Thumbs up, down from the Yuma Sun
• Congratulations to Tricia Severs, the Yuma County 2022 Teacher- of the Year! Severs is an ABA (autism) teacher at Alice Byrne Elementary School, and was recognized for her efforts and the steps forward her students have taken. Kudos to Severs, and to all the other award recipients and nominees!
• Thumbs up to Yuma Regional Medical Center, which on April 19 reported its first day with zero COVID-19 hospitalizations since June 2, 2021. It’s an amazing milestone for Yuma County! Thanks to our health care personnel who have worked so hard to keep us healthy, and to the Yumans who took those extra steps to stay safe, such as washing hands, masking, socially distancing and, most important, getting vaccinated.
• Thumbs up to Cibola High senior Gabe McCallen, who recently signed his acceptance to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy! It’s one of the hardest post-high school institutions to get into, and an incredible achievement! Congrats, Gabe – we wish you the best of luck this fall!
• Thumbs up to the students at Antelope Union High School for their efforts to help out the Easter Bunny this year. Antelope students prepared and hosted an egg hunt on campus for students at Dateland Elementary, Mohawk Valley and Wellton Elementary. Then, they took it a step further, and created eggs and baked goods for the children at Crossroads Mission. What a terrific act of kindness.
• Thumbs down to the Yuma shooting on Easter Sunday that claimed the life of Gillermo Sutton, 41. Sutton was killed on 12th Street, and officers say he had been riding a bicycle prior to the shooting. If you have any information, please call the Yuma Police Department at 928-783-4421 or 928-782-7469 to remain anonymous.
• Thumbs down to the mysterious cases of liver illness seen in children in both the U.S. and Europe. So far, there have been nine cases in the U.S., but there have been at least 74 in the United Kingdom, the Associated Press reports. Officials believe the cases may be linked to a virus normally associated with colds – an adenovirus – but more research is needed. Whatever the cause, it’s troubling to see an increase in pediatric hepatitis cases.
• Thumbs down to the wind this week in Yuma. We’ve got amazing flowers and plants in bloom all over the county, but the pollen from those gorgeous plants is flying all over the place, exacerbating allergies for lots of Yumans. On the plus side, at least we don’t live in one of those northern states that got snow this week.