Vaccinated and Getting Back to Life in Reno

Things seem to be returning to a version of normal in Reno in the past few weeks – something none of us have experienced in over a year – which comes after an increasing number of vaccinations and the new guidelines released by the CDC on May 14th. Although it seems like Renoites have been out and about for months now, taking advantage of many outdoor activities as well as frequenting many businesses operating under social distancing guidelines and mask requirements, within the last few weeks it is very clear that everyone is ready pick up where they left off in March of 2020.

Exactly two weeks after the new CDC guideline announcement, at the popular local beer garden, The Eddy, I was greeted by a large crowd of mostly unmasked patrons, something none of us have been able to enjoy for nearly 14 months now. Welcomed by smiling faces, friends and strangers alike were able to interact in a refreshingly different way than we have been for quite some time, cultivating a truly freeing and happy environment.

For the first time in what seemed like forever, unmasked patrons were allowed to mingle amongst friends and strangers. Everyone could interact with each other and share smiles, seemingly unconcerned about getting too close to one another or striking up conversation without face coverings.

The long winter of the pandemic might be coming to an end, at least locally for now.

For many people, including myself, getting vaccinated was a number one priority following the announcement made by the CDC on May 14th, not only to enjoy private businesses mask free, but also to not have to don the mask while working. Whether related or not, Washoe County has continued to see a rise in vaccinations since the recent CDC announcement, which is a great sign for us in the Biggest Little City, seeing as most of us are clearly eager to continue enjoying this essentially newfound freedom. 

Whether it's fully vaccinated people that feel safer around others or people who no longer see the coronavirus pandemic as something to be fearful of due to the rising vaccination rate, one thing is for sure and that is that we as a community are all ready to get back to doing things we enjoy and be around others in the process.

Some say that this change in people actually getting out of the house and wanting to be in public areas that are crowded with strangers was largely due to the June 1st reopening of the state to 100% capacity, but others argue that it was just good timing. The main shift in attitude seen by most came after the new CDC guideline announcement that stated fully vaccinated individuals were safe to remove their masks in all outdoor and most indoor settings.

Regardless of their individual reasonings, it has been a welcome change to see people’s full faces around town, inside restaurants, at local bars, walking downtown and on the Riverwalk or shopping at the grocery store. Along with the feeling of finally being free to uncover our faces without fear or scrutiny, it seems that more people in general are ready to get out and do things, and simple activities like going to The Eddy on a Friday night, has people eager to interact with others. Although Washoe County may not be quite ready to have large gatherings – groups larger than 10 or events over 500 attendees without special planning – there are some Reno staples that are back for 2021. Aces ball games are in full swing, the Reno Rodeo is set to start next week, and the Riverfest will be taking place this weekend. 

1st Person Reporting and Top Photo by Jayme Souza for Our Town Reno

Gallo Chingon, an Eclectic Leaves Rat Race and Finds a New Home in Kinky Reno

After coming to this area to work for Tesla for a few years, Gallo Chingon realized he no longer was fit for the rat race. One of the many occupations and hobbies he now pursues is as host of the podcast Sucias Are My Favorite, a NSFW show about the kink community. Chingon has found a groove focusing on learning new things, being creative, and is pondering jumping into a van.

Our Town Reno reporter Richard Bednarski recently sat down with Chingon at the Reynolds School of Journalism to talk about how he landed in Reno, what his name means, and to learn more about his life philosophy.

Richard Bednarski:

Gallo, can you tell me a little bit about your background, where are you from? How did you end up in Reno and a little bit about who you are?

Gallo Chingon:

I'm originally from Texas, from Houston. I was living in San Antonio when I got recruited to come out to Tesla, or I like to say suckered, but that's more of a personal issue. And since then I have just been doing content creation, but on my own. I had a YouTube channel and now I'm sticking to a podcast that I got and loving it out here in Reno so far.

Richard Bednarski

Gallo Chingon roughly translates as a tough uncompromising rooster. Can you tell me how you got that name and what it means to you?

Gallo Chingon

Actually the name came through roller derby and the reason I go by it is now more of an inside joke. I picked it up from a group of longboard garage, bombing group friends. We'd go to a parking garage, dive down in longboards, what not, got the nickname there. Because I had a Mohawk and it carried over into roller derby. And as I introduced myself, Oh, Hey my name is Gallo, blah, blah, blah. 

Richard Bednarski

A unique story for a unique name. So you came to Reno for work, how did you fall into your comfort zone here in Reno?

Gallo Chingon

I made quick friends with some guys at work and every Wednesday morning was our Friday night, So we'd go out to breakfast, hang out there and then we'd get together Friday afternoon and we would try one new restaurant per week. So in doing that, you'd meet more people, make new friends and Reno is a very, very open and friendly town. It  reminds you of like small towns in Texas where, you know, everybody's friendly, even though most people aren't from Reno. It's interesting how friendly people become here. I think it's just, just what Reno is.

Richard Bednarski

So what's your favorite restaurant?
Gallo Chingon

I would say either Betos, right here, up here, 5th street. It's a good little Mexican restaurant and another place is Butcher’s Kitchen Char-B-Que. They've got the best brisket in town, which has taken me three years to find because most of the barbecue places here are Carolina style, which is pork and I'm a fan of beef, which is a Texas specialty.

Richard Bednarski

And so you have your own podcast, what is it about and what are your goals with that podcast?

Gallo Chingon

So it's a NSFW podcast, it started off with me being in the kink community and some issues I don't want to discuss about here. So the goal is to bring a little bit more attention to the kink community. That it's not what you so much see in mainstream media especially with 50 shades of gray. That's like the worst thing that's happened to the kink community, insofar as abusing or not listening to save words. And with that at the same time, even though I have to click-baity or  controversial topics, my whole goal is to let everyone know we're all human, regardless of our identity or labels, we identify ourselves as human. And we should try to connect there, even if we're on the left, on the right of the political spectrum, we can, we still should strive to  see a middle ground.

Richard Bednarski

What following or what are your subscribers like? Is it, is it up and coming? 

Gallo Chingon

Yeah, it's brand new. I've only had about little over a dozen episodes right now. Most of them are friends that are in the kink community. 

Richard Bednarski

Do you plan to  maintain that podcast indefinitely?

Gallo Chingon

There was an awesome study that says most podcasts end before the seventh episode, so I've already broken past that, I'm at 13 or 14 now.  Looking forward to doing more, got plenty scheduled and I've got a YouTube channel that I'd live stream on, which essentially keeps me accountable to keep doing it. So I don't see myself stopping because that one passion I've kept steady with.

Richard Bednarski

I've definitely learned consistency is the way to go. You are a self-described Renaissance man, you dabble in a little bit of everything and have a variety of hobbies and everything from building mechanical keyboards and to knitting, so out of all of the hobbies that you have, which one is your favorite and what do you like most about having a variety of hobbies?

Gallo Chingon

One, it keeps me from being bored. So a lot of times a lot of my friends will ask me, Hey, have you seen this or that on whatever streaming service and more often than not, I'll say no. And because I'd rather stay busy doing things with my hands, that's tangible or even intangible like coding or scripts just to make my life easier. That's truly just wanting to learn more on my own and that's easier now, especially with YouTube where you can learn or a skill share or any other place that if you want to learn something, there's really no excuse to not learn right. 

Richard Bednarski

Gallo can you  tell me about a time where you have nearly died? I understand that there's been a handful of cases like this. 

Gallo Chingon

My earliest memory of me nearly dying or drowning, I was about four or five years old. My mom was cleaning a rich lady's house. She had a creek or river, I don't know what the definition of one or the other is, but it was about 12 feet wide. There was a four foot pier off the back of the house and I distinctly felt like someone pushed me into the water. I knew how to swim since I was an infant, but it's just being caught off guard, I remember thrashing. And at some point I remember hearing in my head an adult voice, calm down, breathe, climb out. That was the first time the most recent was a motorcycle accident where it was a head-on collision with an 18-wheeler with no helmet. We were both doing about 35 miles an hour. And there's been held at gunpoint, mugged, held at knifepoint, and a whole bunch of other stuff. 

Richard Bednarski

Are you scared of water at this point?

Gallo Chingon

No, I still go swimming. I still love it. Because of that, from that early age, I came to the realization, especially being in and around drive-by shootings in the nineties, I realized by the time I was 10 or 11, that life is cheap and I didn't expect to live past 20 for some reason. I had in my mind that I wasn't gonna be of drinking age. So since that point I realized I live life to the fullest because I'm not going to get tomorrow. There's no guarantee that I'll have tomorrow. So that's  also the influence of me just being so varied and trying so many things because tomorrow might not come.

Richard Bednarski

I understand you experienced houselessness at one point. Can you talk about that experience and how it was for you?

Gallo Chingon

So the first time it was my own dumb fault. I ran away from home when I was 17, my father and I didn't get along. So I was couch surfing a lot with high school classmates or other seniors or with my aunts. And I would probably spend two to three nights a month in my car just to not overstay my welcome someplace. But the most recent one was about 10 years ago when I got through that divorce. A miscommunication with the ex-wife, I thought she was going to be paying for or finish paying for the truck. She did not and it got repossessed. I lost my job. And one thing led to another, just steamrolled. And I ended up being homeless for about seven weeks. Luckily I still had a bank card. So all the money that I was panhandling, I just put into a bank account and about four or five weeks in, I made friends with some other homeless people. And one guy was actually squatting in a house that was his legally, but he just didn't pay bills or taxes. So he's just essentially waiting for them to get kicked him out. But luckily we just had a roof over our head for a while. And from there I was able to save up enough to be able to get an apartment, a shower and get back on my feet again.

Richard Bednarski

That's a good story to hear and it shows how it only takes one thing to make anyone be out on the streets and lose their home and be houseless. So with that said, what are your thoughts on the current house situation here in Reno?

Gallo Chingon

So coming from Houston, I've seen more houseless, homeless on the streets there than I have here. It doesn't seem they're as aggressive as I've seen in other places about asking for money. They're usually chill or just have their signs, but I have seen people where they'll bang on your window. If you're at a stop light and try to get your attention, Hey, don't ignore me or be more aggressive. And here it doesn't seem as bad to me, but maybe as a local or someone's been here longer, it might seem it's, it's a bigger problem or a bigger issue as far as the inconvenience of having them around or having to see them. And I get that this is more of a tourist city, so it  detracts or taints or stains that shine that you'd want to bring people in. But at the same time, you know, you're going to have that everywhere. It's not simply an issue one or two issues that  happen to you. It could be an untreated mental illness that they can't cope with owning or upkeeping a home or an apartment.

Richard Bednarski

I don't know if you're aware of the new CARES Campus that the City and the County are putting in down at the Governor's Bowl.

Gallo Chingon

Yes. I didn't know it was at Governor's Bowl, but I do remember whenever I drove by Fourth street, every now and again, I was seeing a tent where they were feeding them about a year or two years ago. It was a little before COVID started like that winter. I recall seeing that tent go up. So I liked seeing that they are not being as bad as other cities are just like, hurting them off to another location that they're trying to help them. And at the same time, there are those people that just don't want the help that they're just having that bitterness or resentment in general to the normal world. But you know, I think it would also help. I don't know if they're got anything else going on to help treat the mental health aspect of it, but I do like that at least they're addressing the issue and treating it more civilly than a criminal offense there. 

Richard Bednarski

What is your favorite thing about living here?

Gallo Chingon

I like all the variety of things that you can do pre-COVID. I loved all the festivals that we'd have from things. Memorial day to labor day, give or take. Hopefully now that we're gonna open up in June, those will start coming back. But at the same time is that you can make a friend anywhere you go pretty much. There's plenty of groups, Facebook, group meetups. So whatever hobby you have, you can just say I'm into salsa dancing, or I want to learn a language and just type in Reno and whatever your interest is. And you'll find a group and you can meet up. I don't know how open they are now, but at least you can find some type of new community, new home when you get here.

Richard Bednarski

Do you see Reno as your permanent home?

Gallo Chingon

Yes and no. I think it would probably be my home base. I'm considering going or doing the van life, just traveling around, living in a van. The rat race just no longer appeals to me. I'm not staying in a high, well paying job because I need the money. I want to be able to have more experiences than just sitting at home, watching TV. The only thing I miss is TexMex food and a couple others like restaurants from Texas, but I try to go back at least twice a year for that. 

Richard Bednarski

And lastly, what message do you want to tell the community of Reno?

Gallo Chingon

We're all human. Just, you know, regardless of how you see yourself or whatever your political views, if you see someone post something on social media or you meet someone in person, don't have that attitude of, well, if you don't agree with me, then you can unfriend me. Why don't you try to meet in the middle at least try to understand your friend, because like I said, we're all human. 

Reporting by Richard Bednarski for Our Town Reno

For Jami Cade, the Mission Will Continue in Reno

Jami Cade (far upper right in photo) is a veteran who just recently moved to Reno, and wants to start a Mission Continues Service Platoon here in Nevada. It’s part of the Wounded Warrior Project charity and veterans services organization to honor and empower post-9/11 injured service members, veterans, and their families.

After leaving the military, Cade, who went to college in Maryland, and served in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, said she wanted a fresh start and found herself in Reno. “I knew I wanted to do a volunteer group or donations to homeless shelters it was just going to happen regardless of where I moved to,” Cade said.

The Mission Continues initiative seeks to connect veterans with a new purpose: aiding under-resourced communities. Whether it be painting murals, organizing food drives, or helping plant community gardens, “we can get a lot done …it’s a platoon for you if you have the passion to serve,” Cade said.

These communal platoons also serve a secondary role: a place of camaraderie and connectivity for veterans looking to make a change in the community. The non-profit also helps with veteran’s self-care and mental health by surrounding them with other like-minded people who want to serve and help make an impact on their local communities after serving in the military.

Cade who was in leadership training at the time of our interview said she was looking to build a team so the service platoon can hit the ground running come the end of July when she is hoping to get it started. She’s already posted to Facebook groups like Things To Do in Reno. The Mission Continues is mainly a veterans organization but anyone of any age can volunteer, regardless of prior service.

Reporting by Enrique Hernandez for Our Town Reno

The Reno Gastro Project, Simultaneously Helping Local Restaurants and Those in Need

Since early February, the Reno Gastro Project, whose stated mission “is to support the local economy while feeding community members facing hunger”, has been purchasing restaurant meals at full price for those most in need.

In nearly three months, they have already raised about $16,000 dollars. Susan Abele, the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Nevada State Coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with three of her co-workers, had this vision in helping our neighbors in need. On a recent morning, she sat down with Our Town Reno reporter Richard Bednarski at the local restaurant, Lili’s Restaurant and Bar, over a cup of coffee.

“We’ve been raising money to buy meals from local restaurants at full price and provide the people in need,” said Abele as the chatter from early morning diners and wait staff filled the air.  She moved here in 2004 from Idaho and was recently inspired by a friend’s Facebook post about a similar project happening in Spokane, WA. Abele wanted to not only bring food to people who need it but also support the local restaurant scene as well. The initial campaign is focused on providing meals for the Eddy House, which helps youth without stable shelter. “Our goal is to provide two weeks of meals to the at-risk youth that they serve,” said Abele, as the waitress brought us each a cup of coffee. 

Officially launched on February third, the Reno Gastro Project is a licensed non-profit with the State of Nevada. They have also applied for 501(c) 3 status with the U.S. government and their application is pending. Once this happens, all donations will be tax-deductible. 

“We’ve supported over 20 local restaurants already,” explained Abele “and our goal is to support each one at a $1,000 a restaurant.” To date, the Reno Gastro Project has supported over 20 local restaurants. This includes Cherry Bomb Catering, who squeezed them in during a busy sold-out Easter Sunday in order to provide an Easter Brunch for the women at Casa de Vida. Other big players have been Two Chicks and Ijji Noodle House.  

Abele said participating restaurants and staff have been extremely supportive and some have even set up a donation page on their own websites. In addition to the meals purchased, Reno Gastro Project tips a standard 15% for every order.

“Every restaurant we have worked with has just been amazing,” Abele said as a waitress brought out a large aluminum pan of food and placed it on a table behind us. “It has been really fun for me, just getting to know some of these restaurant owners and how they’ve kind of weathered the storm this last year.” Wherever we are in this storm, groups like the Reno Gastro Project that have stepped up and developed a unique brand of mutual aid help the community survive the storm.

Another thing that the Reno Gastro Project provides is a diversity of quality food. Many times food handed out for those in need are staples like canned goods, bread, and sturdier fruits like apples and oranges. Being able to offer a range of meals augments the experience, particularly for the youth at the Eddy House. “This morning we’re getting Hawaiian fried rice,” explained Abele after a sip of coffee. “I’m guessing they haven’t had that either, it's a lot of fun trying to make it a culinary experience as well.”

Each meal provided helps feed people who do not have access to food, let alone restaurant meals and gives them an experience they most likely would not have otherwise. 

Moving forward, the Reno Gastro Project has identified a handful of organizations they want to work with once they complete their goals with the Eddy House. Currently they are looking into a partnership with the women’s shelter, Our Place. 

“The other thing we want to do is community events,” explained Abele. “We might buy 100 or 200 meals from a restaurant and just announce that to the people in Reno who might not be able to get a meal from a restaurant otherwise.” Abele hopes as the Reno Gastro Project grows there will be an organization who they are supporting can help facilitate these community meals.  

“Just being able to report that we are almost at a thousand meals to Eddy House is just beyond what we were anticipating,” explained Abele as more aluminum trays filled with food were brought out. Being able to do work of the magnitude in a short period of time really stands out to the group behind Reno Gastro Project. Moving forward, they are hopeful and eager to see where the project goes. 

“We recognize there are so many good things happening in Reno,” said Abele. “We just hope to add value and provide support to our existing network and hopefully together we can make a dent in food insecurity in our community.”

Reporting and Photos by Richard Bednarski for Our Town Reno

Reno's Public Transportation Gets a Boost, Greener Service and Nicer Stops

Better and Better Bus Service

The website WalletHub recently placed Reno eighth in a ranking of U.S. cities, for best public transportation, behind Seattle, Boston and San Francisco, but still respectable, and possibly surprising to some tired of long waits in between buses.

Reno even placed first in a sub category called Public Transit Resources rank, while losing overall points, ranking quite low in accessibility and convenience.

The rankings may keep trending upwards though as The Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) of Washoe County recently completed their "Virginia Street RAPID Transit Line," a multi year project which brings several new stops and buses connecting the University to Midtown and Meadowood Mall further south.

The new Virginia Street RAPID is also using a 100% electric fleet, making its green ranking go up as well.

This project also created wider sidewalks in Midtown, adding roundabouts and trees and made the entire route more pedestrian and bike friendly.

Bridges in Community

The newly constructed bus stops along the route also look a lot different than just a sign post and maybe a bench. Partially enclosed, lit for safety and visually appealing, they are also giving the route a cleaner, sleeker, more modern look.

The additions will make it easier for UNR students to get from campus to local businesses around Midtown and Meadowood Mall areas as part of long standing efforts to create more bridges in the community between its university population and others. Whether this will create gentrifying effects, or whether students will create a positive effect beyond their regular N. Virginia street haunts remains to be seen.

Reporting and Photography by Bryan Hofmann shared with Our Town Reno

AAPMCO, a Local Moving Company Pushes Through Pandemic

Herculean Tasks

Running a small business is difficult in the best of times. In these pandemic times, it’s herculean, much like moving a Concert Grand piano.

Brandon Manion, who owns Anytime Anywhere Piano & Moving Co., specializes in moving pianos, but also in a fitting, eclectic local style, moves gun safes, hot tubs, furniture and more as indicated on the company’s social media.

When COVID first struck, AAPMCO was in a tough spot, according to Manion. The company wasn’t sure where they stood as far as being an essential business. 

“I wasn’t really sure if we should be out in the field, to be respectful of what’s going on, and also to not break the law. So, we kind of had to do our due diligence and see where that laid out. We were actually good, so that didn’t end up being too much of a problem,” he said. 

After the company figured out that they could continue to run, they had to solve the same question everyone else did: how can we operate, but do it in a safe fashion? It was a bit of a learning curve, as it was for everyone else. 

Keeping Distance and Masks On in People’s Homes

A moving company comes with a lot of person-to-person interactions, as well as physical activity, so the adjustment that Manion and his workers had to make was a pretty big one. 

“Even little things, like knocking on the door and walking ten feet away. They give us permission if we have masks, and sometimes they will require gloves or booties. We have hand sanitizer and disinfectant to put the customers at ease, but in our line of work, the customers give us space. We might be in their home, but we’re never in the vicinity of the customer,” he explained. 

Being clean is a big part of what they make sure to do now. Sanitizing the equipment inside and outside of the trucks is a big part of their routine, and some customers will sanitize inside of their homes before they arrive. 

“We have our masks on and we’re sweating up a storm, and we can’t just take them off. We have to get it to a point where it’s safe, and exchange people going outside to catch their breath and cool off. It kind of makes things difficult when you want to stay in the guidelines, but it’s been unique,” he said. 

As far as personal protective equipment goes, such as masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer, AAPMCO has to buy it all themselves. “That kind of stuff gets costly when you have to consistently buy it,” Manion said. As a small business, they don’t have the luxury of those things being provided for them, so they have to purchase it themselves. They keep spray bottles on their trucks, but they get their sanitizers from a former customer who owns a distillery, and Manion gets six gallons at a time. 

“You just have to put out fire after fire and it’s about persistency and consistency,” Manion said of running a business, “There’s always going to be things knocking you off, and you just have to make sure you re-focus and keep chugging along because that’s part of being of business owner. “

Reporting by Sean O’Leary for Our Town Reno

Kelsey Sweet's Golden Unikorn Combats Sexual Assaults in Local Arts Scene

Recently, you may have noticed a golden unicorn being toted around in the back of a pickup truck or maybe rolling (literally) around downtown with Kelsey Sweet as a human statue painted from head to toe in gold as its cohort.

 Sweet, a Northern Nevada native, local artist, performer, curator, and advocate for suicide prevention and sexual assault awareness, also runs parlorMINT – a collective of various services aiming to “cultivate conscious co-creative communities” and help local artists. Currently striving for a PhD at UNR, Kelsey bases her educational research around the overall awareness of artistic work and how it is portrayed to those around us.

The idea of the Golden Unikorn (with an affiliated Instagram called goldenladysunikorn) came from Sweet’s personal journey and healing process through previous traumas. “So part of my masters in transformative leadership, I had to come up with a capstone project or some sort of like community based project where we take some idea and then try to execute it within a community to see what happens, and that’s the Golden Unikorn.”

Referencing one of her previous art pieces, a book called The Open Jar, Sweet said that the Golden Unikorn was basically that book come to life, or “different vignettes throughout history and examples of what sexual violence has looked like kind of throughout the course of time.” Thus, making the Golden Unikorn unquestionably special was key, not only as a personal art piece for Kelsey, but also as an embodiment of the recognition of sexual violence in our community and the necessity for prevention.

Unbeknownst to far too many of us in Reno is the alarmingly large and increasing number of documented sexual violence cases in our city. Recent numbers put the Biggest Little City at just about twice the national average of reported rapes, growing rapidly in the past few years. Statistically speaking, this leaves the art scene in Reno with just as much responsibility as any other.

Kelsey Sweet giving me a tour of her vast collection of art pieces, explaining along the way what each one meant to her.

Although she says she wishes she could cast a bigger net and help many more, Kelsey focuses most of her efforts on spreading awareness through Reno, using her art and research as a means of doing so. One of the platforms Kelsey has created through her artistic and scholarly exploration is called SITAS, which stands for Sex in the Art Scene. SITAS is a forum that aims to establish a better understanding of sexual assault in the art scene, along with formulating practical solutions within our community for prevention. For the past three years, Kelsey has advocated SITAS during the month of April – nationally recognized as Sexual Assault Awareness Month – and has been doing so this year as well.

Although meant originally for a form of personal expression and therapy, the Golden Unikorn is beginning to become something more than just that. “You know, it's a hit piece, it draws attention, it's big. It's a real-life sized unicorn and you can see it when you’re driving downtown.” And what quite possibly makes it the best agent for promoting awareness and achieving true change is its ability to grab positive attention from the community. “It just makes people smile, makes little kids smile. I mean, I don't have to talk about the sexual assault side of it and why I have it or getting to dress up as a golden lady and playing the statue.”

Sweet as the golden statue with the Golden Unikorn at a recent art sale show in downtown Reno. Photo by Rachel Jackson.

Reporting and Photos by Jayme Souza for Our Town Reno

Hampton House Garden Project Aims to Help and Heal

A Garden for the People

With temperatures rising and skies clearing, activist Lily Baran started her day on a recent Saturday tending to a batch of strawberry seedlings she received from a farm in Dayton, Nevada. Her son Oliver and her dog Champagne are close behind, dodging wasps here and there. Once frost is a threat of the past, the seedlings can be put into the ground to bloom and grow into red delicious berries. For now, they are one of the first batches of seedlings grown by the Hampton House Community Garden Project.

Baran, a Reno citizen of almost eight years, partnered with Black Wall Street Reno about two months ago to start the project. Starting April 10th, volunteers will be welcome at 12 p.m. on Saturdays at 638 Elko Avenue to garden.

“I think I've always loved gardening, but, in my work and organizing and activism have really wanted to find a way after such a traumatic year for everyone, but especially for Black and Indigenous people, to try to find a way that we can have a space where we're restoring and healing and taking care of each other and ourselves and our communities.”

Baran says gardening is a way for Black and Indigenous people to heal, while also connecting to their roots. 
“You couldn't walk to get a fresh head of lettuce in this neighborhood, in the snow. You know, you wouldn't do that if you didn't have a car, and that's intentional, I think, and I'd like to, you know, improve that.” 

Volunteers have cleared the area of the backyard and started compost piles, which are turned every other day. Baran’s plans for the future include flowers, goats, and a beehive, alongside fruits and vegetables in the garden. Photo by Rachel Jackson.

Baran’s Vision

Baran’s current activism, engagement with the community and work for local progress goes much further than just running the garden. During the day, she works for Assemblywoman Shondra Summers-Armstrong from Assembly District 6 at the Nevada Legislature. She is also a musician and music teacher. Aside from her day jobs, she is a mother to her son Oliver, who often lends a helping hand with the garden.

“The vision is like, there are kids in the neighborhood, they don't have anything to do. Their parents maybe can't afford a summer camp or whatever. They come over here, they're picking strawberries, they're, you know, making honey, they're making their own salads or making French fries with the potatoes they grew, and they're feeling like they're a part of something and they're having fun and experience while also learning how to do, you know, something that's essential to survival and always has been.”

All of the food harvested will be donated to those in need.

“Reno is way too small with way too many houses and, development to have to be experiencing a crisis on this level,” Baran said of the current housing crisis, noting a lack of compassion towards the houseless community. “These people are brilliant minds in our community that could be, you know, participating in it and helping.”

After making a Facebook post asking for donations, HHGP received dozens of packets of seeds in the mail, ranging from watermelon and pepper seeds to sunflower and marigold seeds.

Mutual Aid and Marigolds

“I think Reno is a beautiful, a beautiful community that deserves much better. And I think that the way that we do that is by holding elected officials accountable, becoming elected officials and improving our community, no matter how small, you know, just doing something, to unite each other,” Baran said.

With the recent donations of seeds for the project, Baran is especially excited to plant marigolds for the incoming beehive from Wendy Baroli from Girlfarm, located 20 miles north of Reno. Baran loves marigolds not only for their beauty and pollen, but also their symbolism. In some traditions, marigolds are given to those who have lost a loved one. 

“The other thing about them is that I give them away a lot because they're, the coolest thing is that they produce so many more marigolds out of the one. So one flower, you pull it out and there's like a hundred more seeds out of that one flower.” 

Much like marigolds, Baran’s impacts others by a hundredfold. Mutual aid is her answer to what her and many others can do as individuals to help their communities. About a half hour into the gardening session, volunteer Jerome Silas showed up to help, as well as get some much needed healing after a long year for himself, with his participation in countless Black Lives Matter protests.

Baran teaches Silas the basics of planting seeds into pots that will later be transferred into the ground. 

From Protests to Planting

Silas unintentionally went viral last year when a photo was taken of him at a Black Lives Matter protest in Minden, Nevada. The Aug. 8, 2020, photo by photographer Jason Bean shows Silas surrounded by armed counter-protesters.

While that moment has been talked about in news outlets and online, the lasting effects of last summer and protests have taken a toll. The Hampton House Community Garden Project is aimed at just that: helping people heal. 

While people often count the amount of protestors injured, few take into account the trauma involved with having to protest for your right to live. The fear of being surrounded by open carriers and police officers as a Black person in America has lasting effects, even after everyone goes home. 

As Baran put it, the garden was made, “to make something out of something good out of something bad.” 

Reporting by Rachel Jackson for Our Town Reno

Neon Reno, Through the Lens of Carley Olson

The best part about Reno is the neon lights you can find at night. They fill up the city creating odd shapes, colors, and patterns all the while helping light up the night sky. The way they reflect on our city is a wholesome reminder of this lively city.

Photos and Text by Carley Olson shared with Our Town Reno

Paying Homage to the Godfather of Graffiti in the Truckee Meadows

Graffiti’s Roots, from New York City to the Biggest Little City

Known as Rakos, Beau B Bevier, a pillar of the local art, skateboarding and graffiti scene recently passed away, leaving a huge hole in the hearts of many. It’s a moment for other graffiti artists to reflect on their journeys and the history of their craft.

As a fresh blanket of snow slowly melted underfoot, we caught up with the graffiti artist known as Easoe to learn more about Reno’s graffiti scene. He has been in and out of Reno for over 30 years.

“Graffiti as we know it started in New York City,” he explained to us during our recent interview, referring to spray painted lettering and images. It first came about in the 1960s and 70s as a creative expression. It came of age alongside Hip-hop and other subcultures of the time. People would use the spray paint to define their name in simple letters. “From there it grew, it elevated, and became what people think of as graffiti nowadays,” Easoe said. 

Easoe likens it to cursive writing and calligraphy, “it’s an artform itself,” he said. There are many types of graffiti, including the throw-up style, “quick bubble style letters which can be filled in or left hollow.” There is also the funk style, which Easoe has long admired. He describes it as a clean, easy-to-read lettering that anyone can understand and appreciate. “Some people’s writing isn’t nice and pretty to look at as others,” he said relating graffiti to people’s handwriting. 

This particular piece is a tribute to Beau Rakos, who recently passed away. Rakos was one of the original graffiti artists in the Reno scene. Easoe explained these large pieces combining many different elements take the most time. Through the process they become a labor of love. 

From a University Wall to Milk Trucks, Gallery Shows and City Sanctioned Commissions

Easoe, who has also spent time in the Bay Area, has been working in and out of Reno as a graffiti artist since the mid-90s. He remembers the city had a permitted legal graffiti wall near the university that he would often hone his skills on. “There were also milk trucks,” he said, whose owners gave permission to artists to paint.

“As far as what everybody believes, everybody looks at Rakos as the pioneer, the godfather of graffiti here in Reno,” Easoe explained of the tribute piece he’s helping with right now. He remember how he and Rakos became fast friends. Rakos served not only as a mentor but a source of inspiration for many. Easoe attributes Rakos for connecting him with a group of talented artists that is known today as the TME crew. From 1995 onwards, the graffiti scene just blossomed and more and more people became involved. By the 2000s the community had grown to accept graffiti. “Those were great years here in Reno,” he said.

Artists began getting gallery shows and commissioned work. Easoe looks back at those years almost as the golden years of graffiti. “Nowadays, within the last few years, it’s really been shut down,” he explained. He notes there is far less graffiti around town today, however, there are a few legal walls remaining.

Perhaps gentrification is at fault. Easoe explained a recent incident that resulted in the painting over of a mural. According to him, a local graffiti artist was commissioned by the owner of a building in Midtown. He wanted a mural on the outside of his building. Soon after the work was completed the artist noticed it was painted over. According to the owner, the city’s graffiti abatement team came down and painted over the mural without reaching out to him.

What the community does see “are a few artists in town that mainly get all the commission walls, that would be Joe C. Rock and Eric Burke,” Easoe said. He is hoping the TME crew can get more work this coming spring and summer. He really wants to showcase their talents to the community.

The Rakos trademark lettering is part of the tribute. “It seems like people aren’t really open to lettering,” Easoe said as to why it’s important to include these elements. “They like pretty scenery or characters and what graffiti really is, it’s letters first.”

Being a Traditionalist and Dealing with Police

He hopes the community can open up their minds and let them show their artwork like they did ten to fifteen years ago. Reno has a deep history in graffiti, with the train tracks running through town, the milk trucks, and Easoe wants this to remain a part of Reno’s identity. 

He feels the recent pushback from the community could be due to the prevalence of tagging. These are small and quick pieces that often go up illegally on private property. He notes that the graffiti laws have become far stricter in recent years and has heard about the police keeping files together of an individual’s work. Once they have accumulated enough evidence for a felony case, “they can put you away for quite a long time,” he said, as has been the case a few times recently according to local media reports.

While Easoe does not have a problem with the police and wants to raise his family in a safe community, he does not want to be viewed as a criminal. “People who look at graffiti as vandalism, they look at us as outlaws. I think if they sat with us and talked with us for a little while, they would genuinely enjoy us,” he said.

On a personal level, Easoe first fell in love with graffiti in the San Francisco Bay area in the early 1990s and that is where he learned about many of the unwritten rules. For example, he learned that if he tagged over a masterpiece or graffiti that honored someone, he most certainly would get a “stiff beating.” 

“I’m inspired by letters,” explained Easoe as the snow crunches under our feet. Perhaps a traditionalist in the graffiti realm the work he has done has long focused on the lettering of his name. His work is often attributed to the funk style, mentioned above. This style creates legible and clean writing. Anyone can read these pieces. “Everywhere I see letters” he said “I get inspired.” This allows him to find inspiration all around him in urban spaces where there are signs. Another style Easoe talked about is wild style where there is a lot going on in the piece. The work itself serves to camouflage the letters to the point of illegibility. He does not enjoy this style, but instead as an artist, believes “you just gotta keep elevating and you’ll bend those letters in certain ways.”

Recent photos on Easoe’s Instagram feed pay homage to Rakos and also show some of his own recent work.

Surviving the Loss of a Mentor to Many

The art community suffered a major loss a few weeks ago when Beau Rakos passed away. He was an innovator and his work long inspired Easoe. “He did original stuff,” said Easoe. “There’s things that you see that he wouldn’t have to write his name next too.” The community knew it was Rakos’ work. Rakos developed trademark pieces, like a curvy peanut or impressionable cassette tape, often with wings. Or fish that look like stars. 

The piece in the top photos of this story is an honor to who Rakos was. Commissioned by the owners of the building, letters bigger than life, done in the Hollywood blockbuster, dwarf anyone admiring the work. The unfinished piece features some of Rakos’ most known work. “We wanted it to look like he actually painted it,” explained Easoe as we walked among the massive letters. The mural is done in a gray shade of light blue and features a portrait of Rakos painted by Joe C. Rock. They hope to have the piece finished over the next couple weeks. 

Rakos’ work can be spotted in and around the Truckee Meadows. His definitive style often stood alone without his name. 

How Easoe became Easoe and a Family Man

“I’ve had that name for forever,” Easoe explained during our interview walking around the Rakos hommage piece. He received his own artist name from a mentor.

“I’ve always had Easoe, it actually first started out as Ease.” Early on in San Francisco, Easoe noticed other graffiti artists adding an O to their name, like a guy he knew wrote Twist and it soon became Twisto. And Bless became Blesso. Ease became Easoe, “it just stuck, I never wrote Ease again.”

“They are totally getting into it, they helped us out with this wall,” laughed Ease, a father, when asked if he plans to pass on the family trade to his two kids. He wants them to value the art and the skill of graffiti but plans, he says, to stop them short of illegal activity. Having been arrested several times, he doesn’t want that for his kids. “I’ve got a family, I’m married, I’ve got responsibilities,” said Easoe. “I am not so much into the illegal part of graffiti.” But he still likes to get out there and create as much as he can. 

Nowadays, he says he spends time working on commissions and canvas work. He has found a following of supportive people allowing him to further pursue his creative endeavors. His work is featured on his Instagram page, cool_easoe_rock. He said the TME crew would be absolutely honored to paint walls for people. 

“The idea of what people might have of us, being graffiti writers, being criminals, yes, some of the graffiti you see is illegal. It is criminal. I’m hoping that people open up their minds to the fact that it is an art form. And if given the chance we can create some really beautiful work.”

Reporting by Richard Bednarski for Our Town Reno

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Michael Sion, Bringing some of the Baddest Little City Out in Song on Social Media

Pranks, Sketches and Repeat Mode to Promote his Music

Whether it’s watching him doing headstands in the mud, playing chess by himself while performing a comedic sketch, or seeing multiple video snippets of his catchy (Long As) We Got Honkytonks song (“You can take away my job and pay, tell me to drink alone. But long’s I got good friends to meet, headin’ down to the honkytonk”), former longtime Reno resident and quirky renaissance man Michael Sion provides a social media balm for these mostly dreary times.  

“You get nowhere being negative,” Sion, who goes by Smiley Mikey on his YouTube channel and lists his age as OAF (Old as F) told us during a recent phone interview.  “Artists are supposed to reflect the world around them, but there is also a duty incumbent upon artists to make the world better. What better way to make it a better place now than to be positive and lift people's spirits?”

Sion sees the pandemic and uncertain political times as an opportunity to adapt and keep moving forward, using more social media, finding animators and others online to make his style come alive from Tik Tok to YouTube, not forgetting Facebook and Instagram either.  

“My mind is a weird place and I'm not consciously trying to do music or comedy,” he said of his style, which he described as unpredictable, multi-level and irreverent. “It just happens that way, that when I write songs, I approach a topic in a way that nobody else has, because I have my own weirdness.”

“On one level it's parody of cowboy country music,” Sion said of the song above. “I wrote one of the most ludicrous lines I could think of to make fun of current country music. Most of it just talking about alcohol, I wrote ‘long as we got honky-tonks, this country will be free.’ However, it also works as a fun spirit lifting, you know, two-step song,  and it also does say in a very positive way, on another level, let's get out there and party and have fun and not let COVID or the recession get us down. And, you know, I'm not telling people to go out there and not distance and not wear masks or anything like that, but I'm saying, ‘Hey, if your bar is open and it's following the guidelines for safety, get out there and have some fun and quit staying at home, binging on Netflix and Hulu. And so the song works on different levels and that's because my mind is a weird place and approaches topics from different angles just naturally.”

“Reno as a Chrysalis”

Sion is also a non-stop self promoter. “I take official videos and chop them up into 15 or 20 seconds and put those smaller versions out there. I send them out there and it makes people happy,” he said of one of his tactics. “Even once in a while, when you encounter a troll,… well, even that gives them a nice adrenaline rush or a rush of serotonin. So in that regard, it's made them happy.”  He adapts strategies to different platforms and has noticed love on Facebook being more “rustic and rural. “

“As long as it makes them happy or angry, just as long as it has some reaction, then I've done my job. And my ultimate goal is just to get my songs stuck in people's heads for the rest of their lives, become part of them. That's my goal,” he said.

In a previous incarnation, as an investigative journalist for the Reno Gazette-Journal, Sion used to cover the methamphetamine crisis, prostitution, gambling as well as the cultural scene coming from and through the Biggest Little City. 

“Reno is a very strange and fascinating crossroads of the world,” he said.  Sion also had a four-year stint as the Silver and Blue magazine editor at UNR, and along the way became a ghostwriter and massage therapist. He started doing music and comedy at local open mic nights, and then started writing songs and getting them recorded, moving on to playing local stages and being featured on KTHX-FM. 

In Reno, he explained in our interview, “even total beginners can explore their passions and develop, whether it's on community stages, as an actor or as burlesque performer, whatever it is, this is a great place to start. And you can take it to the next level. I've met young performers who I used to collaborate with going on to Nashville, LA, New York, Paris, wherever, and really forging, you know, international careers or national caliber careers. Or even if you stay in Reno, you can still do quite well. Use Reno as your chrysalis, as your cocoon.”

Sion is now in Santa Rosa, California, “for a variety of reasons,” but says he may end up moving back to Reno “by the end of this year, possibly or not, but possibly nevertheless.” For his recent music videos, he’s worked with fire dancers, circus performers, aerialists, jugglers, models, a tattoo artist, actors, sound engineers, videographers and other musicians from Reno.  

Don’t Wanna Buy a Gun, a family affair involving two Sion sons, which was recorded in Reno, has gotten nearly 40,000 views since its release on YouTube several months ago.  “I’m promoting it hard and it's doing very well and I'm hoping it'll get to a hundred thousand views by April and then hopefully a million views by the end of the year,” he said.

Counteracting the COVID Blues

For those feeling the COVID-19 blues, Sion recommends taking action. “If you're business-minded with any kind of business you have in any field, you play the field as the field is, you don't sit around, not doing anything, not taking risks, not trying to find out how to get your art out in front of people,” he said.

“You do not do that. Nothing ever good comes from that. Nothing ever positive comes from negative thinking. You simply adapt and you find new ways to get your art out there. If you don't have a burning passion to get your art out there, so be it, but that's on you, not the universe. There are so many avenues to try. Not everything you do is going to work in life. But if you have a burning passion to connect with people and get your art out there, you will find a way. And the internet is obviously an easy way to do it.” 

What does he miss about Reno? 

“Reno, historically going back to its roots as Lake’s Crossing was a crossroads of the world and it had an uncanny amount of creativity and an entrepreneurship far out of proportion to its small population,” he said.  (Reno’s first name was for the toll bridge that spanned the Truckee River close to the present day Virginia Street bridge.)  “I miss the rugged individualism of Nevada,” he added. “Sometimes it could get very hardcore, but I kind of miss that because it's part of me now.”

Sion worries Reno is becoming “homogenized because greed in the real estate market brings out the worst in people. And, it brings a lot of people moving in to the market from elsewhere who don't have that rugged individualistic attitude, or they don't have an appreciation for Reno's culture and its past, they're just coming as equity migrants to buy a lot of land. And then not really contributing to the culture that's already there so that it won't be as interesting anymore. That's a fear, but maybe it's unjustified,” he said.

Before releasing new songs, Sion is dead set on having his recent ones reach more people.  

He’s also working on two book projects and says it’s never too late to get six-pack abs.  “I’m going for it, man, even at my age. So hopefully in a few months, I'll have six-pack abs. And by the end of 2021, I'll possibly be returning to the BLC, the 775, the baddest little city in the world.”

“I wanted to try animation because I thought that it would just be a cool way to present the songs,” he said of a recent approach. “And it would be very different from having live humans in it, like my other ones, my other videos have had. Anytime you try to put together a creative project involving many people, it's the same as running a business, you've got to manage and recruit and get the best out of the people you bring along. I'm the kind of person when I hire other creatives to do work on my creative projects, I do not micromanage. I give general guidance. I give input along the way, but I let them do things. So they come up with their own visions that works.”

Our Town Reno Interview, January 2021

Tim Meevasin: A Local Personal Chef, Small Business Owner, and “Paella Guy”

All smiles with personal chef Tim Meevasin who struggled at the start of the pandemic, but has rebounded since.

Finding a Life Balance in Reno

As COVID-19 continues to take its toll on small businesses all over the country, Tim Meevasin has witnessed some of this change in his own small business.

“In the very beginning with the shut down, (it was) almost dead. We worked maybe two days out of the month for three months,” said Tim Meevasin, owner of Tim Meevasin Personal Chef in Reno, serving the Biggest Little City and surrounding areas, with a signature paella party dish.  

Meevasin is originally from Las Vegas, but he’s called Reno home for the last 18 years. He first moved to Reno in 2002 to attend the University of Nevada, Reno with a Millennium Scholarship. After studying Business Management at UNR, Meevasin studied Culinary Arts at Truckee Meadows Community College and was certified by the American Culinary Federation, finding his path. 

Meevasin grew up in the kitchen and was always surrounded by food. Not only did he grow up cooking food all the time, but Meevasin loved watching cooking shows. “I watched Emeril and Julia Child. And I love to eat. It’s always (has been) big in our (Thai) culture,” he said.

In his short bio on his website, he wrote that he loved to sit, “at the kitchen table watching his grandma fix dinners and pretending to help her just to get free samples.”

In culinary school, Meevasin was introduced to many new dishes and was able to travel to Italy, Spain, and Japan just to name a few, where was exposed to different ways of cooking. He decided that being a personal chef was what he wanted to do because it allowed to do what he loves, cooking, while also having a balanced life that working in a restaurant would not grant him. 

“Today we actually cooked. I left my house at eight o’clock and it’s 2 o’clock and we’ve already unloaded, had lunch, and I’m done with work,” said Meevasin. “Ya know what I mean? The balance is way better and that’s a huge, huge part of it.”

Tim Meevasin smiles with recent clients and several dishes. One is a valencia with extra green beans and the other is a large seafood paella with clams, mussels, shrimp, calamari, and lemon. 

Adapting to a COVID-19 World

Meevasin started his personal chef and catering business in 2014. Since then, he has become known as the “paella guy,” offers different versions of the famous Spanish dish. “A meal prep is us going out to the client’s home, we do all the grocery shopping and menu planning and we cook a ton of meals and then we cool it, package it, and we’re out the door,” said Meevasin, of a typical business day. 

Meevasin also offers cooking classes for any clients who want them. It is a relaxed course where Meevasin teaches them how to make a dish in the client’s home. Meevasin sees it as another way to connect with clients if they want to learn how to make dishes such as risotto or paella. 

The intimacy of Meevasin’s business is what makes it stand out in Reno. Not only does he get jobs by word of mouth mostly, but works in clients’ homes. This allows for a connection to be built with Meevasin and his customers.

Meevasin says he doesn’t do any advertising, but mainly relies on word of mouth to get his next gig. In recent months, he said, business has really picked up again. “Since people can’t go out and do stuff, they’re doing small dinner parties like backyard outdoor paella parties or a small indoor plated dinner,” he said.

Now, Meevasin is doing smaller groups more frequently because of COVID-19 safety regulations. Meevasin did not file for the CARES Act or unemployment because technically during this time he was still working. Although Meevasin did apply for the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), but he says he only got very little because of being one person in charge of a small business. 

“I just feel like the business environment is going to change so much in the next, it already has, but even continuing with COVID/flu season and we’re spiking right now in Reno,” he said. “I think businesses have to be able to adapt, a lot of businesses have to figure out how to still stay relevant if COVID shuts everything down because it’s hard depending on your business model.” 

He’s optimistic for his own business model. “I think there’s a lot of business opportunities, there’s wealthier people moving into Reno from all over but, mainly the Bay, that creates opportunities,” he said.

He’s also happy to call Reno home despite all the current challenges.

“We love the mountains, we love the outdoors. I feel like being close to the Bay Area, being close to Yosemite, Mammoth, and honestly Tahoe. It’s a good mix of (like) recreational and professional, without being too big,” said Meevasin of why he’s stuck around. 

Reporting by Marisa Sachau for Our Town Reno

Chase McMullen, Documenting northern Nevada's Supportive Skateboarding Scene

Coming Back to Skateboarding

As a local 14-year-old skater anxiously stands on the top of the ramp at Burgess Skate Park in Sparks in hopes of overcoming his fear and drops into the ramp, his friends begin to yell encouraging words mixed with some use of profanity to display their support. 

The young boy listens to the older skaters’s advice but still seems blinded by his nerves. Suddenly the phrase, “You got this little man,” is chanted by Chase McMullen and the 14-year-old’s confidence seems to rise to a new level as he places the wheels of his board on the rail facing the ramp. “You can do it.” The skateboarder looks up to see Chase McMullen smiling and the anticipation of all his other skater friends. Suddenly, the boy releases the tension in his shoulders and leans in. And as the boy successfully completes his trick, the entire skatepark bursts into a brilliantly loud display of cheers. 

Chase McMullen is a social media personality, photographer and documentarian who grew up in Reno as a part of the skate community. McMullen’s love for skateboarding has been constant since he started skating as a kid, but he says he found his true calling when he began filming his friends and others skating.

For a while, he left the scene, trying to make money, but now he’s back.

“Coming back to skateboarding, you know, you come back to it because you love it. In my particular instance, I kind of got blackballed because I stopped shooting skateboarding. I did corporate. And a lot of people didn't like that. And skateboarding is like a brotherhood. You have to be down for the skate community. You have to continue to skate and prove yourself, and you have to lead the next generation. And I was totally lost with all that. I wasn't leading anybody.”

McMullen is all smiles among skateboarders.

 An Instagram Page to Motivate

McMullen says he started the Instagram “to motivate the next generation of skateboarders in town.”  He believes he is leading by example. 

While McMullen was growing up in Reno, he remembers the skater community was not as strong.  Older skaters did not provide encouragement when he was trying to learn, he says. “A lot of the mistakes that happened when we were younger, we didn't have an older generation to lead us around,” he said.

McMullen understands the importance of having role models and knowledgeable people to uplift one’s spirit when skating.

“When the people that you look up to don't give you the time of day, then, . . . it kills your self-confidence, . . . you're not motivated. You become insecure.”

The Instagram page he is developing in contrast makes the entire community of skateboarders supportive.

“The real idea with the Reno skateboarding stuff, in the long run, is to set a good example for the next generation of skaters and to try to create a spotlight for the skaters in our city.  There’s a lot of talented skaters in our city… It's cool watching those clips go up, and people respond to them.”

“It kind of blows my mind a little bit, but like, if it can continue to do as good as it's been doing, you know, and it can continue to get those type of views; then it can help skaters in town to get the attention that they need or deserve...So the idea is to help the skaters.” 

From Making Trouble to Helping Others

McMullen started to post clips of the skaters earlier this year during the turbulence and blur of 2020. When he first posted, he didn't expect the excitement and traction he initially got.  Moving forward, McMullen only hopes to increase his following and improve his mini-films.

“It's not going to stop, that's for sure,” he said of the Instagram page. “You know, we're going to continue to shoot and create new content.” McMullen even hopes to create a business around this in the near future.

As a young boy,  McMullen admits he was a troublemaker. While he was growing up, he and his friends lived “Reno tough,” meaning he did not always follow the rules.  In some cases, McMullen encountered rough times, rambunctious crowds, and battled with a rowdy attitude.

“You know, you lose track of what skateboarding is about and you become a different person when you don't get attention. And when you're young, and you're stupid, and you're around the wrong things, you do the wrong things...I've had a lot of friends turn to drugs because of the negativity, you know, various things like that  are just negative impacts on somebody's life.”

Skateboarding became an outlet for McMullen. When he needed a sense of belonging, McMullen could go to the skate park in hopes of calming his anger towards the world.  McMullen would throw himself into skating. 

McMullen wishes when he and his friends were teens that they saw the enjoyment in the hobby. “You know,  when I was younger, we would take everything so seriously. Like, I mean, we had to land tricks ten times, and if we didn't get it clean, or I mean, clean to us, you know, we'd have to redo it and do it over again and do it over again. And that's not skateboarding. That's not fun, for the most part, this is again about having fun.”

As McMullen stepped back from his situation, he realized that his love for skating did not disappear. Finding the true purpose of skateboarding pushed McMullen to discover how lucky he was to have his own form of meditation.

“I love skateboarding. . . I love the freedom. I love how it feels. I like the brotherhood of it. I like the vibe. I feel more happy and comfortable when I go home after I leave the skate park.  It gives me peace of mind. Anytime I feel like I have something going on in my life or a problem, I just get on my board, and skate around, and I feel a lot better when I'm done,” McMullen (here filming on the left) said.

Perseverance for Obstacles in Life

While skateboarding may be a sense of escape for many, mastering its difficulties can build perseverance for obstacles later in life. Balance, coordination, and concentration are only some of the traits required in landing a trick.

A skater’s patience and persistence are the key factors in becoming an accomplished skater.

“Skateboarding … you can't just talk about it. You gotta be about it,” McMullen explained.

When a skateboarder finally conquers a trick, the acclamation and sense of accomplishment encourages them to be confident in their abilities more often. McMullen loves the city of Reno. Choosing Reno to be the main focus of his filming proved to be the right answer, he says.

“Our city is so much better than so many skate scenes because everybody truly does support each other. Like, without a doubt, you don't get that in a lot of cities. You really don't. “

Reporting by Gracie Godon for Our Town Reno

Kristina Mason, a "Light for Others", and an OG member of the Reno Burrito Project

Inspired by Others on the Streets and in the Community

As the Reno Burrito Project has steadily grown with new volunteers and initiatives since the pandemic began, there are a few OG members that have had a huge impact on the success of this project. Kristina Mason joined The Reno Burrito Project in April of 2020. She was one of the first few members that joined and still attends every weekend. 

The time and effort the volunteers put in every weekend is something many people may not have the motivation to do in times like these.

“I’m driven to participate every weekend because I appreciate seeing what can happen when the community comes together. Not only do we get to hang out with like-minded people as we give out burritos, but we learn so much from the houseless. Their stories, their perseverance and ability to adapt to the streets is incredibly inspiring,” Mason said. 

Other volunteers, social media support and community donations also drive her.

“I think the most important aspect of RBP is community, 110%! As we’re all aware, 2020 has been a mess of a year. Our ability to socialize in a positive, covid-friendly environment is so awesome! I think seeing people from different backgrounds come together with a common purpose reminds us of the important things in life when the media only seems to remind us of the ugliest parts of society.”

Lots of preparation happens before the distribution, and Mason has played a key role in making sure it’s an efficient process.

How to Stay Positive 

Mason finds joy in helping her community and spending time to get to know the houseless. Although it may not be easy every weekend, she finds it is important to stay consistent. 

“I think it can definitely be a struggle to remain enthusiastic at times. We try to take the time to talk to people and learn their stories, so sometimes it’s disheartening to see people every Sunday,” she said. “But, I stay enthusiastic by trying to be a light for others. This isn’t for us, so for a few hours on Sundays, I put my life aside and try to do my best to lift up others,” Mason says. 

“I thought I would stay for 15 minutes and then leave because I was having a really rough day,” she said of starting out the project. “I never thought I’d start going weekly or see this idea turn into such a well-known project.” 

Helping new volunteers has been a challenge as well. “I would say that as the project got bigger, we were just able to expand our reach and impact in the community. Although, I think more recently having new volunteers every weekend has shifted a bit of the focus on guiding the new volunteers rather than just sitting with people and getting to know our friends on the streets.” 

Reaching out to people in need during the winter can also be more difficult as they tend to be less out and about on colder days.

Mason recently graduated in May from the University of Nevada, Reno with a BA in International Affairs with an emphasis on Africa. She hopes to one day work in public service. Whether that be researching Africa-US relations or working in the United States Bureau of African Affairs, or working for an international organization, Mason is on a path to keeping trying to make the world a better, more caring place.

Reporting by Kate Behring for Our Town Reno

Kid Rocker Reno, Leading a New Generation of Local Musicians Despite Many Challenges

The Best He Can Be

For Lucas Stephenson, the Board Director and Founder of the local non-profit Kid Rocker, teaching music through study and public performances, including for free for at-risk youths, music is an underrated tool that can help bring hope, peace and confidence.

Stephenson believes music is within everyone. “Music is in every human being. . . . I believe every human being has a hit song inside of them,” he said.

Growing up, Stephenson, himself, did not always have the resources to attend music lessons or own a musical instrument. Music became an outlet and a resource for Stephenson to change his perspective on life.  The determined Stephenson knew he felt a sense of belonging when it came to music, so he learned guitar from his friends and began to play in different bands.

After working numerous jobs, Stephenson discovered teaching music was where he thrived. Stephenson has persevered through many obstacles so he is undaunted when it comes to new challenges, including musicians having to deal with the COVID-19 landscape and teaching via Zoom.

Stephenson was only born with one hand; therefore, learning to play instruments meant climbing over more walls than most others had to. Stephenson experienced periods of self-doubt, not knowing if he would be the best teacher, but he decided he would be the best teacher he could be. 

“I just know that I have been the type of person who has never let anyone tell me I can't do something,” he said.

Many people told Stephenson that his story of learning to play with one hand could motivate others. Stephenson discovered that he is a skilled music teacher because “I can honestly tell people that they can accomplish this (playing an instrument). I can look at them and honestly say, dude, you can do this. Believe me, you can do this.”

Motivating Others Through his Own Accomplishments

 

Stephenson describes hallmark moments when people realize that he is playing with one hand.    People “will be like, wow, that was really inspiring. I can't believe you have one hand, and you did that. And I often thought to myself, you know, I wish there was a way for me to communicate to people with two hands that that's really nice of them to say to me, but what I would much rather see is them inspire me.”

From their spiffy Instagram page, you can tell Kid Rocker is not just another music program, with plenty of colorful and full of passion posts, calling for volunteer help, to be able to teach at low rates, and offering scholarships and instruments, for those who are growing up with financial hurdles.

“Kid Rocker is a real grass-root driven thing. . . . We're literally here working hard to try to make our community better as a whole,” he said. “ My main focus was so kids that didn’t have, that were in certain financial situations, I could get  them music instructions,  plus the benefits of music and learning an instrument for your brain.”

The scholarships are all community donated.

“People who can pay for kids to get lessons to support the rest of their community in a beautiful way. Through families and local businesses, we can get 200 at-risk youth in our community, one-on-one music instruction for a year,” he said. “That's giving them a human being who can mentor them and support them in more than just music because you're not just a music teacher. I mean, my students tell me about their life. They want to share things with me. I think music has an interesting power that if you are feeling stressed if you are feeling overwhelmed with life, I mean, we all know this, flip on a song and all of a sudden you're like, Oh, okay, I can breathe again.”

Relying on Community’s Help for his Worthwhile Endeavor

Stephenson recalls various times where he witnessed the impact his program can have.

“It's the confidence that's built over learning to play that instrument,” he said. “The first rule of Kid Rockers is that we cannot teach you anything. We can only show you. That's a very important lesson because that's learning. That's how all learning occurs. I am just the professor; I can't force information into a child's head. I can only show them what I know. And then they go and do their homework, they study their instrument, and they learn. They essentially teach themselves. I try to help them understand that they really got there on their own.”

Part of the program also includes putting on a group concert every eight weeks. “When you're in a band, you have to listen to the other players,” he explained of the importance of this method. “You have to be considerate of them. You can't walk on their part or all over what they're doing. You have to stay in your lane and listen, be courteous. You’re working together to make one big beautiful sound, and after (the performance), you feel this empowerment or this sense of accomplishment or this rush of energy that you just got up and did something that a lot of people are afraid to do.”

Stephenson hopes Kid Rocker “will elevate kids' perspectives in such a way that they will be able to see those greater heights and dream a little bit bigger. I believe that by reaching out to these kids and affecting their life in such a way, they can help bring about a better future, a better community.” But for that he says he does need the community to keep supporting his program, and he invites anyone with generosity and time to help him build this musical panacea.

Reporting by Gracie Gordon for Our Town Reno

Is Reno Becoming Friendlier to Cyclists?

From Projects to Advocacy Bike Nights

While road construction is seemingly never-ending here in Reno, does any of it benefit cyclists or is Reno still an automobile centric town? As the Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) keeps saying it is addressing cycling safety and expansion through a handful of projects, some in the works and others recently completed, it begs the question, is Reno becoming more bicycle friendly?

“I commute to work every now and then,” says Reno resident, Perry Healey, 26, adding “we have bike night.” Healey has been riding bicycles his whole life and as a commuter for almost seven years. He enjoys all types of cycling, from commuting to bike-packing, a type of traveling where you travel from point A to point B exclusively with a bicycle. He once rode a bike from Reno to San Francisco as well as riding around New Zealand for five weeks from a bike seat. 

Healy is the co-funder of Reno Bike Night, an informal gathering dedicated to getting people together for a bike ride and to “make some kind of positive impact on the community.” They meet every Wednesday night at the Reno City Plaza and complete an eight to thirteen mile bike ride on mostly flat terrain. They have future goals of advocating for more bike safety and creating a donation stream for organizations like the Reno Bike Project, a local non-profit community run bike shop. 

“It’s definitely doing better,” says Healey in regards to bicycle safety, “it [has] become much more safer.” He loves to go on weeks long bike rides, also know as bike touring.

More Bike Lanes, Paths and Connectivity

Reno has grown over the past several years and bicycling is on the rise. Recently completed construction along Virginia street in midtown highlights the growing infrastructure for bicyclists. Between California Avenue and Mt. Rose street, cyclists can now utilize the entire lane. This makes it safer for bicycle commuters and virtually eliminates the chances of running into an opening car door, a real threat to bicycle commuters.

RTC has a project in the works to construct a cycle path, a lane physically separated from automobiles, through downtown along Center street. The goal is to effectively connect the University with the midtown district with completion expected sometime during 2023.

“I like the Veterans Memorial path,” Healey says. It is “good for recreating and it’s good for commuting.” This is an example of a cycle path and the construction project boosted connectivity for cyclists here in Reno. The lack of connectivity is a large problem for bicycle commuters and the community would like to see more, specifically infrastructure that connects the North Valleys to Reno. Overall the ongoing and planned projects do hint at Reno becoming safer for cyclists. 

While infrastructure promoting cycling in Reno has been slow to come about, the recent upgrades to Virginia Street include a shared use lane, suitable for both bicycles and cars.

Unfriendly Drivers and Lack of Political Will Among Challenges

While Healey has not been hit by a car he is aware of the risks associated with riding bikes. “I think the drivers in Reno are okay at recognizing cyclists,” he said. However, he does see a lot of drivers who get frustrated when a bike is on the road. “They will either drive by way too close or yell at you,” Healey says, highlighting the concern of many bicycle riders here in Reno.

Healey does know people who have been hit by a car and cites the most common reason being cars pulling out of a business entrance and not seeing people on bikes. Other risks cyclists have to contend with is riding with the sun at their back. This makes them nearly invisible to drivers and more likely to have a collision.  What he views as a lack of local political will is also a problem.

“I don’t feel it’s a focus of theirs,” Healey says of cyclists and the Reno City Council. “I don’t think they’re doing much to promote biking or bike safety.”

Still, Healey feels safe when he rides his bike and is hopeful that more people in Reno will start to ride more often. Ultimately, he believes, more bikes on the road raises awareness, and in turn, overall safety for cyclists.

His vision for Reno is to create a greater community where people feel comfortable to get on a bike and ride around town. He wants to see more bike lanes and more public awareness about why bikes are important and how they help the community.

Reporting by Richard Bednarski for Our Town Reno

Maria Davis, Helping the LatinX Community and Students During a Pandemic

The #MiMotivoNV Outreach Program

A recent post in Spanish on #MiMotivoNV says four laptops are available for kids who need them, as local schools continue to offer a combination of hybrid and in person classes, with some families having opted to go all remote. Self-employed and passionate about community, Maria Davis has poured lots of her own time these past few months in endeavors to help others during these difficult times.

Davis recently relaunched "#MiMotivoNV, as an outreach program to help with any resources needed during the ongoing pandemic.

“I would describe it as something I do because I care,” Davis told Our Town Reno. “I have continued because my promise with the community had just started, and I wasn't about to just, you know, quit because of budget or politics or whatever happened and just leave everybody hanging. So it's an outreach from the heart.”

#MiMotivoNV was set into motion after Davis says she realized the Washoe County Emergency Response Program had a lack of awareness for Reno’s Hispanic and LatinX community.

“I do know that there is a lot of ignorance when it comes to understanding the culture in our community. Not only the LatinX Community, but in general. To this day, I mean, there's still this ignorance of oh my gosh. I mean, seriously, it's beyond me that we are not going beyond what the job description says, and I'm sure this is in their job description because to be an emergency response manager for a county, you have to know that county in order to know how to develop a plan. Otherwise, how are you going to develop an effective plan? ...They're not taking the time to go out there and really get to know the community,” she said.

“They're not really willing to incorporate everyone and include everyone to really work together as one. There must be a sense of inclusiveness when offering resources to accomplish effectiveness.”

Davis has distributed banners and started hashtags

Acting as a Cultural Bridge and Convincing Parents to be More Involved

Davis wants to help anyone she can that is vulnerable but she says she has discovered that Hispanic and LatinX communities are often pushed to the bottom of the totem pole.

“A lot of people don't understand the culture,” she said. “A lot of people don't understand that to do outreach is to create relationships in the community. I care for my community. I care for the people and not only for the Hispanics but the community in general. We let politics get in the way, and we don't see the real needs. . .  or maybe we see it, but we are just afraid that we are going to make people upset, communities, so we don't do it.” 

Davis is also a driver of the Be an Angel private group on Facebook, which connects people with students to provide them with essential school supplies.

On the school front, Davis believes parental involvement is a place where progress can also be made. Many parents may not be aware of the resources available to them through the school district or even the power they have.

 “If we promote parent involvement in our community to let the parents know, ‘hey you have a voice,’ because some of us come from countries where parents don't have a voice in their children's education, parents stay at home and send the kids to school and then it is a job for the teachers to teach them, but in this case, we know that when a parent is involved in their children's education, the probabilities for success are much higher. Teachers can't do it all, schools can’t do it all, and parents can’t do it all, so they all have to work together.” 

Striving for local self-reliance has always been one of her driving mantras. “Our community is amazing, and even when the people that are supposed to be responding for us don't respond to us. We are here for each other, and we will continue to be here for each other,” Davis said. “I believe that. That has always been the case for our Hispanic Community. We always come together in times of need, and I'm not shy at asking for help when it comes to helping others in our community. So funding does not come from the government, it comes from the community, comes from myself, and from those around me.”

A Long Standing Concern

Her involvement in school and community outreach, while trying to bring about positive progress, dates back years. In 2008, Davis participated in a program called Study Circles, during which, for seven weeks, a group of parents, administrators, and teachers, that represented the demographics of the school met and discussed some complicated issues.

“We talked about race and stereotypes, and it was a tough topic for many people, but it was successful. Only once did a parent become upset and leave because he did not feel comfortable with the topic. But I feel that a lot of what is going on right now, it’s more than racism; its ignorance. Ignorant people sometimes say things or do things, not intentionally. Not because they're racist, but because of stereotypes.”

Davis says she will continue to be a voice for a community she believes is too often silenced.

“I do it because I care it’s as simple as that. I really really care, and I grew up in a very small town,” she said in our interview. “I'm an immigrant. I know what it's like to be in a strange country, not knowing the language. I know what it's like when people look down at you. I know what it's like to have to walk the longer road to success. I know that, but I also know that our people have so much courage and that they have so many opportunities in this country and their children, especially. I do it because they (people in the Hispanic and LatinX community) have to be able to provide and complete their own dreams and not just have dreams for their kids. It's simple; I do it because I'm blessed, and I am so happy to be able to share blessings.”

Reporting by Gracie Gordon for Our Town Reno

The Reno Skate Alliance, Passing on the Love of Community Skateboarding

Turning Kids into Skaters and Creating a Positive Community

As the sun begins to set on North Valleys Regional Park, and as White Rabbit, by Jefferson Airplane, plays out of the speaker standing in the truck of Eddie Washington’s white pick-up, members of the Reno Skate Alliance attempt another skating maneuver.

“There's lots of bad stuff out there in the world,” the founder Eddie Washington explains as to why he wants to motivate kids with skateboarding. “When you're on a skateboard, you're not thinking about anything besides skateboarding, you know, you're not caught up with things; other people around you. You're just doing you, and that's what we want the kids to be about. Stay away from the bad stuff, all the negative stuff. I think it's a really good outlet for kids. And then also that it teaches them hard work and determination; skating is not something you can just do easily. And so they really have to like work for it and progress constantly.” 

The Reno Skate Alliance has not only been a place for young aspiring skaters to become friends but also a place for Washington to make friends as well. Spencer and Sam Eldridge became intrigued about Reno Skate Alliance, thinking it would be a good program for their son, Oliver.

“We joined because we wanted a community for our son. We saw how much he loves skateboarding, and we took him to the ski park, but there was never really like other kids his age that he could connect with. And I grew up skateboarding as well. And you know, there is nothing like this, you know? I'm a Reno local. It's hard to get out there when you're a kid; there are not many people to talk to, you know? It was definitely different, you know, growing up as a kid compared to now,” Spencer Eldridge said.

The Eldridges have become vital components to the Skate Alliance, with Sam managing its social media, and Spencer helping Washington out with coaching.

The Reno Skate Alliance thrives on mutual support and the deep connection of knowing the rush of finally landing a trick. “It's kinda like in baseball when you get a home run, you know, it's like, you've been practicing for all this time, and you've never got a home run. It's kind of like getting home really, you know, you're like, Oh my gosh, try it again. And again and again, until you get it, you know, we always say, you know, it's the kind of a celebration of watching my son learn new tricks. It'll be like 20 or 30 times of trying the same thing. Once he actually lands it, It's like the whole skate park goes wild,” Spencer Eldridge said.

Feeling Accomplished Despite the Setbacks of COVID-19

“I mean, it hits you. You get, especially when trying something new and having like 15 people just watching, especially when you got that many people just supporting you and you land it, it's just, it's an awesome feeling,” Washington said of the pride everyone shares as a member progresses.

Just as Reno Skate Alliance began to grow in popularity, Covid-19 hit. “We did try to do some distance things when COVID hit, but we eventually had to shut everything down,” Sam Eldridge said.

Now slowly getting back into a new groove, the Reno Skate Alliance is seeking help from the community. “I think that it's really a great resource for the community right now, especially with COVID and so many indoor activities and restrictions, but it can only work if the community is involved.  On our Instagram, we have like a little logo, and it says “by the community for the community,” so really it's like whenever the community wants to come together and what they put into the skaters’ lives, the Skate Alliance will  just turn that around and put it back into the community.”

They’ve organized family picnics, and received donations such as used or new boards, bearings, trucks, wheels and hardware, helmets and pads, and are open to all help via their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RenoSkates/

Reporting and Photography by Gracie Gordon for Our Town Reno

Achievement Beyond Obstacles Supports Students Overcoming Hardships

Helping a Range of Student Overcoming Huge Odds

In a typical year, ABO awards scholarships that range from $500-$3,500 to both first-year and continuing students attending universities, community colleges and trade schools. In total, the scholarship program awards about $45,000 to around 15 nominated and selected students each year.

According to its About description on Facebook, the Achievement Beyond Obstacles “is a scholarship program for high school seniors who have overcome hardships and demonstrated personal leadership.”

One recipient it recently touted is Lauren Mazurowski, a graduate student at UNR, who received an ABO scholarship every year of her college career. She is now the president of the Student Association for International Water Issues, for which she plans annual trips to help struggling communities around the world with access to potable water.

“These seniors are nominated by their high school counselors because they have triumphed over some kind of hardship,” Kim Mazeres, a member of the Youth Services Committee with Rotary District 5190, explained to Our Town Reno. “Yet these students have also demonstrated personal leadership, courage, academic improvement and want to go to college.”

The hardships ABO Scholarship recipients face often vary from student to student. 

“Five years ago we had a student who was homeless,” Mazeres said. “She and her brothers were couch-surfing and she not only graduated high school from Sparks High, but she was bound and determined to go to UNR as a journalism student. She completed her degree this summer and during her college career, had a baby and got married.”

Other students Mazeres said have faced other challenges such as cancer, incarceration or may have previously dropped out of school and came back to earn their diploma. Due to the unique challenges many of these students face, the program has expanded in recent years to include a mandatory “Leadership Weekend,” a two-day workshop where students undergo professional and personal leadership seminars. 

Kim Mazeres (right) poses proudly with a scholarship recipient.

The Value of its Leadership Weekend Component

“[ABO] was originally a scholarship program where a handful of students were given about a thousand dollars each,” Mazeres said. “But as we've seen these students’ needs, we started a Leadership Weekend that is all about personal leadership for the students and understanding that they're not alone with the problems they face. It is run by a couple of professional trainers and students have to attend because we believe they are more successful at college once they go through that program.”

The Leadership Weekend has been a part of ABO for over five years now and includes a financial literacy workshop so students can understand how to budget and manage the cost of college. Students from TMCC and UNR serve as mentors as well, providing the incoming students a chance to see the campus and hear what it’s like to be a college student. 

“[The Leadership Weekend] gives them a great base for going into college,” Mazeres said. “It's all about personal leadership and knowing that if they've come this far, they can overcome whatever is in their path to be successful and begin to grow their network around them.”

A Facebook screengrab includes a recent photo with Reno City Council member Oscar Delgado.

Adapting to COVID-19

ABO, like nonprofits all across the country, has had to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Typically, the Leadership Weekend for nominated students would take place in late October or early November. Then students would have an opportunity to give a presentation to the Rotary Clubs about their background and academic goals in late March, before a final selection of recipients is determined. 

But this past spring, due to the country-wide lockdowns, last year’s selection process had to be modified.  

“We thought about [using] Zoom [for student presentations], but all of us were new to Zoom in that mid-March timeframe so we hesitated,” Mazeres said. “This year, we wouldn't hesitate to Zoom. All of our Rotary clubs have gotten very adept at using Zoom for meetings. So we may be able to do something more with the students via Zoom this year when it comes to presentations.”

In place of the standard student-presentation process for selection, this year ABO transitioned to a purely application-based process. Of particular note is that ABO awarded $21,500 in scholarships to 16 first-year students, the most first-year recipients they’ve had in recent years. 

“I can't remember the last time we gave scholarships to 16 first-year students,” Mazeres said. “The scholarships may have been a little smaller because it was tougher to pick a standout student or a couple of standout students when you hadn't seen them as much in-person, but it was easier to know that they are all deserving. So we actually gave out more first-year scholarships than we normally do because of the pandemic.”

ABO scholarships are not just for first-year students, however. Recipients are eligible to re-apply for the scholarship each year to continue their education at their college or university, or even continue their education by pursuing a Master’s or other professional degree. 

Tougher Than Ever Before with Looming Evictions

“Last year, we gave $25,500 in scholarships to 14 continuing students,” Mazeres said. “Furthermore, we now have two students in graduate school and one that's entering law school.”

Mazeres cites one young woman who received an ABO scholarship that is now pursuing her Master’s degree after completing her Environmental Engineering degree. She was recently rewarded a six-figure fellowship as part of her Master’s program.

“She came from a situation where her dad had a specific type of dementia,” Mazeres said. “She and her brothers took care of their dad after school so mom could work, and mom had not worked before then. She now gives back to the program and has come back to talk to students about everything they can accomplish and everything that is possible for them.”

Recipients of ABO Scholarships have come from each of the high schools in the Washoe County School District. With the onset of hybrid-learning that most schools have implemented for the 2020-2021 academic year, there originally were concerns about high school counselors being able to identify prospective students for this year’s ABO program. 

“We were worried about our counselors not being able to nominate students, given the weirdness that they've been through for the last six months,” Mazeres said. “But the counselors are all rockstars. They've already told us, ‘I’ve got my students in mind and know what I'm doing, so when you're ready, we'll be ready.’”

ABO is still currently exploring options on how they will conduct this year’s Leadership Weekend and student presentations. But like everyone else during the COVID-19 pandemic, they are learning to adapt and have taken inspiration during this time from the students themselves.

“I think our students have it tougher now than ever before, whether it's parents that are without work because of COVID or had been without work and are struggling to pay bills,” Mazeres said. “Then with the eviction moratoriums that they’re going to be staring down as well, I just think there's more need [for ABO scholarships] than ever before. So those of us who are able to help our society, our community and our young people to assist them in becoming the absolute best versions of themselves is not only good for them, but it's good for our entire community.”

Reporting by Scott King for Our Town Reno

Earstin Whitten, Turning a Reno Parking Lot into a Model for Growing Healthy Food

Teaching the Less Fortunate a Path to Healthy, Sustainable Eating

“We want to teach them how to plant, cultivate, to harvest, and to cook the products that they have grown,” Earstin Whitten, the founder and president of Soulful Seeds, explains of his goals to help people without many resources cultivate and consume their own healthy food.

Located downtown on a tiny plot once destined to become a parking lot, right behind Planned Parenthood, Soulful Seeds is a non-profit gardening organization focused on growing healthy and organic food for those in need, distributing to shelters, as well as teaching gardening skills through partnerships with recovery programs.

“When they get out of that homeless situation they should be able to to have some basic understanding of how things grow,” Whitten said of his goal of empowering the less fortunate with the skills to grow their own food.

Beginning in 2017, Whitten acquired the 1000 square foot plot from the Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center and began growing vegetables there. He has since expanded to nearly twenty gardening boxes which now overflow with vegetables. Nearing the end of the growing season, on a recent fall day, Whitten was planting his favorite plant, garlic.

A volunteer was working on a nearby garden bed. "When we grow food for other people, we have to grow what they like,” Whitten said as he proudly showed tomatoes, Swiss chard, eggplants, tomatillos, and kale.

A pink Brandywine heirloom tomato grown by Whitten. He is now growing over 1000 heads of garlic with his own seed stock which he will harvest next July.

Expanding Operations

Next spring, Whitten plans to expand his operations onto a two acre lot located on Glendale Avenue. This will increase the amount of food he can grow, he says, and get into the mouths of those who need it most.

Whitten also works with the Reno Food Systems, bringing produce to them several times a week, so they can then donate food to the Record St. and Our Place shelters.

Whitten says he has kept expenses to a minimum. His initial investments were out of his own pocket and he relies heavily on donations, “and most of it is in kind donations,” he said. His garden boxes are filled with organic soil created locally in Carson Valley by Full Circle Compost, which he receives at a discounted rate.  He got his original seed garlic from a farmer in nearby Washoe Valley.

While he has had to reduce the number of volunteers this year due to the pandemic, they have also been pivotal to Soulful Seeds. Whitten has been working with an engineer and developer on the new property who will be “donating their services to do the survey,” he said.

Many of the garden beds have been donated and create a maze like atmosphere within the downtown garden.

Working Through Many Avenues to Expand Access to Healthy Eating

Soulful Seeds recently received a grant from the City of Reno through the CARES Act, which he says will be used to expand purchases he also makes from the Great Basin Community Food Co-op for additional food donations.

He also wants to purchase Instant Pots, which are small pressure cookers, to allow people to cook their own healthy meals.

“These Instant Pots are very versatile and they will allow them to cook a full meal in one pot,” he said. “There are a lot of people and organizations that want to contribute to the less fortunate. We are a conduit for that because people who donate can literally see where their funds go,” Whitten said.

Knowing he needs to be well connected in the community to make his vision become a reality, he is also on the Board of Directors for the Great Basin Community Food Co-op.

“One of my missions, since joining that group, was to make sure that populations that don’t go to the store have an opportunity for organically grown food,” he said.

Reporting and Photography by Richard Bednarski for Our Town Reno