Learn How To Do Business With ECUA At Workshop
June 22, 2014
On Friday, June 27, the Florida Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) will offer a free workshop entitled “How to do Business with the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority”.
The event, held on a quarterly basis since 2010, will be at the Escambia County Central Office Complex, 3363 West Park Place in Pensacola from 9-11 a.m.
The meeting will provide attendees with information on the potential of doing business with the ECUA, which the utility sees will beneficially increase bidding participation in future ECUA contracts. Topics covered will include the ECUA 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, and Frances Webb, HR generalist.
The workshop is free; however, pre-registration is recommended. For additional information contact Laura Subel, PTAC procurement specialist, at lsubel@uwf.edu, by calling (850) 474-2549 or, register on-line at www.clientsfloridasbdc.org/center.
Posse Earns Tourney Wins
June 22, 2014
Over recent weeks, the Pensacola Posse team won a tournament at Donalsonville, GA, were champions at a Gulfport, MS tournament, and placed second in a Daphne, AL, tournament. Members of the team include Meagan Jones, Mallory Miller, Kristen Quina, Morgan Bolan and Hadley Staratt from Tate High School; Bryce Miller, Ashley Kummer, Samantha Kummer, Kallie Okahashi and Tristan Pearson from Pace High School; and Savanna Ullrich from Escambia High School. Coaches are John Quina, Randy Miller, Peter Kummer and Sean Staratt. Reader submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Weekend Gardening: Time To Prune Gardenias And Hydrangeas
June 22, 2014
By Santa Rosa County Extension
Hydrangeas and gardenias are two of our most beloved shrubs in the South. They are revered for their flowers and are planted in large drifts throughout Northwest Florida.
Gardenia shrubs are evergreen and produce shiny, dark green leaves. They are known for their waxy, creamy white flowers. The flower’s aroma, adored by many gardeners, is powerful and pleasant.
Hydrangeas are deciduous shrubs and produce coarse, light green leaves. Their large leaves will fall off after a freeze. Although you are left with bare sticks during the winter, the summer blooms are well worth the winter bareness. While there are many different types of hydrangeas, the mopheads are probably the most recognizable. Their large inflorescences are usually blue on acid soil, pink on alkaline soil and a dirty white on neutral pH soil.
Even though these shrubs are different in many aspects, the one thing they have in common is when they “set” their flower buds. Both shrubs develop flower buds on old (mature) wood of the previous year and open in early summer of the following year. Flower buds are formed at the terminal end of stems and, if not killed by cold or removed by inappropriate pruning, provide the showy floral display the next year.
The best time to prune gardenias and hydrangeas is after they finish flowering for the season. Pruning them at the incorrect time of the year, such as winter, will remove the flower buds.
Your pruning program should be purposeful. First, remove all diseased, weak and dead wood. It will be important to disinfect your pruning equipment after removing suspect branches. Pruning shears, loppers and saws can be dipped in a weak bleach solution to prevent spread of disease between plants.
Once all the problem branches have been removed, then think about thinning the plant. Shrubs are often thinned to reduce a top-heavy appearance or to open up a dense canopy. To thin, simply remove some of the oldest branches by pruning them down to the ground. Remove about a quarter to a third of the branches, selecting the oldest ones for elimination. When thinning, take care not to damage the nearby younger stems and foliage.
Next, cut back branches that are excessively long. Prune back to a lateral branch that is six to twelve inches below the desirable plant height, removing no more than a third of the stem. Cut each branch separately to different lengths with hand pruners. This will maintain a neat informal shrub with a natural shape. Plants sheared into various geometric shapes produce a formality not suitable for many modern, natural landscapes. Making pruning cuts down inside the canopy instead of on the outside edge will also hide unsightly pruning cuts.
Within the last several years, reflowering hydrangeas have found their way into the marketplace. Reflowering hydrangeas produce an initial flush of flowers followed by sporadic flowering or later flushes of flowers in the same growing season.
Endless Summer Hydrangea is a reflowering hydrangea. It is very forgiving and will not suffer if left unpruned or pruned at the wrong time. In fact, young, recently planted shrubs are best left alone. Unlike other hydrangeas, your Endless Summer® will bloom on both old and new wood, branches that grew last year and the new branches from this year. Another unique feature is that this hydrangea will continue to set buds and bloom throughout the season. Deadheading, or removing the spent flowers will encourage continual blooming.
Timothy Duane Gabbard
June 22, 2014
Timothy Duane Gabbard, age 48 of Milton, passed away unexpectedly June 19, 2014, in Calvert, Ala. He served in the United States Army, attended True Worship Assembly of God Church, and was employed at ThyssenKrupp Steel USA in Mobile. He was a loving father, son, and brother that will be dearly missed.
Tim is preceded in death by his grandfather, Nelson Allen; and father, Pearl Gabbard.
He is survived by his twin sons, Ryan (Jessica) Gabbard and Bryan (Aleshia) Gabbard; wife of 26 years, Renee Gabbard; mother, Edith Gabbard; grandmother, Mafrie Allen; sisters, Linda Boatright, Regina (Gerald) King, and Tammy (Thomas) Pritchard; brothers, Donnie (Lynn) Gabbard, Randy (Karen) Gabbard, and Rick (Kim) Hickey.
Funeral services will be held Tuesday, June 24, 2014, 11 a.m. at Jay Funeral Home, with Reverend Adam Peterson and Reverend Bradley Odom, officiating. A visitation will be held from 10 to 11 a.m.
Graveside services will be held 2 p.m. at Eastern Gate Cemetery in Pensacola with military honors.
Active pallbearers will be Bryan Gabbard, Ryan Gabbard, Donnie Gabbard, Brandon Hoyt, Gerald King, and Johnny Watson.
Honorary pallbearers will be Thomas Pritchard and Lee Pritchard.
Jay Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Esther McKinley O’Farrell
June 22, 2014
Esther McKinley O’Farrell, 82, of Walnut Hill, a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, friend, and devoted Christian, passed peacefully in her home on June 19, 2014. She was a native of Canoe but resided in Atmore the majority of her life where she worked with Southland Telephone Company as an operator and retired after 36 years. She was a longtime, faithful member of Oak Grove Church of Christ in Oak Grove. She loved her church family and enjoyed living by example and doing for others. She loved her family unconditionally and enjoyed spending time and making memories at the beach with her family.
Esther is preceded in death by her mother, Lyna Meadows McKinley; brothers, Almos, Joe, Edgar, and Gene McKinley; and sisters, Estelle Petter and Lillie Greenwood.
She is survived by her husband of 63 years, Henry Eugene O’Farrell; sister, Earline Barton, of Bay Minette; children, Cynthia O. Freeman of Walnut Hill, Barbara O. Powell (Billy) of LaPlace, LA, and Kenneth G. O’Farrell (Dana) of Orange Beach; four granddaughters, Kimberly O. Myers, Stephanie Rauch, Melanie Powell St. John and Vickie Gage; one grandson, Nicholas O’Farrell; and four great-grandsons, all who loved ” Granny 0” dearly.
Funeral services were held Saturday, June 21, 2014, at the Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home Chapel with Pastor Billy Randolph and Pastor Brad Sullivan officiating.
Interment was in Godwin Cemetery in Bratt.
Special thank you to Dr. Mitchell, Covenant Hospice, her Church family, and the many lifelong friends for their calls, visits, love and support.
Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Dorothy L. Brown
June 22, 2014
Mrs. Dorothy L. Brown, 73, passed away on Wednesday, June 18, 2014, in Pensacola.
Mrs. Brown was a native and lifelong resident of McDavid. Mrs. Brown was over the resident council at the Century Care Center and attended the Flomaton Kingdom Hall of Jehovah Witnesses.
Her husband, William Harvey Brown; parents, John Thomas Williams-Mills and Flora Littles; and sister, Ruth Sessions precede her in death.
She is survived by her two sons, Marty (Rose) Brown of Century and Billy (Shirley) Brown of North Carolina; one daughter, Connie Booker of Baker; two sisters, Bertha Johnson of Fort Walton and Shirley Sailor of North Carolina; nine grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
Funeral services were held Saturday, June 21, 2014, at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home with Elder Richard Ash officiating.
Burial was at the Little Flock Cemetery.
Pallbearers will be Charlie Brown, Rodney Burkett, Robert Wilson, Zaire Dennis, Ethan Wright and Mark Salter.
Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Homes is in charge of all arrangements.
Charles Richard Morris
June 22, 2014
Charles Richard Morris, age 68, of Jay, for the past 36 years, previously of Red Level Community for 32 years, was called home to be with his Lord Jesus Christ on Saturday, June 21, 2014. He was a diesel mechanic for nearly 30 years and absolutely loved tinkering with all vehicles. He enjoyed being with family and visiting with friends. He loved his weekly visits to his home town. He enjoyed hunting deer and loved to tell his story of the time he shot the fifteen pointer. He also loved spending time with and bragging about his wife, children, children-in-law, and grandchildren. He was a very dependable, kind, and loving father, brother, son, husband, and friend who will be truly missed by anyone who knows or has ever met him.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Wesley and Mamie Bell Morris; sister, Kenny Mae Williamson; brothers-in-law, Gene Williamson, Gerald Williamson, Eugene Patterson, Royce Patterson; and nieces, Penny Shivers and Tammy Williamson.
He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Peggie Morris; son, David Morris (Regina Rogers); daughter, Paula (Casey) Kennedy; grandchildren, Brett and Kallista Kennedy; brother, Robert Morris; sisters, Bessie Williamson, Carrie Williamson, and Bobbie (Carl) Turman; and many nieces and nephews.
Visitation will be held on Tuesday, June 24, 2014, at Jay Funeral Home from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m.
Funeral services will be held at South Church of God in Red Level, Alabama on Wednesday, June 25, 2014, at 2 p.m. with visitation from 12 p.m. until 2 p.m. Brother Carl Turman will be officiating with the assistance of Brother Jim Colley, Bro. Jim Turman, and Bro. Larry Turman.
The burial service will be immediately following the funeral service at the South Church of God cemetery.
Active pallbearers will be Lamar Williamson, Keith Williamson, Stacey Williamson, Jerod Williamson, Jeremy Williamson, Ray Patterson, Eddie Hall, and Faron Wilson.
Flower girls will be Dawn Walker, Jennifer Simmons, Summer Simmons, Cindy Rodgers, Ashley Darby, Elizabeth Wilson, Samantha Wilson, and Elizabeth Pebbles.
Honorary pallbearers are John Williamson, Donna Hoffman, Amy Pebbles, Lynn Bush, Terry Williamson, Aubrey Patterson, Royal Patterson, Joyce Perry, Michell Wilson, and Tyler Wilson.
Family would like to give a special thanks to all the staff of Jay Hospital and Baptist Hospital who provided wonderful care during this time. Also, the family would like to give special thanks to all the friends and family who have donated cash, food, flowers, other contributions, and prayers. The family loves and appreciates the kindness.
Huntsville Downs Wahoos
June 22, 2014
Pensacola Blue Wahoos pitcher Michael Lorenzen took the mound Saturday after one of his best nights ever.
His roomie, relief pitcher Carlos Contreras, got called up to play for the Cincinnati Reds.
While Contreras made his debut pitching in the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays, Lorenzen recorded a career high seven strikeouts in five innings. However, it was not enough for Pensacola, which dropped the game, 5-4, to the Huntsville Stars in front of a sellout crowd of 5,038 at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium.
Lorenzen said he’s taken a Contreras frame of mind when he gets two strikes on a batter.
“I want to put guys away now,” said Lorenzen, who has 54 strikeouts on the season in a rotation of flame throwers. “Instead of trying to make them make contact, I’m thinking, ‘I’m going to put you away with my best pitch.’”
The righty, who entered the game with 10 straight scoreless innings, allowed three in the first inning to Huntsville on four singles and a double. Lorenzen didn’t give up another run or hit through the next four innings.
Fresh in his mind and recorded on his cell phone was Contreras getting the call from Wahoos manager Delino DeShields that he was getting called up to the big leagues. DeShields talked Spanish to try to fake him out before telling him he was going to the bigs.
Contreras asked him twice in disbelief, “Who me?” And then said excitedly, “I’m going to call my mom!”
“It was one of the greatest moments in my life,” Lorenzen said after Saturday’s game. “His reaction was one of the best things ever. He didn’t sleep a minute. I was worried because they (Cincinatti) had a 3 p.m. game.”
When Lorenzen left the game after the fifth inning, the Wahoos had a 4-3 lead. Lorenzen, who is 4-4, has not earned a decision in six starts this year.
Huntsville, the first half champion of the Southern League North Division, has now won two of the first three games in the five-game series. The Stars regained the lead, 5-4, with two runs in the seventh inning when Kentrell Davis lead off with the team’s first hit since the first inning.
Davis scored on a wild pitch and throwing error by Wahoos catcher Ross Perez trying to catch him going to third. With the infield in, Huntsville’s Jason Rogers then hit the ball sharply past the shortstop that scored Shea Vucinich.
by Tommy Thrall
Agnes J. Zorn
June 22, 2014
Mrs. Agnes J. Zorn, 87, passed away on Saturday, June 21, 2014, in Pensacola.
Mrs. Zorn was a native of Baltimore, Maryland and a resident of Atmore for most of her life. Mrs. Zorn was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Thomas Zorn; and son, William Joe Zorn.
She is survived by her son, Thomas J. (Wanda) Zorn of Pensacola; two daughters, Patricia (Don) Mitchell of Navarre and Lynda (J.C.) Crespo of Orlando; six grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
Graveside services will be Wednesday, June 25, 2014, at 11 a.m. at the Serenity Gardens Cemetery with Rev. David Zorn officiating.
Visitation will be held Wednesday, June 25, 2014, from 10 a.m. until 10:45 a.m. at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home.
Pallbearers will be Luke James Mitchell, Kyle Mitchell, Kolton Mitchell, Tyler Williams, George Williams and J.C. Crespo.
Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Homes is in charge of all arrangements.
Reverend Andrew L. Blankenship
June 22, 2014
Rev. Andrew L. Blankenship, 86, of Pensacola, joined the Celebration in Heaven on Tuesday, June 17, 2014. He was born on July 8, 1927, in Repton, AL, to the late Lehman Blankenship and Elizabeth Hancock Blankenship.
Rev. Blankenship started the Pensacola Deliverance Temple over 60 years ago, but had started preaching the gospel over 70 years ago. He preached his last sermon here on earth on June 8, 2014. He brought thousands of people to Christ. Oh, what a crown full of jewels he has received.
Rev. Blankenship is survived by his daughter, Wanda Larocque; two granddaughters, Angela Petty and Krystal Hardy; grandson, Rocky ( Kally) Casey; great-grandchildren, Carson, Brookly, Skyler, Kaleb, McKenzie, MaKailyn, Chloe, Mejia, Maegan, Josh and Abbie; and one great-great-grandchild, Connor.
Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. on Monday, June 23, 2014, at Faith Chapel Funeral Home North with Rev. Helen McBride, officiating.
Burial will follow in Pensacola Memorial Gardens.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North is entrusted with arrangements.