User Posts : The Southwest Voice

Father's Day Photo Contest: Enjoying Las Vegas

Rich and Kendall Castillo enjoying a Las Vegas vacation

Father's Day Photo Contest: Rich and Kendall

Daddy and his little princess enjoying the day at Medieval Times Dinner and Theater Show.

Graduate Photo Contest: Zac

Good bye, Warren Jr. High...Hello Stockdale High School!

Easter Photo Contest: Underwater Easter Egg Hunt

One of the fun things that we did this Easter was to attend the first annual "Underwater Eggstravaganza" at McMurtrey Aquatic Center. There were eggs at the bottom of the pool and some floating. The kids had a GREAT time at this very unusual Easter hunt!

First Church of the Nazarene's Auction Dinner

Bakersfield First Church of the Nazarene, located at 2801 Hughes Lane, will be having a huge Auction Dinner on Saturday, January 27th @ 5pm. The theme of the evening will be "A Taste of Country" and everyone is encouraged to come dressed in western wear. There will be a wonderful dinner served by a gourmet chef, as well as a comedy show and entertainment. The evening will close with an auction that will be hosted by a professional auctioneer, who will auction off some GREAT items. It is sure to be a fun evening.

COST: $25.00 per individual, $40.00 per couple, or $150 for a table of 8.

Tickets are on sale now until January 21st. @ 2801 Hughes Lane, or call 832-2145. Tickets will NOT be sold at the door.

cost includes dinner, entertainment, a commemorative photo and an auction paddle. All funds raised will be used to send 12 teens and 2 sponsors to the Nazarene Youth Conference in St. Louis, Missouri. This event brings thousands of teens together for discipleship in a life changing way.

First Day of School Photo Contest: Zachery

Back to School Photo Contest: Kelsey

Back to School Photo Contest: Kendall

Back to School Photo Contest: Out the door!

Here are my kids heading out of the door to their first day of the 2006-2007 school year!

My son, Zachery, is 13 years old and is at Warren Junior High. As you can see he is very excited about school starting again, and even more enthusiastic about me taking his picture! But as it turned out, he said he got some great teachers this year and "even math is going to be good this year!" My daughters are headed to Sing Lum Elementary. Kelsey is 11 years old and gets to enjoy all the senority as a sixth grader, and one of her best friends is in her class! Kendall is 7 years old and very excited about becoming a second grader. After the first day of school, Kendall exclaimed how she loves 2nd grade, loves her teacher (Mrs. Mullen), and thinks it's silly how her teacher told the students that their books are their children and to take good care of them! It's going to be a great year!

Summer Vacation Photo Contest Entry: Mariposa

The Castillo family spent some time this summer in beautiful Mariposa, Calif., which is about 20 minutes south of Yosemite. The beautiful mountains and the cool air make a perfect place to spend summer days. The kids loved to explore the mountains, catch frogs and lizards and visit with our extended family. Kelsey and her best friend Emily even took hours laying rocks down in layers to form a little divider around the front of Nana's house that will be there for generations to come!

Junior Girl Scouts earn top award

I am so proud to say that I am the Junior Girl Scout leader (along with my co-leaders: Kelly Byers, Katrina Potter and Vicki Standley) of eight girls who have earned the highest award possible for the junior scouting level: the Bronze Award.

The girls who earned this award are: Brehia Skinner, Bekka Potter, Madison VanWorth, Emily Byers, Kelsey Castillo, Sara Standley and Skyler Wellnitz.

To earn this award these girls had to be very dedicated. It took a lot of time and effort. These girls each dedicated many hours at the Kern County Animal Shelter washing and walking dogs; they collected donations of blankets and toys for the animal shelter; they showed leadership skills in planning and leading many Brownie meetings for younger Girl Scouts; they earned many badges at our meetings and many at home; and they all had near perfect attendance.

This award took almost two years for these girls to earn and I am so proud of their accomplishment!

Girl Scouts enjoy a day at Disneyland

This summer, Girl Scout troop 605 headed to Anaheim to visit Disneyland. The girls earned the money for this summer trip by selling Girl Scout cookies.

We left at 5 a.m. from Bakersfield and arrived in Anaheim at about 8:30 a.m. We pre-checked into our hotel room and walked right across the street to "The Happiest Place on Earth."

It was a beautiful day and we had a great time. The park was not overcrowded and we were able to go on every ride that the girls wanted to.

The best part of the day was the 50th anniversary fireworks show in the evening. It was just awesome!

We took full advantage of the midnight closing time and then we walked back to our hotel room where we all literally passed out. By morning, we were all refreshed and ready to head home.

It was the perfect summer trip!

Sandi Castillo is the troop leader for troop 605.

Happy 11th birthday, Kelsey!

Happy 11th birthday, Kelsey! You are such a smart and beautiful girl and we are so proud of you. Hope you enjoy your birthday at Disneyland!

Love, Mom, Dad, Zach and Kendall