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Weekly Newspaper Sanger (Fresno County) CA 93657 50¢ (tax included) Sanger super stars to be honored by chamber
By Dick Sheppard
Sanger Herald
Once upon a time not so long ago we would have had to wait until longtime master of ceremonies Rick Bubenik said in his most dramatic radio voice, pausing now and then to create even more suspense, "And ... the chamber of commerce's ... 2018 ... Mr. and
Citizen of the Year Rolinda Hernandez
Dick Sheppard/Sanger Herald
A surprised Rolinda Hernandez was handed a balloon bouquet by chamber president/CEO Tammy Wolfe who let her know she is the chamber's 2018 Citizen of the Year.
Mrs. Farmer ... are ... Douglas and Norma Hazelton."
It would then dawn on the surprised Douglas and Norma why their family and friends had insisted they get all dressed up and attend the annual chamber of commerce awards banquet.
When Tammy Wolfe became president/ CEO of the Sanger District Chamber of Commerce most things having to do with the chamber got kicked up a notch or two.
When she took over, a lot of things changed, including how and when we get to find out the names of the special people, the super stars, who will be honored at the ban-
This week we learned about Mr. and Mrs. Farmer and that Rolinda Hernandez will be honored as Citizen of the Year. The Sanger District Chamber of Commerce's 94th annual awards banquet will take place on April 20 at the community center. Tickets are available at the chamber office, 1789 Jensen Ave., Suite B. You can stop by, call 875-4575 or email sangerchamber@gmail.com.
That was the way it was back in the BT
(Before Tammy) days. quet.
It was a surprise.
The fire department's administrative assistant Rolinda Hernandez thought they were coming to honor a firefighter of the year.
Instead, the balloon and flower bouquets and all the hugs and well wishes were for her.
Firefighters, family mem- bers,friendsandcityand chamber of commerce of- ficials crowded into the small lobby at the fire department on Tuesday morning. They were there to let Hernandez know she had been selected by the chamber of commerce as the Citizen of the Year.
linda," said city manager Tim Chapa. "But I didn't know she was triplets. She must be, because she seems to be everywhere, all at the same time."
That sentiment was echoed several times by admirers who ticked off Her- nandez's list of community service accomplishments, justaslastyear's Citizenof the Year Ali Valencia did in the nomination letter she wrote for Hernandez:
There's is a saying that goes, behind a successful man is a great woman. In this case it's more like behind successful people is Rolinda Hernandez. She is the behind
the scene person who goes above and beyond not only for the fire department but for other organizations as well. Many have seen her in- volvement in supporting her community by participating in the Veteran parade, Christ- mas parade, Trek to the Tree, the Blossom Trail and riding in the back of a police car only in the spirit of service and giving back to the Sanger families. Rolinda was raised in the city of Sanger and graduated from Sanger High school. The
love she displays in the city is apparent in her involvement. She is a member of the
Sanger Community Task Force, a part of the Commu- nity Emergency Response Team (CERT) in Sanger and recently just completed the CERT program in Clovis to acquire further skills to be able to improve and assist Sanger Fire Department in future CERT Training. In 2016 Rolinda finished the EMT training to gain knowledge to better serve the residents of Sanger.
She is an advocate for Hope Sanger and Active with Pink Heals the Cancer ride.
Rolinda organizes the Coffee with the Chiefs events as well as the National Night Out, Sanger Fire and
Police Departments Open House and manages the CERT Teams Table for the Farmers Market.
You will always find Ro- linda volunteering at Reagan
Mr. and Mrs. Farmer Douglas and Norma Hazelton
Dick Sheppard/Sanger Herald
A surprised Norma and Douglas Hazelton posed for photos Tuesday after chamber boss Tammy Wolfe showed up at their house with a potted plant and the news that they have been selected by the chamber to be honored as Mr. and Mrs. Farmer.
"I went to school with Ro-
Norma Hazelton looked puzzled when Delores Gonza- lez and Ron and Donna Karle showed up unannounced at the Hazelton home Tuesday afternoon.
"You won $25 in the Sanger Womans Club draw- ing and we brought your win- nings," Donna said, stalling for time, waiting for cham- ber president/CEO Tammy Wolfe to show up.
Norma, still looking a little confused, was gracious and told Donna to donate the money to HOPE Sanger.
Then Wolfe came to the door, with a big, bloom-
ing potted plant in tow and Norma, with a furrowed brow and a raised eyebrow, looking over her eyeglasses, said, "I think this must be about something else."
That was when Doug drove up in his pickup and walked in the back door.
When Wolfe told them they had been selected by the chamber to be honored as this year's Mr. and Mrs. Farmer, Norma blinked and wiped a tear from her eye.
After posing for a few photos Doug asked for a brief break so he could put his dog in the yard. "Still in the pickup," he said.
Before he could go, Gonza- lez, who wrote the nomina- tion letter, hugged them both.
Here's the nomination let- ter:
I am honored to nominate Douglas and Norma Hazel- ton for Mr. and Mrs. Farmer.
the land acquired by Doug's great-great grandfather, William Hazelton, in 1853.
Douglas worked with his grandfather, John Hazelton, and grandmother, Ethel Ha- zelton, and his father, Ed Hazelton, and mother, Millie Hazelton. After finishing school, Doug went into the Army, spent time in Panama and upon his return went right to work on the family farm.
Doug Hazelton and Norma Cooper Hazelton, whose par- ents are Frank Cooper and Hercle Cooper, were Sanger High School sweethearts and have been happily married for 63 years. Their life was always, first Christ, a strong faith-based Christian family.
They were blessed with
See CITIZEN, page 7A They're still not seeing eye to eye
By Dick Sheppard
Sanger Herald
The exchange between city manager Tim Chapa
and Measure S Citizens Over- sight Committee member Melissa Griggs was only one of several indicators that
the committee and the city manager may have a way to go when it comes to develop- ing anything close to mutual understanding and trust.
They were talking about the language of a proposed ordinance intended to clarify the way Measure S public safety money can be spent.
The proposal presented
to the committee at its April 3 meeting by city attorney Hilda Cantu Montoy was modeled after a 2009 resolu- tion. That resolution, also intended to clarify spending guidelines, used both a per- centage and a general fund baseline spending amount on public safety, before Mea- sure S money could be used.
The new proposal men- tions only the baseline
Douglas Hazelton and Norma (Cooper) Hazelton are the fifth generation to work
Melissa Griggs
amount, no percentage, and it ties the base to the 2007/2008 fiscal year budget.
Griggs expressed concern that the city council might regard the baseline, which sets the minimum amount to be spent out of the general fund, as all it had to budget before it could begin to use Measure S money to cover the rest of the city's public safety expenses.
"That's pre-supposing the council would only spend the minimum amount [from the general fund] on public
Tim Chapa
safety," said Chapa. "Why would they do that?"
"We could see this com- ing," said committee member James Miser. The council doesn't want that percentage in there [the new ordinance]."
There would be no reason for the city to spend [out of the general fund] beyond that minimum amount, said Miser.
"That supposes the city would re-budget down to the minimum amount. That would never happen," said
By Hillary Cloud
Special to the Herald
The Fresno Convention Center will be filled with hundreds of high school students and their 120-pound robots today through Sunday at the Seventh Central Valley Re- gional Robotics Competition.
The competition is an intense competitive event showcasing robots built and operated by 48 high school teams from all over Califor- nia, including 19 from the Central Valley, as well as a team from Hawaii.
Sanger High's robotics team will be there.
The Central Valley regional event required a new home this year because of the popu- larity of robotic competitions. The Fresno Convention Center will be filled with more than 3,000 spectators from all over the state, cheering on teams of high school students
who have honed their STEM skills to create the best robot they can.
This year teams find themselves trapped in an arcade game, “Ready Player One.” They must work with their alliance partners to stack power cubes on mechanisms on the field and prevent opposing alliances from doing the same. At the end of the match, their 120-pound robot must climb a central structure to fight the arcade boss and win the match.
Teams were provided the task and speci- fications only six weeks ago to get their bots ready.
This competition is a high-tech free sport- ing event for spectators, the result of focused brainstorming, real-world teamwork, dedicat- ing mentoring, outstanding innovation, and
See MEASURE S, page 7A
SANGER HERALD: A MID VALLEY PUBLISHING NEWSPAPER • (559) 875-2511 • www.thesangerherald.com
See FARMERS, page 7A Big bad battling bots at the Central
Valley Regional Robotics Competition
THURSDAY
APRIL 5, 2018
VOL 129 NO. 14
2 sections, 16 pages
CLASSIFIED 4B LEGALS 5-7B BUSINESS DIRECTORY 8B LIFE STYLES 3B OBITUARIES 2A OPINION 3A SPORTS 1B POLICE LOG 2A WEATHER 7A
See ROBOTICS, page 2A