Hanford Insider: Soup Kitchen Update, City Council, and Celebrating Hanford's Milestones!

Transcript

WEBVTT

00:00:01.983 --> 00:00:03.826
On this episode of the Hanford Insider.

00:00:03.826 --> 00:00:15.333
We'll get an update from Father Luke Martinez about the community soup kitchen, then we'll check in on the latest Hanford news, plus a look at the community calendar, and later I'll be back with your sports report.

00:00:37.575 --> 00:00:46.247
This is the Hanford Insider Podcast, where we dive into what makes our community tick, from local stories and hidden gems to conversations with people shaping our neighborhood.

00:00:46.247 --> 00:00:49.093
We're here to celebrate, explore and connect.

00:00:49.093 --> 00:00:50.781
I'm your host, rob Bentley.

00:00:50.781 --> 00:01:02.042
Whether you're new to Hanford or longtime local, this is your source for everything happening in our town, from events and news to unique conversations with people who make Hanford such a unique community.

00:01:02.042 --> 00:01:03.968
I hope you enjoy the format.

00:01:03.968 --> 00:01:12.563
I need your help getting the word out about this podcast by liking and sharing on social media or telling a friend For more information about the show.

00:01:12.563 --> 00:01:18.746
You can find this podcast on Facebook, instagram, threads X and YouTube at Hanford Insider.

00:01:18.746 --> 00:01:24.912
If you have a show idea, be sure to email me at hanfordinsider at gmailcom and I'll look into it.

00:01:24.912 --> 00:01:33.043
If you enjoyed this podcast and you'd like to show your support, you can go to buymeacoffeecom slash hanfordinsider to make a donation.

00:01:33.043 --> 00:01:35.852
Let's take a look at this week's community news.

00:01:36.736 --> 00:01:38.664
The Hanford City Council met on Tuesday.

00:01:38.664 --> 00:01:44.180
It was great to see our friend, kara Fleming recognized for her work with Operation Christmas Blessing.

00:01:44.180 --> 00:01:50.088
Discussion regarding annexations of county islands was once again a big topic.

00:01:50.088 --> 00:02:01.100
City staff and council wrestled with the requirements placed upon them by LAFCO but ultimately voted to move forward.

00:02:01.100 --> 00:02:07.430
An interesting potential future item was brought up by Vice Mayor Payden about the consideration of revising the ordinance regarding the number of chickens that are allowed on our property.

00:02:07.430 --> 00:02:10.540
It will appear as a future study session item.

00:02:10.540 --> 00:02:18.592
Earlier in the day the Council heard from City staff about the guidelines agreed upon to select the Revenue Measure H Oversight Committee.

00:02:18.592 --> 00:02:21.622
There will be 11 members, selected based on merit.

00:02:21.622 --> 00:02:25.572
Applications are being collected online at hanfordcity.

00:02:25.572 --> 00:02:34.747
A committee met on Wednesday to discuss the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the dedication of the Hanford Civic Auditorium on June 7th.

00:02:34.747 --> 00:02:38.943
Many volunteers are going to be needed to make this huge event a success.

00:02:38.943 --> 00:02:48.025
I'm on the committee so if you'd like to help out, email me at hanfordinsider at gmailcom and I'll be sure to get you on the list for upcoming meetings.

00:02:48.025 --> 00:02:54.360
Here are some things coming up on our community calendar.

00:02:54.360 --> 00:03:00.781
The Mighty Oaks Chorus will be performing singing telegrams on Valentine's Day from 2 to 6 pm.

00:03:00.781 --> 00:03:07.582
If you're interested in this, send me an email at hanfordinsider at gmailcom and I'll send you a copy of their flyer.

00:03:09.728 --> 00:03:15.407
The Miss Kings County competition will be held on Saturday, february 15th at the Hanford High School Presentation Center.

00:03:15.407 --> 00:03:21.852
Emily Carpenter, madeline Golden and Maya Escamilla, are running for the title of Miss Kings County.

00:03:21.852 --> 00:03:29.669
The Miss Kings County team candidates are Annabelle Mensch, bailey Quintero, claire Wormadam and Kaylee King.

00:03:29.669 --> 00:03:31.926
Tickets are $20 at the door.

00:03:31.926 --> 00:03:35.750
Doors open at 2 pm and the competition begins at 2.30 pm.

00:03:35.750 --> 00:03:43.088
The Hanford Fox Theater will be showing the Twilight Saga New Moon on Saturday February 15th at 7 pm.

00:03:43.088 --> 00:03:46.508
For more information and tickets, visit foxhanfordcom.

00:03:49.300 --> 00:03:53.532
On Saturday February 15th, the Grace Bible Church is having a Marriage Matters Date Night.

00:03:53.532 --> 00:03:57.491
Visit gbchanfordorg for more information.

00:03:57.491 --> 00:04:04.312
The Hanford Elks will be having a breakfast club on Sunday February 16th at 8 am.

00:04:04.312 --> 00:04:08.520
The Hanford Elks will be having a breakfast club on Sunday February 16th at 8 am.

00:04:08.520 --> 00:04:15.081
Also on February 16th, the Ohana Comic Con will be held at the Hanford Fraternal Hall from 11 am to 4 pm.

00:04:15.081 --> 00:04:21.526
On March 24th, the Kings County Deputy Sheriff's Association will be holding their annual golf tournament at the Kings Country Club.

00:04:21.526 --> 00:04:27.990
Email kcdsa334 at gmailcom for more information.

00:04:29.312 --> 00:04:32.795
If you have an event coming up and you'd like some help getting the word out, let's work together.

00:04:32.795 --> 00:04:36.276
Send your information to hanfordinsider at gmailcom.

00:04:36.276 --> 00:04:53.485
Be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter to get a complete calendar of events.

00:04:53.485 --> 00:05:00.007
Well, it's time to get an update on the Episcopal Church of the Savior Soup Kitchen and we have with us Associate Priest Luke Martinez.

00:05:00.007 --> 00:05:00.790
Welcome to the show, luke.

00:05:00.790 --> 00:05:01.913
Thank you for having me.

00:05:01.913 --> 00:05:06.531
Luke, we want to get an update on the status of the soup kitchen.

00:05:06.531 --> 00:05:13.889
We've had previous priests on the show before talking about the ministry and we know it's such an important one to Hanford in particular.

00:05:13.889 --> 00:05:18.303
So I thought, yeah, what an opportunity to kind of get an update and see where we're at.

00:05:19.345 --> 00:05:22.629
Well, things are definitely better than they have been in the past.

00:05:22.629 --> 00:05:33.499
We're running a lot more smoothly and we appear to be out of the woods on funding for the most part, although our funding fluctuates so much we can never tell.

00:05:33.959 --> 00:05:46.130
But right now we're in much better shape than we were two years ago really rallied behind the church and getting everything put back together and you have just countless volunteers.

00:05:46.130 --> 00:05:50.067
So let's kind of pull back the layers, if you will, and talk about the ministry of the Soup Kitchen.

00:05:50.067 --> 00:05:52.415
It's 38 years it's been serving Hanford.

00:05:52.415 --> 00:05:56.651
That's fantastic, and volunteers just make this thing happen.

00:05:56.651 --> 00:06:02.069
So tell us how everything comes together daily to feed the needy in our community.

00:06:02.509 --> 00:06:06.798
So it's I mean, it's kind of semi-organized chaos.

00:06:06.798 --> 00:06:16.682
So the first thing is is our volunteers get here in the morning and they have to kind of prep based off of what we have, because we get our food from all kinds of sources in the community.

00:06:16.682 --> 00:06:22.369
Some things are what we call gleaned, which means that local supermarkets and restaurants donate us their extra stuff.

00:06:22.369 --> 00:06:27.192
Some of it is like approaching its sale by date, but they give it to us instead of it going away.

00:06:27.192 --> 00:06:39.237
We get some food from different federal and state programs and the biggest challenge, usually once we have our volunteer team in place, is the kind of jigsaw puzzle of what can we make out of what we have.

00:06:39.925 --> 00:06:46.995
Some days we'll have an entire refrigerator of milk and some days we have no milk, you know, and some days we have lots of something and not as much of another.

00:06:46.995 --> 00:06:52.790
So a lot of the volunteers have to kind of hustle to figure out and our team leads are really great about this Like what are we going to cook?

00:06:52.790 --> 00:06:53.211
What are we?

00:06:53.211 --> 00:06:54.235
How are we going to make it?

00:06:54.235 --> 00:07:02.197
And then it's about getting it ready so that we can serve at 1130, because we are people know that we serve during the weekdays at 1130.

00:07:02.197 --> 00:07:04.538
So they're, you know they're lined up at 11.

00:07:04.538 --> 00:07:05.738
So we've got to be ready.

00:07:06.959 --> 00:07:08.660
So you said it starts at 1130.

00:07:08.660 --> 00:07:09.940
How late do you serve lunch?

00:07:10.240 --> 00:07:13.122
It's just from 1130 to 1230.

00:07:13.122 --> 00:07:13.903
It's a one hour window.

00:07:13.903 --> 00:07:16.427
Most of the people who come here in the town know it.

00:07:16.427 --> 00:07:18.392
On Sundays it's 1230 to 130.

00:07:18.432 --> 00:07:25.769
Cause we have church stuff up until then but usually it's one hour every day and every day, yeah, every day.

00:07:25.769 --> 00:07:27.072
Let's talk numbers a little bit.

00:07:27.072 --> 00:07:31.550
I know that tracking numbers is an important part of the ministry, so you can see how effective it is.

00:07:31.550 --> 00:07:34.137
How many people, on average, are you serving?

00:07:34.865 --> 00:07:41.199
Last year we had almost 60,000 meals that we served, I think our last month we were in.

00:07:41.199 --> 00:07:43.129
We were actually on track to pass that again.

00:07:43.129 --> 00:07:52.617
This year we were in like the 5,000 to 6,000 meals in the month range and obviously it fluctuates depending on season and things going on in society and stuff like that.

00:07:52.617 --> 00:07:58.637
But I think one thing that people don't realize is that not everybody that comes to us is unhoused.

00:07:58.637 --> 00:08:01.213
We have some people who are unhoused.

00:08:01.213 --> 00:08:06.569
We have some people who have, you know, addiction issues and are struggling with stuff like that, and we want to help them.

00:08:06.569 --> 00:08:15.456
We actually have quite a few people who are kind of on that borderline where you know a couple extra meals a week is going to really help them stretch their money a little.

00:08:15.456 --> 00:08:16.896
So they're hungry, yeah.

00:08:16.896 --> 00:08:18.478
So it gets like you know.

00:08:18.478 --> 00:08:25.202
So some months when it's a little leaner, I feel like it fluctuates a little and sometimes it goes down months when it's a little leaner.

00:08:25.242 --> 00:08:26.944
I feel like it fluctuates a little and sometimes it goes down.

00:08:26.944 --> 00:08:29.932
So what makes the soup kitchen unique to the community?

00:08:29.932 --> 00:08:31.360
There's other organizations that serve food, but what makes it a unique?

00:08:31.360 --> 00:08:32.105
Uh, for the soup kitchen.

00:08:32.904 --> 00:08:37.875
Um, I think what I would say, the most important thing, that is our, our ethos.

00:08:37.875 --> 00:08:42.659
Uh, you know, we, our motto is all are welcome, all are fed, so we don't turn anybody away.

00:08:42.659 --> 00:08:46.874
Um, I know there's other programs that are like that too, but for us we don't turn anyone away.

00:08:46.874 --> 00:08:56.735
We believe like this is, for us, is a Christian mission and you know, we think about you know, as the Bible says, Christ's love that surpasses all understanding, and so we believe to be that way.

00:08:56.735 --> 00:09:06.331
You've got to welcome everybody and it can be really complicated sometimes for people who are struggling with addiction or mental illness, but we still want to try to feed all of them.

00:09:06.431 --> 00:09:16.669
So what really drives us is and try to set us apart from everyone is we don't ask questions and I I often say look, you can come in, look like a mountain man will serve you.

00:09:16.669 --> 00:09:20.426
You can come in the Ferrari wearing an Armani suit, we will feed you.

00:09:20.426 --> 00:09:26.442
We don't ask and and that's fine, and I invite people in the community If they want to see what we do come and eat, we will feed you.

00:09:26.442 --> 00:09:40.456
We're not going to say like, hey, you don't look needy enough or anything, because we've found that that's not a great way to go about it and you know it's not easy to gauge someone's entire existence and condition based off of what you see in both directions.

00:09:40.456 --> 00:09:43.580
So we really believe in that.

00:09:43.580 --> 00:09:44.961
The other part is every day.

00:09:44.961 --> 00:09:55.255
A lot of programs I'm sure would love to run every day, but there are a lot of them that run, you know, certain days of the week, or so often, or lunchtime, every day, 365 days a year.

00:09:56.284 --> 00:09:58.734
That's an amazing commitment to the citizens of Hanford.

00:09:58.734 --> 00:10:02.535
We talked a little bit earlier about the location of the facility.

00:10:02.535 --> 00:10:06.094
Being in downtown plays an important part of how it operates.

00:10:06.686 --> 00:10:07.125
Yeah, it's.

00:10:07.125 --> 00:10:13.720
I mean it's a big advantage for us in terms of visibility, but it's also advantage for us in terms of accessibility.

00:10:13.720 --> 00:10:16.792
Obviously, a lot of our for our unhoused population.

00:10:16.792 --> 00:10:23.068
It's easier to have a central place and we're close to places like the library that have other resources and we're close to places like the library that have other resources.

00:10:23.089 --> 00:10:40.442
It's helpful for us in some ways because, you know, we feel like we have an extra layer of security, because we're lucky enough to have, you know, the police stations right across from us and a lot of times, because you know, a lot of the meetings for the city are near us, we get to see a lot of the people in town, a lot of the city leadership and the people who are active here.

00:10:40.442 --> 00:10:46.649
So it gives us a real good location for that and it's kind of it's just kind of a happy accident.

00:10:46.649 --> 00:10:48.775
You know it was built here when the city was growing.

00:10:48.775 --> 00:10:52.052
You know the church was built 1910 and dedicated 1911.

00:10:52.052 --> 00:10:54.878
And so the city has kind of grown.

00:10:54.878 --> 00:11:00.808
We've grown with Hanford right, so so we left us right in the middle of town, which works out really good for us.

00:11:00.808 --> 00:11:04.638
And it's also usually helpful because if people get lost and driving around downtown, they'll see us.

00:11:07.186 --> 00:11:14.019
Oftentimes we'll drive by and we'll see other organizations here participating in outreach to the people that are coming.

00:11:14.019 --> 00:11:19.770
Can you tell us a little bit about what resources are also available here Besides for just getting a good hot meal to eat?

00:11:19.770 --> 00:11:23.105
What other resources are sometimes here so?

00:11:23.648 --> 00:11:27.753
one of our big partners and like group that really helps us out a lot is Valley Voices.

00:11:27.753 --> 00:11:33.073
They've done some stuff here in terms of, like, voter turnout registration, but they also do vaccination clinics.

00:11:33.073 --> 00:11:38.917
So obviously when COVID was going much stronger, they were here for that, but they've been able to do flu vaccines too.

00:11:38.917 --> 00:11:56.326
We actually have several organizations that are from the Valley, um, or from this, the South Valley, that are trying to help out and they'll come and set up, um you know, little booths or tables on how to do outreach for people, Um, we also have volunteers from a lot of other faith communities in town, Um, a lot of those faith communities.

00:11:57.048 --> 00:12:01.513
You know we don't always all agree theologically, but we all agree we want to feed people.

00:12:01.513 --> 00:12:05.457
So we get a lot of help from them and, and you know, and do the mission together.

00:12:05.457 --> 00:12:08.846
So a lot of them come and we can direct them to the ministries.

00:12:08.846 --> 00:12:13.407
A lot of them have some of those churches, have laundry ministries or shower ministries like that.

00:12:13.407 --> 00:12:19.005
So you know, we have a wide variety and that's one thing we're always open to to as partnerships.

00:12:19.005 --> 00:12:31.934
If someone thinks they can serve the population we serve and they want to come down here, we will give you a place to set up so you can help people, because it definitely is a central location for a lot of people who kind of need resources from the community.

00:12:32.596 --> 00:12:51.015
But we know how to fulfill the needs of the people and I think that speaks volumes for what you do and what other organizations and towns do.

00:12:51.015 --> 00:12:52.582
That's a wonderful network of support that you have.

00:12:52.943 --> 00:12:58.513
Yeah, I mean for me personally as the you know, the clerical leadership here.

00:12:59.254 --> 00:13:02.720
A lot of it goes back to that CS Lewis mere Christianity idea.

00:13:02.720 --> 00:13:10.567
It's like ultimately we're bound by certain beliefs, common assumptions, you know, about how we should help other people and look out for people.

00:13:10.567 --> 00:13:27.875
And we have a lot of people who are not from faith communities who come in here, who are just good people who want to help people out, and so it's always an interesting group because we have people from different faith backgrounds, from different national backgrounds, people who've been patrons here before, who've now kind of gotten things better in their life, but now they want to come and give back.

00:13:27.875 --> 00:13:32.438
We have some people who have to volunteer because they have community service but choose to do with us.

00:13:32.438 --> 00:13:33.860
We have some we have.

00:13:33.860 --> 00:13:37.383
One of our favorite groups right now is foreign exchange students.

00:13:37.383 --> 00:13:47.410
They have to do a certain amount of community service so they come and serve and it's really neat to see them meeting different people and interacting with the kids the other kids from different countries right in our kitchen in our kitchen.

00:13:47.451 --> 00:13:48.270
you know that's great.

00:13:48.270 --> 00:13:55.639
You mentioned all these volunteers coming through and I know people automatically think, oh, where can I serve?

00:13:55.639 --> 00:13:56.441
And it's always soup kitchen.

00:13:56.441 --> 00:13:58.525
You know it's at the forefront of a lot of people's minds, which is awesome.

00:13:58.525 --> 00:14:00.177
How do people get involved?

00:14:00.177 --> 00:14:05.456
If they want to volunteer, can they just show up, or would you like to have them contact you through the website?

00:14:05.456 --> 00:14:06.618
What's the best way to do that?

00:14:07.519 --> 00:14:07.860
We're not.

00:14:07.860 --> 00:14:10.144
You know, we don't like to turn people away at all.

00:14:10.144 --> 00:14:12.469
If we can help it because there's always so much to do.

00:14:12.469 --> 00:14:17.301
Um, for the most part, the best way is to go to the website, has a lot of instructions on there.

00:14:17.301 --> 00:14:21.557
But if you come down in person, we serve every day from 1130 to 1230.

00:14:21.557 --> 00:14:30.749
Because of that, our volunteers are usually here between nine and 10 in the morning, um, so if you come down, then when people hear and say I want to volunteer, they can get you all the forms, get you signed up.

00:14:31.490 --> 00:14:43.325
Um, what we really the issue we have is we have a pretty good amount of volunteers on Saturdays, because that's a day a lot of people have available, obviously, and we have a couple of good crews, like Monday and Tuesday, our crews are pretty solid.

00:14:43.325 --> 00:14:46.000
But the other days of the week it gets a little thin.

00:14:46.000 --> 00:14:52.822
So part of the issue we run into is not the number of volunteers, it's equally distributing them across all seven days.

00:14:52.822 --> 00:15:08.261
So if people especially have and we know it's hard with people's work schedules and stuff but if people availability, especially at those last days of the week the Wednesday, thursday, fridays, um, or Sundays that's where we really need the most help and, honestly, you don't have to come in and know how, to have to know how to cook.

00:15:08.261 --> 00:15:17.880
We usually are good on people who can cook and we, in a pinch, we've got lots of recipe books and stuff.

00:15:17.900 --> 00:15:20.955
Um, but what we, you know there's always something someone can do, like we really believe strongly that everyone's got a talent we can use.

00:15:20.955 --> 00:15:27.298
So you, you know, maybe you go wash the dishes, maybe you're taking out the trash, maybe you're serving people, maybe you're busing tables.

00:15:27.298 --> 00:15:28.158
Um, maybe you're serving the food.

00:15:28.158 --> 00:15:32.086
Maybe you're busing tables, maybe you're serving the food, maybe you're outside helping people get.

00:15:32.086 --> 00:15:36.682
We have a, we have a clothes ministry, we call St Francis's closet, so we give away a lot of clothing.

00:15:36.682 --> 00:15:39.423
So, you know, maybe we're gonna need you to do that.

00:15:39.423 --> 00:15:43.105
And you know we can never tell what we're going to need or what it's going to come up.

00:15:43.105 --> 00:15:50.206
So if some people I think they sometimes think I don't know the soup kitchen, I don't know how to cook, like, don't worry, we will, we will find a way to use you.

00:15:58.634 --> 00:15:58.956
That's awesome.

00:15:58.956 --> 00:16:03.831
I know serving that many meals over the course of 365 days or so is wear and tear on the equipment and I know that equipment issues have been an issue in the past.

00:16:03.831 --> 00:16:13.986
What's the current situation and maybe you could give a couple of shout outs to some of the organizations who have done work to repair equipment and maybe some needs that you might have for equipment.

00:16:14.368 --> 00:16:18.365
Yeah, our big donors really we've had several.

00:16:18.365 --> 00:16:20.702
We actually have a lot in here and we try to recognize them.

00:16:20.702 --> 00:16:39.101
Leprino Foods had done a big donation to us that helped us get a lot of our lights and fans set up because we were not quite up to code, which is a kind of a side thing that people don't realize that we have to be up to code, like a normal restaurant is, even though we don't make money.

00:16:39.101 --> 00:16:43.019
So it's kind of tough because we have to meet all the same standards that a full service restaurant does but we don't make money off of it.

00:16:43.019 --> 00:16:46.267
The rotary recently got us a new dishwasher.

00:16:46.267 --> 00:16:50.484
We had all they gave us double the size and it was all brand new.

00:16:50.484 --> 00:16:57.067
We've gotten some help from different groups, which now I'm suddenly drawing a blank on our floors and some stuff like that.

00:16:57.067 --> 00:17:00.423
But you know, a lot of local groups have been involved.

00:17:00.423 --> 00:17:10.378
You know other churches, so many local groups, and on top of that lots of donations have come to from just you know, regular folks in the community.

00:17:10.378 --> 00:17:16.376
When we had our kind of funding issues Sometimes people would be like hey, I have 20 bucks, I want to donate it, and to me those.

00:17:16.376 --> 00:17:18.321
You know every dollar helps.

00:17:18.321 --> 00:17:24.526
But that also means a lot to me that some people they gave out of what, the generosity, that of what they had, right, this is what I can help with.

00:17:24.526 --> 00:17:28.240
So I'm going to help with it and we're just, you know, we're so grateful for that.

00:17:28.240 --> 00:17:40.131
And then, you know, we have a big picture, a big thing up there of our our check from Loprino, who really helped us out, and we've got a big sticker that goes on our our rotary dishwasher, because that's it's a really great.

00:17:40.131 --> 00:17:44.123
It's like a cool dishwasher too, like I'm not a kitchen guy but I I like big machines.

00:17:44.123 --> 00:18:05.057
So I'm like, ooh, dishwasher, that's great.

00:18:05.218 --> 00:18:10.320
And we also talked about the need for sustaining contributions, not just, you know, $500 here.

00:18:10.320 --> 00:18:16.325
Beyond that there's the scope of the amount of equipment we have to use and things we have to do to set it up, the maintenance on the area.

00:18:16.325 --> 00:18:29.374
You know we're constantly having to fix things just from wear and tear of people coming in and out and so like when we got all those donations, especially when it looked like we were going to maybe lose the soup kitchen, there was so much generosity and so many people helped us out.

00:18:29.374 --> 00:18:36.237
But you know, it's really great to have a continuing donation, and one reason because of that is because of how the grants are.

00:18:36.698 --> 00:18:53.170
Grants tend to be given out a couple times a year, so we'll have like this bulge of grants at one point and it'll be real good, and then it'll go kind of dry for a while and then we have a bulge of grants and if we have regular continuing donations it kind of helps keep things smooth between those sets of grants.

00:18:53.170 --> 00:19:09.585
Because usually what happens what's happened most years the soup kitchen has been open is that the summer is usually when the grants are low, and so usually in the summer the church ends up floating the soup kitchen, which is we're glad to do because that's our mission, but sometimes it causes us to have to give up things in the church to do it.

00:19:09.585 --> 00:19:10.415
Yeah for sure.

00:19:10.978 --> 00:19:14.886
You know, luke, the community appreciates this ministry so much.

00:19:14.886 --> 00:19:16.300
I mean 38 years.

00:19:16.300 --> 00:19:20.582
That's a huge commitment to the community and I want to thank you for coming on the show.

00:19:20.582 --> 00:19:31.248
And in closing, can you kind of give us a pitch about why the soup kitchen is so important and it's such an important vision of the Episcopal Church of the Savior here in Hanford?

00:19:31.694 --> 00:19:33.618
Well it's such an important vision of the Episcopal Church of the Savior here in Hanford.

00:19:33.618 --> 00:19:35.122
Well, it's important to us because we believe that the church is not.

00:19:35.122 --> 00:19:38.568
You know that church is about community and about serving your neighbor right.

00:19:38.568 --> 00:19:56.101
And so at the end of the day, we've got to serve our neighbors and we believe that the church isn't just for us who go to church here, but for everyone that's in the community, and so we want to try to always shepherd our resources in the way that's to the good of the most people, and this is how we've been able to do it so far and we want to keep doing it.

00:19:57.276 --> 00:20:08.686
Well, it's the big brick church on Doughty Street, as we say, the website is ecsaviororg, that's E-C-S-A-V-I-O-U-R dot org.

00:20:08.686 --> 00:20:12.105
And thank you once again, luke, for coming on the show, and we wish you the best of luck.

00:20:21.352 --> 00:20:31.546
Thank you, and now it's time for hampered insider sports with Eric Bentley.

00:20:31.546 --> 00:20:39.747
Believe it or not, the Central Section playoff brackets will be set this week, with many of our basketball and soccer teams on track to earn a playoff berth.

00:20:39.747 --> 00:20:43.986
So let's check in as we head into the final week of the regular season.

00:20:43.986 --> 00:20:53.767
In girls basketball, a pair of presumptive playoff teams look to stay hot, and they actually played each other last week Sierra Pacific and Hanford West.

00:20:53.767 --> 00:21:09.392
And it was Sierra Pacific who came out on top en route to a perfect 3-0 week last week, taking down the Huskies along with Selma and Bakersfield Christian, to stay in first place in Tri-County Kings Canyon League play at 6-1 and 18-8 overall.

00:21:09.392 --> 00:21:14.135
The Golden Bears will play Kerman in their regular season finale on Tuesday.

00:21:14.135 --> 00:21:22.141
For Hanford West, the setback to the Golden Bears was short-lived, as they took down Kingsburg 58-27 in their next game.

00:21:22.141 --> 00:21:36.761
The loss to Sierra Pacific was not a league game, so the Huskies stay undefeated in Tri-County Sequoia League play at 7-0 and 16-7 overall, as they'll close their regular season out against Washington Union on Tuesday.

00:21:36.761 --> 00:21:46.297
And Hanford High fell in both of their games last week, as the Bullpups will close out their regular season with a rivalry matchup with Lemoore on Tuesday.

00:21:46.297 --> 00:21:58.632
In boys basketball, hanford High improved to 17-9 overall, with a 67-53 win versus Tulare Western, before taking down Mission Oak 82-59.

00:21:58.632 --> 00:22:04.048
The Bullpups will face off against Lemoore to close out their regular season on Tuesday.

00:22:04.048 --> 00:22:15.471
The Sierra Pacific boys find themselves in second place in the Tri-County Kings League at 5-3, splitting their two games last week, falling to CVC before taking down Selma.

00:22:15.471 --> 00:22:20.547
The Golden Bears will clash with Hanford West on Wednesday to end their regular season.

00:22:20.547 --> 00:22:29.567
As for the Huskies, the matchup with Sierra Pacific will be a chance to put a bright spot on an otherwise disappointing season after falling to Exeter and Kerman last week.

00:22:30.996 --> 00:22:52.444
And let's head out to soccer where, on the girls' side, hanford High suffered a rare defeat, falling to Tulare Western 2-1, but then bouncing back with a resounding 6-0 victory over Mission Oak At 8-1 in the WYL and with a 21-3 overall record, a playoff spot seems all but guaranteed, headed into a rivalry tilt with Lemoore on Tuesday.

00:22:52.444 --> 00:23:00.297
The Sierra Pacific girls split their two games last week, taking down Emanuel 4-2, before being bested by Kerman.

00:23:00.297 --> 00:23:09.346
The Golden Bears find themselves sitting atop the Tri-County Sequoia League at 4-0 and 3, heading into their regular season finale with the Huskies on Wednesday.

00:23:09.346 --> 00:23:18.164
Hanford West also split their two games last week, both one-goal differentials, falling to Selma 2-1 before taking down Emmanuel 4-3.

00:23:18.164 --> 00:23:29.238
The matchup with Sierra Pacific this week will give Hanford West a chance to finish the regular season above .500, as they sit at 8-8-4 overall In boys

00:23:29.278 --> 00:23:29.640
soccer.

00:23:29.640 --> 00:23:35.721
Hanford High won both of their games last week, taking down Tulare Western 3-2 and Mission Oak 4-2.

00:23:35.721 --> 00:23:42.960
The Bullpups sit at 5-3-1 in the WIL, headed into the regular season finale versus Lemoore on Tuesday.

00:23:42.960 --> 00:23:52.367
The Sierra Pacific boys remain atop the Tri-County Sequoia League at 5-0-2, after taking down Kingsburg 2-0 before falling to Kerman 3-0.

00:23:52.367 --> 00:23:57.146
They'll close out their regular season with a matchup against Hanford West on Tuesday.

00:23:57.146 --> 00:24:07.096
As for the Huskies, after playing CVC to a draw and falling to Kingsburg, the matchup this week with the Golden Bears will serve as an opportunity to end the season on a high note.

00:24:07.096 --> 00:24:10.308
And a couple of quick shoutouts to close close things out.

00:24:10.308 --> 00:24:22.739
A shout-out to the Hanford West wrestling team as they finished fourth in the Tri-Central Conference League tournament and a shout-out to the Hanford West boys JV soccer team for going undefeated in Tri-County Sequoia League play.

00:24:22.739 --> 00:24:33.483
As always, we like to cover as many local sports as possible, so if you have a score report or a story idea, make sure to email hanfordinsider at gmailcom.

00:24:33.483 --> 00:24:37.931
I'm Eric Bentley and this has been your Hanford Insider Sports Report.

00:24:42.776 --> 00:24:44.760
Well, that's all the time we have for this week's show.

00:24:44.760 --> 00:24:52.147
If you enjoy this podcast and you'd like to show your support, you can go to buymeacoffeecom slash Hanford Insider to make a donation.

00:24:52.147 --> 00:24:59.339
If you'd like to join the Hanford Insider email list, stop by my website at hanfordinsidercom to sign up for updates.

00:24:59.339 --> 00:25:03.661
You'll also get an exclusive copy of my newsletter in your inbox each week.

00:25:03.661 --> 00:25:12.357
I also need your help getting the word out about the show by liking and sharing on social media or telling a friend For more information about the show.

00:25:12.357 --> 00:25:17.736
By liking and sharing on social media or telling a friend For more information about the show, you can find this podcast on Facebook, instagram, threads X and YouTube at Hanford Insider.

00:25:17.736 --> 00:25:23.655
If you have a show idea, be sure to email me at hanfordinsider at gmailcom and I'll look into it.

00:25:23.655 --> 00:25:25.201
Thanks for listening.

00:25:25.201 --> 00:25:26.204
Have a great week.

Hanford Insider: Soup Kitchen Update, City Council, and Celebrating Hanford's Milestones!

Listen On

Recent Episodes