Snow Forecast For AJ Holiday Fest
December 4th all-day festivities include playin’ in the snow and 7 p.m. Light Parade

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski
The News
The Apache Junction Holiday Program and Light Parade will see a rebirth of sorts this year when the event moves to an all-day affair lasting from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, December 4.
  Liz Langenbach, the City of Apache Junction recreation superintendent, told the City Council on Tuesday, November 15, that she felt very fortunate to work with the Apache Junction Main Street Program in merging the two events. “This is our first year combining the events with a central downtown focus,” Langenbach
said.  The council’s work plan calls for bringing more folks to the downtown/Focal Point area. Langenbach explained this is a “wonderful opportunity to do so.”
  The event begins at 9 a.m. when Main Street’s Winter Walk-a-Thon that runs through noon. Local nonprofit groups are encouraged to get their members and supporters together to walk the Old West Highway loop. Cash prizes will be given to the group with the most laps, courtesy of the Main Street Program. The deadline to enter is Monday, November 29.
  There will be a break from noon to 3 p.m., and during that time snow will be brought to Old West Highway in front of Fry’s grocery store. “Let It Snow!” is a free event that features 20 tons of snow, a petting zoo, Santa, games, a bounce house and rock wall for kids. There will also be a car show and vendor booths.
  Roger Hacker of the City of Apache Junction said in an interview with the Apache Junction/Gold Canyon News that Mayor John Insalaco will throw the switch at 6:30 p.m. for the lighting of the Focal Point Christmas tree. Afterward, the Community Development Corporation will host a thank you reception for all the donors who made contributions to the enhancements at the Focal Point.

See A-1

CAC Breaks Ground For New Facility
Centerpiece for college will be classrooms, library
By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski
The News
More than 100 officials from the City of Apache Junction, Central Arizona College, the Apache Junction Unified School District and others gathered Tuesday, November 16, for the groundbreaking ceremony celebrating the expansion project at CAC’s Superstition Mountain campus.
  “This is quite an historical moment for Central Arizona College and the City of Apache Junction,” said CAC President/CEO Dennis Jenkins.
  He said the college began as two trailers operating out of Apache Junction High School in 1985. It subsequently moved to the Grand Center and to its current location.
  Now, the centerpiece of the expansion project will be a 45,000-square-foot facility consisting of 16 instructional spaces and two large multipurpose classrooms available for community use. It will also contain a new library, computer commons and a food service facility featuring a grill and cafe.
  Jenkins said the 45,000 square-foot facility will allow the college to double the size of its space.
 In November 2008, the voters of Pinal County approved a nearly $99 million bond to allow CAC to expand educational space and accessibility to higher education throughout Pinal County.
  The expansion included building two new campuses in the city of Maricopa and in the San Tan Valley area, and renovating and adding educational space at the Superstition Mountain, Aravaipa and Signal Peak campuses, and the Casa Grande Center.

See A-1 and See College, A-10

AJHS Cheer Strikes Gold
Qualify for NCA Nationals in Anaheim, CA

The AJHS varsity cheer squad just qualified for the National Cheer Association “Nationals.” So, what are they going to do next? They’re going to Disneyland. That’s where the NCA Nationals will be held March 25-27, 2011 in Anaheim, California. The cheer squad earned the right to advance to nationals based on their performance at a recent NCA Cheer Camp, where they also earned a Spirit Stick Award and an award for “Safety in Spotting.” In addition to the team awards and the honor of qualifying for nationals, varsity cheer members Nicole Schmidt, Brittany Weese, Shelby Williams, Nicole Copley, Loren Lovejoy and Amanda Pederson were all selected to the NCA All-American Team, and Schmidt also picked the camp’s Leadership Award. The AJHS varsity cheer squad also competed in the USA Regionals on November 6 at Deer Valley High School in Phoenix where they placed second. Other members of the cheer squad are Amanda Bruce, Jordan Castro, Claire Durbin, Niki Fogge, Desiree Garcia, Brooke Gloor, Jaime Hatten, Monica Lawson, Melanie Minich, Lacey Munyon, Stephanie Petroff and Jessie Schroeder, and the team is coached by Natalie Celis. Congratulations girls, and good luck at the NCA Nationals in Anaheim. (photo courtesy of Stacie Reichwald)

See B-1 and see State, B-6