FISH CAMP – Tenaya Lodge will be hosting its 2nd annual Earth Day Farmers’ Market on Saturday, April 20, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. “We are really excited to let the local community know this is happening and invite everyone to come on up,” says Brooke Smith, Tenaya’s marketing coordinator. “We had great support last year and this year’s ...

OAKHURST – The Oakhurst Sierra Rotary — also known as the Noon Rotary — presented a “giant” check this week to Sierra Ambulance Service. The $15,000 donation will help Sierra Ambulance purchase a new oxygen generator, according to Ed Guzman, general manager. Guzman said Thursday’s contribution from the Rotary Club “represents a big part of our fundraising effort” in acquiring ...

OAKHURST — Popular farm and ranch retailer Tractor Supply Co. is coming to town. A spokesperson for the company confirmed the news Friday. “We will be opening a new store in Oakhurst in 2020,” said Niki Giacchina. “Unfortunately, that’s about all I can tell you right now.” Local sources confirmed this week that the national retailer is in escrow on ...

NORTH FORK — Call it Passover in the pines. For two nights next week, Rabbi Shlomo Menkes and his wife Aliza plan to preside over public Passover seders at their 92-acre retreat in North Fork. “These will be the first public seders in our area in at least 10 or 15 years,” Menkes says. “They could be the first ever.” ...

OAKHURST – Dr. Stephanie Osowski will be the next principal at Yosemite High School. The SoCal educator — and one-time journalist — will replace current YHS principal Regina Carr on July 1. Carr is relocating with her family to Seattle. Superintendent Glen Billington announced the leadership change at the monthly YUSD board meeting, held Monday night at Coarsegold Elementary. An ...

OAKHURST — A row of three new, nationally branded hotels under construction since 2013 on Highway 41 in Oakhurst appear to be finally nearing completion. When contacted this week, developer Paul Patel said the project “is going good.” But Patel, who also owns the Oakhurst Comfort Inn, declined to say when the three new hotels might be open for business. ...

NORTH FORK — PG&E’s bankruptcy has stalled construction of a new biomass plant, a key component in a plan to boost the local economy. “Right now, we’re in a holding pattern,” said North Fork Community Development Council (CDC) President Dan Rosenberg. Rosenberg has been working on the project for seven years. “I used to tell people we’d be operational by ...

O’NEALS – The Grim Reaper helped deliver a sobering message Wednesday at Minarets High School as part of the ‘Every 15 Minutes’ program, in which students and first responders reenact the aftermath of a horrific car crash caused by a drunk driver. The Reaper and his gallery of “walking dead” students stood silently on the sidelines as the drama unfolded, ...

MADERA – Interested in investigating complaints of misappropriation and malfeasance around Madera County? If so, the deadline to apply for the 2019-2020 grand jury is April 22. California’s Constitution requires every county in the state maintain a grand jury to “investigate citizen-generated complaints or concerns.” To be eligible, a person must be 18, a U.S. citizen and a Madera County ...

O’NEALS – The 20th American Cancer Society Relay for Life kicked off Friday afternoon in O’Neals, with 185 participants representing 17 teams taking part in the dusk-to-dawn annual fundraising event. “As of Friday morning, we’d already raised more than $30,000,” said Daniel Ching, principal of Minarets High School and the organizer of the 2019 cancer walk, which was held for ...