NEW IN AUGUST 2016: Our new 3’s Program is filling up fast! Accepting applications NOW! RENOVATED & EXPANDED PRESCHOOL & KINDERGARTEN: Get ready for an exciting 2016-2017 school year as our facilities get a “summer makeover!” TOURS BY APPOINTMENT (602) 954-9088 or visit us at www.staphxschool.org 4510 N 24th Street Phoenix, AZ 85016 Walk in. Get Treated. Feel Better. Proud sponsor of Arcadia High School 1-877-617-4186 NextCare.com N. A rcadia Dr. Indian School N. 44th St. 48th St. Arcadia H.S. Safeway Phoenix • 85018 4730 E Indian School Rd. Open 7 Days A Week Mon-Fri: 8am-8pm Sat-Sun: 9am-5pm AZ_ArcadiaNews_Ad - 0416.indd 1 4/13/2016 11:20:40 AM PREPARE FOR SUCCESS! 602-795-6312 | ledgar@cox.net www.LindaEdgarTutorandSATprep.com Linda Edgar’s Tutoring Service Certified Reading Specialist and Learning Disabilities • Summer and School year Tutoring • Grades 1-12 | Reading | Math | Writing • Next SAT and ACT prep. Courses begin May 25 Page 8 May 2016 By Jenet Simmons Third generation owner of local Harper’s Nursery, John “Jay” Harper, tells the story of his family’s legacy that built the business he and two brothers own today. Retiring as a firefighter in 1945, Jay’s grandfather, John Harper Sr., turned his love of horticulture into the family’s business after retirement. John Sr.’s interest in plants began during World War II when it was common to plant a victory garden. Promoted by the government as a response to rationed food, victory gardens became a community approach to feeding one’s family. In 1957 the second generation, son of John Sr., John Harper Jr., joined the business. John Jr. quickly added multiple locations. He passed on his love for horticulture to his three sons, as his father did to him. Oldest son, Jay Harper, fondly remembers his father as a good landscape designer and caretaker of plants. It was while he worked alongside his father that Jay realized he had an interest for plants, too. Jay’s earliest memory of enjoying gardening was when he was 8 years old and worked at Harper’s on Saturdays. Even at a young age, Jay’s duties involved multiple areas of caretaking for the nursery. His work set the stage for how his two brothers would be involved with Harper’s. Reminiscing of his childhood memories, Jay said, “Everybody worked a little bit during summers and weekends. As we got older, more responsibility came on our shoulders by working on the landscape crew.” In 1990, Jay acquired the business from his father and with his brothers they transitioned to working together in the family business. The Harper brothers pride themselves on knowing this business inside and out. Jay said, “We have expertise. Between the three of us, we have about 100 years of garden and landscape experience. We make house calls, design and install your home’s landscape from irrigation systems, to lighting, to simply planting one tree. You can walk in here and on any given day get one owner’s attention to make sure you get the right plant for the right place.” Jay has a passion for the community support around the company. After all, this is how the legacy of Harper’s was originally established with John Sr.’s victory garden. Jay said, “We love to support local things like Little League, PTO raffles, neighborhood events and we appreciate the neighborhood’s support of Harper’s.” As a neighborhood outreach, Harper’s hosts monthly community events between October and May, such as a Rose Clinic where patrons can learn about roses and ask questions directly to one of the owners, then stick around for a barbecue hosted by Harper’s. When asked what the family business and legacy meant to him, Jay said, “I am prideful of the fact that we’ve carried our grandfather’s name and his passion and love for plants and gardening. We pride ourselves on being knowledgeable. Having three generations of experience is something we can offer our customers to help them achieve their landscaping goals.” Business based upon legacy The Harper brothers run their family nursery, a longtime Valley staple. BEHIND THE BUSINESS

REAL ESTATE CORNER Tucker Blalock YOUR ARCADIA AND BILTMORE REAL ESTATE SPECIALIST Need help picking a contractor? I have been lucky enough to call the Camelback Corridor “home” for my entire life. I attended the neighborhood schools and broke the neighborhood rules. Growing up here has given me the opportunity of watching the Corridor evolve from its unassuming beginnings to the real estate and restaurant mecca that it is today. While we have been fortunate for the incredible development, growth of this magnitude obviously brings its share of growing pains. One of the major pains of our growing neighborhood is that where there used to be 3 or 4 well known contractors, there are now 20-30 not so well known contractors. Fortunately for my readership, my wife and I have guinea pigged for you through the four homes that we have owned/remodeled in the ‘hood. Through our experiences over the years, both good and bad, we have assembled an incredibly detailed list of contractors that do business in the neighborhood. We have fully vetted each company in our report through the Arizona Registrar of Contractors, online listings, online reviews, and any other outlet that we could find. Our report provides details such as phone numbers, websites, license numbers, and complaints. I am confident that this arsenal of information will allow you to make a highly informed decision when it comes time for you to hire someone for your home. If you are interested in receiving our free list of contractors, you can call me anytime at 602-ARCADIA or logon to ArcadiaContractorList.com. On another note, I wanted to congratulate three families that I just placed in the Arcadia neighborhood. Congrats to Justin & Grace Reeder, Aaron & Giselle Weisheim, and William Kelhoffer. These young families will be great additions to our area and will help to shape the neighborhood in the years to come. Cheers! Tucker Blalock The Suits Biltmore Lifestyles Real Estate 602-ARCADIA P A I D A D V E R T I S E M E N T The Arcadia Contractor List ArcadiaRealEstate.com A R C A D I A’ S O W N Tucker Blalock 602.ARCADIA B I LT M O R E L I F E S T Y L E S R E A L E S TAT E Page 9 May 2016 AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD The Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Phoenix recently held its annual Today’s Kids, Tomorrow’s Stars Gala on March 19. The event raised more than $2 million that will benefit after school and summer day camp programs for more than 30,000 Valley youth. NOW OPEN Carine 5033 N. 44th St., Suite C-305 Women’s clothing store located in Camelback Village Shopping Center. With close to 7,000 books collected, The Goddard School faculty and Reach Out and Read reps dropped off books to six different local clinics throughout Phoenix. On April 6, Valley Toyota Dealers teamed up with Total Auto Pros to customize and donate a fully loaded Toyota Tundra 4x4 to Phoenix Children’s Hospital. The truck, valued at more than $70,000, was given to Walt Brown, Jr., who generously donated $100,000 to the hospital’s Hope Fund. NOW OPEN Crab & Mermaid Fish Shop 4218 N. Scottsdale Road New restaurant from the team at Cold Beers and Cheeseburgers. The Scottsdale Charros, a volunteer group of business and civic leaders, honored Arcadia High School teacher Barbara Thomas and Arcadia Neighborhood Learning Center’s Lisa Lieppert and Yvonne White for their outstanding contributions to education. Each teacher received $1,000 from the Charros. On April 9, former ANLC student Sam Reiss and his Boy Scout Troop refurbished the desert tortoise habitat for Sam’s Eagle Scout project. The tortoise habitat has served as a teaching tool for the school’s students as they learn about wildlife and plants of the Sonoran Desert and the school is grateful to have it returned to its original state. On April 12, real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield announced the $19.65 million purchase of Arcadia Village, the CVS Pharmacy-anchored shopping center located on the southwest corner of Camelback Road and 40 th Street. Ingleside Middle School held its annual 5K Fun Run/Walk on April 9 at Arizona Falls in Phoenix. The PTO sponsored event was open to the entire community and had more than 160 runners/walkers of all ages. The race raised $8,000 for the school. NOW OPEN For the People 5102 N. Central Ave. #1 Modern home decor, recently moved from UNION at the Biltmore Fashion Park.