Ernest Ward Middle’s Got Talent; Pie In The Face
October 4, 2008
Eighth grader Angel Mitchell received top honors Friday night in Ernest Ward Middle School’s Talent Explosion 2008.
Nineteen acts, ranging from singing and dancing to pies in the face, participated in the program.
Angel performed a dance routine to “Got Me Going Crazy” by the Jonas Brothers.
For a complete photo gallery with each act, click here.
For a video with some of the performances, click here.
NorthEscambia.com will have a video from the talent show posted Monday morning.
Performers in the talent show were;
- Ashton Gibbs, 8th grade, singing and playing guitar “Bring Me Down”
- Morgan Ward, 6th grade, human video to “Gone Without Goodbye”
- Arielle Ford, 8th grade, singing “Our Song”
- Harley Caraway and Hanna Ziglar, both 8th grade, singing “Leave the Pieces”
- Josh Ingram, playing original guitar piece
- Tamara Wise, 6th grade, singing “Stay Beautiful”
- Rachel Presley and Lauryn Walker, both 7th grade, dance routine
- Lily Townsend, Mason Solchenberger, Danielle Steadham, all 7th grade, comedy, “Redneck Game Show”
- Reagan Bell, 6th grade, singing “Never Alone”
- Shalmali Bhadkamkar, 6th grade, singing “Alana Nita Nana” (Portugese Lullaby)
- Cory Hester, 7th grade, singing and playing guitar “Freebird”
- Gregory Diggs, 6th grade, dance routine to “Soldja Boy” remix
- Skye Brown, Jenny Spears, Katelynn Zisa, singing “MyHeart Will Go On”
- Alison Bardin, 8th grade, singing “I Need You to Love Me”
- Taiquesha Mitchell, Teamber Moorer, Kassey Redmond, dance routine
- Joselynn Wiedel, 6th grade, singing “If We Were a Movie”
- Dezarae Turner, 8th grade, singing “Pressure”
- Angel Mitchel, 8th grade, dance routine to “Got Me Going Crazy”
- Danielle Scott, 7th grade, singing “I Am”
Pictured above: Angel Mitchell performs a dance routine to Jonas Brothers song Friday Night during an Ernest Ward Middle School talent show. Pictured below: The “Redneck Game Show” routine included pie in the face. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Movie With A Message: Locals Fireproof Their Marriages
October 2, 2008
Critics are calling the movie “Fireproof” remarkable, and at least one local pastor is already using the film as a tool in his church, teaching couples to strengthen their marriages.
The action-packed inspirational movie “does have its commendable elements, including that rarest of creatures on the big (or small) screen: characters with a strong, conservative Christian faith who don’t sound crazy,” according a New York Times review.
“For a Christian audience and non-Christians, it is absolutely a movie you should see,” Pastor Ted Bridges of the Walnut Hill Baptist Church said. About 20 adults and 10 youth from the church watched the movie on Saturday, opening weekend. The film opened at number four in the country, despite a limited release on just 839 screens across the U.S.
At work, inside burning buildings, Capt. Caleb Holt lives by the old firefighter’s adage: Never leave your partner behind. At home, in the cooling embers of his marriage, he lives by his own rules. After seven years of marriage, Caleb and Catherine Holt have drifted so far apart that Catherine wishes she had never married. Neither one understands the pressures the other faces–he as firefighter and she as the public relations director of a hospital.
Regular arguments over jobs, finances, housework, and outside interests have readied them both to move on to something with more sparks. As the couple prepares to enter divorce proceedings, Caleb’s father challenges his son to commit to a 40-day experiment he calls “The Love Dare.” Wondering if it’s even worth the effort, Caleb agrees, but more for his father’s sake more than for his marriage.
“The movie is a very good depiction of how the enemy (the devil) works against the sanctity of marriage,” Bridges said. “It speaks to a lot of the pressures of our society like finances, and even things like Internet pornography.” (The pornography, Bridges said, is implied, not shown on screen.)
“A wife can see areas from her side of the marriage and learn; men can walk away with how we can live our lives better in our marriage,” he said. Even the youth from Walnut Hill Baptist that attended the movie walked away having learned things from the movie, he said.
Fireproof, starring Kirk Cameron, was produced by Sherwood Pictures and Sherwood Baptist Church in Georgia with an all-volunteer 1,200 member cast and crew. But it’s not a bad production nor a “B movie”, Bridges said.
“It’s not boring; it’s not a bad production,” Bridges said. “There are a lot of fire scenes that are well done and exciting.”
The couples from Walnut Hill Baptist that attended the movie went out to eat following the show, holding a discussion about marriage. Each couple signed a certificate rededicating themselves to their marriage, and the men presented their wives with a single rose.
“It was touching,” Bridges said. “Even the big ole tough fellows were standing around talking about the movie, asking each other if they cried. ‘Yeah, I cried,’ they said.”
The movie is not belittling toward non-Christians, nor does it “preach”, the pastor said. “It’s not Christians on a soapbox,” he said.
Bridges said he hopes to see more Christian movies that are good entertainment coming out of Hollywood.
Fireproof is the third movie from Sherwood Pictures. Their first movie, “Flywheel”, had only a very limited release on DVD in 2003. Their underdog football team movie, “Facing the Giants”, grossed over $10 million despite being produced on a $100,000 budget in 2006.
Fireproof is showing at the Rave Theater at W Street and Highway 29 in Pensacola. For more information about the movie, visit www.fireproofthemovie.com.
Northview Names NJROTC Officers
October 2, 2008
Northview High School has named NJROTC officers for the 2008-2009 school year.
They are front row, left to right:
- Company CDR, c/LCDR Amanda Sellars
- Weapons Officer, c/SCPO Daniel Jordan
- Operations Officer, c/LTJG Deniece Jordan
- Supply Officer, c/ENS Miranda Scott
- Command Master Chief, c/MCPO Jessica Bloodsworth
- Executive Officer, c/LT Dalton Cummings
Back row, left to right:
- Athletics Officer,c/CPO Katie Mann
- First Lieutenant, c/LTJG Harrison Whitehead
- Admin Officer, c/ENS Clinton Davis
- Public Affairs Officer, c/CPO William Conway
- Chaplin, c/CPO Zachary Lamb
The Northview High NJROTC is under the command of Senior Naval Science Instructor Charlie Code.
Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Students Of The Month Named At North Escambia Schools
September 29, 2008
The students of the month for Escambia County have been selected. From North Escambia schools, they are:
Bratt Elementary: Lydia G. Smith, second grade; Claudio A. Santander, fifth grade.
Carver/Century K-8: Markayla D. Bradley, fourth grade; Martavious A. Odom, fourth grade.
Molino Park Elementary: Cheyenne R. Gray, fifth grade; Haley D. Brown, fifth grade ; Demarcus J. Dukes, fifth grade; Tasashera L. Granderson, fifth grade.
Ernest Ward Middle School: Charmayne M. Fountain, sixth grade; Courtney A. Weaver, seventh grade.
Northview High School: Luke F. Killam, senior; Jessica M. Mothershed, senior.
The students of the month are awarded certificates from the Escambia Association for Administrators In Education.
Pictured above: Luke Killam (left) and Jessica Mothershed, both seniors at Northview High School, were among the North Escambia students of the month named by the Escambia Association for Administrators in Education. Submitted photo.
Teams Get Ready For The 2009 Relay For Life
September 28, 2008
An Early Bird Registration for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life was held Saturday, with five teams signing up for next year’s Century Relay.
Byrneville Elementary School, the Century Branch Library, Critter Caregivers, Ray’s Chapel Baptist Church and NorthEscambia.com are all early bird registrants for next year’s Relay for Life.
It’s not too late to register for Relay for Life…teams interested in registering their team for Century’s Relay can still visit the Century Relay for Life website at www.CenturyRelay.com and click “Sign Up” in the left column.
“We would like to encourage people around Walnut Hill and Bratt to register teams for Relay,” Jernigan said. Century’s Relay event, scheduled for April 25-26 is the the closest American Cancer Society Relay event in Florida for residents in Walnut Hill, Bratt and McDavid.
Century’s Relay for Life is also looking for cancer survivors and caregivers to honor at next year’s events. Cancer survivors and caregivers can register online at www.CenturyRelay.com.
Information about cancer, treatments and the American Cancer Society were also available during Saturday’s Early Bird Registration.
The domain www.CenturyRelay.com is provided as a public service by NorthEscambia.com.
Pictured above: Teresa Watford (left) registers the Ray’s Chapel Baptist Church Relay for Life team Saturday at early bird registration day at the Century Whataburger. Event chairperson Paula Jernigan (right) was on hand to take registration information. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Annual See You At The Pole Held
September 25, 2008
The annual See You at the Pole rally was held Wednesday morning at Northview High School.
About 75 NHS students gathered at the flagpole as school began to pray in the non-denominational event.
See You at the Pole is a student-initiated, student organized, and student-led event. That means this is all about students meeting at their school flagpole to pray—for their school, friends teachers, government, and their nation.
“Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening!” from 1 Samuel 3:9b was theme verse for the See You at the Pole event at thousands of schools across the nation Wednesday morning.
“It’s tough being a Christian student today, isn’t it? You have to make a lot of choices about who you are—and who you’re not. You have to try and follow God in a world that misunderstands Christianity and tolerates its principles less and less all the time,” according to the See You at the Pole website.
See You at the Pole is scheduled annually on the fourth Wednesday in September.
Pictured above and below: The annual See You at the Pole event was held Wednesday morning at Northview High School and schools across the country. Scroll down and click the thumbnails at the bottom for more photos. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Local Rotary Making A Difference In The Tri-Cities And The World
September 22, 2008
The Tri-Cities Rotary Club is looking for a few good members to join the club in making the tri-cities and the world a better place to live, even if it means buying a water buffalo or two.
The local Rotary Club, which includes Flomaton, Century and Jay, is involved in a long list of community projects, according to Bo Brantley, club president.
Locally, the club provides scholarships, Thanksgiving meals, Christmas meals, Christmas presents for needy children, support for the humane society, locator bracelets for alzheimer’s patients, dictionaries for elementary students and more.
The Tri-Cities Rotary recently sponsored “the biggest thing to hit Escambia County since Ivan,” Brantley said. That event was a “Bull Riding Blowout” in late August in Flomaton. The family friendly event feature bull riding, country music, food and more. “We worked hard, raised a little money. But, best of all, we brought some family friendly entertainment to the area, and everyone had a good time.”
The local Rotary Club has even had a hand in buying water buffaloes for little girls in third world countries.
“Sometimes the craziest ideas get the best results,” Leon Hirsh from the Pensacola North Rotary Club told local members. “A young girl with a water buffalo gains status in her world in is allowed to go to school to learn to ready. Without the water buffalo provided by Rotary, she would never have the chance to attend school or learn to read.”
Studies have found that the one girl that learns to read will learn to teach as many as five others how to read, Hirsh said, increasing the literacy rate in countries like India.
The 12 Rotary clubs that make up the Combined Rotary of Pensacola, were among the the first in the world to raise funds for water buffaloes. The group, which includes the local Tri-Cities Rotary Club, raised enough money to buy 50 water buffaloes. With a matching grant from the national Rotary organization, 100 water buffaloes were purchased to increase literacy.
The local club is also supports Rotary’s PolioPlus program.. The program works worldwide with one goal — eliminate all polio from the world. Vaccines are purchased for poor children around the globe, with the program having made dramatic progress against the disease around the world. Polio now basically limited to just four countries across the globe.
“That’s a wonderful example of how a club like the Tri-Cities Rotary Club can make a worldwide impact,” said John Tice from the Pensacola North Rotary Club. “This club, especially for its size, does a remarkable job.”
Sometimes the club’s efforts pay off in a more personal way.
Just before Christmas a few years ago, Brantley delivered a check to a local woman to buy Christmas gifts for her children and food for the holidays.
“We sat in the swing outside,” he said. “She cried. I cried. This club can having an amazing impact on the people in our community.”
Everything a Rotarian does is suppose to pass the “Four Way Test”:
- Is it the truth?
- Is it fair to all concerned?
- Will it build goodwill and better friendship?
- Will it be beneficial to all concerned?
The Tri-Cities Rotary Club meets every Wednesday at noon upstairs at the Escambia County Bank in Flomaton.
You can learn more about the basics of Rotary by clicking here. (700k pdf file)
Rotarians from around the world, including those in the Tri-Cities Rotary Club, partner for PolioPlus to rid the world of the diseases. Pictured above, a child in Moradabad, India, receives the polio vaccine from a Rotary Club member. Courtesy photo.
Thanking Robert Stewart For Her Life
September 19, 2008
Valerie (Baker) Brock knows that she owes her life to Chief Robert Stewart, the Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department and the rest of the emergency workers that worked to remove her from a wrecked car that was literally cut in half.
It’s the call that Stewart said was the most memorable of his 30 year career as a volunteer fireman, because of its severity and because the victim returned to say “thank you”.
Valerie was just 16 on March 9, 2001. She was at the wheel of a friends car, the friend in the passenger seat, as she drove on Highway 99 in Bratt near Oakshade Road. She lost control of the car and hit a tree. The force of the impact was so severe that the car was sliced into two pieces and Valerie’s seatbelt broke, sending her in the dash. The friend was not seriously injured.
“She ran off the road when she went to pass a truck,” Judy Baker, her mother, said. “She hit some potholes. The car flipped three or four times before hitting the tree, splitting in half and landing upside down.”
When Stewart arrived on the scene, which was just a short distance from his home, he found Valerie severely injured. Her leg was partial severed, a major artery cut. A lung was collapsed, and she had a tear in her spleen. She was at death’s door.
“She was talking to the firemen,” her older sister, Somer (Baker) Bridges, said. “She could even tell them her phone number.”
“When I got the call, we went there,” Judy Baker said. “Sam Stewart (Robert’s son) and the other volunteer firemen were already there. Randy (Valerie’s dad) and I were both in shock.”
“Robert came over to us,” she said. “He kept us calm. If he had not been there, I don’t know what we would have done. He worked so hard.”
Valerie “coded” — went into cardiac arrest — twice on LifeFlight on the way to Pensacola.
The road to recovery was a long one for Valerie. Doctors tried to save her leg, but in the end it was amputated.
During her long ordeal in the hospital, Robert Stewart and his wife Diann visited Valerie in the hospital.
“He’s not just a good person, but he’s a hero,” Judy Baker said, “because he put himself out there to help others like Valerie. He came to the hospital to check on her. It meant a lot to me; he and the others saved her life.”
“If it were not for the firemen making the decisions that they did to put her on LifeFlight, she would not have survived,” Bridges said. “They saved her life, and they cared enough to come back.”
“I don’t remember anything right after the wreck,” Valerie said. “I remember being in the hospital, and I remember him (Robert) coming to check on me. It is rare to find people like that who care enough to check on you.
“Because of them, I was able to live. They saved my life. I think of them as heroes.
“I don’t have words to say how much it means to me. I just want to thank them for saving my life,” Valerie said. Valerie was recently married to Nathan Brock (pictured left), a marriage she owes to her survival, Robert Stewart and the Walnut Hill VFD.
“Robert is a special person,” Judy Baker said. “He was a good fireman. But more important, he is a good man.”
Chief Robert Stewart has retired after 30 years as a volunteer fireman.
Pictured top: The front half of the car Valerie Baker was driving when she nearly lost her life in March, 2001. Pictured below: The back half of the car. Pictured bottom: More photos of the car in a junkyard. Courtesy photos.
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Ernest Ward Holds Open House
September 19, 2008
Ernest Ward Middle School held its annual Open House Thursday night.
Parents had the opportunity to meet each of their child’s teachers by changing classes and following their daily child’s schedule.
Pictured above and below: Parents had the chance to meet their child’s teachers during an Open House Thursday night at Ernest Ward Middle School. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Clowning Around: Fun Day At The Century Library
September 19, 2008
The Century Branch Library held a Fun Day at the library Thursday afternoon.
About 60 kids of all ages enjoyed an afternoon of activities. Children had the opportunity to play games, have a balloon animal made, get a temporary tatoo and clown around with the library’s clown.
There were also several animals on hand for the children to get up close and personal with, including an iguana, a python snake, birds, a dog, a pony and a goat.
The children also had the chance to win prizes and enjoyed free popcorn and balloons.
Click here for a photo gallery from Fun Day at the Library.
Pictured above and below: Scenes from Fun Day at the Century Branch Library. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
