Mid Valley Times 4-15-21 E-edition

Thursday, April 15, 2021
Vol. 2, No. 41
Coronavirus Update — Rate Of Vaccinations Remains Strong
Fresno
County on
pace for
upgrade
to orange
By Jon Earnest
Mid Valley Times
Fresno County put itself on pace this week to advance to the orange (moderate) tier level for coronavirus cases, even as the county surpassed 100,000 total positive cases and unsettling news came re- garding one of the three COV- ID-19 vaccines and new vari- ants of the virus in the region.
The April 13 COVID up- date for the county showed that daily new cases per 100,000 in population was at 5.9, just within the range needed to improve to the less restrictive category. If the county remains at 5.9 or un- der next week, they could im- prove to the orange tier as of Wednesday, April 21.
In general, the situation for lower COVID active cases continues to improve. While the total number of positive cases stood at 100,277 for Fres- no County, the positivity rate dropped to 3.5 percent and hospitalizations fell to 101.
The number of people vaccinated with at least one shot in the county climbed to 549,533 as of April 13, and stood at 213,128 in Tulare County. Also on April 13, news broke that federal health of- ficials called for a halt in the use of the Johnson & Johnson
SeeCOVIDonpage A16
Cooling off
50 cents
Reedley
Chamber
to honor
Brandt at
2021 gala
MVT Staff Report
The annual Greater Reedley Chamber of Com- merce Business & Commu- nity Awards Gala will honor Wayne Brandt with induc- tion into the Reedley Hall of Fame at the annual gala this Saturday, April 17.
Chamber officials say the 81-year-old Brandt has dedicated much of his life building the agricultural community, and serving his family and others in a Godly manner.
In his early years, Brandt attended local schools, and began working on his fam- ily farm at the young age of 11 years bundling boxes for field packing peaches. He married his wife Eleanor in 1959, and together they raised two sons (Jack and Robert), and welcomed a
See GALAonpageA16
Jon Earnest / Mid Valley Times
From left, Reedley siblings Alexander Castro, 5, and Adamaris Castro, 9, splashed around in ankle deep water in the Kings River at Reedley Beach the afternoon of April 13. Adamaris was celebrating her birthday that day, and the family visited the Reedley park. The water will be extra refreshing this week as weather forecasters said the region should receive the first 90 degree temperatures of the year. Next month, water levels will increase on the Kings River when annual releases for growers and recreation take place, but lack of precipitation for a third straight year mean drought conditions are likely this summer.
Sanger woman dies in Highway 180 crash
By Juanita Adame
Mid Valley Times
A Sanger woman lost her life on the afternoon of April 10 following a head-on crash with an SUV that had lost control just secondsw ear- lier on Highway 180.
Amanda Smith, 34, died in the three-vehicle crash that happened just after 4:30 p.m. on the highway near the DeWolf Avenue intersec- tion.
According to a report from the California Highway Patrol, 26-year- old Felipe Gonzalez Jr. of Fresno was driving his GMC Yukon east on 180 when, for unknown reasons, the
rear tire of his vehicle deflated. Gonzalez was unable to main- tain control of the vehicle and crossed into the westbound lane of traffic, collid-
ing head on with
the car Smith was driving, as well as a second vehicle.
The second vehicle was driven by Fabiola Ramirez, a 31-year-old Reedley woman.
Smith was killed on impact,
See CRASH on page A16
Dinuba Cinco
By Jon Earnest
Mid Valley Times
The annual Dinuba Cinco de Mayo Pageant is returning this year after a one-year absence, and the 2021 event next week will be streamed for viewers.
The 2021 pageant, will be streamed for the public on YouTube and Twitch starting at 6 p.m. Sunday, April 25. The event will be recorded a day earlier in an outdoors setting.
Debbie Rojas with the pageant said last year's Cinco de Mayo event was canceled because of the pandemic. The state''s shelter in place order took effect as organizers were preparing for the 2020 pageant.
The Cinco de Mayo Pageant com- mittee, with the help of community, were able to raised funds to present each of the nine 2020 contestants with a $500 scholarship.
de Mayo Pageant to be streamed April 25
Links to this year's pageant are available by visiting online at https//:linktr.ee/dinubacdmp.
Here are brief bios from the pag- eant of the 2021 candidates, in alpha- betical order:
Evelyn Itzel Lopez Castellanos
Evelyn Itzel Lopez Castellanos is the 17-year-old daughter of Juan Car- los Lopez and Alma Rosa Castellanos. She currently has a 3.8 GPA. Her ex- tra curricular activities include mem- bership in Leadership, National His- tory Day, and Mock Trial (where she is the current president). She is also a volunteer at Roosevelt Elementary and has served as a Scicon counselor.
Evelyn will recite a monologue that sheds light on the need for mental health in the Mexican community. She chose this talent because mental health is something she herself struggles with,
Evelyn Itzel Lopez Castellanos
and she understands that many others also battle with mental health daily, but may be afraid to talk about it. Evelyn would like to break the mental health stigma and bring awareness to suicide. She believes mental health is just as important as your
the issues of mental health and suicide to the forefront.
Evelyn’s future plans are to attend Reedley College and then transfer to a four year university. She would like to major in English or Education.
Citlalli Garcia
Citlalli Garcia is the 17-year-old daughter of Gaston
and Guillermina Gar-
cia. She is a mem-
ber of FFA, Ignite Club, DHS Soccer (4 years), DHS Track (3 years), and she is also taking AP Span- ish courses.
Citlalli has chosen
to sing as her talent.
She chose to sing be-
cause she enjoys expressing herself
See PAGEANT on page A2
Amanda Smith
KFTV Channel 21 / Contributed
The video image captured from KFTV Channel 21 showed the accident scene at Highway 180 and DeWolf Avenue on April 10.
physical health, and it should be main- tained and taken care of.
Evelyn would like to be Cinco de Mayo Queen because she would like to help create a safe environment for everyone in her community. She be- lieves today’s children are facing new and difficult challenges and she would like to encourage conversations that will unite her community and bring
Citlali Garcia
Classifieds - A14 Directory - A6
Legals - A10-13 Sports - A9 Lifestyle - A7-8 Lights & Sirens - A3, A5
Obituaries - A2-3 Opinion - A4