Jay Lady Royals Win State Semifinals; State Title Game Tuesday
May 7, 2012
The Jay High School Lady Royals won their Class 1A state semifinal match this afternoon, 7-5 over Port St. Joe.
The 1A final game for the state championship will be played Tuesday at 4 p.m. (CDT). Admission will be $9 per game, with no passes. Live video will be available on NorthEscambia.com for free.
It’s the first trip ever to the state finals in fast pitch softball for the Lady Royals; the last time they went to state in 1988 it was slow pitch.
Pictured: The Jay Lady Royals celebrate their state semifinal win Monday afternoon in Clermont, Florida. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
LIVE VIDEO NOW: Jay Vs. Port St. Joe
May 7, 2012
LIVE video as Jay takes on Port St. Joe in Clermont, Florida. Video courtesy NorthEscambia.com and the FHSAA.
If you do not see the video above, it is because your home, school or work firewall is blocking external videos.
Retired Walnut Hill VFD Chief Robert Stewart Passes Away
May 7, 2012
Retired Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department Chief Robert Stewart passed away Sunday surrounded by loved ones at his home in Bratt after a battle with cancer. He was 62.
Stewart retired as the department’s chief in 2008 after 30 years of service as a volunteer fireman in Bratt and Walnut Hill, the last 15 of those years as chief of the Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department. He retired to spend more time with his grandson “Little Man” and to fight cancer. He later became active again in the department as his health permitted.
Stewart answered his first fire call in 1967 after the formation of the Bratt Volunteer Fire Department. The Walnut Hill Ruritan Club founded the Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department in 1964 and donated a truck to form the Bratt department three years later.
For 10 years, he served the Bratt community as a volunteer fireman until Bratt VFD’s truck finally “wore out”. Walnut Hill and the Atmore Fire Department began answering calls in the Bratt community in 1977.
He was out of a volunteer fire department for about 10 years, until he joined the Walnut Hill VFD in 1987. For 21 straight years, he served the Walnut Hill department — the last 15 of those years as chief.
Visitation will be Tuesday, May 8 from 6-9 p.m. at at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held Wednesday, May 9 at 10 a.m. at at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home. Graveside services will follow at Godwin Cemetery in Bratt.
Reprinted below are portions of an earlier story and interview with Robert Stewart after his retirement.
“1501 enroute”
March 9, 2001, was the beginning of what Stewart said was the most memorable call of his career.
The call was not far from Stewart’s house. It was a single vehicle accident, car versus a tree, on Highway 99 near Oakshade Road. When Stewart arrived, he and the other members of the WHVFD found a small sports car, literally cut in half, two pieces of car on the side of the highway. Inside, the passenger was not seriously injured.
But the driver, a 16-year old local girl, was gravely injured. Her leg was partial severed, a major artery cut. Her situation was worse than serious. In fact, she coded at least twice before arriving at the hospital. “Coded”, as in “code blue”, as in cardiac arrest. But Stewart and the rest of the emergency workers that day worked hard to get this young lady on LifeFlight.
In the end, she lost her leg, but she survived. Today, she’s a healthy, happily married 27-year old mother.
“I’ve been to a lot of bad wrecks,” Stewart said. “Sometime, people die. It’s always a good call when you can help someone that doesn’t die.”
But two words made this wreck different than many for the chief.
“Thank you.”
From death’s door, the young girl was able to return to tell Stewart and the rest of the Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department “thank you”.
“Sometimes they come back to tell you ‘thank you’,” he said. “It makes you feel good, and you know your department has accomplished something, when they came back to thank you.”
There have been others to return to thank the department over the years. But Valerie Baker’s accident just sticks out in Stewart’s memory.
“The ‘thank you’ means a lot, especially when they came to the department and thank everyone,” he said. “It just means a lot.”
“Not a Hero”
Stewart said he doesn’t consider himself a hero. The Walnut Hill volunteers are team, he said, with everyone working together to help the community.
He was labeled a hero at least once. It was another wreck, this one on State Line Road. A car was upside down in a water-filled ditch with three children inside. Stewart was the first on the scene, responding from his nearby home.
“I managed to get the door open and got the three children out of the ditch,” he said. “Their mom called me a hero. I was just doing my job.”
Cat In Tree? Been there, done that. Twice.
It’s a scene that’s usually in a children’s program…the fireman rescues the cute little kitty cat from a tree. But in real life, it’s not exactly so pretty.
One cat-in-a-tree call was on Highway 97 several years ago. 1501 and his wife, Diann Stewart (a.k.a. 1503) responded to the call.
“She ran the ladder up the tree,” he said. “I knew what I was in for. I put on a bunker coat, and gloves before going up to the cat.”
“The ole cat just froze on the tree,” Stewart said with a chuckle. “I needed both hands to peel it off the tree. It stuck like Velcro on that tree. I had to keep peeling that ole cat off the tree.”
The second time Stewart responded to a cat-in-a-tree call, he was perhaps a bit smarter. He sent his son Sam Stewart, also a volunteer fireman, up the tree. This call was at the home of a local pastor. The pastor told them to drop the cat, and drop it Sam did. The can landed on a lower limb of the tree, uninjured.
Scary Stuff
“When my youngins were in school, I did not like it when you’d get a call in the direction they were suppose to be coming from,” he said. “You were always it afraid it was going to be one of yours.”
“When you live up here, you are kin to somebody,” he said. “You always care about who it is.”
A Time To Work, A Time To Play
Stewart was quick to thank all of those that have volunteered with the Walnut Hill VFD over the years. And he expressed his thanks to the other volunteer fire departments in the area the assisted Walnut Hill, as well the county deputies, state troopers and others he worked with for years.
The biggest thanks went to those Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department members, a group he said he always enjoyed being around.
“I had the best bunch of firemen in the county he said, “and when they were done working and got ready to play, I had the biggest bunch of youngins in the county.”
“1501 Completed Assignment”
“It’s hard not to answer a call,” he said. The fire department pager still goes off in the Stewart home, alerting them of emergency calls. Diann remains with the Walnut Hill VFD as an EMT. “After 20 years, it’s hard not to go help someone.”
“I just always tried to help.”
Funeral arrangements for Robert Stewart are incomplete at this time.
Pictured top: Retired Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department Chief Robert Stewart and his grandson Drew (”Little Man”) Kennedy watch from the sidelines at an accident on Pine Barren Road. Pictured top inset: Stewart receives a large plaque with his helmet during a retirement reception. Pictured bottom inset, Stewart is honored by the Walnut Hill VFD. Pictured below: Robert Stewart teaches fire safety to students at Bratt Elementary School in October 2011. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Weekend In Photos
May 7, 2012
If you missed NorthEscambia.com over the weekend, you missed over 425 photos from several community and news events. Click an item below to view the corresponding story and/or photo gallery.
Live Webcast: Jay Lady Royals Seek Semifinal Win Today
May 7, 2012
The Jay Royals will compete in the Class 1A regional semifinals today in high school softball.
The Jay Lady Royals will face Port St. Joe Jr-Sr High at 11 a.m. (CDT) at the National Training Center in Clermont, Florida.. Port St. Joe is coming off a 5-4 regional win over Liberty County. It’s the first trip ever to the state finals in fast pitch softball for the Lady Royals; the last time they went to state in 1988 it was slow pitch.
The 1A final game will then be played Tuesday, May 8 at 4 p.m. (CDT). Admission will be $9 per game, with no passes.
The game will be streamed live on FHSAAsports.com. Click here for the live game link.
Pictured top: The Jay Lady Royals prepare to leave Saturday for Clermont, Florida, and the Class 1A regional semifinal. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Elections Office: Make Your Mailbox Your Ballot Box
May 7, 2012
With a little more than 100 days to go before the August primary election, now is the time for voters to prepare, according to Escambia Supervisor of Elections David Stafford.
Stafford said one way to get ready is to request a mail ballot, which allows voters to avoid the lines on Election Day and vote from the convenience of their home.
Escambia County voters will be receiving a post card from Stafford with instructions on how to request to vote by mail for the August primary and November general elections.
Voters have several ways to make their request:
1. Visit EscambiaVotes.com and click Absentee Voting in the upper right hand corner. Follow the instructions for completing the online request form.
2. Send an email to absentee@escambiavotes.com. Voters must include their address and date of birth with their e-mail request.
3. Contact the Supervisor of Elections office by phone (850-595-3900), or in person.
4. Send a request through the mail or via fax to (850) 595-3914. Written requests must include the voter’s address, date of birth, and signature.
Absentee voters may track the status of their ballot by clicking Track My Ballot at EscambiaVotes.com. And by clicking Am I Registered? on the home page, a voter can verify their registration status, check their precinct number and location, party affiliation, and important future election information.
Absentee ballots can be requested for up to two election cycles. As Florida does not allow for a permanent absentee voter designation, voters must periodically renew their absentee request so be sure to verify your absentee ballot status. For further information on absentee ballots, early voting, or precincts and polling locations, call (850) 595-3900, email soe@escambiavotes.com or visit EscambiaVotes.com.
Final Results: GCA & NRA Livestock Show (With Gallery)
May 7, 2012
The 19th annual Gulf Coast Agriculture and Natural Resources Association annual Spring Livestock Show was held recently at the Langley Bell 4-H Center on 9 Mile Road in Beulah.
The show provides an opportunity for local 4-H and FFA members to show their steers, swine, goats, lambs, heifers, rabbits and poultry. In addition, many of the steers and swine in the program were auctioned off.
For a photo gallery from the steer and swine shows, click here.
For information about grand champions and auction prices, click here for an earlier story.
Complete results were as follows:
YOUTH SWINE SHOW
Grand Champion Swine
- Matthew Smith
Reserve Grand Champion Swine
- Dylan Livingston
Lightweight Swine
- Samantha Cote
- J. Wesley Hardin
- Rachael Coswell
Middleweight Swine
- James Reeves
- Jared Boswell
- Allie Warren
Light Heavyweight Swine
- Petra Miller
- Jake Scott
- Jessica Baldwin
Heavyweight Swine
- Matthew Smith
- Dylan Livingston
- Eva Miller
Junior Showmanship
- Eva Miller
- Davis Warren
- Jayme Smith
Intermediate Showmanship
- Petra Miller
- Matthew Smith
- J. Wesley Hardin
Senior Showmanship
- Mallory Smith
- Austin Pfeiffer
- Thomas Aliff
RABBIT SHOW
Grand Champion Rabbit
- Kerrigan Scott
Reserve Grand Champion Rabbit
- Virginia Montgomery
Clover Bud Rabbit
- Elizabeth Tourney
Junior Rabbit
- Ami Rodgers
- James Gruenwald
- Ami Rodgers
Intermediate Rabbit
- Kerrigan Scott
- Jonathon Rodgers
- Donnie Dixon
Senior Rabbit
- Virginia Montgomery
- Elli Ellard
POULTRY SHOW
Grand Champion Poultry
- Joshua McLamb
Reserve Champion Poultry
- Klaire Ann Ellard
Junior Poultry
- Klaire Ann Ellard
- Klaire Ann Ellard
- Klaire Ann Ellard
Intermediate Poultry
- Andrew Fendley
- Jonathan Rodgers
- Wyatt Oliver
Senior Poultry
- Joshua McLamb
- Jereme Johnson
BEEF BREEDING
Registered Angus Class I
- Ashley Cunningham
Registered Angus Class II
- Austin Cunningham
- Willow Foxworth
- Donald Cunningham
Registered Angus Class III
- Tyler Simmons
Grand Champion Registered
- Ashley Cunningham
Reserve Champion Registered
- Austin Cunningham
Commercial Heifer
- Ashley Cunningham
Supreme Champion Beef Breeding
- Ashley Cunningham
Reserve Champion Beef Breeding
- Austin Cunningham
Junior Showmanship
- Tyler Simmons
Intermediate Showmanship
- Willow Foxworth
Senior Showmanship
- Donald Cunningham
- Ashley Cunningham
- Austin Cunningham
MARKET STEERS
Lightweight Steers
- Ethan Cunningham
- Kyle Livingston
- Brant Worley
Middleweight Steers
- Donald Cunningham
- Parker Cunningham
- Austin Cunningham
Heavyweight Steers
- Ashley Cunningham
- Tyler Vines
- Luke Nunley
Grand Champion Steer
- Donald Cunningham
Reserve Grand Champion Steer
- Ashley Cunningham
.
Junior Showmanship
- Brant Worley
- Ethan Cunningham
Intermediate Showmanship
- Blake Worley
Senior Showmanship
- Donald Cunningham
- Tyler Vines
- Luke Nunley
Prospect Steer
- Donnie Dixon
GOAT AND LAMB
Prospect Market Goat
- Donnie Dixon
- Donnie Dixon
- Ethan Thorne
Meet Breeding (3-5 months)
- Izzy Kent
- Madison Fendley
- Hanna Thorne
Meet Breeding (6-8 months)
- Carly High
- Donnie Dixon
Meet Breeding (9-12 months)
- Jereme Johnson
- Ebony Morgan
- Maronica Grier
Meet Breeding (12-14 months)
- Donnie Dixon
Grand Champion Meet Breeding
- Izzy Kent
Reserve Grand Champion Meeting Breeding
- Jereme Johnson
Breeding Lamb
- Jessica Baldwin
Junior Goat and Lamb Showmanship
- Izzy Kent
- Madison Fendley
- Jamie Gruenwald, Hanna Thorne, Ethan Thorne
Intermediate Goat and Lamb Showmanship
- Donnie Dixon
Senior Goat and Lamb Showmanship
- Jessica Baldwin
- Jereme Johnson
- Amber Reeves
Update: Driver Charged After Hitting Her Mobile Home
May 7, 2012
A Cantonment woman has been charged with careless driving for hitting her own mobile home.
On April 30 at about 6:07 p.m., Jennifer Nicole Walker pulled into her residence on Madrid Road. About 40 feet from the roadway, the front of her 2003 Chevrolet Blazer collided with the mobile home, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
There were no injuries.
Editor’s note: This is an update to a May 1 NorthEscambia.com story. The driver’s name and charges were released Sunday night, May 6 by the Florida Highway Patrol.
Pictured: A Chevrolet Blazer struck a mobile home on Madrid Road on April 30. NorthEscambia.com photo by Kristi Smith, click to enlarge.
Century’s Brooks On Escambia Mass Transit Committee
May 7, 2012
Century Town Council President Ann Brooks will be reappointed to the Escambia County Mass Transit Advisory Committee.
She is expected to be approved Thursday by the Escambia County Commission as Century Mayor Freddie McCall’s representative on MTAC, one of 13 members of the committee. Her term expires at the end of McCall’s term as mayor — January 2016.
Brooks in a certified public accountant and has served on the Century Town Council since 2008.
Miller: Say Thanks During National Military Appreciation Month
May 7, 2012
In his latest newsletter, U.S. Rep Jeff Miller discusses saying “thanks” during National Military Appreciation Month.
The following was submitted by Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Chumuckla for NorthEscambia.com:
I hope to use this newsletter to draw attention to a little-known, but important commemoration: National Military Appreciation Month. The United States Senate first designated May as National Military Appreciation Month in 1999. In 2004, I joined many of my colleagues in the House and Senate in passing H.Con.Res.328—a more comprehensive concurrent resolution that urges the President to issue an annual proclamation calling on the American people to recognize May as a special month, and to commemorate it with appropriate ceremonies and events. During the Month of May we celebrate Loyalty Day, Military Spouse Appreciation Day, Victory in Europe Day, Armed Forces Day, and Memorial Day. Each of these days is sacred in its own way, but all too often, we fail to stop and observe the sacrifices made by our veterans and their families. Federal holidays like Memorial Day are often treated as nothing more than three-day weekends, with little or no thought given to those we should be honoring on those days.
Think about where we would be without the service and sacrifice of our Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Airmen, and Coastguardsmen. Think about where we would be without the service of those who fought for our fragile democracy in the years after our forefathers declared our independence. Think about the men and women who answered the call to serve each and every time our Nation faced an enemy determined to impose his will upon our way of life. And, think of the families who endure months and years without their loved ones, dutifully accepting the burden of service, and keeping watch over the homefront. We would not be who we are as a Nation were it not for their sacrifices.
In addition to participating in commemorative events honoring our brave warriors and their families, I will be working this May to ensure our Armed Forces are equipped to fight and win the wars we charge them to prosecute. There can be no better way to show our appreciation for these men and women than by giving them all they need to win and return home safely. This week, as a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I will participate in the markup of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013. Among the most important pieces of legislation considered each year, this bill authorizes defense spending and programs. This will be the 51st consecutive year in which such a bill has passed, and it will be the 12th such bill to which I have had the opportunity to help pass. It is my promise to you to continue to devote my time and energy to shielding our Armed Forces from damaging cuts beyond those they’ve already sustained.
Beyond supporting our active duty servicemembers, as Chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, I am also committed to supporting these men and women when they return home. Throughout the 112th Congress, our Committee has been successful in passing several bills that have been signed into law to improve veteran health and benefit programs, including legislation to reduce veteran unemployment and improve the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill.
One area on which our committee has been extremely focused is improving the mental health services provided to our veterans as they transition out of the military. Scores of men and women are returning from deployment suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS) or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and the VA has not done enough to recognize and treat these medical issues. By the VA’s own estimates, a veteran dies by suicide every 80 minutes, and former service members represent one out of every five suicides in the United States. This is a major issue our country needs to address. On Tuesday, our committee will hold a hearing on ensuring the right quality and quantity of mental health professionals at the VA. This will be the third such hearing in the last year directly related to improving mental health care for those veterans suffering from PTS, TBI, or other mental health diseases. Simply put, we must continue to address the needs of those returning from battle by improving the mental health treatment, counseling, and services that our veterans deserve.
During this National Military Appreciation Month, I implore you to find your own way to say thank you to those who defend our Nation. There are countless organizations around the country and right here in Northwest Florida who, day in and day out, devote themselves to serving our veterans and their families. Get involved. Find the organization that touches you the most and volunteer an afternoon, a weekend, or as much time as you can afford. If you are a business owner or manager, I urge you to seek out the resident talent in our population of dedicated, disciplined, and devoted military veterans. These men and women deserve the very best from those they defend here at home.