A Firestorm of Contention Sweeps Through Fire District
A contentious firestorm that engulfed the Sonoita-Elgin Fire District recently swirled throughout the town of Sonoita for weeks like the wildfires the firefighters are trained to quench. Chief Joseph DeWolf’s contract was up for renewal. The Fire Board was considering a new contract that included a 10 percent cut in salary, which it characterized as the best it could come up with given the economic climate in Arizona.
Local citizens packed the board meetings week after week, some to support the pay cut and some to support the Chief. There was debate about both the Chief’s compensation and the length of his contract. The end result was a decision to keep the salary where it is, at $84,413, for the next two years, with board option to renew for two more years. Lesser issues, including arbitration, performance, and job description, were all settled by the board with the Chief’s consent.
Joseph DeWolf has been with the department for 19 years and has been the Fire Chief for the past 13 years. He has had a distinguished career with the district, providing leadership, training, vision, and quality outreach to the community. Over the past ten years he has brought $1,561,026 in grant funds to the District.
Just as the smoke from that firestorm began to clear, a new and different crisis appeared. Battalion Chief Kevin Venos resigned. Like DeWolf, Venos has been with the department for 19 years. He left his general contracting business and began volunteering with the department in 1996. By 2007 he was working full-time as a paramedic. His surprise resignation caught the community off guard. Locals rushed to his defense and praised him for his years of service. He was asked to reverse his decision, but he remained steadfast. Venos acknowledged that his leaving was rooted in his disdain for the contract originally proposed to Chief DeWolf. He said, “I would never sign such an awful contract.”
Venos says that after 19 years with the department it was time to move on. He will be joining the large Benson ambulance company, HCI (Health Care Innovations). The new position will allow him to do full-time what he loves the most—be a paramedic for an ambulance company.
Chief DeWolf’s comments mirror those of all of Sonoita and Elgin when he says “Kevin’s 19 years of community knowledge of the area, along with his dedication, will be almost impossible to replace.”
Elgin Student Brent Anderson Qualifies for State Competition in GeoBee
The National Geographic Society sponsors an annual GeoBee (designed like a spelling bee with a focus on geography) for fourth through eighth grade students in the United States. The schools in each state compete, and the winner in each school takes a geography test designed by National Geographic.
The 100 students with the best test scores go on to compete at the state level. Brent Anderson, a seventh grader at Elgin School, was one of those 100 students. He participated in the state competition that was held on March 27 at the Arizona State University Memorial Union building in Tempe, and although he didn’t win, he should be congratulated on getting as far as he did. According to his teacher Nate Porter, Brent had correct answers to six of the eight questions he was asked, and just missed going into the final round.
Porter says that Elgin has sent a student to the state geo-bee every year for the past seven years.
The national competition will take place in Washington DC in May, and the winner gets a $50,000 college scholarship and an all-expense paid trip to the Galapagos Islands. We’re sure that Brent Anderson knows where that is.
Notes From the Santa Cruz Fairgrounds
The Fairgrounds Centennial Celebration kicks off May 2 and 3 with the Sonoita Horse Races and the Kentucky Derby simulcast. The fairgrounds has been painted, repaired and upgraded, and Chairman Deborah Fellows promises a new and better race weekend to enhance the big year-long party.
The Turf Club has been enlarged and there will be more locations for betting. Eight races will be run each day. Off-site betting for other races will be provided along with betting and viewing a live simulcast of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
New events planned include the “Race of the Eagles,” a classic horse race between the United States and Mexico. The fairgrounds is looking for a sponsor for the race.
Another is a special race to honor and raise awareness of our veterans. Sponsors are sought to support the Wounded Warrior Race, and proceeds will be go to the Dave Roever Foundation, a nonprofit project dedicated to reconnecting veterans and their families to a whole and productive life. Donations can be made out to the SCCFRA at the fairgrounds.
Join the other 5000 racing enthusiasts expected to have fun at this year’s Sonoita Races!
Rodeo Royalty’s Queens
