To Do Tonight: Free Movie And Free Music
June 5, 2009
If you are looking for something to do tonight in North Escambia, you could choose a free movie night in Molino or music night in Barrineau Park.
There will be a free outdoor movie night in honor of the Pensacola Miracle League on tonight 7:30 at CrossFaith Church in Molino. Concessions will be available.
Barrineau Park Music Night will begin with food at 5:00 and singing at 7:00. The singing is free. The featured groups will be “TruGrass” and “Harold & Ovaline”. The music night is located in the Barrineau Park Community Center. Call 587-5575 for more information.
Burp Like A Dinosaur At The Library
June 3, 2009
Get ready to get creative with the summer library program series at the Century Branch Library from June 3 to July 14.
Children can pick up a free summer program packet in a snazzy book bag beginning the week of June 1 and then participate in any or all of the summer’s great activities.
A preschool story time for ages 1 to 6 will be held each Wednesday at 10:30 beginning June 3.
Weekly special programs for all ages will be as follows:
- Wednesday, June 3, 12:00: Charlie Williams “The Noise Guy”. When is the last time someone dinosaur burped for you? Can you sound like a washing machine?
- June 9, Tuesday, 12:00: Funny Money
- June 16, Tuesday, 12:00: Kids Can Cook
- June 23, Tuesday, 12:00: Beau Broomall, magician. West Florida’s favorite local magician will delight and surprise with magic tricks galore.
- June 30, Tuesday: No Program
- July 7, Tuesday, 12:00: Tuffy the American Quarter Horse
- July 14, Tuesday, 12:00: Color-wheel creations. Get messy with finger paints then celebrate your art with ice cream.
All the events are free and will be held at the Century Branch Library at 7991 North Century Boulevard. For more information, call 256-6217.
Election Day In Alabama
June 2, 2009
Today is election day in Escambia and seven other Alabama counties, but very few registered voters are expected at the polls.
Republican Greg Albritton, a former state representative from Range, will face Democratic candidate Marc Keahey of Grove Hill for the District 22 Alabama Senate seat left vacant early this year by the death of Sen. Pat Lindsey.
Keahey, an attorney, currently serves in the Alabama House of Representatives. Albritton is a retired Navy commander.
Elections officials said that voter turnout was dismal in the Republican primary back in April, with just under 7 percent of registered voters heading to the polls.
The Alabama Senate seat pays $52,646 per year plus expenses.
We will post the results on NorthEscambia.com for our Alabama readers.
Historic Day At Carver/Century And Molino Park
May 29, 2009
Today was a historic last day for North Escambia schools. Century will no longer has a public school, and Molino Park saw its first ever class of kindergarten students finish the fifth grade.
It was the last day the town of Century had public school. With the last bell at Carver/Century K-8 School today, the school was no more. It ended a legacy of Blackcat Pride that has included Century Elementary, Carver Middle and Century High School. A divided Escambia School Board voted 3-2 to close Carver/Century and consolidate it with Bratt Elementary and Ernest Ward Middle to save an estimated $600,000 per year.
Molino Park Elementary School opened in 2003, the product of the consolidation of Molino Elementary and Barrineau Park Elementary. The first class of kindergarten students at Molino Park in 2003 left the school today having finished fifth grade. Today’s graduating fifth graders were the first class to have attended Molino Park their entire school careers.
Complete photo coverage of the final bell at Carver/Century K-8 will be posted Saturday morning here on NorthEscambia.com.
Molino Youth To Kick Off Summer
May 29, 2009
Youth in and around Molino will kick off summer in a big way after school today with Second Annual Summer Kick-Off.
The big event will be hosted by Impact Student Ministries, a ministry of Victory Assembly of God.
The Summer Kick-Off is open to all students sixth to 12th grade, and will be held from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m.. There will be free food and live entertainment. There is no admission cost. Call (850) 587-2295 for more details or visit www.impactsm.net.
Sheriff’s K-9 Units To Return
May 28, 2009
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Department K-9 units are headed back to the streets.
Sheriff David Morgan will hold a news conference Friday morning to discuss the return of the K-9’s and to share information from the Department of Justice about the unit.
In late April, Morgan pulled his department’s K-9 units off the streets following findings released in a Department of Justice investigation.
“The problem was not so much with the K-9 officers,” Morgan told NorthEscambia.com. “It was as much or more with the administration at the time not following up on bites and other paperwork.”
Sometimes, Morgan said the DOJ investigation found, the previous administration would treat it “like it was just a dog bite, a part of the apprehension. The documentation was not done as it should be.”
The K-9 stand down included the use of dogs for both suspect apprehension and drug searches. But that did not mean Escambia County has been totally without the assistance of K-9 officers.
The City of Pensacola offered the assistance of their K-9 officers when needed. In North Escambia, deputies could still request the assistance of the K-9 unit from Century Correctional Institute.
The DOJ investigation into the sheriff’s department, which the DOJ announced three days after Morgan was sworn into office, stemmed from allegations of excessive force during the administration of former Sheriff Ron McNesby.
At Least Part Of Courthouse To Remain Open In Century
May 28, 2009
NorthEscambia.com has learned that court will continue to be held in the Billy G. Ward Courthouse in Century.
An email sent Wednesday to all Escambia County Sheriff’s deputies indicated that the courthouse will not close as previous announced this month.
“Per the Clerk’s Office, the Century Courthouse WILL NOT be closing June the 1st. It has been approved for the courthouse to remain opened,” the email sent to the deputies read.
NorthEscambia.com has attempted to contact Escambia County Clerk of the Courts Ernie Lee Magaha for comment since the first of the month, but he has yet to return our repeated phone calls.
It was not immediately clear if the services offered by Escambia County Tax Collector Janet Holley would remain in Century. While the email sent to deputies indicated that the courthouse would remain open, deputies generally do not directly interact with the tax collector’s office. They do, of course, frequently refer people into the court system through arrests and traffic tickets.
On Wednesday, the Tri-Cities Rotary club approved a resolution asking both Magaha and Holley to keep their offices in Century. Century Mayor Freddie McCall, a member of the Tri-Cities Rotary Club, said that it was his understanding that Magaha had indeed decided to keep his office open in Century. McCall said Holley had not offered such a commitment.
We were unable to reach Holley late Wednesday afternoon for comment.
Both constitutional officers announced earlier this month they were pulling out of Century primarily to save money, citing a low usage level for their services as a secondary reason for leaving Century.
Pictured above: The Billy G. Ward Courthouse in Century. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Looking For Something To Do This Afternoon? Enjoy Century’s Ole Mill Pond
May 28, 2009
Century Care Center will kick off a planned concert series “An Evening at Century’s Ole Mill Pond” this Friday afternoon, and everyone is invited.
The concert series is fashioned after Pensacola’s Evening in Old Seville Square, CCC Director Don Ripley said. The Century event will feature free live entertainment with the sounds of soul, rhythm and blues from The Sensational Tones of Joy.
We felt that since Century has lost so much recently in the closing of our last school, Century Elementary, and our Escambia County court annex, that we needed to do something to bring the community together,” Ripley said. “What better way than to have a free concert, an open house, with food and art vendors to bring the community together with our most cherished assets, our mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers that have given us so much to be thankful for, all from the Century, Jay, Flomaton and Atmore areas.”
The event will take place behind Century Care Center at the Ole Mill Pond, a new pond fully stocked with fish for the enjoyment of the nursing home residents. The pond was built to allow Century care residents to get outside, build their immune systems and stimulate their minds and bodies. The pond was built with a grant from the Agency For Health Care Administration.
The event is open to anyone, regardless if they have family members in Century Care Center or not. Attendees are encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket. The Tri-City Rotary Club will be selling barbecue sandwiches, chips and soft drinks. Other vendors will be on hand as well.
The event will begin at 3:00 Friday afternoon and is expected to continue until about dark. Century Care Center is located at the intersection of West Highway 4 and Industrial Boulevard in Century.
For more information, or to reserve a vendor booth, call Mae at 256-1540.
Pictured inset and below: The Ole Mill Pond, a new pond recently constructed behind Century Care Center. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Register Tomorrow For Pre-Kindergarten Summer Program
May 26, 2009
A free pre-kindergarten program will be offered at Bratt Elementary School this summer, and a chance to register at the school is coming up tomorrow.
Children participating in the program must be four-years old on or before September 1, 2009, to be eligible for the free program.
The free voluntary pre-kindergarten program will be held from June 8 to August 6 at Bratt Elementary, the only Head Start program in North Escambia. The program will run from 7:45 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. each day.
Parents can sign their children up daily in the front office at Bratt with a birth certificate, proof of residency, proof of income, immunization records, a physical exam and a photo identification for the parent. Parents must also obtain a certificate of eligibility from the Early Learning Coalition at 3636 D North L Street in Pensacola. Contact Kitty McKenzie at 595-5439.
There will be a meeting at Bratt Elementary on Wednesday morning at 7:45. Children may be registered at this meeting without the need to visit the Early Learning Coalition in Pensacola. For more information, call 327-6137.
Don’t Forget To Take Out The Trash
May 26, 2009
ECUA customers in North Escambia will have trash pickup as usual today.
There was no change in the Emerald Coast Utiltiies Authority service schedule as a result of the Memorial Day holiday on Monday.