Missing Toddler Found Safe With Mom After Cantonment Search
January 28, 2018
A toddler was found safe with his mother after a search in the Cantonment area late Saturday afternoon.
According to Deb Henley, spokesperson for the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, the mother went to visit a relative and took the child with her but forgot to tell the grandfather. The mother does not have phone, so the grandfather was unable to reach her to find out where she was at and if she had the child.
“So he called just in case,” Henley said.
The grandfather called the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office to the residence on Pace Parkway off Muscogee Road about 4:35 p.m.
ECSO deputies and a K-9 searched the house and the area for the child, and Escambia Search and Rescue was alerted.
“We were eventually able to verify she had taken her daughter with her,” Henley said. The child was safe and was never in any danger.
Chloe Ragsdale Named Miss Ernest Ward (With Photo Gallery)
January 28, 2018
Chloe Adele Ragsdale was named Miss Ernest Ward Middle School Saturday night in “Fabulous 50’s” themed pageant at the school.
Third runner-up was McKenna Rae Simmons, second runner-up was Elianna Teresa Morales, and the first runner-up in the annual pageant was Carsyn Laine Dortch.
Other awards presented were: Miss Hospitality MaKayla Shana Ramsey, Miss Congeniality Jordan Jade Wilson, People’s Choice Addison Ruby Geck, Miss Personality McKenna Rae Simmons, Miss Physical Fitness Chloe Adele Ragsdale, and Miss Poise and Appearance Carsyn Laine Dortch.
For a NorthEscambia.com photo gallery from the pageant, click here.
Pictured top: Third runner-up McKenna Rae Simmons, second runner-up Elianna Teresa Morales, Miss EWMS Chloe Adle Ragsdale, and first runner-up Carsyn Laine Dortch. Pictured below: The contestants in the annual pageant. Pictured below: Miss EWMS 2018 Chloe Adele is crowned by outgoing Miss EWMS 2017 Tavianna Parker. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Walnut Hill Producers Place Statewide In National Corn Yield Contest
January 28, 2018
Miriam Classen and her son Kevin Classen of Walnut Hill placed second in Florida in their categories in the 2017 National Corn Yield Contest.
Miriam Classen placed second in the “A No-Till/Strip-Till Non Irrigated” category with a yield of 212.8423 bushels per acre.
Kevin Classen placed second in the “A Non-Irrigated” category with a yield of 211.2845 bushels per acre.
The National Corn Yield Contest is now in its 53rd year and remains NCGA’s most popular program for members.
“The contest provides farmers more than just an opportunity for friendly competition; it generates data that impacts future production practices across the industry,” said Roger Zylstra, chair of NCGA’s Stewardship Action Team. “The techniques first developed by contest winners grow into far-reaching advances, helping farmers across the country excel in a variety of situations. Our contest emphasizes innovation both from growers and technology providers, thus enabling us to meet the growing demand for food, feed, fuel and fiber.”
For more than half of a century, NCGA’s National Corn Yield Contest has provided corn growers the opportunity to compete with their colleagues to grow the most corn per acre, helping feed and fuel the world. This has given participants not only the recognition they deserved, but the opportunity to learn from their peers.
Jason Weber of Atmore with a yield of 214.3802 and James R. Weber of Atmore with a yield of 213.3344 entered but did not place int he Alabama Non-Irrigated division. Jason Weber also had a yield of 207.8621 in the No-Till/Strip-Till Non Irrigated category but did not place in the state category.
Weekend Gardening: Start Your Spring Garden Indoors
January 28, 2018
by UF/IFAS Extension
Get a head start on your spring vegetable garden by planting seed now for some of your favorite spring crops. A great advantage to starting from seed is the seemingly endless number of varieties of your favorite vegetables that are available from online seed companies. You can experiment with new and heirloom varieties. Look to plant several different varieties that will mature at different times, thereby lengthening your harvest season.
Seed is also cheaper than purchasing transplants, especially if you save your seeds in optimal conditions. To save leftover seed, keep it tightly closed in the original packet and store in a closed jar or plastic storage bag along with a desiccant (one of the little packs that come in vitamin bottles or shoe boxes) to absorb any excess moisture. Place in a consistently cool place, like your refrigerator. Some seeds naturally keep longer than others.
No fancy pots are needed, just about anything several inches wide and deep with a drainage hole will work. The pots should sit in a shallow waterproof tray to catch the runoff. Be sure to sterilize any reused pots with a solution of 1 part chlorine bleach to 9 parts water to destroy any lingering pathogens from the previous plants.
A commercial seed-starting mix is your best choice. Compressed peat or coir pots are also a good choice. Some all-purpose potting mixes are okay, but others are heavy and can hold too much water and promote fungal disease.
Plant the seed according the packet instructions, water well and place in a nice sunny spot where you can check them every day. If you don’t have a convenient sunny spot, a shop light with florescent and/or grow lights mounted about 6 inches above the tops of the plants will work well. A timer for the light is a handy device to make sure your seedlings have a good 14-16 hours of light a day. If your pots are in a sunny window, rotate them 180° daily to insure uniform growth. If you find your seedlings skinny and stretched, they are not getting enough sun.
Make sure that the soil stays evenly moist from the time of planting until the young plants are ready for your garden. A clear cover over the pots or tray will help to keep moisture consistent while the seeds germinate.
When the time comes to transition your plants to the outdoors, do it gradually. Expose them to the sun for an hour or two the first day and gradually increase their ‘sunbathing’ time each day for about a week and then transplant them to their
Escambia Deputies Searching For Attempted Murder Suspect
January 28, 2018
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office is searching for an attempted murder suspect following a shooting Saturday morning.
Barry “B” Locklear III, is wanted for the shooting about 5:00 a.m. in the 500 block of Forest Park Drive. When deputies arrived on scene, they found 21-year old Darmichael Vershawn Turner suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Turner was transported to an area hospital.
Locklear in considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with information on his whereabouts or the shooting is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Northwest Florida Water District Plants 15 Millionth Longleaf Pine Tree
January 28, 2018
The Northwest Florida Water Management District planted its 15 millionth longleaf pine tree on public lands.
“Planting trees and restoring forests are something we take a lot of pride in here in northwest Florida,” said George Roberts, Chairman of the District’s Governing Board. “We understand the significant role the longleaf pine habitat plays in protecting water resources for the residents in our District.”
Once other plantings are completed this month, the District will have planted nearly 15.1 million longleaf pines since 1993. In that same 25-year period, the District has also planted an additional 1.6 million other trees, including cypress and other hardwoods, to bring the overall total tree plantings to nearly 17 million.
“It’s an honor to join the District on Florida Arbor Day to celebrate 15 million longleaf pine trees,” Valenstein said. “The Department is committed to continuing to work with the District and our local partners to restore natural habitat and protect our state’s prized properties in northwest Florida and statewide.”
The District has also planted more than 6.6 million wiregrass tubelings – a key component to a healthy longleaf ecosystem.
The longleaf pine is a critical piece of northern Florida ecosystems. The tree’s presence helps improve plant species diversity and provides wildlife habitat for animal and insect species. It also provides erosion control and natural fuel for effective prescribed burns.
The Northwest Florida Water Management District is charged with managing and protecting the water resources of the Florida panhandle in a 16-county region, including Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.
Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Working Toward November
January 28, 2018
Looser gun laws and low taxes? Those were just two of the items the Republican-dominated Legislature advanced this week, offering more proof (as if any were needed) that it’s an election year in Florida.
The Sunshine State — snidely spoofed as “The Gunshine State” by gun-control advocates — has long been a testing ground for legislation fired out by the National Rifle Association, thanks mostly to NRA lobbyist and onetime national president Marion Hammer.
While gun-related bills didn’t fare so well last year, they’re perennially on the agenda in the Capitol, and this election year is no different.
Committees in the House and Senate are moving forward with measures that would allow people with concealed-weapons licenses to carry guns on the grounds of churches and other religious institutions that include schools.
The Senate proposal, however, would ban firearm possession during hours when schools or day-care centers are operating.
A House committee backed a similar plan in a party-line vote — just a day after two teenagers were killed and 18 others were injured in a shooting spree at a Kentucky high school.
Florida law allows religious facilities to be open to people who have concealed-weapons licenses and are armed. However, state law prohibits people from carrying guns at schools.
As with gun-friendly proposals, lowering taxes — or at least keeping them low — is a ubiquitous item on the GOP agenda.
In a priority of Gov. Rick Scott and Speaker Richard Corcoran, the Florida House on Thursday overwhelmingly approved a proposed constitutional amendment that would make it more difficult to raise taxes and fees.
The proposal, which could go on the November ballot, would require two-thirds votes by the House and the Senate in the future to increase taxes and fees, up from the usual majority votes.
Meanwhile, another election-year proposal strongly supported by conservatives also inched closer to the ballot this week. A Constitution Revision Commission panel approved a measure that would narrow the right to privacy, the bedrock of numerous Florida Supreme Court decisions overturning anti-abortion laws.
At the other end of the spectrum, a proposed constitutional amendment that would expand the rights of convicted felons made it onto the November ballot.
The proposal could open the door for more than 1 million Floridians to regain the right to vote, something proponents maintain is a critical component of enabling convicted felons to feel like they’re fully integrated into society.
Ambrose Bierce, the great turn-of-the-19th-century American wit and writer, offered this sly definition of redemption in “The Devil’s Dictionary.”
“The doctrine of Redemption is the fundamental mystery of our holy religions, and whoso believeth in it shall not perish, but have everlasting life in which to try to understand it.”
SHOT AT RESTORATION
Desmond Meade broke down in tears while recording a video announcing the “Voting Restoration Amendment” had been approved Tuesday to appear on the November ballot as Amendment 4.
The proposal would automatically restore voting rights to felons who have served their sentences, completed parole or probation and paid restitution. Murderers and sex offenders would be excluded.
For Meade, the chairman of the Floridians for a Fair Democracy political committee behind the petition drive, the proposed constitutional change is personal.
Meade, a convicted felon and law-school graduate who struggled for years to have his rights restored, spearheaded the campaign, largely bankrolled by the American Civil Liberties Union and other big donors.
“I know I’m getting a little emotional right now because only God knows the hard work that was put in to get to this point,” a tearful and buoyant Meade said in a Facebook Live post.
“No one thought we would get here. But we’re here. We’re one step closer. We’re one step closer to liberating and giving over 1.6 million a shot at redemption, a shot at restoration, a shot at citizenship,” he said. “We’ve got one more step to go.”
Black state legislators have tried repeatedly to change state law to allow the automatic restoration of rights. But the Republican-dominated Legislature either quashed or ignored the efforts.
Florida is one of just four states that do not automatically restore felons’ voting rights, once they have completed their sentences and paid restitution. Critics of Florida’s system say it is cumbersome, lengthy and, for many, expensive.
Meade, for example, originally applied to have his rights restored in 2006, but he got caught up in a backlog of thousands of others eager to take advantage of changes authorized by former Gov. Charlie Crist and the Cabinet that made restoration easier.
But the process took so long that, by the time Meade’s application was examined, he was no longer eligible for the quasi-automatic restoration of civil rights, which include the right to vote.
By then, a new system instituted in 2011 — pushed by Gov. Rick Scott and Attorney General Pam Bondi — had taken effect. Since then, just a fraction of the more than 100,000 former felons who sought to have their rights restored were successful.
The restoration of felons’ rights has long been controversial in Florida, with critics of the state’s process comparing it to post-Civil War Jim Crow policies designed to keep blacks from casting ballots.
A system approved in 2011 by Scott and the Cabinet required felons convicted of nonviolent crimes to wait a minimum of five years to have their rights restored, while others could wait up to 10 years before being eligible to apply. Backers of the process have argued that the restoration of voting rights for felons should be earned and only after a sufficient waiting period.
Meade, originally convicted of drug crimes and, later, of aggravated assault and possession of a firearm, received a letter the same year the 2011 changes went into effect telling him he had to wait at least another year to petition to have his rights restored — more than five years after he had first applied.
He told The News Service of Florida last year he abandoned his effort and instead focused on revamping the system, pointing out that some people have waited more than a decade just for a hearing to have their rights restored.
STAMPING OUT A SCOURGE
Florida lawmakers are poised to spend at least $50 million to stamp out the opioid epidemic that’s caused a spike in overdoses throughout the state.
Dealing with what Scott declared a public health emergency last year is a top priority for the governor and leaders in both legislative chambers.
The House and Senate have each earmarked about $50 million — more than half of which comes from federal funds — to address the drug scourge. The money would be steered to direct services in local communities, with targeted outreach to pregnant women, as well as outpatient care, residential and recovery support and medication-assisted treatment.
The House and Senate, which released initial budget proposals this week, also want to spend about $1.1 million for upgrades to the prescription drug monitoring program, which is a statewide database aimed at preventing addicts from “doctor shopping” for drugs. The money would go toward providing real-time data uploads and data analysis and to integrate the database with electronic health records.
STORY OF THE WEEK: A proposed constitutional amendment that would automatically restore the voting rights of felons who have completed their sentences and paid restitution was approved for the November ballot as Amendment 4.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “You either stand with the people whose money the government takes or you stand with the government that takes it.” — State Rep. Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, the sponsor of a proposed constitutional amendment that would make it more difficult for the Legislature to raise taxes.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
And We Cool Down Again
January 28, 2018
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tonight: Patchy fog before 3am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 47. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 64. North wind 10 to 15 mph.
Monday Night: Clear, with a low around 33. North wind around 10 mph.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 53. North wind 5 to 10 mph.
Tuesday Night: Clear, with a low around 29. North wind around 5 mph becoming east after midnight.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 58. East wind 5 to 10 mph becoming south in the afternoon.
Wednesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44. Southeast wind around 5 mph.
Thursday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Cloudy, with a high near 65. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Thursday Night: A 50 percent chance of showers. Cloudy, with a low around 52.
Friday: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 63.
Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 39.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 57.
Saturday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41.
Sunday: Showers likely. Cloudy, with a high near 60.
W.R. “Ronnie” Gilley
January 28, 2018
W.R. “Ronnie” Gilley, 72, of Molino passed peacefully from this life at his home on Sunday, January 28, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
Ronnie was an alumnus of JM Tate High School (’63) and a U.S. Army veteran (Vietnam). He worked at the St. Regis Bag Plant and later at Champion and International Paper Companies. He also helped run his family’s business, Gilley’s Sporting Goods, in Cantonment.
He is preceded in death by his mother, Louise Gilley. He is survived by his devoted wife of 53 years, Barbara (Grattet) Gilley; their children, Aaron and Ron (Janice); five grandchildren, Ryan, Jayce, Holley, Colby, and Parker; his father, W.T. Gilley; and his sister Frances Streit (Jim).
Ronnie was an avid hunter and fisherman, a true woodsman, and a gifted handler of hunting dogs. He helped pioneer bowhunting in this area and worked for the conservation of wildlife and wildlife habitat with the Panhandle Bowhunter’s Association and the League of Northwest Florida Outdoors Clubs. He was full of compassion for the weak and defenseless, the poor and oppressed, the widow and orphan. He has loved and been loved by many friends through the years as they shared camaraderie unique to outdoorsmen. He was thankful for these friendships, and the family is thankful for them still.
Visitation will be on Tuesday, January 30, from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p/m/ at Highland Baptist Church in Molino. The funeral service will also be at Highland Baptist Church on Wednesday, January 31, at 10:00 a.m.. Active pallbearers will be Jimmy Montgomery, Gregg Montgomery, Sammy Cowart, Doug Cowart, Steve Cody, and Anthony Black. The members of Ronnie’s Sunday School class at Highland Baptist Church in Molino will be honorary pallbearers.
In lieu of flowers, you may send donations to Highland Baptist Church or your favorite charity.
Miss Ernest Ward Pageant Is Tonight
January 27, 2018
The 2017 Miss Ernest Ward Pageant will be held at 6:00 this evening in the Ernest Ward Middle School gym.
Contestants, pictured above, are (front, L-R) Saniyah McKee, Raegan Abbott, Emilee Hill, Rebekah Abbott, Chloe Ragsdale, Carsyn Dortch, Elianna Morales, (back) Jordan Wilson, Wylder Gibson, Makayla Ramsey, McKenna Simmons, Hannah Hassebrock, Addison Geck and Paige Gibbs.
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.