Spring 2014
Students at Cy Woods High School rev up a gym packed with an audience of high schoolers. Multiple performers take to the stage, including the talented vocalist, Holly Tucker, from the hit show, The Voice. It would be easy to think it is just teens groovin’ to the tunes. This is a benefit event, hosted by an abolitionist group with a mission to inform, fundraise, and contribute to combating human trafficking. Ironically, these kids could be exploited by the trafficking trade in another set of circumstances. Continue reading “Students Fighting for Freedom”
January 2014
On a recent trip to New England, our gang’s urgent first stop was at an oyster bar. Briny, tangy, creamy, large or small—the many varieties of mollusks have characteristics as unique as their origination. Yet they all reflect the fresh taste of the sea. If you’ve tried an oyster before and didn’t fall in love, you simply haven’t met your perfect match.
In 1938, Arizona Snowbowl took form. Although it was in the middle of the Great Depression, a helping hand from the Civilian Conservation Corps helped establish what has become the longest continually running ski area in the country. Seventy-five years later, we take a look back at Flagstaff came to embrace alpine skiing and sustain it through the decades.
“Tuna drives a sushi bar. Without it, you’ve got nothing,” said Steve Scully, owner of Karma Sushi Bar Grill. He would know. Scully logged 15 years in the food business before opening Karma seven years ago. While Scully was schooled in finer European cuisine, he is a Jersey guy. He also headed north to work in restaurants in Cape Cod, which he explained means he knows good flavors and good seafood. And when Scully aimed to position his sushi spot, he worked with Tokyo chefs. He said, “Their training has more guts to it.” 
When Beverly was rescued from a local Houston shelter, she was a brown, matted mess. Poodle Rescue of Houston (PRH) cleaned her up, and two hours later, she looked like a fluffy, cream dream. The non-profit haven assisted 800 distressed and homeless poodles last year alone. “Once we rescue dogs, we rehabilitate them and offer them for adoption to carefully screened families and individuals,” says PRH Executive Director Guinette Peebles. 
Location, location, location. Is it a hackneyed phrase or premium advice for a business? If Cuveé 928 Wine Bar is the example, its strategic setting on Heritage Square has garnered some serious foot traffic, but it’s their business strategy that has garnered them ongoing success. Seven years ago, owners Jennifer Shafer and Taryn Beveridge enjoyed socializing in town, “but there was nowhere to go for wine that was kept at a proper temperature and also offered a menu of light food,” Shafer said. “Surely there were more people like us—we saw a niche opportunity.” 
104th Edition, 24 October 2013
When good people work together, great things can happen. This is the overriding mantra of Twin Arrows Navajo Casino Resort on I-40, about 20 miles east of Flagstaff. In the 1950’s, the exit—with its iconic two arrows piercing the ground—served as a popular rest stop. Now, like a turnaround story, the casino and hotel complex sits on the opposite side of the interstate, with its logo arrow duo pointing skyward.