Thumbs up, thumbs down
Thumbs up to current and former Valley folks doing incredible work around the Las Vegas crisis. Among them are former Fresnan Keith Moyer for his work as editor in chief at the Las Vegas Review-Journal covering the Las Vegas shootings. The staff’s work was so intense, the Washington Post wrote about it. Moyer was executive editor and publisher for The Bee.
The world is hanging on their reporting to get the fine details and we hope to one day discover how to prevent this in the future and finally know why this happened. Former Fresnans also are working on his news staff.
In addition, The Bee’s Lewis Griswold filed a gripping report about two South Valley couples – three law officers and a nurse – each would volunteer their time and special expertise to help shooting victims as first responders. They risked their lives while saving others from a traumatic massacre. They were Ronnie and Maria Reyes of Hanford, Steve and Celeste Sanchez of Visalia.
Thumbs down to the loss of Camp Newman, in the Santa Rosa wildfires. It was one of the state’s most popular Jewish summer camps for 70 years and hundreds of young people nationwide camped there every year.
Temple Beth Israel in Fresno sent dozens of children to the camp every year. Leo Price, who camped their for three years, calls the loss “devastating” because it was like a second home for him. Rabbi Rick Winer says that the community will carry on its long tradition of resilience. "We've built this camp from the ground up and we will build it again,” he told Oscar Maciel of CBS-47.
Thumbs up to Meathead Movers for making a haul of relief supplies to victims of the wildfires in Santa Rosa. They also were featured in The Bee this week in a story by Carmen George that told how they have provided free moving services for more than 100 people in Fresno since 2015 when the company partnered with the Marjaree Mason Center, which provides support and shelter for victims of domestic abuse.
Thumbs up to Kim Ruiz Beck, chairperson of Ruiz Foods, who was honored Friday as the University’s 2017 Distinguished Alumna along with several other notable University alumni and friends at the Top Dog Alumni Awards Gala Friday t the Save Mart Center at Fresno State. William Lyles, president and CEO of Lyles Diversified Inc., received the Arthur Safstrom Service Award.
Hosted by the Fresno State Alumni Association, the annual event honors 14 alumni and friends – including 12 Outstanding Alumni Awards – for their outstanding service to the community and accomplishments in their fields. Video tributes to each of the honorees is online fresnostatealumni.com).
Thumbs up to Fresno Dutch Bros for raising $10,208 on Buck for Kids day. The Fresno locations gave $1 from each drink sold to help Boys & Girls Clubs of Fresno County. That’s a lotta lattes!
Thumbs up to Fresno artist Corky Normart for winning the Barbara Whyte Memorial award in the 38th International Juried Exhibition in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania last month. Over 400 watercolors from 32 states and seven foreign countries were submitted for the show with 100 being accepted for the annual Pennsylvania exhibition. The winning painting is titled “Dockside.”
Normarts’ painting “Valley Industrial” has also been accepted for the 48th National Exhibition of the California Watercolor Association to be held in San Rafael in January of 2018. The artists’ work is on display at Sense of Place Gallery in Fresno.
This story was originally published October 14, 2017 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Thumbs up, thumbs down."