Search Continues For Melinda Wall McGhee, Missing For Nine Years
March 26, 2012
Nine years ago the morning of March 24, something went terribly wrong at a home on Kent Road north of Atmore. Melinda Wall McGhee, then 31, returned to her home about 8 a.m. after working the night shift as a nurse at a Bay Minette nursing home.
Her husband, Troy McGhee, was at work at Masland Carpets in Atmore. Their two children were at a babysitter, and Troy’s son from a previous relationship was at a dentist’s office. At about 8:30 the morning of March 24, 2003, Melinda McGhee spoke to her mother on the phone. It was the last time anyone known to Melinda would ever hear from her.
At about 4:00 that afternoon, husband Troy came home to find Melinda missing. There was blood and evidence of a violent struggle inside the home. He reported his wife missing.
Melinda’s vehicle was found parked near the house with her keys locked inside. Her purse and cellular phone were inside the residence. Foul play is suspected in her disappearance.
Over the years, there have been several searches for Melinda’s body or clues into the circumstances surrounding her disappearance.
In March 2009, authorities searched an area off Perry Lane in Wawbeek for clues in Melinda’s disappearance. Perry Lane is about a mile north of Highway 31 off Sardis Church Road near Old Atmore Road. The location is about three miles north of the Florida/Alabama line . On the last day of January 2009, authorities searched a water-filled gravel pit off Jack Springs Roads near the Judson Cemetery between Atmore and Poarch. All of the searches have turned up empty.
Anyone with information on McGhee’s disappearance is asked to call the Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff’s Department at (251) 809-0741 or their local law enforcement agency.
Pictured above: Two photos of Melinda Wall McGhee who went missing in March 2003.
Ransom FFA Participates In FFA Livestock Event
March 26, 2012
The Ransom Middle School FFA Chapter Livestock Team recently participated in the Florida FFA Livestock Career Development Event (CDE) at the Central Florida Fair in Orlando.
The team included Anabella Garcia, Patra Miller, Connor Groff, and Alexis Hoskins.
Fifty-five teams from throughout Florida gathered to compete for the top spot. The purpose of the Middle School Livestock Evaluation CDE is to stimulate learning activities related to the production and marketing of cattle, swine and other livestock.
Ransom was the only team from Escambia County to participate in this event.
Learn To Do Business With ECUA Workshop
March 26, 2012
The Emerald Coast Utilities Authority will host a a “how to do business” this week.
The informational meeting will educate attendees about the potential of doing business with the ECUA, while increasing participation in obtaining future ECUA contracts. There will also be a discussion about the new requirements for payment and performance bonds. Attendees will also learn about the bidding process, qualification requirements, future business opportunities, and how the ECUA hiring process is conducted.
ECUA speakers will include Bill Johnson, director of engineering, Peter Wilkinson, purchasing and store manager, Lydia Fortin, representative of human resources and administrative services, and Mountie Bedford, MBE Underwriting.
The event will take place Thursday, March 29 from 6-7:30 p.m. at the the Sanders Beach-Corinne Jones Resource Center, 913 South “I” Street in Pensacola.
No Injuries In Highway 97 Rollover Crash; Close Call For Homeowner
March 25, 2012
There were no injuries in a single vehicle crash Sunday afternoon on Highway 97 in Walnut Hill that may have been a very close call for a homeowner.
The accident happened about 2:30 p.m. just south of Arthur Brown Road and Ernest Ward Middle School. The driver of a Chevrolet Impala was northbound on Highway 97 when he lost control, ran off the road, hit a driveway, struck a mailbox and overturned into the front yard of a home. The driver was not injured; there were no passengers in the vehicle. The driver said he lost control due a smaller spare tire on the front of the vehicle.
The homeowner said she had just returned from the store with flowers that she just was moments away from planting around the mailbox.
The accident is under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.
Pictured above: There were no injuries in this single vehicle wreck Sunday afternoon on Highway 97 in Walnut Hill. Pictured left inset: The homeowner had just returned from the store with flowers to plant around this mailbox when the crash occurred. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Molino Man Dies Following Highway 97 Wreck
March 25, 2012
A Molino man seriously injured in serious Highway 97 wreck late last month has died.
Kenneth Ray Spivey, 71, passed away at a Pensacola hospital. He was involved in a near head-on wreck south of Walnut Hill about 10 p.m. on February 29.
The Florida Highway Patrol said Spivey was southbound in the northbound lane of Highway 97 in a 2010 Chrysler 300 sedan when he collided with a Chevrolet Silverado pickup driven by Guy E. Giancola. Giancola swerved to avoid the impact, but the front left of both vehicles collided.
The car came to rest in the southbound lane of Highway 97; the pickup came to rest in a nearby ditch.
All three people in the crash– two in the pickup and one in the car — were trapped in their vehicles. First responders were forced to use the Jaws of Life to free them.
Giancola and his 63-year old passenger, Gail L. Giancola, were transported to Sacred Heart Hospital in serious condition. Spivey was charged with driving on the wrong side of the roadway, according to the FHP.
For more photos from the scene, click here.
Pictured top: Kenneth Ray Spivey was trapped in this car in a two-vehicle wreck February on Highway 97 near Walnut Hill. Pictured inset and below: Firefighters use the Jaws of Life to free two people from this pickup. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Creative High School Students To Be Honored With MIRA Awards
March 25, 2012
The Escambia County Public Schools Foundation will host the 2012 Mira Creative Arts Awards program on March 29, 2012. Sixty-nine of Escambia County’s most creative high school seniors were selected as recipients of the 2012 Mira Creative Arts Awards. They will be honored at a dinner at New World Landing.
Winners will receive engraved medallions, a book scholarship from Pensacola State College, and memberships from the Pensacola Museum of Art and Artel Gallery.
This year’s Mira Creative Arts Awards winners are:
Northview High School: Jacob Baldwin, Instrumental Music; Joseph Baldwin, Instrumental Music; Josie Doucette, Journalism; Alissa Fiellin, Graphic Art; Cory King, Instrumental Music; Melissa Jayne Moretz, Instrumental Music; Kiani Okahashi, Visual Art; Chelsea Parham, Theatre; Justin Purvis, Theatre; Darwin Eugene (D.J.) Robinson, II, Graphic Arts.
Tate High School: Amber Baker, Drama; Tabetha Champitto, Chorus; Katelyn Clairain, Photography; Jacob Dearrington, Instrumental Music; Adam DiMercurio, Debate; Angela Howard, Chorus; Amanda Alzira Medeiros, Visual Art; Matthew Perez-Rex, Pottery; Chris Snyder, Instrumental Music; Victoria Veith, TV Production.
West Florida High School: Kelli Brock, Instrumental Music; Lexi Buker, Journalism; T. J. Grier, Journalism; Katherine Ledbetter, Visual Art; Coral Elizabeth Molchanoff, Theatre;
Michaela Rodriguez, Instrumental Music; Julia L. Spear, Multimedia/Broadcasting; Hunter Sport, Journalism; Jessica Brooke Touchstone, Drama; Jerrad Dusan Vunovich, Visual Art.
Escambia High: Megan Beebe, Web Design, Instrumental Music; Nike Evers, Visual Arts; Stephen French, Instrumental Music; Brittany Horton, Vocal Music; Laura Krauss, Instrumental Music; Abigail Lord, Journalism; Monique Queen-Smith, Theatre; Andria Quinlan, Digital Multimedia; Morgan Sasser, Theatre; Andrea Marie Ulm, Culinary Art.
Pensacola High School: R. J. Burns, Instrumental Music; Tiffany Chiang, Visual Art; Jessica Grandrup, Instrumental Music; Rachel Hovell, Creative Achievement; Alys Mead, Drama’ Jisung Moon, Creative Writing; Sara Omlor, Visual Art; Aaron Rogers, Instrumental Music; Carson Schmidt, Drama; Danielle K. Telhiard, Photography.
Pine Forest High School: Meagan Desirae Jean Evans, Visual Art; Giselle Collie, Orchestra; Kevin Fails, Instrumental Music; Alexander Daniel Gueits, Journalism; Catherine M. Hobbs, Culinary Arts; Anastasia Larkins, Instrumental Music; Jeremy Nelson, Theatre; Ramel Price, Orchestra; Sara Thomas, Visual Art.
Washington High School: Nicholas C. Bridges, Vocal Music; Chelsey Domschke, Photography; Luke Evans, Drama; Gabriel Friedman, Drama; Gerard Gunner, Instrumental Music; Lindsay Riddle, Drama; Brandon Spencer, Instrumental Music; Luke C. Vest, Visual Art; Marie Videau, Drama; Joycelyn Woods, Instrumental and Vocal Music.
Renee Darlene Girlie
March 25, 2012
Renee Darlene Girlie, 55 of Molino, passed away on March 20, 2012.
Survivors include her husband, Roy; four children, James Barker, Natticha Spencer, Wayne Vaughn, and Charlotte Van Deusen; many grandchildren; mother and father, Eugene and Lennie Ward; and brother, Ronnie (Barbara) Ward.
Funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, March 26, 2012, at the funeral home.
Visitation will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. on Sunday, March 25, 2012, also at the funeral home.
Trahan Family Funeral Home, 419 Yoakum Court, is in charge of arrangements.
Sunny Week Forecast
March 25, 2012
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Tonight: Mostly clear, with a low around 53. North wind between 5 and 10 mph.
- Monday: Sunny, with a high near 81. North wind around 5 mph.
- Monday Night: Patchy fog after 1am. Otherwise, mostly clear, with a low around 54. South wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 83. Calm wind becoming south between 5 and 10 mph.
- Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 53. South wind between 5 and 10 mph becoming calm.
- Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 82. South wind between 5 and 10 mph.
- Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 58. South wind between 5 and 10 mph becoming calm.
- Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 82. Calm wind becoming south between 5 and 10 mph.
- Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 58. South wind between 5 and 10 mph becoming calm.
- Friday: Isolated showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 84. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
- Friday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 58.
- Saturday: Isolated showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 80. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
- Saturday Night: Isolated showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
- Sunday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 81.
Recipe: Magic Crust Custard Pie
March 25, 2012
Sometimes basics are best… and this tasty little custard number from home cook Robyn Witte has all the right ingredients to become a new favorite.
First, its classic vanilla custard flavor and gooey texture just can’t be beat. What’s more, this tasty confection comes together in a snap.
To prepare, simply combine all the ingredients in a blender then pour into a pie pan. The crust forms “magically” as the flour settles to the bottom of the pan during baking. It doesn’t get much easier than that!
Magic Crust Custard Pie
What You Need
- 1/4 cup margarine
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 c white sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 cups 2% milk,
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
Directions
- Put all ingredients into a blender.
- Blend for 30 seconds. Pour into buttered 9-inch pie pan.
- Sprinkle with nutmeg. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. The flour will settle to make its own crust.
Baggett Inducted Into Daughters Of The American Revolution
March 25, 2012
The culmination of about 15 years of research was finalized recently for Vicki Gandy Baggett of Bratt as she was inducted into the Three Rivers Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution.
Baggett’s eligibility for membership was certified by the National Society in Washington, D.C. She was able to prove lineal descent from an ancestor who gave aid to American colonists during the American Revolution. Baggett’s Patriot is Reuben Powell, who served in Georgia. He is on her mother’s side.
“I started researching this about 15 or 16 years ago,” said Baggett. “I had always been told that several of my father’s upline had fought to help found this country during the Revolution. I even had a cousin who had joined under the same lineage; however, when I submitted my paperwork, the national organization halted membership under that particular Patriot because they said he was just too young to serve during the war. I found in so many documents, though, that this Gandy Patriot had falsified his age in order to serve, perhaps in the place of his brother who already had children. I also had such a hard time finding which Gandy I belonged to, because so many of them had the same first name. Many men would name their sons after their brothers and uncles out of respect, especially if the elder were deceased. This was so hard for me to follow. Remember there weren’t any birth certificates back then.”
Baggett added that she decided to try on her mother’s side. “Because my upline on my mother’s side had such unusual first names, tracing the lineage was much easier.” Her American Patriot is seven generations up and served with the Committee on Safety in 1775.
Baggett added that Ms. Rosa Seymour, the Chapter Regent of the Three Rivers DAR Chapter of Milton was instrumental in assisting her in proving lineage. The Three Rivers Chapter was organized in Milton on October 6, 2007, with 82 members, but now has 153 members.
Baggett is an English teacher at Northview High School and attends Poplar Dell Baptist Church. She is also a member of the Order of the Eastern Star Lodge #188 of Century. She and her husband, Garry, have two children, Corry and Lexxi.
Anyone who is interested in proving their American Revolutionary membership can contact Seymour at (850) 477-2019.