Former Walnut Hill Resident Dies In Louisiana ATV Crash
January 9, 2012
A former Walnut Hill resident died Sunday in a Louisiana crash involving a pickup and the ATV on which he was riding.
According to the Louisiana State Police, 36-year old Phillip Burt Victor Jr. of Wisner, LA, died in the crash about 9:30 a.m. in Harrisonburg, LA.
According to troopers, the crash was between a 1999 Ford pickup, driven by 48-year-old David W. Carroll of Grayson, LA, and an ATV driven by 42-year-old William R. McKenzie of Wisner. Troopers said the ATV and the Ford were traveling in opposite directions when they collided on Old Columbia Road near Louisiana Highway 124. Following the crash, the pickup ran over the top of the ATV and overturned. Both vehicles caught on fire.
Victor and McKenzie were both ejected from the ATV and were pronounced dead on the scene. The pickup driver was not injured.
The crash is still under investigation by the Louisiana State Police.
Victor was a 1995 Ernest Ward High School graduate. Funeral arrangements at Petty Funeral Home in Atmore are incomplete.
Lenora Walker Harrelson
January 9, 2012
Mrs. Lenora Walker Harrelson, 52, passed away on Friday, January 6, 2012, at a Baldwin County hospital.
Mrs. Harrelson was a native and resident of Atmore and a former resident of Bratt. She was the second Poarch Creek Indian Princess in 1972 and attended the Baptist church.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Lawrence and Reva Walker; her grandparents, Fred and Lula Walker and Riley and Cora McGhee; and two brothers, David Nellums and Lavar Walker.
She is survived by her husband, Danny Lamar Harrelson of Andalusia; a son, Timothy Bartley of Andalusia; two stepsons, Danny McCorry of Atmore and David McCorry of Milton; a daughter, Heather Bartley Pettie of Andalusia; six grandchildren; a brother, Tony Walker of Atmore; and five sisters, Sharon Peebles of Atmore, Darlene Hitchcock of Bratt, JoAnn Nellums Boutwell of Perdido, AL, Donna Sue Marquett of Apache Junction, AZ, and Carol Jean Mercer of Pensacola.
Funeral services will be Tuesday, January 10 2012, at 3 p.m. at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home with the Rev. William Rolin officiating..
Burial will follow at the Judson/Creek Indian Cemetery.
Visitation will be Monday, January 9, 2012, between 6-0 p.m. at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home
Pallbearers will be Donny Hitchcock, Ricky Harrelson, Anthony Peebles, Matthew Walker, Sam Hitchcock and Wesley Woodruff.
Thomas (Thom) James Barrow
January 9, 2012
Thomas (Thom) James Barrow, age 66, of Jay passed away on Saturday, January 7, 2012.
Thom was born in Crestview and had lived in Jay for the past 43 years. His life’s careers have been the U.S. Navy, the Florida Highway Patrol, oil field business, and as a Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s deputy.
Thom loved serving our community and has helped many people over the years. He loved animals of any kind and hated to see any of them or anyone mistreated. Thom also loved bird hunting, fishing and the outdoors.
Thom was preceded in death by his father, Fred Barrow; mother, Mazie Chessher Barrow; brother, James Van Barrow; and brother-in-law, Norman Despaux.
Thom is survived by his wife of 32 years, Victoria Davis Barrow; sons Jeffrey Barrow, wife Kathy, and their sons Jason and Jeremy; son, Jamie Barrow, wife Angie, and their children Jamie, Jr.; Dustin; Josh; Katie; Travis; and Lilly; son, Joey Barrow, wife Tina, and their sons Matthew and Josh; son, Jay Barrow and their son Scott; son, Frederick Barrow, wife Jeanna, and their children Kendall, Grant, and Mackenna; daughter, Jennifer Barrow Ashworth, husband Rodney, and their son Garrett and mother of Jeff, Jamie, Joey, and Jennifer; Joan Barrow; brother, Robert Barrow (Margot), Mobile, AL; sister, Margaret Despaux, Crestview; brother, Johnny Barrow (Mary Jane), Crestview; sister, Bobby Tunstall (Bob), Zachary, LA; brother, Bill Barrow (Carol), Kansas City, MO; sister-in-law, Hazel Barrow, Jay; brother-in-law, Buddy Davis (Toni), Crestview; aunt Wiona Barrow; cousin Maxie Barrow; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A visitation will be held on Tuesday, January 10, 2012, from 6-8:30 p.m. at Jay Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, January 11, 2012, at 2 p.m. at Jay Funeral Home with son and pastor, Frederick Barrow officiating services.
Pallbearers are grandsons Jason, Jeremy, Jamie Jr., Dustin, Josh, Travis, Matthew, Josh, Scott, Grant, and Garrett.
Honorary Pallbearers are Maxie Barrow, Joe Max Linzy, Jim Spencer, A.J. Davis, Paul Adams, Joe McCurdy, Jabo Jernigan, Cecil Phillips, Donald Cobb, and Shorty Floyd.
The family would like to extend a special thanks to Century Care Center, Jay Hospital, Covenant Hospice, Dr. Lance Raney, and especially Dr. C. David Smith for 32 years of going above and beyond his professional duties.
Jay Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Legislative Session Preview: Health Care Under The Knife Again
January 9, 2012
By now, it’s a familiar scene: As Florida lawmakers deal with a budget shortfall, hospitals, nursing homes and other health providers scramble to fend off — or brace for — funding cuts.
The 2012 legislative session will be no different.
Already, Gov. Rick Scott has proposed deep cuts in Medicaid payments to hospitals, as he tries to free up money to boost spending on public schools. And while it’s too early to know whether lawmakers will go along with Scott’s proposal, they are almost certain to make cuts in health and human-services programs.
Hospitals, nursing homes and numerous other programs say they have been hammered by cuts during the past few years. The debate during the session, which starts Tuesday, will focus on where further cuts will be made — and by how much.
“Nursing homes have been hit with a tsunami of funding cuts to our Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements over the past six months,” Emmett Reed, executive director of the Florida Health Care Association, said this week in a document outlining the nursing-home group’s session priorities. “If we see more cuts this session, many facilities will have to make difficult decisions which could restrict further access to care; our state’s seniors deserve better.”
The budget likely will be the biggest health and human-services issue during the 2012 session. But lawmakers and industry groups also are preparing for debates about other high-profile issues, such as revamping the personal-injury protection auto insurance system and shielding doctors from medical-malpractice lawsuits.
Lawmakers focused heavily last year on approving a plan to overhaul Medicaid and move to a statewide managed-care system. That plan is undergoing a lengthy federal review, so it appears unlikely to play a major role during the 2012 session.
Florida’s budget has faced repeated shortfalls as the struggling economy has limited the amount of tax dollars flowing into the state. The shortfall for the 2012-13 fiscal year could be up to $2 billion, though estimates vary because of issues such as how much money lawmakers decide to put in reserves.
Republican leaders have long complained that growth in the Medicaid program is sucking up dollars that could be used for other priorities such as education. As a result, they have looked each year at ways to trim health and human-services spending, which is dominated by Medicaid.
Scott’s budget proposal, released last month, would make dramatic changes in Medicaid funding for hospitals. The key part of the proposal would seek to end widely varying Medicaid payment rates for hospitals and would cut about $1.8 billion, part of which would be used to help increase school funding.
Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, has indicated support for the broad concept of reducing differences in the amounts hospitals get paid to care for Medicaid patients.
“I think everyone would agree, if people are doing similar work in similar circumstances, their reimbursement should be similar,” Haridopolos said recently.
But the extent of the potential hospital cuts has raised concerns from lawmakers ranging from Senate Rules Chairman John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, to Senate Minority Leader Nan Rich, D-Weston. Rich, in part, objected to what she described as “pitting education versus health care.”
Even if lawmakers don’t go along with Scott’s proposal, however, they likely will make cuts in health and human-services spending. During the 2011 session, for example, they chopped Medicaid rates for hospitals and nursing homes to help balance the budget.
Senate Health and Human Services Appropriations Chairman Joe Negron, R-Stuart, said he supports the idea of moving money from health programs to education. In the past, he has backed controversial ideas such as trimming money for adult substance-abuse and mental-health services and for the Medically Needy program, which provides care to people with debilitating illnesses who don’t qualify for Medicaid.
While trying to fend off budget cuts, health-industry groups also will closely watch major regulatory and legal issues. For instance, proposals to try to reduce fraud in the so-called “PIP” auto-insurance system could affect a wide range of health providers, including doctors, hospitals and chiropractors.
Also, groups such as the Florida Medical Association and Florida Hospital Association are calling for new limits on medical-malpractice lawsuits.
Rep. Jimmy Patronis, R-Panama City, filed a bill (HB 1233) this week that likely would make far-reaching changes in the malpractice system. That bill would set up a completely new system for handling medical-injury claims, somewhat akin to the way workers-compensation claims are handled.
Meanwhile, House and Senate members have filed bills that would help shield emergency-room doctors and workers from costly malpractice lawsuits. Those bills would extend a legal protection known as sovereign immunity, which typically is reserved for government agencies, to emergency providers.
If the medical-malpractice bills move forward, they are almost guaranteed to run into fierce opposition from lawyers who represent injured patients. But in documents outlining their priorities for the session, both the Florida Medical Association and the Florida Hospital Association said they backed extending sovereign immunity.
By The News Service of Florida
Houston Leroy Lawrence
January 9, 2012
Mr. Houston Leroy Lawrence, age 70, passed away Tuesday, January 3, 2012, in a Houston hospital.
Mr. Lawrence was born in Flomaton and had lived in the Houston area since 1995 coming from Pensacola. He had been a meat cutter for Delchamps in Pensacola for a number of years. Mr. Lawrence was of the Baptist faith.
He is survived by three sons, Donald (Linda) Lawrence, Joey Lawrence and Johnny Lawrence, all of Pensacola; two daughters, Lisa (Curt) Conley of Newport Richie, FL, and Tammy (Daniel) Mabrie of Milton; two brothers, Robert Lawrence of Houston and James Lawrence of Cantonment; three sisters, Maggie, Betty Jean, and Callie, all of Pensacola; seven grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, January 11, 2012, at 1 p.m. from the chapel of Craver’s Funeral Home with Pastor Jimmy Lancaster officiating. Interment will follow in Hillcrest Cemetery in Pollard, AL.
Visitation will be held on Wednesday from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. service time at Craver’s Funeral Home.
Cantonment Company Expanding, Hiring 15 Employees
January 9, 2012
A Cantonment based manufacturing company is expanding with a new Pensacola location, and they are looking to hire 15 people.
Custom Control Solutions will cut the ribbon January 27 for a location at 9165 Roe Street.
Headquartered at 1520 Power Boulevard in Contonment, CCS designs and builds analyzer systems, industrial control systems, instrument cabinets and system integration services. One of the company’s largest and most competitive markets is “building industrial equipment buildings.
Currently, CCS outsources the fabrication of these buildings, but through this project – a $520,000 community investment — the company plans to construct them at its new facility in Pensacola.
The company’s headquarters will remain in Cantonment.
“We are establishing manufacturing and service centers in the Pensacola area to serve industrial clients on the East Coast and Gulf States,” explained CCS President Manfred Laner. “CCS is using Pensacola’s available labor pool and is also providing training for candidates who would like to choose a career opportunity in manufacturing and industrial technology.”
For more information on Custom Control Solutions, visit ccsinc-florida.com.
Pictured top: The Cantonment headquarters of Custom Control Solutions. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Highway 29 Convenience Store Robbed, Clerk Beat With Gun
January 8, 2012
A Cantonment convenience store was robbed Saturday night by a man that beat the clerk with a handgun.
The holdup alarm came in about 10:35 p.m. at the CMP Food Mart at the corner of North Highway 29 and Beck’s Lake Road.
A black male dressed in all black entered the store about 10:35 p.m., jumped over the counter and tried to get into the register. When he was unable to open the register, he beat the clerk with the gun to force him to open the cash drawer. The bandit then fled on foot in an unknown direction.
The clerk was transported by Escambia County EMS to a Pensacola hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Deputies set up a perimeter and a K-9 unit was called to the scene to search for a suspect., but deputies were unable to locate him. Anyone with information on the burglary is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Pictured: The CMP Food Mart in Cantonment as seen Saturday morning. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Evers: Repeal Septic Tank Inspections, Ethanol And Real ID
January 8, 2012
As the 2012 Legislative Session gets underway Tuesday in Tallahassee, Sen. Greg Evers has set several priorities.
Top priorities, Evers said, are constitutional obligations of passing a sound, balanced budget, and redrawing the lines of the state’s Congressional, House and Senate districts.
“Once our constitutional obligations are fulfilled, I will focus my efforts on our community’s needs and help to revive Florida’s economy and workforce by reducing over-burdomsome government regulations, fees and taxes,” Evers said.
One of Evers’ bills would eliminate a law passed in 2010 that requires the Florida Department of Health to create and administer a statewide septic tank evaluation program that would see every tank inspected every five years at the owner’s expense.
“I will continue to fight to get this bill passed to lessen the unnecessary and expensive burden on residents who are held financially responsible for the inspections every 5 years,” he said.
Another bill would repeal the “Florida Renewable Fuel Standard Act,” passed in 2008, that mandates ethanol be included in all gasoline for sale.
“I filed this important bill to allow for consumer choice and in response to the many of you who told me you were concerned about costly repairs or replacements of marine and small engines related to damage caused by ethanol gasoline,” the Baker Republican said.
Evers has also set his sights on repealing or changing vehicle and driver’s license laws during the 2012 Legislative Session.
The “”Florida Driver’s License Citizen Protection Act” would repeal the Real ID Law, making for a less tedious process for citizens to renew or modify their driver’s license or ID card. Evers is also calling for a repeal of the law that allows the use of red light cameras to ticket drivers.
And, Evers said he intends to file a bill that will roll back the cost of renewing vehicle registrations to previous levels.
“This should provide additional relief for families who are struggling to make ends meet,” he said.
Pictured: The old and new Florida Capital buildings in Tallahassee. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Pedestrian Struck, Killed By 90 Year Old Driver
January 8, 2012
A pedestrian was struck and killed Friday night in Escambia County.
Police said 90-year old Clyde Eddins was southbound on Ninth Avenue near Creighton Road in a 2011 Jeep Cherokee when a male pedestrian stepped into his path. The pedestrian was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital were he passed away Saturday. His identity has not been released pending notification of next of kin.
No charges have been filed.
Rain Chances Increasing
January 8, 2012
Rain chances will increase over the next few days. Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Tonight: A 40 percent chance of showers. Areas of fog after midnight. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 55. South wind around 5 mph.
- Monday: Patchy dense fog in the morning. Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms all day. Highs in the mid 70s. South winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40 percent.
- Monday Night: Cloudy. Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 50s. Southeast winds around 5 mph. Chance of rain 40 percent.
- Tuesday: Numerous showers in the morning. Isolated thunderstorms all day. Widespread showers in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 60s. East winds 5 to 10 mph becoming southeast 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon. Chance of rain 90 percent.
- Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy. Numerous showers in the evening. Isolated thunderstorms all night. Scattered showers after midnight. Lows in the mid 50s. Southeast winds 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 70 percent.
- Wednesday: Mostly sunny. Isolated showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 60s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
- Wednesday Night: Cooler. Mostly clear. Lows in the mid 40s.
- Thursday: Sunny. Highs in the upper 50s.
- Thursday Night: Colder. Mostly clear. Lows in the upper 20s.
- Friday: Sunny. Highs in the mid 50s.
- Friday Night: Partly cloudy. Isolated showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the upper 20s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
- Saturday: Sunny. Highs in the upper 50s.
- Saturday Night: Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 30s.
- Sunday: Sunny. Highs around 60.