Northview Culinary Arts Program Makes School Board Presentation
May 12, 2017
The Northview High School Culinary Arts Academy made a presentation Thursday to the Escambia County School Board. They also delivered oatmeal pecan chocolate chip cookies to board members, staff and other guess. Pictured below (L-R) and Northview High Principal Gayle Weaver, culinary academy members Jordan Parham, Lari McCann, Laura Kinley, and Victoria Amerson, and instructor Vicki Cook. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Wahoos Beat The Barons
May 12, 2017
Pensacola Blue Wahoos catcher Adrian Nieto continued to come through on offense for his team.
With two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, he smacked a hard liner to left field to score second baseman Alex Blandino, who had doubled with two outs, to give the Blue Wahoos a, 5-4, victory over the Birmingham Barons Thursday in front of 4,016 at Blue Wahoos Stadium. Pensacola leads the five-game series, 3-1, and clinched its first series after losing two in a row.
Nieto now has four RBIs in six at bats with two outs and runners in scoring position. Plus, the 27-year-old is batting .353 in his last six games with one home run, that he hit Tuesday, and two RBIs.
Nieto agreed with Pensacola manager Pat Kelly that his offense is improving with more regular at bats. Both he and Pensacola catcher Joe Hudson were limited in playing time as Cincinnati Reds catcher Devin Mesoraco did his rehabilitation with the Blue Wahoos for the first 20 games before returning to the big leagues.
Nieto, who played 48 games with the Chicago White Sox in 2014, also has been watching video from his 2013 season when he had his best year at the plate, hitting .285 for the High-A Potomac Nationals.
“It helps to get your at-bats and get into a rhythm,” Nieto said. “I’ve made a few adjustments here and there watching old film from 2013. The Reds told me, ‘Get back to where you were.’ To have that freedom feels great.”
Plus, he smiled and admitted he has some extra incentive at the plate, having played for Birmingham in 2015 and being selected for the All-Star game.
“That was a win that I really wanted,” Nieto said. “Hopefully, we’ll get our fourth one (Friday).”
Blue Wahoos right fielder Aristides Aquino earned his fourth hit in 38 at-bats by sending a high, deep fly ball over the left field wall that also brought in first baseman Eric Jagielo to put Pensacola on top, 4-1. Two of those four hits are homers.
It was Aquino’s first homer in 21 at bats after knocking one out May 1 against Biloxi. His two-run blast came after having struck out five times in a row against Barons pitchers.
The lead held up until the seventh inning when Pensacola reliever Ismael Guillon gave up two runs on three hits to the Barons. DH Nick Basto, who hit a solo shot in the first inning, knocked in second baseman Eddy Alvarez with a single, pulling Birmingham within, 4-3. Barons third baseman Jake Peters scored the tying run, 4-4, when right fielder Mason Robbins lined a single to center.
The two runs scored on Guillon denied starter Keury Mella his first Double-A victory. He remains the only Pensacola starter without a win this season.
“It’s a shame but the win will come (for Mella),” said Kelly.
Mella threw 5.2 innings, allowed two runs on six hits, walked two and struck out four. He is 0-3 with a 4.50 ERA.
Jimmy Herget relieved Guillon in the eighth with the game tied, 4-4, and got the last five outs, including striking out the side in the top of the ninth to pick up the win and even his record at 1-1. Herget has a 2.25 ERA.
Pensacola took the lead, 2-1, in the third inning when third baseman Josh VanMeter hit a two-out single to score DH Leon Landry from second base with the go-ahead run. VanMeter is hitting 8-18 with 10 RBIs in that situation. The first run scored in the inning when catcher Adrian Nieto crossed the plate from third on a sharp ground out to third by left fielder Tyler Goeddel.
Peter smashed a double into the left field corner that scored Alvarez from first to cut the Blue Wahoos lead in the fifth inning to, 4-2.
Pensacola upped its record to 18-16 and are in a tie with the Biloxi Shuckers for first place in the South Division.
Doris Woods
May 12, 2017
Mrs. Doris (Dot) Woods, 84, passed away Monday, May 8, 2017 in Fairhope, Alabama.
Mrs. Woods was a lifelong resident of Atmore, AL. Mrs. Woods was one of six children who had their own special talent working with their hands. Mrs. Woods worked as a seamstress at Vanity Fair for many years before she started sewing for the public. She made everything from children’s clothes to wedding dresses for both of her daughters.
Dot loved her family more than anything. She was a loving wife to her husband until his death. She was also the best “Momma” to her three children and the greatest “Mawmaw” to her six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
She loved her sister, brothers and their families dearly. She also loved her husband’s family as her own. She will be greatly missed by her friends and family until we meet again. She is preceded in death by her husband, Johnnie Woods; parents, Charlie Tyson and Sadie Miller; three brothers, Jack Tyson, Thomas (PeeWee) Tyson, and Joe Miller; and one sister, Louise King.
She is survived by one son, Charles Woods (Carolyn) of Atmore, AL; two daughters, Vicky Kornegay (Darryl) of Eufaula, AL and Lisa Milliken (Larry) of Atmore, AL; one brother, Murray Tyson (Libby) of South Haven, MS; six grandchildren, Sharlie Terry (Ross), Scotty Woods (Tosha), Hunter Milliken (Hannah), Andrew Kornegay (Sarah), Haley Kornegay and Sara Milliken and four great-grandchildren, Ava Woods, Tyson Milliken, Levi Millken and Chase Milliken.
Funeral services were held Thursday, May 11, 2017, at 1 p.m. at the Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Home.
Burial was at the Semirah Springs Cemetery.
Pallbearers were Andrew Kornegay, Scotty Woods, Hunter Milliken, Darryl Kornegay, Larry Milliken and Ross Terry.
Honorary pallbearers was her Sunday school class at Robinsonville Baptist Church .
Petty-Eastside Chapel Funeral Homes, LLC in charge of all arrangements.
Century Transfers Reserve Funds For Water, Wastewater Repairs
May 11, 2017
In a special called meeting, the Century Town Council voted Wednesday evening to transfer money from a reserve fund to make critical repairs to water and wastewater facilities in the town.
The town will transfer $172,000 from a $229,000 reserve fund.
The transfer from reserves will be used to repair one of two clarifiers at the wastewater plant that has failed. The clarifier repair will cost $40,000 while the electrical repairs will cost $60,000. The money will also be used for installation and materials for the installation of a new meter at the prison, and $7,000 for a booster pump that would supply water to the Century Correctional Institution from the town’s two other wells in the event of an equipment failure at the prison.
Recently increased rates may help the town replenish the reserve funds, according to Mayor Henry Hawkins. In addition, the repairs will allow staff time to focus more on day to day operations, he said.
Earlier this month, the Century Council approved an incremental 55 percent water and wastewater rate increase that will cost the average family just over $200 per year. The rate increase is aimed at stopping ordinary financial losses by the system.
Pictured: Century’s water, wastewater and natural gas franchise also serves the Century Correctional Institution. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Sandy Hollow Road Closed For Bridge Replacement
May 11, 2017
Sandy Hollow Road at Sandy Hollow Creek near Walnut Hill will be closed for a bridge replacement through September.
The new, modern concrete structure will have 10-foot travel lanes, two-foot shoulders and a solid concrete barrier railing. Additionally, bridge approaches will be replaced, drainage upgraded, and guardrail replaced.
Construction is estimated to take six months, weather and schedule permitting.. A four-mile detour will be in place, using Gobbler Road, Highway 97 and Highway 4.
The bridge is being replaced by a contractor for the Florida Department of Transportation and then maintained in the future by Escambia County.
The estimated budget for the project is $740,057. The current bridge was constructed in 1959.
Mostly Sunny Today, Rain By Friday
May 11, 2017
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 85. Light southwest wind becoming south 5 to 10 mph in the morning.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 63. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
Friday: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 81. Southwest wind 5 to 15 mph. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Friday Night: Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 62. South wind 5 to 10 mph becoming light and variable after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 82. North wind around 5 mph.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 58. North wind around 5 mph.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 85. North wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Sunday Night: Clear, with a low around 60. Calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 87. Calm wind becoming south around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 62.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 87.
Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 65.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 87.
Century Correctional Institution Inmate Assaults Officer
May 11, 2017
Monday, an inmate assaulted a correctional officer at Century Correctional Institution, according to information recently released by the Florida Department of Corrections.
Cesar Figueroa-Donnol assaulted the officer at approximately 12:40 a.m. Figueroa-Donnol head-butted the officer, according to the FDOC. Staff responded appropriately, and the inmate was subdued.
Figueroa-Donnol will receive a disciplinary report for the assault. The FDOC did not release any information about the correctional officer’s condition or need for outside medical care.
Figueroa-Donnol was sentenced in November 2015 to 17 years in prison on Orange County charges that included burglary and drug trafficking.
Putnam Returns To Roots To Start Governor’s Race
May 11, 2017
Standing in front of a huge Florida flag covering the stately pillars of a century-old county courthouse with orange crates on the steps, Republican Adam Putnam on Wednesday used a combination of small-town nostalgia, conservative politics and a deep knowledge of his home state to launch his gubernatorial campaign.
“I can’t imagine a better place to announce I’m running for governor of the state of Florida,” Putnam said, with his former high-school principal and the Bartow High School “Yellow Jacket” band nearby and surrounded by family members and friends who grew up with him in the Polk County town of less than 20,000 people.
“We have to put Florida first so that we are more than a prize for a life well-lived someplace else,” Putnam said. “We can make Florida the launch pad for the American dream.”
Putnam, the state’s agriculture commissioner and a fifth-generation Floridian, enters the 2018 race as the leading candidate to replace Gov. Rick Scott, who will leave office because of term limits and is expected to run for the U.S. Senate.
Putnam, 42, brings a wealth of political experience to the campaign. Beginning as a 22-year-old, he served in the Florida House and then moved to Congress, where he spent a decade and rose to the third-highest Republican leadership post in the U.S. House. He was elected to the state Cabinet in 2010 and will finish his second term as agriculture commissioner next year.
Robert Beattie, a 60-year-old Republican who worked nearly three decades in the phosphate industry as a welder, said he likes Putnam’s experience.
“I appreciate that big time,” said Beattie. “His experience, his breadth and knowledge of what’s going on in Florida.”
In his 16-minute speech, Putnam, dressed casually in a long-sleeved blue-checked shirt and khaki pants, emphasized his small-town roots, growing up in a citrus and cattle business that his family founded. He recalled the freezes of the 1980s that devastated the crops.
“I learned at an early age about riding groves late at night, checking pumps and checking temperatures and assessing the damage the next morning and moving forward,” he said.
He talked about raising his prized horned Hereford bull, named “Georgia Boy,” for a 4-H Club project in a pen that once existed a few blocks from the courthouse.
“Hard work. Responsibility. Perseverance. These are common values,” Putnam said. “But in our society today, they are all too rare.”
How well Putnam’s agrarian roots resonate with Florida’s urban voters remains to be seen. But talking to reporters after his speech, Putnam drew connections between Florida’s diverse regions.
“As you know, Palm Beach is one of our top ag-producing counties in the state, and so is Miami-Dade. It’s not us against them,” Putnam said. “We have an opportunity to diversify our economy and build on our pillars of agriculture, tourism and construction and create new opportunities so that young people who grow up in a town like Bartow don’t have to leave to find good work.”
Sen. Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, said Putnam hit the right themes in his announcement speech.
“His message is right in line with where Florida and the nation needs to be,” Stargel said. “We need to get back to the basics of who we are. We are about family, personal responsibility and less government. That’s his message, and it’s the right message.”
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd reinforced Putnam’s conservative credentials, calling him “honest and ethical” and praising him for making it easier to apply for concealed-weapons licenses.
“Because of Adam, today it is easier than ever to protect and defend your family and loved ones,” Judd said.
Putnam said he would “protect” the Second Amendment rights of Floridians. “In Florida, we take those seriously,” he said.
Putnam also said law enforcement officers and military veterans would be “recognized and honored” in his administration. Echoing a Scott policy, Putnam said he would make Florida the nation’s “friendliest” state for military members and veterans.
With $7.7 million on hand in his “Florida Grown” political committee through March 31, Putnam already has a significant financial advantage in the race. But he could still face Republican challengers, including House Speaker Richard Corcoran, a Land O’ Lakes Republican who said he is looking at the governor’s race but will not make a decision until after the 2018 legislative session.
Putnam said he is prepared for a potential challenge.
“I’m a Bartow-raised farmer, and I am a conservative,” Putnam said. “Anyone who wants to run for governor is more than welcome to pack a lunch and come on.”
On Thursday, Putnam will begin a 10-day bus tour that will take him across the state from Miami to Pensacola, ending May 20 in Suwannee County.
by Lloyd Dunkelberger, The News Service of Florida
West Florida’s Zabelle Signs With Coastal Alabama
May 11, 2017
West Florida High School senior Nicholas Zabelle signed a baseball scholarship Wednesday with Coastal Alabama Community College, Brewton Campus. Zabelle started out playing t-ball and little league baseball at both the Molino and Cantonment ballparks. He has lived in Molino with his parents since he was 5-years old.
Pictured: (L-R, front) Dawn Zabelle, Nicholas Zabelle, John Zabelle (back) WFHS Head Coach and Athletic Director Marc Conti, Principal Shenna Payne and Coastal Alabama Head Baseball coah Darrell Blevins. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
ECSO Honors Fallen Officers
May 11, 2017
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office held their annual Fallen Officer Memorial Thursday to honor those that have lost their lives in the line of duty.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
