CrossFaith Ride Benefits Alzheimer’s Services
June 2, 2013
CrossFaith Church in Molino held a motorcycle ride Saturday to benefit local Alzheimer’s victims and their families. The ride began at Eagle’s Talon on Copter Road and ended at the church in Molino with a cookout, door prizes and more. Proceeds will benefit Alzheimer’s Services. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Suns Rally Late To Beat The Pensacola Wahoos 7-1
June 2, 2013
The third consecutive sellout crowd saw the Blue Wahoos fall to the Jacksonville Suns 7-1 on Saturday night at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium. The Suns scored all seven runs in their final three at-bats to earn a split in the six-game series. The sellout was the 11th of the season in 29 openings.
Entering the seventh down by a run, the Suns finally got to Pensacols starter Tim Crabbe. After the first out was recorded, Jacksonville posted four straight singles, capped by RBI’s from Ryan Fisher and Christian Yelich to take a 2-1 lead. Crabbe (2-5) took a loss despite a strong performance. He ended up giving up two runs on six hits in 6.1 innings while tying a season high with seven strikeouts.
Jacksonville added to its lead in the eighth off reliever Drew Hayes. Ahead in the count 0-2, Hayes hit Jake Marisnick in the helmet, causing Marisnick to leave the game. Major League rehabber Logan Morrison then followed with an opposite field two-run homer to double the Suns’ advantage. Kyle Jensen launched a solo homer to left-center to give Jacksonville back-to-back homers and a 5-1 lead.
The Suns were able to put the game away in the ninth, adding two runs on an RBI double from Danny Pertusati and a fielding error by shortstop Devin Lohman.
Pensacola’s lone run of the contest came in the fifth inning on a two-out single from Ryan LaMarre. The Wahoos managed just five base hits, all singles, against Jacksonville pitching.
Grant Dayton (1-2) picked up the win by retiring the final batter of the sixth inning before the Suns took the lead. Adam Conley earned a no-decision for the Suns while giving up a run on four hits in 5.2 frames.
The Blue Wahoos now head out on a season-long 10-game road trip starting with the first of five against the Montgomery Biscuits on Sunday evening. Chad Rogers (3-2, 1.73) will get the start for Pensacola against Montgomery’s Jake Floethe who will be making his Biscuits debut. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. from Montgomery’s Riverwalk Stadium.
story by Kevin Burke
Missing Alabama Man Located In Pensacola
June 2, 2013
The search is over for a missing a man who disappeared from his Alabama home Wednesday afternoon.
Eddie Lee McCreary, 63, walked into the Pensacola Police Department Saturday afternoon and told an officer he was fine. McCreary said he decided to leave home after a dispute with a relative.
McCreary’s car was found around 6 p.m. Wednesday in the 3800 block of Cherry Laurel Drive in Pensacola. He was last seen in Brewton around 2:30 p.m. that day and reported missing by family members.
Scott Signs Pharmacy, Health Insurance Regulation Bills
June 2, 2013
Gov. Rick Scott has approved a measure that will make insurance-regulation changes as part of carrying out the federal Affordable Care Act, including at least temporarily relying on Washington to do rate reviews for many health plans.
Scott, in a signing message, said he supported the Legislature’s decision to defer to the federal government on such issues as the Affordable Care Act fully takes effect in 2014.
“Rates for new plans will be reviewed by the same federal government that will be enforcing and updating the new rules and regulations throughout this very fluid and uncertain transition period,” Scott wrote.
Scott also signed a bill (HB 365) that will help clear the way for pharmacists to offer certain types of complex drugs for illnesses such as cancer. The bill involves drugs known as “biologics” and will allow pharmacists to substitute similar drugs, somewhat like pharmacists substituting generic for name-brand medications.
“Keeping patient safety the top priority, we can design (a) regulatory framework that will allow Floridians access to these new pharmaceutical products while continuing to ensure we receive the highest-quality healthcare available,” Scott wrote in a signing message.
by The News Service of Florida
DCF Looks To Faith Based Groups For Foster Parents
June 2, 2013
Looking for ways to attract more foster parents, the Florida Department of Children and Families is beefing up its efforts at recruitment among faith-based organizations.
DCF Director of Faith Based Development Erik Braun told child welfare professionals Friday at a conference in Panama City that Florida has 12 million residents affiliated with a Catholic or Protestant church, 1 million Jews and 400,000 to 600,000 Muslims.
“We need to tap into those resources,” he said.
Braun was the closing speaker at the “Conference by the Bay: Partners in Progress,” co-sponsored by DCF, the Florida Guardian ad Litem Program and Florida State University. A former church leader, he noted the need to maintain the separation of church and state.
“Here’s an example: ‘If you want access to (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) and our entitlement programs, you need to listen to my spiel on why Jesus is Lord,’ ” he said. “No, you cannot do that…That’s coercive. If you’re in this room and you’re doing that, stop.”
To avoid coercion, he said, the faith-based initiative must engage religions other than Christianity.
Braun also led a breakout group of foster parents, child protective investigators, church members and administrators in a discussion of how to approach the leaders of faith-based organizations. He advised a strategy that makes fewer demands on a busy pastor’s time but seeks out other ways to get a foot in the door, such as a church women’s group.
“I want to have a good ask,” Braun said. “It’s all salesmanship.”
His advice resonated among child welfare workers in DCF’s heavily rural northwest Florida region, which has about 400 investigations and 28 to 30 children removed from their homes every month, according to DCF community development coordinator Courtney Stanford.
Stanford said there is already a “faith network” in a Panama City-based DCF circuit that includes many rural communities. The network includes local pastors and staffers from the Department of Juvenile Justice, along with child-welfare officials.
“We are such a small community, we didn’t want to be competing for resources,” Stanford said.
In the Orlando area, on the other hand, a Longwood church with at least 10,000 members and 10 to 15 ministries is fast becoming a state model for the faith-based approach. Gov. Rick Scott appointed Gretchen Kerr, a director of Northland, A Church Distributed, to the Florida Faith-Based and Community-Based Advisory Council on Thursday. And DCF Secretary David Wilkins led a recruitment drive for foster parents there last month.
Kerr said Northland has a disaster response team that just returned from tornado-torn Oklahoma and a Safe Families Ministry to help families stay together in the face of emergencies, such as homelessness or an incarcerated parent. It also has ministries to help the homeless and curb human trafficking — and now, an “orphan care” ministry to recruit foster parents.
Wilkins and his wife, Tanya, have appeared at 17 events this year that have involved faith-based recruitment of foster parents.
Braun said his main goals are to help DCF increase its recruitment and to identify a lead church in every region.
“Erik has asked us if we would like to pilot this whole concept,” said Northland’s Kerr.
Vicki Abrams, director of DCF’s Northwest Region, said that given the ongoing need for foster parents, she expects to add the faith-based component to the region’s action plan.
“Erik’s taught us a lot about engaging the faith community,” she said.
Braun seemed to inspire a number of attendees at the Panama City conference, who said they’d never realized how their religious convictions might dovetail with their work helping children.
“There are probably 20 different churches (represented) in this room,” said Kasey Killebrew, a recruitment and retention specialist at the Life Management Center of Northwest Florida. “Think of what would happen if we each went to church and told 20 people.”
By The News Service of Florida
Deputies Seek Clues In Early Morning Drive-By Shooting
June 1, 2013
Deputies are seeking clues in an early Saturday morning drive-by shooting at a bar in Freemanville, north of Atmore.
There was a gathering of people outside Thymes Place on Freemanville Drive about 2 a.m. when a small, dark gray car drove by and someone opened fire out of a window, according to Mike Lambert, chief deputy of the Escambia County (AL) Sheriff’s Office.
One victim was struck a single time in the arm and was listed in stable condition. A second victim was airlifted to a Pensacola hospital after being shot five to six times. The second victim was listed in serious but stable condition Saturday afternoon.
The car sped off after the incident, and Lambert said witnesses were unable to provide any other details.
Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department at (251) 809-0741 or Atmore Police Department at (251) 368-9141.
Escambia Motorcyclist Goes Over I-110 Bridge, Dies
June 1, 2013
An Escambia County motorcyclist died when he went over an I-110 overpass early Saturday morning.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 31-year old Matthew David Marco was northbound on I-110 at a high rate of speed when he failed to negotiate a curve. His 2008 Suzuki motorcycle struck a concrete wall and ejected Marco onto the grassy section below the interstate.
He was pronounced deceased at the scene of the 12:30 a.m. crash.
Day Long Manhunt In Molino, Barrineau Park Ends With Arrest
June 1, 2013
Escambia County Sheriff’s deputies spend most of Friday searching for a man in the Barrineau Park and Molino area and trying to figure out exactly why he was running from the law.
The situation began with the report of a suspicious person and a possible burglary on Schifko Road just before 9 a.m. When deputies arrived, they found the reported vehicle and white female at her own home. For an unknown reason, a black male in the vehicle fled on foot as deputies arrived. The female, who was not charged with any crime, could not provide deputies with accurate information on the man’s identity.
A manhunt with a K-9 was underway shortly after deputies arrived on scene, but that manhunt ended without the suspect’s capture.
As deputies patrolled the area, a deputy saw a blue pickup truck pick up the suspect. As the deputy pulled in behind the truck, the suspect jumped out of the truck and ran with the deputy in foot pursuit. The suspect dove into a creek and fled into a wooded area. Once again, the suspect evaded capture after lengthy manhunt involving a K-9 unit.
The Sheriff’s Office and NorthEscambia.com continued to receive reports from citizens concerned about the suspect as the afternoon progressed.
Later in day, the suspect was spotted in the area of the 4000 block of Barrineau Park Road. An Escambia County Road Prison K-9 once again started to track the suspect. After a lengthy track, he was taken into custody.
The suspect was identified as 29-year old Reginald Demarcus Williams of Jordan Street, Pensacola. Williams had an outstanding violation of probation warrant. He was also charged with trespassing and obstruction of justice and booked into the Escambia County Jail.
Pictured: Deputies search for a man along Barrineau Park Road during the 4:00 hour Friday afternoon. Reader photo by Judy Fehl for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Scott Signs Ethanol Requirement Repeal
June 1, 2013
Gov. Rick Scott on Friday signed a bill repealing a state law that requires most gasoline sold in Florida to include nearly 10 percent ethanol. The repeal of the 2008 Florida Renewable Fuel Standard Act could be mostly symbolic because of federal ethanol mandates.
But Scott received more than 1,000 emails on the bill, with opponents saying it could hurt the state’s efforts to attract the biofuel industry and supporters saying ethanol damages engines.
Convicted: Man That Robbed Bank, Got Change To Pay Taxi Driver
June 1, 2013
A man that used a cab as his getaway vehicle — and stopped along the way to get change to pay the driver – has been convicted of robbing a Nine Mile Road bank.
Terry Dewayne Gideon was convicted of robbery without a weapon by an Escambia County jury.
The charges stem from the October 2, 2012, robbery of the Bank of America on Nine Mile Road. Gideon took a Yellow Cab to multiple banks before robbing the Bank of America. Gideon approached the teller just before closing and handed her a note that demanded cash He left the bank with more than a $1,000, according to prosecutors.
Bank employees were able to identify the cab number and relayed that information to law enforcement. The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office located Gideon a short time later and arrested him. Multiple people were able to identify Gideon and his thumb print was identified on the demand note.
During the investigation, deputies learned that Gideon had gone into a nearby Applebee’s restaurant to get change from the stolen money to pay the taxi driver.
Gideon is scheduled to be sentenced on August 2, 2013, before Judge Scott Duncan. Based on his prior criminal history, the state seek sentencing as a habitual felony offender and a prison releasee reoffender. Under those designations, Gideon faces a minimum of 15 years and up to 30 years in state prison.