Northview, Jay To Meet In Spring Game
April 9, 2015
The Northview Chiefs and the Jay Royals will meet in a Spring Football Game next month.
The game will come at the end of the three weeks allowed for spring training. It will be held May 22 at 7 p.m. in Tommy Weaver Memorial Stadium on the Northview campus in Bratt.
Last season, Northview beat Jay 55-20 in Bratt.
Pictured: Last year’s Jay at Northview game. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Radio Icon Marty White Retiring
April 9, 2015
Marty White is retiring after 42 years on the air, with 37 of those years on Pensacola radio. As a fixture on Pensacola morning radio, White woke up Pensacola area listeners on 102.7 WXBM’s “Hometown Morning Show” for over 20 years. Over the last year, he co-hosted WXBM’s afternoon drive show with Lindsey Marie, who will remain with the afternoon show.
His final day on the air will be June 26.
White is a native of Pensacola, a Tate High School graduate and a veteran of the United States Air Force. He has driven race cars at 5 Flags Speedway, flown with the Blue Angels, danced atop radio station vans as “Billy Bob” Ace Traffic Reporter and even donned a snakeskin dress with “Dolly Parton” wig and heels at the Beulah Sausage Fest. All in the name of furthering WXBM’s visibility in the market and all with the station’s call letters emblazoned across his signature ball cap.
White has been recognized by countless charitable organizations for his help in promoting various events and endeavors including the annual Kaps for Kids Event for the Ronald McDonald House, which he was a part of for 15 years. He was recognized by Northeast Pensacola Sertoma with the Service to Mankind Humanitarian Award in 2004-2005. He was recently recognized on the floor of Congress for his laudable 40 years on the air. The Honorable Jeff Miller spoke of White’s successes and achievements serving the people of the Pensacola and northwest Florida area.
White has performed diligently throughout his career; always believing the reason the radio station’s tower was erected was to serve the community. He has spent many hours away from his family during threatening storms to ensure the safety of lives and property, keeping listeners informed with his calm and confident style. He spent many more hours and days on the air after those storms ensuring the community would recover, and rendering factual and pertinent information.
Marty White has been the consummate professional– always ready to lend a hand and provide air time when needed. He is recognized as one of the most talented and loved air personalities to have worked in Pensacola radio. He was at times outspoken, always “telling it like it is”. He often said: ” I try to tell it like anyone listening would, given the opportunity to sit behind the mic.”
White said: “I grew up with a radio under my pillow so I guess it was in my blood early. To have worked most of my career in the town where I grew up is really unusual. I have always been grateful for that. I felt like it gave me an edge. Common sense, versatility, doing my homework and going on the air prepared have been the key to staying around as long as I have. You can’t take yourself too seriously. It’s just a radio show. The folks here have been really good to me and my family and for that I will always be extremely grateful. Now it’s time to enjoy life while I am still young enough to do that. I plan to do some fishing, hunting, play a little golf and get some things done around the house. Thanks for listening. I appreciate it.”
Pictured top and bottom: Longtime radio host Marty White on 102.7 WXBM. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Tate High Names Students Of The Month
April 9, 2015
Tate High School has name Students of the Month for March. They are Valerie Samuel (left) and Travoris Hunt (right), pictured with Principal Rick Shackle. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Sawmill Pageant Winners Announced
April 9, 2015
Results from the 2015 Miss Sawmill Pageant held recently in Century have been announced. Winners were as follows:
Overall Winner for Middle School and High School: Ansley LaSala
Overall Winner for 6 to 11 Years Old: Andrea LaSala
Overall Winner 0-5 Years Old: Allison Grant
Miss Congeniality: Elsa Faulk and Madelyn Faulk
Individual Category Winners
Tiny Baby Miss 0-12 Months
Queen: Kensley Therrell
1st Runner-up: Emma Odom
2nd Runner-up:Brooklyn Cox
3rd Runner-up: Gracelynn Grant
Photogenic Winner: Emma Odom
Casual Wear Winner: Kensley Therrell
Baby Miss 13-23 Months
Queen: Kenley Welch
1st Runner-up: Mallory Marn
2nd Runner-up: Jenna Pritchett
3rd Runner-up: Jillian Kate Sanders
Photogenic Winner:Jillian Kate Sanders
Casual Wear Winner: McKinley Sapp
Toddler Miss 2-3 Years
Queen: Madelyn Faulk
1st Runner-up: Aiyana Cole
2nd Runner-up: Laurel Wadkins
3rd Runner-up:Abigail Hawthorne
Photogenic Winner: Laurel Wadkins
Casual Wear Winner: Aiyana Cole
Little Miss 4-5 Years
Queen: Layla Schoonover
1st Runner-up: Khloe Hamilton
2nd Runner-up: Chloe Johnson
3rd Runner-up: Jozalyn Coy
Photogenic Winner: Peyton Lee
Casual Wear Winner: Khloe Hamilton
Little Miss 6 Years
Queen: Lanie Stephens
1st Runner-up: Emilee-Grace Braswell
2nd Runner-up: Kailee Herndon
3rd Runner-up: Jacie Himes
Photogenic Winner: Emilee-Grace Braswell
Casual Wear Winner: Lanie Stephens
Junior Miss 7-8
Queen: Andrea LaSala
1st Runner-up: Jaci Jackson
2nd Runner-up: Natalie Hendricks
3rd Runner-up: Bailey Fillingim
Photogenic Winner: Andrea LaSala
Casual Wear Winner: Andrea LaSala
Junior Miss 9-11
Queen: Anna Marie Reaves
1st Runner-up: Bentley Glover
2nd Runner-up: Kenzie Garrick
3rd Runner-up: Nevaeh Brown
Photogenic Winner:Anna Marie Reaves
Casual Wear Winner: Anna Marie Reaves
Middle School Miss
Queen: Abigail Bell
1st Runner-up: Skylar Crawford
2nd Runner-up: Ansley LaSala
3rd Runner-up: Jillian Thornton
Photogenic Winner: Ansley LaSala
Casual Wear Winner: Ansley LaSala
Miss Sawmill- High School
Queen: Kassidy Adams
1st Runner-up: Heather Hilton
2nd Runner-up: Janna Johnson
3rd Runner-up: Jerni Crabtree
Photogenic Winner: Kassidy Adams
Casual Wear Winner: Kassidy Adams
Photos courtesy Photos by Fischer for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Senators Double Down On Gambling Bill
April 9, 2015
A proposed one-year extension of a deal giving the Seminole Tribe exclusive rights to banked card games such as blackjack morphed into a much broader gambling measure Wednesday, prompting Senate Regulated Industries Chairman Rob Bradley to vote against his own bill.
While Bradley’s bill blossomed, House Majority Leader Dana Young dramatically scaled back her wide-ranging gambling proposal that would have allowed two Las Vegas-style casinos to open in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
Bradley had wanted solely to give the tribe and the state another year to negotiate the agreement set to expire on July 1, but, as is generally the case with any gambling legislation, his proposal (SB 7088) became a vehicle for issues seemingly unrelated to the five-year card deal.
Before his committee’s nearly two-hour meeting on the measure ended, senators had tacked on amendments that could do away with dog racing but allow greyhound-track operators to continue operating slot machines or card rooms; permit tracks and frontons in Miami-Dade and Broward to stop racing horses and holding jai-alai matches; and allow dog tracks in Lee and Palm Beach counties to add slots to their facilities.
The greyhound “decoupling” proposed by Sen. Maria Sachs, D-Delray Beach, would allow dog tracks to eliminate racing but keep other, more lucrative operations like poker rooms and slots.
Sen. Oscar Braynon surprised many gambling operators and lobbyists in the audience Wednesday with an amendment that would allow any pari-mutuels with slot machines to also do away with races or games if any other facility with slots stopped racing. The measure would apply to jai-alai frontons and horse tracks in Broward and Miami-Dade counties if any greyhound tracks stopped dog races.
“This is what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. … If we’re doing it for one, we should do it for all,” Braynon, D-Miami Gardens, said. The amendment passed by a 7-5 vote.
And Sen. Joe Abruzzo, D-Boynton Beach, pushed an amendment that would allow dog tracks in Palm Beach and Lee counties — where voters have approved slots — to add slot machines. A portion of the money from the slots revenues would go toward purses, or the money paid out to owners of horses, at Tampa Bay Downs. Abruzzo’s effort garnered the support of Sen. Jack Latvala, a Clearwater Republican whose district includes the horse track, whose operators have pushed for slot machines to better compete with tracks that have slots in Broward and Miami-Dade.
Abruzzo laughed as he struggled to defend his proposal, saying it “would not expand gambling” because gambling already exists at the two dog tracks.
Bradley, on the losing side of a 7-5 vote on the overall bill, indicated that the measure was likely to undergo more changes before it reaches the Senate floor for a full vote, if that even happens before the legislative session ends May 1.
“I would suspect that if we have a gaming bill come out of the Senate that it will look probably a bit different than what you saw come out of this committee today. What you see is a few elements that continue to be in play,” Bradley, R-Fleming Island, told reporters after the meeting.”We’ve got a ways to go.”
Young’s proposal, up for its first vote in a House committee on Thursday, includes the dog racing “decoupling” and a proposal about greyhound injury reporting, which passed the full Senate as a separate bill on the first day of session. Her revamped proposal (HB 1233) would also do away with dormant pari-mutuel permits, end “portability” of permits by requiring cardrooms and slots to stay at the locations where they were originally authorized and impose a moratorium on any new pari-mutuel permits.
Amendments expected to be filed related to Young’s bill would add back the destination resorts, but only if Broward or Miami-Dade voters or county commissions approve the casinos. The amendments had not been filed early Wednesday evening.
Young said she pared back her original proposal after polling members of the House Regulatory Affairs Committee, which will hear the revised proposal on Thursday.
“I took notes and went through with the chairman and the speaker and said, ‘These are the things that people care about.’ There are certain things that people care less about,” Young, R-Tampa, told The News Service of Florida.
The two bills’ current status reflects where lawmakers may end up if any gambling legislation is approved this year, an effort that has repeatedly failed even after the Legislature spent $800,000 for a study on the issue two years ago.
“What you see with where the House is headed and what you see today is sort of a general, rough outline of some comfort levels on both sides. Obviously there are some things that people are not comfortable with, like destination casinos. … So we’re moving towards a goal, slowly but surely. I continue to say this all begins with what do with the (Seminole) compact,” Bradley said.
Bradley said he recommended the one-year extension of the current card deal because the Seminoles, who have launched a publicity campaign including four television ads urging support for the compact, and the state have been unable to agree on a new accord.
“We’re going to continue to talk to the tribe to see if there’s some common ground. But right now it’s just a bridge too far between the tribe and the state. Are we going to close that bridge before the end of session? We now have in play a vehicle to make sure the relationship continues if we don’t meet the distance between the parties before the end of session,” he said.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
NorthEscambia.com Publisher Named One Of Area’s Most Influential People
April 9, 2015
The Pensacola Independent News has released their 2015 IN Power List — their ranking of the most the most powerful and influential people in the Escambia and Santa Rosa county areas.
Only two people that work primarily in the North Escambia area were named to the list — NorthEscambia.com publisher William Reynolds of Walnut Hill at number 64 and Escambia County Commission Chairman Steven Barry of Cantonment at number 27.
Topping this year’s list was Stan Connally, Jr, president and CEO of Gulf Power.
To read this year’s Inweekly Power List edition, click here.
Pictured: Gulf Power President/CEO Stan Connally, Jr., who topped the 2015 Power List. Courtesy image from InWeekly.com.
Rain Moving In Friday
April 9, 2015
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight
Mostly cloudy, with a low around 67. South wind 5 to 10 mph.
Friday
Showers and thunderstorms likely. Cloudy, with a high near 83. South wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Friday Night
A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a low around 64. Northwest wind around 5 mph becoming north after midnight.
Saturday
A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a high near 76. North wind around 5 mph.
Saturday Night
A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. East wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Sunday
A chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 1pm. Cloudy, with a high near 79. Southeast wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%.
Sunday Night
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a low around 67. Southeast wind around 5 mph.
Monday
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Cloudy, with a high near 79. South wind 5 to 10 mph.
Monday Night
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69. South wind 5 to 10 mph.
Tuesday
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 79.
Tuesday Night
A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 66.
Wednesday
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 79.
Wednesday Night
A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 66.
Thursday
A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 79.
Citizens Targets 45.5K Policies For ‘Takeout’
April 9, 2015
Another 45,500 policies have been approved to move to the private insurance industry from the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp.
The Office of Insurance Regulation this week approved the latest round of private-insurer “takeouts” by two companies — Heritage Property & Casualty and Mount Beacon. The takeouts are scheduled to occur in June.
Based upon prior takeouts, not all the targeted residential and commercial-residential policies will change hands. Policyholders are allowed to reject the takeout offers. Citizens reported that it had 631,879 policies as of January 31, a vast decline from a high of 1.5 million policies in 2012.
Freddy Leon Mooney
April 9, 2015
Freddy Leon Mooney, 83 of Oak Grove, passed away Tuesday, April 7, 2015, in Pensacola. He was retired after 40 years of service with International Paper Company. He was born in Oak Grove on April 19, 1931, to the late Everette H. and Emily Odie Godwin Mooney. He was a member of the Oak Grove Baptist Church and served in the United States Navy. He was an avid farmer and had owned and operated the Davisville Country Market.
Freddy is preceded in death by his wife of 43 years, Joan Rene’ Milstead Mooney; siblings, Margarite McNair, Junior Mooney, Clarence “Punken” Mooney, Patsy Beasley and Bill Mooney.
Survivors include a special companion of 11 years, Betty Mooney of Oak Grove; one son, Eddie (Eunice) Mooney of Oak Grove; three daughters, Teresa (the late Mike) Etheridge of Walnut Hill, Tina (Frankie) Marsh and Teelya Whitehead, all of Oak Grove; one sister, Peggy (Elvin) Pugh of Oak Grove; 11 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.
Services will be Saturday, April 11, 2015, at 2 p.m. from the Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Butch Brown officiating.
Interment will follow in the Oak Grove Baptist Church Cemetery.
Active Pallbearers will be Leslie Mooney, Casey Mooney, Michael Etheridge, Jr., Harrison Whitehead, Brannon Whitehead, Bradley Whitehead and Kyle Bazzelle.
Family will receive friends, Friday, April 10, 2015, at Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m
Johnson-Quimby Funeral Home is in charge of all arrangements.
Mattie Mae Gray
April 9, 2015
The Lord called our beloved Mattie Mae Gray home on Monday, April 6, 2015. She was born on May 3, 1928, in Atmore, to the late Walter Pierce and Arena Montgomery Pierce. On August 26, 1946, she was joined in holy matrimony to the late Willie James Gray.
At an early age, she move to Cantonment. Mattie was a faithful member of New Hope Baptist Church (currently known as Greater First Baptist Church) and later united with First Pentecostal Church of Pensacola where she remained a member until her passing. She was employed by the Escambia County Education system for 34 years as a dedicated school bus driver.
Those she leaves behind to cherish the memories and honor the life she lived include her daughter, Gladys (Joe) Floyd; two sons, Tommy (Lynn) Gray and Christopher (Tonyse) Gray; daughter-in-law Debbie Gray; sisters, Carlee Donald and Arleane Gray; and sisters-in-law, Eunice Pierce and Helen Pierce.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, April 11, 2015, at First Pentecostal Church with Reverend Brian Kinsey officiating.
Burial to follow in Holy Cross Cemetery in Pensacola.
Family will receive friends from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Friday, April 10, 2015, at Faith Chapel Funeral Home North.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North is in charge of arrangements.