Youth On A Mission
August 5, 2012
Youth from a Texas church teamed up with youth from a Molino church last week on a mission to make an impact across Escambia County.
Over 100 youth and their adult leaders from Highland Baptist Church in Molino and Friendship Baptist Church of Cleburne, TX, worked together and served in “Mission Molino” from Molino to Pensacola Beach.
For a photo gallery, click here.
On the first day of Mission Molino, the youth teamed up with Barefoot Ministries of Gulf Shores at Pensacola Beach. The youth passed out free water with Gospel tracts, gave away free Bibles and New Testaments, shared the Gospel with salvation bracelets, painted faces and even held a Bible story sand sculpting contest.
The second day of Mission Molino saw the youth working at Molino Park Elementary School. They help prepare the campus for the first day of school by moving items, cleaning, sweeping, washing windows, pulling weeds and many other tasks to prepare Molino Park for the return of students.
One the third day, the youth worked at the homes of widowed and elderly residents around Molino. The youth performed yard work, planted flowers, trimmed trees and shrubs and more.
Mission Molino concluded with the Highland members showing their Texas friends some of the local sites — Ft. Pickens and the Naval Aviation Museum, along with some beach fun — including a Beach baptism service.
Each evening of the week, the students enjoyed a meal prepared by Highland volunteers and a time of worship.
Pictured top: Mission Molino students work to beautify the campus at Molino Park Elementary School. Pictured inset: The students worked around the homes of elderly community members. Pictured below: Mission Molino students at Pensacola Beach. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century To Hold Fair Housing Workshop Monday
August 5, 2012
The Town of Century will hold a fair housing information workshop in conjunction with a regular town council meeting Monday night.
The workshop and council meeting will begin at 7 p.m at the Century Town Hall, 7995 North Century Boulevard.
For more information, call Leslie Gonzalez at (850) 256-3208.
Flomaton Lions Flip Pancakes For School Uniforms
August 5, 2012
The Flomaton Lions Club is turning pancakes into dollars to purchase school uniforms for needy Flomaton students. The club will present a check for uniforms following a pancake supper fund raiser. The supper was coordinated by the Flomaton Lions Club and new LEO Club at Flomaton High School. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Exempt Olympians From Taxes On Their Gold Medals?
August 5, 2012
Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) has introduced The Olympic Tax Elimination Act, a bill that would exempt U.S. Olympic medal winners from paying taxes on their hard-earned medals. Currently, Olympians who win medals also receive honorariums in the form of cash payments of $25,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze, with the IRS collecting taxes on these amounts.
“Our tax code is a complicated and burdensome mess that too often punishes success, and the tax imposed on Olympic medal winners is a classic example of this madness,” said Rubio. “Athletes representing our nation overseas in the Olympics shouldn’t have to worry about an extra tax bill waiting for them back home.
“We need a fundamental overhaul of our tax code, but we shouldn’t wait any time we have a chance to aggressively fix ridiculous tax laws like this tax on Olympians’ medals and prize money,” he added. “We can all agree that these Olympians who dedicate their lives to athletic excellence should not be punished when they achieve it.”
The Olympic Tax Elimination Act, would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to eliminate the tax on Olympic medals and prize money won by United States athletes. If enacted into law, the gross income of Olympic athletes “shall not include the value of any prize or award won by the taxpayer in athletic competition in the Olympic Games.” This would apply to prizes and awards received after December 31, 2011.
Michael Phelps Ends Olympic Career With 18th Gold, 22nd Medal
August 5, 2012
American superstar swimmer Michael Phelps closed out his brilliant career with a gold medal, swimming the butterfly leg of the victorious U.S. men’s 4×100 meter medley relay team.
It was the final race in the pool at these Summer Games and gave Phelps a remarkable all-time Olympics career record of 18 gold medals among his remarkable 22 total. No one else has more than nine golds.
“Through the ups and downs through my career, I’ve still been able to do everything that I’ve wanted to accomplish. And I’ve been able to do things that nobody has ever done, and that’s been something I’ve always I wanted to do,” he said.
The previous all-time total for Olympic medals was 18 held by former Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina.
At his post-race news conference, Phelps was asked how he would describe his place in Olympic history, and he shared a conversation he had with longtime coach Bob Bowman.
“I was in the warm-down pool and I said to Bob, I’ve looked up to Michael Jordan my whole life because he’s done something that no one has ever done and he is the greatest basketball player to ever play the game,” he said. “And I said, ‘you know what, I’ve been able to become the best swimmer of all-time, and we got here together.’ And I thanked him. And it was funny, when I got out of the pool, he was like, ‘that’s not fair.’ And I said, ‘What’s not fair about it?’ And he goes, ‘you were in the pool. I was like ‘yeah, my tears could hide behind my goggles. Yours are streaming down your face.’”
At age 27, Michael Phelps says he is done with competitive swimming.
At age 17, Missy Franklin is the rising star of the U.S. women’s swim team. She captured her fourth gold medal of the Olympics by helping lead the U.S. to victory in the women’s 4×100 meter medley relay. The quartet posted a time of 3:52.05 seconds, breaking the world record set by China in 2009 by .14 seconds.
The U.S. women gave each other a big group hug on the pool deck after the win, and Franklin said they were almost at a loss for words.
“I don’t really think we said anything. I think just that hug said it all, just being together and being in each other’s arms and knowing that it was done and our Olympic experience of 2012 was over. And we couldn’t be more happy with how we finished it, just knowing that we were all there together, just savoring that moment of being world record holders and gold medalists for our country,” she said.
The other world record on the final night came in the men’s 1,500 meter freestyle, China’s Sun Yang clocked 14:31.02, bettering his own mark of last year (14:34.14) by more than three seconds.
The gold medal in the men’s 50 meter freestyle went to Dutchman Ranomi Kromowidjojo.
The United States dominated the London Olympics swimming competition. The American men’s and women’s teams each won eight gold medals, or half of the races contested. Together they won 30 total medals of the 96 handed out. Seventeen countries in all won swimming medals.
There are still two more swimming contests, but they are the 10-kilometer marathon events that take place in open water. The women compete Thursday and the men on Friday.
Track & Field in Full Swing
Meanwhile, British runner Mo Farah has won the 10,000-meters competition, holding off American training partner Galen Rupp and Ethiopia’s Tariku Bekele, who finished third.
Earlier, a packed track and field stadium roared as Briton Jessica Ennis clinched the heptathlon competition with a win in the 800 meters. Britain’s medal tally places it third in the overall standings, behind the United States and China.
History Making
South Africa’s Oscar Pistorius also strode into Olympic history Saturday, becoming the first amputee runner to compete in the Games.
Pistorius, who wears special prosthetics on both legs, finished second in a preliminary heat of the men’s 400 meters. He qualified for the semi-finals.
Jamaica’s Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce retained her Olympic title by winning the gold medal in the women’s 100-meter race. She clocked 10.75 seconds to beat American Carmelita Jeter, who crossed the finish line at 10.78 seconds. Jamaica’s Veronica Campbell-Brown took the bronze in 10.81.
[VOA]
Stars Answer Wahoos Rally
August 5, 2012
In a game that only had two combined runs through the first 10 innings, nine runs were scored in the 11th by the Pensacola Blue Wahoos and Huntsville Stars combined. The Stars plated five of those in the bottom of the inning to down the Blue Wahoos 6-5 at Joe Davis Stadium in Huntsville, Ala. on Saturday night. After the Wahoos plated four in the top of the inning, including two on a pinch-hit home run by Andrew Means, the Stars plated five capped by a three-run walk-off home run by Hunter Morris. It was his 21st home run of the season.
The Wahoos claimed an early 1-0 lead when Beau Mills doubled home Josh Fellhauer in the top of the first inning. It stayed that way until the seventh.
The Stars put together several threats against Blue Wahoos starter Tony Cingrani through his five innings of work, but the lefty was finished after five scoreless frames and more than 100 pitches. He walked four and fanned four while giving up four hits but he kept the Stars scoreless. He didn’t end up factoring into the decision.
Drew Hayes took over in the sixth and worked a perfect inning. In the seventh, T.J. Mittelstaedt blasted a pinch-hit solo home run over the right field fence off Hayes to tie the game at 1-1.
The two teams traded zeros until Pensacola’s four-run 11th. It all started with a two-out single by Brodie Greene to keep the inning going. He stole second base, which allowed him to score on a single by Tucker Barnhart breaking the 1-1 deadlock. A batter later, Means blasted his pinch-hit homer to left extending the lead to 4-1. Billy Hamilton followed with a base hit and advanced around the bases on a series of three throwing errors by the Stars to make it 5-1.
Huntsville answered in the bottom of the inning. It all started with a leadoff walk to pinch hitter Adam Weisenburger. After a strikeout, Mittelstaedt singled home Weisenburger to make it a three-run game. Josh Prince and Jean Segura followed with back-to-back singles plating Mittelstaedt. With runners at first and second, Morris hammered the game winner over the left-center field wall giving the Stars the 6-5 win to even the series at a game apiece.
Despite allowing all four Blue Wahoos runs in the 11th, Kyle Heckathorn (4-10) was credited with the win. Of the four runs he allowed, three were earned. Mark Serrano (6-4) allowed all five Stars runs in the 11th to suffer the loss.
Greene’s hit in the 11th was his third hit of the game closing out a 3-for-4 game. Fellhauer (2-for5) and Barnhart (2-for-4) also contributed a pair of hits in the contest.
The two squads will square off in the third game of the series on Sunday. RHP Kyle Lotzkar (4-5, 5.30) will take the hill for Pensacola against RHP Josh Stinson (11-6, 3.25) for Huntsville. First pitch is set for 4:03 p.m. from Joe Davis Stadium in Huntsville.
By Tommy Thrall
Photo by Chris Nelson for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Locals Residents Place In Bushwacker 5K Run/Walk
August 5, 2012
Several North Escambia residents ran or walked the Bushwacker 5K Saturday on Pensacola Beach.
There were 1301 finishers – 616 male and 685 female.
North Escambia area finishers were:
- 19 – Tyler Hartley , Cantonment – 18:49:00
- 33 – Roderick Brown , Cantonment – 43:49:00
- 34 – Kathy Brown , Cantonment – 43:49:00
- 35 – Randy Aufrance , Cantonment – 43:50:00
- 60 – Cody Wolfe , Jay – 21:30:00
- 64 – Teresa Bryan , Cantonment – 47:33:00
- 86 – Kathy Howard , Cantonment – 50:39:00
- 95 – Erin Brewster , Cantonment – 51:20:00
- 100 – Valisa Hedgepeth , Molino – 51:39:00
- 101 – Hillary Smith , Jay – 51:40:00
- 112 – Brandy Hart , Cantonment – 52:56:00
- 128 – Brandy Hendrix , Cantonment – 55:53:00
- 141 – Jan Hondzinski , Jay – 57:27:00
- 151 – Caty Andrews , Cantonment – 58:08:00
- 153 – Lindsey Roberts , Atmore – 58:19:00
- 163 – Christi Erickson , Cantonment – 1:03:21
- 164 – Ami Dowell , Cantonment – 1:03:56
- 256 – Randall Kelley , Jay – 26:39:00
- 479 – Heather Johnson , Atmore – 29:59:00
- 485 – Jake Bondurant , Atmore – 30:03:00
- 514 – Katie Hagensick , Cantonment – 30:36:00
- 525 – Aaron Chatraw , Cantonment – 30:57:00
- 529 – Shirley Raney , Jay – 30:59:00
- 530 – Beth Anne Whitfield , Jay – 31:00:00
- 538 – Anthony Starling , Jay – 31:09:00
- 582 – Katie Smith , Atmore – 32:08:00
- 626 – Mary Henke , Cantonment – 32:56:00
- 649 – Jay Wright , Molino – 33:13:00
- 693 – Amy Knight , Atmore – 34:04:00
- 717 – D Floyd , Molino – 34:32:00
- 742 — Buck Lowery , Jay — 35:12:00
- 748 — Lisa May , Jay — 35:21:00
- 756 — Madison Whitfield , Jay — 35:30:00
- 787 — Robert Bath , Molino — 35:59:00
- 813 — Regan Howard , Cantonment — 36:42:00
- 826 — Jade Brown , Cantonment — 36:59:00
- 827 — Richard Howard , Cantonment — 37:00:00
- 831 — Molly Fore , Flomaton — 37:06:00
- 848 — Robyn Hoffman , Cantonment — 37:36:00
- 880 — Lori Eddins , Cantonment — 38:40:00
- 882 — Brian Smith , Atmore — 38:42:00
- 891 — Stephanie Godfrey , Cantonment — 39:01:00
- 935 — Miranda Roberts , Jay — 41:02:00
- 937 — Kayla Wilson , Jay — 41:03:00
- 938 — Britney Phillips , Jay — 41:03:00
- 941 — Krista Boughton , Jay — 41:06:00
- 942 — Julie Roberts , Jay — 41:06:00
- 962 — Kim Golden , Cantonment — 42:04:00
- 994 — MacEe Anders , Jay — 43:19:00
- 1022 — Lisa Sellers , Jay — 45:19:00
- 1110 — Brian Fermin , Cantonment — 51:29:00
- 1113 — Kimberly Thomas , McDavid — 51:50:00
- 1114 — Amber Andrews , Cantonment — 51:50:00
- 1133 — Jessica Gordon , Cantonment — 59:07:00
Final Day: Sales Tax Holiday In Florida And Alabama
August 5, 2012
School sales tax holiday weekends giving shoppers a chance to save a bit on clothing and school supplies end at midnight in both Alabama and Florida
Florida’s sales tax holiday means no tax on purchases of clothing, footwear and certain accessories selling for $75 or less, or on certain school supplies that are $15 or less. For complete information, click here (pdf).
Alabama’s sales tax holiday offers no state sales tax on clothing, footwear and certain accessories selling for $75 or less, or on certain school supplies that are $15 or less. Note that Atmore will not participate in the sales tax holiday and will still charge local sales tax. For a list of exempt items in Alabama, click here (pdf).
Extension Farm Field Day Planned
August 5, 2012
An Extension Farm Field Day will be held next week in Jay.
The University of Florida, West Florida Research and Education Center in conjunction with the Santa Rosa County and Escambia County Extension Service will host the Extension Farm Field Day on Tuesday, August 14, 2012, at the Jay Research Facility located at 4253 Experiment Road.
Field Day topics will include peanut and cotton varieties, cotton disease management, subsurface drip irrigation and fertigation, bio-energy, climatology, peanut disease management, weed management, and soil sample strategies.
Registration will begin at 8 a.m. followed the research tour at 8:30. There will be a catered lunch at noon. CCA and CEU credits are available.
For more information, contact Robin Vickers at (850) 983-5216 ext. 113 or visit miltongators.com.
Wreck Near Atmore Claims Life Of Flomaton Man; Man Dies In Jay Road Crash
August 4, 2012
Two people were killed in separate traffic accidents Friday in Escambia County, Alabama
Wreck Near Atmore Claims Life
At Flomaton man was killed in a wreck north of Atmore Friday night.
The near head-on collision happened about 10:30 p.m. on Highway 21 near Fountain Prison. According to the Alabama State Troopers, 46-year old Eddie Wayne Gregson was killed when his 1991 Chevrolet van collided with a 2002 Ford driven by Bonita Montalvo of Atmore.
Gregson was pronounced deceased at the scene. Montalvo was transported to Baptist Hospital in Pensacola by LifeFlight in critical condition.
The accident remains under investigation by Alabama State Troopers.
Man Dies In Jay Road Crash
A single vehicle accident near the Alabama/Florida line claimed the life of a Brewton man Friday afternoon.
The accident happened just after 3 p.m. on Jay Road in Escambia County, Ala.
Authorities said 61-year old Kenneth Ray Thomas of Brewton was pronounced deceased at the scene of the crash, just a short distance from his home. He lost control of his Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck, ran off the roadway and struck a tree.
The accident remains under investigation by Alabama State Troopers.