Cell: 480-452-7997

Email: kimberly@houndathome.com

MARICOPA HAS GONE TO THE DOGS!!!

Local Pet Rescue To Hold Fundraiser and

The Maricopa Dog Park Alliance to hold Dog Park Meet and Greet

Mark your calendars for Saturday, November 20^th.  Two great events supporting pets and their owners will be held in Maricopa.  First, Santa will be at Maricopa’s newest pet supply store, Pet Club from Noon until 3 p.m. for the perfect holiday pet photo opportunity.  Pet Social Worker, a local pet rescue will be taking donations while Amy Jamieson Photography shoots all your dogs and cats mugs.

Pet Social Worker President Kimberly Diedrich is looking forward to Maricopa residents to take advantage of this fun opportunity and help the rescue efforts in Maricopa.  “For the second year in a row Santa will be visiting Maricopa early and we thought it would be nice to give pet owners something a little special for their donation.”  If you are interested in having your pet’s picture taken with Santa, please contact Kimberly at Pet Social Worker via email, info@petsocialworker.org or cell phone at 480-452-7997.

Phone: 520-381-6571
Fax: 520-381-6031

CGRMC Holds Dedication of OB Nursery in Honor of Joe Jonas
Casa Grande, Arizona – On September 14, 2010, Casa Grande Regional
Medical Center (CGRMC) welcomed Joe Jonas of the Jonas Brothers to a
dedication ceremony for “The Joe Jonas Nursery.” Joe was born at CGRMC on
August 15, 1989. He turned 21 this past August so the dedication was both in
recognition of his birthday and his accomplishments.
In honor of the nursery, Joe and his mother Denise presented a check in the
amount of $10,000 to purchase bassinettes and monitoring equipment for the
hospital. During the dedication, Rona Curphy, President and CEO of CGRMC,
stated, “We are honored that Joe and his family’s foundation, Change for the
Children, are willing to support the hospital and the town where he was born.
Their generous donation will allow us to purchase equipment to update our

newborn nursery.”
Curphy continued, “We are so excited to dedicate our nursery to Joe Jonas
because we want to inspire our small town community to know that their children
can accomplish wonderful dreams. We like to think that dreams start here in our
baby nursery everyday. Our families just need to dream, believe, and then they
will succeed.”

Joe Jonas commented, “My brothers and I always try to give back when and
where we can. It was an incredible experience to be among the hospital staff
and children today. Thank you so much.”

The invitation only ceremony was held at 1:30 p.m. and included a tour of the OB
unit where Joe was born. His mother, uncle and grandparents were also present.
Marlene Browning Hoeft, the nurse who assisted with Joe’s delivery also
attended the ceremony to greet Joe and his mother. At the conclusion of the
event, Joe made himself available briefly for photographs with approximately 50
children of hospital employees. Immediately following that, Joe returned to the
Phoenix area for the Jonas Brothers World Tour 2010 concert.

About Casa Grande Regional Medical Center
Casa Grande Regional Medical Center is a 187-bed, not-for-profit community
hospital providing full-service care to Casa Grande and the communities of
western Pinal County. CGRMC also provides a full range of outpatient services,
including Urgent Care coverage seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and a
24-hour Emergency Department. CGRMC is a partner in healthcare, providing
education and resources to the community. For more information, visit
casagrandehospital.com or call 520-381-6300.

On June 30^th, the Board of Supervisors adopted the final FY 2011 budget.  The Pinal County Budget is balanced based on the Board’s vision and strategic planning parameters.  The planning parameters for the year are:  Regional Leadership, Growth, Public Safety, Public Health, Transportation, Jobs & Economic Development, Accountability and Financial Responsibility.

The final budget is divided into five major components: General Fund, Special Revenue, Enterprise, Debt Service and Capital Projects.  The General Fund budget finances a significant portion of the day-to-day provisions of County services and totals $196,943,665.  The majority (70%) of those functions are mandated services.  The General Fund budget includes a Financial Stability Reserve that reflects 15% of general fund operating expenditures.  The Financial Stability Reserve is used to mitigate current, future risks (e.g., revenue shortfalls and unanticipated expenditures) and exposure to one-time and ongoing cost shifts from the State.

The FY 2010-2011 Pinal County Budget includes $7.1M in cost shifts, program increases and revenue sweeps from the State of Arizona.  In November, Arizona voters will be asked to approve the use of early childhood development and land preservation funding to close the State’s structural deficit.   If the voters do not approve the measure, we expect additional cost shifts from the State. The proposed primary property tax rate is $3.9999 per $100 of assessed valuation.  The primary rate consists of mandatory cost shifts from the State of Arizona, general government and funding for the Mary C. O’Brien School.  The rate reflects an increase $0.64 from the prior year – with approximately $0.28 of the increase is due to state cost shifts.

In answer to the question of where the property tax dollars are spent, 93% of property tax revenues will be used to fund Courts and Public Safety.  The remaining 7% will be used to fund cost shifts from the State of Arizona.  Despite statements to the contrary, the Board made some $500,000 in program and service cuts, and is using $5M from the Financial Stability Reserve or “Rainy Day” fund to balance this year’s budget.

The Board also took time during its June 30^th meeting to recognize and honor Maricopa middle school student Austin Pearce for his incredible commitment and contributions to his Maricopa and Pinal County community.  If you don’t already know, this seventh grader organized several events to raise both funds and food for the less fortunate in the Maricopa area: in addition to doing used book sales and “shopping cart derbies” over a four year period he raised more than $50,000 for food items that were distributed through F.O.R. Maricopa’s food bank.  At a national level, Austin was recognized by the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards organization, given a $5,000 personal award and another $5,000 grant was given to F.O.R. Maricopa on his behalf.  We are blessed and very fortunate to have young people such as Austin in our midst!

In closing, I’d like to call attention to a quiet but heart-warming event that took place on June 22^nd in a Casa Grande neighborhood: a ribbon cutting ceremony for a newly remodeled home.  Not a big deal?  I beg to differ.  This extensive remodel was the result of a new partnership between the USDA/Rural Development, Congresswoman Kirkpatrick’s office, and the City of Casa Grande’ Neighborhood Revitalization Office under the able hand of Rosa Bruce.  The collaboration allowed the city to buy an abandoned house, renovate and expand it, and then turn it over to a deserving person who assumes a mortgage.

Barbara, a long term employee of a local business, was able to move her family of six into the home after renting for the last six years.  Everyone in her family and workplace pitched in to paint, clean, put in some landscaping, and generally help to spruce up the home.  The tears of joy were abundant – all the way around.

David Snider, Supervisor

Pinal County District 3

Straight to the Plate Catering offers fresh ingredients to make their mouth-watering appetizers, entrees, side dishes and desserts. Some customer favorites include: Spicy Apricot Meatballs, Chipotle and Roasted Red Pepper Humus, Chicken Piccata w/ artichokes and capers, Cheese Tortellini with a creamy pesto sauce, Rosemary infused rolls and their Apple Pie Cake. And don’t forget their signature cookie, the Carmelitas! “It doesn’t matter what we serve, people always say, ‘Can you also bring an order of Carmelitas?’” Straight to the Plate is more than happy to accommodate their customer requests and even offer complimentary tastings for larger events.

Straight to the Plate has something for everybody. For example, for a more casual event, Sue would serve a chilled bowl of cheese tortellini mixed with creamy pesto sauce. For a more elegant and upscale event, Sue would cater the chilled tortellini brushed with the pesto sauce on a toothpick served on a bed of spinach perched on a marble slab. Both will taste exactly the same, but the presentation will be matched to the client’s vision of the event. Straight to the Plate also offers versatility. Their BLT dip can be served on multi-grain crackers, in a tomato or on a jalapeño half. Each way served has a flavorful, delicious and different taste than the other two.

Many customers also wanted Sue and Straight to the Plate to prepare frozen individual and family portions of the catered food. To the delight of customers, “Meal Solutions” was introduced in May. These are quality fresh dinners prepared and frozen in freezer bags. Each Meal Solution includes cooking instructions, side dish and the convenience and ease in the kitchen. 12-15 meals are showcased each month and commuters, busy parents, RVers cook the meals with ease. As one bank branch manager says enthusiastically, “I did the math, and it doesn’t make sense, NOT to order the Meal Solutions. It’s great on my personal budget!” Check it the Meal Solutions menu on the website.

For the business owner, company image is everything! What you provide to your clients, guests and employees, reflects on you personally and as a corporation. Straight to the Plate can partner with you to make the experience great for everyone and help take your company to the next level! For wedding, celebration or social events, Straight to the Plate will listen to you about your dreams and vision so they can help make your day magical! They offer the peace of mind, professionalism and customized menus to make your vision a reality. Straight to the Plate will ensure that you and your guests are well taken cake of throughout the event. Your event will be tailored made for you and Straight to the Plate works with precious to get it just right.

Menu samples are available on their website, www.StraighttothePlate.com. They are a full service catering and event company. Rentals, photography, flowers, planning, bartending and props to make your event great Straight to the Plate are also available to fulfill your vision. Give them a call today and find out why people say, “Oh good, it’s YOU catering again!”

AK-CHIN — So no finally means yes, it would seem.

As representatives from the Ak-Chin Indian Community, Harrah’s Entertainment and the city of Maricopa joined a crowd of more than 125 on hand last week for the groundbreaking of a $20 million, five-story hotel expansion project at Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino Resort, the facility’s general manager, Geoff Andres, gave a simple yet poignant anecdote to help answer an obvious question: “Why now?”

“Why would we be adding a hotel tower in a down economy? Well, I’ll tell you, my friends, we are sold out every night,” said an energetic Andres of the property’s current 140-plus-room setup. “In fact, do you guys want a room tonight? … Well you can’t have one, because we’re full!”

No, western Pinal County’s only gaming facility doesn’t have much availability, and yes, that’s exactly why the time is right, he contends, to expand.

“That’s been the story for us for quite some time,” he said. “We’re excited to be able to add these hotel rooms, we think it’s going to be a great thing for this business, and we also think it’s going to be a great thing for the city of Maricopa.”

The project, which in essence doubles the property’s available overnight space to nearly 300 rooms, puts the local Harrah’s casino — one of the greater Phoenix region’s first tribal gaming and resort facilities when it opened more than 15 years ago — right on par with recent resort-tower enhancement projects in nearby Chandler, by the Gila River Indian Community (Gila River Casino at Wild Horse Pass), and Scottsdale, by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (Casino Arizona — Talking Stick Resort).

But while other casino-resort ventures may have expanded first, Andres is quick to note that the Harrah’s Ak-Chin expansion is more a product of timing — rather than an effort in trying to keep up.

“At 148 rooms, [Harrah’s is] a pretty modest size,” he said. “Gila River and Casino Arizona built very nice projects — both very appropriate for their locations and proximity to the Phoenix area. Really the time is right, for us, to just add on. It’s really all about timing.

“We’re kind of hitting the sweet spot right now. … All the pieces fit,” he added, noting that cheaper construction costs plus a demand in the greater Phoenix market for the gaming-resort experience all led to the Ak-Chin community’s decision to expand.

Andres added that while Casino Arizona and Gila River Casino might have more freeway-direct locations, the Ak-Chin casino has the benefit of a nationwide network of customer loyalty.

“We have the benefit of having the Harrah’s brand. Harrah’s brand has the largest database in the country of gamers. There are Harrah’s properties all over the country,” he said of Ak-Chin’s biggest competitive advantage.

And, Andres noted, the property should speak for itself, with granite countertops and 50-inch flat-screen televisions in all new rooms, along with a sculpture and cactus garden, fire element and more new features, including a new hotel lobby.

“It is going to be a fantastic edition to an already fantastic resort.”

The Ak-Chin community also is expected to complete a purchase of the once-private Southern Dunes Golf Club off Arizona 238 in Maricopa — considered one of the top courses in the state. The goal, according to Ak-Chin council Chairman Louis Manuel, is to partner the course and the casino-resort together. Southern Dunes, once a male-only, 100 percent private club, has undergone multiple ownership changes in recent years. Manuel said that Troon Golf, which currently manages the course, would likely stay on once the deal goes through. Manuel said the sale is still pending, however, and not finalized.

In addition to construction labor during development, Andres said Harrah’s, which already employs nearly 700 people, would add 30 to 50 jobs upon the opening of the new tower — “the biggest building in Maricopa,” he contends.

April 14, 2010.  Desert Sun Performing Arts Competition team, the DSPA Gems, traveled with 34 dancers to perform at Disney.  They performed their award winning dances on Carnation Stage next to the Disney Castle.  Dances included “Fast As You Can” “Ironic” “Trickle Trickle” “Follow the Leader” “Breathe” and “You Should Be Dancing.”   While there they attended multiple workshops with professional Disney choreographers.  To achieve this trip, the dancers had to fundraise thousands of dollars.  They worked diligently selling cookbooks, cookie dough, hosting car washes, and working at Firebird Raceway.

Being able to perform at Disney was an incredible experience for everyone.  “I have been to Disney many times but my favorite part was having my dance family there to share it with,”  said Denise Baker.

The dancers learned a lot from their trip that can be applied both on stage and off  “Natasha’s favorite part was dancing.  We talked about why it is important for them to perform at places like Disney, and she first said because people like to watch them dance…because it helps her be comfortable in front of an audience.  She agrees that it has helped when she’s had to make presentations at school, “  Christine Nechvatal said.

The DSPA Gems then competed in the Kids Artistic Revue held in Mesa on March 19 and 20th.  They won seven First Place trophies and six Top First Place trophies.  Additional awards included:

3rd runner up 8 and under age division Miss Petite Dance
4th high score overall solo 12-14 age division
4th high score overall small group 15-17 age division
4th high score overall large group 9-11 age division
Judges awards “Way to Work It Award”, ” Touching Tribute Award”, “Fabulous Faces Award”

DSPA Gems also competed at I Love Dance Competition held in Phoenix on April 3rd.  They won:

3- 2nd place awards
8- first place trophies
Overall costume winner
3rd high score overall solo ages 8-10
1st place high score overall beginner group age 8-10

Desert Sun Performing Arts is Maricopa’s premiere dance and performing arts school.  We believe in a positive atmosphere for our students and their parents. Our school takes the responsibility of educating and guiding children very seriously. The lessons learned at dancing school go beyond the technique and steps they master. We believe they gain an understanding of discipline, commitment, teamwork, and the value of hard work. We offer them a way to express themselves and a better understanding of themselves.  DSPA features Rising Stars program for ages 2-5, Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern, Lyrical, Musical Theatre, Jazz Funk, and Inspire, a unique program for dance lovers with special needs.

Desert Sun Performing Arts
www.desertsunperformingarts.com
19756 John Wayne Pkwy
Maricopa, AZ  85239
520.483.8915
dance@desertsunperformingarts.com

The new website features a Do-it-yourself video archive, news, sales & promotions, seasonal tips, and a Google Map™ store locations page. The new site is built on the cutting edge software Expression Engine—which also powers many large government and retail sites around the world. Factor 1 Studios worked with local Ace Hardware Phoenix staff to develop this beautiful, easy to navigate website. Visit the new Ace Hardware Phoenix website at http://www.acehardwarephoenix.com and see more work from Factor 1 Studios at http://www.factor1studios.com.

The Core design was planned around the focus of our unique location. Phoenix Ace Hardware stores have a different season of marketing than other states. They sell grass seed while other stores in the US sell snow salt. We had to make sure that the visitor knew they were local to Arizona. So We have a cycle of quarterly images to rotate into the background of the site, all with very clear Arizona landscapes.

The home is very short and to the point. We know the audience is not here to shop online, but to find a store, or watch video DIY tips and messages.

The locations page was built using Google Maps API for a dynamic store browsing experience. A user can pan and zoom to a location near them, or select a store from the list to see it pinpointed on the map.

Videos were a must. Ace Hardware Phoenix has several media relationships that keep the content rolling in on a routine basis. We built a system where Ace can simple add a new video, add the YouTube code, notes and any associated files, and our tools would sort them, newest up top, and rolling archives below. This makes management of the videos a breeze.

News operates similar to the videos page. Simply add a new news article title, description and content.

Business After 5

Maricopa Veterans Center

Thank you to the Maricopa Veterans Center for hosting us last night!  They did a fantastic job with the remodeling and sprucing up of the old Library Building.  The Center also serves as a museum of sorts with VFW & American Legion member donated memorabilia.  Center Coordinator Jack McClain proudly gives you a tour and explains the history of various items on display.  They even have the original bell from the Enlisted Men’s Club in DaNang, Vietnam!

Service groups, self help groups  and other community organizations can rent meeting space at very low cost.  The funds earned from these fees are placed directly back into the facility for this like continued maintenance, utilities and insurance.

Thanks to the donation of  raffle items from Maricopa Chamber Member’s, Coyote Trails Bed & Breakfast, Ride Arizona, Benchmark Home Loans and Balance Personal Training,  we were able to donate back over $200!

Special Guest on hand was our May 19, 2010 Keynote Speaker, Micheal Crain to give us a sneak peak of the upcoming event.  Anyone interested in more information can contact the Chamber or follow this link…

Maricopa, AZ

Arbonne Office in Rancho El Dorado
43370 W Rio Bravo Dr
Maricopa, AZ 85138

520-705-0998

The Maricopa Chamber of Commerce was honored to facilitate another exciting Grand Opening!  Jolene Miller, Local Distributor for Arbonne International, opened her office/showroom in true Chamber fashion.  This event also featured special guest speaker Jenelle Adams, Arbonne guru to showcase the products.

In addition to Jolene and her guest speaker the following Chamber Ambassadors and  members were on hand to show their support. Ambassador Bob Gillespie, Ambassador Suzie Miller, Ambassador Cynthia Morgan.  Chamber Members, Jill Smith, Rita Schmidt.