Serving the community since 1922
Serving the community since 1922
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The Truth Church in Shafter celebrated Mother's Day on Friday with a blood drive and pop-up event. Pastor Frank Cabrera said they had planned to hold a blood drive and decided to add the pop-up event to honor the mothers in the community. Simon Cabrera, of Houchins Blood Bank, said that the drive was one of the busiest they have had this season, with a steady flow of donors. "When [the pandemic] first started last year, it was a very difficult time, but we eventually got comfortable with the...
The owner of Rocy's Mexican Food has opened a new venture in the city called El Duran's Taco Shop. Antonio Duran and his family have been in business in Shafter for a few years. Duran said that he loved the location of Highway 43 right after Apple Market, thinking that it would be a perfect spot for a business. Duran made this dream a reality as he opened the doors to El Duran's Taco Shop this past Thursday. Duran said the new restaurant offers everything that Rocy's offers, specializing in taco...
The Shafter Young Adult Theater group will be presenting their production of the old classic, "The Wizard of Oz" this weekend, Friday, May 7 and May 8. Show times are 7 p.m. for Friday and Saturday, with a 2 p.m. matinee on Saturday as well. Directed by Chad Givens, the group has been rehearsing for a couple of months. Starring in the lead role of Dorothy is Lauren Givens. Givens has been acting for a couple of years now, with her previous performances as Ariel in the Little Mermaid and in...
The fate of the Shafter Branch Library is in limbo as the current agreement ends in June. Over the weekend, the library held an event to make the community aware of its uncertain fate. The city entered into an agreement with the Kern County Library to open the Shafter Branch for two days a week until the end of June. After this agreement has ended, another plan will have to be in place to keep the library open. The library was not opened back up by the Kern County Libraries during the pandemic...
Residents will be able to shop at the bazaar for mom and donate blood at an event held by the Truth Church. On Friday, May 7 from 2 to 7 p.m., the church is hosting a Mother's Day shopping event along with a blood drive held by the Houchin Blood Bank. For those wanting to donate blood, you must be at least 16 years old, have a valid picture ID, and be in good health. In addition to the blood drive, Pastor Frank Cabrera said that they are holding a bazaar that celebrates the mothers in the...
The City Council presented the key to the city to Nicole Morris, the new Distinguished Young Woman, at its recent meeting. The council also honored First Alternate Natalie Olvera, Second Alternate Jamilynn Eighmy and winner of the Physical Fitness Award Malia Maldonado. Morris will represent the city at the state competition in Bakersfield in July. Terry Knight, of the Kern County Vector Control, also gave the council information on the upcoming mosquito season. Knight advised the council of...
The Shafter High Generals football team ended their abbreviated season with one of the only three undefeated records in the county, going 5-0. Their final game was on Friday night, winning against one of the other four undefeated teams, the Golden Valley Bulldogs, 41-14. The Bulldogs tested the Generals' defense, with an early score that pulled the Bulldogs within 7-6 early in the game. Shafter came out and scored on their first drive of the game, which they had done in three of their four...
One of two inmates who escaped from the Lerdo Justice Facility was captured by the Shafter Police Department on Wednesday morning. At approximately 1:30 a.m. David Reagan Palms, 22, and Tyrone Deangelo Johnson, 24, escaped from the facility. One Shafter resident caught Palms on their security cameras. With footage obtained by the Shafter Press, Palms walked right outside of the resident's house close to 6 a.m. At around 6:30 a.m. Palms was located by the Shafter Police Department and was...
Hundreds of people turned out to the Tin Cup last Saturday to buy everything from baked bread, makeup, soaps, plants and clothing. The Coffee and Creations event was packed with vendor booths offering something for everyone in the family. Every $10 a person spent earned them a raffle ticket. Pop-up events have become popular in the area, propelled by the pandemic, vendor Adrianna Pompa said. "It really might be because of the pandemic that we have seen success," said Pompa, who makes homemade...
Fresno-based Scelzi Enterprises is coming to the Wonderful Industrial Park later this summer. Scelzi recently purchased the 36,366-square-foot building previously occupied by Weatherford, Inc. The business manufactures truck bodies built of mainly steel, with some aluminum and wood. The family-owned business has a large local customer base, which makes the move to Shafter a logical one, said Bill Vander Plaats, marketing manager for Scelzi. "We do a lot of business with the Bakersfield truck...
After almost a year of virtual classes, in-person classes returned to the city when Zumba was held at the Shafter Aquatic Center, offering participants a chance to dance to the music under the instruction of Brandi Root. Sponsored by Shafter Healthy Start, Kern Family Health Care, and the Shafter Recreation and Parks Department, three classes were held last week outdoors, adhering to the covid-19 safety guidelines, including social distancing and face coverings. Over 30 participants worked out...
Jensen Boyt, a Shafter High senior, will be attending the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It has been over a little over 20 years since a Shafter High School student had been nominated to one of the nation's military academies. The last student was Eli Espericueta, who graduated from West Point in 2000. Boyt was originally nominated by Congressman TJ Cox and went through the process of applying to local congressmen, interviews and applications. He received the call from Congressman David V...
The Shafter High Generals proved on Friday night that they are able to step up and win even when they are not at the top of their game. Against the Lions of Mira Monte, the Generals' offense started off slowly, misfiring more than their three previous games. Shafter found a way to step up their game and win with a score of 43-6. Led by quarterback Tyson Dozier, the Generals opened the scoring with a keeper by Dozier of 10 yards. This was after a 65-yard run was called back on a holding call....
One of the area's largest shopping events will pop up on E. Lerdo Highway Saturday. The Tin Cup, at 1101 E. Lerdo Highway, is hosting a pop-up shopping day from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Over 40 vendors are expected to have booths there with a variety of products including homemade goods, jewelry, clothes, soaps and lotions. Included in the event will be some businesses previously featured in the Shafter Press such as Adrianna Pompa of Pompa's Small Shop, which sells homemade soaps, scrubs, bath salts...
Residents can learn about funding available to improve air quality during a virtual town hall meeting on April 30. The meeting will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. and will discuss funding for residents and businesses. With the passage of AB 617, a steering committee was formed in the city that created a plan of how to improve the air quality in Shafter. The result has been a variety of programs that will benefit the community as well as helping reduce emissions. The meeting will inform the public about the programs and future funding opportunities...
The city's 2005 Junior Miss Julie Strauss is part of the first cryptocurrency company to go public on the stock market. Strauss, a 2006 graduate of Shafter High School, is a member of the CoinBase team in the San Francisco Bay area. Her team marked a milestone last Wednesday as their photos flashed on the Times Square Nasdaq Jumbotron. Strauss is the Global Head of Enterprise Risk and Controls of the company. CoinBase operates a cryptocurrency exchange platform and their stock was made...
The City Council, along with American Refuse's Lynnda Martin, recently presented a Recycling Award to Don Pepe's Bar and Grill. Martin said that the local business has been working with American Refuse in reducing their waste that ends up at the local landfill. "This restaurant has been proactive, beginning to reduce their waste and make the transition to producing a large majority of organic waste even before the start of the Assembly Bill that is making it mandatory for businesses to reduce...
Shafter Animal Control will be holding a low-cost spay and neuter clinic on Saturday, April 24 and Sunday, April 25 at 18849 Shafter Ave. The procedure will cost $25 for any residents in the 93263 area code in the city. This price includes a Rabies and Parvo vaccination. Proof of residency will be required to participate in the event. No food can be given to your animal the morning of the surgery. There will also be licensing available at check out, in addition to $20 microchips. Last year’s l...
Chase, a red and white Siberian husky, is still a puppy at 8 months old with big blue eyes. He may get bigger than he is since he is not full grown. Chase came to the Shafter Animal Shelter as a stray and has adjusted well. He has passed his SAFER dog evaluations and would be a great candidate for some training classes where he can learn basic commands and tricks. We would not recommend him around cats. The Siberian Husky is an intelligent dog that can get bored easily if not challenged or...
Three people were killed on Tuesday night as a result of a collision at the intersection of Fresno Avenue and Central Valley Highway. At approximately 5:30 p.m., the Shafter Police Department responded to a report of an accident at the intersection. There were two vehicles involved. Shafter Police Department's Lionel Lopez said a 2007 Chrysler Aspen was traveling west on Fresno Avenue approaching Central Valley Highway. Meanwhile, a 2009 BMW 328i was traveling south on Central Valley Highway...
Nicole Morris was named Shafter's Distinguished Young Woman for the Class of 2022 on Saturday night. The event was held at the Ford Theater and the event was Livestreamed for those who were unable to attend. Emceed by Debbie Porwell, last year's Distinguished Young Woman Shelbee Ramos handed her title to Morris at the end of the evening. The program has several different phases that are judged, including Physical Fitness, Self Expression, Scholastic, Interview, Talent and the Spirit Award,...
On Saturday night, Shelbee Ramos handed her title of Distinguished Young Woman of Shafter to Nicole Morris. This ended the year's reign of Ramos's service as Shafter's DYW. Usually, the DYW of Shafter is kept very busy with public appearances, city functions, and competing at the state competition. Ramos competed in the state competition, held in Bakersfield, and won a "Be Your Best Self" award. The pandemic restricted Ramos' reign as DYW and did not have much opportunity to participate in any...
The renovation project of the Shafter High School stadium is under way, with the demolition of the grandstands, press box and the surrounding track. One of the highlights of the new stadium is going to be a state-of-the-art video scoreboard. Once completed, Shafter High will have the only one of its kind in the Central Valley. The board will feature the usual graphics such as scores, first downs, time and also have space for advertising, showing instant replays, and slow motion. The board will...
The City Council approved forming an adhoc committee that would explore ways to keep the library open. The library is currently open two days a week until June. The City of Shafter came to an agreement last month to cover the costs for the operation of the library for a short-term period. The committee will be led by Mayor Pro-Tem Chad Givens and council member Gilbert Alvarado and will include other community members. Shafter High Coach Jerald Pierucci also gave a presentation to the council...
Shafter's Green Hotel, a historical landmark, was vandalized for the third time in the last 90 days over the weekend, after several windows were broken, the glass front door was smashed and the fence damaged. According to Shafter Historical Society President Roy Shaffner, vandals kicked part of the fence in and gained access to the property. They then broke several windows and the front door with what is believed to be rocks. "This is very frustrating," said Scott Hurlbert, a member of the...
