Need Last Minute Gift Wrapping? The Tate Band Has You Covered
December 24, 2018
There’s one more chance today to get your gift wrapping problems solved by the Tate High School Showband of the South. The band will be wrapping gifts for donations from 8 a.m. until noon at the Walmart on Highway 29 in Ensley. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Christmas Recipes: Apples, Sweet Potatoes And A Quick Breakfast Brunch
December 24, 2018
Today’s Christmas recipes feature an Apple Caramel Pudding and a Sweet Tater Cheesecake. We also have a Farmer’s Omelet Casserole that’s easy to cook and would provide a hearty Christmas morning breakfast or brunch for everyone.
To submit your recipes to share with our readers, email them to news@northescambia.com.
Farmer’s Omelet Casserole
by Terri Brown
- 3 cups frozen cubed hash brown potatoes
- 1 cup chopped green pepper, divided
- 1/3 cup chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 18 large eggs, beaten
- 2 1/3 cups chopped cooked ham
- 1 1/4 cups chopped tomato, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (coarse grind is best)
- 1 1/2 cups (6 oz) shredded Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
Cook potato, 3/4 cup green pepper and onion in oil in a large skillet over medium high heat, stirring constantly, 8 min. or until tender. Cool potatoes if preparing the night before. Combine potato mixture, eggs, ham, 1 cup tomato, salt and black pepper in a large bowl; stir well. Pour mixture into a lightly greased 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Bake, uncovered at 325 for 40 minutes or until golden. Top with remaining 1/4 cup green pepper and 1/4 cup tomato. Sprinkle evenly with cheese. Bake 5 more minutes until cheese melts.
Apple Caramel Pudding
by Janet Smith
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 1/2 cups chopped peeled apples
Combine first five ingredients; then add apples and milk. Blend thoroughly and pour into 8″ square pan.
Combine:
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup butter
- 3/4 cup boiling water
Mix sugar, boiling water and butter and pour over the batter already in pan. Bake
at 375 degree oven for 45 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream. Very simple but rich dessert. Serves 4 to 6
Sweet Tater Cheesecake
- 4 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1 cup whipping cream (cool whip will work if no cream handy)
- 1 1/2 cups sweet potatoes, mashed (NOT CANNED)
Graham Cracker-Pecan Crust
- 2 cups finely crushed graham cracker crumbs
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 1/4 cup finely chopped pecans
- Preparation:
- Preheat oven to 425°.
Crust:
Combine crust ingredients thoroughly; press into a 10-inch springform pan.
Beat cream cheese, sugar, and eggs until smooth; beat in flour, cinnamon, and ginger. Beat cream and well-mashed sweet potatoes in on medium speed of a hand held mixer just until well-combined. Pour the batter into the prepared crust. Bake at 425° for 15 minutes; lower heat to 275° and bake 1 hour longer. Turn heat off and leave in the oven to cool for several hours, or cool on a wire rack. Serve with sweetened whipped cream or caramel sauce.
Cantonment Man Accused Of Selling Fake LSD, Bringing Spice Into Jail
December 23, 2018
A Cantonment man is accused of the sale of fake LSD and bringing spice into the Escambia County Jail.
Joshua Robert Welch, 19, was charged with selling a misbranded drug in lieu of a controlled substance, possession of spice within 1,000 feet of a college and introduction of contraband into a detention facility.
Escambia County deputies conducted a traffic stop on Welch for not having a rear view mirror on Pensacola Boulevard near Pensacola Christian College. Officers found a small piece of aluminum foil containing what was believed to be LSD, also known as acid.
As officers questioned Welch, he began to cry, stating he was scared for getting pulled over, according to an arrest report.
Welch told deputies that he bought the drugs believing it was acid, but when he took one nothing happened. He stated he was going to try to sell the drugs to try to make some money but believed the items were fake acid, according to the report.
At the Escambia County, staff located a brown paper towel containing spice in Welch’s genital area, records show.
He was released from the Escambia County Jail on a $7,500 bond.
Escambia 4-H Holds Holiday Bake-Off, And Here’s The Winning Recipe
December 23, 2018
Escambia County 4-H recently hosted its second annual Holiday Bake-Off.
The best of show award went to A.T. Bridgers from the Barrineau Park 4-H Club for his Yule Log, his second bake-off win. For the recipe, click here.
There were 41 4-H members submitting 90 delicious entries, and over 100 people attended the awards ceremony and enjoyed all the goodies.
Division winning entries received the coveted golden spoon for all of their hard work. Cloverbuds, 4-H members ages 5-7, also were able to enter, although their desserts were not judged. Cloverbuds instead received a participation ribbon and golden spoon for their hard work.
The category winners were:
- Cloverbuds (Participation ribbon only)-Lindsay Carbone (2), Syrah Chauvette (3), Zaiyn Chauvette (2), Megan Gray, Ellison Miller, Z’Akarr Shaw, Weston Simmons (2), Anna Simmons, and Hunter Smith
- Cakes-A. T. Bridgers of the Barrineau Park 4-H Club
- Cupcakes-Hannah Schnupp of the New Horizons 4-H Club
- Pies-Maegan Workman of the Cool Clovers 4-H Club
- Candies-Jasmine Guillory of the Olive Heights 4-H Club
- Cookies-Hannah Schnupp of the New Horizons 4-H Club
- Brownies-Izzie Jenkins of the Barrineau Park 4-H Club
- Breads-Taylor Anderson of the Escambia County Horse 4-H Club
- Specialty Items-Ethan Thorne of the Escambia County Leadership 4-H Club
- Appetizers-Izzy Kent of the Escambia County Leadership 4-H Club
- Lite Recipes-Izzy Kent of the Escambia County Leadership 4-H Club
- Gluten Free Cookies- Maegan Workman of the Cool Clovers 4-H Club
- Gingerbread House Making Workshop-Bella M. of the Barrineau Park 4-H Club
As a community service project, 4-H members were also encouraged to bring a toy to be donated to Toys for Tots.
Resident Critically Injured In Saturday Home Fire; Mobile Home Burns Friday
December 23, 2018
An elderly Escambia County residents was critically injured in a house fire Saturday night, and a Friday after fire left three people without a home. The fires represent the fourth and fifth red bulbs in the “Keep the Wreath Green” fire safety campaign.
Capitol Boulevard Fire
Escambia County Emergency Communications received a call reporting the fire in the 1200 block of Capitol Boulevard at 6:49 p.m. Saturday after a home smoke alarm signaled the resident’s alarm company. The alarm company spoke with the resident’s emergency contact who was able to view the home’s hallway via internet cameras, confirming a problem and notified 9-1-1.
Crews arrived on scene at 6:58 p.m. and was able to locate the elderly resident who had collapsed in the single story home by 7:06 p.m. (pictured below). The fire was called under control at 7:16 p.m., with moderate damage to the home. The resident was transported to Sacred Heart in trauma alert condition. The state fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.
Turkey Road Fire
A mobile home fire that occurred Friday represents the fourth red bulb on the “Keep the Wreath Green” fire safety wreath.
Escambia County Emergency Communications received a call at 4:24 p.m. Friday reporting a residential structure fire in the 5600 block of Turkey Road. Crews arrived on scene at 4:30 p.m. to find fire showing from the mobile home. Escambia County Fire Rescue called the fire under control at 4:49 p.m. No injuries were reported but heavy fire and smoke damage throughout has made the home uninhabitable (pictured top) Three adults were displaced and are being assisted by the American Red Cross. The state fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire. No working smoke detectors were present in the home.
Keep The Wreath Green
The “Keep the Wreath Green” fire safety campaign is a collaborative initiative with the city of Pensacola to promote fire safety during the month of December. During the monthlong campaign, five-foot wreaths are on display at 18 county fire stations and five city fire stations, with wreaths also placed outside Escambia County’s Ernie Lee Magaha Government Building downtown, the Escambia County Public Safety Building, Pensacola City Hall and Cordova Mall near the food court entrance. Each time firefighters respond to a residential fire with damage, a green light bulb will be replaced with a red one to remind citizens of the dangers posed by fires in residential home.
If your home doesn’t have a working smoke detector, please call Escambia County Fire Rescue at 850-595-HERO (4376) or 850-436-5200 for city of Pensacola residents.
Pictured top: A fire Friday on Turkey Road. Pictured below: Inside a Capitol Boulevard home after a Saturday fire. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Warm Sunday, Plus A Look At Your Christmas Forecast
December 23, 2018
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Sunday: A 20 percent chance of showers after noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 71. South wind 5 to 15 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 43. West wind around 5 mph becoming north after midnight.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 60. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 41. Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Christmas Day: Partly sunny, with a high near 62. Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 47. Calm wind becoming east around 5 mph.
Wednesday: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 67. East wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday Night: Showers likely. Cloudy, with a low around 58. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Thursday: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. High near 68. Chance of precipitation is 80%.
Thursday Night: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Cloudy, with a low around 62. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Friday: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Cloudy, with a high near 71. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Friday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57.
Saturday: A 50 percent chance of showers. Cloudy, with a high near 67.
Bratt Elementary School Names December Students Of The Month
December 23, 2018
Bratt Elementary School has named students of the month for December. They are:
Pre-K
Makenna Smith
Breanna Campbell
Kindergarten
Paisley Emmons
Luke Kohen
Bella Coy
Dillan Stuart
1st Grade
Lucas Daniel
Cameron Gipson
Madalynn Lowery
Maryann Tedder
Trevor Knighten
2nd Grade
Pryce Flowers
Denis Lambeth
Maybree Johnson
Raieny Nelson
3rd Grade
Brody Hall
Trinity Bryan
Emma Grimes
Levi Peters
Chole Satterwhite
4th Grade
Amara Campbell
Melissa Wilson
Kaylee Long
5th Grade
Aakira Davis
Reagan Peebles
Jasmine Zisa
Cloie Pickern
Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: A Little Something Extra In The State’s Stocking
December 23, 2018
State economists came bearing gifts this week when they approved a fiscal forecast showing key revenue sources experiencing robust growth.
Projected increases in sales-tax and corporate income-tax collections, the two largest sources of state general revenue, will provide some maneuvering room for the Legislature and incoming Gov. Ron DeSantis as they work on a new budget this spring.
In contrast, Gov. Rick Scott started off his rookie year in 2011 facing revenue shortfalls and the need to preach fiscal austerity, as the state continued its recovery from the economic recession.
DeSantis should have an easier time and will likely benefit from the expected budget largesse. He faces an early February deadline for advancing his first budget proposal for the 2019 legislative session, which begins in March.
In another fiscal bonus, state analysts said this week that fewer students than expected are showing up in Florida’s kindergarten-to-high-school system. A new report projects that lawmakers will only have to accommodate just under 12,000 additional K-12 students in the coming year, which again should provide some financial relief in budget negotiations.
REV UP THE REVENUES
With the unexpected surge in tax collections, analysts on Tuesday projected a significant increase in state revenue over two years.
State revenue collections during the fiscal year that started July 1 have been running $365.2 million ahead of projections, which were last revised in August. The two largest components of that increase were $173.5 million in sales-tax collections running ahead of estimates and $126 million in additional corporate income-tax collections.
The sales tax, which generates about $26 billion a year, and the corporate income tax, which generates about $2.2 billion, are the two largest general revenue sources in the state budget. General revenue taxes are closely watched in the Capitol because they play a key role in funding schools, health programs and prisons.
Based on the tax collections, the analysts boosted their general-revenue projections by $842 million over two years, with a $461.5 million increase in 2018-2019 and a $380.5 million increase in 2019-2020.
In reading the consensus report, Amy Baker, coordinator of the Legislature’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research, noted the $842 million adjustment has come at the same time analysts have adopted state and national economic forecasts that show some weakening in key economic factors.
“While this is the largest combined (two-year) increase since April 2006, during the peak of the housing boom, the conference recognizes that there is an elevated level of risk due to the mature stage of the current economic expansion,” Baker said.
Nonetheless, the new estimates show the state should collect an additional $1.48 billion in general revenue this year, a 4.8 percent increase over the 2017-2018 fiscal year. The new 2019-2020 general revenue projection is 3.1 percent, or $1.01 billion, higher than this year.
A TALLAHASSEE LEGEND PASSES
Thomas Kent “T.K.” Wetherell was remembered Friday as an athlete, an academic, a clever legislator, a crafty dealmaker and a country boy who could be colorful with his words.
The former state House speaker from Daytona Beach who went on to become president of his alma mater, Florida State University, was noted for having four “F’s” in his life: faith, family, friends and FSU, in that order except on Saturdays when the school’s football team played.
Wetherell was also known for his love of country music, fried food, Blue Bell ice cream, NASCAR, hunting and fishing, said Bill Smith, president and CEO of Capital City Bank who is involved with the Florida State Athletic Board and The Florida State University Student Investment Fund.
“He played that country boy up naturally, but it was a disguise,” Smith said. “He was always three steps ahead of the crowd. The boy was smart.”
Wetherell, who served as speaker from 1990 to 1992, died Sunday after a long battle with cancer.
Wetherell, who would have turned 73 on Saturday, attended Florida State on a football scholarship from 1963 to 1967, while earning bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees from the school.
Wetherell went on to serve in the House from 1980 to 1992 and had a long career in education. He was provost and dean at Daytona State College and an associate professor of education at Bethune-Cookman University before becoming president of Tallahassee Community College in 1995. He served as FSU president from 2003 to 2010.
CORCORAN RETURNS
The Florida Board of Education on Monday unanimously approved the appointment of former House Speaker Richard Corcoran as the next state education commissioner.
Corcoran, a Land O’Lakes attorney who served as a Republican House speaker from 2016 until last month, will succeed Pam Stewart, a veteran educator who has led the Department of Education since 2013. Stewart will step down on Jan. 8.
The appointment of Corcoran, who has scant education experience but a lengthy political resume, was all but assured when DeSantis announced his support for the former lawmaker. As speaker, Corcoran made a top priority of expanding charter schools and using voucher-like programs to send students to private schools.
“Richard will be a bold leader committed to the success of students, parents, and teachers,” DeSantis said in a congratulatory tweet on Monday.
Corcoran has clashed with the Florida Education Association, a statewide teachers union. In part, he backed a law that will force local teachers’ unions to disband if their membership falls below 50 percent of the employees they represent in the collective-bargaining process.
Fedrick Ingram, president of the union, said he was “disappointed” in the state board’s decision but is hoping for a more “collaborative” relationship with Corcoran. The union has invited Corcoran to visit schools to see successful programs, which Corcoran said he would like to do.
“If you don’t bring all stakeholders to the table, then our children are in the balance,” Ingram said.
Ingram said teachers want Corcoran to address issues like the amount of testing students face, class sizes and the need to recruit and retain teachers.
“The fact that he is not an educator doesn’t mean he can’t do the job. But he’s got some learning to do,” Ingram said.
Corcoran said he is a strong supporter of traditional public schools as well as being an advocate for “choice” programs like charter schools and vouchers.
He said his initial agenda as commissioner would mirror policies outlined by DeSantis in this year’s gubernatorial campaign. The priorities include the expansion of vocational and technical programs, curriculum improvements, revising education standards and making sure 80 percent of education funding is spent in classrooms.
“Those are bold, optimistic visions on (the governor’s) part. I share it,” Corcoran said.
STORY OF THE WEEK: The Florida Board of Education unanimously approved former House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, to be the next education commissioner.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “The fact that he is not an educator doesn’t mean he can’t do the job. But he’s got some learning to do,” said Fedrick Ingram, president of the Florida Education Association, about Corcoran’s appointment.
by Lloyd Dunkelberger
Escambia Jail Collects Hundreds Of Toys For Toys For Tots
December 23, 2018
The Escambia County Jail Division donated 244 toys to Toys for Tots this year. They began their collection the week of Thanksgiving and continued into December. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Hugh E. Cleveland
December 23, 2018
Hugh E. Cleveland, 77, of Cantonment, FL, passed to his Heavenly Home December 19, 2018. He was born in Elberton, GA, on October 19, 1941, to the late Hugh and Doris Cleveland.
Hugh served as a deacon at Plainview Baptist Church in Pensacola. Hugh served his country for 20 years in the United States Navy retiring as senior chief in 1980. After his military career Hugh, went on to work at the University of West Florida for next 22 years.
Hugh’s favorite saying to everyone was “Be Nice”. He was the best father and grandfather with the gentlest of hearts.
He was preceded in death by his parents Hugh and Doris Cleveland.
Hugh is survived by his wife of 38 years Mary A Cleveland (Precious); three sisters Pat, Camilia, and Jan; brother Tommy, two sons; Mickey (Beverly) and Randy (Susan); daughter; Cindy (Paul); seven
grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.
Pallbearers will be Joseph Cascone, Beau Hornsby, Ethan Enfinger, Ethan Hornsby, Paul Cascone, and Scott Enfinger.
Funeral services will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, December 23, 2018, at Faith Chapel Funeral Home North with Pastor Bill Flannigan officiating. Burial will follow in Eastern Gate Memorial Gardens.
The family will receive friends at noon, prior to service.
Faith Chapel Funeral Home North is entrusted with arrangements.