Cofield Celebrates 100th Birthday
March 20, 2008
A reception to honor Maggie Elizabeth Brantley Cofield in celebration of her 100th birthday was held on March 15, 2008, at Heritage Nursing Home in Milton.
Mrs. Cofield was born in Conecuh County, Alabama, on March 15, 1908, to Joe and Lou Powell Brantley. She married Harvey Cofield on December 19, 1924. She is the mother of two children, Ernest Cofield of Monroeville, Alabama, and the late Charles Cofield of Century. She has eight grandchildren: Ann Cofield Brooks, Cathy Cofield Crawley, and Tom Cofield of Century; Gordon Cofield of Pensacola; Larry Cofield of Texas; Melvin Cofield and Maxine Casey of Repton, Alabama, and Donnie Cofield of Pascagoula, Mississippi. She also has 14 great-grandchildren and 16 great-great grandchildren.
NorthEscambia.com Investigative Series Part Six: Walker’s Plans To Pull Allied Waste Franchise
March 19, 2008
Today, NorthEscambia.com continues our seven part investigative series looking at Allied Waste and their service to the citizens of the North Escambia area. Today, we will read comments from Emerald Coast Utilities Authority member Larry Walker about his plan to pull Allied’s franchise. On Thursday morning, we will have comments from Allied’s general manager about the whole situation and our series.
The Emerald Coast Utilities Authority is preparing itself to eventually take over garbage collection North Escambia from Allied Waste.
Allied Waste currently has a contract that extends until 2010 for residential garbage pickup north of Ten Mile Road for 11,000 households. But ECUA District 5 Board Member Larry Walker sees several situations where ECUA might take over the contract sooner. Residential garbage in Century is picked up by Allied under a separate contract with the town.
ECUA voted in November to purchase 11,000 automated collection garbage cans instead of their usual 2,000 per year. The board had voted against the proposal a month earlier, but approve the purchase after an open letter from Walker. ECUA also voted to purchase seven new garbage trucks.
The trucks have arrived; the cans have not. Walker said the cans are expected to be delivered in the next month or two.
Walker has repeatedly called for the termination of Allied’s franchise because he believes they are providing poor service. While the cans have not arrived, Walker believes the Allied-ECUA agreement should end quickly.
“ECUA should proceed immediately to seek to terminate the Allied franchise. I assume that Allied will refuse to cooperate, a lawsuit may entail, or an adjudication procedure. This will take a few months. By the time the legal process is completed, ECUA will have the cans and the drivers, and a plan for distributing the cans quickly,” Walker said in an email response to questions from NorthEscambia.com.
If his fellow board members approved the takeover, Walker said there are some factors that might delay ECUA from picking up residential waste in North Escambia.
One delay might come from Allied choosing to fight the franchise takeover in the courts, Walker said.
“If Allied agrees to the takeover, the next challenge is cans,” he said. “If the 11,000 cans have arrived, there would be the time required to distribute them—a matter of a few weeks. If Allied would agree to ECUA use of the existing Allied cans, this factor would not slow down the takeover at all.”
Additional delays could result from the hiring and training of drivers, Walker said. “Putting all this together, ECUA could assume operation of the system within 30 days IF (a) Allied did not fight it, (b) cans were available—either new ECUA cans or the existing Allied cans—and (c) drivers could be employed/trained.”
As for the residential Allied customers in the Town of Century, they would see no change under Walker’s plans. He said that ECUA would consider picking up residential waste in Century “only if the City of Century requested it. That is City business, and ECUA will not infringe on the autonomy of the City of Century in any way.”
To read part one of this series, click here, for background information.
To read part two of this series, click here.
To read part three of this series, click here.
To read part four of this series, click here.
To read part five of this series, click here.
Century Care Center Plans Remembrance Ceremony
March 19, 2008
A remembrance ceremony for Century Care Center residents, both past and present, will be held at Century Care at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 5.
Century Care is encouraging participation for the families and friends of current and past residents. For more information, or to RSVP, contact Mae Hildreth at Century Care Center at 256-1540 no later than Friday, March 28.
Refreshments will be served.
School Board Talks Budget Savings
March 19, 2008
Cutting dollars was the theme of the Escambia County School Board’s regular monthly meeting Tuesday night.
Board members learned that the district saved $2.5 million last year when they consolidated several Pensacola area schools…Brownsville, Brown Barge and Wedgewood middle schools.
A hiring freeze is in effect in the district, with only essential personnel like teachers and principals being hired.
At Tuesday’s night meeting, the board trimmed about $8,000 from the current budget by voting to cut their use of the Pensacola Civic Center for graduations by a day, down to two days.
In other business, the board also voted to install an emergency generator at the Walnut Hill Bus Garage.
Three Candidates Qualify For Soil And Water Board
March 19, 2008
Three candidates have qualifed for the Escambia County Soil and Water Conservation Board recently.
Incumbent Anne Bennett of Pensacola has prefiled for the District 1 seat. Incumbent Richard Freisinger prefiled for the District 3 seat, and political newcomer Dillon Powell has qualified for the District 5 seat.
Powell, an 18 year old college student, had prefiled for the District 1 seat, but withdrew and is now running for the District 5 seat.
The positions are nonpartisan.
Tate High School Mock Trial Team Wins Circuit Competition
March 18, 2008
Tate High School’s Mock Trial Team won the Mock Trial Competition in last week’s Circuit I Championship. Circuit I includes Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Escambia counties. Team members are Kelly Hawthorne, Collin Metcalf, Nikki Guntner, John Barlow, Brittany Nunnelee, and Brittany Hammock.
The Florida Law Related Education Association gives each competing school the mock trial problem and it is the individual school’s job to present the case as the prosecution and as the defense in the way they believe is most effective. The team has to perform each side depending on the round. The students learn objections, questioning techniques and how to perform opening statements and closing arguments. Kelly Krostag and Jonathan Blackburn coach the team, and attorney Stephen Hogan also volunteers as a coach. Blackburn is a former member of the Mock Trial Team.
The team represented the School District of Escambia County in this Circuit I level of competition, and competed against teams from Navarre High School and Catholic High School. The students argued their case in front of the Honorable Judge Goodman and Honorable Judge Rogers, and other attorneys from Pensacola served as judges and volunteered to judge
the local tournament. The tournament was sponsored by the Young Lawyers Division, and Antonio Bruni from the law firm of McConnaughhay, Duffy, Coonrod, Pope, and Weaver organized the event.
The Mock Trial Team will next compete in the state level competition to be held in Orlando in April. This is the fourth time that the Tate team has won the Circuit I championship, and in 2001 the team was state champions and national finalists.
Watch Video Of Tate Band In Ireland
March 18, 2008
The Tate High School Showband of the South took part in Ireland’s national St. Patrick’s Festival Parade in Dublin Monday, and NorthEscambia.com has the video from Ireland.
About 100 students, 40 parents and a bunch of instruments headed across the Big Pond to Ireland. Over five days, 4000 performers and one million people celebrated Ireland with the big finale being Monday’s parade. Sixteen bands from Ireland, Italy, Japan and the United States took part in the parade.
Tate’s Showband of the South is no stranger to travel, having performed in the Orange, Fiesta and Rose Bowl parades. They’ve played the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and national celebrations at Pearl Harbor.
Two Injured In Highway 97 Rollover Accident Early Tuesday Morning
March 18, 2008
Updated 9:45 am
Two people were seriously injured in a single vehicle rollover accident on Highway 97 early Tuesday morning. The accident happen about 4:08 Tuesday morning just south of Howell Road.
Eddie Leslie Mooney, 32, of Atmore and Matthew Stancil, 33, of Atmore were ejected from the rolled over pickup truck, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. They were transported from the scene by ambulance. They were later transferred to LifeFlight at the Molino Volunteer Fire Department station and flown from Molino to Sacred Heart Hospital. Both were listed as being in serious condition by the FHP.
The 2005 Ford F150, driven by Mooney, was northbound on Highway 97 at a high rate of speed, the FHP report says, when Mooney lost control and over-corrected. The pickup truck left Highway 97 and struck several small pine trees before landing upside down on the northbound shoulder of the road.
The crash was alcohol related and charges are pending, according to the FHP.
The Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department, Molino Volunteer Fire Department and Atmore Ambulance responded to the scene.
Pictured above: Two people appeared to have been ejected from this pickup truck early Tuesday morning on Highway 97 just south of Howell Road. Pictured below (scroll down to see all pictures): More photos from the scene, including the small pine trees the truck initially hit. NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.
Updated 9:45 am, first posted 5:30 am.
Century Changes $265 Million Finance Agreement, Sells Surplus Vehicles
March 18, 2008
The Town of Century voted to change financial terms on agreement with the City of Gulf Breeze, and the council sold four old town vehicles at their Monday night meeting.
On the recommendation of Town Attorney Matt Dannheisser, the council voted to make changes to its agreement with the City of Gulf Breeze and the Capital Trust Agency for bonds issued under the Atlantic Housing Foundation, Inc.
Century entered into the Capital Trust Agency with Gulf Breeze in 1999. It is an independent public body for the purpose of financing or otherwise accomplishing development programs.
The specific ordinance approved by Century Monday night involves “approving a plan of finance for the cost of financing or refinancing certain multi-family rental housing facilities; approving the issuance of not exceeding $225 million Capital Trust Agency housing revenue refunding bonds and $40 million housing revenue refunding bonds…for Atlantic Housing Foundation, Inc.”
Capital Trust Agency provides financing for Atlantic Housing Foundation in Southlake, Texas. Atlantic Housing’s mission is to “promote and preserve quality affordable housing opportunities and related services for low income and moderate income families,” according to the company.
Dannheisser, who is also listed as the Gulf Breeze city attorney, told the council that the new bonds would be backed by the federal Fannie Mae program. He said the previous financing was based upon the mortgage market, and loan rates had risen from 3.7 to about 7 percent with the current mortgage crisis. With the Fannie Mae backing, the new rate would fall to about 4 percent, he said, making the change “somewhat of a no-brainer”.
Mayor Freddie McCall said the town acts a “second signature” on docuements for the trust agency, and that the town had profited about $451 thousand since 2002 on the arrangement with Gulf Breeze and the Capital Trust Agency.
The council also opened bids on four old vehicles that were advertised for sale, netting the town $1,204.55 total. High bidders and vehicles were:
- A 1989 Chevrolet sold to Melvin Lowery for $200. Next high bid was $156.50.
- A 1991 Ford F150 sold to Neil Wigen for $176.50. Next high bid was $150.00.
- A 1994 Ford F250 sold to Neil Wigen $477.55. Next high bid as $300.00.
- A 1991 Ford Crown Victoria sold to Jason Stone for $350. Next high bid was $126.50.
Pictured above: Council President Anne Brooks opens bids on surplus vehicles at Monday night’s Town of Century Council meeting.
Northview Student Wins Region In Statewide Severe Weather Essay Contest
March 18, 2008
Austin Lowery, a Northview High School sophomore, was a regional winner in a statewide “Hazardous Weather Awareness Week” essay contest.
Just Read, Florida!, in partnership with the Florida Department of Community Affairs, Division of Emergency Management and several other emergency management partners, conducted a statewide short essay contest aimed at high school students as part of the 2008 Hazardous Weather Awareness Week.
As Region 1 winner, Lowery received $250, a weather radio and a certificate of achievement. His teacher, Raja Atallah, was awarded $100 and a weather radio for assisting and supporting Lowery in the essay contest.
The entire text of Lowery’s essay is below. Pictured above: Northview teacher Raja Attallah, Austin Lowery and Northview Principal Gayle Weaver. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
The Storm, by Austin Lowery
“Go, Go, Go! Get in the basement the tornado is becoming outrageous.” Yes, these are the last words I heard myself say before our house was completely demolished by the furious swirling winds of the F-5 tornado. After a few minutes of realization, my brother and I began to decipher different ways to find shelter, food, and water. And nonetheless we knew we had to help out our community in some way. First, the thought of not having a house put my eight-year-old brother and me, being only sixteen, into shock. Daisy, our yellow lab, had also been with us through the whole frightening storm. To protect Daisy we kept her on a leash at all times knowing that the identification chip imbedded in her skin was useless until help arrived. Realizing the power outages and tower damage to the surrounding area, we began our hunt for food and fresh water for all of us.
The memories of the images from television reporting the slow response and crime in New Orleans following hurricane Katrina kept flashing through my head. We were able to locate a source of fresh water and food at the FEMA relief center. Next, we focused on securing a line of defense for protecting what remained. We set a perimeter line consisting of 100 pound fishing line 4 inches and 36 inches off the ground a 100 feet all around us. This was then connected to another string with a variety of tin cans and scrap metal, so when the line was tripped it would make an awful racket hopefully wakening my brother and me and scaring off the looters. Thankfully it was successful. On the second night something did trigger it. We’ll never know what it was because it ran off and never came back.
Third, after finding shelter, food, water, and setting up a line of defense, we set out to help our neighbors and friends in the community. Since all the roads were blocked we both decided walking would be the safest and best thing to do. At the end of a long day we found many families on the trail of recovery. But there was one young couple with an infant child who had been sleeping on pieces of wood. We took them back to our camp, or what was now home, and offered to share our food, shelter, and water. Through all this we became sort of a family. The emotional and physical process of cleaning up began.
In the aftermath of a disastrous storm these are the first three things I would do if my younger brother and I, along with Daisy, were home alone and an F-5 tornado hit: first, find shelter, food, and water; second, set up a line of defense in case of looters; and last but not least, assist people in my community.
To read the essays from the other regional winners and the grand prize winning essay, click here.