goods that were generously donated by residents of Buckeye and the surrounding area:-

  Last week, Buckeye Valley News reported on the arrival of care packages at the base occupied by the 86th Expeditionary Signal Battalion.  Copied below are excerpts from a letter we received from Sarah Fumicello who runs the support network for the 86th:

“The spirits of "our" soldiers was a little down.  The packages  of all of the donated items certainly perked them up.  I know that my son personally was very surprised and even a little shocked at all of the items that people donated.  He has told me that he is very surprised that many people donated that many items JUST FOR THEM.  It makes them feel pretty special...At this point they have only received HALF of the items shipped!!!  I can only imagine what it will be like when they get the rest.”  Sarah continues, with regard to living conditions: -

“At this point they are very pleased to announce that they FINALLY have a microwave.  That only took 5 months!!!  The weather over there is similar to ours so it has finally cooled off and is chilly at night.  They are still in the "shacks" but they are steadily getting the base up to par, I guess.  From a mom standpoint, there is still lots to do.  My son hurt his arm 2 weeks ago - my hope is that they at least get a medical facility soon as it has been too busy to send a helicopter to fly him to another base for something that is not life threatening.  With recent helicopters having been shot down ( in Nov) they have limited the flights.

  “Their response to the arrival of all of the packages:  to wrap it all up, they are shocked, a little overwhelmed, pleasantly surprised and ‘opening those boxes really does feel like Christmas, you just never know what will be in the next one!”  Sarah concludes: “When I started this drive I anticipated a few donations, but did not have high hopes as I know that people are struggling with the economy and with the holidays coming money is tight on everyone.  I also knew that I was asking for donations from people that also had the food banks and the Angel tree program needing assistance too.  I knew that if people could only donate to one, these guys would probably not get too much.  I could of never of anticipated the support I have seen.  I cannot wait to send you details and pictures of their homecoming.  Believe me, there will be an abundance of pictures and details as I will be overjoyed to report when they come home.”

Want to support  the 86th?   Call Buckeye Elks Lodge on 623.386.4710 or email bel2686@qwestoffice.net. 

For other Army units, the Air force, Navy or  Marines, try:  www.uso.org for the USO, or  alternatively http://www.anysoldier.com/ to choose any military unit and send donations, care packages or even just a letter.

Still on duty.  Remember the people in uniform who help make it possible to celebrate New Year's.

Welcome!

 

Greetings and Happy New Year!  Welcome to what will hopefully be the first of a  long running blog based on events happening here in Buckeye and news reports covered by the Buckeye Valley News.  Being pretty new to this, I'll apologize if the blog seems a tad "sloppy", due to my inexperience.  But as time goes by the blog will increase in size and interest as more photos and information pour in.  Thanks for  visiting and stay tuned.