Everyone Wins: Welcome To The Miracle League
September 13, 2017
In a park where hundreds of Escambia County area athletes play baseball, softball and t-ball every year, one set of baseball diamonds stands out from the rest. A rubber surface covers what would normally be clay and grass on three of the fields at the county-owned John R. Jones Jr. Athletic Complex on Nine Mile Road, providing a safe, fun place for everyone who wants to play ball.
And for the Miracle League of Pensacola, “everyone” truly means everyone.
It’s a place where every player plays, hits, gets on base, scores and wins – every game. Operating out of the John R. Jones Jr. Athletic Complex, the Miracle League of Pensacola provides physically and mentally challenged children and adults an opportunity to play baseball, softball and t-ball just like anyone else, all in a spirited and secure environment.
“The most exciting thing is getting to see the kids,” said Miracle League of Pensacola President and Co-Founder Larry Thompson, who started the program in 2002 with his late wife Donna. “In a sense, we’ve watched them grow up. They’re more than just players to us – they’re part of our family, too.”
Thompson said the program has grown from 28 players at its inception to about 250 for the current fall season.
The Miracle League of Pensacola relies on its many volunteers or “buddies” to keep the program going, along with community partners including the Escambia County Parks and Recreation Department.
In addition to Escambia County donating the land at the park for the Miracle League to use, the Parks and Recreation Department has assisted with sidewalks, bleacher areas and perimeter areas to the newest Miracle League field. Recently, the department also coordinated with Miracle League to provide additional field safety netting and enhanced parking options.
Escambia County Parks and Recreation Director Michael Rhodes said the Miracle League of Pensacola has been a great community asset, and the county is honored to be able to support the organization’s mission.
“I’ve witnessed the joy on their faces and the sense of accomplishment on players’ faces over my years at the county,” Rhodes said. “I’ve witnessed the feeling of inclusion by those players when they’re getting to play a game that some probably thought they’d never get to play.”
District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry also spoke to the organization’s positive impact.
“The success and growth at the Miracle League is a fantastic example of a volunteer board and nonprofit organization changing the lives of not only our players, but also their families and all of our player buddies and our coaches,” Barry said. “Many of our volunteers, buddies, and their families have given thousands of dollars and thousands of hours to support our players and I thank them.”
And while Escambia County Parks and Recreation plays a role in Miracle League, Rhodes said the real credit belongs to the Miracle League volunteers who work hard on a daily basis to keep the program going.
“We’re happy to do the part that we can to provide the park, to provide the location and to assist with improvements at the facility, but the volunteers that provide assistance at the Miracle League provide such a key element to that organization’s mission and the success they’ve had over the years,” Rhodes said.
Commissioner Lumon May, who represents District 3 where the park is located, agreed that the county is pleased to support Miracle League and what it brings to the community.
“Miracle League of Pensacola provides an opportunity for all athletes to participate in the great game of baseball, which can be life-changing for those who might not have been able to play otherwise,” May said. “Youth sports are such a fundamental part of childhood, and nobody should be excluded from participating based on their ability.”
Thompson said one of the most rewarding parts of Miracle League is getting to witness the smiles on the players’ faces and watching them overcome physical limitations to achieve things they may have once considered impossible.
“I’ve seen kids come in with cerebral palsy that can’t hit a pitched baseball,” Thompson said. “We used to use a tee 90 percent of the time when we started, and now you may see us use a tee 10 percent of the time. It’s amazing to think you can take the same group of kids and see them hit a pitched ball – people who didn’t think they could even play ball.”
The Miracle League of Pensacola strives to facilitate a sense of inclusion for all who play, Thompson said, with the age of participants ranging from 3 years old to 61 years old.
“The Miracle League is built at a regular baseball park,” he said. “It’s not where I play ball – it’s where we play ball.”
To learn more about the Miracle League of Pensacola or how to become a volunteer, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia County EMA Responds To Irma Flooding In Clay County
September 13, 2017
The Northwest Florida All Hazards Incident Management Team from Escambia County Emergency Management and Santa Rosa County Emergency Management responded to flooding in Clay County, just southeast of Jacksonville. They were joined by other agencies, including Mississippi Task Force 1 with the Department of Homeland Security, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, to assist local Clay County Officials. Pictured is “Thor”, Escambia County Emergency Management’s mobile command center deployed for Hurricane Irma recovery. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Brewton Teen Enters Manslaughter Plea In Deadly Hit And Run
September 13, 2017
An Alabama teen accused of hitting a middle school student with her vehicle, then leaving the scene, entered a plea in court Monday.
Monday, Donnavia Zandra Williams entered a blind plea to manslaughter, throwing herself at the mercy of the court. She could face two to 20 years in prison.
Williams was 17 in February of 2016, when the deadly crash occurred. She told police her windshield was icy, and she’d thought she hit a mailbox.
Devon Spencer, 12, and a friend were walking on Williamson Street, traveling from an apartment complex to W.S. Neal Middle School. The friend was not seriously injured, but Devon died a few days later at Sacred Heart Hospital.
Her sentencing is set for November 2017.
Pictured top: Devon Spencer.
Scott, Tebow Huddle Over Irma
September 13, 2017
A New York Mets minor leaguer with a Heisman Trophy from his time in The Swamp brought some star power to Gov. Rick Scott’s Hurricane Irma relief efforts Tuesday.
After visiting a special-needs shelter together Monday night in Jacksonville, Scott teamed with former University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow on Tuesday to thank volunteers and workers at the state Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee and then left to do the same in Lee County.
“In the midst of a really tough time, you know I think so many people that were hurting have something to hold on to because there were so many volunteers … and they knew there were people in it with them,” Tebow said during the Tallahassee stop. “It doesn’t take away their pain, and it doesn’t take away their fear and doubt of the unknown, but it does give them a little comfort to know that there are people battling with them and loving and supporting them.”
Tebow, who grew up in the Jacksonville area and stopped by a number of Northeast Florida evacuation shelters, had worked with Scott to rally people to volunteer at shelters and in relief efforts before Irma made landfall Sunday in the Florida Keys and Southwest Florida.
“It’s not like you can make everything better at once, but you can know that people are praying for you and they love you and they are here with you walking this journey with you,” Tebow said.
Also, before Scott took part Monday in an aerial survey of damage in the Keys, the governor talked about Hurricane Irma’s storm impacts with Tebow, college football’s 2007 Heisman Trophy winner. Tebow played minor-league baseball this year in the New York Mets system.
Scott told reporters that people staying and working in hurricane-evacuation shelters have appreciated Tebow’s appearances and efforts.
On Friday, Scott retweeted a message from Tebow that said, “@FLGovScott is asking for more volunteers. LET’S RALLY, Florida! Go here: volunteerflorida.org.”
Scott last week also retweeted a message from Miami rapper Pitbull, a former paid ambassador for the state’s tourism industry, who said, “Florida residents & visitors, please be diligent. Evacuate where needed. Be safe. We will be back bigger, better, stronger.”
The storm work by Tebow won’t get him a “Great Floridian” honor — Scott’s already given him that designation.
Tebow was part of the 2013 class of “Great Floridians” that included former Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula, the late Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, golfer Bubba Watson, and 16th Century Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de Leon, each recognized for making significant contributions to the progress and welfare of Florida.
Tebow, who is also a college-football analyst for ESPN, has a charity intended to help children in need. He’s also said he can envision a future career in politics.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida with contribution from Tom Urban, NSF.
Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
EREC Sends Line Crew To Assist With Irma Recovery
September 13, 2017
Escambia River Electric Cooperative line crews will assist Tri-County Electric Cooperative in Madison, FL, with hurricane recovery. Tri-County Electric is one of the cooperatives who suffered severe damage during Irma. Over 90% of Tri-County’s service area was without power as of Tuesday afternoon. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida’s Irma Focus Turns To Recovery
September 13, 2017
More than 5.5 million homes and businesses in Florida remained without power at midday Tuesday after Hurricane Irma plowed through the state.
Food, water and gas deliveries were starting to return in Central and South Florida as the demand swells from returning evacuees. Airports started to provide limited operations. And the process of allowing people to return to homes was underway in most areas outside the storm-ravaged lower Florida Keys.
Irma is expected to cost the state and federal government billions of dollars.
Meanwhile, Florida Power & Light spokesman Rob Gould asked customers on Tuesday to be patient as they wait for restoration of electricity.
“We understand what it means to be in the dark. We understand what it means to be hot and without air conditioning,” Gould said. “We are out there 24-7. This will not be just a daylight operation. We will be restoring power day and night.”
The company, with more than 20,000 restoration workers, anticipates getting power back by the end of the weekend to most of its customers in eastern parts of Florida.
A deadline of Sept. 22 has been set for restoring power to customers in the company’s western counties, which include all or parts of Manatee, Hardee, Sarasota, DeSoto, Charlotte, Lee, Hendry, Collier and Monroe.
The timelines don’t include homes and areas that were completely destroyed by the storm, Gould noted.
Juno Beach-based FPL reported 2.8 million of its nearly 5 million homes and businesses were still without power on Tuesday.
St. Petersburg-based Duke Energy Florida had 1.27 million of its 1.8 million accounts in the dark on Tuesday. And Tampa Electric still had to reconnect 300,000 of its 750,000 accounts on Tuesday.
“Restoration will take days — but, thankfully, not weeks,” Tampa Electric President and CEO Gordon Gillette, said in a prepared statement.
Tampa Electric said power had already been restored to about 20 percent of its customers who had been impacted.
Statewide, electricity has been restored to more than 1 million homes and businesses as the broader recovery process got underway from Irma, which hit the Keys and Southwest Florida on Sunday and traveled up the state before exiting North Florida on Monday.
“What you’re going to see today all around the state, is you’re going to see more resources,” Gov. Rick Scott said Tuesday morning while at Jacksonville International Airport. “This impacted the whole state, so it’s hard to pre-position all the assets you’d want to position if the storm just came from one coast or the other. But even with that, I think the number is over 30,000 individuals from out of state are helping us get our power on.”
Scott had earlier in the day taken an aerial tour of Jacksonville with the Florida National Guard. The U.S. Coast Guard had provided Scott with a similar view of Key West on Monday.
Damage assessment continues in the Florida Keys, where engineers are determining if bridges can handle the weight of returning vehicles. Water and sanitation also remain issues, Scott said.
Problems in Jacksonville stem from flash flooding from the St. Johns River. The U.S. Coast Guard reported rescuing more than 100 people Monday in Jacksonville.
Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, who put the number that needed rescuing from floodwaters at around 300 on Tuesday, expressed some frustration about people not heeding evacuation warnings.
“It would have been nice if there weren’t people in the areas that were affected by the surge, but the first responders just stepped right up and did their jobs,” Curry said.
Curry said he would have evacuated if he wasn’t the city’s mayor.
“We’re not trying to be difficult. We’re not trying to make people’s lives inconvenient,” Curry added. “I think the governor said it best leading up to this, evacuations are not about convenience, they’re about safety.”
Search and rescue operations continued in the Keys and Southwest Florida. Among other developments Tuesday:
— More than 94,000 people remained in about 400 shelters still in use across Florida.
— The Herbert Hoover Dike around Lake Okeechobee remained safe, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
— The Florida Highway Patrol was escorting 44 tractor-trailers with relief supplies and 600 utility trucks into Southwest Florida.
— Port Tampa, Port Everglades and Port Canaveral reopened for fuel trucks.
— Florida reopened 20 state parks in the Panhandle, but 147 others throughout the peninsula remained closed Tuesday morning.
— Lakeland-based Publix reported 22 of its 776 stores in Florida remained closed on Tuesday.
by The News Service of Florida
House Fire Claims Life Of Elderly Atmore Woman
September 12, 2017
A house fire claimed the life on an elderly woman in Atmore early Tuesday morning.
The fire was reported at 3:42 a.m. in the 200 block of Carver Avenue. The home was full involved when firefighters arrived on scene. They found the woman, who was in her 70’s, inside the home.
The exact cause of the fire is under investigation by the Alabama State Fire Marshal’s Office, according to Atmore Fire Chief Ronald Peebles.
Neighbors said electricity was out in the neighborhood at the time of the fire, some speculating that the woman may have been using candles or a lantern.
Peebles said that power was out in the area due to a motor vehicle accident in which a vehicle hit a power pole and downed power lines, but said the cause of the fire would be determined by the Fire Marshal.
A trailer fire Monday night on Old Ship Circle in Atmore was caused by candles during the power outage. Click here to read more.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Fire Near Jay Claims One Life
September 12, 2017
A fire claimed one life late Monday night near Jay.
The fire was reported about 11:30 p.m. in the 4000 block of Mart Jernigan Road, about a mile and half of north of Jay. Firefighters arrived to find the trailer full involved and burned nearly to the ground.
The identity of the victim has not yet been released.
The fire is under investigation by the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office.
The Jay, Berrydale and Allentown fire department responded to the blaze.
Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century Seeks $4.9 Million In Oil Spill Money For Five Town Projects
September 12, 2017
The Town of Century has approved five projects totaling $4.9 million to be submitted for possible funding with oil spill money.
The projects, which are detailed below as submitted, were discussed in a recent joint workshop with the Century Area Chamber of Commerce. The projects will now be submitted to the Escambia County Commission for possible funding through Triumph Gulf Coast.
The Gulf Coast Economic Corridor Act signed by Gov. Rick Scott on June 2 directs $1.5 billion to be spent over a 15 year period in eight counties in Northwest Florida that were impacted by the oil spill. The act directs Escambia and other seven other counties to seek proposals from other local governing boards withing their county.
Activities eligible for funding include ad valorem tax rate reductions, workforce skill development, local funding match requirements, public infrastructure projects, equipment and personnel for local disaster action plans, promotion of tourism and workforce and educational career development programs.
The town council Monday night chose the five project from a field of six, rejecting a Welcome Center project as be to related to tourism, which town consultant Debbie Nickels said would not score well with Triumph.
The five projects are:
Century Workforce Development and Readiness Program — $750,000
This project will consist of a collaboration between PSC, CareerSource EscaRosa, the Century Area Chamber of Commerce and the Town of Century. Funds will be utilized to expand and develop Workforce Education programs available in the areas of manufacturing, information, logistics, technology and skilled trades. Tuition assistance for ABE/GED classes and testing as well as employment readiness, financial literacy and soft skills training will be provided. It will expand the poverty reduction initiatives already in place through “Century Area Getting Ahead” and establishing a Bridges out of Poverty/ Bridges to a Sustainable Community development team.
Wastewater Treatment Plant Improvements – $338,897
This project includes numerous improvements to the Town’s Wastewater Treatment Plant. The plant is aging and a number of its critical systems are beginning to fail. The improvements include the following: Clarifier repairs; return activated sludge pump replacement; effluent pump replacement; sidestream wastewater return pump replacement; gas chemical feed equipment replacement; grit removal from plant tankage; equalization basin repairs; and, filter repairs.
Century Grown — $30,000
This project will establish a “Century Grown” community partnership market-garden-kitchen which will establish sustainable food source through gardening, food and nutrition education and culinary arts. A project of this nature could be a strong catalyst to facilitate spin-off business as well as a farmers market. Added benefits would also establish stronger community bonds through partnerships. To build the concept, the Town will reach out to the American Community Gardening Association, USDA and the UF Institute of Food and Agriculture Sciences for technical expertise. Partnership opportu nities exist within the community to involve organizations such as the Century Chamber, Churches, educational institutions, individual residents as well as local restaurants and farmers.
Town of Century Sewage Lift Station Repair — $1,291,568
This project includes the replacement of twelve vacuum-type sewage pumps with new submersible sewage pumps. The existing vacuum-type sewage pumps have outlived their useful lifespan and Town staff are having problems finding parts to service the stations. Submersible pumps are more efficient, easier to maintain and less like to be vandalized. Supervisory Control and Date Acquisition (SCADA) systems are proposed for each station as well as further improve reliability and troubleshoot problems quickly and efficiently.
Century Community Recreation and Youth Development — $2.5 million
The former Century High School/Carver Middle School Gymnasium, currently owned by Pensacola State College, has not been used since 2003. Vandalism, lack of use/maintenance and tornado damage has made it in dire need of renovation in order to make it available for after-school and summer youth activities, recreational, fitness, and college readiness programs for the community at large. A youth development organization such as Boys and Girls Club would be funded to manage the activities that would support K-20 educational programming, violence/drug use prevention, career exploration and youth leadership.
REJECTED PROJECT
Welcome to the Northern Gate of Escambia County — $500,000
This project is to construct a walking park around the large retention pond located at the comer of West Cottage Street and U.S. Highway 29 in Century and to purchase a one-acre parcel (the former town hall) directly adjacent to the retention pond in order to construct a Welcome Station, construct a parking area, install landscaping, move the Welcome to Florida sign to this site and create a photo-op area. Currently, hundreds of travelers annually pull over near the Welcome to Florida sign at the end of the Alabama-Florida overpass and risk injury to cross the road and walk up the embankment for a photo-op.
Construction of a new Welcome Station in conjunction with moving the Welcome to Florida sign would eliminate safety concerns for visitors. A kiosk for brochures about Escambia County, Pensacola, the beaches, Naval Air Museum, etc., could be provided. In addition, benches and picnic tables could be installed around and/or near the walking trail. These improvements would encourage travelers to stop, take pictures, enjoy the facilities, eat and/or make purchases at local businesses.
Pictured: The properties that were considered for a half million dollar “Welcome to the Northern Gate of Escambia County” Triumph Gulf Coast project. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Man Charged After Deputies Find $300,000 Worth Of Stolen Lawn Equipment
September 12, 2017
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office has recovered nearly $300,000 worth of stolen lawn care equipment.
Deputies said the equipment was discovered after a search warrant was executed at the home of Steven Lee Hill in 300 block of Lenox Parkway.
The Sheriff’s Office said stolen equipment was located on the property that had been taken from the Leon County School District and other businesses . A Woodchuck wood chipper and a Big Tex dump trailer were among the items seized.
Hill was arrested and charged with multiple counts of grand theft. He remained in the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $50,000.