Alzheimer’s Support Group To Meet Wednesday
January 11, 2011
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, January 12 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.
Escambia County Schools Moving Closer To Random Student Drug Testing
January 11, 2011
The Escambia County School Board will hold a public hearing next month as they continue to consider random student drug testing for the next school year. The public hearing, pending approval from the board at their January meeting, will be scheduled for February 15 at 5:30 at the J.E. Hall Center at 30 East Texar Drive.
Under the proposed policy first presented to the school board in December, students that participate in athletics, extracurricular activities or park on campus would be subject to the random urine tests. A signed parental consent form would be valid during the entire school year, not just for the duration of the athletic season or extracurricular activity period.
Students whose parents do not consent to the tests would not be allowed to participate in the activities — including any practice, tryout, rehearsal or even sit with the team, club or organization at a game or pep rally.
The drug tests will be conducted by the school health nurse or technician under the plan. If there is a positive result, the student would be required to take a follow-up drug test at a District-approved licensed laboratory within 24 hours. Failure to take the follow-up test would be considered a positive result, according to the proposed plan.
If a student refuses to participate in a random drug test, it will be considered a positive result.
A positive result would result in the student being removed from all extracurricular and athletic activities, including practices, for at least 30 days and would be suspended from driving on the school campus. The student would be referred to a District-approved drug assessment and rehabilitation program.
A student with a positive drug test result would be required to pass a second drug test before participation in future activities at the expense of their parents. They would be subject to additional random drug tests, and they would remain on probation for the rest of their school years in the Escambia County School District. The student would not be allowed to return to any leadership position — such as captain of a squad, club officer or class officer — for the remainder of the school year.
A second positive result would prohibit a student from participation in all athletics and extracurricular activities and from driving on campus for one full calendar year.
Before the random drug testing plan is implemented for the 2011-2012 school year, it must first be approved by the Escambia County School Board. That approval can come anytime after the February 15 public hearing.
Auburn Tigers Win National Championship 22-19 Over Oregon
January 11, 2011
A 19-yard field goal as the clock wound down from Wes Byrum gave No. 1 Auburn a 22-19 win over No. 2 Oregon for the BCS national championship Monday night.
The Ducks managed to tie it at 19 with 2:33 to go with a two point conversion. But Auburn’s Cam Newton came back with a 73-yard drive for the Tigers on the strength of key plays from freshman Michael Dyer. Dyer rolled over an Oregon defender, with most of the field thinking the play was over about the midfield mark. But cheered on by his teammates on the sidelines, Dyer sprinted another 30 yards down to the 23.
On the next play, Dyer was down to the one on a 16-yard run.
Byrum’s kick at the buzzer gave the Auburn Tigers their first national championship since 1957.
Cold Nights Ahead
January 11, 2011
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 23. North wind around 10 mph.
- Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 42. Wind chill values between 15 and 25. North wind between 10 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
- Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 21. North wind around 5 mph.
- Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 44. Wind chill values between 15 and 25. North wind between 5 and 10 mph.
- Thursday Night: Clear, with a low around 18. North wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Friday: Sunny, with a high near 49. Calm wind becoming north around 5 mph.
- Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 25. Calm wind.
- Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 55. Calm wind becoming west around 5 mph.
- Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 30. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Sunday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 61.
- Sunday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 43.
- M.L.King Day: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 66.
- Monday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49.
- Tuesday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a high near 59.
Area Woman Convicted On Federal Weapons Charges
January 11, 2011
An Atmore woman has been convicted on federal weapons charges after a gun went off in vehicle being chased by police.
A federal jury in Mobile found Britney LaFaye Barnes, 20, of Ridgley Street guilty of being an unlawful drug user in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm while under indictment.
According to prosecutors, Barnes was a marijuana user and has used cocaine the day before the August 16, 2010, police chase. At the time of the chase, she had been indicted for a September robbery of man in the parking lot of a Winn Dixie in Foley. She later pleaded guilty to the robbery.
Barnes testified that her husband, James Ellis Brown, had forced her at gunpoint to come with him. She said she grabbed the .380 caliber pistol because she feared for her life, causing the gun to go off in the vehicle. Brown told authorities that they pair was trying to throw the gun out of their vehicle’s window on Highway 31 near Brewton when it fired.
Barnes is scheduled to be sentenced April 18 in Mobile federal court.
Deputies Seek Suspect In Sexual Battery
January 11, 2011
Escambia County Sheriff’s Investigators and Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers is seeking the public’s help in locating a suspect who is wanted for questioning pertaining to a sexual battery and child molestation case.
Terrance Anton Harris, 26 of Pensacola, currently has an outstanding felony warrant for violation of probation for two counts of failure to redeliver leased property. Investigators also want to question Harris about a November 2010 sexual battery of a 15-year-old child.
Any information on the whereabouts of Terrance Anton Harris should be reported to Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP (7867) or Escambia Sheriff’s Investigator Brian Shorette at (850) 436-9682.
Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers pays cash rewards for information which leads to the arrest of a felony suspect and you never have to give your name when you call.
Florida Senate Begins Immigration Debate
January 11, 2011
With immigration one of the top issues in the nation’s legislatures in the wake of last year’s Arizona law, a panel of Florida senators took its first steps Monday in crafting its own law to deal with those suspected of being here illegally.
The Florida Senate held a three hour meeting to gather information from homeland security officials, the state Department of Education, the Department of Corrections and the Department of Highway Safety on how both legal and illegal immigration affects the state. The meeting spurred no immediate plans for legislation, and was intended as a way to start people asking questions to learn about the issue, said Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami, who chaired the meeting.
“The most important thing that we want is input from all people from across the state of Florida, whether you’re on one side, the other side or as I suggested earlier, there’s probably 20 sides to the issue,” Flores said.
Sen. Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, has filed a bill addressing illegal immigration and in the House, Rep. Will Snyder, R-Stuart, is spearheading similar efforts. The issue became a major focal point in the governor’s and attorney general’s campaigns last year. Both Attorney General Pam Bondi and Gov. Rick Scott have said they are supportive of strengthening the state’s laws for removing illegal immigrants, though neither has put forth a specific proposal.
Snyder’s draft legislation would require police to check the status of suspected illegal immigrants during a lawful stop, require businesses to use the federal E-Verify database to check the status of new hires and subject illegal immigrants who commit crimes to harsher penalties than legal immigrants or U.S. citizens.
Bennett’s bill (SB 136) allows law enforcement officers during a lawful detention or arrest to ask for the detainee’s immigration documents if the officer suspects they may be in the country illegally. The bill, however, prohibits law enforcement from using race as a reason for checking the person’s documentation. The bill also penalizes legal aliens who refuse to carry their documentation, with a possible fine of up to $100 and a 20-day jail sentence.
Monday’s meeting contained little debate from lawmakers, but featured presentations from a variety of state and federal agencies about the impact of immigrants on the state.
Florida International University law professor Ediberto Rámon did caution lawmakers that he believed an Arizona-style law would be struck down by the courts and that it would be devastating to the state’s economy because it would turn off international tourists. He also said the state shouldn’t discount the positive economic impact immigrants have on the state.
“The business sector is reaping the benefit and then you see frustration as you see here at the state and the local levels,” Rámon said. “Frankly some of it is legitimate in terms of health care in the short term, in terms of education.”
Flores said no agenda has been set for the two other meetings that Senate President Mike Haridopolos has pledged to hold on the issue, but she said the next step would be to hear from some of the advocates.
Juan Chavez, a membership organizer for the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said he believes the Legislature does need to hear more about immigrants’ contributions to the state, but he also questioned whether lawmakers could put together a bill that did not have a racial component, despite pledges from legislators to do so.
“If they bring something similar [to Arizona’s law], it will be a good sign that they are ignoring Floridians,” he said. “And that’s basically a good sign to destroy the economy of the state. So we’d be basically legalizing racial profiling if they bring something similar.”
By Kathleen Haughney
The News Service Florida
Ticket Sales Begin For Miss Northview Pageant
January 11, 2011
Tickets will be on sale today and tomorrow for the annual Miss Northview High School Pageant which will be held Saturday, January 29 at 7:00 in the school auditorium. The pageant is sponsored by the Northview High Varsity Cheerleaders.
Tickets go on sale on Tuesday at 8 a.m. for Miss NHS contestants only. All others can purchase their tickets beginning Wednesday at 8 a.m. All tickets can be purchased in the Northview front office; tickets will not be sold at the door. Admission is $6 per person.
Pictured above: Last year’s Miss Northview High School pageant. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
John Woodrow Gott
January 11, 2011
John Woodrow Gott, age 93, of Molino, beloved husband, father, grandfather, railroadman, career navy man, and a member of America’s greatest generation, passed away peacefully at home on Wednesday, January 5, 2011.
He was born in Bluefield, WV, on July 2, 1917 to John Woodrow Gott, Sr. and Annie King Gott. His father was an engineer on the N & W Railroad. He married Julletta B. Hale of Hale’s Dairy in January, 1946.
John worked for the N & W Railroad prior to the start of WWII. He joined the Navy after Pearl Harbor. His career included serving in the Pacific with Bull Hulsey. He was on Secretary of Defense James Forrestal’s staff shortly after the war and worked in Naval Attache with Chaing Kai-shek in Formosa. John also appeared in the Navy TV show “Navy Log” about JFK and his PT109. His career included PT boats, LST’s, cargo, supply, and MSO’s. He retired from the Navy in 1964 and entered Civil Service at the Naval Supply Center at Charleston, SC. He retired in 1979 with 37 years of service to the U.S. Navy.
John and Julletta lived in Charleston, SC from 1958 to 1989 when they moved to Pensacola. Julletta later passed away in 2004.
Survivors include sons, John (Katie) Gott of Cedar Park, TX, and Andy (Linda) Gott of Molino; grandchildren, Annie Gott of Cedar Park, TX, and Neal and Ashley Gott of Pensacola; sister, Juanita Gott Devore of Clearfield, UT; numerous nieces and nephews.
Trahan Family Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Graveside service and interment will be held at 11:45 a.m. on Friday, January 14, 2011, at Barrancas National Cemetery. There will be a celebration of his life at his son’s home in Molino after the services.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the local SPCA.
Cantonment Man Among 3 Injured In Crash That Shut Down I-10
January 10, 2011
A Cantonment man was among four people in a three vehicle crash this morning that shut down I-10 near Milton.
The Florida Highway Patrol said Oscar Campbell, 37, of Navarre was westbound on I-10 at 6:10 a.m. when he lost control while changing lanes to avoid a slow moving vehicle. His vehicle overturned in the median and continued into the lanes of oncoming eastbound traffic. That’s where Campbell’s vehicle was struck by a Nissan Altima driven by Roosevelt Davis, 34, of Cantonment, and a 2001 Saturn driven by Douglas Hansen, 40, of Pensacola.
Campbell and his passenger, Dana Wooley, 38, of Ft. Walton Beach, were transported to Sacred Heart Hospital with minor injuries. Davis also received minor injuries and was transported to Sacred Heart. Hansen was not injured.
Campbell was charged with careless driving by the Florida Highway Patrol.