Local Group Collecting Underwear For Gulf Coast Kid’s House
February 2, 2009
The Escambia Farm Bureau Women’s Committee is conducting a drive to collect underclothes for children being seen by the Gulf Coast Kid’s House.
These abused children are often in need of new clothing items. While there is adequate gently used outer clothing donated, underwear is always needed. The committee is asking the North Escambia community to donate new, never worn underwear, socks and diapers. There is a need for all sizes, infant through adolescents.
The Gulf Coast Kid’s House is a center where abused and neglected children receive services from a number of agencies. While the Kid’s House is located in Pensacola and serves all of Escambia County, a fair number of the children served are from our area. Abuse is an issue found in every community, both urban and rural.
“As February is viewed as the month of love, we felt it was an appropriate time to ask our neighbors to show their love for some of our most vulnerable neighbors – the abused children,” said Rikki Vidak, Women’s Committee member. “We would like to put a donation box in your church, school or business.”
There will also be a donation box at the Molino Farm Bureau office.
For more information, contact Rikki Vidak at 587-4246 or call the Farm Bureau office at 587-2135.
January Students Of The Month Named At Area Schools
February 2, 2009
Students of the Month have been named for January at schools across North Escambia by The Escambia Association for Administrators in Education.
Area Students of the Month are:
- Bratt Elementary: Jordyn A. Dionne, kindergarten; Peighton D. Dortch, fourth grade.
- Carver/Century K-8: Destiney P. Bradley, kindergarten; Jayden C. Jackson, kindergarten.
- Jim Allen Elementary: Brandon K. Curtis, first grade; Garrett P. Donalson, first grade.
- Ernest Ward Middle: Danielle S. Suggs, sixth grade; Justin L. Halteman, eighth grade.
- Ransom Middle: Megan T. Light, eighth grade; Nakeem D. Williams, eighth grade.
- Northview High: Clinton E. Davis, 11th grade; Kaitlyn N. Caraway, 11th grade.
Pictured above: January Students of the Month are Northview High School were Clint Davis (L) and Kaitlyn Caraway. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com
One Quarter Of ECUA Customers Are Recycling
February 2, 2009
About one quarter of ECUA’s residential sanitation customers are participating in the new curbside recycling program launched a month ago, keeping over 200 tons of recyclable materials out of the landfill.
As of last Friday, 18,227 recycling cans had been requested. That is about 24 percent of the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority’s total residential sanitation customers. Of those that have requested cans, about 90 percent have had the can delivered to their homes. New can requests are expected to be fulfilled within 14 days. An average of 600 new customers are signing up weekly.
During the first week of the program, 36.71 tons of recyclables were collected in the curbside program. In the second week, that number grew to 46.19 tons. In the third week, it increased to 55.37 tons. Last week. ECUA collected 68.49 tons of recyclable materials, for a total of 206.76 tons.
“There is an upward trend to the tonnage collected each week,” said Larry Walker, ECUA District 5 member. “This means a couple of things. First, many customers are participating. Second, the distribution of recycling cans, while far from perfect, has been progressing, nonetheless.”
Walker said that anyone requesting a recyclables can more than 14 days ago should let him know or give the ECUA another call.
“Some signups have gotten lost in the paper shuffle between the customer service center and the sanitation department,” he said.
There are three ways to request ECUA service or add recyclables service to your current ECUA pickup:
- email support@ecua.org with your name, address and daytime phone number, along with the desired recycling container size — 40, 64 or 90 gallon.
- visit ecua.org and download a form located on the “Sanitation Services” page. That form can be faxed or mailed to the ECUA.
- call ECUA customer service at 476-0480
Walker can be reach by phone at 723-6094 or email at lwalker@ecua.org.
Driver Trapped, Seriously Injured In Highway 29 Rollover Crash
February 1, 2009
A Pensacola woman was seriously injured on a single vehicle accident south of Molino late Saturday afternoon.
Allie L. Hall, 22, of Pensacola was listed in serious condition at Sacred Heart Hospital Saturday night following the accident, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Hall was trapped in her overturned vehicle for nearly an hour while firemen worked to free her. She was reported to be trapped partially under her 2001 Ford car.
The accident happened about 4:45 on Highway 29 between Mathison Road and Quintette Road. Witnesses say she was northbound on Highway 29 when she lost control of the vehicle and flipped several times across the southbound lane.
The vehicle came to rest on its side just a few feet from the edge of a concrete culvert and an area filled with water. Firemen worked to stabilize the vehicle and prevent it from overturning into the water while they used the Jaws of Life to extricate Hall from the car. There were no other occupants.
Hall was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital by the hospital’s AIRHeart helicopter. The helicopter is based in Walton County, but was at Sacred Heart Hospital at the time of the call.
Hall reportedly told a witness that she is pregnant.
The accident shut down the southbound lanes of Highway 29 for over an hour. The northbound lanes were shut down as the AIRHeart helicopter landed and took off from the southbound lanes.
The Molino and Cantonment stations of Escambia Fire Rescue responded to the call, along with Escambia County EMS, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department and the Florida Highway Patrol.
The accident is under investigation by the FHP. The FHP says charges are pending the outcome of that investigation.
For an exlusive photo gallery of the rescue, click here.
Pictured above: Emergency workers use the Jaws of Life to free the driver of this car Saturday afternoon on Highway 29 south of Molino. The AIRHeart One helicopter can be seen in the background waiting to transport the patient. Pictured below: The car nearly landed in water. NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.
Steering Committee Members Needed To Address Trash Collection Consolidation
February 1, 2009
The Escambia County Division of Solid Waste Management is currently seeking volunteers to serve on a steering committee to address consolidation of trash collection, recycling and disposal services for Pensacola, Century and the unincorporated areas of Escambia County.
Committee members will be selected to meet once per month for six months beginning in March. Candidates must reside in Escambia County and submit a resume to the Division of Solid Waste Management by February 28.
Resumes can be emailed to sjdennis@co.escambia.fl.us or mailed to Escambia County Division of Solid Waste Management, P.O. Box 1591, Pensacola, FL 32591. For more information contact the Division of Solid Waste Management at (850) 937-2160.
Authorities Search Gravel Pit For Missing Woman’s Body
February 1, 2009
Authorities spent Saturday morning searching a gravel pit north of Atmore for the body of woman that went missing from her home almost five years ago. Searchers did not locate a body.
The search centered around a water-filled gravel pit off Jack Springs Roads near the Judson Cemetary between Atmore and Poarch. Authorities were searching for the body of Melinda Wall McGhee who was reported missing from her residence on Kent Road on March 24, 2003. She was 31 at the time.
Authorities said there was no strong evidence that there was a body buried on the property owned by the Poarch Creek Indians, but they were following up on a tip.
“We have no concrete evidence that Mrs. McGhee’s body is here,” Escambia County Sheriff Grover Smith said. “But we are conducting a follow-up on an ongoing investigation.”
Cadaver dogs from Florida and Alabama were used in the search, along with sonar equipment from the North Baldwin Search and Rescue Squad. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and several Alabama agencies participated in the search.
Anyone with information on McGhee’s disappearance is asked to call the Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff’s Department at (251) 809-0741.
Pictured above: Two photos of Melinda Wall McGhee who went missing in March 2003.
Walnut Hill Blood Drive Called A Success
February 1, 2009
Organizers are calling a blood drive held last week in Walnut Hill a success.
A total of 22 units were collected at Monday’s Northwest Florida Blood Services drive at the Walnut Hill Farm Supply. Another blood drive is planned at the same location in June.
There is still a significant need for several blood types, including an urgent need for O+ and O- blood types. Donations can be made at the Blood Center at 1999 East Nine Mile Road, just east of Target.Requirements for giving blood are below.
- Donors must be in generally good health
- At least 17 years of age, without permission. 16-year olds are now allowed to donate with permission granted by parents or legal guardians. See our home page for full details or click on the below link for a permission form:
- Must bring picture ID
- Weigh at least 110 lbs
- Free of infection, fever or flu symptoms, for 3 days
- No cancer within the last 5 years
- No antibiotics within the last 48 hours
- No tattoos within the past 12 months
- No chest pain, heart disease, heart surgery (Requires written physician release with diagnosis)
- No history of viral hepatitis
- Additional FDA Restrictions effective May 31st 2002:
- Cannot have lived in France for 5 years or more between 1980 and the present
- Cannot have lived or visited in the UK for a total of 3 months or more from 1980 to 1996
- Cannot have received a blood transfusion in the UK between 1980 and the present
- Military personnel (current and former), and their dependents, who spent time in military bases in northern Europe during 1980-1990, or southern Europe during 1980-1996, for 6 months or more
- All military personnel (active & reserve) that are returning from Iraq, are deferred for a period of one year after the last date on location in that country.
Ethics Panel Recommends $3,000 Fine, Reprimand For Former Century Mayor
January 31, 2009
The state ethics commission has found former Mayor Evelyn Hammond misused her position, and they have recommended that she be ordered to pay a $3,000 fine.
The recommendation made by the Florida Commission on Ethics also calls for Hammond to receive a public censure and reprimand.
Hammond used her position to retaliate against Century Little League and its president, Dabney Longhorne, when that organization failed to hire her son as chief umpire, according to the ethics commission findings.
The administrative law judge that heard the case recommended that Hammond receive just a public censure. The advocate for the complainants recommended that she be slapped with a $7,000 civil penalty in addition to the public censure and reprimand. Hammond objected to any civil penalty at all, arguing that by being branded “corrupt” her name would be ruined, ant that itself was more devastating than any monetary fine.
After a review of the complete record, the ethics commission recommended an increase in the punishment suggested by the by the administrative law judge that heard the case because Hammond’s “violation of the Code of Ethics is a serious violation that not only affected Century Little League, but also affected the community.”
According to the ethics commission, Hammond “withheld her true retaliatory motivations at Town County meetings when recommending that the town take over the Century Little League concession stand and her inconsistent statements in that regard have been taken into account in recommending an increase in the recommended punishment”.
Hammond’s “sole motivation was revenge,” the ethics commission findings report states.
Last year, the ethics commission found probable cause to believe that Hammond, during her term as mayor of the Town of Century, misused her office by allowing her son to continue to receive utility services when his account was delinquent or by directing that late fees be dropped from his account.
The commission also found probable cause to believe that she misused her position to retaliate against Century Little League for her son’s special benefit. Charges that she misused her office to give a raise to her son and charges that she promoted, advanced, or advocated the promotion or advancement of her relatives were dismissed.
The ethics complaint alleged that Hammond’s son, Eddie Hammond, did not pay his utility bills for four years while working as a supervisor for the town’s utilities department. The complaint charged that when the bills were found, Evelyn Hammond waived $200 in late charges and fines and paid the remaining $1,700.
The ethic’s complaint also charges that Hammond took over concessions at the Little League Park concession stand and hired someone from Alabama to run it. The concessions stand had previous raised funds for the Little League ball teams.
A complaint had also been filed that Hammond used her position has mayor to obtain a raise for her son, but the ethics commission did not find probable cause in that case.
The ethics complaints were filed by Ann Brooks, Nolan Wilson and Annie Savage.
Hammond was defeated 341 votes to 241 votes in her bid for re-election by now Mayor Freddie McCall. The race received a lot of media attention after Hammond alleged that McCall and new council member Nadine McCaw attempted to buy votes with money and watermelons, allegations that they both denied.
For a complete in-depth look at the ethics complaints against Hammond, click here.
In Depth: The Ethics Complaints Against Evelyn Hammond
January 31, 2009
Former Century Mayor Evelyn Hammond used her position to retaliate against Century Little League when that organization failed to hire her son as chief umpire, according to the Florida Commission on Ethics.
An administrative law judge also found that Hammond did not use her position to benefit her son, Eddie Hammond, in regard to his utility account.
For a complete story on the ethics commission recommendation, click here.
Here is a more in-depth look at the complaints there filed with the ethics commission by Ann Brooks, Nolan Wilson and Annie Savage.
The Little League
Century Little League was controlled by a board of directors during the time in question in the complaint against Hammond. Dabney Longhorne served as president of that board from 2001 to 2006. During that five year period, Century Little League operated the concession stand at the town-owned Showalter Park.
Longhorne met with Mayor Hammond in January 2004 and again in January 2005 to discuss generally the relationship between the town and the little league operation. To the extent the concession stand was discussed during these meetings, it was expected that the little league operation would run it and use the profits generated from it.
For a number of years prior to the 2006 season, Mayor Hammond’s son Eddie Hammond moonlighted as chief umpire of the Century Little League. He was paid $35.00 to $45.00 for each game and was paid from $2.00 to $4.50 as a booking fee for each umpire he arranged for the little league games. One of the umpires Eddie Hammond employed was his father, Ray Hammond.
In January 2006 while planning for the upcoming season, Mr. Langhorne and Eddie Hammond had a discussion. During that discussion Eddie Hammond suggested he could make more money umpiring elsewhere. He advised he could make more money umpiring in Brewton, Alabama, for example.
At the Century Little League Board meeting on Saturday, January 21, 2006, Eddie Hammond’s comments were relayed to the board. The board thereafter voted to hire someone else as chief umpire. When Eddie Hammond learned of this he became angry, according to the judge’s order.
These events were discussed in the Hammond household. On Tuesday, January 24, 2006, Eddie Hammond called Langhorne on his cellphone and expressed his anger and, moreover, suggested that retaliation was in the offing. Later that day, Ray Hammond, Eddie Hammond’s father, called Langhorne and left a message asking that his call be returned.
On February 6, 2006, Mayor Hammond, during the Century Town Council meeting, recommended that the town take over the concession stand at Showalter Park. She stated that she had already found someone to operate it and that the profits from it would help pay for the light bill at the park. She also made this recommendation because she was angry at Dabney Langhorne. She did not, however, reveal this to the Century Town Council.
No one from Century Little League had been informed that this action would be considered by the council, so no one spoke out against the recommendation. On a motion by councilmember Marie McMurray, the council unanimously approved Mayor Hammond’s recommendatin.
“It is concluded that her actions were motivated solely by a desire to avenge the failure of Century Little League to re-employ her son,” Hooper wrote in the court order.
The Utility Bills
As mayor, Hammond exercised authority over the town’s utility services, including gas, water and sewer services. Her son, Eddie Hammond, served as superintendent of the utility department during her term as mayor, a position he had held for about 20 years. Dorothy Sims, the mayor’s first cousin, served as Town Clerk and as immediate supervisor for Eddie Hammond.
Century’s utility bills are due on the tenth of each month, with a $5 late charge added on the fifteenth of the month and service can be disconnected on the twentieth ofthe month. But Sims would routinely mark some unpaid accounts to not be disconnected.
The judge’s order says Eddie Hammond and Robert Tims did not pay their utility bills for years, yet their accounts were marked with a “hold.” Eddie Hammond amassed a bill of $1,802.49 by October 2005 and Robert Tims grew his to $4,859.46 by October 2005, yet neither had their utility services terminated. “Nevertheless, Eddie Hammond did not hesitate to pull the plug on citizens in a less fortunate posture,” the order states.
Eddie Hammond and Robert Tims were long-time employees of Century. During the period 1969 to 2001, Ray Lawson was Town Clerk, and during his incumbency he permitted some town employees to pay their utilities through payroll deductions. Eddie Hammond and Robert Tims were beneficiaries of this plan.
Rather than have their utility bills deducted from their pay in an amount that reflected their actual bills, Town Clerk Lawson deducted a set amount each week. In the case of
Eddie Hammond, $20.00 was deducted each week. Eddie Hammond was never presented with a utility bill during this period. Robert Tims had $35.00 deducted each week.
The sum deducted was often insufficient to cover the cost of Eddie Hammond’s utility bill and by the time Town Clerk Lawson departed the position, Eddie Hammond owed several hundred dollars.
The mayor of Century from 2000-2004 was Bennie Barnes. In 2001, Town Clerk Lawson was replaced by Town Clerk Sims. Although it was easy to determine how much money Eddie Hammond and Robert Tims owed on their utility bills, Ms. Sims was unable to determine how much money had been withheld from their pay.
When Town Clerk Sims became the incumbent, she found the financial records of the town to be a “big mess,” and they remained that way for several years. The “mess” was created when Town Clerk Lawson left because he had bad feelings toward Mayor Barnes and the City Council and manifested these feelings by locking his computer and scrambling the town’s financial records.
Town Clerk Sims could not determine how much, if any, payroll had been applied to the utility bills of the two, and Hammond and Tims did not know either. They were the only two employees of Century in this position. Eddie Hammond was aware that some of the money deducted was paid as child support. The last payment made to his utility bill was July 9, 2001. By October 4, 2001, deductions from his paycheck had been discontinued. Mr. Tims’ deduction continued.
By 2004, following Mayor Hammond’s inauguration as mayor, Town Clerk Sims continued to have over-all responsibility as supervisor of utility services and continued carrying Tims and Eddie Hammond in the “hold” category.
The office procedure with regard to utility payments was that each month a printed list of delinquents was prepared by Assistant Clerk Kristina Wood. She gave the list directly to Town Clerk Sims who determined if a delinquent was to be awarded a “hold.” Mayor Hammond did not get involved in the decision to terminate or not terminate anyone’s utility services.
Mayor Hammond paid some of Eddie Hammond’s bills, other than his utility bills, because Mayor Hammond and Eddie Hammond did not want his former wives to get involved in his financial affairs. Mayor Hammond never saw Eddie Hammond’s utility bill and assumed that, because he worked for the city, he paid it at his job. She was aware that he had money taken from his paycheck because she had seen some of his pay stubs.
Eventually Mayor Hammond learned that Tims and Eddie Hammond were on the cut-off list and made inquiry to Town Clerk Sims. Mayor Hammond was informed about the payroll deductions yy Town Clerk Sims, who told her that the money to pay the charges was present, but that she could not determine how much money was available. As events unfolded, records were discovered indicating the amounts withheld from Tims and Eddie Hammond, but this occurred after Mayor Hammond paid Eddie Hammond’s bill.
In early 2006, some citizens took notice of the unseemly situation where Eddie Hammond, the person who routinely cut off peoples’ natural gas for failure to timely pay their utility bills, was himself avoiding his utility payment. His failure to pay was about to provide grist for the local journalist’s mill. Mayor Hammond soon learned that the local
media was about to publicize the situation.
That moment was when Mayor Hammond concluded that paying her son’s utility bill was “. . . the right thing to do.” Accordingly, she wrote a personal check for the amount of the bill, including late charges. This amount was $1,984.30. On March 21, 2006, she took the check to the clerk’s office and met with Assistant Clerk Christina Wood. Eddie Hammond was present.
Wood had a discussion with Mayor Hammond regarding the late charges. She had removed the late charges when Tims paid off his utility bill some time before March 2006 and she informed Mayor Hammond of this. Mayor Hammond told Assistant Clerk Wood to take the late charges off Eddie Hammond’s bill since they were removed from Tims’ bill. She believed her son should get the same consideration. Assistant Clerk Wood did as directed by pulling up Eddie Hammond’s account on the computer and deducting $245.00.
Mayor Hammond further asserted that the town continued to owe Eddie Hammond money from the deductions taken from his pay. She wrote a new check for $1,739.30 and gave it to Assistant Clerk Wood, and thereafter the account displayed a zero balance.
The greater weight of the evidence demonstrates, the judge’s order says, that Mayor Hammond believed that the town owed Eddie Hammond some amount of money, and at the time the transaction took place it is clear that Century’s accounts were in disarray to the extent it was difficult to determine what, if anything, the town owed Eddie Hammond. Her determination that her son should not pay late fees because a similarly situated employee did not pay late fees was not unreasonable.
The “policy” of allowing Eddie Hammond to avoid paying his utility bills was in place prior to Mayor Hammond’s election and continued without her intervention until the Spring of 2006. She did not intervene in the case of Robert Tims or others who were not keeping up with their utility bills either. Even though she had 28 years of utility billing experience, she was remarkably incurious with regard to the situation in the Town of Century. This is not, however, the same as wrong-doing, the judge’s order says.
Area Ball Registrations
January 31, 2009
It’s that time of the year again…ball registration is scheduled in Century, Molino and Walnut Hill.
Registration will be held each Saturday for the Molino Recreation Association at Don Sutton park in Molino. Registration will continue each Saturday from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. through February 23. The annual draft will be February 28.
Registration fees have been reduced this year due to the economy. This year, registration fees are $50 for the first child, $45 for the second, $40 for the third and free for additional players from the same family. A birth certificate copy is required to be on file for each child.
Teams for the Molino Recreation Association will include:
- Wee Ball –ages 3 & 4
- Tee Ball — ages 5, 6 & 7
- Baseball — ages 8 to 15
- Girls Softball — ages 8 to 16
If you would like to coach or just help out on your child’s team, you can sign up on the day your child is registered. For more information, call 587-4090.
Registration for Northwest Escambia Little League baseball begins Saturday, February 7 and continues each Saturday until February 21 from 10 a.m. until noon at Bradberry Park in Walnut Hill.
The cost is $35 for the first child from a family, $25 for the second child and free for each additional child. A copy of each child’s birth certificate is required for registration.
This year, NWE will offer Wee Ball for children ages 3 and 4 on the brand new “Drew’s Field”
For more information, call 327-6722 or 327-6155 after five p.m.
Century Little League will hold a board meeting at 10 a.m. on Saturday, January 31 at Showalter Park. The meeting is open to the public.
Ball registration will held again on Saturday, January 31 and Saturday, February 7 from noon until at Showalter Park.
Registration fees have been lowered this year for $30 for the first child and $20 for each additional child. A copy of each child’s birth certificate is requested. The following teams will be formed:
- Pre-T — 3 & 4
- Tee Ball — 5 to 7 boys and 5 to 8 girls
- Minor League Baseball — 8 to 10 y
- Machine-Pitch Minor League — 8 to 10
- Girls Minor League Softball — 9 to 10
- Boys Major League Baseball — 11 to 12
- Girls Major League Softball — 11 to 12
Ages are determined according to the child’s age on May 1, 2009.
NorthEscambia.com is looking for people to help us with stats and photos from NWE, Century and Molino play this year. If you are interested, use our contact form to let us know.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.