In today’s edition of Sedona Red Rock News, you, our dear readers, can find a copy of our biannual Lifestyles of Sedona magazine.
This publication, which we have been producing for more than 20 years, is one of the highlights of our editorial news calendar, as we get to do long-form profile reporting on the people and organizations that define what it means to live in Sedona.
This edition’s cover feature is Jacquie Randall, known to most of our readers as the author of our Paw Prints column every Friday for nearly 30 years. If you have acquired a dog or cat during your time in Sedona, you’ve likely interacted with her at some level, as she has held various leadership positions with the Humane Society of Sedona and now volunteers with the shelter. Or perhaps you’ve just read her column in our newspaper about pet ownership — one of the most popular columns we print, according to readers. She also volunteers in the classroom at Sedona Charter School.
She’s one of those kind-hearted souls residents have met at fundraisers and her fiery red hair is an unmistakable feature.
We also celebrate the 65th anniversary of the Sedona Arts Center and the 30th anniversary of the Sedona International Film Festival — two staples in the Sedona arts community that have shaped how we define ourselves and our region artistically. Reporters Alyssa Smith and Tim Perry spoke with the heads of these two organizations, Julie Richard and Patrick Schweiss, respectively, for insight on their pasts and their goals for the future.
We have photo spreads from our photojournalists, Dalton Venglar and David Jolkovski, featuring fused glass artist Amy Light and fly fishing in Oak Creek Canyon.
There’s also a profile on Tyler Carson, aka the Fiddler on the Rock, who performs for tourists and residents at sunset atop Airport Mesa. If you’re curious about his skills and the kind of music he performs, he is not-so-coincidentally on the cover of The Scene this week, as he will be performing concerts on Mondays, Nov. 27 through Dec. 18, at the Sedona Posse Grounds Hub at Posse Grounds Park. Check him out if you’ve never heard him on the fiddle.
Readers know of our longstanding close relationship with the Sedona Historical Society. Reporter Joseph K. Giddens profiles the society’s process of digitizing the 30,000 historic photos in the Sedona Heritage Museum’s archive, including thousands donated by Elizabeth Rigby [1906-1994], who worked as a reporter and photojournalist for the Sedona Red Rock News decades ago.
Giddens also writes about Gary Bohn, a Sedona bicyclist readers have met on his quest to race in the Tour 21, which follows the route of the Tour de France.
Readers can also learn about Clavel Bennett, a 100-year-old World War II veteran, written by Lo Frisby, our former Camp Verde and Cottonwood reporter, who suggested and wrote the story.
Readers can also learn more about sculptor Kim Kori, whose work depicts small creatures in a big format — most residents who have visited Tlaquepaque are familiar with her sculpture of the frog blowing a kiss toward passersby.
The magazine format allows us to break some page design rules that we adhere to fairly strictly for newspaper page design to ease news presentation for our readers. Most of these rules we can break for a magazine are very subtle, but noticeable to those with a keen eye, and it makes the magazine a bit more fun to read.
Lifestyles of Sedona also allows us to cover residents in a way we really can’t do in a biweekly news publication. We can take our time and delve into the stories of our profiled subjects so readers get to know them as neighbors rather than as newsmakers involved in an upcoming or recent news event.
We hope you enjoy this edition and meet some of the neighbors and community organizations that make our city an interesting place to live. If you have suggestions for our spring 2024 edition, send me an email to editor@larsonnewspapers.com.
