Easter Egg Hunts Planned For This Weekend
March 31, 2023
Several Easter egg hunts are scheduled for this weekend:
A community wide Easter Egg Hunt will be Saturday at 10 a.m. at Travis Nelson Park on Highway 4, just west of the Northview High School.
The annual Beulah Chapel Easter Egg Celebration will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday at 2311 Highway 4A with over 1,000 candy and toy filled eggs. There will also be hot dogs, chips, drinks, sack races, egg spoon races, wheelbarrow races, a water balloon toss and more. The egg hunt is for all ages, including adults.
Oak Grove Baptist Church at 2600 North Highway 99 will hold a “Resurrection Egg Drop” at 3 p.m. Sunday. The event will include the egg drop, free food, Easter baskets, popcorn, snowcones and more.
ECUA Conducting Controlled Burn At CWRF Near Gonzalez
March 31, 2023
The Emerald Coast Utilities Authority (ECUA) will be conducting prescribed burn operations on their property near the Central Water Reclamation Facility (CWRF), starting on Friday, weather permitting.
Conditions will be evaluated each morning and ECUA’s burn-certified contractor will conduct the burn operations, which are scheduled to begin at approximately 9 a.m. for several days. The burn activities are a part of ECUA’s management plan for the ecological restoration of forest lands at the CWRF site.
The ECUA’s CWRF property is in the Gonzalez community and mostly lies south of Becks Lake Road near the Escambia River. A small amount of ECUA’s property north of Becks Lake Road will be included in the prescribed burn operation. ECUA said every effort will be made to ensure smoke will not affect roadways, drivers should exercise caution in the event smoke does lead to reduced visibility on the area’s roads.
Take Stock in Children Accepting Scholarship Applications Through Area Middle Schools
March 31, 2023
Escambia County middle schools are now accepting requests for applications for Take Stock in Children, a program offering “scholarships, mentors & hope” to qualified students.
Students must be in the sixth or seventh grade, be eligible for free or reduced lunch, a U.S. citizen, and have grades of C or better with good attendance and behavior. Most middle schools have a deadline of early April to request the application and then several weeks for applications to be submitted for consideration.
Take Stock in Children was established in 1995 as a non-profit organization in Florida operating locally under the Escambia County Public Schools Foundation. The program provides a unique opportunity for deserving low-income students to escape the cycle of poverty through education. Students are selected through a need-based application process in middle school, and comprehensive services continue through high school and include the students’ transition into college. Students receive college scholarships, caring volunteer mentors, college readiness skills, and hope for a better life.
Scholarships are funded through a unique public-private fundraising model in which local scholarship donations are matched by the Florida Prepaid College Foundation when scholarships are purchased each year.
Currently, there are 141 students in grades 7-12, over 70 students in college, and there have been 133 college graduates thus far from the program.
For more information, Contact Take Stock in Children Coordinator Sally Lee at (850) 496-5458 or slee@ecsdfl.us.
Slight Chance Of Morning Rain On Saturday
March 31, 2023
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69. South wind around 10 mph.
Saturday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 1pm. Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 84. West wind around 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 54. West wind around 5 mph becoming north after midnight.
Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 74. North wind around 5 mph becoming east in the afternoon.
Sunday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 59. South wind around 5 mph.
Monday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 78. South wind 5 to 10 mph.
Monday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 84.
Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 71.
Wednesday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 84.
Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 70.
Thursday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 84.
Stuckey Throws Shutout As Northview Beats Escambia 10-0 (With Gallery)
March 31, 2023
Aubrey Stuckey threw a complete game shutout as the Northview Chiefs beat the Escambia Gators 10-0 in five innings Thursday evening in Bratt.
The Chiefs jumped out to a six-run lead in the first inning.
Jamison Gilman went 2-3 to lead the Chiefs at the plate. Stuckey, Emma Gilmore, Ry Brooks, M Golson, A Flowers and B Hall each added a hit for Northview.
Stuckey allowed two hits and no runs in five innings while walking one.
For more photos, click or tap here.
The Chiefs recorded seven stolen bases Thursday, including two each from Gilman and Chloe Ragsdale.
The Lady Chiefs will travel to Baker on Tuesday.
In junior varsity action, Northview beat Escambia 7-6 Thursday.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Forest Tour Near Walnut Hill Focuses On Preparing For Natural Disasters
March 31, 2023
The Florida Forest Service, in partnership with the Florida Land Stewardship Program, recently held a workshop for hurricane preparation and recovery of forested lands.
The program was on the Chris Jones property on Highway 97A in McDavid.
Topics included selecting the right tree species and planting stock, improving the stand to enhance forest health and wildlife habitat, preparing for and recovering from hurricanes and other natural disasters as well as information on the sources of technical and financial assistance available to landowners.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com click to enlarge.
Infant Mason Floyd Lee Rowland
March 31, 2023
Infant Mason Floyd Lee Rowland, precious baby boy of Christopher M. and Eva Currie Rowland passed away on March 25, 2023 in Pensacola, FL surrounded by his loving parents. He is preceded in death by his great grandparents: Floyd and Alice Currie, Carolyn Rowland, and Earl Ray Simmons.
Mason is survived by his parents, Christopher and Eva Rowland; his grandparents, Fritz (Kathy) Currie and Bunkie (Gary) Murph; his great grandparents: Ellis and Billie Mason, Haywood and Shelly Rowland, and Hazel Simmons; his big brother, Jay Braxton Rowland; his uncle and aunt, Ankoo (Deonna) Currie; his cousin, Maggie Currie; his special uncle and aunt, Chris and Tristen Moore and cousin, Gunner Moore.
Private graveside services will be held in Oak Grove Baptist Church Cemetery with Bro. Tad McMullen officiating. Interment will follow in Oak Grove Baptist Church Cemetery in Oak Grove, FL.
Velda Louise ‘Pat’ Jernigan
March 31, 2023
Velda Louise “Pat” Jernigan, a resident of Milton, Florida fell peacefully asleep with family at her bedside on March 28, 2023. She was born in Molino, Florida on October 29, 1933 to Hilbert and Azul Carlson. She was married to Bryan Jernigan for 69 years. They owned 2 Way Communication business for 35 years, where she worked as the secretary. She was a member of the 7th Day Adventist Church. She had a passion for family, flowers, bird feeding, shopping, and going to Hawaii.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Hilbert and Azul Carlson; and sisters, Zuella Larson and Marnie Carlson.
She is survived by her sons, Skip Jernigan, and Mike (Debi) Jernigan; daughters, Sharri (Kenny) Stitcher, and June (Scott) McKenzie; granddaughter, Ashley (Shane) Singleton, grandsons, Chris (Melissa) Jernigan, and Rich (Kristie) Jernigan; and five great grandchildren, Samantha, William, Melanie, Olivia, and Joelle; and brother, Flournoy Carlson.
Graveside service will be held on Friday, March 31, 2023, at Bayview Memorial Park, 3351 Scenic Hwy #90e, Pensacola, Florida at 2:30 pm.
Tate High Lockdown Prompted By ‘Rumors’, ECSO Says
March 30, 2023
Tate High School was on lockdown for over an hour midday Thursday due to a threat the ECSO called a “false alarm”. The lockdown was lifted about 1 p.m. and students returned to class.
According to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, school officials received information that a student had threatened to come to the school with a gun and open fire.
Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons, who was at the scene, said the school was placed on the lockdown as a precaution while deputies investigated the alleged threat. Simmons stood outside a closed gate to the school and reassured parents that their children were safe. Parents are not allowed to access the campus at any school in the county during an elevated security level.
The Sheriff’s Office confirmed that there were no arrests.
Photos we received from inside the school showed ECSO deputies with long guns watching over students in the cafeteria (above).
The ECSO said the incident was due to rumors among students, not “swatting” where false calls are made from somewhere across the country.
For more photos, click or tap here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Man Charged With Causing Highway 97 Wreck, Robbing Victim Of $8,000 In Casino Winnings
March 30, 2023
An Escambia County man has been charged with allegedly causing a wreck and then robbing a victim at gunpoint on Highway 97 in Davisville in December.
Edward Jerome Butler, Jr., 45, was booked into the Escambia County Jail this week on charges of armed robbery, aggravated assault on a person over age 65, grand theft, grand theft of a firearm, battery and fraudulent use of a credit card.
The victim left the casino in Atmore and traveled south into Florida. On Highway 97 near the Piggly Wiggly in Davisville, Butler deliberately rear-ended the victim’s vehicle, causing just minor damage, according to an arrest report. The victim stopped on the side of the road. Butler then approached the vehicle wearing a red hoodie and red shoes, opened the passenger door, pointed a gun at the victim, and told him to give him the money or he would shoot him, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office said.
The victim attempted to draw his personal firearm to defend himself, but deputies said Butler took the victim’s gun away. Butler then forcefully grabbed the victim’s leg and pulled at his boot, which is where he was hiding his winnings from the Wind Creek Casino. Deputies said Butler took about $8,000 from the boot before fleeing with another unknown suspect in their vehicle.
About an hour later, Butler was seen entering a convenience store on Chemstrand Road in Pensacola and withdrawing $600 in three separate transactions from an ATM, the report states, along with $64 from another one of the victim’s other cards. Surveillance video showed the person withdrawing the money to be wearing a red hoodie.
The vehicle that left the convenience store was located in early January, and an ATM receipt was located inside that matched the victim’s account and the amount withdrawn, plus a $3 transaction fee. The owner of the vehicle said he picked up Butler, who paid him $20 for transportation.
Butler was arrested by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office on March 17 and extradited to Escambia County where he remained in jail Thursday morning with bond set at $117,500.
