Blue Angels Fly Together Again
November 4, 2013
The Blue Angels returned to the air over the weekend for their first public flight appearance since their funding was cut back in April. They flew over Notre Dame Stadium in Indiana before Notre Dame edged Navy 38-34.
Capt. Michael Ryan, commanding officer of the University of Notre Dame’s Navy Reserve Officer Training Candidate (ROTC) unit, presented a University of Notre Dame football helmet to the Blues and Flight Leader Cmdr. Tom Frosch. The helmet was a gift from Notre Dame Football Head Coach Brian Kelly.
The Blues still have not announced any change to the cancellation of their Homecoming Show, originally set for this past weekend, at Pensacola Naval Air Station.
U.S. Navy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Molino Man Dies In Wreck; His Father Arrested For Attacking Troopers (With Photo Gallery)
November 3, 2013
One person died from injuries received in a single vehicle wreck late Saturday night in Molino, and the father of the victim was jailed after allegedly attacking first responders and troopers at the accident scene.
The Florida Highway Patrol said 34-year old Joiel Wilson Edmonson of Molino lost control of his pickup truck just after 11 p.m. on Molino Road near Veazey Lane and left the roadway. The front of the 1998 Chevrolet 1500 pickup struck a cable box before entering a wooded area and striking a tree.
Joiel Edmonson was transported by ambulance to Sacred Heart Hospital where he passed away a short time later as a result of injuries received in the crash.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Edmonson’s father, identified as 56-year old John David Edmonson of Molino, arrived on scene and attempted to interfere with first responders as they worked to free the victim of the wreckage.
John Edmonson allegedly attacked and interfered with firefighters on the scene. Over a dozen law enforcement officers responded to the incident, including two Florida Highway Patrol troopers that were among the first on the scene. They reportedly became involved in an altercation with John Edmonson. Witnesses said the troopers were forced to tase John Edmonson in order to end the fight.
The troopers were not seriously injured.
John Edmonson was booked into the Escambia County Jail where he was released just after 8 a.m. Sunday on a $15,500 bond. He was charged with failure to obey police or fire department, battery on an officer, firefighter or EMT, aggravated assault on officer, firefighter or EMT and resisting an officer with violence.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Pictured top and below: A Molino man was transported to an area hospital where he later died following this Molino Road crash. Pictured inset: The victim’s father was arrested for allegedly interfering the first responders and attacking a FHP trooper. NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.
Century’s Mayor: Don’t Buy Out Of State Storage Sheds
November 3, 2013
Century’s mayor has a word of advice for anyone thinking of buying a storage shed in Alabama and installing in his town — don’t do it.
“Most of those sheds coming out of Alabama are not up to Florida wind code,” Mayor Freddie McCall said, while sheds sold in Florida generally meet code. He said persons buying the lower wind resistant sheds in Alabama can’t get the proper permits for them in Florida.
“Buying those buildings in Alabama is costing them,” he said.
McCall recommended that citizens call the town hall for permit information on storage sheds and that the shed be purchased from a reputable Florida retailer.
Clerk Returns $619K To County
November 3, 2013
Santa Rosa County Clerk of Court and Comptroller Donald C. Spencer has returned $619,339.80 to the Santa Rosa County Board of County Commissioners.
The excess fees from the clerk’s office for the 2012-13 fiscal year are savings from budgeted funds. The excess fees from funds provided for the clerk’s office by the county amounted to $114,966.47. The amount of excess fees were $504,373.33.
Early Morning Fire Destroys Bratt Home (With Photo Gallery)
November 3, 2013
Fire completely destroyed a Bratt home early Sunday morning.
The fire was reported just after 1 a.m. on Bradberry Road, off North Highway 99 just south of the Alabama state line. The home was fully involved and mostly on the ground when the first firefighters arrived on scene.
The owner of the home was reportedly out of state at the time of the fire, and there was no one at home when the blaze broke out. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office.
There were no injuries reported.
The Walnut Hill, McDavid, Century and Molino Station of Escambia Fire Rescue, Escambia County EMS and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to the blaze.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Pictured: Fire destroyed this home in Bratt early Sunday morning. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Walnut Hill Fire Honors Firemen, Community Members During Fish Fry
November 3, 2013
The Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department honored members of the community and the department during their 44th annual fish fry.
Jeffrey Huber was named Firefighter of the Year, an award chosen by her fellow firefighters. Kevin Mininger as name Officer of the Year and recognized for his years of service to the department.
Genesis Rail Systems received the Walnut Hill Volunteer Fire Department’s Community Service Award for outstanding and dedicated service to the community.
Hundreds of people enjoyed fried catfish or grilled chicken plates during the event, with proceeds to be used to provide assistance to displaced fire victims in the area. The Northwest Florida Blood Center Bloodmobile was also on hand for a blood drive.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Pictured top Representative of Genesis Rail System receive the Walnut Hill Fire Department Community Service Award Saturday. Pictured bottom: Walnut Hill Fire Department Officer of the Kevin Mininger, District Chief Christ Brown, Firefighter of the Year Jeffrey Huber, Brown. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Robotics Competition Brings Out The Best In Young Scientists
November 3, 2013
Young scientists from 11 area middle and high schools — including Tate and West Florida — tested robots they built in the pressure-cooker of real competition at the sixth annual Emerald Coast BEST Robotics competition Saturday at the University of West Florida.
Each student team had six weeks to design and build a remote-controlled robot to solve a problem or perform a specific function. The year’s theme, Gatekeeper 2013, tasked robots to build a CPU (Central Processing Unit) to upgrade the BEST robot, Squeaky, to Squeaky 2.0. The students designed a prototype robot to build the mock CPU through three fabrication stages.
Each team was judged on its robot performance, marketing presentation, team exhibit, technical notebook and spirit and sportsmanship. The top two overall teams and the team with the top robot advance to regional competition Dec 7-8 at Auburn University.
Seaside Neighborhood School took the overall competition, and will be joined by Woodlawn and Woodham middle schools to represent the Emerald Coast BEST hub at Auburn.
Gulf Power Company has sponsored the BEST Robotics competition for the past six years. The event teaches teamwork, problem-solving, project management and pride in task completion.
BEST Robotics Inc. — Boosting Engineering Science and Technology — is a non-profit, volunteer-based organization whose mission is to inspire students to pursue careers in engineering, science, and technology through participation in a sports-like, science and engineering-based robotics competition.
“Gulf Power supports the annual competition because it provides local students the opportunity to learn practical engineering, science and math skills, which are critical for their future,” said Jeff Rogers, Gulf Power spokesman. “Events like the BEST Robotics competition also help promote interest in high-quality technology careers down the line for these students.”
Gulf Power has recently ramped up efforts to increase the availability of skilled technicians in Northwest Florida by helping form the Northwest Florida Manufacturers Council earlier this year. The council will help local manufacturing companies work together to compete in a global marketplace with a special emphasis on having a skilled workforce.
Area schools have been competing in BEST since 2004, when Gulf Power sponsored eight local teams to compete in the BEST hub in Mobile, Ala. The funding of hub operations depends entirely on corporate and individual sponsorships. Materials kits to build the robots are provided to the teams by the hub. No fees are paid by students or schools participating in BEST robotics.
AWARD CATEGORIES
Advancing to Regionals at South’s BEST – Auburn University on Dec. 7-8
1: Seaside Neighborhood
2: Woodlawn Middle School
3: Woodham Middle School
Robotics Award – Awarded to the teams whose machines finish first, second and third in the tournament bracket.
1: Seaside Neighborhood
2: Woodlawn Beach Middle School
3: Tate High School
BEST Robotics Finalist – Awarded to the team whose machine finished 4th
Pine Forest High School
Founders Award for Creative Design – awarded to the team that makes best use of the engineering process in consideration of offensive and defensive capabilities in machine design; awarded in recognition of BEST founders Steve Marum and Ted Mahler.
Seaside Neighborhood
Most Robust Machine – Awarded to the team whose machine requires the least maintenance during and between matches and is generally the sturdiest machine in the competition.
Pine Forest High School
Most Photogenic Machine
Woodlawn Beach Middle School
Gulf Power Blood, Sweat and Duct Tape Award
Bethlehem School
Best T-Shirt Design
1: Woodlawn Beach Middle School
2: Sims Middle School
3: Seaside Neighborhood
Web Page Design Award – Awarded for the best team website; based on page functionality, creative use of the game theme, information about team members and community efforts.
Sims Middle School
Best Spirit and Sportsmanship – Recognizes the vigor and enthusiasm displayed by team representatives and the outward display of sportsmanship (e.g., helping other teams in need), grace in winning and losing, and conduct and attitude considered befitting participation in sports.
1: Sims Middle School
2: Woodham Middle School
3: Seaside Neighborhood
Best Team Exhibit and Interview – The purpose of this category is to communicate through a display, and through discussion with judges, information about the team’s efforts to promote BEST in the community and schools; Foster BEST spirit, camaraderie, and participation and give evidence of sportsmanship.
1: Seaside Neighborhood
2: Woodham Middle School
3: Sims Middle School
Best Project Engineering Notebook – The purpose of the notebook is to document the process the team used to design, build, and test their robot.
1: Newpoint Pensacola High
2: Seaside Neighborhood
3: Woodham Middle School
Best Marketing Presentation – Teams should view themselves as employees of a “company” that is marketing their “product” (robot) to a potential buyer (judges). This marketing team is an integral part of the engineering team that has designed a specialized robot.
1: Seaside Neighborhood
2: Woodham Middle School
3: Newpoint Pensacola High
BEST Award – The BEST Award is presented to the team that best embodies the attributes associated with “Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology” in its development which include teamwork, diversity of participation, sportsmanship, creativity, ethics, positive attitude/enthusiasm, school/community involvement and exposure to and use of the engineering process.
1: Seaside Neighborhood
2: Woodlawn Middle School
3: Woodham Middle School
Pictured top: The Emerald Coast BEST Robotics competition Saturday at the University of West Florida. Pictured inset: The West Florida High School Robot. Pictured below: Seaside Neighborhood School took the overall competition. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Government Shutdown, Debt Ceiling Debate Harm Consumer Confidence
November 3, 2013
The state’s consumer confidence fell sharply in October, exacerbated by the federal shutdown and talks of another debt ceiling debate in Congress, according to a University of Florida report.
On a scale that ranges from 2 to 150, confidence among Floridians went down seven points from September to a 71, the lowest reading since Dec. 2011.The 2011 marks were heavily impacted by a debt ceiling showdown that summer.
“Confidence among Floridians was already declining prior to any indication of a shutdown and debt ceiling debate,” Chris McCarty, director of UF’s Survey Research Center in the Bureau of Economic and Business Research, said in a release. “However, there is no doubt that confidence in September took a hit as we replayed the events of August 2011, the last time the U.S. was precariously close to a default.”
Because of the federal shutdown, the release of the state’s jobless figures for September has been delayed until Nov. 22. The university had to rely on national unemployment figures for its consumer confidence calculations. The U.S. unemployment rate was 7.2 percent in September, down from 7.3 percent in August.
“While a decline is good it appears that job creation was tepid, particularly in leisure and hospitality, an important employment category for Florida,” the report noted.
Weekend Gardening: Fill Voids In Landscape With Shrubs
November 3, 2013
Occasionally gardeners will lose a shrub in their landscapes. This typically results in an unsightly void. Or perhaps you chose a beautiful shrub but put it in a location which it quickly outgrew. Fall is the best time of the year to plant new shrubs and transplant those that may need a new home.
When planting new shrubs, take the time to choose plants that will meet your design requirement and will be the right size for your location. Trying to artificially manipulate a plant’s size or height by pruning should be avoided in the landscape, unless you are an expert at topiaries.
Another consideration when choosing shrubs is their leaf-retaining characteristics. Evergreen plants always have green leaves on the plant; however, they do drop foliage throughout the year. Deciduous plants drop all of their leaves at one time of the year, usually late fall.
Deciduous plants typically add beautiful floral displays to the landscape. Evergreen plants will provide the backbone of the design. The well-designed landscape will contain both deciduous and evergreen shrubs.
Northwest Florida gardeners can choose from a wide variety of beautiful shrubs. Some popular choices include azaleas, camellias, hydrangeas, cleyera, holly and gardenias. For more options and information, refer to a University of Florida publication titled “Selected Shrubs for North Florida.” It’s available online at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mg344 or by calling your local Extension Office.
The best time to add new shrubs to the landscape is when we experience cooler weather, fall through early spring. To ensure success, be sure to follow proper procedures when planting the shrub. Correct planting and proper aftercare will prevent problems in the future.
Begin by digging a hole at least twice as wide as and no deeper than the root ball. After digging, ensure that about one to two inches of the root ball is raised above the level of the surrounding soil. Remember the old saying, “Plant it high, it won’t die. Plant it low, it won’t grow.”
Probably one of the most overlooked steps is correcting root problems prior to planting. Shrubs that are planted with circling roots will always have circling roots and can abruptly fall over in high winds. Use your hands or a knife to loosen any roots that have been matted while growing in the container. Also, cut through any circling roots.
After you backfill the hole with the soil you removed, water-in the plant to release any air pockets. Mulch with three inches of organic mulch such as pine straw after planting is completed, but never on top of the root ball.
If you have decided to transplant a shrub, consider the following. Shrubs have better transplant tolerance than trees, deciduous plants better than evergreens, shallow rooted species better than deep rooted species, and younger plants better than older plants. Plants which are already in advanced stages of decline are likely to succumb to transplantation stress.
Dig as large a rootball as you can handle and follow the normal planting procedures. Aftercare is critical to a transplanted shrub’s survival, with proper watering perhaps the most important practice. Remember that sprinkler systems are not designed to establish trees and shrubs, so hand watering or a slow-drip system is recommended. Talk to your local Extension Agent for specific instructions.
You can have better success with planting or transplanting shrubs when you do it in the fall. Just be sure to follow established procedures and tend to the shrub for several months after planting.
Theresa Friday is the Residential Horticulture Extension Agent for Santa Rosa County.. Photo credit - David Marshall.
Birth: Ruth Ann Bryan
November 3, 2013
Heath and Shelby Bryan are proud to announce the birth of their daughter, Ruth Ann Bryan, born October 10, 2013, at Thomas Medical Center.
Ruth Ann weighed 6-pounds, 11-ounces and was 19.75 inches long. Grandparents are Ricky and Cheryl Golson, and Terry and Sheila Bryan of Bratt. Great-grandparents are Marlene Forester and the late Curtis Forester, the late Walter Lee Golson and Doris Oline Hopkins, Pansy Bryan and the late Preston Bryan, Dillard and Rochelle Bankston, and the late Billy Macks.
Ruth Ann was welcomed home by her big brother, Forest.