Local dive shop Phoenix Scuba offers certification classes for local divers but what’s truly drawing people into to the shop is its owner.

Kelly Fischer, 54, is both instructor and owner of Phoenix Scuba. Her nurturing and selfless approach to helping others has earned her a reputation as one of the top dive instructors in the valley. Her business has a five star rating on Yelp and a 4.8 star rating on Google Plus.

A Phoenician since 1968, Kelly Fischer said it was never her intention to become a dive instructor. She sufferers from claustrophobia and pushed herself to become comfortable underwater. She previously worked as a corporate credit analyst for American Express. Scuba was a passion of her husband, Steve. It wasn’t until she went on dive trip to Seal Island in California did she truly grow a passion for the sport.

In 2002, Kelly Fischer opened her first dive shop Paradise Scuba. Three years later, she and her husband decided to become instructors. It was in her training that she noticed only three of the 40 students in her class were women. She said it was in that moment she felt a responsibility to become a course director to encourage women to take leadership roles in the sport.

“It [Diving] takes some nurturing and just being there as a calming presence. Being a mom. I really think at the end of the day that’s it. I think as a woman, I bring something to the table that men don’t which is that nurturing quality,” Kelly Fischer said.

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The Coyotes Curling Club in Tempe is redefining camaraderie by building a dynamic community both on and off the ice.

The club’s hard work and determination has led to a brand-new, sprawling, Olympic-caliber facility and a hundred new members.

The Coyotes Curling Club was founded in 2003 and is currently the only curling club in the state. When they started, they were located at the home of the Phoenix Coyotes hockey team at the Ice Den in Scottsdale. The club had about 80 members. However, their time on the ice was limited to two hours a week. They needed more space to become competitive.

Twelve members decided to create a new facility and make the Coyotes Curling Club into a nonprofit organization. They wanted the club to be about its members and a place for the community to gather and share a love of the sport.

Darryl Horsman, 43, works in marketing for U-Haul and is spokesman for the club. He grew up curling with his parents in Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada. Horsman is also one of the 12 original co-founders of the Coyotes Curling Club. He said they all knew it would be hard work but a risk worth taking.

“We reached out to everyone we knew locally in the western U.S. and said ‘if this thing goes belly up’ we will all put in $1,000 and lick our wounds,” Horsman said.

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A man pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to kill his girlfriend and setting fire to their apartment at The Galleria Apartment complex on 60^th Avenue, on Monday night.

Marcus Deondrae Savage-Dewitt, 22, pleaded not guilty to two counts of attempted first-degree murder and a separate count of arson of an occupied structure, according to superior court documents.

Police records state the fire at The Galleria Apartment complex was a result of arson. Savage-Dewitt told police that he wasn’t on the property when the blaze began. However, his explanation of the evening’s events doesn’t fully match his girlfriend Chelsea Maria Griffin’s account to police.

The following information on the sequence of events comes from Glendale Police Department documents.

On the night of the fire, Savage-Dewitt told Griffin he was going to take a shower. So, she headed to bed. Griffin claims she fell asleep and awoke to flames in her room. Hearing the shower still running, she tried to alert Savage-Dewitt. However, Griffin didn’t hear him respond. She tried to open the bathroom door but it was locked.

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This was a radio wrap done for my graduate broadcast class in Fall 2015.

The Phoenix Historical Preservation Commission announced during Wednesday’s meeting they are seeking help from private businesses to save the 1938 Works Progress Administration building on the State Fair grounds.

The plan distributed federal funds to put Arizonans back to work after the Great Depression.

Kathryn Leonard, an archeologist serving as a historian to the commission, said the building is currently vacant.

“It’s in pretty poor condition and it is not able to be occupied. But it has been used in the last five years, mainly for storage,” Leonard stated.

During the meeting, committee members said they have met with state officials from the governor’s office to find a solution and save the building. The commission wants to show private businesses investing in the building is mutually beneficial to the business and the community. Companies will have the opportunity to increase profits due to the fair’s location and the state and city can preserve a part of Arizona’s history.

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The Arizona Department of Public Safety raised the reward to $50,000 for information on the Interstate 10 shooter but Phoenix metro commuters remain cautious of traveling on the highway.

Department of Public Safety Director Col. Frank Milstead said that they are still actively searching for the individual responsible.

A total of 11 shooting incidents have been reported since Aug. 29 on I-10. Commuters driving on the highway say they’re leery of using the roadway while the shooter remains at-large. Despite assurances from DPS, travelers remain on edge.

Jessica Cherubini, 36, is a mother that lives in Chandler and works as a health and wellness supervisor. She says she has stopped driving on the I-10 because of the shootings.

“I’m just extremely concerned for my family’s safety and I have little children and it really freaks me out,” Cherubini stated.

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Welcome to my portfolio. This website encompasses the work I have done throughout my career in journalism.

Currently, I’m a Masters of Mass Communication student at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. My focus is broadcast production. I enjoy covering stories relating to international and domestic politics.

Most recently, I worked as an Associate Producer at Fox News Channel. My experience includes working on the Washington Bureau’s editorial and production staff for Fox News Sunday, America’s News Headquarters, and Special Report programs. I was also part of Fox’s White House unit. I have experience generating story ideas, setting up interviews and assembling information for reporters and show staffs. In addition, I have produced live shots for daytime programming, written copy and online content

I hope to apply my newly obtained skills from the Walter Cronkite School to create engaging and interactive news stories for viewers.

My most recent posts on this site will feature projects I have completed throughout my course of study.