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It seems like every wine region has a few heroes and pioneers who stand out for their contributions, vision and determination. One such "special soul" is Eduardo Liceaga Campos, owner of Vi�a de Liceaga Winery in Guadalupe Valley, Baja California, Mexico. Eduardo is a shinning star in Mexico's wine industry, and he was one of the founding fathers in the region's early quest for creating high quality premium wines. His dedication in promoting, marketing and educating consumers on behalf of the wine industry in Baja California has been instrumental in encouraging and supporting development of superior wines, and the wine culture in Mexico. So, it is with great pleasure that I have chosen him to be the focus for a special interview as the 2007 Person of the Year in Guadalupe Valley.
Reminisce a bit
Before the dark of night... There's more lightenin' bugs Than stars in the sky. Don't you get the feelin' Things might be all right? --Nashville Bluegrass Band In an era when most small towns are sliding toward ghost status, what is it about Glendale that pulled in nearly 30,000 people on a single Saturday last October? There are a lot of answers to that question around the little town beside a fork of the upper Nolin River, a mile and three-quarters from I-65 on the east and about the same distance from U.S. 62 on the west. Glendale is a farming community about 30 miles north of Leitchfield. "I think people are coming back to a place they've lost..." "It's a place to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city..." "We've got a red light, but we don't use it till we get three cars in a row, then we put it up..." "This is just home; I've lived here all my life..." "I just love the place.
Real life learning in Pima County high schools
A new kind of real life learning is taking place in high schools all over Pima County thanks to the new Joint Technological Education District, also known as JTED. Voters approved JTED last year. They agreed to pay a property tax increase in order to create and improve technical and vocational training for Pima County's 11 school districts. At Palo Verde High School, teachers and students say the money is paying off. Kevin Kehl's first period class isn't your typical science class. He's teaching biotechnology research. Kehl explains, "It's cutting edge science. And Tucson wants to be a hub for that. Arizona wants to be a hub for biotechnology." Kehl's class is preparing Palo Verde High School students to get those jobs. Kehl tells them, "In labs across the state, in Tucson and even across the country, they're trying to fill spots. They're trying to fill jobs and they can't." Delissa Fimbres, a Palo Verde senior, is taking Kehl's class. She says, "Kids like us need to be able to get what we need to be successful." Jamie Dennis, a junior, is considering a career in forensics. She says, "It {the class} is going to help me out to have an idea of what I'm really getting into." In another classroom across the hall, Mike Cohen is preparing his students to be engineers. Cohen shows his class, "We're learning how to read color bands on a resistor." Cohen, a retired engineer, says his dream for his students is, "Lighting the light bulb, figuratively speaking, of what engineering is like, all of the different domains." Cohen's students say this class is real life. Andre Martell, a Palo Verde sophomore, believes, "It would help me in the future to go to college and get a better job, a good paying job." Dashaun Lewis, also a sophomore, says he's taking Cohen's class because, "I want to be a software engineer.
Where kids rule
He came home taller, tanner, dirtier and thinner. The dry desert air even improved his asthma. "I'm also a better listener and better socially with kids," said Eric, a 14-year-old from Morris Township. "I respect others' viewpoints more." This incoming Morristown High School freshman participated in the CBS reality show "Kid Nation," scheduled to premiere Sept. 19 at 8 p.m. The 13-episode series, filmed in April and May, brings together 40 youths, ages 8-15, to build and run their own grownup-free Old West town, Bonanza City, N.M., where kids rule. No parents allowed. This means no adults to cook meals, wash and fold laundry, or nag them -- lovingly, of course -- to clean up after themselves. Perhaps the four elected kid leaders will take on a grownup role and set some ground rules.
A Life-long Passion for Food
While some school children enjoy skateboarding, video games, or dancing, Gino Arcuri always loved cooking. Gino grew up in New York where he worked in his father's deli. “My father [Guy] owned a deli and I used to love going there and helping when I was very little. I got the love for food from him. He taught me the way. He was a hard worker and a smart man," says Gino. “He was known as the cheesecake king and because of him I love making cheesecake. The last thing we did together was make a metropolitan cheesecake." With his initial interest in food inspired by his father, Gino pursued his love when his family moved to Florida. “When I was 18 we moved to Florida and I started working at hotels. We did a lot of banqueting and one of our biggest events was the Harley Davidson convention," says Gino.
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