Serving the community since 1970
Serving the community since 1970
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In partnership with the City of Wasco, the Wasco Recreation and Parks District spread Christmas cheer last week with its Light Up Wasco Christmas Cruise. This Dial-a-Ride tour showcased homes transformed into dazzling displays of holiday lights and decorations. The event featured a competition for the best-designed homes, and guests had the opportunity to vote for their favorites. District Manager Chris Serna shared, "We loved having everyone stop by to drop off their letters to Santa, visit...
This was another year of activity in Wasco, and was full of highlights. Here are some of the top stories for the first half of 2024. The second half will be covered next week. January The year kicked off with a groundbreaking ceremony for the Wasco Downtown Rehabilitation Project, funded by a $5 million grant. The initiative aimed to revitalize the downtown area with green spaces and public art installations. Alex Garcia assumed the role of mayor for the third time after previously serving in...
The North Kern Chapter of Líderes Campesinas hosted CampesinXmas at the Wasco Woman's Club on Friday, featuring a traditional Mexican posada. Over 250 toys were distributed, bikes and gift cards were raffled, and members of the organization prepared a homemade birria dinner. "It was a packed house, and the room was full of joy," Líderes Campesinas Executive Director Suguet Lopez said. "We were blessed to have had the support of all our sponsors, and we are so happy we could share this special ti...
Kern County Public Works invites residents throughout the county to participate in its Christmas Tree Recycling Program, running from Thursday, Dec. 26, through Monday, Jan. 6. This program offers an eco-friendly way to dispose of one of the holiday season's most beloved symbols – the Christmas tree. By recycling their trees at designated county and partnering locations, residents can contribute to a cleaner environment and ensure these festive centerpieces are disposed of responsibly. The i...
Sherry Peckhoon Sim, the District 5240 Governor, visited the Shafter Rotary Club on Wednesday, December 18. As part of her official duties, she meets with each club in the district. Her visit was a special occasion, allowing club members to learn about her extraordinary career serving the Rotary organization. "She represents local, our district and international exceptionally well. For her, Rotary is love, care and family. She genuinely cares about people, which is important for a District...
The City of Shafter hosted a bench dedication ceremony at the Skate Park on Friday. The Lions Club led the effort to raise the money and provide the bench for the community to use and enjoy at the skate park. Created in the shape of a skateboard, the bench adds an artistic touch to the park's modern design and features a plaque naming all 15 sponsors who contributed to funding the skateboard bench. The sponsors include SoCalGas, Glam Salon & Spa, Shafter Transmission & Smog, Candyland Party...
“It’s almost Christmas…” When we were children, that phrase filled us with hope and excitement as we counted down the days. For most adults today, those same words tend to fill us with stress and anxiety as available time and money grow short and our to-do and to-buy lists become ever longer. Part of the problem might be focusing on the many things that we, and everyone else, wants, instead of recognizing that what we truly need has already been given to us. At our Christmas services, we often read the beautiful prophecy from Isaiah 9:6, wh...
Wasco Independence High School celebrated the grand opening of The Falcon Closet recently with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Thanks to a $5,000 community grant from Kern Family Health Care, this long-awaited project became a reality. The Falcon Closet was created to address a critical need within the student community by providing free access to essential items such as clothing, personal hygiene products and household supplies. WIHS staff recognized that students' success is often hindered by a lac...
Wasco city employees will get one-time payments of $2,000 after the City Council voted the allocation from American Rescue Plan funds. Part-time employees will get $1,000 payments. City Manager Scott Hurlbert said that over the last couple of years, city employees have been operating under memorandums of understanding and a wage structure defined more than two years ago. He added that there has been some correction recently, but during that time, there was substantial inflation in the energy...
Wasco Toys for Tigers held its annual toy distribution event on Saturday at Grace Community Church, serving 220 families for a total of 650 children. The organization provided children ages up to age 12 with new balls, games, stuffed animals, blankets, stocking stuffers and toys. "The event was an incredible success. We feel very blessed by the community that helped us put this together," event chairman Donna Ward said. "We couldn't do it without our partners, which this year included the Wasco...
The Wasco Union Elementary School District Wasco Winter Classic Robotics Tournament at Palm Avenue Middle School on Saturday brought together 29 teams from 15 different schools from as far as Lancaster, Santa Paula and Torrance. The teams competed in a six-match round-robin and then chose partners to compete in a single-elimination bracket championship round. The winning teams were the Knight Hawks from Fulton and Alsbury Academy of Arts and Engineering in Lancaster, along with the Cyber...
The annual Christmas Celebration at the Depot at the Shafter Depot Museum took place on Saturday, featuring the Shafter Brass Band playing traditional holiday carols and songs. Attendees enjoyed a visit from Santa, along with stuffed animals for the children , courtesy of PetSmart. The event showcased a selection of decorated Christmas trees, with community members voting for the best design. The museum was adorned in a festive theme, and guests indulged in homemade cookies and hot cider. It...
The Shafter Mennonite Brethren Church hosted its annual "Come Celebrate Christmas" recently. It was a festive event featuring a Christmas tree lighting, food trucks, pop-up vendors, hayrides, live music, bounce houses, crafts, photo opportunities, face painting,a s'mores station and a family nativity experience. "We wanted to tie this event in with other holiday community events in Shafter and offer something similar at our church for the community," Pastor Pat Coyle explained about the Dec. 8...
"The Shafter Woman's Club is proud to announce the completion of another successful year of our annual Christmas for Shafter Seniors donation drive, spreading cheer and brightening the holiday season for them," Barbara Gladden, recording secretary and event coordinator, said last week. The campaign kicked off in October with a heartfelt call to action: to provide homebound and isolated seniors in Shafter with holiday gift bags filled with essential items. Donations were gathered for residents...
First of series spotlighting the Shafter Recreation and Parks District board of directors. Nelson Salinas was re-elected for a second term in November representing District 1, and was reappointed chairman. "It's a privilege and honor to continue serving my district and the community of Shafter," Nelson Salinas said in an interview. "I have a lot of ambition to finish the Wonderful Sports Complex in partnership with Shafter Rec. We've been working tirelessly on it, and I'm committed to going the...
The City of Shafter held a ribbon-cutting ceremony last week to celebrate the grand opening of the new soccer lights at Veterans Park. The event highlighted the park's improvements to its soccer fields. For a field that used to be completely dark, where players often relied on car headlights, construction lights and generators to practice and play at night, the addition of soccer field lights is truly remarkable and a game-changer, according to the people that use the facility. Shafter FC youth...
Saint Therese Catholic Church celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Dec. 12 with a special service honoring the Virgin Mary's apparition to Juan Diego, a Mexican peasant, in 1531. The Virgin Mary appeared to him on Tepeyac Hill near Mexico City, instructing him to have a church built in her honor. This event holds great significance for its role in spreading Catholicism throughout the Americas and is especially meaningful to Mexican and Latin American communities. The feast celebrates...
The Shafter High School varsity boys and girls soccer teams last week competed in the Miramonte Lions Soccer Tournament at Miramonte High School in Bakersfield. The girls' team played four games, losing 0-2 to Ridgeview High School and 0-5 to Garces in their first two matches, finishing third in their bracket and earning a spot in the consolation division. They then went on to defeat Foothill, 2-0, and in their final match, they played Golden Valley High. After a 0-0 tie in regular time, the...
The Rose Festival Group and Orange Heart Foundation, in partnership with the City of Wasco, hosted the Wasco Christmas Festival on Saturday, with this year's theme, "Kindness Shines." The event featured a parade with over 50 entries, a vendor fair, a kids corner with games, crafts and a train ride and a lighting ceremony, where Miss Wasco Rose Queen Rihanna Sanchez lit the 20-foot tree. This year, the 2024 Wasco High School Valley Champion cheer and Tiger wrestling teams and the JV and sophomore...
Líderes Campesinas is a nonprofit organization founded in 1988 by farmworker women in California's Coachella Valley. "Our mission is to strengthen the leadership of farmworker women and girls so they can serve as a bridge for economic, political, and social change and ensure their human rights," Yesenia Acosta of Líderes Campesinas Kern Norte explained. On Friday, Dec. 20, they will host CampesinXmas at the Wasco Woman's Club, featuring a traditional Mexican posada, a 2024 post-election c...
The "Intergalactic Space Invasion" recital, produced by Planet Dance Studio, conquered the stage on Saturday. The program took place in Delano at the RFK High School Auditorium. With nearly 500 in attendance, the energy was out of this world. Each class gave a phenomenal performance, and the music selection was just as entertaining to match....
The Wasco Woman's Club held its annual Christmas celebration for students on Friday at Grace Community Church. High school youth with disabilities enjoyed pizza, cookies, lots of dancing, and, of course, a highlight was a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus, with whom they took pictures and received a Christmas gift. DJ Boomer provided the music, and all the students dressed in their best holiday attire. "It was the most joyous and rewarding Christmas party ever," said Sukie Martinez, Woman's Club...
Demolition began Monday on the building at the corner of Highway 43 and Central Avenue, on the site of the city's first retail business. The building featured a mural depicting various scenes of Shafter. During the city's centennial celebration in 2013, the city acquired funding to hire an artist to create the mural. "On that corner, Charles Shomate established the first retail business in Shafter in 1914. He replaced his original building with the brick building now being demolished in l919....
A pinning ceremony was held on Friday to celebrate the appointment of interim Shafter Chief of Police Randy Milligan as the new chief of police. The event honored a decorated peace officer who, over his 23 years in Shafter, has held nearly every position within the department, including traffic officer, field training officer, K-9 officer, senior patrol officer, sergeant, range master, lieutenant, captain, acting chief and now chief. With 26 years in law enforcement, his dedication and service...
Santa Claus, accompanied by Mrs. Claus, flew in from the North Pole to visit the Minter Field Air Museum on Saturday. "They arrived in an airplane, taxied right up to the museum's hangar, got out and greeted all the children and adults there," Minter Field Air Museum Chairman Ronald Pierce said. Hundreds of children from across Kern County had the chance to share their Christmas wishes with Santa. Each child also got to choose a free stuffed animal, donated by the Ming Avenue PetSmart. Members...