2013 Yumas Best Archive Stories

Bike Ride: 1st: West Wetlands Park 2nd: Along Colorado Riverfront Park 3rd: Bike Trail by Canal Boating: 1st: Martinez Lake/ Fisher's Landing 2nd: Colorado River 3rd: Senator's Wash Camping:

Friendliest Grocery Checkers: 1st: Fry's Food Stores 2nd: Albertson's 3rd: Wal-Mart Local Place to Cool Off: 1st: Harkins Yuma Palms 14 2nd: Colorado River 3rd: Waylon's Water World Park:

Chiropractic Office: 1st: Madrid Chiropractic 2nd: Cummings Chiropractic 3rd: Rowlinson Chiropractic 4th: Cradic Chiropractic Dental Office: 1st: Robert J. Land:  DDS 2nd: Gallenmore Dental 3r

Accounting Firm 1st: Misenhimer:  Aivazian & Tennant:  P.C. 2nd: CPAs of Yuma 3rd: H&R Block Apartment Complex 1st: Camelot Apartments 2nd: El Encanto Apartments 3rd: Beach Club Apartments

All Around Restaurant 1st: Famous Dave's BBQ 2nd: Da Boyz Pizza & Pasta 3rd: Burgers & Beer American 1st: Famous Dave's BBQ 2nd: Burgers & Beer 3rd: Applebee's Neighborhood Grill Asian

Annual Event or Festival 1st: Midnight at the Oasis 2nd: Yuma County Fair 3rd: Somerton Tamale Festival Bingo 1st: Cocopah Casino 2nd: Paradise Casino 3rd: American Legion Casino

Advertising/PR Firm 1st: Yuma Sun Newspaper 2nd: KYMA 3rd: El Dorado Broadcasters Computer Networking/ Repair 1st: Best Buy 2nd: INerd Repair Services 3rd: G&T Alarm Facebook Business Page

Fifteen years ago, the Yuma Sun began polling its readers to find out which were their favorite businesses, service providers and attractions around Yuma County. The results of that survey, dubbed Yuma’s Best, were revealed in a story that appeared in the newspaper. Since the initial poll, Yuma’s Best has grown, with

To be picked as Yuma-area residents’ favorite business or service provider is a noteworthy achievement. But having earned that honor in any given year, businesses or providers know they cannot then rest on their laurels, not if they plan to survive and thrive over the long haul. They never forget that they exist to serve th

It would seem the Yuma area's dedicated anglers go back and forth when it comes to picking a favorite fishing hole. Anglers who voted in the 2009 edition of Yuma's Best reader poll held annually by the Yuma Sun picked the Colorado River as the area's Best Place to Fish. For 2010, they picked Mittry Lake, and for 2011 it was Martinez Lake

If you want to present someone with a trophy that fits conveniently in a bookcase or on a desk top, 24 Karat Jewelers wants to make it for you. If the trophy you want to award stands several feet high, 24 Karat Jewelry wants to create it for you. Maybe you're looking for a plaque that the honoree can hang on the wall. Maybe you n

A-1 Flood & Fire Restoration may be better known to customers for helping clean up homes and businesses in the wake of a disaster. But the business can help you clean up the stains and dirt that accumulate on your carpet from everyday wear and tear. In fact, A-1 started out as a carpet cleaning business more than 25 years ago.

If anyone knows the importance of presentation, it's the people at All Seasons Florist Balloons and Gifts. When the Yuma florist shop gets an order for a flower arrangement, it doesn't just fill a vase with what might be considered a suitable number of stems for the money spent by the customer, said Mike Didier, the owner. &ldquo

Her loyal viewers consider Anna Chaulk the best local television personality in Yuma, but she'd be the first to say the credit belongs to others besides her. Without a competent and dedicated team of journalists at KECY FOX 9 News, she says, she wouldn't be able to do her job as managing editor and news anchor for the station. &l

Put aside any notions you may have about car shopping, says Everett Dawson. At Bill Alexander Ford-Lincoln, you don't have to brace yourself for high-pressure sales tactics, said Dawson, the dealership's general manager. Bill Alexander holds the highest possible regard for the customer and his or her needs, he said. And i

If people ask for the breakfast menu in the afternoon, they're on different schedules than other folks, or they just really like breakfast. Either way, Yuma's Cracker Barrel will accommodate them, says Lloyd Truax, the restaurant's general manager says. “We serve breakfast all day long, so you can get breakfast at any hour,

Don't let their loyal customers hear you say the two Da Boyz eateries in the Yuma area are merely pizza and Italian restaurants. Sure, Da Boyz Pizza & Pasta in Foothills and Da Boyz Italian Cuisine in downtown Yuma serve up a wide variety of pizza, plus spaghetti, lasagna and other pasta dishes. But repeat customers will tell

Some law firms have a sole practitioner. Some firms practice in a variety of fields of law. Not Donovan Law of Yuma. It consists of three attorneys who bring to the firm decades of experience in criminal law, and who can draw on one another’s expertise in defending clients. And with the exception of occasional military law

Adriana Gutierrez has fond menudo memories that go back to her youth in San Luis Rio Colorado, Son. During recessionary times, when work opportunities were limited, the family would make ends meet in part by making and selling the traditional Mexican soup made with beef tripe, she recalled “My mother would make it and then

Famous Dave's is known for its barbecue, but don't try to tell its loyal customers in Yuma that it's just a place to eat barbecue. As far as they're concerned, it's the area's best American food restaurant, best all-around restaurant and the best caterer. The restaurant in the Yuma Palms Regional Shopping Center won in all those

Lloyd Vassar can’t give you just one reason why Fisher Chevrolet Buick GMC was named by voters in Yuma’s Best as having the area’s best auto repair shop. But Vassar, the Yuma car dealership’s service director, can give you 40 or 50 reasons for the honor. Twenty-eight of those reasons are in the dealership&

It’s no problem for the Foothills Bank to give newly hired employees the training they need to be tellers. But if new employees don’t come to the job already having a genuine desire to give excellent customer service, then they can’t do the job – at least not as far as Foothills Bank is concerned. The desi

The youngest members of Gadsden Elementary School District’s marching band are in fourth grade. But don’t underestimate them. This group of about 180 instrumentalists, representing elementary and junior high schools in Gadsden and San Luis, have earned applause far and wide. After all, they performed in Hollywood&rsqu

Yuma's Goodwill's thrift stores aren't justgood places to go with a specific purchase in mind. They're good places to browse and perhaps find something that wouldn't have otherwise occurred to you that you would need or want. “You never know what you're going to find in our store,” said Erik Eaker, who is Goodwill's d

As far as Shawn Smith is concerned, the role of the Humane Society of Yuma is not just finding a healthy, happy home for every dog or cat that its shelter takes in. Its mission is also to pair those animals with peoples whose lives will, in turn, be enriched by the new pets. “Pets really do provide a great, valuable additio