Are You Missing A Small Black Dog?
August 9, 2008
Pensacola veterinarian is hoping to find the owner of a small black dog hit by a car on Highway 29 north of Cantonment and return the dog back to North Escambia.
“I witnessed a small black dog get hit by a man in a black truck. I stayed with the dog until the animal control officer arrived. The dog was taken to Safe Harbor Animal Hospital for treatment,” Karen Ensley emailed NorthEscambia.com. The dog’s unfortunate accident happened on Highway 29 just south of the produce stand between Molino and Cantonment Wednesday.
Ensley has gone to great lengths to find the owner of the dog. From putting up flyers at Grocery Advantage, to calling other veterinarians and groomers in the area, to calling local radio stations asking for announcements. But, as of Friday evening, the dog has not been reunited with its family.
It was taken to Safe Harbor Animal Hospital on Creighton Road in Pensacola. Veterinarian Gina Forgey said the dog is recovering well.
“It’s a wonderful little dog, the sweetest dog ever,” Forgey said. While the dog was injured with a possible broken pelvis, Forgey said it is expected to make a complete recovery. “It will be completely back to normal in no time,” she added.
Forgey said Safe Harbor hopes to locate to dog’s owner and reunite them. If the owner is not found in five days, the dog will be put up for adoption. It will not be euthanized, she said; it will be kept until a suitable home is found.
If you believe this is your dog, or if you might know the owner of this dog, call Safe Harbor Animal Hospital at 476-5571.
Jean Webb, Former Ernest Ward Staffer, Held Book Signing
August 9, 2008
Jean Webb, a former teacher and administrator at Ernest Ward High School in Walnut Hill, held a book signing Friday. In the end, the books were all sold and many friends were together sharing stories of their days as Golden Eagles.
Webb signed copies of her new book “Feet of Clay” at the main branch of the First National Bank of Atmore Friday afternoon.
Set in Richmond, VA, and Mobile during the 1880’s, “Feet of Clay” is a family saga, a historical romance, a murder mystery, a courtroom drama and a study of human behavior all rolled into one.
“There are no perfect heroes here, only men with feet of clay,” she said of her book. “They have been wronged: They have done wrong, but are honorable men with all too many human flaws.”
Webb, who spent 35 years as an English teacher and administrator at Ernest Ward High School, is currently a member of the Wetumpka Fine Arts Club and the Episcopal Church. Her interests include reading, writing, and following sports…especially football and basketball. She has four children: Letha, Rick, Jean, and Pellar. She now resides near Wetumpka, Alabama.
Click here to order “Feet of Clay” online.
Record LOW Temps Tonight?
August 8, 2008
It won’t exactly feel like fall in the morning, but if the weather forecasters are correct, it’s still going to be pretty refreshing.
Tonight’s overnight low in North Escambia is forecast to be 61 with a light northerly breeze. Cooler, drier air will be moving into the area this afternoon. So dry, in fact, that the National Weather Service has issued a Fire Weather Watch due to the low humidity and high fire potential.
The high Saturday will be around 90, but with low humidity it will feel much nicer. Saturday night’s low will be 65.
Superintendent Hopeful Thomas Speaks Out On Carver, Ernest Ward
August 8, 2008
Malcolm Thomas, candidate for Escambia School superintendent, brought his campaign message to Walnut Hill Thursday night, saying that Escambia County deserves better in its school system.
“I am running to make this school system better,” Thomas told the Walnut Hill Ruritan Club. He is a former Escambia County teacher of the year and a finalist for Florida teacher of the year; he now serves the district as director of evaluation services.
Thomas said he never set out to enter the education field. But in school he was the poor kid “without the designer alligators” on his shirt. A teacher took interest in him, he said, and became his encourager.
“I could never forget what that teacher did for me,” he said. “I became a teacher of learning disabled students because I wanted to make a difference.”
“At Bratt Elementary, they are getting it done,” he said, referring to Bratt’s school grade from the Florida Department of Education being the top score of any school in the county.
When asked about the expected recommendation by current Superintendent Jim Paul to close Carver/Century K-8 School, Thomas said “My biggest concern with Carver/Century is the fact that is has a little over 30 students in sixth through eighth grade.”
“You can’t build a program with so few students,” he said, pointing out that over the 400 elementary and middle school age students in the Carver/Century district, over half choose to attend schools like Bratt Elementary, Byrneville Elementary and Ernest Ward Middle School.
“If the people in their own community won’t attend their own school, how can we as a district support it?” he asked.
On rumors that Ernest Ward Middle School might be slated for closure in the future, Thomas said he sees a different need at Ernest Ward.
“I think we’ve got some facility problems there,” he said. “It’s getting older, and it is about full. I think we are looking at some type of construction project there in the future.”
Thomas said the district needs a long range plan that addresses which schools might be closed or consolidated and which schools might need construction and expansion.
Thomas is the only Republican candidate remaining the race for Escambia’s superintendent; the other Republicans have dropped out of the race. In November, he will face the winner of a three way race between Claudia Brown-Curry, Myra Simmons and Cary Stidham for the Democratic nomination.
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Morgan Wants Change In Escambia Sheriff’s Department
August 8, 2008
Republican David Morgan wants change in the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department, and he wants to be the man to make those changes.
“Crime is growing in the rural areas,” Morgan told the Walnut Hill Ruritan Club Thursday night. “We need more deputies on the roads.”
He said that under the current administration, 55 percent of the sheriff’s department works in administration, not as deputies on jail personnel.
“You’ve got a bloated administration,” Morgan, who has spent 35 years in public and private law enforcement, said. “You need to disperse some of those people out into the rural areas were response times are bad.”
“When you call for a deputy, there’s no one to respond,” Morgan said. “We have surrendered some districts in this county to the criminals.”
He also wants to increase starting salaries for deputies in the county from $30,500 per year to $35,000.
On the subject of the department’s helicopters, which have taken great criticism from other candidates, Morgan said, “I’m still not convinced we need a helicopter in Escambia County.” He said as study was needed to determine the need for the helicopters operated by the ECSO.
Morgan said that an agreement with the Civil Air Patrol might provide air support needed by the sheriff’s department.
Morgan will face Republican incumbent Ron McNesby in the August 26 primary. The Republican primary winner will face either Samuel Lucas or Larry Scapecchi in November.
NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Pastor Says New Life Has Never Paid Utility Bill Since Moving Into Old High School
August 8, 2008
New Life Baptist Church has never paid a utility bill since it moved into the old Century High School in August of 2004. That’s what Pastor Irvin Stallworth acknowledged during an exclusive interview with NorthEscambia.com early Thursday evening, shortly after he returned from a trip to Washington, D.C.
NorthEscambia.com was first to report early Thursday morning that utility bills on the building were being paid by the school board. New Life leases the old school from the Escambia County School Board for $1 a year.
“It was an oversight,” Stallworth said in his first interview on the issue. “We’ve never had a bill, so the trustees have never had anything to pay.”
The Town of Century said that the school board had paid the water, sewer and gas charges at the building. School district spokesman Ronnie Arnold said Thursday afternoon that the school district was still trying to determine if they had paid electric bills at the location.
But Stallworth acknowledged in his conversation with NorthEscambia.com that his church had never paid a power, water, sewer or gas bill since moving into the old high school at 700 East Hecker Road.
“The taxpayers have a right to know where their money is going,” he said. “We are willing to do what we need to do to make restitution for what we owe.”
He blamed the confusion on the fact that his church was moving into the building at the same time the school district was moving out of the building…the same time Hurricane Ivan hit the Gulf Coast. He said his church immediately went into a reaction mode after Ivan, working to provide aid and relief for the community. As that relief effort was beginning to wind down, Hurricane Dennis then hit the area, sending the church back into a reactionary mode.
“With all the things that were going on post-Dennis,” Stallworth said, “we did not realize that we were not receiving any bills.”
He said he realized that the church was to be paying the utility bills per the lease, which had signed, but the trustee responsible for paying the bills did not know that fact.
After Dennis, several other agencies used the building and facilities, he said, further complicating the situation. He said the Head Start program, GED programs and even the Relay For Life had used the facilities.
Stallworth said New Life has a good relationship with the school district, and he indicated that New Life intends to pay what they owe for utility bills after the school district determines what that number fairly is, taking into account the other uses of the building
“I trust in the Lord and will follow the Lord,” Stallworth said. “God sent me there to Century. God is my guide.”
File photo.
School District Pays Church Utility Bills: Community Reaction
August 7, 2008
The reaction around Century has not been positive following the news that the Escambia County School District has paid tens of thousands of dollars in utility bills for a building leased by New Life Baptist Church.
Click here for a story detailing the utility bill payments.
And one prominent member of the community is speaking out against Rev. Irvin Stallworth, pastor of the church.
“You’ve got a man that came in here and established a church and has not paid any upkeep including the utilties for the past four years,” said Benny Barnes, former Century mayor and president of the Century Chamber of Commerce. “He’s done a lot of things, but he has not done them for the good of Century.”
“He’s undermined the school board board. That’s just he way he does things,” the often outspoken Barnes told NorthEscambia.com. “He’s got the school board and the superintendent believing he’s done so much good, but all he’s done is flim flam them.”
Barnes said he first learned of the district paying the utility bills at the church a few weeks ago. He said he wrote District 5 School Board member Pete Gindl about the situation, but he never heard anything back. NorthEscambia.com was unable to contact Gindl for comment Wednesday afternoon.
Century Mayor Freddie McCall said he as unaware that the school district was paying the utility bills at 700 East Hecker Road, the old Century High School address leased to New Life Baptist Church.
“I didn’t know the school board was paying us because I don’t look at every utility bill that we send out, and I don’t know who is mailing the check for them,” McCall said.
Ann Brooks, president of the Century Town Council, has been hard at work this week requesting information from the school board and the town. She has gone so far as to take meter numbers on bills and attempt to physically verify that those numbers match the meters in front of the old Century High School and the current New Life Baptist Church.
“I don’t think it is right for them to have been paying the bills for the church,” she said.
Brooks, who is a certified accountant, is working to total the past four years of utility bills for the New Life Baptist address to determine just much the school board has paid.
“I’m not trying to attack the church or the pastor,” Brooks said,”but they should not cut our school when they are paying their utilties.” She was referring to plan by the school board to close Carver/Century K-8 School after the upcoming school year. The district has said that closure would save them about $680,000 per year.
For more coverage on this developing story:
Will Discovery That School District Has Paid Church Bills Impact School Closure?
August 7, 2008
The discovery that the Escambia County School District has paid tens of thousands of dollars in utility bills for a building leased to New Life Baptist Church for $1 per year will have no bearing the district decision whether or not to close Carver/Century K-8, the school district’s spokesman says.
During the 2007 calendar year, the district paid just over $48,500 in water, gas, sewer and garbage charges to the Town of Century of the old Century High School building leased to New Life Baptist Church, even though the church’s lease on the property clearly states the church will pay the utility bills.
Click here for a story detailing the utility bill payments.
That number is over seven percent of the $680,000 that the district says they will save per year by closing the current Carver/Century K-8 School following the upcoming school year. The district is currently investigating whether or not they have paid the electric bills on the property, potentially pushing that percentage much higher.
Even if it turns out the district won’t save the full $680,000 per year because some portion of that figure has been going toward New Life Baptist Church, Associate Superintendent Ronnie Arnold says the superintendent still plans to recommend closing the school.
“I don’t see where it will have any bearing at all on the superintendent’s decision,” Arnold told NorthEscambia.com. “A mistake may have happened on these bills. But it does not change the fact that we spend three to four times the amount per student to keep Carver/Century open as we do per student in the rest of the district. It’s just an expensive school to operate because of its size.”
Century Mayor Freddie McCall said that he did not think the change in numbers would lead to a change in heart on the part of Superintendent Jim Paul. Paul is expected to recommend closure of Carver/Century K-8 School at the August 19 meeting of the school board. Students would be bused to Bratt Elementary School and Ernest Ward Middle School.
“I don’t think it is going make any difference,” McCall said. “But I am asking him (Paul) to please not do anything right now. Let the new superintendent make that decision.” Paul dropped out of the superintendent’s race several months ago, opting to no longer seek reelection.
“You can’t tell me it will be cheaper to transport these children somewhere else; you won’t make me believe that,” said Benny Barnes, former Century mayor and chamber of commerce president. “I hope this (the utility bill payments) will make enough difference in the money that some good will come of all this for our school.”
“It might not be as expensive to operate our school as they think,” Barnes said. “It could be a lot less when they figure out how much money they have been spending to support the church.”
“He has ripped off the taxpayers,” Barnes said of New Life Pastor Irvin Stallworth. “He’s told the school board lies. He’s lied about the whole thing over there.”
NorthEscambia.com attempted to contact Rev. Irvin Stallworth by both phone and email Wednesday afternoon for comment on this story. We left phone messages at a listed number for the New Life Baptist Church, and at another number listed for the Century Community Development Partnership. We also emailed Rev. Stallworth at his personal email address and left messages with a member of his church. We called his home phone number in Milton and attempted to leave a message, but we received a message that his voicemail box was full.
For more continuing coverage on this story:
Click here to read “School District Pays Church Utility Bills: Community Reaction”
School District Has Paid Thousands In Utility Bills For Church; Seeks Answers
August 7, 2008
The Escambia County School board has paid tens of thousands of dollars of utility bills for a Century church for the past four years, and now the district is trying to sort out exactly how that happened.
According to bills obtained from the Town of Century, the Escambia County School District paid $61,432.50 in gas, water, sewage and garbage fees for the district’s property at 700 East Hecker Road in Century. That address is the old Century High School, which is leased from the school district for $1 per year by the New Life Baptist Church.
That lease agreement executed June 15, 2004, says “New Life shall pay or be responsible for payment of the cost of all utilities, including security deposits and connection and capacity impact fees, if any furnished the property”.
“Right now, it does appear we have been paying the utilities at the building,” Ronnie Arnold, school districts spokesman, told NorthEscambia.com. “From what we can tell so far, it appears that this one slipped through the cracks.” He noted that the school district pays a huge number of utility bills on dozens of their facilities each month.
The school district does intend to seek reimbursement for the thousands of dollars in utility bills, Arnold said.
“We are are trying to find out now what exactly they should have to pay,” he said. Some district programs, including a Title I program, did occupy a portion of the building for some time early in the lease. “It would have been appropriate for us (the district) to pick up some of the utilities during that time.”
The school district receives bills under six accounts from the Town Century for town supplied water, sewer, natural gas and trash service. Four bills indicate that they are for 440 East Hecker Road, the address of the current Carver/Century K-8 School. Another appears on first investigation to be for the gym and football field. But one account, which includes both a water and gas meter, indicates that it is for “Carver Middle School” at 700 East Hecker, the address currently leased by New Life Baptist.
“It’s rather convoluted due to the six different accounts, the different addresses and the different names like Century Elementary, Carver/Century and Century Middle School,” Arnold said. “But we should have caught that bill and not paid it.”
“But hopefully we will be able to put a number to this soon and make arrangements for the church to pay up,” he added.
Arnold told NorthEscambia.com that it was not immediately clear if the district has been paying the power bill or if that has been paid by the church. He said the district was investigating and would be able to to determine if the school systems has paid the power bill.
The lease for the building was approved by the Escambia County School Board on January 20, 2004. Minutes from that meeting state “The Superintendent recommended that the Board “move forward” with leasing the former Carver Middle School to New Life Baptist Church. Motion was made by Mr. (Jeff) Bergosh, seconded by Mr. (Ronnie) Clark, to accept the Superintendent’s recommendation to ‘move forward’ with leasing the former Carver Middle School to New Life Baptist Church.”
The board’s minutes from January 20, 2004, do not indicate that the lease would be for the $1 per year as it was executed in June of that year.
New Life Baptist Church, Inc. is not the only entity that uses the building as its legal address, according to records filed with the Florida Secretary of State. Century Community Development Partnership, Inc. also uses the building’s address on its legal corporation report. According to the CCDP website, the group exists to create “purpose driven communities” through affordable housing. Irvin Stallworth, pastor of New Life Baptist Church, is listed as the president and registered agent for the Century Community Development Partnership.
NorthEscambia.com attempted to contact Rev. Irvin Stallworth by both phone and email Wednesday afternoon for comment on this story. We left phone messages at a listed number for the New Life Baptist Church, and at another number listed for the Century Community Development Partnership. We also emailed Rev. Stallworth at his personal email address and left messages with a member of his church. We called his home phone number in Milton and attempted to leave a message, but we received a message that his voicemail box was full.
As of 1:00 a.m. Thursday morning, we had received no contact or comment from Rev. Stallworth.
Arnold said that he spoke briefly with Rev. Stallworth earlier and he indicated that he was in Washington, D.C. Church members told NorthEscambia.com that he was at his church Sunday and had planned to be there for a service Wednesday evening.
For more coverage on this developing story:
Click here to read “Will Discovery That School District Has Paid Church Bills Impact School Closure?”
Click here to read “School District Pays Church Utility Bills: Community Reaction”
Pictured above: New Life Baptist Church leases this building, the former Century High School, for $1 per year from the Escambia School District. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Freak Accident Sends Tree Crashing Into Van On Highway 97
August 7, 2008
A freak accident on Highway 97 sent a man to the hospital Wednesday afternoon.
State prioners from the Century Correctional Institute were cutting trees on Highway 97 about a mile south of Tungoil Road. One of the trees, a large dead pine, fell onto a passing van.
Authorities said the man was not seriously injured. He was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola reportedly with some cuts and bruises.
The van belongs to Sweetwater Medical, a home health company, in Pensacola.
The accident happened about 1:40 p.m. between Walnut Hill and Dogwood Park on Highway 97. It is still under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol. They have not yet released the name of the van’s driver.
