Reedley Exponent 6-6-19 E-edition

Six area players participate in City-County All-Star baseball
Sports
Reedley (Fresno County) CA 93654 | 50 cents Mid Valley Times makes its debut on July 4
A profile of readers’ local favorites for 2019
Special Section Inserted
By Fred Hall
Publisher
Fittingly, on the Fourth of July, Mid Val- ley Publishing’s three community weekly newspapers will morph into a newly de- signed and comprehensive news source for the Central Valley cities now being served by The Dinuba Sentinel, Reedley Exponent and Sanger Herald.
That first Thursday publication of The Mid Valley Times marks the genesis of a bright, news packed version of the newspa- pers which have served this area of the Valley for over a century each. The news hole will be equally shared throughout the new paper. Your new newspaper—if you’re currently a subscriber to either The Sentinel, Exponent or Herald—will be The Times. If you are currently a subscriber to any of these news- papers, you will automatically receive this
River
closed to
recreation
activities
Water releases from Pine Flat the cause
By Jon Earnest
jon@midvalleypublishing.com
The Kings River now is closed to all recreational use throughout the three counties it flows through.
On June 4, Fresno County joined Tulare and Kings counties to ban swimmers, boaters and tubers to use the waterways. Fresno County’s ban stretches from Pine Flat Dam to the county lines near Lindy’s Landing, south of Reedley. Two weeks ago, Kings County closed its river access and Tulare County soon followed suit.
John Zanoni, assistant sheriff, said in a June 4 news briefing along the river east of Sanger that access to the river is denied until further notice. Sheriff Margaret Mims made the order in what the office called the best interest of public safety.
Currently, a large amount of melting snow in the Sierra Nevada is quickly filling Pine Flat Reservoir to the tune of 10,000 cubic feet per second (cfs). One CFS is seven-and- a-half gallons per second; about 449 gallons per minute and 646,272 gal- lons per day.
The Bureau of Reclamation is pumping an equal amount out of the dam and down the river, turning the Kings River into a swiftly moving current through Reedley. That flow is much stronger at locations closer to Pine Flat.
Prohibited activities are boating, canoeing, kayaking, swimming and floating. Reedley Beach was closed to visitors last week, and Cricket Hollow Park remained open as of
See RIVER on page A2
www.reedleyexponent.com
Vol. 130, No. 22 | Thursday, June 6, 2019
edition in a much larger version of your cur- rent publication and it will continue through- out your subscription period. If you are not currently a subscriber, you will find it easy and inexpensive to become one. All the local news, sports and city government reports and regular columns — love them or hate them — will be retained. All of that will continue in this single source.
Increasing pressure on local newspapers to address ever changing reader preferences made it apparent we had to modernize graphi- cally and make changes in the way we pack- age and deliver the news — which you have come to expect, direct to your door in a rede- signed package.
Mid Valley Publishing will maintain its cur- rent offices in each of these three communities to provide easy access to the services we pro- vide and to meet the needs of each city. The local individuals, upon who you rely and trust
with reporting your news or event, will remain right where they are to serve your needs. Per- sonnel and ownership remain intact.
When one combines three of anything it means expanded coverage of this entire trade area. There will be more news, advertising, classifieds, legals and obituaries for your reading. In a larger newspaper. No one under- stands better than we do that we essentially work for you, our valued reader.
Times have changed and times are con- tinuing to change. The communities in this area are no longer disparate towns but have become one large community where people often drive the small distance between them to either work or shop. Entertainment or
sports events at your favorite school have become basically a 15 minute drive. We had to face the reality of serving the needs of this expanded trade area where the interests are shared among many.
An on-line version will be offered and for all of you who have already signed up, your subscription will continue for the e-paper. There will be a newly-designed website that will be more user friendly and offer the con- venience of a pay wall, allowing the use of credit cards and various forms of payment.
Continue to read and enjoy your local pa- per as you currently know it and remember to watch on Independence Day for your enlarged and exciting new version of that newspaper which will be The Mid Valley TIMES!
Editor’s Note: While it is not the policy to run front page columns of any kind, we felt the content and information contained in this one was warranted.
Happy graduation night
ABOVE: Jairo Aguilar raised his hand in celebration while classmate Jesus Aguilar-Ruiz, left, flipped his tassel when Kings Canyon Unified School District Su- perintendent John Campbell, not pictured, announced that they had officially graduated during Reedley High School’s 119th annual graduation ceremony on May 31.
LEFT: Emily Booth, RHS top valedictorian for the Class of 2019, gestured with a clenched fist as she made remarks to the class during the ceremony. “If I may wax philosophical, I see the future of our world in a new gen- eration,” she said. “As we all differentiate into the paths we have chosen, I hope that we carry a sense of our power. We have the opportunities and skills necessary for achieving our dreams, and reaching our goals.”
Photos by Jon Earnest / The Exponent
Reedley High sends off 329 seniors in style
By Juanita Adame
juanita@midvalleypublishing.com
As the sun began to set over the Reedley High School football stadium, more than 300 graduating seniors dressed in their green and white caps and gowns eagerly wait- ed next to the gym for the cue from administrators to begin walking onto the field for the school’s 119th annu- al graduation ceremony.
“I’m feeling relieved that the year is over but also I’m kind of sad because I know that I won’t see a lot of people again,” said Cody Bender, a Reedley high graduate and one of the school’s 31 valedictorians. “I will be attending Fresno State and hope- fully getting a degree in computer engineering in the future.”
Bender added that he’d also like to continue his dance career and has hopes of becoming a professional dancer someday.
He recalled one of his more memorable classes.
“Calculus was my most diffi- cult class. There was way too much homework and it was sometimes hard to balance everything out, I had a hard time passing that class,” he said. “My most memorable teacher was definitely Mr. [Don] Friesen who was the calculus teacher be- cause just the atmosphere of the class was different.”
He said the calculus experience taught him more than just mathema- thics.
“I feel like I could have given more of an effort in the class, that class taught me how much more I needed to give,” he said. “I was ex- pecting everything to be pretty easy my senior year so I began to kind of
See REEDLEY HIGH on page A8
Immanuel High honors 64 from Class of 2019
Speakers stress future
opportunities, memories
By Jon Earnest
jon@midvalleypublishing.com
Immanuel High School’s 64-member Class of 2019 spent their final school day as a group on stgage before a large crowd at Reedley Mennonite Brethren Church on May 30, receiving their diplomas at the annual graduation and commencement exercise.
They celebrated a class that featured four valedictorians (Ashleigh Sorensen, Hannah Baptista, Regan Ott and Tamsen Taves) and one salutatorian (Melanie Krahn) who deliv- ered messages of thanks and encouragement to their classmates, family and teachers.
“Each one of us have the choice to de- cide for ourselves how to make the most of these opportunities and challenges that they
Classifieds - B4-5 Directory - A5
bring,” said Sorensen, who also was student body president for 2018-19. “With motivation and discipline, we can all have a bright fu- ture ahead.”
Sorensen told her fellow graduates that they have limitless opportunities in their fu- ture.
“May we look to God for guidance and acknowledge that he has a plan and path for us far greater than we can imagine,” she said. “Class of 2019, I encourage us not to live within ourselves. But rather, be bold. De- sire for personal growth, and desire to help others.”
Valedictorian Regan Ott urged her class- mates to follow the unique path that God picked for them, and influence people in the world.
Quoting poet Robert Frost, she said “’I took the road less traveled, and that has made all the difference.’ Take and pave the road no one
See IMMANUEL on page A2
Legals - B6-7 Sports - B3 Health & Fitness - A6-7
Lights & Sirens - A3
Mikaela Ens waved to friends and family arriving outside the Reedley Menno- nite Brethren Church before the start of Immanuel High School’s 2019 gradua-
tion and commencement exerciseonMay30. Atleftis Jared Mahoney and at right is Brianna Duncan. There were 64 students graduat- ing with the Class of 2019.
Jon Earnest / The Exponent Obituaries - A2-3 Opinion - A4