Serving the community since 1970
Serving the community since 1970
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Here are second-half highlights of Wasco's year. Last week's first-half review can be seen on WascoTrib.com. July The second half of the year began with the grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for Central Avenue Park. The new park, designed to be a vibrant hub for families and visitors, offers a variety of recreational activities and green spaces. Semitropic Elementary School welcomed a new addition to its leadership team with the appointment of Dr. Wendy Castañeda-Leal as...
Catrina's Mexican Grill celebrated its 10th anniversary on Dec. 17, and owner Marcela Bojorquez couldn't be prouder of this milestone. In 2014, she and her husband, Cesar Marquez, pursued their American dream by starting the business, trusting that with hard work and dedication, they could persevere. They immigrated from Mexico 28 years ago and met in Bakersfield in 2007. Marcela is a Spanish professor, and Cesar had always wanted to open a restaurant because his family owned restaurants in...
Rene Gutierrez is a rig welder who works in the oil fields and makes custom gates. Last year, he lent his welding talents to the Wasco Downtown Beautification Project. "After this job, I transformed myself into an artist. I never saw myself as one until Art Sherwyn gave me the assignment. He showed me the design picture, and I brought it to life." He built a 19-foot steel archway inspired by camera lenses and squares symbolizing camera bodies. The varying sizes and shapes of the rings and...
The Kern County Coroner’s Office has identified the 18-year-old driver from Wasco involved in a fatal crash on Kimberlina Road on Dec. 7. Luis Jesus Rios was killed after his vehicle collided with a piece of farm equipment. The incident occurred about 7:30 a.m. when Rios was driving a GMC Sierra pickup truck eastbound on Kimberlina Road near Root Avenue. Despite the dense fog that reduced visibility, Rios was traveling at an unsafe speed, according to the California Highway Patrol. At the same t...
The Shafter Kiwanis Club honored Barbara Gladden with the 2024 Community Service Award last month in appreciation of her nearly 50 years of dedicated community service. A Shafter native, Barbara is a selfless servant who works not for recognition but out of a genuine passion for helping others, club members said during the ceremony. Her deep commitment to making Shafter a better place for families and a special community for everyone to call home is truly inspiring. Arlie Smith, a longtime...
Gary Rodriguez joined the Shafter Recreation and Park District board in 2008 and considers one of his greatest accomplishments to be overseeing the process of acquiring state grant funding for the new Wonderful Sports Complex. "A big thank you to the other board members who played a significant part in making that process a success, including Phillip Jimenez and his staff, as well as our grant writer and consultant, Gilbert Garcia," he said in an interview last week. Rodriguez is enthusiastic ab...
Mariyon Sloan, a junior at Shafter High School who has played football since he was 4 years old, participated in the U.S. Army Bowl National Combine in Frisco, Texas, from Dec. 19 to 21. "It was a great experience meeting the top 160 high school juniors from across the nation, showcasing my talent and competing against everyone else," he said. At the combine, football players were tested on their 40-yard dash, pro shuttle, broad jump and L-drill, and competed one-on-one. Offensive and defensive...
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...
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...