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Arizona Edition, KAWC's flagship news and public affairs program, focuses on the issues facing Arizona. Through interviews with local newsmakers, KAWC keeps you informed on issues in the region.

For this week’s episode of Arizona Edition, we’re doing something a little different. We have a special show to honor someone very important to the station, Lou Gum.

Amanda Mellon, third-generation Yuman and owner of Dandy Home and Ranch, joins us in the studio to talk about her deep Yuma roots, the story behind creating Dandy as a space that celebrates home, community, and local agriculture, and how it became known as “the front porch of Yuma.” Amanda also shares the journey from small beginnings to a thriving brick-and-mortar business, the role family plays in Dandy, and why making people feel seen has always been at the heart of what she does.

19-year-old ASU student and founder of ZeroCut LLC, Solo Rodriguez talks about choosing discipline over distraction, building a company completely from scratch, and the mindset it takes to bet on yourself at a young age. Solo also shares how faith keeps him grounded, why everything he’s building is bigger than himself, and his long-term vision for ZeroCut and beyond.

R.C. Whitcomb, Isabella, and Natalie from New Class Car Club join us in the studio to talk about legacy car clubs, car culture in the Desert Southwest, and how New Class has remained a staple since the late 1970s. We’ll dive into each guest’s personal journey into the car club life, their connection to Yuma, and the upcoming Yuma vs Cancer Annual Car Show — including how these events bring the community together and raise money for the Yuma Cancer Resource Center.

In light of a 2025 court ruling, KAWC finds out how Arizona’s school facilities crisis affects Yuma schools + a profile on Mohawk Valley School.

Longtime educator, mentor, and 2025 AWC Hall of Fame inductee, Moses Camarena talks about his roots in Yuma, the decades he’s spent serving students across Yuma and La Paz counties, the impact of La Cosecha and his work supporting first-generation graduates, and what this honor means for him and the community.

Yuma Police Department Chief Thomas Garrity — a U.S. Army veteran and 30-plus-year law enforcement leader who came to Yuma after a nationwide search joins us in the studio. We’ll get into his connection to our city, what life is like leading the department, the challenges and priorities he sees for Yuma, and the vision he has for the future of public safety here at home.

Tanya Camarillo and Julio Sanchez are two of the founders of Offroad4Autism, a brand-new Yuma nonprofit born from a simple conversation between friends who saw a real need for better autism support in our community. We learned about the challenges Yuma families face, the mission behind Offroad4Autism, and their very first fundraising event happening December 6th.

Jonathan Perez is a former Marine, community mentor and founder of The Treasured Trash Men. We dug into his journey from Staten Island to Yuma, the work he’s doing with local youth, how faith has shaped his path, and how he built a junk-removal business with nothing but a vision to serve people.