Century’s Showalter 5-1
August 9, 2010
Around Baltimore, they are all calling the boy that grew up on the little league fields of Century a “comeback kid”.
Century’s Buck Showalter’s record as the new Baltimore Orioles manager stands at 5-1 after a disappointed weekend loss.
Showalter, Nat as the locals like to call him, was handed his first loss Saturday night at Camden Yards as his Baltimore Orioles lost to the White Sox 4-2. But Showalter’s O’s surged Sunday as Baltimore beat the White Sox 4-3.
As the Orioles head into Monday’s finale of a seven-game homestand, the pitching rotation is at a 1.94 ERA.
“We pitch like this with our starting pitching,” Showalter said. “We’ll play with anybody or any club.”
Alzheimer’s Support Group To Meet Wednesday
August 9, 2010
Alzheimer’s Family Services provides monthly support groups for family members or friends coping with a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease.
A support group meeting will take place Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. at Century United Methodist Church at 530 Church Street. The support group is free but registration is required to attend, and respite care is available in most locations.
Support Groups are a means for caregivers and others interested in learning more about Alzheimer’s disease to exchange ideas, gather information and discuss their concerns with others who are dealing or have dealt with the same issues. To register for this support group or for additional information, call (850) 478-7790 or visit www.AlzFamServ.org.
Alzheimer’s Family Services is a not-for-profit organization serving individuals and families in Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, and Walton counties in Florida as well as Escambia County in Alabama.. Our mission is to provide education and emotional support through a variety of services including: memory screens, support groups, tracking devices for wandering patients, respite, and counseling. AFS is an affiliate of Covenant Hospice.
In Depth: Area School Grades
August 9, 2010
Bratt Elementary, Byrneville Elementary and Jim Allen Elementary all fell from A-rated schools. Molino Park Elementary remained at a B. Ernest Ward Middle and Ransom Middle each remained at an A-rating for the fifth consecutive year.
In Escambia County, there were 23 schools that had declining scores, with 18 remaining the same.
[For a story about school grades from Saturday, click here.]
The school letter grades include a point system. The point total for every North Escambia area school declined, even for those schools that did not drop a letter grade. The total points for each area school are shown below.
BRATT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
2009-2010: 510
2008-2009: 600
2007-2008: 637
BYRNEVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, INC.
2009-2010: 490
2008-2009: 528
2007-2008: 526
ERNEST WARD MIDDLE SCHOOL
2009-2010: 578
2008-2009: 606
2007-2008: 565
JAY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
2009-2010: 520
2008-2009: 540
2007-2008: 530
JIM ALLEN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
2009-2010: 501
2008-2009: 565
2007-2008: 572
MOLINO PARK ELEMENTARY
2009-2010: 557
2008-2009: 576
2007-2008: 532
RANSOM MIDDLE SCHOOL
2009-2010: 549
2008-2009: 592
2007-2008: 579
$57,770 Lottery Prize Claimed By North Escambia Woman
August 9, 2010
A Cantonment woman is $57,770.12 richer from a Fantasy Five Quick Pick lottery ticket she purchased a local convenience store.
Patricia A. Smillie of Cantonment had one of four tickets sold with the numbers 6-15-19-24-33. Smillie’s purchased her ticket at the Bindu Food Mart #1 at 1239 Muscogee Road.
The other three winning tickets, also worth $57,770.12 each, were sold in West Palm Beach, Pinellas Park and Tampa. There were 368 tickets matching four of five numbers worth $101 each. Anther 9,994 tickets matched three numbers for $10 each, and 99,300 matched two numbers for a free Quick Pick ticket.
Stormy Saturday Night: Lightning Hits House; Sets Off Alarms At School, Nursing Home, 2,000 Lose Power
August 8, 2010
A strong area of thunderstorms moved slowly through the North Escambia area early Saturday evening, with one resident reporting a lightning strike at their home. The storm also left over 2,000 homes and business in the dark in North Escambia.
The resident reported the lightning strike just before 7 p.m. at their home in the 800 block of North Century Boulevard in McDavid, about a mile north of Highway 164. The resident told emergency operators that they smelled smoke.
The McDavid, Century, Walnut Hill and Molino stations of Escambia Fire Rescue responded to the home. Electrical fixtures in the home’s bathroom sustained minor damage.
A short time later, a fire alarm, possible related to lightning, was reported at Byrneville Elementary School. Fire units also responded to a fire alarm at Century Care Center. No fire or damage was reported at either structure.
The storm caused power outages for almost 1,600 Gulf Power customers in Cantonment and 400 in Molino. Many of those customer were still without power as midnight approached Saturday. An unknown number Escambia River Electric Cooperative customers were also left without power by the storms.
Heavy rains were reported in many parts of the area, while other locations received little or no rain. There were no weather warnings issued.
Pictured: The local radar just before 7 p.m.
Santa Rosa To Take Another Look At $30 Million Biofuel Plant For Jay
August 8, 2010
The Santa Rosa County Commission will take another look Monday at a $30 million biofuel plant that an Orlando company wants to build near Jay after issuing revenue bonds using the county’s name.
The Integrated Energy Partners (IEP), Inc. facility near Jay would use agricultural products to create biodiesel fuel, kerosene, propane and electricity. The plant would provide about 30 jobs and eventually employee about 50 people in five years.
Since the county’s name would be used to obtain financing for the company, Commissioner Chairman Gordon Goodwin told a company official at a July meeting that he wanted more information before making a decision about a project using the county’s name.
According to documents from IEP that the commission will consider Monday, Santa Rosa County will not be liable for the Industrial Development Bond, either for repayment, default or legal costs. The company said it is in negotiations with three companies to purchase the bonds. The company has declined to identify the companies or release financial projections.
According to documentation provided by Integrated Energy Partners, the company would use seeds from the Camelina plant in the winter and other traditional year-round crops, including cotton seed, to produce their biofuels. In addition, municipal and other waste products would be used as fuel.
The company said it has secured purchase agreements with farmers involving about 10,000 acres in the Florida Panhandle and has an “in principle” agreement with a municipality for their waste.
The company is not dependent on local farmers; instead, “IEP can exist in any industrial park that has adequate and infrastructure,” according to the company. IEP emphasizes the word “offering” in their presentation to the commission about a potential relationship with local farmers by offering a market for their production under a U.S Department of Agriculture.
According to documentation presented to the commission, “…it is by no means necessary for IEP to buy its feedstock(s) here in a Santa Rosa Count…All of the feedstock(s) are readily available on the open market.”
The company also said that there will not be any permitting problems in locating the plant in Jay because they will not need an air discharge, wastewater discharge or wastewater treatment system permit from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
At startup, the IEP plans to have a 5-12 megawatt electricity generation capacity. They would be able to produce, according to documents provided to the commission, a yearly output of 3 million gallons of biodiesel, 9 million gallons of kerosene, 353 thousand gallons of cellulosic alcohol, 437 thousand gallons of propane and 47.8 MWH of electricity.
IEP states in documents presented to the Santa Rosa commission that federal law stipulates that a local utility must purchase electricity offered by an independent power producer. The company states that a local utility is “ready to purchase all of our power production”. IEP is also in negotiations to sell their liquid fuel to wholesalers.
Escambia School District Moving
August 8, 2010
The Administrative Offices for the Escambia County School District currently housed at 215 West Garden Street are being relocated, in a phase-in approach, to the building located at 75 North Pace Boulevard (32505).
The School District’s Information Technology Department was the first to move into the new location, and during the week of July 26-30, 2010, other departments completed the move. Groups that recently moved include the superintendent and his staff, board members and their staff, internal auditing, board attorney and staff, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction and the assistant superintendent of operations. The entire administrative move will be complete by December, 2010.
All telephone numbers and email addresses will remain the same.
Cantonment Armed Robbery Under Investigation; Two Police Cars Crash During Chase
August 8, 2010
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an armed robbery in Cantonment that eventually led to a chase and a traffic crash involving two police cars.
A black male armed with a knife reportedly robbed the BP gas station in the 200 block of Highway 29, directly across from International Paper. The incident occurred about 9 p.m. Friday. The store clerk was not injured.
Authorities say the same person may be responsible for an armed robbery at another gas station in the City of Pensacola a short time later before heading to Gulf Breeze.
Gulf Breeze Police Department officers got into a chase with the Pensacola robbery suspect, David Charles George, 21, in Gulf Breeze about 10:20 p.m.. At least three Gulf Breeze Police cars were chasing George when one cruiser was involved in a traffic crash with James Finch, 70, of Gulf Breeze.
Finch, according to the Florida Highway Patrol, yielded for the first two police cars on Fairpoint Drive. But, according to the FHP, he did not see the third police car running with emergency lights and sirens and pulled into its path. The Gulf Breeze officer, Terry J. Godwin, 31, slid 112 feet before striking Finch’s 2007 Toyota, pushing it into a large tree. Finch and his passenger, Lillian Finch, 66, received minor injuries and were transported to Gulf Breeze Hospital. James Finch was charged with failing to yield to an emergency vehicle.
Godwin and fellow officer Paul C. Stetfon, 43, received minor injuries but were not transported to the hospital.
As the chase ended, the vehicle driven by robbery suspect George struck another Gulf Breeze police cruiser twice. George was taken into custody and charged with fleeing and eluding police, aggravated battery, vehicle theft and a drug charge. George, who listed his address as homeless, was being held in the Santa Rosa County Jail on $200,000 bond. He has not yet been charged with the robbery in Pensacola or Cantonment.
Molino Homemakers Club Create ‘Hairy Heads’ Craft
August 8, 2010
The Molino Homemakers club had a demonstration on making “Hairy Heads” at a recent meeting.
Nancy Holland gathered up her husband’s old socks, string, rubber bands, Styrofoam bowls, a few grass seeds, potting soil and water. Then she along with April Glass proceeded to demonstrate to the club members how to make a “Hairy Head”.
First you will need to cut off the top of the sock if it has elastic on it which makes it easier to put the soil in. Place a couple of tablespoons of grass seed in toe of the sock. Fill with soil about 6 inches deep. (Depending on the size of the sock) Tie top of sock tightly with string or rubber band. Hold over the bowl and pour water over sock soaking it well. Hold up a few inches and let excess water drip off. Cut off excess sock just above the string or rubber band. Place upside down in the bowl. String will be on the bottom, seeds on top. Shape like a head flattening the bottom sort of like a chin. Put buttons in with pins for eyes, or eyes and nose if you have three buttons. Place in a sunny window. “It is very important to keep the sock moist until it sprouts,” said Holland. Cover with plastic wrap for faster sprouting. Without wrap mist often and cut hair when Hairy needs a haircut. “Why would you want to do this?” asks Holland, “Because you need to be silly once in a while.”
Barbara Hendrix gave an interesting devotion on cicadas insects like Katydid’s and Honeybees. Saying, “Katydids appear every 17 years or so creating an almost constant noise at an extremely disruptive level, then, they quickly disappear. Honeybees are just the opposite. Their hives exist for years. They make an effort everyday to live in harmony with one another pollinating plants and flowers that furnish fruit and vegetables that provide for our daily nourishment. Without those gifts our loss would be great.” She left us considering whether we are disruptive or doing the work we are called to do.
The Molino Homemakers toured Camp Five Road Prison in Cantonment in place of their regular June meeting.
The Molino Homemakers meet at 10 a.m. on the first Wednesday of each month, excluding July, in the fellowship hall of Molino First Assembly of God Church. Visitors are welcome.
Pictured top: Molino Homemakers Club “Hairy Heads”. Pictured inset: The ladies of the Molino Homemakers Club work on a project. Pictured below: April Glass and Nancy Holland demonstrate the project. Submitted photos by Terri Brown for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Blackcats 1977-1987 To Hold Reunion
August 8, 2010
The Century High School classes of 1977-1987 will hold a combined reunion on August 20-21.
The event begins with a meet and greet, and registration, at 7:30 Friday night at the Century Community Center (Ag Building) on West Highway 4. The reunion banquet will take place on Saturday, August 21 beginning at 3:30 p.m.
The fee is $25 per person, including food and drinks. For more information, contact Terrie (Anderson) Abernathy at (850) 221-4229, Johnny Findley at (251) 727-0690 or Sharron (Peebles Jones) Bell at (404) 949-6403. Visit the reunion Facebook page at www.facebook.com/CenturyHighSchoolClassReunion.