Kassandra Lett Named Northview Homecoming Queen
October 3, 2009
Kassandra Lett was named as Northview High School’s 2009 Homecoming Queen Friday night.
First runner up was Erica Rendell; second runner up was Amber McMillan.
Ariel Holland was named Freshman Maid. Sophomore Maid was Raylin Spence, and Junior Maid was Miranda Burkett.
Kassandra Alexandra Lett, Homecoming Queen
Kassandra is the daughter Alexander and Sandra Lett. Kassandra is a varsity cheerleader and president and District I reporter for FBLA. She is also a member of the Minority Culture Club. In her community, she is an active member of Pilgrim Lodge Baptist Church.
Amber Nicolle McMillan, Second Runner Up
Amber is the daughter of Mac and Donna McMillan. Amber is a varsity cheerleader and a member of the basketball and varsity softball team. She also serves as senior class secretary. In her community, Amber is an active member of Ray’s Chapel Baptist Church and the Relay for Life team.
Miranda Beth Burkett, Junior Maid
Miranda is the daughter of Rodney and Dana Burkett. Miranda is a member of the Northview FFA, and the varsity softball and weightlifting teams. She is also junior class historian. In her community, Miranda volunteers at the Northview concession stands and Century Little League.
Raylin Miranda Spence, Sophomore Maid
Raylin is the daughter of Kevin and Shane Spence. Raylin is a member of the varsity volleyball team, FFA and FCA. She is also the Northview Chiefs mascot. In her community, Raylin is an active member of Bratt First Baptist Church and the National Barrel Horse Association.
Ariel Kaye Holland, Freshman Maid
Ariel is the daughter of Wayne and Amy Holland. She is a junior varsity cheerleader and a member of FFA. In her community, Ariel is a member of Bratt First Baptist Church, the Molino Cats softball team and volunteers for the NWE mini cheerleaders. She is a member of First City Gymnastics.
Pictured above: Freshman maid Ariel Holland, Junior Maid Miranda Burkett, First Runner Up Erica Rendell, Homecoming Queen Kassandra Lett, Second Runner Up Amber McMillan and Freshman Maid Raylin Spence. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Jay Peanut Festival Will Attract Thousands
October 3, 2009
The 20th Annual Jay Peanut Festival is expected to attract about 70,000 people this weekend.
The Peanut Festival will feature something fun for everyone including arts and crafts, antiques, inflatable rides, rock climbing wall, pony rides, hay rides, train rides and much more. The Gabbert’s 1930’s Farm Museum will also be open for tours. There will be plenty of food available…kettle corn, BBQ, hamburgers, roasted corn, apple dumplings and more.
And, of course, peanuts will be the star of the festival, and there will be plenty of green peanuts and boiled peanuts as well as fried, roasted and candied peanuts.
Admission and parking are free, but the Jay High School FFA will be hosting the first annual Keith Rowland Memorial Scholarship fundraiser during the Peanut Festival. You can support the Jay FFA by parking your car on the designated grounds at the Rowland home. (3696 Pine Level Chruch Road) A trolley cart will be provided for transport. We are asking for a $4.00 donation. All proceeds will go to the Keith Rowland FFA Memorial Scholarship Fund.
The event is dedicated to the memory of Melissa Caroline Gabbert, who died of cancer in 1990. The Jay Peanut festival will take place until 6 p.m. Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday at Gabbert Farm south of Jay off Highway 89 at 3604 Pine Level Church Road. (A map is at the bottom of this page.)
Pictured above: Large crowds attended the annual Jay Peanut Festival last year. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Reunion Today For 1985-1995 Ernest Ward Graduates
October 3, 2009
Ernest Ward High School alumni who graduated from 1985 to 1995 will have the chance to see old friends at a combined class reunion today.
Graduates are invited to family-friendly lunch at the Walnut Hill Community Center from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Attendees are asked to bring lunch and drinks for their family.
Saturday evening there will be an adults-only event at McGuire’s Irish Pub in Pensacola from 7 p.m. until. There is a charge of $20 per person for the evening event, which will cover non-alcoholic drinks and hors d’oeuvres.
Organizers want to stress this combined class reunion event is not taking the place of the Class of 1989 reunion. The Ernest Ward High School Class of 1989 will hold a reunion from 7 to 11 p.m. October 10 at the Wind Creek ballroom in Atmore. Contact Cindy Darby Lee at (251) 446-8192 or email gosport1@frontiernet.net.
Photos: Northview Homecoming Parade
October 2, 2009
The Northview High School Homecoming Parade was held Friday afternoon in Bratt. Hundreds of people were in the parade, and hundreds more lined the route from Bratt Elementary to Northview.
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the parade, click here.
Pictured above and below: The Northview High School’s first ever Homecoming Parade rolls through “downtown” Bratt Friday afternoon. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Arrest Of Man Shooting Near Deputy Leads To More Arrests, Clearing 40 Burglaries
October 2, 2009
The arrest of a man early Wednesday morning after he fired a gun near an Escambia County deputy’s marked cruiser has led the Pensacola Police Department to solve about 40 vehicle burglaries.
Deputy Rudy Brown, who works in the Century Precinct, was on his way to work about 6 a.m. Wednesday when Joshua Lee Brown, 25, fired a handgun four times from his vehicle as he passed the deputy’s cruiser. Deputy Brown, who is no relationship to the suspect, gave pursuit and arrested Joshua Brown on charges of discharging a firearm from a moving vehicle and theft of a firearm.
The firearm was listed as stolen by Pensacola Police. After suspect Brown was questioned, he provided information that led to the arrest of two Pensacola men who are now facing a slew of charges in connection with scores of vehicle burglaries that have occurred in Pensacola since July.
Kevin Wayne Smith, 20, of West Highway 98, and Joshua Brandon Smith, 19, of East DeSoto Street, are both charged with five counts of vehicle burglary and four counts of grand theft of firearms. Additional charges are pending on both men, who are not related, said Pensacola Police Sgt. Chuck Mallett.
Since July 23, approximately 40 vehicle burglaries have been reported to Pensacola Police in the Scenic Heights, Cordova Park and East Pensacola Heights areas. The burglaries occurred primarily in the evening to early morning hours with entry being made to unlocked vehicles or by tampering with vehicle locks, Mallett said.
Among the items that were taken were four handguns, GPS units, cell phones, digital cameras, money, portable DVD players, prescription medications, jewelry, Ipods, and MP3 players. Some of the items have already been returned to their owners, and detectives were trying to identify owners of remaining items, Mallett said.
In addition to the charges from Wednesday morning’s incident, Joshua Lee Brown was charged by Pensacola Police with strong-armed robbery and one count of vehicle burglary.
Jonathan Tyler Broxson, 19, of Durango Drive, Pensacola, was charged with strong-armed robbery and criminal mischief to a police cruiser. Jessica Lynn Broxson, 23, of East Kingsfield Road, Pensacola, was charged with strong-armed robbery and one count of vehicle burglary. She is Joshua Brown’s girlfriend and Jonathan’s sister. Jessica Broxson was in the vehicle with Joshua Brown at the time he fired the shots near the deputy’s cruiser, according to the ESCO.
The strong-armed robbery occurred just after midnight September 29 when Jonathan and Jessica Broxson and Joshua Brown approached a 71-year-old woman in the parking lot of Ninth Avenue Bingo at Ninth Avenue and Langley Avenue.
The three suspects said they had a dead battery in their vehicle and asked if she could help. The woman pulled her car around to help them jump start their vehicle, and while they were talking, she said she’d won a large amount of money playing bingo. When the woman left, the suspects followed her home. As she was getting out of her car, Jonathan Broxson leaned in, pinned her against the back of the seat, grabbed her purse, and the three suspects fled the scene.
Anyone whose vehicle may have been burglarized in the aforementioned areas and time period is asked to contact Detective James Hendry at (850) 435-1977 or Detective Jon Thacker at (850) 435-1975.
To read the original NorthEscambia.com story about Wednesday morning’s shots-fired incident, click here.
Northview Homecoming: All You Need To Know
October 2, 2009
It will be a big day in Bratt with the 2009 Homecoming at Northview High School
The day’s events will begin with a homecoming parade at 12:30 from Bratt Elementary to Northview. Click here for complete parade information.
The Northview Homecoming Court will be presented at 6 p.m., followed the crowning of the NHS Homecoming Queen.
The game against Baker will kick off at 7:00 p.m.
During the game, all Northview High School alumni from 1996-2009 are invited to visit an alumni tent located in the stadium.
After the game, the NHS cheerleaders are sponsoring a homecoming dance until 12:30 a.m.
Then on Saturday, NorthEscambia.com will have complete coverage — including hundreds of photos — from the parade, homecoming court and the game.
Schools Get $2.1 Million Award Money, Most Will Be Employee Bonuses
October 2, 2009
Almost $2.1 million in bonus money from the state will be divided between 39 school in Escambia County — including $363,531 to North Escambia schools
Florida School Recognition Awards, funded by lottery proceeds, are essentially performance bonuses. The awards provide cash to schools that either maintain their “A” school letter grade from the state, or to schools that improve on significant year by year basis.
Each schools gets to decide how to use the reward monies. Most use the money for bonus checks for teachers and staff members. The amount of the reward dollars received by each school is based upon the number of students in that school.
The following North Escambia schools received the bonus awards:
Bratt Elementary — $29,496
Byrneville Elementary — $12,510
Jim Allen Elementary — $44,297
Ernest Ward Middle — $34,613
Ransom Middle — $99,436
Tate High — $143,179
Northview JV Chiefs Beat Baker Gators 32-12
October 2, 2009
The Northview High School Junior Varsity Chiefs rolled over the Baker Gators Thursday evening 32-12.
A 20-yard Jacob Gibson run with 3:27 on the clock in the first put the Chiefs at first and goal. Four seconds of play later, Gibson was in the end zone to the put Chiefs up 6-0. The JV Chiefs went for two and missed.
Then sophomore Jamie Gafford scored for NHS on a 42-yard run. Another missed point after, and the Chiefs ended the first quarter up 12-0. The Gators answered with a half dozen of their own, sending the game into halftime with the score of 12-6.
Harold Harrison returned the second quarter kickoff about 70 yards. A good kick, and the Chiefs were on top 19-6 with 7:47 in the third.
A 20-yard pass with 1:30 in the quarter scored again for the Gators. Tyler Hester intercepted a two point attempt pass, and Northview was still leading 19-12.
Reid Bell had a 28-yard dash with 3:52 remaining to put the Chiefs up 25-12. Tyler Hester returned an interception 17[yards for Northview with 3:38 to go, for the final — 32-12 Northview Chiefs over the Baker Gators.
The Northview JV team will be in action again Monday night on the road against W.S. Neal. There final home game will be October 12 against West Florida Tech.
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the game, click here.
Pictured top and inset: Football action Thursday evening in Bratt as the Northview JV Chiefs beat the Baker Gators. Pictured below: The Northview JV cheerleaders perform a high-flying routine. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Bratt Elementary Honors Partners In Education
October 2, 2009
Bratt Elementary School honored their Partners In Education Thursday morning with a play.
“Bratt thanks you for giving us so much”, the fourth grade students sang to the partners. “We are glad to have a friend like you; we are partners through and through.”
Bratt’s Partners in Education are Escambia River Electric Cooperative, the First Baptist Church of Bratt, Bondurant of Century and the Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department.
“The partners have always been there for us,” Bratt Principal Cheryl Pomeroy said. Partners in education provide monetary support, incentives and support to assist the school in creating a quality learning environment.
Pictured above: Bratt Elementary School’s Partners in Eduction surrounded by some of the fourth graders that presented Thursday morning’s play. Partner representatives pictured are (top row, L-R): Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department Chief Chris Brown, Bubba Hammock from Bondurant of Century, Pastor Gary Wieborg from the First Baptist Church of Bratt, and (bottom middle) Sabrina Owens from Escambia River Electric Cooperative. Pictured inset: Students perform for the partners. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Ernest Ward Students Checked Out For Parade Will Be Excused
October 2, 2009
All students checked out from Ernest Ward Middle School for today’s Northview Homecoming Parade will be excused.
Principal Nancy Gindl-Perry said students should be checked out after 11:30 if at all possible. They will not be required to return to school, and they will be excused, she said. Teachers should not be giving any tests or graded assignments, and, if they do, students will have the opportunity to make them up on Monday.
A photo identification is necessary to check a student out at Ernest Ward, and the parent or guardian must be listed as authorized to checkout the student with the school.