Desert Messenger

• Birth • Obituary • Anniversary Place it FREE in the: Desert Messenger! 928-916-4235 Got something to share? 14 www.DesertMessenger.com December 20, 2017 • Old Costume Jewelry • Old Fountain Pens • Silver & Gold Coins • Sterling Silverware • Gold Filled Jewelry • Old Watches • Gold & Silver Jewelry Any Condition • Gold Nuggets • Dental Gold BUYING Hi Ally Swap Meet ~ Front Row Main St., Quartzsite Corner of Moon Mt. & Cowell • Quartzsite • 928-927-5400 QUARTZSITE'S ONLY YEAR ROUND SALON - MON-SAT Cheyanne, Debbi, Sheryl, Beth, Sherry, Linda, Janna & Gayle ARE HERE FOR YOUR OPEN YEAR ROUND! Hair, Nails, and Pedicure Services RON & PATTY'S DIECAST Collectibles & Apparel Behind Gem World & Quartzsite Outpost W. MAIN STREET, QUARTZSITE 704-575-6719 NASCAR Come see us at our NEW LOCATION! We have SKY LANTERNS! Elvis comes to town By Jackie Deal It is estimated that there are about 9000 Elvis impersonators in the world. Michael Cullipher placed in the top 20 in "The Ultimate Elvis Presley Tribute World Preliminaries" in Memphis. That's like an athlete making it to the Olympics. Michael has been coming to Quartzsite for about 8 years and this January and February he'll be here again. Last year he wowed Quartzsite audiences with his non-stop performances. He has all the moves, the sexy gyra- tions that Elvis was famous for and he has a gorgeous voice that ranges from rafter- blasting crescendos to a sultry purr on "Love Me Tender." Women and (a few men) who were young in the 1960s, shriek and hol- ler and forget their gray hair and wrinkles. For a few minutes they are young again-fans of Elvis. But it's not only Elvis contemporaries that appreciate his music. At last year's concert at the Quartzsite Im- provement Asso. (QIA), two little girls -scarcely teenyboppers- sat in the front row with their mother. You might have expected them to look bored and maybe sneer. They quickly got into the mood and screamed and clapped and waved their arms. Michaels's dream of making Elvis's music live for future generations was a reality. Off stage, Michael is amazing. He's only 27 years old, yet he's poised, unpretentious, and real. He's comfortable with himself, with his work and with his audience. He offers to "sign pictures, CDs, even your babies." Someone in the audi- ence yells, "Michael, Babies?? Look at the age of your audience!" He doubles over with laughter. Michael lives in Sallisaw, Oklaho- ma, about 19 miles from the Arkan- sas border. He was 4 years old when he fi rst saw an Elvis impersonator. He thought "that jumpsuit was the coolest things I'd ever seen. And I wanted to have sideburns just like Elvis." He does! He says he grew up "doing Elvis" and many hometown folks knew him as Elvis. He cautions "at no time do I say I am Elvis. I just try to keep his music and his memo- ries alive. There is only one Elvis." Michael says that last year he "was all over the country from up- state New York to California tour- ing the entire year. I won People's Choice at The Birthplace of Elvis, Tupelo, Mississippi and I won pre- liminary in Mt. Dora, Florida which qualifi ed me as in the Top 20 in the world. I'm returning to Graceland in Spring 2018." Michael doesn't brag about him- self easily. We had to threaten to shave off his sideburns if he didn't tell us how he'd done in the recent contests! Do check his schedule and come enjoy one of the best in the world! Some of the venues are small, you may need reservations. Eddy Kilowatt – W7AZQ Quartzsite, Az. Every year out in the middle of seemingly nowhere in the So- noran Desert surrounding our little piece of Heaven, thousands of RV- ers gather in the desert and spend some part or all of winter to get away from the cold weather of wherever they all came from. There is also a group numbering in the hundreds that gather just a few miles south of Quartzsite at mile marker 99 just on the west side of Hwy 95 for a full week of camp- ing, friendship, fun and ham radio. QuartzFest 2018 will be happening again January 21-27. QuartzFest is a Ham Radio Festival that centers on RV'ing and ham ra- dio. The festival draws hams from around the United States, Canada and a few other countries. There are seminars that not only cover ham radio while travelling but also From the Ham Shack activities to learn more about boon docking as well as open fi re cook- ing, crafts exercise and a whole lot of socializing and having fun in the wonderful Arizona winter climate. You don't have to be a ham to join in and best of all it's FREE!!! For more info visit www.quartzfest.org or look them up on Facebook – QuartzFest – an ARRL Convention. You will meet some of the friendliest people in the world there and if you want to learn more about Amateur Radio this is a great place to get answers. Hope to see you in January. Eddy Kilowatt, not his real name is an Extra Class Licensed ham. He is very ac- tive in ham radio not only on the local level but is working on contacts in all 50 states and as many countries as he can. Eddy is very inter- ested in being an "Elmer" or mentor to as many new hams as he can. He enjoys teaching others as well as promoting ham radio to the commu- nity. He is a Volunteer Examiner and lives full time in Quartzsite, Az. with his wife and two fur babies. For more info regarding Amateur Radio email him at TNT@LaPazSHARP.org

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