Page 1 - Sanger Herald 2-21-19 E-edition

Apache legend passes
Looking for a home
Playoffs in the rain
page 8A
By Jon Earnest
jon@midvalleypublishing.com
Less than two months into his term, Gavin Newsom vis- ited the Reedley area on Feb. 13 to sign his first legislation as California governor.
State senator Melissa Hurtado of Sanger attended the bill signing.
Inside a classroom at Riv- erview K-8 School in Parlier, and in front of a group of first grade students at the Kings Canyon Unified School District campus, Newsom put pen to paper to make As- sembly Bill 72 state law after state legislative approval.
The bill, provides an im- mediate $20 million – $10 mil- lion to continue funding for emergency drinking water projects and $10 million in technical funding — to help the state address current drinking water standards.
"This legislation provides emergency funding as a down payment. But it’s only the first step to addressing
Jon Earnest/MidValley Publishing
Melissa Hurtado, state senator from Sanger, looked on as Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assem- bly Bill 72 in front of Riverview K-8 School first-graders on Feb. 13. The bill calls for emergency funding to provide safe drinking water.
• Feb. 21- City council meeting, 6 p.m. at city hall, 1700 7th St.
• Feb. 26 - State of the City, 6 p.m. at city hall, 1700 7th St.
• Feb. 26 - School board meeting, 7 p.m. at the district office, 1905 7th St.
• Feb. 28 - Planning commission meeting, 6 p.m. at city hall, 1700 7th St.
Lifestyles 2B
Sports 1B
WeeklyNewspaper
Apache boys
soccer team
Championship
Bound
It's the first time an Apache soccer team has been in a Valley championship game
By Dick Sheppard
sangerheradl@gmail.com
The No. 3 Apache boys soccer team shut out the No.10 Edison Tigers 4-0 in a playoff semifinal game on a chilly Tuesday evening in Tom Flores Sta- dium.
The team is now on to the Division II Valley Championship against the winner of a Wednesday game between No. 1 Tulare Western and No. 5 El Diamante.
The Apache goals were scored by Saul Sanchez, Christian Torres, An- drew Andrade and Luis Villegas.
"I am very proud of our boys soccer playersandcoaches. Theirdailyhard work and preparation is paying off and they're peaking at the right time of the season," said high school athletic director Brian Penner.
"This is the first time in the history of Sanger boys soccer that we are playing for a section championship.
"We'll find out Wednesday who and wherewe'llplay. We'lleithertravelto Tulare Western or host El Diamante. The game will most likely be Friday night but may be moved to Saturday depending on weather conditions.
"We're excited for our athletes to represent Sanger on the big stage.
We had a great crowd on Tuesday night and we're hoping that the Apache Nation comes out in droves for the championship game," said Penner.
Herald sports editor Mike Nemeth will have longer, more detailed stories and action photos of both the semifinal and championship games.
Sanger(FresnoCounty)CA93657
Another WWII veteran is lost
Dick Sheppard/Sanger Herald
WWII U.S. Army veteran Alex Ruiz, 96, who died Feb. 16, is shown standing beside a military banner honoring him at the 2017 City of Sanger Banner Ceremony.
50¢ (taxincluded)
Sanger woman
killed in car crash
near Avocado Lake
Herald staff report
Sanger has lost another of its few remaining WWII veterans.
Mr. Alex Ruiz, 96, died Feb. 16. A funeral mass for Mr. Ruiz will be cele- brated at 10 a.m. on Feb. 25 at St. Mary's New Catholic Church in Sanger.
The Herald, over the years, has had many stories about Sanger's WWII vet- erans. Here's one about Mr. Ruiz, written by Josh Lopez in 2008:
stances led him to be educated in the fires of military service.
Growing up in a family of field work- ers in Sanger, Ruiz completed a junior high education before his parents made him work in the fields to help support the family.
He never completed high school.
When World War II broke out, Ruiz and many others of his generation joined the war effort.
When Ruiz went to a post office in Fresno to enlist in the military, there
Phia Vang
By Dick Sheppard
sangerherald@gmail.com
A memorial service for Phia Vang, a Fresno police officer from Sanger who was killed by a wrong way driver, will be held this Saturday morning in the Fresno Con- vention Center's exhibit hall.
The service, beginning at 10:30 a.m. will be conducted by several Christian pastors,
said the Vang family.
The public is invited to
attend.
The City of Fresno do-
nated the exhibit hall for the service.
Dignitaries and lawmak- ers from all over the Central Valley are expected to at- tend.
Assemblyman Jim Pat- terson of the 23rd Assem- bly District ceremoniously adjourned the California State Assembly on Feb. 11 in memory of Vang.
It won't be known for about two months whether the wrong way driver, Cam- eron Pryor of Sanger was under the influence of drugs oralcohol. That'showlong itwill takefortheresultsof toxicology tests performed on Pryor, to be released said the Fresno County Sheriff/ Coroner public information officer, Tony Botti.
Pryor was also killed in the headon crash.
It’s time to go back to school, but for Sanger resident Alex Ruiz, life circum-
See ALEX RUIZ, page 7A Senator Hurtado accompanies
the governor to Valley bill signing
By Dick Sheppard
sangerherald@gmail.com
Lynette Bryand, 33, of Sanger, was killed and a passenger, Lori Dewitt, was injured in a single vehicle accident on Feb. 11 near Avocado Lake.
The accident happened about 9 p.m. on Piedra Road south of Elwood Road east of Sanger.
Bryand apparently lost control of her car and it
swerved off the road and rolled over.
Bryand died at the scene.
Neither Bryand nor De- witt were wearing seatbelts, said CHP officer Victor Taylor.
Dewitt was transported to Community Regional Medi- cal Center.
Another passenger, Victo- ria Brawley, was wearing a seatbelt and was not injured.
The accident is still under investigation.
Memorial service this
Saturday morning for
officer Phia Vang
How much more rain? See the forecast on page 8A
the clean drinking water crisis in our state,” Newsom told parents, education officials and media at a roundtable meeting after the signing. “The fact that more than a million Californians can’t rely on clean water to
drink or bathe in is a moral disgrace.
“Our state must forge a long-term solution to this cri- sis, and I’m looking forward to working with the Legisla- ture in the coming months to do just that.”
Newsom’s visit to River- view had just that purpose. The school has had unsafe water on the campus for more than a year, and has had to bring in bottled water for student and faculty con-
See NEWSOM page 7A
SANGER HERALD: A MID VALLEY PUBLISHING NEWSPAPER • (559) 875-2511 • www.thesangerherald.com
THURSDAY
FEBRUARY 21, 2019
VOL 130 NO. 8
2 sections, 14 pages
CLASSIFIED 5B LEGALS 6,7B BUSINESS DIRECTORY 8B LIFE STYLES 2B OBITUARIES 2A OPINION 3A SPORTS 1B POLICE LOG 2A WEATHER 8A