If there’s one thing living during a pandemic has taught us, it’s the importance of hand hygiene. Scottsdale inventor Mike Rafko, a former Honeywell executive, spent the past two years developing what he believes is the first automatic self-sanitizing door handle. The VitaTouch dispenses quick-drying, non-sticky hand sanitizer and is designed for high-traffic public areas like restaurants, event venues, schools and commercial businesses. vita-touch.com
Every week, we present a curated list of live music in a wide range of genres all around the Valley. This week, we’re focusing on legacy acts. July 20 REO Speedwagon, Styx and Loverboy Any rock band can put together a ballad, and then there’s REO Speedwagon. Tracks like “Can’t Fight This Feeling” and “Keep On Loving You” are rock radio staples. And Styx are no slouches either. Epic tracks like “Lady” and “Babe” have...
What does illustrator and graphic designer Stormy Nesbit do in her free time? She puts brush or pen – or, in some cases, scissors – to paper and she creates. “Art, when there are no clients involved, is where I can express myself freely,” says the Minnesota native, who earned her master’s degree in visual communication design from Arizona State University and has lived in the Valley for seven years. “No one is requesting anything...
From Arizona to Vermont, the Goodyear-based Koby family has visited more than 32 states over the past few years. In August 2019, husband Bob and wife Monica purchased a trailer and sold nearly everything they owned to pursue a life of travel for their daughters Autumn, 11, and Jade, 7. “We gave ourselves three or four months to sell everything, and our first stop was the Grand Canyon,” Monica Koby says. She and Bob homeschool...
In May, LDV Winery co-owner Peggy Fiandaca hit the digital airwaves with her new podcast, Wine Time with Peggy, through Big Blend Radio & TV. In her monthly wine-centric dispatch, Fiandaca discusses everything from wine and food pairings to the art and science of maintaining a vineyard. The podcast drops on the first Wednesday of every month. Stream on podcast platforms or at bigblendradio.com.
Locals in the national news cycle. Mike Watkiss The former 3TV journo is credited for pulling back the curtain on the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the early aughts. Watkiss is once again on the world stage in the new Netflix docuseries Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey, about the secretive polygamist sect. Chris Bianco Hot on the heels of his second James Beard Award, this time for Outstanding Restaurateur, the illustrious...
When it comes to creating, cosmetologist and artist Liz Cook values intention and attention to detail. As the owner of Color & Mane Hair Studio in Phoenix, Cook has built a brand around these principles. But when she launched Boho&Stone, her line of handmade jewelry and self-care products, she wanted to express another layer of her identity. “This is more a look into me, not just my business,” she says. Cook makes hair and body...
After 14 years of country hits, Darius Rucker (scheduled to perform on July 22 at Arizona Federal Theatre) is finally better known as a critically acclaimed country singer than the front man of the unavoidable ’90s rock group Hootie & the Blowfish. But he isn’t the only artist to have changed musical lanes. Here’s a rundown of other performers who’ve dabbled in other melodic waters. Fleetwood Mac Just like Hootie nearly 30 years ago, you...
With gas prices surging, resorts are getting crafty, enticing road-weary travelers with everything from discounts to gas reimbursements. At Snow King Resort in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the Ready, Set, Road Trip package (starting at $179/night) runs through October 31 with optional add-ons like a road trip adventure box mailed to guests’ homes prior to their departure. “Jackson has been a year-round destination over the years that attracts both outdoor enthusiasts and families wanting to enjoy...
Every week, we present a curated list of live music in a wide range of genres all around the Valley. This week, we’re focusing on offbeat acts. July 12 COIN Brad Pitt recently said in a GQ interview that he was on the last leg of his acting career. But the Nashville-based alt-pop group COIN, who used the movie star’s name for the title of the bouncy lead single off their latest album Uncanny Valley, doesn’t see Pitt...
Every week, we present a curated list of live music in a wide range of genres all around the Valley. This week, we’re focusing on music with poetic lyrics. July 8 Bone Thugs-N-Harmony If you need proof that old-school hip hop is making a comeback, look no further than the rap battle that took place late last year on Verzuz. Bone Thugs-n-Harmony took on their rivals Three 6 Mafia in a fight for ’90s supremacy. While...
XIXA by Julius Schlosburg Every week, we present a curated list of live music in a wide range of genres all around the Valley. This week we’re rocking with a local lineup. June 29 AJJ and Open Mike Eagle If you’re familiar with the Valley’s folk-punk band’s dark sense of humor, then you might think the title of their 2020 album, titled Good Luck Everybody, was prophetic. And now that we’re (almost) on the other side of...
In October 2005, Jody Boyd lost a childhood friend, Michelle Singleton, to breast cancer after a 15-month battle. Singleton, a single mom with four children, was only 32 when she passed away. Boyd was so moved by Singleton’s struggle and subsequent death, that she founded The Singletons, a nonprofit organization devoted to providing “strength, hope and community to single-parent families battling cancer.” We asked Boyd, who serves as the nonprofit’s executive director, to tell us...
Every week, we present a curated list of live music in a wide range of genres all around the Valley. This week we’re focusing on folk rock. June 23 Aldous Harding If the words “female folk singer” conjure up visions of a woman quietly playing an acoustic guitar, then allow New Zealander Aldous Harding to shatter your expectations. Her performances have a flair for the dramatic, and her fourth album, titled Warm Chris, has been described...
Based on a portion of The Book of Genesis, Children of Eden is about familial relationships, profound love and confronting the pain of letting go. This month, Theater Works’ artistic director Chris Hamby and music director Jennifer Adams bring this 1991 musical by John Caird and Grammy Award-winning lyricist and composer, Stephen Schwartz (Wicked, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Enchanted) back to the stage with 42 dancing and singing actors, masterful set designers, musicians and… puppets!...
