See A-1

Project HELP Looks To Community This Season
By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski
The News
Lailoni Capozzi-Corman is passionate about the organization for which she serves as coordinator, the Apache Junction Unified School District’s Project HELP.
   On an hour-long tour of the facility at 195 E. Superstition Blvd., she covered the ins and outs of the organization that helps families of students enrolled in the AJUSD and live within the district.
   “We are the only program like this is in the entire country,” Corman said. “The No. 1 rule is you must have children attending one of our district schools—and regularly. And they must live within the district boundaries.
   “We are a program within the district, just like the cafeteria is, the performing arts center. We’re a program. We’re not subsidized by any tax dollars. We don’t get United Way. We don’t get anything from the city, state, government. Everything we get is what I can go out and raise from the public.”
   Project HELP always needs donations, she said. And each year, the community comes through with tremendous generosity. She hopes residents will repeat that generosity this holiday season. She’s specifically looking for people to drop off Thanksgiving turkeys or fixings to Project HELP before Monday, November 23. Project HELP is open for donations between 8:30 a.m. and noon Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays, or by appointment.

See A-1 and see Project Help, A-8

School Budget Override Defeated By 249 Votes
Parents urge board to put item on ballot next year
After all of the provisional and uncounted early ballots were tallied last week, the Apache Junction Unified School District Maintenance and Operation Budget Override question that had gone to district voters was declared defeated by 249 votes: 3,368 “No” to 3,617 “Yes.”
   Percentage breakdowns were 51.8 percent “No votes” versus 48.2 percent “Yes” votes.
The voter turnout of 6,985 was the highest ever seen in an off-year school election and represented a 22 percent voter turnout of 32,193 registered voters.
   The big deciding factor in the voting result according to school district officials, was the large percentage of “No” votes among the mail in early ballots. The number of voters using the early balloting process jumped to 4,454, with nearly 60 percent of those ballots being “No” votes.
   Wins at nearly every polling place serving walk-in voters could not overcome that deficit of approval expressed by early voters.
   “While we are disappointed in the election results,” said Dr. Chad Wilson AJUSD superintendent, “we will move forward to meet the significant financial challenges created by the reductions in state funding, our declining student population, and the final phase out of the override.  
   “We will also continue our efforts to reach our goal of being Arizona’s First Choice, Every Student with Diploma in Hand and Prepared to Contribute to the World.”
   Several parents spoke during the AJUSD Governing Board meeting of November 10 Call to the Public expressing disappointment that the override was not approved, and they urged the governing board to seriously consider putting the override question on the ballot for voters again in November 2010.
   That, according to Wilson, will be a board decision.

Time To “Back The ‘Pack”
Apache Trail wins 44-42 thriller to advance to AzCAA State Championship game this Saturday
By Chuck Baker
The News
If you have yet to jump aboard the Apache Trail Wolfpack bandwagon, perhaps now is the time. In just their second season of eight man tackle football, the Apache Trail has advanced to the Arizona Charter Athletic Association’s “Class B” State Championship game thanks to last Friday’s thrilling 44-42 victory over Mohave Accelerated Learning Center (MALC) played at Phoenix Christian High School.
   The game wasn’t decided until the final play when a 22-yard field goal attempt by the Patriots was kicked low and into the rushing Wolfpack defenders. Apache Trail escaped with a two point victory and will now seek to avenge their only loss of the season when they battle Mesa Heritage Academy on Saturday, November 21 at 7:00 p.m. back at Phoenix Christian HS.
   Apache Trail had taken a 44-42 lead with just 1:16 remaining in the fourth quarter when quarterback Brian Mayfield tossed a short screen pass to slot-back Joe Rodriguez, who took the pass 24 yards for a touchdown to tie the game 42-42. Mayfield then rolled right on the two-point conversion try, broke one tackle in the backfield and raced to the near corner of the end zone to put the ‘Pack up by two.
   MALC returned the ensuing kickoff 42 yards to the Apache Trail 35-yard line and moved the ball to the seven, facing a first-andgoal with eighteen seconds left.

See B-1 and see Pack, B-6