Make-A-Wish Providing Paris Trip For Halee Boyd
November 1, 2013
The Make-A-Wish Foundation is making a dream come true for local cancer patient Halee Boyd — with a trip next week to Paris, France.
A year and a half ago Halee was a Tate High School junior on top of the world, looking forward to her senior year and graduation. In April 2012, Halee started having severe headaches, followed by blurry and double vision. Within 10 days her right eye was swollen, and the Boyds headed to a hospital emergency room. By the end of the month, they learned she had a tumor.
The diagnosis — Alevola Rhabdomyosarcoma , ARMS for short, a rare cancer of the muscles that are attached to the bones.
Her treatment for alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma ended in May of this year, but she has continued to suffer with more problems and side effects. A week ago she underwent surgery for another bone marrow biopsy to see if a medical condition is keeping her platelets from recovering since treatment ended.
Halee learned during a dinner at Ollie’s Neighborhood Grill on Nine Mile Road that she and her mother, Mardi Boyd, will fly out Monday for a week in Paris.
“This is the best time for Halee to be going and getting away from all the medical things she has been dealing with,” Mardi Boyd said.
Pictured top and inset: Halee Boyd reacts when she learns she will be leaving on a Make-A-Wish trip to Paris next week. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Thousands Attend Fall Festivals, Halloween Events
November 1, 2013
Thousands of people attended fall festivals and Halloween events across the North Escambia area Thursday night.
One of the largest was the annual community-wide fall festival at Victory Assembly of God. The festival was a combined effort of three area churches – Victory, Highland Baptist and Cross Faith Church. The interdenominational event was designed to provide a safe activity for attendees from across the community. The event featured a variety of games, bounce house, a hayride and lots of free food.
A similar event was held at Heritage Baptist Church in Cantonment.A
At the Century Care Center, ghosts and goblins joined residents to trick or treat in the hallways.
For more photos from Molino, Cantonment and Century, click here.
Hundreds attended other events across the area.
NorthEscambia.com photos from Victory Assembly in Molino (top), Heritage Baptist in Cantonment (inset) and the Century Care Center (below), click to enlarge.
Battle Of The Robots Saturday
November 1, 2013
Student-constructed robots will face off to be best of the BEST as young scientists compete against each other Saturday at the University of West Florida Field House.
The sixth annual Emerald Coast BEST Robotics middle and high school competition is sponsored by Gulf Power Company. The event will pit teams from 13 Northwest Florida schools — including Tate and West Florida high schools – in head-to-head competition to teach teamwork, problem-solving, project management and pride in task completion.
BEST Robotics Inc. is a non-profit, volunteer-based organization whose mission is to inspire students to pursue careers in engineering, science, and technology through participation in a sports-like, science and engineering-based robotics competition.
“Gulf Power supports the annual competition because it provides local students the opportunity to learn practical engineering, science and math skills, which are critical for their future,” said Jeff Rogers, Gulf Power spokesperson.
Gulf Power has recently ramped up efforts to help increase the availability of skilled technicians in Northwest Florida by helping to form the Northwest Florida Manufacturers Council earlier this year. The council will help local manufacturing companies work together to compete in a global marketplace with a special emphasis on having a skilled workforce.
“Events like the BEST Robotics competition also help promote interest in high-quality manufacturing careers down the line for these students,” said Rogers.
Each student team has six weeks to design and build a remote-controlled robot to solve a problem or perform a specific function. The year’s theme, Gatekeeper 2013, refers to a conceived challenge of constructing a CPU (Central Processing Unit) to upgrade BEST robot, Squeaky, to Squeaky 2.0. The goal for the students is to design a prototype robot to construct a CPU over the course of three fabrication stages.
Each team is judged on its robot performance, marketing presentation, team exhibit, technical notebook and spirit and sportsmanship. The 13 schools from across Northwest Florida will participate in the University of West Florida Emerald Coast BEST hub with the top schools advancing to regional competition at Auburn University.
Area schools have been competing in BEST since 2004, when Gulf Power sponsored eight local teams to compete in the BEST hub in Mobile, Ala. The funding of hub operations depends entirely on corporate and individual sponsorships. Materials kits to build the robots are provided to the teams by the hub. No fees are paid by students or schools participating in BEST robotics.
2013 Teams:
- Arnold High School
- Avalon Middle School
- Bethlehem School
- Jinks Middle School
- Milton High School
- Newpoint Pensacola High
- Pine Forest High School
- Seaside Neighborhood
- Sims Middle School
- Tate High School
- West Florida High School
- Woodham Middle School
- Woodlawn Beach Middle School
Pictured: Previous robotics competitions at the University of West Florida. File photos, click to enlarge.
Tate Names Malone, Heintz As October Students Of The Month
October 31, 2013
Tate High School has named their October Students of the Month. They are Haley Malone and Noah Heintz. Pictured above are Tate Principal Richard Shackle, Haley Malone, Noah Heintz, and Assistant Principal Laurie Bedford. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Bratt Student Awarded In Symphony’s ‘Express Yourself’ Art Contest
October 30, 2013
A Bratt Elementary school fifth grader was a winner in a recent “Express Yourself” art contest held in conjunction with the Pensacola Symphony.
Amber Gilman placed third among fifth grade students in Escambia County and received a gift basket and a $100 prize card from Pen Air Federal Credit Union. This was the third consecutive year that a Bratt student has placed in the contest.
Before attending a field trip to the Pensacola Symphony with music teacher Emily Pollard, fifth graders at Bratt listened to a piece entitled “Firebird: Kastcheir Dance” by Stravinsky. As they listened, the students created pieces of art that fit the mood of the music and the story line while they were in class with art teacher Meredeth Roberts.
On the field trip, students were able to see the winning art creations on display as they listened to the symphony performance.
Pictured: Megan Burke, Pensacola Symphony, Amber Gilman, and Meredith Roberts, Bratt Elementary art teacher. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Care Goes Pink For Breast Cancer Awareness
October 30, 2013
In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the staff and Century Care Center wore pink. One of many CCC survivors, Angela Jackson, gave a short speech to residents and staff about the importance of early detection. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia Professional Firefighters To Host ‘Fire And Ice Gala’
October 29, 2013
The Escambia County Professional Firefighters will host the Fire and Ice Gala this Saturday in Pensacola.
Dinner will be served, and there will be a silent auction and door prizes. Guest speaker will be Jim Tolley, president of the Florida Professional Firefighters.
Proceeds from the event benefit the firefighter’s charity that provides money to families that have been burned out of their homes. The charity also provides for family members to visit other family members that have been burned at burn centers.
The event is open to the public. Tickets are $50 per person. The event will be held at New World Landing, 600 South Palafox Street, from 5:30 until 10 p.m. Dress for men is a tuxedo, suit or dress uniform. Dress for women is an evening gown.
For tickets, call (850) 698-3105.
Ernest Ward Names October Students Of The Month
October 28, 2013
Ernest Ward Middle School has named their October Students of the Month. They (picture L-R) Kayla Galvan, eighth grade; Aurora McCann, seventh grade; and Keaton Solmonson, sixth grade. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
The Power Of Pink: Thousands Take Part In Breast Cancer Walk
October 27, 2013
About 15,000 people took part in the 11th annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk Saturday morning in Pensacola.
“My sister and I walked with our mom who is a breast cancer survivor,” Tiffany White of Flomaton said after the walk along with her mother Brenda Peterson of Century.
Like Tiffany, most walked for a reason. For a mom, a grandmother, a friend or their own personal battle against breast cancer. For many, it’s a party-style event, with a variety of festive outfits. The walk begins at the former University Mall and ends at Cordova Mall.
“I try and walk every year in the Breast Cancer Walk, my grandma had it 15 years ago,” said Ashley Suggs of Cantonment. “She’s a survivor!”
There were hundreds of survivors honored during the walk that raises nearly a half million dollars each year for breast cancer research and the American Cancer Society.
Pictured top: Valerie Craft of Century, survivor Brenda Peterson of Century and Tiffany White of Flomaton. Pictured below: The view from Chris Jordan of Cantonment as an estimated 15,000 took part in the annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk Saturday morning in Pensacola. Pictured inset: Ashley Suggs of Cantonment and family walk for her grandmother. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Photo Gallery: Hundreds Attend Williams Station Day
October 27, 2013
Hundreds attended the 22nd annual Williams Station Day in Atmore Saturday.
Williams Station Day takes its name from Atmore’s early history when in 1866 the community was a supply stop along the Mobile and Great Northern railroad.
Festival-goers were entertained by a wide variety of musical acts, and a wide variety of arts and crafts were also available. The Alabama Blues Brothers provided the feature entertainment as part of their farewell tour.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Pictured top: The Alabama Blues Brothers perform during Saturday’s Williams Station Day in Atmore. Pictured inset and bottom: Scenes from Williams Station Day. NorthEscambia.com photos by Marcella Wilson, click to enlarge.
