One Cowboy, One Horse And A 48 State Ride For Children
June 1, 2016
Tye Sturgeon is just one cowboy in this old world, but with his horse he is on a major mission to help children.
He’s riding solo through 48 states with the goal of raising at least $30,000 for children’s charities, although he admits a million dollars would be good.
Tuesday morning, rode into Century, marking his 13th state as he continued on to Jay by afternoon.
Sturgeon, 20, dreamed of being a cowboy, horseman and a Pro Bronco rider. Even though he did not make it to the pro circuit he did get to rodeo for awhile. Sadly due to injuries he had to give that dream up. Yet, he said he feels blessed that God gave him the chance to live it at all and helped him create a new dream.
Knowing that there are so many young people out there who are not blessed enough to live their dreams, Sturgeon was inspired to make his 48-state ride to earn money for Western Wishes, a charity that “since 1994 helps turn dreams into lasting memories for countless kids faced with adversity who love the western way of life.”
As he rides, Sturgeon is collecting pledges to be paid to Western Wishes once his ride is complete.
Born and raised in North Central Arkansas, Sturgeon is a quiet, soft spoken young man with a quick smile and big warm heart. He claims he never meets a stranger and goes out of his way to make people feel at ease.
When asked about where his respect for horsemanship began, he said, “I learned a love of horses and mules from my father and grandfather. I grew up watching them train horses and mules. They also competed in (and still enjoy attending) chuck wagon races which were especially fun because my family was the first to ‘drive 4 Up’ at the Clinton Arkansas Chuck Wagon Races.”
Sturgeon graduated from Batesville High School where he played football for the Pioneers. He was also a member of the FFA and showed steers in the All Star Steer program.
As a small kid, he rode sheep at local rodeos, and as a young man, moved on to his beloved broncs. But concussions and a warning from his doctor changed Sturgeon’s rodeo path from competitor to fan.After his Ride is over Sturgeon plans to settle down on a piece of land to train horses and mules and continue his outreach for children’s charities.
“I really respect and look up to Tuff Hedeman and Chris Cox and the other great American Cowboys who make up an elite group. I feel their honesty, hard work and integrity make them someone to emulate and to look up to. I absolutely love the American Cowboy lifestyle and code of living and greatly admire the honest simple way of life that is being lost to a digital age.”
To donate to Sturgeon’s ride or Western Wishes, click here.
Pictured top: Cowboy Tye Sturgeon rode into Century Tuesday morning, his 13th state on a 48 state ride. Pictured inset: Sturgeon meets a young man at The Panhandle Restaurant in Century. Pictured below: Sturgeon made it to Jay on Tuesday. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Sheriff’s Office Reports Increase In Common IRS Phone Scam
June 1, 2016
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office reported a number of calls Tuesday from residents reporting a common IRS phone scam.
The Sheriff’s Office said residents are reporting someone calls claiming to be an IRS employee, and then asks the call recipient to pay they money they owe or go to jail.
The ECSO said residents receiving one of these phone calls sgiykd hang up and call the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 1-800-366-4484 or visit their website at www.tigta.gov.
Residents Learn How To Purchase An AED At Escambia County’s Cost
June 1, 2016
A group of residents met Tuesday night at the Walnut Hill Fire Station to learn more about how to purchase an automated external defibrillator (AED) at Escambia County’s cost.
Escambia County is giving churches, businesses and even individuals the chance to purchase an AED at the same cost the county received during its last bid solicitation. Public Safety Director Mike Weaver and EMS Chief Steve White informed the small crowd about how and AED works, how to use one in their church or business setting and about available options such as wall cases.
The cost will be $1,317.31 for the AED and associated equipment, according to Mike Weaver. Escambia County Public Safety Director . The vendor is also offering a wall mount cabinet for an additional $99.
“By no means are we trying to ’sell’ this particular AED. It is the same AED that we have chosen for our responders, county buildings and parks. There are other devices and distributors that may be able to offer a lower price that will be shared,” Weaver said.
An automated external defibrillator is a lightweight, portable device that delivers an electric shock through the chest to the heart. The shock can stop an irregular heart rhythm and allow a normal rhythm to resume following sudden cardiac arrest. Sudden cardiac arrest is an abrupt loss of heart function. If it’s not treated within minutes, it quickly leads to death.
According to Escambia County, AEDs are important because they make it possible for more people to respond to a medical emergency where defibrillation is required. Because AEDs are portable, they can be used by anyone who has been trained how to use them – not only by medical professionals. They can be made part of emergency response programs that also include rapid use of 9-1-1 and prompt delivery of CPR. All three of these activities are vital to improving survival from cardiac arrest.
For more information, contact Escambia County Public Safety at (850) 471-6400.
Pictured top: The AED model offered under an at-cost purchase program with Escambia County. Pictured below: Residents learn about the program at the Walnut Hill Fire Station Tuesday night. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
FHP Seeks Cantonment Hit And Run Dodge Ram With Skull And Guns On Grill
June 1, 2016
The Florida Highway Patrol is looking for a Dodge Ram that had a unique grill decoration that was involved in a Cantonment hit and run accident just before 4 p.m. Tuesday.
According to the FHP, the Dodge Ram was traveling northbound on Wegner Avenue approaching Mintz Lane when the driver failed to stop at a yield sign and struck a Toyota Avalon driven by 71-year old Elizabeth Harris of Cantonment.
The Toyota left the roadway and struck a concrete table and landscaping at 302 Wegner Avenue, while the driver of the Dodge Ram fled the scene northbound on Wegner Avenue.
Harris and her six-year old passenger suffered minor injuries.
The FHP is looking for a white male driving a black Dodge Ram, possibly a 1998-2000 model with heavy front end damage and missing the front grill. The grill was left on scene. It had a chrome skull with two guns mounted to the front.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Trooper Joshua Tucker at joshuatucker@flhsmv.gov or call Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Florida Wildlife Staff Preps For Possible Bear Hunt
June 1, 2016
Wildlife officials will use input from an ongoing series of webinars to help make their case about how a black-bear hunt could be held later this year, even as many of the questions posed come from critics.
No hunt has been approved, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission won’t receive a staff recommendation until just before a meeting June 22 and June 23 in the Franklin County community of Eastpoint.
But during a three-hour webinar Thursday, commission staff members were adamant that a hunt is among the various ways to manage the state’s growing bear population and to reduce human-bear interactions. This week, webinars are scheduled for Tuesday night and Thursday.
“When we look at what FWC and partner agencies and others are doing, we’re throwing everything and the kitchen sink at bears right now,” Dave Telesco, commission bear-management program coordinator, said during the webinar. “We’re doing education. We’re trying for ordinances. We’re trying to get voluntary compliance in securing trash. We’re hunting and we’re moving bears. And so we’re basically trying to do everything that we can to reduce those conflicts and to reduce the risks to public safety.”
Thomas Eason, director of the commission’s habitat and species conservation division, said the agency is still formulating its recommendation, using information from last year’s hunt in which hunters killed 304 bears in two days, and still taking input from different groups.
But he added that the agency can’t just focus on educating people to secure trash and food when left outside and expect bears and humans not to cross paths.
“We’re looking at over 200 bears that are being hit by vehicles, that means people are in those vehicles,” Eason said during the webinar. “Part of the rationale behind the hunt is to help shift mortality away from things where it’s impacting people negatively.”
Harry Dutton, leader of the hunting and game management division, said “for a possible future hunt” officials are looking at the length and time of year for the hunt and limiting the number of permits. Also, they are looking at how check stations are monitored, rules for hunting on wildlife management areas, the prohibition on baiting bears, the use of dogs to track bears and the minimum size of bears that could be killed.
In last year’s hunt, there was a 100-pound minimum as bears under that weight are considered cubs.
The two-day hunt in October was highly controversial and was the state’s first black-bear hunt in more than two decades.
About 600 questions were submitted during last week’s live-chat session, most from a handful of bear-hunt critics, and many were redundant as some participants came in and out during the 150-minute question and answer portion.
The webinar opened with a brief outline on the growth of the bear population in the state, a recap of the 2015 bear hunt, the latest estimates on the numbers of bears in Florida and efforts to reduce incidents involving humans and bears.
The state agency currently estimates, based upon recent surveys, 4,220 bears are in the state, up from 2,640 in 2002. The population growth has been called robust as the estimated bear count was as low as 300 to 500 in the 1970s, when bears were put on the state’s list of threatened species. Bears were removed from the list in 2012.
Local government officials from Seminole, Miami-Dade and Volusia counties have voiced opposition to a repeat of the 2015 hunt.
Critics of bear hunting rattled off questions about issues such as why the state agency doesn’t provide free bear-proof trash cans in areas where nuisance calls are made. Also, they raised questions about whether nuisance bears should be relocated deeper into the wilderness and into less populated areas and if the state agency is “embarrassed about the worldwide media coverage they received last year opposing the hunt?”
“FWC claims that the science is there for a hunt, but that doesn’t mean that a bear hunt should or must take place,” wrote Laura Bevan, a webinar participant and the regional director of the Humane Society of the United States, which opposed last year’s hunt.
A few of the critics added that if another hunt is held, the state should limit bear-hunt permits to Florida residents or simply use professional hunters to manage the population and avoid a “free for all.”
“Why does FWC pander to the small few ‘problem people’ who hate or are intolerant to bears? Why does FWC push so hard for a trophy hunt?” asked webinar participant Lee Day.
Those posing questions that favored hunting bear pushed to allow baiting and to expand the role of dogs in the hunts on certain lands larger than 50,000 acres. Also, they raised ideas about holding the hunt in the spring, excluding from the state’s Sunshine Law the names of permit holders and having the hunt last longer.
This year, Florida lawmakers included $500,000 in the new state budget to reduce human-bear conflicts. A large part of the money is revenue from permits sold for the 2015 hunt. The money doesn’t become available until after the July 1 start of the new fiscal year.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Nighttime Ramp Closures At Highway 29, I-10
June 1, 2016
The Highway 29 south to I-10 eastbound ramp will be closed through Thursday, June 2 from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. as crews place barrier wall. Traffic will be detoured south to make a U-turn at Diamond Dairy Road. In addition, the Highway 29 north to I-10 westbound ramp will be closed during this time. Traffic will be detoured north to make a U-turn at Broad Street.
Molino Student Awarded National Merit Scholarship
June 1, 2016
A Molino student was named today as a winner of a National Merit Scholarship.
Colby C. Gilley, a 2016 graduate of Trinitas Christian School in Pensacola, was awarded the National Merit Washington and Lee University Scholarship.
Washington and Lee is a private college for men and women devoted primarily to the liberal arts and sciences. Rich in heritage, its steady purpose is to remain one of the nation’s great teaching colleges; it encourages close association between an exceptional faculty and a talented, highly motivated student body–emphasizing the individual’s honor, integrity, and personal and social responsibility.
Gilley is undecided on his future career field.
Jessica Amerson of Walnut Hill was awarded a National Merit scholarship to the University of Alabama. Click here for a previous story.
Dixon Has Second Straight Game With Two Homers
June 1, 2016
Pensacola Blue Wahoos second baseman Brandon Dixon was the player of the game for the team for the second straight night.
This time, the 24-year-old smashed two home runs for the second straight game and drove in five of the Blue Wahoo’s six runs for a, 6-5, victory over its rival the Mobile BayBears at Hank Aaron Stadium.
On Tuesday, Dixon was 4-4 with three runs scored, hitting his sixth and seventh homers of the season, which leads the team. He hit a solo blast to left field in the top of the second inning to put Pensacola ahead, 1-0. Then in the sixth inning, Dixon hit a two-out, two-run blast to left that also scored right fielder Sebastian Elizalde, giving Pensacola a 3-2 lead.
But Dixon wasn’t finished. He drove in two more runs on a double to left field in the eighth inning that scored both Elizalde and first baseman Kyle Parker, who hit back-to-back singles with one out. The runs put Pensacola up, 5-2, in the game.
Pensacola shortstop Zach Vincej then singled to left field to score Dixon and give the Blue Wahoos a critical, 6-2, lead.
Dixon now also leads the team with 30 RBIs and raised his batting average to .299.
Pensacola’s win in the opener of the five-game series kept them in first place in the Southern League South Division at 31-20. The Blue Wahoos also tied their longest win streak of the year at four games. The BayBears dropped to 22-29.
In the ninth inning, Mobile mounted a two-out rally by scoring three runs. Guerrero smashed his sixth homer of the season, a solo shot, to make the score, 6-3. Pensacola’s Phillip Ervin then made an error on a ball hit by Cron that allowed Mobile to pull within, 6-4, when catcher Ronnie Freeman scored. Pinch hitter Stewart Ijames then smacked a two-out double that scored Cron and Mobile was down just a run, 6-5.
Guerrero led the BayBears, going 2-4 with a home run and double with two runs scored and an RBI.
However, Pensacola closer Alejandro Chacin entered the game and got Mobile center fielder Evan Marzilli, the BayBears leadoff hitter who was hitting .354 in 23 games, to pop out to Blue Wahoos Vincej to end the game.
Chacin now leads the team with nine saves and is 2-0 and has an 0.84 ERA in 18 appearances.
Storms Cause Damage In Atmore, Walnut Hill, Cottage Hill (With Gallery)
May 31, 2016
Thunderstorms, and a reported possible tornado, caused damage in Atmore Tuesday afternoon, with additional minor damage reported in separate storms in Walnut Hill and Cottage Hill.
Atmore Police reported that an Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s deputy reported spotting a possible funnel cloud over Industrial Boulevard in Atmore where a roof was blown off an industrial shop, power lines were downed and large hail was reported. There has been no confirmation of a tornado.
NorthEscambia.com photos of damage from across the area are below.
A falling tree destroyed a storage shed, a vehicle and damaged a home in Atmore. NorthEscambia.com photo.
A falling tree destroyed a storage shed and damaged a home in Atmore. NorthEscambia.com photo.
A falling tree destroyed a storage shed and damaged a home in Atmore. NorthEscambia.com photo.
Roof blown off equipment shot at Swift Lumber in Atmore. Reader submitted photo by Randon Watson.
Roof blown off equipment shop at Swift Lumber in Atmore. Reader submitted photo by Randon Watson.
Roof blown off equipment shop at Swift Lumber in Atmore. Reader submitted photo by Randon Watson.
Roof blown off equipment shop at Swift Lumber in Atmore. Reader submitted photo by Randon Watson.
Hail on Swift Mill Road in Atmore. Reader submitted photo by Randon Watson.
A large pecan tree split in Walnut Hill. NorthEscambia.com photo.
Winds damaged this barn in Cottage Hill. Reader submitted photo for Tammy McGraw.
A small tree snapped off in Cottage Hill. Reader submitted photo for Tammy McGraw.
Pictured: Alabama Power works to replace a broken pole and removed a downed tree on Jack Springs Road at Industrial Boulevard. NorthEscambia.com photo.
‘Lava Java’ Coffee Shop Hit By Car In Two Vehicle Wreck
May 31, 2016
A popular Cantonment drive thru coffee shop is temporarily closed after being struck by a vehicle during a traffic accident Monday afternoon.
Details on the accident on Highway 29 near Muscogee Road have not been released by the Florida Highway Patrol, but we do know it involved a pickup truck and a passenger car. Two people in the accident refused treatment, while two others were transported to a Pensacola hospital by ambulance.
Following the initial collision between vehicles, the car struck the Lava Java Coffee Drive Thru, pushing the business several feet. A young man working inside the coffee shop received non-life threatening injuries, including a fractured foot.
The FHP is continuing their investigation into the accident.
NorthEscambia.com is told Lava Java will be closed for rebuilding, but will be back open as soon as possible.
Pictured top: A vehicle slammed into the Lava Java Coffee Drive Thru following a Highway 29 traffic crash Monday afternoon. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge. The business was pushed several feet. Additional photos by Kristi Barbour for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
