Hanford Insider: KRH Calico, Links for Life, High School Football Preview

Welcome And Quick Preview

On this week's episode of The Hanford Insider, Kathy Mitleiter gives us a preview of the Pink Passion picnic coming up. Rob will have some community news, and I'll be back with your sports report. This is The Hanford Insider for Monday, August 17th.

Welcome to the Hanford Insider Podcast. From the people who make a difference to the businesses that have stood the test of time and the stories that make Kings County unique, you'll find it all right here. I'm your host, Rob Bentley, bringing you the people, places, and stories that make our community a great place to call home. So let's get started. First of all, I'd like to give a shout out to all of my listeners who came out to the Hanford Bicentennial Time Capsule display last week at the Carnegie Museum. The event was a huge success, and now that the exhibition is closed, I'll be collecting items for the next time capsule that will be opened in 2076. Contact me if you have a donation.

City Council And Data Centers

In community news this week, the Hanford City Council will be meeting on Tuesday, August 18th. At the afternoon study session, they'll be receiving a report on Measure H revenues and expenditures. In the general meeting at 7, they'll be reviewing land use regulations for data center facilities as an information item only. On Saturday evening, the city released the following statement. The City of Hanford opposes data center facilities proposed within or adjacent to the community without meaningful local review, public participation, environmental analysis, and enforceable protections for residents and public infrastructure. Hanford's general plan and zoning ordinances do not allow for data centers, and the city is not considering any changes to this restriction. For more information about this, you can visit the City of Hanford website for the full press release at www.hanford.city. Also at the meeting, they'll be reviewing the landscape and lighting district maintenance practices. Remember, if you can't make it to the meeting in person, you can always watch online or even participate online using the city's website. Speaking of the Hanford City Council, it looks like the November election ballot has been set. In Area A, incumbent Travis Payton will face Sheldon Blackwell. In Area D, former Councilman Francisco Ramirez will be running unopposed. In Area E, Shane Shawn will be running against Victor Chavreen Jr. At a ceremony held in Caruthers Friday morning, ground was officially broken for the new State Route 41 Excelsior Expressway four-lane project. The $77.2 million project will transform the six miles of highway between Excelsior to Elkhorn Avenue. Once the project is finished in the fall of 2028, it will complete a continuous 44-mile corridor. Maybe someday in the future, we'll see four lanes all the way to Pass the Robles. We can always wish, right? Drive safely, friends.

Community Calendar And Local Events

Now let's take a look at this week's community calendar. On Wednesday, August 19th, there will be a beginner class for those interested in Dungeons and Dragons at the Hanford Branch Library temporary location at 110 South 11th Avenue. At the Thursday Night Marketplace this week, it's K Jug Country Night with a surprise guest artist. Be sure to follow Main Street Hanford for the announcement. The high school football season officially kicks off this week with Hanford West hosting the first home game on Friday. Eric will have a season preview for the local high schools later in sports. Speaking of sports, the Grace Bible Church Men of Grace Ministry will be hosting a round of indoor golf at the T-Box this Saturday, August 22nd. Visit gbchanford.org for more information. On August 28th, there will be a data centered town hall at the Episcopal Church of the Savior beginning at 5.30 p.m. Finally, the Knights of Columbus will be holding their annual tri-tip, Linguisa, and Bean Feed on Sunday, August 30th. If you're interested in tickets, email me and I'll put you in touch with the club.

Calico Arts Festival Turns 50

The 50th annual Kings River Hardwick Calico Arts Festival is coming up in October, and I have a chance to catch up with Megan Da Prima about this special celebration this year.

So it's pretty special. First of all, all of our construction is done, which is amazing, but we are calling it our golden 50th, and we just want to make it really big, really special, really celebrate all our PVC members from the past who have made it so special, the community that have supported it for the last 50 years and just really celebrate it and make it this big community celebration. Our goal is to collect as many photos as possible. We want everything from the beginning to now, all the good stuff. You can email them over to krh.pbc at gmail.com.

If you have an event coming up, large or small, and you'd like some help getting the word out, let's work together. Send your information to HanfordInsider at gmail.com. Be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter to get a complete calendar of events. It's the most comprehensive community calendar available.

Links For Life Pink Passion Preview

Last year we had the awesome privilege to visit with Kathy Mittlighter and Candy Bertina about the Lynx for Life Pink Passion Picnic. And it's only August, but we're here to talk about this very special event coming up on October 20th at the Quinania Church. Welcome to the show, Kathy. Thank you. Kathy, so it's it's been a year. Can you update us on the efforts of Lynx for Life and uh then we'll get into a little bit of details about this year's event?

Great. I appreciate the opportunity. Actually, this year we went ahead and added an additional service. So not only are we offering mammograms, ultrasound, biopsies, but now we are offering MRIs. And this is all related to breast cancer diagnosis, so that women now have the opportunity to be diagnosed in the early stages and avoid having cancer in the later stages. So that's one of the things that we added. In addition, we now have partnered with an organization known as Thriving Wigs and Prosthetics, and we provide wigs, compression sleeves, as well as head coverings for women that are going through the cancer journey. And it is a journey for most of the women that are going through chemotherapy. So that's another feature that we have added, along with the presentations that we do out in the community reaching out. In the last six months, we distributed flyers to all the laundromats, all the beauty shops, so that way they would be aware of the services that were available through Links for Life. So those are some of the things that we have done. And just recently, I think in just in fiscal year 25-26, I think we did over 5,000 education and outreach out to the community. But there's still a lot that we can do, and this podcast provides that opportunity to reach to other people that aren't aware of the services that are provided through Links for Life.

That's wonderful. So how would someone find out more about these efforts? Is there a website? Uh what what are some resources that you have available for women?

Well, we're on Facebook, so you can always look us up on Facebook and like us. As a matter of fact, in just the last June and July, we had 68 new people that reached out to our Facebook page. And we also have a website. It's www.links for live, kingscounty.org. And that provides uh information about the website. It also provides information about the past Pink Passion Picnic, which is our main fundraiser that we do every year. And those funds are used to pay for the services that uh women and men can can avail themselves of the services.

So let's talk about the Pink Passion Picnic. This is a huge annual event and it definitely uh gets widespread uh attention and uh publicity about it. But what are some of the things that you're looking forward to this year's event?

Okay. This year we have an excellent speaker. She's a nurse practitioner, and her specialty is genetics. So she will be talking about genetics as it relates to breast cancer. So this means that if a woman has binded been diagnosed with breast cancer and she's concerned about her children or her sister, that this is the information that she will gain at the uh Pink Passion picnic.

So I understand one of the highlights of the show is the uh annual fashion show, yeah?

Right. So we have the sheriffs and the police department. They model clothing, either their own clothing or clothing that is donated by the various stores in Kings County. In addition, this year, Texas Roadhouse, which has been a very major sponsor for us, will have four of their servers do what we call family-friendly line dancing. And that's part of the show. So not only are we providing education, we are also providing a source of entertainment. And that's the reason that not only is it for a good cause, but it's also the reason that we have such a wide audience that's attending the event. We still have tickets available. You can go to our Links for Life page and it will give you the phone number because we still work with paper tickets. And um, you can also contact any of the team members, and they're also listed on the website too. So those are the two ways to get tickets. Tickets are $35. It includes lunch, plus education and entertainment. And then if you want to participate in the opportunity drawing, you are able to get uh 19 tickets for $20, and you can put them wherever you want, and you might be the lucky winner of that particular item. So that is pretty much what the Pink Passion Picnic is about.

It's the Links for Life Pink Passion Picnic. And uh thank you so much, Kathy, for visiting with us once again about this outstanding event, and thank you for all that you do for the community.

My pleasure. Thank you for the opportunity to talk about Links for Life. It happens to be one of my favorite subjects.

Sports Report And Football Kickoff

And now it's time for Hanford Insider Sports with Eric Bentley.

The Hanford Babe Ruth 16U All-Stars journey in the World Series came up just short last week, falling to Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, 5-0 in the quarterfinals. The Hanford squad advanced through pool play after going 3-1 in their four games in four days. After a day of rest, the boys suited up for championship bracket play with an opening round win over the Pacific Northwest region champs, Southwest Washington 3-1 before falling to Pennsylvania the following day. They might not have taken it all the way, but the Hanford Bay Ruth 16U All-Stars certainly represented us well. Congratulations on a great run in the World Series. Out to high school football now, two teams will see the field for the first time this week in regular season action as Hanford West and Sierra Pacific kick off their seasons Friday night. We'll start with the Huskies as second year head coach Steve Lentz returns, looking to create some stability in a Hanford West program that's seeking its first win since 2022. The Huskies' offense really struggled to get things going last year, being shut out in seven of their ten games, and the highest offensive output in a game being only 14 points. The defense wasn't much better either, giving up over 40 points per game. This year's non-league opponents for the Huskies will be Parlier, Mendota, Riverdale, O'Rosey, and Orange Cove, with league tilts against Selma, Reedley, Sierra Pacific, Fowler, and Carruthers. Realistically for Hanford West, competing will be the primary goal for a program that is at the point that it is. Make a few strides on defense, find some offensive continuity, and see if you can't play your way into a few close games. Heart and effort will definitely be things to watch out for the Huskies team this season, which gets underway Friday at 7 p.m. at Neighbor Bowl against Parlier. After a scrimmage last week with Exeter, the Sierra Pacific football team will officially begin their season on the road at Chowchilla on Friday, and it'll be the first game as head coach for John Clark at Sierra Pacific. Under new leadership, the Golden Bears will look for a turnaround after last year's four and six campaign. Sierra Pacific was able to go three and two in non-league play last season, but were unable to find much success in league, going one and four with the lone win coming against Hanford West. Though, last season could have felt a lot differently if it weren't for a one-point loss to Exeter and a triple overtime defeat to Selma in league play. We'll see if the Golden Bears can take those lessons learned from last season and apply them to this year's squad. After the season opener on the road at Chauchilla, Sierra Pacific will face Strathmore Corcoran and Woodlake all at home, Sanger West on the road, then a league schedule of Carruthers Selma, Hanford West, Reedley, and Fowler. Sierra Pacific will look to 2026 as a year to turn the corner and threaten in the Tri-County Sequoia League. In the Hanford High football team, fresh off of a scrimmage with Bakersfield, has plenty of anticipation building, though the Bullpups will have to wait until next Friday to get their regular season underway. Coming off of back-to-back-to-back WYL championships, it'll be a new goal this season for the Bullpups in a highly competitive East Yosemite league. Fortunately for Hanford High, quarterback Jaron Mao returns for his senior season after throwing for nearly 3,000 yards and 33 touchdowns as a junior, though he'll need to find a new number one receiver losing last season's standout Tavion Patterson to graduation. Wide receiver Braylon Thomas does return to the Bullpup roster, along with last year's leading rusher Rajon Newton, to hopefully roll over some of that offensive success. On the defensive side of the ball, Hanford High will be without last season's tackle leader in Justin Clark, who averaged 12 tackles per game. So the Bullpups will rely on returners James Ellis, Adrian Ibarra, and Karsten Gravins to lock things down defensively. The tradition of playing a gauntlet of a non-league schedule continues again this year as Hanford High will take on Sanger, San Joaquin Memorial, Frontier, and Centennial to start the season. Golden West, CVC, Taler Union, Redwood, and Tillary Western provide no schedule relief in league play, though it is nice to see a rivalry kept alive in a non-league matchup as the Bullpups will take on Lamore for the milk can to close out their regular season. As always, expectations for Coach Cannon Sanchez's Bullpups squad are rightfully high, and it should be another exciting season of Hanford High football this year. And we'll close with some early season fall sport results. The Sierra Pacific girls volleyball team is one and one on the year, falling to Panachy in the season opener, but bouncing back with a four-set win over to Larry Union last Thursday. Next up for the Golden Bears will be a cross town showdown with Hanford High this Tuesday. That'll also be the Bullpups' first time on the floor this year. As always, if you have a score report or a team update for any team in any sport at any level, you can let us know by emailing HanfordInsider at gmail.com. I'm Eric Bentley, and this has been your Hanford Insider Sports Report.

Support The Show And Stay Connected

And that wraps things up for this week's show. If you're enjoying the podcast and want to support it, you can head over to buymeacoffee.com forward slash Hanford Insider to make a donation, or you can Venmo me directly. To stay connected, join the Hanford Insider email list at HanfordInsider.com. You'll get weekly updates plus an exclusive newsletter delivered right to your inbox each Wednesday. I'd also really appreciate your help getting the word out about the show by liking or sharing social media posts, or like most people, just tell in a friend. Don't forget, if you have a story idea, community event, or someone you think deserves to be featured, I'd love to hear from you. Email me anytime at HanfordInsider at gmail.com. You can follow the show on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, and YouTube at Hanford Insider for more content and updates. Thanks for listening and have a great week.