Serving the community since 1970
Serving the community since 1970
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The Shafter City Council voted unanimously to reappoint Chad Givens as mayor for another two-year term, beginning Jan. 1. The mayoral position is appointed by a vote of the council members. Givens was nominated by Councilmember Gus Olvera. At the recent regular meeting of the council, they also voted to certify the Nov. 4 election results, in which Espinoza, Givens and Councilmember Gilbert Alvarado retained their seats on the council for another four-year term. They were then sworn in. Gus...
The Shafter High Lady Generals basketball team captured the title in their own tournament over the weekend, beating Redwood High of Visalia in the championship game, 44-38. Shafter made it to the finals with a rout of Templeton High School in the semifinals, 45-24. The team was led by tournament MVP Isela Lugo, who averaged 18 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals a game for the day. Shafter raced out to a 10-point lead in the game, using a smothering defense and a quick...
The accolades for the Shafter High Generals football team continued as several of the players were bestowed with awards recently. The recipients were led by junior Mariyon Sloan, who was named the South Sequoia League MVP. Sloan stepped into the quarterback position with the absence of Ezekiel Osborn after the second week of the season against Arvin. Sloan gained over 1,400 yards rushing for the season, as well as having over 300 yards receiving. Including punt returns and kickoff returns,...
The City of Shafter has had a longstanding tradition of lighting their Christmas tree downtown with a celebration involving the entire community, complete with music, food, drinks and fun. This year they also had a few extra groups to celebrate as they recognized several local sports teams who have had extraordinary years in 2024. Of course, the event wouldn't be complete without a visit from the jolly man in red and white, who arrived and took pictures with the children. Mayor Chad Givens...
The Shafter City Council voted unanimously to approve a body-worn camera system at a cost of approximately $3.5 million over a 10-year period. Interim Police Chief Randy Mulligan told the council that the department has been studying different systems and selected the AXON system as the most cost-effective and advanced of the systems that were looked at. The AXON system includes body-worn cameras, worn by officers, as well as a taser program, in addition to several other items that come with...
The Shafter Nursing Facility had one of its residents celebrate their 95th birthday on Tuesday, giving her two cakes, cupcakes and balloons. Marian Jessup was born on Nov. 26, 1929, in Anaheim. Jessup grew up in Costa Mesa and had several jobs during her working career. Before retiring, Marian was working for a real estate firm as a foreclosure expert. "It was a great job, but not a popular one. If she didn't get the property foreclosed on, her bosses weren't happy, but if she did her job well,...
The Shafter Generals football season came to an end on Friday with a heartbreaking loss to the Coalinga Horned Toads in the Central Section Division IV championship game, 34-33. The top-seeded Generals just missed winning their second title in three years, dropping the contest to the third-seeded Horned Toads after allowing Coalinga to come back from a 12-point deficit with under five minutes remaining in the game. Coalinga got on the board first after a long drive on their first possession, usi...
The Shafter Generals football season came to an end on Friday with a heartbreaking loss to the Coalinga Horned Toads in the Central Section Division IV championship game, 34-33. The top-seeded Generals just missed winning their second title in three years, dropping the contest to the third-seeded Horned Toads after allowing Coalinga to come back from a 12-point deficit with under five minutes remaining in the game. Coalinga got on the board first after a long drive on their first possession, usi...
The Shafter Generals football team punched their ticket to the Valley Championship game with a 31-22 win against the Immanuel Eagles on Friday night. Shafter, the top seed in the Division IV bracket, beat the 5th-seeded Eagles with a mixture of offense, defense, and special teams, with each faction contributing to the victory. The Generals jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first half, thanks to some key runs from Maryion Sloan and Christopher Espinoza, accounting for the majority of the yardage...
The Shafter Generals football team punched their ticket to the Valley Championship game with a 31-22 win against the Immanuel Eagles on Friday night. Shafter, the top seed in the Division IV bracket, beat the 5th-seeded Eagles with a mixture of offense, defense, and special teams, with each faction contributing to the victory. The Generals jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first half, thanks to some key runs from Maryion Sloan and Christopher Espinoza, accounting for the majority of the yardage...
The Shafter City Council on Tuesday night interviewed candidates for three open seats on the Shafter Planning Commission Board – Armando Camacho, Mariah Campos, Zachary Fain, John Sanchez, Joseph Simmons and Fortino Valdivia. The council is to decide on the three successful candidates at their next meeting. Camacho is a Shafter business owner who has made a career in the accounting field, and has been a member of the 746 Sports Foundation and the Shafter Lions Club. Campos is a 2024 high s...
The Shafter High Generals did not fall into the trap that so many teams fall into after having a week off when it comes to the playoffs. Head Coach Jerald Pierucci said that he was proud of the way his guys came out to take care of business on Friday night, dominating the eighth-seeded North High Stars, 56-7, setting up the Generals in a semifinal matchup with the fifth-seeded Immanuel Eagles of Reedley. "Sometimes you worry about being a little rusty after a bye week in the playoffs," said...
The Shafter Mennonite Brethren Church sponsored their eighth annual Wrestling Invitational on Saturday, drawing an all-time record for the event. Pastor Pat Coyle, director of the tournament, commented, "This was the biggest we have ever had, by far." Coyle said that there were over 150 wrestlers competing and spectators that filled the gymnasium, with an overflow crowd. "I have never seen this many kids here before," said Manny Hernandez, whose son was competing for the second year. "This is a...
The Wasco High Tigers football team saw its season come to an end in the opening round of the Central Section Division IV playoffs with a loss to McLane High. The 13th-seeded Tigers already were facing a tough task, with the #4 ranked Highlanders in Fresno, and when you throw in playing that game without your best player, it was too tall of an order. Hammie Lopez was hit with two personal fouls in the loss the previous week to the Shafter Generals, making him ineligible for the game at McLane....
The Shafter High Generals did not fall into the trap that so many teams fall into after having a week off when it comes to the playoffs. Head Coach Jerald Pierucci said that he was proud of the way his guys came out to take care of business on Friday night, dominating the eighth-seeded North High Stars, 56-7, setting up the Generals in a semifinal matchup with the fifth-seeded Immanuel Eagles of Reedley. "Sometimes you worry about being a little rusty after a bye week in the playoffs," said...
The Shafter High Lady Generals volleyball team advanced to the semifinals in the Central Section Division IV playoffs last week, but they lost their seminal match with the third-seeded Immanuel from Reedley in three straight sets. Shafter, seeded number two in the playoffs, had little trouble in the first round, dispatching Hanford West in three straight games. Led by the hitting of Sydnee Macias and Rylyn Hanner, the team was aggressive from the beginning and never let up. In the quarterfinal...
The Shafter High Generals got a bye for the first week of the Central Section Division IV playoffs as top seed in the division, and with the ranking ensuring a home game throughout the gamers leading to the championship. The North High Stars, the number eight seed, defeated Templeton, setting up the quarterfinal against the Generals. Shafter has had another outstanding season, having the top ranking in Division IV throughout. It has been a challenge, though, with the loss of quarterback Ezekiel...
The 97th matchup of the Shafter High Generals and Wasco High Tigers took place on Friday night, and it was tightly contested game for almost three quarters, before the Generals scored 21 unanswered points to break the game open and beat the Tigers, 35-14. With a crowd over 4,000 strong, the two teams battled it out in the first half, with each side showing the intensity that has fueled this rivalry for almost a century. The teams played to a 7-7 tie in the first half, with Shafter scoring in...
The Shafter City Council Tuesday night approved a project that would see several local schools participate in a project that would allow the students to learn more about the operation of local government. Student Council members from Richland School District, Shafter High School, GROW Academy and Maple School will be able to participate in a series of meetings held at City Hall. The students would receive polo shirts as part of their experience, as well an opportunity to shadow the city official...
The Wasco High Tigers got back on the winning track this week with a win over the Delano Tigers, 30-27. It was a tough matchup, with Wasco’s high powered offense against the Delano defense. The Wasco defense did a good job of keeping the Delano offense in check for most of the game. Wasco took a quick lead with the only pass of the game for Wasco. Moroni Carranza caught a pass and ran it 76 yards for a touchdown. The Tigers took a 30-13 lead into the locker room. For the night, the Wasco o...
Shafter High quarterback Ezekiel Osborn made a triumphant return to the field on Friday night, leading the Generals to a 56-0 rout of the Chavez Titans, keeping the Generals perfect in SSL play, with one week remaining in the regular season. Mariyon Sloan, who stepped in to quarterback Shafter in Osborn's absence, still had a major impact in the game, moving from receiver, to a back, attacking the Titans in a variety of ways in which they had no answer for. Shafter had a 14-0 lead just three...
The Wasco Tigers upped their SSL record to 2-1 with a rout of the Taft Wildcats, 53-14, on Friday night. Wasco was unstoppable on offense, racking up over 500 yards on the ground for the game. Hammie Lopez had 203 yards rushing on the night, leading the way. But, there were plenty of Tigers in support, with five other Wasco players gaining yardage on the night. The Tigers scored early and often, with Lopez scoring two first quarter touchdowns, one of them for 43 yards. Wasco ended the game with...
Shafter High quarterback Ezekiel Osborn made a triumphant return to the field on Friday night, leading the Generals to a 56-0 rout of the Chavez Titans, keeping the Generals perfect in SSL play, with one week remaining in the regular season. Mariyon Sloan, who stepped in to quarterback Shafter in Osborn's absence, still had a major impact in the game, moving from receiver, to a back, attacking the Titans in a variety of ways in which they had no answer for. Shafter had a 14-0 lead just three...
The Shafter High Generals football team saw their record improve to 3-0 in the SSL with a 34-28 victory over the Kennedy Thunderbirds on Thursday night. Shafter and Kennedy both came into the game unbeaten in the SSL, with the winner of the contest getting a big boost toward the league title. Kennedy drew first blood in the game, taking up the majority of the first quarter on their opening drive, culminating with a short touchdown run by Jace Demacabalin, making the score 7-0. The Generals didn'...
Shafter will be expanding the Police Department's drone capabilities in the near future after a vote by the City Council Tuesday night. The council approved the department's Drone Program after a presentation from Sergeant Storm Kincade, the certified drone pilot for the Shafter police, to do the presentation for the council on the program. Kincade said that the department has purchased a DJ Mavik 3T drone, which is a multiuse drone that will benefit the safety of police and the public....
