Serving the community since 1970
Serving the community since 1970
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The Shafter High Lady Generals basketball team completed an undefeated SSL season on Thursday night, crushing their rival Wasco High by a score of 78-15, making the Lady Generals back-to-back SSL Champions. Led by Coach Shawn Pennell, Shafter used a smothering defense to force several turnovers, resulting in numerous points in the transition. Shafter had the lead 50-7 at the end of the first half, The second half was played with a running clock, preventing the score from...
David Espinoza, an 11-year-old Maple School student, recently represented Shafter at the All American Bowl in Florida. Espinoza was only one of two players in the state selected to participate in the game. Espinoza, who now plays on a travel team that competes all over the state, played for two years with the Shafter Commanders of the Golden Empire Youth Football League. Espinoza represented Shafter, Kern County and California. In June, Espinoza traveled to the Army/Navy...
Anyone wanting to know what is going on at Shafter High School only needs to tune in daily for an update, presented by the students at SHS, over their HQTV broadcast, which is available on their YouTube channel. The broadcast journalism class, taught by Jerald Pierucci is getting ready to upgrade so the class will be able to broadcast across even more mediums, allowing them to cover volleyball and , basketball games live for the entire community. When Pierucci started at...
With the absence of Chief Kevin Zimmermann, who has been on an extended leave, the Shafter Police Department is working as "business as usual," according to Acting Chief Randy Milligan. The department has refused to give details about the leave, citing it as a "personnel matter." The only reason given for the leave that has lasted nearly six weeks is that it is related to a workers compensation claim. City Manager Gabriel Gonzalez said that Zimmermann would not elaborate any...
The Shafter/Wasco Landfill took one more step to being a completely self-maintaining facility when it announced the completion of a system that will bag compost for local residents. The landfill has made compost available for Kern County residents for a little over a year, allowing them to pick it up for their gardens, compost piles and many other uses. "More and more people are getting involved in operating their own compost piles, letting them fertilize their own gardens,"...
In the absence of any votable items on their Tuesday night agenda, the Shafter City Council presented proclamations to outstanding individuals, both two and four-legged, for their representation of the city. Mayor Chad Givens presented an award to David Espinoza, an 11-year-old student at Maple School, who recently represented Shafter in the All American Bowl in Florida. Espinoza is a 4.9 GPA student who plans on making football his career, looking to be the future...
The BVarsity All Area football teams were announced, and the Shafter Generals were well represented in the group, giving the Generals the largest amount of players honored in the school's history. On the offensive side, the Generals' sophomore quarterback Ezekiel Osborn was named to the First Team All Area. Osborn had 2,677 yards passing on the season, with 35 touchdowns. Osborn also won the Most Valuable Player award for the entire South Sequoia League as well. Osborn led...
Minter Field will be holding a celebration to commemorate the dedication of the base in February 1942. Minter Field Shafter was officially dedicated Minter Field Army Air Corps Base in honor of Hugh Minter on Feb. 7, 1942. They will be celebrating the 82nd anniversary of the dedication on Saturday, Feb. 10, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the museum, 401 Vultee St., at the Shafter Airport. At the event, aviation historian Barbara Schultz will be signing her "Pioneering Aviation in...
A new Shafter Distinguished Young Woman will be selected in March, with 16 participants this vying to represent the city of Shafter in the State DYW competition. This year's participants include Marisol Bazan Gutierrez, the daughter of Jesus Eloisa Amador; Jayna Pierucci, daughter of Jerald and Jodie Pierucci; Noemi Prado, daughter of Everado and Elma Rodriguez; Camryn Eubanks, daughter of Nick and Roya Eubanks; Amelie Rosales, daughter of David and Patti Rosales; Emily...
Starrh Farms has been a mainstay in the Shafter community for over 40 years, with the company changing with the times, but still keeping that same small town commitment to the residents of Shafter and the agricultural community. Jay Kroeker, the operations director for the company, said that the organization loves the community of Shafter and will keep serving them, as well as being caretakers of the land that has been given to them. Kroeker, who joined the company in the earl...
The Colours Festival will be making a return to Shafter in February, giving the community a taste of the amount of talent here. The event will run Thursday to Sunday, Feb. 22-25, with over a dozen cultural events.. The event will kick off with the traditional Spaghetti Dinner on Thursday, Feb. 22, at the Shafter Veterans Hall. It will be a drive-thru only event, running from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Also on Thursday, the Coffee House Strings event will feature local talent at the...
The Wasco High Tigers nearly swept the Shafter Generals on the mat on Thursday night, winning the boys varsity match 68-2 and edging out the Lady Generals in the girls varsity match, 48-32. The Tigers' boys squad continued their domination of the SSL and being one of the top teams in the county in their division. The Tigers, who qualified 12 wrestlers for the Central Section Masters tourney last year, are well on their way to at least equaling that feat. They are strong at...
An article last week in The Press included pictures of a few residents’ gravesites being defaced in the name of religion. It happened out at the Shafter Cemetery. I love that cemetery and have family buried out there, so I would never try to say anything against the cemetery or the wonderful staff that works out there. I do want to make clear that what happened recently shouldn’t be ignored or swept under the rug, which, with indications that this was not the first time this h...
The Shafter Kiwanis Club recognized a special group of students on Wednesday as they held their monthly Terrific Kids Luncheon. A different character trait is featured each month, with students exhibiting those traits honored for their achievements. Students are nominated by teachers and staff of each school in the Richland School District as well as Maple School and GROW Academy of Shafter. This month, the focus trait was Inclusive. Among those students honored were Martiza S...
Cricket Wireless helps to keep Shafter, Wasco and other Valley communities talking. Manager Tania Cebellos says that they love Shafter and are excited to be a part of the community. "I love this store, and the people of Shafter are just so nice," she said. "It is great to be a part of a small town. Everyone is so friendly." The store carries phones, cases, protectors, speakers and more. A big advantage, according to Cebellos, is the fact that there are no contracts with...
Shafter High Athletic Hall of Fame member Claude Gilbert passed away on January 13, 2024, after a battle with lung cancer. Gilbert was an icon at Shafter High School, as well as just about every school he was associated with. In addition to the SHS Hall of Fame, Gilbert was a member of the San Diego State Athletic Hall of Fame, as well as that of San Jose State. Gilbert coached the Shafter Generals football team to a championship in 1962. Gilbert's passing affected those from...
Shafter High lost another former coach recently with the passing of Mervin Huston at 89. "Boomer" Huston was the head football coach for several of the dominant teams that the Generals had during the '70s. Huston coached one of the most decorated athletes in the school's history when he helmed the squad that included David "Deacon" Turner, leading the Generals to the top of the SSL. Huston began his career at South High, after serving for the U.S. Navy in the Korean War....
A 41-year-old Shafter man was jailed Friday in the stabbing of another man that evening. Shafter police were called to the 100 block of South Shafter Avenue, and found a victim with stab wounds to the abdomen and arm. The man was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Shortly thereafter, they found a man nearby, later identified as Julian Bazan, and he was arrested and charged with attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon and battery with serious bodily injury. A...
The Shafter High girls wrestling team made history last year when they had their first wrestler qualify for the State wrestling tournament. Only a freshman, Julissa Gonzalez went to the State tourney and came away with a seventh-place medal. This year, the squad is working to improve on that history, as they have several wrestlers that are able to make it to the Central Section Masters tournament and possibly at least two wrestlers to According to Head Coach Eli Espericueta, t...
The Shafter High Generals boys basketball team got its first SSL win of the season by beating Kennedy High School, 56-47. The Shafter Generals's recent rough patch got a bit rougher last Monday after their fourth straight loss. They fell 74-64 to McFarland. Having run the score up that high, both teams might be doing some extra defensive drills very soon. Shafter's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Shaun Maldonado, who scored 23 points, and Aidan Cardenas, who...
The Shafter City Council has chosen a designer for the new Shafter Police Department substation at Gossamer Grove. The council agreed Tuesday night that the facility will be a modular building approximately 8,600 square feet. Teter Inc. is to complete the design phase for about $327,000. The council set a budget maximum of $350,000. In 2022, the city was awarded a $6 million grant for the entire project. The design and architecture phase of the project should take three to...
The Shafter Community Chest, with other local organizations, will be holding a special event on Sunday, Jan. 21, at the Tin Cup in Shafter to raise money for Italy Gonzalez, a Shafter girl who is battling leukemia. The event will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Tin Cup parking lot. Italy, 12, had been winning the fight against this disease after two years, only to have it resurface. The daughter of Noe Gonzalez has undergone numerous tests, operations and procedures,...
At least 50 graves at Shafter Cemetery were marred with eggs and what appeared to be raw animal meat last week – and it wasn't the first time, according to a police spokesman who called it an "alternative" religious practice.. On Friday morning, police were dispatched to the cemetery on Santa Fe Way regarding a case of possible vandalism. A Shafter resident – who did not want to be identified for fear of retribution from the person or group that did the damage – said that she...
The Shafter Planning Commission approved a request by APC Towers to install an 80-foot telecommunications tower that would be located at 3751 Santa Fe Way, allowing more telecommunication service in the area. Jeremy Siegel of APC Towers was in the Tuesday night meeting, and said that the tower would be a "monopine tower" that would give the community a lot more coverage in the area. Th at type of tower has several TMobile antennas, with the antennas and structure made to look...
If you drove by Stringham Park on Monday, you might have seen the city taking down a few trees on the site, but not to worry – they will be replaced. Public Works Director Michael James said that the move is part of the Stringham Park Improvement Project. "The project does require the removal of a few trees at certain areas of the park, but there will still be the same amount of trees at the park when the project is completed," James said. Stringham Park will be the new h...
