OAKHURST — Four-hundred-plus kids and you couldn’t hear one of them. In what’s referred to as “the ultimate game of hide and seek,” that’s how we want it. At Oakhurst Elementary School (OES) last week, students in grades K-5 were called to the expansive multi-purpose room for a singular purpose: to practice a safety drill in which they would shelter ...

Written by Karen Kale —  MOUNTAIN AREA — We are in need of more volunteer drivers in Madera County, especially from the foothill communities. It is estimated 600 residents will be diagnosed with cancer this year in Madera County, and for many of them getting to treatments can be their biggest roadblock. A successful transportation assistance program can be a ...

The Animal Compassion Team (ACT) foster and adoption Dog of the Week is the adorable and loving Zoey! Zoey is a four-and-a-half-month old Husky who is crate, leash, and house trained. She has been great with every dog and cat she’s met, too. She’s about 26-pounds right now and will be 50 to 60-pounds when full grown. Zoey rides nicely in the ...

MADERA COUNTY– Following are details from the Madera County Sheriff’s Office of reports taken locally from Monday, Feb. 5 to Sunday, Feb. 11, 2018. Oakhurst domestic dispute On Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 2:39 a.m. a deputy was dispatched to Chapel Hill Drive regarding a domestic dispute. Upon arrival an investigation ensued and a report was taken for documentation. Coarsegold found ...

MOUNTAIN AREA — Want to listen to your news for a minute, instead of reading it? For the past year, Sierra News Online has been working in collaboration with KRYZ Community Radio in Mariposa, to provide a regular broadcast of local news and information important to the communities of the Central Sierra. The show is called Across the Bridge, and ...

By Sydney Myers and Natalie Zawolkow —  O’NEALS — Mental health is an inescapable part of life. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, we all deal with it. Which is why it is so important to not only monitor your own mental health, but to look out for the people around you as well. Forget the stigmas. ...

MARIPOSA — Just in time for one of the biggest flower-giving times of the year, The Enchanted Florist has expanded to a satellite location in Mariposa. As of now, shoppers can pick up artfully arranged and magnificently colorful bouquets of Enchanted’s flowers at the Pioneer Market, located at 5034 Coakley Circle. They are also offering local delivery fees for the Mariposa ...

OAKHURST — Permaculture designer and educator Marianna Burrett shares her passion in the first of a two workshops focusing on connection to nature and planting the seeds of health. Organized by nonprofit One Tribe Global, the initial workshop is on Saturday, Feb. 17, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Community Room at the Oakhurst Branch Library. Another follows in ...

CENTRAL CALIFORIA — Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is alerting customers in the Central Valley and surrounding areas to be aware of scam activity with criminals posing as PG&E workers. Law enforcement officials in the area have received reports of individuals claiming to work for PG&E going door to door to investigate outages of electric and phone service but ...

By “Coach” Robin Ward — OAKHURST — Being a teacher is a lot of work, and it’s rewarding and fun when students are willing to work hard and put forth the effort to do more. Implementing the Common Core math standards brought about quite a stir, mostly for the drastic change in how we teach math to students, and how ...