MADERA – Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 1981, cordially invites the public to a fundraising dinner for the 2014 Central Valley Honor Flight on Thursday, Mar. 20, at 6:30 p.m. Central Valley Honor Flight raises money to fly veterans to Washington, D.C. to view the monuments erected in their honor.

COARSEGOLD – A fire in the Coarsegold area on Tuesday is a reminder of just how dry conditions are, and how cautious residents need to be, even this early in the season. Just after 1 p.m., on Mar. 18, firefighters responded to reports of a vegetation fire just west of Highway 41 near Road 425C.

OAKHURST – Two Fresno men remain jailed after deputies discovered stolen property stashed in a motel room in Oakhurst. On Monday, Mar. 17, deputies arrested Cody Ratledge, 19, and Lorenzo Leon, 27, both of Fresno, following nearly a week’s stay at a mountain inn located in Oakhurst.

YOSEMITE – The National Park Service (NPS) is pushing back against Congressman Tom McClintock’s efforts to rename a peak in Yosemite National Park in honor of an ardent preservationist and wife of early California explorer John C. Frémont. Last week, the House Natural Resources Committee approved H.R. 1192, authored by McClintock, which would rename Mammoth Peak, designating it as “Mount ...

MADERA COUNTY – Ten minutes and an internet search helped a Madera County Sheriff’s deputy reunite a Tennessee man with a treasured ring stolen more than a decade ago. Deputy Matthew Kutz decided to do some digging to see if he could locate the rightful owner of a 24-karat gold Championship Ring, seized in a recent probation search in Madera.

NORTH FORK – The North Fork Boosters will host a Candidates Night on Tuesday, Apr. 8, at the North Fork Town Hall. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Candidates for three County offices will have the opportunity to share their views on local issues and respond to written questions submitted by citizens.

MARIPOSA COUNTY – On Monday, Mar. 17 at about 6 p.m., a report came in to 911 of a vehicle partially submerged in the Merced River with a female occupant stranded inside. Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office Deputies and Swift Water Search and Rescue Unit, along with partner emergency services, including Fire and Rescue, responded to the scene about one mile ...

OAKHURST – A Mariposa man spent the weekend behind bars after he was arrested for harassing a 13-year-old Girl Scout outside a grocery store in Oakhurst. Deputies were dispatched to a shopping center off Highway 49 on Friday, Mar. 14, with reports of an intoxicated subject harassing customers, including a young girl trying to sell Girl Scout Cookies.

MADERA COUNTY – A North Fork couple accused of murder were in Madera Superior Court on Monday, Mar. 17, for the conclusion of their preliminary hearing on the charges. Marc McMurrain, 35, and Jennifer McMurrain, 33, were arrested in early September 2013 after the body of Marc’s brother, Christopher Garrity, 29, was discover stuffed into a trash can on a ...

Submitted by Kathy Marks MADERA COUNTY – Sierra Art Trails is kicking off our 2014 activities with a Call to Artists for our first Spring Special Exhibit, “Valley View – Yosemite Trails, Currents, and Visions.” The exhibit is presented in association with the 150th Anniversary Celebration of the Yosemite Grant, signed into law by Abraham Lincoln in 1864, and will ...