The tragic shooting of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn., felt particularly personal to many students and teachers, including fourth-grade teacher Jaime Hunt at Higley Unified School District’s Cortina Elementary School in Queen Creek.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Boys Soccer

Kids are often enthralled with the wild kingdom, so it’s fun to do their rooms with animal-themed decor.

Kids are often enthralled with the wild kingdom, so it's fun to do their rooms with animal-themed decor.

LOS ANGELES — This week marks the arrival in the United States of the critically acclaimed and thoroughly inappropriate Danish comedy "Klown." It's about a guy who's stunned to find out his girlfriend is pregnant, but to prove he's capable of being a father, he kinda-sorta kidnaps his tubby 12-year-old nephew and brings him along on a debauched weekend canoe trip with his party-boy best pal. (We can't even repeat what these guys call their floating journey of sex and drugs.)

A top elected Republican will be leading the effort to convince voters to keep the partisan in partisan politics.

As an East Valley resident and voter I have a big problem with the campaign signs which read “Keep Russell Pearce.”

On the final day of Saguaro’s spring football practice last Thursday, Devin Brunetti toed the line of scrimmage as 90 of his closest friends looked on.

Former state Sen. Russell Pearce will end the silence over his future Monday, at an event that suggests anything but a quiet retirement following a stunning recall that removed him from office last year.

Jason Mohns and the Saguaro football players learned simultaneously on Wednesday that he would be taking over the football program.

"Allahu Akbar. God is great."

"Allahu Akbar. God is great."

News of Saguaro football coach John Sanders' firing spread quickly Thursday morning, and already he's been offered several jobs, he said.

Saguaro football coach John Sanders has been fired, he confirmed Thursday.

2011 in the East Valley was marked by political upset, a slow economic recovery, and the mother of all dust storms. Now as the year comes to a close, one of Arizona’s most powerful politicians sits on the sidelines, America’s so-called toughest sheriff is more embattled than ever, a sad chapter in the valley’s history has ended with an execution, and the gap between haves and have-nots is ever widening. Oh, and we still continue to be fascinated by something called a haboob. 

West Mesa voters have ousted state Senate President Russell Pearce in a historic recall election.

West Mesa voters have ousted state Senate President Russell Pearce in a historic recall election.

Without a single voted counted yet in Tuesday's recall election of state Senate President Russell Pearce, political observers say the historic race is impacting Arizona's political landscape.

Without a single voted counted yet in Tuesday's recall election of state Senate President Russell Pearce, political observers say the historic race is impacting Arizona's political landscape.

As the Chairman and co-founder of the Recall against Senate President Russell Pearce, I feel compelled to respond to the many distortions, personal attacks, and outright lies that have been circulated about our historic effort, including the recent piece by State Senator Andy Biggs.