Free Family Movie Night To Feature ‘Despicable Me’
September 23, 2013
The Northwest Escambia Baseball Park and NorthEscambia.com are teaming up to bring you a free Family Movie Night. Mark your calendars now…on Saturday, October 19 at 7 p.m., we’ll bring you “Despicable Me” on the big screen.
Bring your blankets or chairs. No outside coolers; concessions will be available. This is a family event; no alcohol or inappropriate behavior will be tolerated.
Admission is free, but donations will be accepted toward the cost of the event for NWE’s 2014 baseball season.
Bradberry Park is located on Highway 99A in Walnut Hill, directly behind Ernest Ward Middle School.
Manna Food Pantries Celebrates 30th Birthday In A Big Way
September 22, 2013
Manna Food Pantries held their 30th Birthday Bash on Saturday.
The event raised over $33,000 for Manna, enough money to feed 6,400 more members of the local community from just a one-day event. The Birthday Bash included a barbecue, gourmet cake contest and two auctions.
Winners in the Gourmet Birthday Cake Contest were: first place Angel Cakes, second place Betty Weber, third place Cupcake Emporium, and the People’s Choice winner was Angel Cakes.
Pictured: Manna Food Pantries 30th Birthday Bash was held on Saturday. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Burk Named Tate Homecoming Queen (With Homecoming Photo Gallery)
September 21, 2013
The Tate High School Aggies celebrated Homecoming 2013 Friday night.
Bailey Burk was crowned homecoming queen during an evening that included the annual homecoming parade. The Aggies honored their 1962 state baseball championship team, including Major League Hall of Fame member Don Sutton. The graduation classes of 1963 and 2003 were also recognized.
For a photo gallery, click here.
For a game action story and photos, click here.
Pictured top: Bailey Burk was named Tate High School’s homecoming queen Friday night. Pictured inset: Major League Hall of Fame member Don Sutton. Pictured below: Homecoming parade. NorthEscambia.com photos by Kaliegh Blackmon and Kristi Smith, click to enlarge.
New Escambia School District Website Now Online
September 20, 2013
The Escambia County School District’s main website has a new look.
The new site is located at www.escambiaschools.org, but the old address of www.escambia.k12.fl.us should be automatically redirected to the new page.
Changes to the site were made based on recommendations from the district’s Web Site Task Force, which is composed of 13 representatives from district departments and schools as well as the community. One of the goals of the Task Force was to make the district’s web site more user-friendly. As the school district migrates content to the new design, visitors to the web site will see five main improvements:
- New design with common menus on all of the main district web site pages to enable easy navigation
- Expanded, alphabetical listing of resources for Students, Families, Staff, and Community
- Quick Links highlighting the most important information based on site usage statistics and input from district leadership
- Social media (beginning with Facebook and Google Calendar) to expand access to news and events
- Faster access to school web sites and consistent placement of common elements on all school web sites for ease of use
Pictured top: A screenshot of the new Escambia County School District website. The site features rotating photos, including this NorthEscambia.com photo of the recent groundbreaking at Ernest Ward Middle School.
Change Of Address: Bratt House Moved
September 19, 2013
There was a big change of address Wednesday for a home that was located on North Highway 99, just north of Highway 4. The home was moved about 10 miles to its new location by Williams House Movers of Atmore. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Sneak Peek: Color Scheme Inside The New Ernest Ward Middle
September 18, 2013
There’s not even a foundation in place for the new Ernest Ward Middle School in Walnut Hill, but we have a sneak peek at the color scheme for the new school. The interior of the school will feature a variety of earth tone colors, the school colors of blue and gold. The building will have a light-colored aluminum roof.
The color scheme has been approved by a school staff committee, and the School Advisory Council signed off on the colors during a meeting Tuesday morning.
Pictured top: The cafeteria design and color scheme for the new Ernest Ward Middle School. Pictured below: The color scheme of a standard classroom. Pictured bottom: the complete color scheme for the new Ernest Ward Middle School. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Free Wi-Fi Now Offered At North Escambia Community Centers
September 18, 2013
Three community centers in the North Escambia area now offering free wireless internet access.
The Wi-Fi access is available for use by those renting the Byrneville, Davisville and Walnut Hill community center for parties, reunions or other events. A password to access the wireless internet is available at the time the rental contract is signed.
“We hope the free Wi-Fi will encourage more use of the community centers, especially for meetings where the internet access is needed,” District 5 Escambia County Commissioner Steven Barry said.
The county is using a Verizon hotspot to provide the internet service at 3G or 4G speeds, depending on location. Free high speed Wi-Fi was already available at the Molino Community Center.
George Stone Adult Academy Offers GED, ESOL Classes
September 16, 2013
The Adult Academy at George Stone Technical Center has several opportunities throughout the community to prepare for the GED test. All of the classes have open entry/open exit, which means you can enroll at anytime and exit when you are ready to take the GED exam.
The first step of enrollment is to take the TABE Assessment (Test of Adult Basic Education) to identify areas where improvement is needed prior to the exam. The assessment is given on Fridays at 8:00 a.m. at the George Stone Technical Center. There is a $10 fee and a photo identification is required. For more information about the TABE test, contact the George Stone Assessment department at (850) 941-6200, ext.2160.
Tuition for all adult education programs is $30 per term for students with verifiable Florida residency for the previous 12 month period or $120 for out-of-state tuition.
Classes are available at the following sites:
- Molino Community Center – (850) 587-5334, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6-8 p.m.
- Pathways for Change Family Center – (850) 637-1429, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
- Sacred Heart Hospital – (850) 416-6361, Thursdays 4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays, 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
- East Brent Baptist Church – (850) 475-7883, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
- Frist Baptist Church Warrington – (850) 456-8420, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6-8 p.m.
- George Stone Technical Center – (850) 941-6200, ext.2110, Monday – Friday 8-11 a.m. and 11:30-2:30 p.m. and Monday – Thursday 2:30 – 5:30 p.m. and 6-9 p.m.
For online GED preparation, email jwolfe@escambia.k12.fl.us.
An English As a Second Language Class is available at La Costa Latina, Hispanic Resource Center, 5465 N. Pensacola Blvd., (850) 494-7899.
For more information visit www.georgestonecenter.com or contact Lydia Henderson (850) 941-6200, ext. 2121 or lhenderson@escambia.k12.fl.us.
Banana Spiders Make Big Local Comeback
September 16, 2013
The golden orb weavers are back in greater numbers this year. More commonly called banana spiders, they seemed to have taken a break the past few years, only to return to our woods, trails and around homes with a vengeance this summer.
“That’s a cause for justifiable arson,” a commenter wrote on a local’s Facebook photo of a banana spider under the eaves of house, blocking a family’s entire kitchen window.
They can grow to several inches across, which can be scary if you don’t know that they really won’t hurt you physically (mentally is perhaps another story).
Because of its size, people sometimes assume that the banana spider is dangerous to people. The body of the female is 1 to 1 ½ inches long, plus an inch or two more when the legs are included in the measurements. The bodies of the males are much smaller, about ¼ inch, and are dark-brown. They are often found in the webs of females.
In reality, it is a shy spider (as nearly all spiders are). Just know this species is considered medically harmless to humans.
There is little danger to a healthy adult from an encounter with the banana spider. It will only bite if held or pinched and the bite itself will produce a localized pain with a slight redness, which quickly goes away. On the whole, the bite is much less severe than a bee string. It is best avoided, but it won’t kill you.
The banana spider preys on a wide variety of small to medium sized flying insects, which include mosquitoes, grasshoppers, stinkbugs, leaf-footed bugs, bees, butterflies, flies, small moths and wasps. Banana spiders have even been seen feeding on beetles and dragonflies.
The banana spider’s other name, the golden orb weaver, stems from the golden yellow color of their strong silk. Their large webs can typically be found in trees, along trails, under the eaves of houses, or other places where they’re likely to catch a lot of insects.
The University of Florida/IFAS Extension Service contributed to this story.
Pictured: A banana spider at a Bratt home. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
CDC: Floridians Should Eat More Fruits And Vegetables
September 16, 2013
According to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control, a large number of Floridians can take an important step to improve their overall health simply by changing their dietary habits.
The agency strongly recommends increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables.
Nearly 38 percent of all adults in Florida do not eat at least one fruit serving per day, while nearly 23 percent do not have at least one serving of a vegetable daily. Adolescents in Florida even less vegetables than their parents. About 42 percent do not consume at least one vegetable per day.
A diet rich in such foods, notes the report, “lowers the risk of many chronic diseases and can also help with weight management.”
The average fruit and vegetable consumption here matches that for most of the nation, with the exception that Florida adolescents eat fewer vegetables, on average, than their counterparts in other states.
For the complete report, click here.