The Bakersfield Californian
‘An absolute time machine’
British-born World War II veteran Ron Holdsworth handled Friday morning’s flight in an open-cockpit Stearman biplane like he was 22 again. Maybe that’s because the 104-year-old earned his wings more than 80 years ago when he flew dozens of combat...
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After 30 years, Adventist Health’s mobile immunization clinic still on the road
The children’s mobile immunization clinic, operated by Adventist Health and funded by First 5 Kern, has been around for decades — and on Wednesday morning, the medical team aboard was already busy with walk-in traffic in the parking lot of the Kern...
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A Small legacy
For decades many local families felt it necessary to take their seriously ill children out of Kern County to find the kind of pediatric care that wasn’t available at home. But on Tuesday, there was evidence of seismic change in that arena, said Ken...
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Hop on in for candy!
A stampede of egg-hunters turned out Saturday for North of the River Recreation & Park District’s annual Easter egg hunt. Little ones got occasional assistance from their parents as they fanned out across Emerald Cove Park searching for goodies. The...
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Stations of the Cross at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church
Parishioners gathered at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church on Good Friday for a traditional reflection on the Stations of the Cross. The stations symbolize the path Jesus walked from the Lions’ Gate to Mount Calvary. They help Christian faithful...
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Vandal hits Chavez mural already slated for removal downtown
The words “believe survivors” have been spraypainted in gold beneath the eyes of César Chávez, the now-disgraced labor leader, on a mural in downtown Bakersfield near the corner of 18th and L streets. Building co-owner JohnPaul Lake declined Thursday...
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Next big project at Kern County Museum could be a honky-tonk event center
The Kern County Museum board has OK’d a preliminary plan by Executive Director Mike McCoy to turn a building in Pioneer Village into a much-needed events venue. The Red Bank Jack Plant building, just north of the old jail and courthouse, is actually a...
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Porter pledges softer approach to oil, still leans toward green transition
During a visit to the heart of California’s oil patch, Democratic candidate for governor Katie Porter said Tuesday the state isn’t in a position to be decreasing its energy production, including from fossil fuels, but that it should still transition to...
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Vietnam War Army triage nurse shares war stories during downtown Bakersfield ceremony
By June 1968, Donna C. Rowe was a captain and a nurse at one of the largest and busiest military hospitals in Vietnam, 3rd Field Hospital, near Saigon. On Saturday, a lifetime later, the Georgia resident was in downtown Bakersfield fulfilling the role...
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Fun and fundraising
Build a boat out of cardboard and you’re bound to get wet. Race 12 boats built out of cardboard and it may be the funniest thing you’ve seen in a while. Garces Memorial High School hosted its fifth annual Engineering Day at the Salvucci Aquatic Center...
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‘So much variety’
It’s not always easy for high school students when they are expected to turn their attention toward a future career, not just an education. But Julian Bonner, 17, a junior at Golden Valley High School, says the process has become easier for him thanks...
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Feeding God’s creatures
First they fueled up early Wednesday morning at Dagny’s Coffee downtown. Then the Monsibais girls, Olivia, 8, and Sophia, 9, piled into their papa’s 1960 Ford pickup with Bocephus, a sweet golden doodle, as their furry companion. The mission: Hand out...
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Lack of quorum forces supervisors to hold off on occupancy agreement for Family Justice Center
The Kern County Board of Supervisors was unable to vote Tuesday morning on an occupancy agreement for the Family Justice Center after state conflict-of-interest laws reduced the voting board to only two members from the usual five, not enough for a...
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Race inspires purposeful moments for everyone
Every participant in Sunday’s ninth running of the Bakersfield Marathon — whether it was the full, the half, the 10K or the 6K — did so with purpose. Runners young and old competed. Kids filmed with their mom’s cellphone as she crossed the finish line...
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Adventist Health Bakersfield invites 4 new doctors to second year of its residency program
Dr. Sagar Mehta is originally from Pomona in Southern California, but his journey toward becoming a practicing physician has brought him to Bakersfield, and according to Mehta, he would like to stay for the long term. “I’ve been here for almost 3½...
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State to rename holiday as Chávez fallout continues
California lawmakers are moving quickly to rename César Chávez Day before the March 31 state holiday following publication of allegations the late United Farm Workers labor leader sexually abused minors and union co-founder Dolores Huerta. “This...
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Reports of abuse by César Chávez spur reactions
The legacy of labor leader César Chávez appeared to implode Wednesday following allegations he committed repeated sexual assaults against victims including United Farm Workers union co-founder Dolores Huerta, fathering two of her children. The New...
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Everyone wants to be Irish on St. Patrick’s Day
At age 7, Declan Dailey was the youngest patron at Sandrini’s Public House on Tuesday. But Tuesday was St. Patrick’s Day, and the boy was a dead ringer for a leprechaun in training with his toothy grin and a green T-shirt that read, “Happy go...
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‘We’re on fire for this’
Hall Ambulance emergency medical technicians Jonathan Martin and Joshua Ovalle were on a call at a patient’s home. The man described his symptoms as feeling weak and dizzy, needing to sit down. And there was more. The two EMTs began thinking...
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Soaring to Sacramento
The 2025-26 Bakersfield Christian High School boys basketball team will play Fresno’s San Joaquin Memorial in the CIF State Division 2 championship game at 4 p.m. today at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. But first, on Friday morning, Eagles players...
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Nonprof it of fers life-changing scuba training to veterans at CSUB
Cal State Bakersfield computer science major Daniel Harris admitted feeling a bit “apprehensive” Thursday morning. The 30-year-old U.S. Army veteran is no stranger to facing new challenges — in fact, he thrives on doing just that. But something about...
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Liberty High students learn from vets at annual Veterans Appreciation Day
There are many ways to help teens gain a true appreciation for the service and sacrifice made by American military veterans. One of the best ways is to simply put them in the same room together and let them talk. That’s what happened Wednesday at...
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Let’s hear it for music!
Band, choir and orchestra students are putting their skills to the test this week as the Bakersfield City School District hosts music festivals at Bakersfield College’s Simonsen Performing Arts Center. Tuesday and again today the district is...
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Serving others
Get out the mops and brooms, the brushes and paint and the kitchen utensils! That’s what hundreds of neighbors across Kern County did — along with plenty of other tools — on Saturday for the second annual Volunteer Big Kern, the county’s oneday...
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Trump’s Medicaid work mandate could kick thousands of homeless Californians of f coverage
On a brisk January morning, physician assistant Brett Feldman searched the streets of Los Angeles for patients, knocking on car windows and peering into tents. It was the day after a winter storm had doused the city, and many of the unhoused people...
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Could air taxis be the next big thing in Kern County?
Flying cars, better known these days as air taxis or advanced air mobility, have become Kern’s latest economic diversification target in recognition of the county’s edge in aerospace and defense, logistics and clean energy. An agreement announced this...
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Farm Day in the City
Busloads of young elementary school students and teachers from throughout the southern valley gathered Wednesday at the Kern County Fairgrounds for the annual Farm Day in the City, hosted by the Kern County Farm Bureau Foundation. The event provides...
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Bloom brings out tourists, and leads to a lot of trespassing
Cars were pulled over to the side of Snow Road Saturday as dozens of people — many of them wearing photo-ready outfits — wandered among the rows of almond trees in full bloom. Recent rains had spouted lush green grass in between the rows and enough...
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Lifetimes of achievement
An accomplished group of 20 local change-makers who have bolstered Bakersfield and beyond were honored Thursday night during a festive event at Coconut Joe's Private Beach Club. The inaugural members of Bakersfield Life magazine's 20 Over 60 built...
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Hart Park volunteers celebrate completion of murals on five historic standpipes
It all started when the Hart Park Working Group, a nonprofit organization made up entirely of volunteers, began a discussion last year about how to shine a light on the historic value of five standpipes that have stood in Hart Park for nearly 100...
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Celebrity priest Mike Schmitz draws thousands of faithful to Garces Memorial event
Central California Catholics came by the thousands Wednesday to Garces Memorial High School in Bakersfield to see one of the most sought-after Catholic speakers in the United States. The Rev. Mike Schmitz, host of the No. 1 religion podcast “The Bible...
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Blessed are the creatures ... GREAT ... and small
There were pets of all shapes and sizes at Garces Memorial High School's pet blessing Tuesday at the the northeast Bakersfield campus. The animals were amazingly well-behaved — and so were the students. “I think it's just such a good tradition that...
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Beauty on Bena
Recent storms produced a vision of late-winter beauty on Friday along Bena Road east of Edison. Snow on local mountains served as an almost surreal backdrop as a freight train traveled west on the Union Pacific Railroad past emerald-green...
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He is the Egg Man at 24th Street Cafe, and hehas no plans for stoppin'
Each morning, Sebero “George” Perez shows up to work early and ordered from top to bottom. He parks two to three blocks away from 24th Street Cafe, where he has worked since 1987, and walks to the cafe to allow parking spaces to remain open for...
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Former Buddhist church in downtown Bakersfield slated for demolition, but a part may live on
The old Buddhist Church in downtown Bakersfield began serving Kern County’s Japanese community after it was built in 1911. The temple, which is now showing its age at 2207 N St., just north of 22nd Street, was for decades a place for religious...
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Parishioners receive ashes at St. Philip the Apostle
St. Philip the Apostle Church in west Bakersfield marked the start of Lent by blessing parishioners during an Ash Wednesday church service emphasizing the start of a period of self-denial, repentance and reflection. A standing room only congregation...
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MLK protege led movement for civil rights for decdes
CHICAGO — The Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, a protege of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and two-time presidential candidate who led the Civil Rights Movement for decades after the revered leader's assassination, died Tuesday. He was 84. As a young organizer...
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Bakersfield Christian High launches fundraising ef fort for new aquatics center and more
Bakersfield Christian High School has launched a fundraising effort to build a new aquatics center and an adjacent wrestling & athletic flex facility at its southwest Bakersfield campus, a project BCHS leadership characterizes as a “transformational...
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Cupid Project
They didn’t need to be an artist to participate. They only needed a heart. For the first two weeks of February, local children and adults, artists and aspiring artists created more than 1,300 Valentine’s Day cards bound for seniors in assisted living...
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Not ‘just a resource ... it’s a lifeline’
“Links for Life isn't just a resource; it's a lifeline.” Those words came from Natalie Dutcher, who deemed herself not only a survivor of breast cancer but a thriver during a speech Thursday at the Links for Life Luncheon at Seven Oaks Country...
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Newsom takes aim at veterans ‘claim sharks’ as he signs law banning fees for help with VA
A booming industry that charges veterans for help in obtaining the benefits they earned through military service must shut down or dramatically change its business model in California by the end of the year under a new law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed on...
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‘The deficit stars have aligned’
Kern County is looking at a $14 million budget deficit in the coming fiscal year as local costs continue to outpace revenue amid massive policy and funding changes at the state and federal levels. “Federal and state policy actions — predominantly...
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Rural innovation
If Kern County grower Kevin Andrew were farming nuts or even row crops, he might have been more enthusiastic about the official top 10 products at this week's World Ag Expo in Tulare. It's quite a list, with the latest in durable, flexible ag...
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Weather, market conditions cloudy as almond bloom begins
Almond trees' distinctive pink buds are beginning to blossom around Kern County amid uncertain conditions for one of the Central Valley's most important crops. Local orchards will fill with snowy white blooms during the next two weeks, attracting...
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Local support gives Kern edge in state Virtual Enterprise competition
More than 1,000 students descended on the Dignity Health Convention Center Thursday for the Virtual Enterprise California State Conference and Exhibition, Trade Show and Business Plan Competitions, all with the goal of heading to New York City in April...
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Centennial High singers excited about upcoming Carnegie Hall performance
Carnegie Hall, since its doors opened in New York City in 1891, has been a place where musicians and singers have dreamed about performing. That dream will soon become a reality for a select group of singers from Centennial High School. The 50-member...
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United in faith
It's called a prayer breakfast for a reason. Prayers, Bible readings, an invocation, a closing prayer, musical hymns and many prayers shared in between were all part of the stated purpose of the 46th annual Bakersfield Prayer Breakfast early Tuesday...
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BC designated a California Black-serving institution
Bakersfield College announced at a campus event Monday morning that it has been recognized as a California designated Black-serving institution, a development that BC officials said represents an important milestone highlighting the college's...
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Residential clean energy, workforce training initiative launches in east Bakersfield
A clean energy project that kicked off Thursday in east Bakersfield is expected to switch up to 20 homes across Kern County to all-electric appliances while training workers on how to perform such conversions. The lunchtime event just off Mt. Vernon...
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Peters calls Kern `open for business' in State of the County address
Not only are industries in Kern County on the up-and-up, they're poised to lead a transformation of California and the nation. At least that was the picture painted of the county's prospects in Wednesday's State of the County address, during which...
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43-vehicle pileup halts traffic between Bakersfield, Tehachapi
A total of 43 vehicles of various kinds were involved in a massive pileup blocking all lanes of eastbound Highway 58 between Bakersfield and Tehachapi Tuesday morning, and dense fog may have been a contributing factor. California Highway Patrol...
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Despite local ef forts, unpermitted swap meet on Casa Loma persists
City and county officials are trying to find a way to shut down an illegal swap meet at the intersection of Casa Loma Drive and Cottonwood Road, but despite repeated efforts, the informal market seems larger than ever. The impromptu market is centered...
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‘Daring rescue’
He's in a fast-moving, adrenaline-inducing job, which places him in and around emergency incidents nearly every day. Often, several times a day. The dash of his pickup looks like a command center, and when Jacob Davidson, 33, heads toward the scene of...
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Sumner Station’s supporters look toward deadline for progress
There's no doubt that the 137-year-old Sumner Station, an empty train depot on Baker Street in Old Town Kern, is a key piece of Kern County history. It tells a story of how the east Bakersfield neighborhood came to be. If the old depot is saved from...
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A tiny kitchen on wheels
Sparking kids' interest in healthy eating, in learning about food, how to prepare it, and becoming food literate may be getting easier. Take the Charlie Cart, for example, a fully-stocked mobile kitchen on wheels that made its debut Wednesday morning...
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California’s US senators call for greater accountability at Cal City ICE facility
Both of California’s U.S. senators visited the immigration detention facility in California City Tuesday, calling for better oversight to ensure detainees are being provided adequate care. Following a tour of the California City Correctional Facility...
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30th annual MLK breakfast remembers civil rights icon
Hundreds of people honored the history and legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. at the annual community awards breakfast held Monday morning in honor of the late civil rights icon. The event, held at the MLK Center on South Owens Street in east...
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Helpful handouts
Students at Wasco Union High School who might otherwise go without adequate clothing, shoes, food and other basic necessities are in luck after last weekend's opening of an on-campus center offering a variety of supplies on a confidential, no-charge...
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CSUB kicks of f construction of new energy innovation center
Local dignitaries celebrated the start of construction Thursday on a three-story building touted as holding the key to not only Kern County's economic prospects but the very future of energy in California. As many as 200 people came together near the...
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Groundbreaking today will bring big changes to St. Vincent de Paul
It's been seven decades since the name St. Vincent de Paul began to be associated in east Bakersfield with providing assistance to the most vulnerable among us. It started as a thrift store and expanded its services over the years to providing meals...
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Air district agrees to public hearing regarding proposed refinery changes
Regional air quality regulators have agreed to host a public hearing Monday on plans to upgrade a refinery southeast of Bakersfield after environmental justice groups argued not enough was being done to gather their input. The San Joaquin Valley Air...
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Korean War veteran, working man, husband and father, Arthur Gentry dies at 95
He was only 17 when he joined the U.S. Marines in 1948 and barely 20 when he survived the frigid, belowzero cold and the brutal bombs and bullets of the battle of Chosin Reservoir in North Korea. He survived a bout with malaria, and the stress of...
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Sage confirms plan to turn former Greyhound site into high-end apartments
The former Greyhound property in downtown Bakersfield will be redeveloped as high-end rental housing under a partnership between a local developer and the family that owns the property, one of the parties confirmed Monday. Sage Equities, developer of...
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Taking the plunge
Brave the cold, drink hot chocolate as a reward. Both young and old slid or jumped into the chilly waters of McMurtrey Aquatic Center in downtown Bakersfield on New Year's Day. It was the annual Polar Bear Plunge.
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Fog to break as New Year’s rain moves through valley
Kern County's heavy fog will break, at least for now, as a series of light rain storms are expected to move through the area over the next week. A dense fog advisory from the National Weather Service lifted at noon Tuesday and skies briefly cleared...
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Locals connect with African heritage at Kwanzaa celebration
What's normally a basketball court was set up like a museum gallery Monday for Bakersfield's annual Kwanzaa celebration at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center. About a dozen tables were covered with masks, stools, statues and all other...
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Immigration raids, Trump topped 2025’s news pages
The year 2025 was one for the history books as news came at Kern County from within and without, including stories carrying federal and statewide significance. Here's a summary of the year's biggest developments: IMMIGRATION Kern County became a...
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Candlelight Christmas Eve service at First Presbyterian
Congregants filled the pews on Wednesday for a 5 p.m. candlelight service at First Presbyterian Church in downtown Bakersfield. The traditional Christmas Eve celebration began with a lighting of the candles and a warm greeting to all in...
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Winds raise dust, knock out power leading up to expected rainshowers
Heavy winds kicked up dust and leaves across Kern County Tuesday afternoon and knocked out power for several hundred Bakersfield residents. The winds were just part of a weather system moving through that's supposed to drop up to two inches of rain...
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State DOJ: ‘We are reviewing our options’ in Zack Scrivner case
The state Attorney General's Office said it's reviewing its options following the granting of a mental health diversion in the case of former Kern County Supervisor Zack Scrivner. Scrivner, accused of sexually assaulting one of his children, was...
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Chrismas comes early
Christmas came early Friday at Boys & Girls Clubs of Kern County Armstrong Youth Center as more than 200 local children came to pick out a gift, enjoy a snack and meet with Santa Claus. Volunteers from a variety organizations were on hand to help with...
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Mendiburu Magic Foundation honors local ‘Magic Makers’
The Mendiburu Magic Foundation conferred its highest honors of the year Wednesday during an annual award ceremony recognizing the efforts of people who it said continue to shine through selfless giving and community support. “These individuals are...
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