Northview, Jay Students Attend Rural Electric Youth Tour In Washington
June 24, 2014
Two North Escambia area students were among 1,500 youth leaders from 41 states that enjoyed a week-long tour of Washington, DC.
Julie Hester of Northview High School and Tori Raught of Jay High School were winners of the Escambia River Electric Cooperative Youth Tour contest that is held annually for high school juniors in the EREC service area.
During the week, the students were able to see the World War II, Lincoln, Vietnam, Korean and FDR memorials; visit the Arlington National Cemetery, relax on the Potomac River during an evening boat cruise, and visit many other places of interest in Washington. Hester and Raught were also able to attend the play The Lion King at the Kennedy Center.
Both visited the Capitol where they learned more about how government works. During the Rural Electric Youth Day program, they had the opportunity to gain a better understanding of the history of rural electric cooperatives and the importance of cooperatives in the communities they serve.
Escambia County Considers New Regulations For Stables
June 24, 2014
Escambia County is considering an ordinance amending the Land Development Code that would set minimum lot sizes and distance standards for stables.
The ordinance will remove the 100,000 square foot lot size requirement for stables and adopt a two acre requirement and provided distance requirements from nearby dwellings.
Under the new ordinance, stables will be allowed for private, noncommercial use on lots two acres of greater in size. In addition, stables must be more than 50 feet from any property line and more than 130 feet from an adjacent principal residence. Horses will be allowed in any stable authorized by the code.
The Escambia County Commission will consider the ordinance during a 5:45 p.m. public hearing during their regular commission meeting on Thursday.
Infant Dies From Wreck Related Injuries
June 23, 2014
An infant has passed away as a result of injuries received in a June 19 traffic crash
The Florida Highway Patrol said Monday that Jaxon McCullung, age 1, passed away Saturday following the crash at Fairfield Drive and Baysprings Drive in Escambia County. In the accident, the FHP said 25-year old Jamie-Lyn Mullins drove onto the northbound shoulder, over-corrected, lost control and struck a utility pole.
Injuries to Mullins and a two-year old passenger were minor.
Anyone that witnessed the crash or that has any information regarding the accident is asked to contact Cpl. R. Harrigill at robertharrigill@flhsmv.gov or (850) 471-6927.
Burglar Steals Handicapped Dog From Kennel, Hits Convenience Store (With Video)
June 23, 2014
Authorities are working to solve early Sunday morning burglaries in Florida and Alabama that could be connected — one of which ended with the theft of a handicapped dog.
The dog, Bella, suffers from a broken back and needs a dog wheelchair to get around. She was inside her cage at the K-9 Cleaners kennel on West Nashville Avenue in Atmore early Sunday morning when a white male ripped a security camera from a wall and forced his way into the rear door of the business.
Police said he skipped over items of value including the register, instead going straight for the dog cages and taking nothing from the business but Bella and a cellular wi-fi modem before fleeing in an known type vehicle. The burglary and dog theft is under investigation by the Atmore Police Department.
Investigators have all but ruled out the man having any previous connection to the dog or its owner, who lives in Century.
Within a few minutes of that burglary, a white male smashed a window and entered the Davisville BP on Highway 97 in Florida, about five miles away. He fled the business with the cash register, which was recovered in nearby field later in the day, and cigarettes. The burglary is under investigation by the Escambia County (FL) Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities said they are not positive that the burglaries are connected, but for now they believe they may have been committed by the same man.
Anyone with information on the K-9 Cleaners burglary or the whereabouts of Bella, should call the Atmore Police Department at (251) 368-9141. Anyone with information on the Davisville BP burglary should contact the Escambia County (FL) Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Pictured top: Bella, a handicapped dog, was stolen from an Atmore kennel early Sunday morning. Pictured inset: A suspect’s face caught on camera as he removes a security camera from a wall of K-9 Cleaners in Atmore. Pictured below: In a separate burglary, a suspects jumps through a broken window at the Davisville (FL) BP station early Sunday morning. Pictured below: More images from K-9 Cleaners. Images for and by NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Molino, Cottage Hill Churches Bid Goodbye To Gantzhorn
June 23, 2014
A farewell and appreciation reception was held Sunday in Molino for Pastor Alan Gantzhorn of Aldersgate United Methodist and Cottage Hill United Methodist churches.
Gantzhorn and his wife Jackie are being transferred to a church in Jackson, Ala., after nine years in Molino.
“It has been an honor to serve as your pastor for nine years,” Gantzhorn told his congregation. “You have showered your love on me and Jackie in so many ways. Our time serving at Aldersgate and Cottage Hill has richly blessed us. God has now chosen to put me to doing his work in another place; but Jackie and I will always treasure our time here and our beautiful memories of the people of this charge.”
During Sunday’s reception, church and community members expressed their appreciation to Gantzhorn for his service to both churches as well as the Molino and North Escambia communities.
Pictured top: Paston Alan Gantzhorn and his wife Jackie were presented with a farewell gift Sunday — a double rocking chair inscribed “The Lord your God is with you wherever you go” — from Aldersgate United Methodist Church. Pictured below: Gantzhord poses for a photo during a farewell reception Sunday afternoon in Molino. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Early End Forecast For Insurance ‘Hurricane Tax’
June 23, 2014
Collected to help pay claims from the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, an extra charge on homeowners- and auto-insurance policies will be removed 18 months earlier than previously expected.
The 1.3 percent charge, added to most property and casualty lines, covers losses incurred by the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund from those storm-filled seasons. Gov. Rick Scott and members of the Florida Cabinet this week moved up the end date of the “assessment” to Jan. 1, 2015 rather than July 1, 2016.
“It’s a positive thing,” said Jack Nicholson, executive director of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund. “People refer to this as a hurricane tax, and it will go away.”
The change was welcomed by the business and insurance community in Tallahassee.
“It means rates are going down a little bit, which is a good thing,” said Sam Miller, executive vice president of the Florida Insurance Council.
The charge, which first appeared at 1 percent in 2007 and was raised to the current rate in 2011, collectively hits policyholders for between $350 million and $500 million a year.
The charge is imposed on most property and casualty policies other than medical malpractice and workers compensation.
Nicholson said the fund, which provides backup coverage for insurers, was able to move up the end of the collection in part by settling the final claims for damages from Hurricane Wilma, which hit South Florida in October 2005, at $498 million less than what had been initially sought.
Also, the fund has received more money than expected due to an increase in policies statewide, he said.
Such a fee could return if the state is again hit by a large storm that depletes the resources of the fund.
The catastrophe fund, better known as the cat fund, currently has about $13 billion on hand and is expected to be able to raise an additional $4 billion, which is considered solid ground for covering most post-storm claims.
The state was hit by eight hurricanes in 2004 and 2005, which accounted for about $9.2 billion in claims to the cat fund. No hurricane has made landfall in Florida since those highly active seasons.
In addition to the cat fund assessments, customers of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. receive an additional 1 percent charge to cover losses from the 2005 storms. First imposed in 2007, the charge is expected to be paid off in June 2017.
by The News Service of Florida
Flomaton Hurricanes 11-12 Year Old Team State Bound
June 23, 2014
The Flomaton Hurricane 11-12 year old team won their district championship over the weekend. The team is now state bound. Reader submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Deputies Seek Man For Questioning In Murder
June 23, 2014
Authorities are investigating a Sunday night murder in Escambia County.
Tabius Cardell Huff, 31, was shot about 10 p.m. outside a convenience store in the 5300 block of Jackson Street near Edgewood Circle. Huff was pronounced deceased at the scene by Escambia County EMS.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office has released a surveillance photo (left) showing an unknown male wanted for questioning in the shooting. Anyone with information on the shooting or the man in the photograph is asked to call Lt. Mike Gilmore at (850) 554-1222 or Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
State Program To Pay Marvel Comics To Redesign Captain Citrus
June 23, 2014
Marvel Comics, the creative home of Spider-Man, the Avengers, and the X-Men, might soon revamp the Florida Department of Citrus’ own caped crusader.
The state agency, as it redirects marketing dollars to help juice the industry’s sales, expects to finalize talks in the next few weeks with the Disney-owned company on a contract worth about $1 million to redesign Captain Citrus from a rotund creature from the Planet Orange into a male superhero.
Department spokesman David Steele said the goal is to transform the state program into a global brand.
“Marvel is dominating the superhero space at the moment, and we want to benefit from their genius as we work to get the message of orange-juice nutrition into the hands of children and their parents,” Steele said.
The proposal is to have a redesigned Captain Citrus appear in at least one printed comic book and two digital sequels alongside characters from the Marvel universe, such as Captain America and his cohorts in the Avengers, Steele noted.
While Steele said the story lines won’t be discussed until the re-launch, the idea is to “develop affinity for the character, deliver a message about the nutritional benefits of 100 percent Florida orange juice, and build loyalty for Florida citrus.”
Captain Citrus was created by the department in 2011 to get the message of OJ nutrition into the classroom.
The redesigned captain is also expected to play a role in the department’s new “There’s Amazing Inside” campaign, launched this week at the Florida Citrus Industry Annual Conference in Bonita Springs.
The money for the program and the new marketing campaign come as the department will no longer purchase high-volume TV time for ads, a move expected to free up about $13 million for branding and marketing programs.
“The evolving media habits of consumers, combined with (the Florida Department of Citrus’) declining revenues and unpredictable funding levels, it no longer made sense for us to lock up such a huge percentage of our budget in television buys,” Steele said.
The department’s funding mostly comes from a tax on the sale of oranges and other citrus.
The refocus comes as the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects Florida orange juice production is down 22 percent from the same time a year ago. A large part of the drop is credited to the spread of an incurable disease called citrus greening.
The state budget signed June 2 by Gov. Rick Scott includes $3.5 million for citrus-disease research and $500,000 for in-state citrus-breeding programs and to develop and acquire new citrus varieties.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Pensacola Rallies For 11th Inning Win Over Huntsville
June 22, 2014
Not only do the Pensacola Blue Wahoos boast three newly bald headed players who shaved their heads in front of the dugout before the game to raise money for children with cancer, they might have started a new hairstyle trend.
The bald Wahoos were instrumental in Pensacola’s rally, with bald Brodie Greene starting a ninth inning rally that tied the game, 3-3, and the bald Travis Mattair slamming a walkoff, ground rule double on one-hop over the centerfield fence to give the team a, 4-3, victory over the Huntsville Stars in the 11th inning. The win tied the series 2-2.
Mattair was mobbed at second base by his teammates as Jesse Winker crossed the plate with the winning run.
Mattair had helped push for the Blue Wahoos to support 4-year-old Carolyn Hendrix who had a rare cancer. She was declared cancer free at the end of May. And Sunday, Mattair, Greene and Josh Fellhauer, along with season ticket holder JRoAnne Bergman shaved their head in front of fans and the Hendrix family to raise money for the St. Baldrick’s organization.
“This is a great cause and the Hendrix family is just awesome,” said Mattair, who got to meet and hug Carolyn in the dugout before the game. “She has been through a lot and she put life in perspective for me.”
In the past five games, Mattair had only two hits in 16 at bats. The previous game he struck out three times in four plate appearances.
“It was a great feeling to get a game winner like that,” said Mattair, who signed about 50 autographs after the game. “I just have to keep putting my work in. I’ve been in this situation before and crawled out of it and I’ll do it again.”
Pensacola manager Delino DeShields said it made him happy to see Mattair come through with the RBI double to win the game.
“We need his offense,” DeShields said. “Hopefully, he can keep it going.”
Pensacola was down two runs heading into their last at bat in the ninth inning, when Greene started the rally with a leadoff walk. The Wahoos managed to load the bases with one out when Mattair took a fastball in the back from Huntsville reliever Tanner Poppe. That scored Greene and pulled Pensacola within one run, 3-2.
Then the Blue Wahoos tied it, 3-3, on a high inside pitch to Ryan Wright that got past Huntsville catcher Joey Paciorek and allowed Jesse Winker to score from third.
Pensacola starting pitcher Robert Stephenson entered the game having given up 12 runs, 10 earned in his previous three starts. But Stephenson held Huntsville to three runs over seven innings with two of those coming on solo home run blasts by Joey Paciorek and Greg Hopkins in the second inning. Stephenson, who was the 27th pick in the first round in 2011, struck out seven and now has 80 on the year in 77 innings.
As far as more Blue Wahoos show up bald?
DeShields who has no hair said after the game: “We may have to talk about that.”
Mattair also weighed in on sporting a bald head for the first time as an adult. “I was a lot cooler out there. I enjoyed it and I will recommend it to people.”
by Tommy Thrall
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos beat the Huntsville Stars 4-3 Sunday in Pensacola. Photos by Michael Spooneybarger, Pensacola Blue Wahoos, for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.