Plant City Observer 12.06.12

FREE • thuRsday, dECEMBER 6, 2012

SPORTSEXCLUSIVENature photogto be featured in2013 calendar.PAGE 8

PLANT CITYObserveryou. youR nEighBoRs. youR nEighBoRhood.

Country’s top youthfootball squads invade Plant City.PAGE 15

Briefs ...................6 Crossword ......... 19 Obituaries ......... 24 Sports ............... 15Vol. 1, No. 22 | One section

PlantCityObserver.com

+ Hope celebrates music director

Members and staff of Hope Lutheran Church celebrated longtime Director of Music Christine Mansell for 40 years of music ministry.

As a part of the congre-gation’s morning worship services Nov. 18, the church honored Mansell during a spe-cial Recognition of Faithful Service. Staff members and Hope’s Elders Ministry Team joined Mansell in prayer for her music ministry.

As a part of the reception, Mayor Michael sparkman read a proclamation from the City of Plant City, and state Rep. dan Raulerson present-ed Mansell with a proclama-tion recognizing her ministry from the Florida State House of Representatives.

Greetings honoring Mansell also were received and read from the Rev. Dr. Matthew harrison, Lutheran Church Missouri Synod president, and the Rev. greg Walton, Lutheran Church Missouri Synod-Florida Georgia District president. Mansell also received a dozen red roses and a special gift from the congregation.

+ PCE to hostone-woman show

Theater veteran Kim Mitchell will take the stage at Plant City Entertainment for the one-woman show, “Sister Robert Anne’s Cabaret Class,” beginning this weekend.

Showtimes are 8 p.m. Dec. 8, 2 p.m. Dec. 9, and 8 p.m. Dec. 13, 14 and 15, at the theater, 101 N. Thomas St.

Ticket are $10 for members or group advance sales; $12 for seniors, non-members and students through the 12th grade; and $14 for general admission.

For more information or tickets, visit plantcityenter-tainment.com.

OUR TOWN

INDEX

IN THIS ISSUEStrawberry Crest

thespians takecenter stage.

PAGE 11

As Plant City’s annual Christ-mas Parade takes to the streets this Friday, it will do so with some significant changes.

Parade organizers met with participants Nov. 26, to discuss several new rules and regula-tions.

Perhaps the most exciting change is the ad-dition of a judges panel, which will score each participant. Three mystery, out-of-town judges will be seated near McCall Park. Per-forming participants, such as high school bands, dance and cheer teams, will perform their routines in an area in front of the judges. Floats also will be judged in this area.

Float judging will be based on the time and effort put into the float, its appearance and wheth-er it represents Plant City and its hometown feel. An award will go to one overall winner, which will receive the best spot as a featured float in the Christmas Parade next year. If the competition turns out

UPCOMING by amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor

Paradeto usherin holidayseason

IF YOU GOChRistMas PaRadEWhEn: 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7WhERE: Parade will start at the corner of Grant and Alsobrook streets. It ends at the corner of Reynolds and Michigan streets.

PRIME LOCATIONdavy Miles, chairman

of the Christmas Parade board, hinted at the best place to stand.

“Anywhere by McCall Park,” he said.

Plant City’s spectacular Christmas tradition will roll at 7 p.m. Friday.

SEE PARADE / PAGE 4

Behind the stage at their recent performance at The Shops at Wiregrass, in Wesley Chapel, four members of Plant City’s Next Radical Gen-eration gather together for an impromptu re-hearsal. Decked out in coordinated silver cos-tumes, the singers lean in. And even without microphones, their harmonies break through the white noise of Christmas shoppers buzzing through the plaza.

Hundreds gather for the evening perfor-mances in front of the stage. A less-expe-rienced group could succumb under this

pressure-cooker atmosphere. But with dozens of performances already in

the books — including two television appear-ances in the last three weeks — the members of N.R.G. thrive in the spotlight.

“Oh, they’re ready,” Director Yvonne Fry says. “They’re excited.”

This week, N.R.G. brings its Christmas rep-ertoire home with two performances in Plant City. The group will perform at Lights of Love

The members of Next Radical Generation, the Plant City youth performing troupe better known as N.R.G., balance homework

and family life with a full schedule of rehearsals and gigs.

SINGING Sensations

SEE NRG / PAGE 4

SPOTLIGHT By Michael Eng | Managing Editor

Courtesy photo

N.R.G.’s older singers, top row, from left: arie Fry, ashtyn steele, Marlee arn and Benji Padgett. Bottom row: Bryson Keel, Lauren daly, Emmy Menia, Ellie shouse and Victor Figueroa.

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PlantCityObserver.com 3 Plant city observerTHURSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2012

If you’re part of a participating civic club in Plant City, begin to think about your nomination for the Citizen of the Year award.

Clubs will gather to hold a blind vote at 6 p.m. Jan. 8, at the Hills-boro Bank, 509 W. Alexander St., to decide which local leader will join the previous 53 titleholders.

Only three people, Anna Re-itz, Kenneth Gibbs and Kenneth Hawthorne, will know the win-ner before the Citizen of the Year event Feb. 13, at the John R. Trin-kle Center.

“It is a very guarded secret,” Reitz said. “You couldn’t bribe us with anything.”

Reitz has been involved with the program for 10 years. Her favorite part is the secrecy of the winner.

Last year, 149 people attended the event, which includes a break-fast and presentation. The event not only recognizes the Citizen of the Year but also past recipients, an outstanding youth of the year and the Strawberry Queen court and festival directors.

The First National Bank of Plant City started the program in 1960. The first recipient was Arthur Bor-ing, a prominent local bank presi-dent. Later, the Kiwanis Club took over the ceremony. It has grown throughout the years to include other civic clubs.

The program isn’t a fundraiser for any of the sponsoring clubs. Each club donates funds to help cover the cost of the ceremony.

When nominating a candidate, each club is asked to submit a written biography of the candi-date, who should be considered for his or her local community contributions above and beyond the functions of his or her job. Candidates do not have to be a member of the club.

The candidate can’t be seek-ing political office, and a résumé or personal information should be acquired through friends or relatives, because the candidate can’t be contacted directly. Post-humous awards aren’t allowed, and current civic club presidents should not be nominated.

“It’s a big part of the commu-nity,” Reitz said. “If it wasn’t im-portant, it wouldn’t have lasted 53 years.”

Contact Amber Jurgensen at [email protected].

Organizersbegin searchfor Citizenof the YearThe 2013 Citizen of the Year event will take place Feb. 13, at the John R. Trinkle Center at HCC.

PARTiCiPATing CiviC ClUBSAmerican Business Woman’s AssociationCivitan ClubDaybreak Rotary ClubgFWC Woman’s Clubgreater Plant City Chamber of CommerceKiwanis Clublions ClubOptimist Clubnoon Rotary ClubgFWA Junior Woman’s Club

The kindness in Anna Reitz’s eyes and the passion in her voice is un-mistakable when she talks about the Kiwanis Club’s gift-giving charity, Christmas for an Angel.

The program involves gathering thousands of toys for hundreds of local children in need.

“These kids, if they didn’t get a gift from us or an agency like us, they wouldn’t get anything for Christ-mas,” Reitz said. “It’s needed in Plant City. We have many children who are in need.”

Reitz has been heading up the program for 10 years. She took it over from Robert Brown, who started the program in the late 1980s.

“Children were his No. 1 priority, and he saw the needs of children in the community,” Reitz said. “On Robert’s deathbed, I promised him I would do it until I couldn’t any-more.”

Since 1989, Christmas for an An-

gel has delivered toys to 19,161 children. Each year, 16 Plant City elementary schools send in lists from 30 anonymous students who are in need of a Christmas miracle. Many toys on the list are popular items, such as LEGOs, craft kits and Barbies. Three Head Start programs also participate in the program, and each girl from Steppin’ Stone Farm, a home for at-risk girls, receives a present, too.

But the program also reaches be-yond schools and organizations. Reitz gets many calls from friends who know a family in need. Fami-lies also come to her for help. Reitz remembers one specific call made to her on Christmas Eve about a family with seven children that was living in an RV with barely any food and unemployed parents. She made some calls, gathered some toys and food and delivered them to the family.

“I accept toys until the very end,” Reitz says. “And I will find a place for them.”

Throughout the month, Reitz gathers the toys with the help of sponsors such as South Florida Baptist Hospital, Stingray Chevro-let, Sweetbay, Progressive Insurance and more. On specific days, Reitz and her volunteers go shopping, driving big black trucks and vans to carry all the goods, driving security nuts, according to Reitz.

Volunteers will collect toys Dec. 9, at the Randy Larson Sports Com-plex, and they will partner with Black Heritage Celebration Inc. for the Santa Sled program at 2 p.m. Dec. 22, in Sam Cooper Park.

“It’s just one of those things that works out nicely,” Reitz says. “So many of those kids know they will have something under the tree and know that someone cares. This is the kind of thing that warms your heart, makes you cry, and you’ll do it again and again.”


Officials from Plant City, Lake-land and the Lakeland Ecomo-nic Development Council be-lieve a $2.2 million improvement package for County Line Road near Interstate 4 will help exist-ing businesses as well as attact new ones to the area.

Construction will begin in April 2013. The changes include:

• A second eastbound right-turn lane on the eastbound I-4 off-ramp at County Line Road;

• A second southbound left-turn lane on County Line Road at South Frontage Road, with the construction of a second east-bound receiving lane on South Frontage Road; and

• Traffic signals on County Line Road at the I-4 eastbound ramps and South Frontage Road Intersections.

Lakeland and the Lakeland Economic Development Coun-cil requested funding from the

State Economic Development Transportation Fund in 2008. The request came after GTECH Corporation approached Lake-land officials asking for improve-ments to help serve its new manufacturing facility on 4100 South Frontage Road. GTECH, a gaming technology and services company that employs 8,000 people in 60 different countries, has had its facility on South Frontage Road since 2009.

“The improvements to be con-structed are certainly needed to accommodate future growth in the County Line Road corridor and existing safety/operational concerns in the project area,” Chuck Barmby, a Lakeland trans-portation planner, said. “Area businesses and the public have noted that exiting traffic periodi-cally backs up onto I-4 and that turns at the County Line/South Frontage Road intersection pres-

ent safety challenges (because of) high volumes and amount of large trucks.”

The City of Plant City, Lake-land, Polk County and the Flor-ida Department of Transporta-tion worked together to create the improvement package, which will cost about $2.2 mil-lion. The Polk Transportation Planning Organization has re-quested $400,000 of additional funding to design and construct the project under one contract. The plan was approved by the Lakeland City Commission Nov. 5. Work is scheduled to be com-pleted by December 2014.

“It was a pleasure working with the Plant City staff on this plan,” Barmby said. “We had common goals regarding the accommodation of full access for the County Line Road/South Frontage Road intersection and received their support through-

out the course of this project.”County Line Road is under

Polk County jurisdiction, but for the past decade, Plant City has been involved in negotiations regarding changes and improve-ments to the road.

“It’s going to benefit that cor-ridor, and it’s a good thing for Plant City for future develop-ment and growth,” Plant City Manager Greg Horwedel said. “We have a lot of development planned, and they will need ac-cess to that road.”

The interchange improve-ments were developed to ac-commodate growth in the Lake-land and Plant City areas in the next 25 years because of eco-nomic development projects such as the Lakeland Central Park, located south of Old Tampa Highway; Eagles Landing, in the northeast corner of County Line and I-4; and distribution center projects in West Lakeland such as those completed this year by Publix and Rooms-To-Go.


Angels All AroundAmber JurgensenHenry Falcon, of Sweetbay, and anna reitz are passionate about the program.

For some local families, the gifts received from this Plant City program are Christmas miracles.

BY THE nUMBERS19,161 The number of children Christmas for an Angel has helped since its inception.

$452,939.11 The dollar amount of all the presents donated since 1989.

6,481 The num-ber of Priority 1 children, ages 5 and under, who received gifts since the program’s inception.

16 The number of elementary schools participating in Christmas for an Angel.

improvements slated for exitPlant City, Lakeland, Polk County and the FDOT worked together to create the improvement package for the County Line Road exit, which will cost about $2.2 million. Construction will begin in April 2013.

construction by amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor

HOW TO HElPTo donate a present to Christmas for an Angel, take an ornament specifying the age, gender and wish list of a child from a Christmas tree in a participat-ing store and return the gift, unwrapped, to the same tree.

Trees are locat-ed at:

• Sweetbay, 205 W. Alexander St.

• South Florida Baptist Hospital cafeteria, 301 n. Alexander St.

• Sunshine State Bank, 102 W. Baker St.

‘TiS THE SEASOn by amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor

UPCOMingby amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor


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to be successful, more awards and more prizes will be added in the fu-ture.

“We’re very excited about it,” Dodie White, committee member, said.

“Each year we want to make better and improve the quality of the pa-rade and raise the bar,” Davy Miles, chairman of the Christmas Parade board, said.

Another change to the parade is the addition of a safety inspection before the start of the parade. Each float will have to be inspected in a roped off area around the corner of West Grant and South Evers streets.

In previous years, parade floats and participants gathered in the Big Lots parking lot. This year, the store will not allow participants to gather in their parking lot; the new staging area is on Grant Street.

Furthermore, each float must comply with city code. Any trailers must have wheels underneath the frame or platform. No outrigger or protruding-style wheels will be al-lowed. The wheels can’t be boxed in if they protrude, but the float design can have something covering pro-truding wheels as long as it runs the total length of the trailer, from the tongue to the end.

If the float doesn’t pass the safety inspection, it will not be able to be in the parade.

“As everybody knows, safety is the most important thing,” Miles said.

In 2007, 9-year-old Jordan Hays died after an accident involving a float as he was passing out candy. A report by the city states the float’s design played a part in the death.

In addition to the safety inspec-tions, walkers also will have to be 13 years of age or older. They also must pass out candy, not throw it, to the crowd.

“The committee has put a lot of time and effort into this parade,” Miles said. “I always joke that the meetings take longer than the pa-rade. I think it’s great that the city lets us have a true Christmas parade.”


at 6 p.m. Dec. 6, and again at the Christmas Parade at 6 p.m. Dec. 7. Both events take place in Historic Downtown Plant City.

Watching the youth singing group per-form, it’s hard to believe N.R.G. is less than three years old. The group began in 2010, after Fry learned several young art-ists were searching for a group with which to perform. Some Plant City students were traveling out of town just to showcase their talents, and Fry decided to spearhead an ef-fort to keep those talents in the community.

“We wanted to be a wholesome Glee,” she says. “Plant City has a lot of people in-terested in the arts. This was a group of kids with diverse backgrounds. Some had musi-cal theater training, others were dancers or solo artists.

“I pitched the idea, and they were abso-lutely in,” Fry says. “This is such a labor of love.”

Originally launched as a singing group, N.R.G. has since expanded into a full-fledged production company. In addition to the singers, the group also now features a live band, full tech crew, costume and makeup crew, and business management and networking departments. Further-more, other than parents serving as chap-erones and assisting with logistics, N.R.G. is entirely run by the students themselves.

“The kids run this business,” Fry says.Business Manager Jourdain Cole, 13,

spends as much as 20 hours each week helping with everything from scripting the shows and making cue cards to managing the rehearsal and performance calendars.

N.R.G. participants maintain a rigor-ous schedule. By year’s end, they will have

performed more than 30 shows in 2012, including appearances at the Strawberry Festival in March, the Mitt Romney rally in October, in St. Petersburg, and the Empty Bowls Luncheon and Pioneer Days events in November.

“It’s important for (the kids) to partici-pate in community events,” Fry says. “It’s important for them to know what it takes to make a community.”

The group creates custom set lists for ev-ery performance — including everything from popular hits on the radio today to spe-cially themed programs such as their cur-rent Christmas performance. In addition to its cover material, N.R.G. also has written an original tune, “Never Gonna Stop Us.”

Although only some of the N.R.G. per-formers may pursue a career in the per-forming arts, Fry says the life lessons the group teaches will benefit each participant for years to come.

“This is not about building a career,” she says. “This is about building a person. They learn accountability, teamwork and atti-tude. ... These kids will be the leaders in our community in the future.”

Contact Michael Eng at [email protected].

OTHER FESTIVITIESThe parade is just one of many Christmas cel-ebrations taking place this week in Plant City.

lights of loveWhen: 5:30 to 8 p.m. Dec. 6 at McCall Park, Historic Downtown Plant CityinforMation: (813) 757-8478

“christMas by candlelight”When: 6 and 8 p.m. Dec. 8Where: Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 1107 Charlie Griffin Road, Plant CityinforMation: (813) 444-8863

christMas in the ParkWhen: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dec. 8Where: Martin Luther King Jr. Recreational Center, 1601 E. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Plant CityinforMation: (813) 659-4255

east hillsborough historical society 20th holiday celebrationWhen: 4 to 9 p.m. Dec. 8Where: 1914 Plant City High School Community Center, 605 N. Collins St.inforMation: (813) 757-9226

santa’s WorkshoPWhen: 9 a.m. Dec. 8 Where: First United Methodist Church, 303 N. Evers St., Plant CityinforMation: (813) 754-3519

“christMas on gilligan’s island”When: 6 p.m. Dec. 9Where: First Baptist Church of Dover, 3223 N. Gallagher Road, DoverinforMation: (813) 719-2273

season of JoyWhen: 9 to 10:15 a.m. Dec. 9Where: Plant City Church of God, 2103 Mud Lake Road, Plant CityinforMation: (813) 752-4591

straWberry crest band holiday concertWhen: 7 to 8:30 p.m. Dec. 11Where: Strawberry Crest High School, 4691 Gallagher Road, DoverinforMation: (813) 707-7522

UPCOMING SCHEDULEdec. 6: Lights of Love, Historic Downtown Plant Citydec. 7: Christmas Parade, Historic Downtown Plant Citydec. 19: Christmas Lane, Doverdec. 22: Now Snowing, Downtown Celebration

For more information, check out N.R.G.’s website at pcnrg.com. You also can become a fan on the group’s Facebook page, facebook.com/pcnrg.And for more photos, visit www.PlantCityObserver.com

nrg/Page 1

Parade/Page 1


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NORTH CAROLINA: Plant City couples larry and virginia tharrington, left, Mayor Mike sparkman and his wife, Diane, and David and emma Miller enjoyed their favorite hometown newspaper while on a recent vacation to Dillsboro, N.C. The couples enjoyed the cool weather, fall leaves and good food at the Jarrett House, as well as a relaxing time at the Sparkmans’ mountain house.

IT’S READ EVERYWHERE!

If you’re going on vacation, remember to grab a copy of the Plant City Observer to take with you. Snap a photo of you with the paper at your destina-tion of choice and email it to Managing Editor Michael eng, [email protected]. Make sure you include your full name and where the photo was taken.


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SBRIEFS + Bealls shoplifter

crashes while fleeingCall it instant karma.A shoplifter fleeing Nov. 30,

from the Walden Woods Bealls store crashed into another vehi-cle while attempting to escape.

According to Plant City Police Department officials, the shoplifter was arrested after he crashed his green Dodge Ram pickup into a white GMC Denali pickup on James L. Redman Parkway. The shoplifter’s vehi-cle then crashed through the hedges of the shopping plaza as he was attempting to flee.

The crash slowed traffic on the busy Plant City thorough-fare, while tow-truck drivers worked to remove the vehicles.

Additional details were not available as of press time.

+ U.S. Rep. Bilirakis earns appointment

Congressman Gus bilirakis (R-FL) has been appointed to the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has the broadest jurisdiction of any congressional authorizing committee.

The committee is the old-est standing legislative com-mittee in the U.S. House of Representatives and oversees a variety of national policy issues, including health care, energy, telecommunications, consumer protection, and interstate and foreign commerce.

Bilirakis is the only Republican from Florida on the committee in the 113th Congress.

The appointment was made by the Republican Steering

Committee and is expected to be ratified in a pro-forma vote by the full House GOP confer-ence before the start of the new session of Congress.

“I am humbled to have been selected for Energy and Commerce, and I want to thank Speaker (John) boehner, Chairman (Fred) Upton and my colleagues in the House for pro-viding me this opportunity and placing their trust in my ability to serve our state and country in this capacity,” Bilirakis said. “Our Nation faces a number of critical challenges, many of which will be addressed by this committee. With the fourth largest GDP of any state, Florida is an important and robust economic engine that should carry great consideration when Congress examines ways we can create jobs and drive this economy forward.

“Furthermore, our state has the greatest proportion of residents 65 years and older, making it even more important for Congress to ensure a qual-ity and affordable healthcare

system for current and future generations,” he said. “Finally, with the highest per capita residential electricity demand, Florida has a vested interest in ensuring our country becomes energy independent and has reliable access to a broad array of energy sources.”

Upton added: “I am excited to have a hard-working and dedicated public servant, like Gus, join the Energy and Commerce team. We have a talented group of leaders who are committed to creating jobs, protecting consumers and strengthening our energy secu-rity, and I look forward to work-ing with Congressman Bilirakis as we tackle the important work that lies ahead in the next Congress.”

The House Energy and Commerce Committee also oversees multiple cabinet-level departments and independent agencies, including the depart-ments of Energy, Health and Human Services, Commerce, and Transportation, as well as the Environmental Protection

Agency, the Federal Trade Commission, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Federal Communications Commission. Its history includes legislative milestones, such as the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, the Clean Air Act and the Federal Trade Commission Act.

+ Church bus crashcloses Interstate 4

A bus crash forced Florida High Patrol officials to close eastbound Interstate 4 for sev-eral hours Dec. 3.

According to FHP reports, at 11:09 a.m., a bus owned by First Baptist Church of College Hill, of Tampa, was traveling eastbound on Interstate 4 in the center lane near Mango. The driver, Martin rufus silas Jr., of Seffner, suffered a medi-cal emergency and lost control of the bus.

The bus veered to the left, then right until the bus collided with a crash attenuator located at the entrance ramp to the eastbound FDOT weigh station.

Post-collision, the bus caught fire and was partially burned. Silas suffered minor injuries as a result of the crash itself and was taken to Tampa General Hospital for medical care.

The crash closed the east-

bound lanes of Interstate 4 from the Interstate 75 junction. The eastbound lanes reopened at about 1:15 p.m.

+ Elia receives honorary degree

Hillsborough County Superintendent Maryellen elia received an honorary doctoral degree from Argosy University at the inaugural Night of Excellence awards event Dec. 4, at Argosy’s Tampa campus.

“We are proud to honor MaryEllen Elia for her commit-ment to education,” said Argosy University’s Tampa President Daniel richins. “Our goal as a university is to develop profes-sional competence, provide opportunity for personal growth and foster interpersonal effec-tiveness with our students. We feel no one represents that goal better than Ms. Elia, who serves as a distinguished, dedi-cated, innovative educational leader.”

Elia was appointed as super-intendent of Hillsborough County Public Schools, the nation’s eighth largest school district, in 2005 after a national search. She received a bachelor’s degree from Daemon College and a master’s degree in education from the University of Buffalo.


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CONGRATULATIONS ARE IN ORDERVATIONS

+ Boy Scouts collect donations‘Tis the season for giving, and members of Boy Scout Troop 628 took that message to

heart as they hosted a recent food drive for the United Food Bank of Plant City. In all, the scouts collected 428 pounds of food, which will help provide meals to families in need this holiday season.

+ Police department welcomes new leadership

The Plant City Police Department celebrated several retirements and promotions last week.

The department honored outgoing Police Chief bill McDaniel and Dep. Chief John borders. Borders was hon-ored during a retirement ceremony Nov. 21, and McDaniel Nov. 30.

McDaniel has accepted the newly created position of assistant city manager of public safety. He will oversee the city’s police, fire and emergency medical services depart-ments.

Command of the department was transferred to Interim-Chief steven singletary at 5:01 p.m. Nov. 30. Singletary has served as the department’s Uniform Patrol Division commander for the past two years and as the information services commander prior to that assignment.

The department also celebrated several promotions Dec. 1:• Sgt. David Millich was promoted to police captain.

Millich will fill the vacant position left by Singletary and will command the Uniform Patrol Division. Millich was assigned to Investigative Services Division prior to his promotion, where he supervised the department’s Major Crimes Unit, which is responsible for the investigation of homicides, rob-beries, sex crimes and computer crimes.

• Officer first-class Mark Mathis was promoted to the rank of sergeant. Mathis has served as a field training offi-cer within the department’s Uniform Patrol Division, where he was responsible for training and evaluating newly hired police recruits. Mathis will remain in the Uniform Patrol Division and will supervise a patrol squad.

• Senior officer tray towles was promoted to the rank of sergeant. Towles has served as the department’s accredi-tation manager and public information officer within the Professional Standards Unit for the past three years. Towles will supervise the Professional Standards and Records units.

+ The big 1!elaina Marie Masek,

granddaughter of Don and Mary Humphrey, and charles Jr. and Margie Masek, of Plant City, celebrated recently her first birthday at the Humphrey home with friends and family.

Elaina is the daugh-ter of seth and caroline Humphrey Masek, of Mango. ethan Daniel Masek, Elaina’s 5-year-old brother, wished her the best for her first birthday.

+ Rotary Club donates $1,000 to food bank

billy Keel, president of the Plant City Noon Rotary Club, presented recently a $1,000 check to christine Miller, executive director of the United Food Bank of Plant City. In the past five years, the club has donated more than $30,000 to the food bank.

+ Do we hear wedding bells?Michael and nancy Heckerman would like to announce

the engagement of their daughter, Kara elyse Heckerman, to Matthew Pepito, of Crystal River.

Matthew proposed to Kara this past New Year’s Eve while vacationing in Dubai, U.A.E.

Kara is a PCHS 2006 graduate. She currently is work-ing for Beth Ingram as a speech therapist assistant while studying, online, for her master’s degree in speech-lan-guage pathology through Florida State University.

Matthew has his degree in long-term health care admin-istration and is working in the human resource department at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino.

+ Plant City hunters find success in S.C.

Gray Greene, of Plant City, snagged an 11-point deer during a recent hunting trip to Bamberg County, South Carolina. Greene holds the record in Bamberg for the largest to date.

And it seems the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Greene’s son, Kade, got his first-ever deer, a six-pointer, on Labor Day, also in Bamberg.


When wildlife photogra-pher George Veazey set out one sunny summer day on a hike at Bell Creek, a wooded preserve southwest of Plant City, he was just wandering around to see what he could capture with his lens. The outdoorsman already had snapped images of vibrant sunsets, pairs of deer, a blue heron and a flittering but-terfly for a calendar compe-tition organized by the Envi-ronmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program of Hillsborough County.

But what he was about to find would top them all.

As he quietly made his way down the path, a 45-pound bobcat emerged from the fo-liage. The furry beast looked Veazey, who stood in awe, dead in the eyes.

“It was as if he said, ‘What are you doing here?’” Veazey says.

The cat continued to cross over the path and scooted into the underbrush on the other side. Veazey wasn’t going to let this perfect photo-op run away. He followed the animal into the forest.

“The fear I had wasn’t that I could be hurt by the bobcat,” Veazey said. “I had been a cop for 40 years. My fear was that I wasn’t going to get a shot.”

Snapping away with his Can-on 5D, hoping to get the per-fect shot, the bobcat turned to Veazey and gave him a fleeting

moment of face time before continuing his trek through his territory.

Reviewing the photos on the way back to the preserve’s lodge, Veazey knew he got a rare shot for the calendar contest and couldn’t wait to show it to the preserve’s manager, Ross Dick-erson, who Veazey later learned was also the point of contact for the contest.

“The wonderful thing about that photo is that bobcats aren’t out very often in the daytime,” Dickerson said.

“You can go an entire life-time without seeing a bobcat in

the wild, let alone walking through woods at noon,” Veazey says. “And when that stinker crossed my path, it was the crown and glory.”

Veazey submitted some of his photographs to the con-test which had a total of 187 entries. They were displayed on Hillsborough County’s Facebook page, where fans could vote for their favor-ites from August through September. From those, the top 20% were evaluated by the county. Then the chosen photographs were put up in front of another review com-mittee which picked the fi-nal 12.

Veazey had a whopping eight of his photographs chosen to be in the calendar, which will have 10,000 cop-ies printed. His photograph

of a couple silhouetted against an orange sunset was chosen as the cover.

“I think it’s his patience that sets him apart,” Dickerson said. “And most people in the calen-dar have that patience.”

The free calendars will be available by Christmas at all three of the ELAPP offices, but Veazey’s photographs are also on display at the Art Lounge Gal-lery in Historic Downtown Plant City. In January, Veazey will have an art exhibit at the Bruton Me-morial Library.

A lifelong resident of Hillsbor-ough County, Veazey was born

in Tampa in 1946 and served as a Hillsborough County police officer for 35 years. His first duty assignment was in Plant City.

That’s why, when he thought about putting his work on dis-play after retiring in 2006, he chose Plant City and the Art Lounge Gallery as the perfect venue.

“A vast majority of my life was here serving the people of Plant City,” Veazey says. “I’m an ol’ country boy. This is what I like and where I want to be.”

Veazey always has enjoyed photography. As a student as the University of South Florida, he was a yearbook staff photogra-pher and has since worked in the fields of commercial and wed-ding photography. But it wasn’t until after his retirement that he took up wildlife photography.

“One of the reasons I enjoy photography is to take God’s splendor and share it, but also, if we just slow it down a little, you can see the beauty in life,” Veazey says.


ART ExHiBiTWHen: January 2013WHere: Bruton Memorial Library, 302 W. McLendon St.

Artist’s photos selected for ’13 wildlife calendarThis is ELAPP’s first calendar contest, which was meant to garner interest in nature and the organization.

CALEnDAR AvAiLABiLiTYlake Frances office10225 Woodstock RoadOdessa, FL 33556

bell creek office10940 McMullen RoadRiverview, FL 33569

cockroach bay office3709 Gulf City RoadRuskin, FL 33570

RUnninG WiLD by amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor

Courtesy of George veazey

Eight of George veazey’s photos were chosen for an upcoming calendar featuring local wildlife. The bobcat in Bell Creek is vezey’s favorite.

Once he retired, George veazey had more time to devote to his photography. Bruton Memorial Library will host an exhibit of his work in January.

“If we are to build a better world, we must remember that the guiding

principle is this — a policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly

progressive policy.” Friedrich Hayek

“Road to Serfdom,” 1944

ObserverPLANT CITY

Founding Publisher / Felix Haynes, [email protected]

Managing Editor / Michael Eng, [email protected]

Assistant Managing Editor / Jess Eng, [email protected]

Associate Editors / (Community) Amber Jurgensen, [email protected]; (Sports) Matt Mauney, [email protected] Advertising Executives / Veronica Prostko, [email protected]; Ronda Kyler, [email protected]

Advertising Coordinator / Linda Lancaster, [email protected]

Accounting Manager / Petra Kirkland, [email protected]

Advertising-Production Operations Manager / Kathy Payne, [email protected]

Advertising-Production Coordinator / Brooke Schultheis, [email protected]

Advertising Graphic Designers / Peter Carlson, [email protected]; Monica DiMattei, [email protected]; Marjorie Holloway, [email protected]; Luis Trujillo, [email protected]; Chris Stolz, [email protected]

President / Felix HaynesDirectors / Nate Kilton, Ed Verner,

Matt Walsh110 E. Reynolds St., Suite 100A

Plant City, Fla. 813-704-6850

www.PlantCityObserver.com

The Plant CityObserver LLC

Locally OwnedPublisher of the Plant City Observer and

PlantCityObserver.com

©Copyright Plant City Observer LLC 2012 All Rights Reserved

to aDvertiseCall veronica Prostko or ronda Kyler at 704-6850.

senD Us yoUr neWsWe want to hear from

you. Let us know about your community events, celebrations and family member achievements. To contact us, send your information via: Email: Michael Eng, [email protected]

Mail: The Plant City Observer, 110 E. Reynolds St., Suite 100-A, Plant City, FL 33563

contact UsThe Plant City Observer is published once weekly,

on Thursdays. it provides free home delivery to several neighborhoods in Plant City. The Plant City Observer also can be found in many commercial locations throughout Plant City and at our office, 110 E. Reynolds St., Suite 100-A.

if you wish to discontinue home delivery or if you wish to suspend home delivery temporarily, call linda lancaster at 704-6850.


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A Group Class is available for Preschoolers (ages 3-5 years) Titled “Music to Grow On”

Private Lessons Offered in:

Give a Gift of

SPRING MUSIC LESSONSthis holiday season

For more information contact

Plant City’s First Baptist Church

School of Music & ArtsDella Watson: 813-750-4878

Spring Semester:January 14-May 17, 2013

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PianoVoiceGuitar

Bass GuitarDrumsCello

ViolinViola

Clarinet

TrumpetPercussion

and Timpani

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Plant City Entertainment, Inc. A 501 (c)(3) Corporation

Presents

PerformanceDates:

December 8, 13, 14 & 15 at 8pm.

December 9 at 2pm.

More information at: www.pce-inc.comAll performances at: 101 N. Thomas Street Plant City, FL 33563

aDmission:

Adults $14Students $12Seniors (65+) $12members & GrouPs sales

of 10 or more $10Tickets available at the door

Editor’s note: This is the second part of our series chronicling the life of early settler Wilbur Fisk Burts. To read the first part, visit PlantCityObserver.com.

In Part One, we wrote about Wilbur Fisk Burts and his vari-ous activities, closing with some of his business activities. We also quoted from a letter written by G.B. Wells to The Courier in

1931. Wells was a well-respected attorney in town, a former mayor and former state legislator, and knew the Burts family. We continue with certain refer-ences from that letter.

It is interest-ing to note that Wells mentions Burts “was elected and served at (sic) Tax Collector for the County of Hillsborough for two terms, and his administration gave satisfaction.” There are no years mentioned. Burts also served as postmaster in 1886, following E.S. Tyner, 1883 to 1885, and C.W. Andrews, 1885. There was some controversy about Andrews and after some attempts to get into local banking he left town.

About 1887, Burts built The Tropical Hotel, frequently re-ferred to as “The Tropical,” at the corner of Reynolds and Palmer streets. This was the best hotel the young town had yet seen. Wells called it “quite a commodi-ous hotel,” and it became the

gathering place for some of the early businessmen.

In 1887, the yellow fever prob-lem grew to epidemic propor-tions. The Plant City council set up quarantine lines, and The Tropical became a refuge for Tampa residents fleeing the threat. Burts had the hotel fumigated and would remove all suspect bedding, taking it to his farm for treatment or destruction.

Burts also served as mayor, and Wells describes this peculiar elec-tion in his letter.

“In 1888, Mr. Burts, at the time not being a citizen or registered voter of the town and residing outside the corporate limits of the town, was elected mayor of the town, defeating a prominent merchant of the time.”

James R. Edmondson, a well-

known merchant in town, had been elected mayor from 1886 to 1888. Burts, a non-resident of the town of Plant City, served as Plant City’s fourth mayor in 1889.

Burts’s oldest son, Charles Oliver Burts (1863 to 1930), began working at The Tropical shortly after it opened in 1887. Wilbur Fisk Burts died Sept. 9, 1890, and Charles Oliver Burts became proprietor. Charles Burts married Frances Virginia (“Jennie”) Evers in 1891, and they had one daugh-ter, Melvine Burts.

Wilbur Fisk Burts’ second daughter, Ella Rosa, who also was known as Ella Rose, was born in 1867 and married Vincent Strick-land about 1887 or 1888. He was a local merchant (Strickland Broth-ers store) and also served on the town council in 1886 and 1888.

They had two children, Louis Strickland and Lucile Strickland.

Vincent Strickland died in 1892; Ella married David R. Crum about 1898 and cared for Louis and Lucile, along with her and David Crum’s children, Evelyn and Ralph. David R. Crum’s fa-ther, David L. Crum, was a friend of Burts and referred to his friend as “Captain Wilbur Fisk Burts.” While he served with the Florida Seventh Infantry, there is no evi-dence that Burts was a captain.

Ella Rosa Burts Strickland Crum bought out her siblings’ interest in The Tropical probably in the early 1900s and set out to transform it. And she did. Much enlarged and now named the Roselawn Hotel, it became the talk of the town when it reopened in 1908. It extended from Reyn-

olds Street to Mahoney Street and covered half a block. It is said “its porches, swings and food were very popular with traveling sales-men, and the hotel became well-known as the stopping place for produce men all over the United States.”

The popularity of the Rose-lawn continued for only another decade. In about 1921, Ella Rosa Crum sold the property to Wil-liam Lee, who demolished the Roselawn and constructed the Lee Building in 1922.

The legacy of Wilbur Fisk Burts was short-lived; as Wells wrote, “It seems that Mr. Burts did not receive at the hands of his fellow citizens the recognition that his energy and ability entitled him.”

Perhaps we can change that.Sources include Quintilla Geer

Bruton and David E. Bailey, Plant City; Its Origin and History; U.S. Census Bureau; Ancestry.com; The Courier, (June 17, 1931); and Wil-liam Magann, oral interview.

Gil Gott is executive director of the Plant City Photo Archives & History Center.

Wilbur Fisk Burts’ impact remains

GILGOTT

PAST & PRESENCE

Wilbur Fisk burts

Courtesy of the Plant City Photo Archives & History Center

Wilbur Fisk burts built The Tropical Hotel at the corner of Reynolds and Palmer streets.


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Our community’s next generation of firefighters will be prepared to save lives.

Visit hccfl.edu/registernow.

Students in Hillsborough Community College’s fire academy learn the life-saving and structure-saving skills to prepare them for real-life situations. By combining classroom instruction with simulated emergency conditions, our students gain the advanced knowledge and techniques needed to successfully answer the call of duty. With small class sizes, affordable tuition, and guaranteed transferability to state universities, it’s easy to see why more than 47,000 students choose HCC. Hillsborough Community College is an equal access/equal opportunity educational institution.

hccfl.edu/equity

HCC_PlantCity_OBS_6.8x10BW_Fire.indd 1 11/27/12 2:59 PM

A joyous congregation gathered to celebrate Christmas early with a special Children’s Pro-

gram Dec. 2, at First Unit-ed Methodist Church.

Youth singers sang tra-ditional Christmas melo-

dies, such as “Silent Night! Holy Night!” and “We Wish you a Merry Christ-mas.”

Some of the children performed solos or read Scripture that told the story of Christmas.

CHilDREn’S CHoiR AnD READERSAlyvia AmaroZee AmaroKatelynn BriggsRobert BriggsBrent Calerologan CaleroMichael CaleroDarius DunphyAlicia DuarteDaniella Duartelizbeth DuarteMiriam DuarteRey DuarteMicah FunkBrittany FusselEmir Garcianelizabeth GarciaTyler Goethalsnoah HuffmanJamie JimenezHelen JuarezRachel Juarezian laneBecca MorinGabby MorinEthan ParrishDaniel PerezGerman PerezChaz PetersenColleen PetersenCollin Petersenlilly Scheuerle

First United Methodist singers spread holiday cheerCHRiSTMAS TRADiTion by amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor

Children sang Christmas songs for the First United Methodist Church’s Children’s Program.

left: colleen Petersen had a solo.

Gabby Morin shared the story of Christmas.

tyler Goethals also performed a solo.

Crocheted animals, jewelry and other knickknacks and col-lectibles filled tables for Candy Cane Lane Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, at Grace United Methodist Church.

The church, located off Cherry Street across from the Hills-borough Community College’s Plant City campus, has held the event for more than 30 years. Some items are donated to be sold, while others are made by members of the church.

Proceeds benefit the women’s group of Grace United Method-ist, which provides backpacks to students in need at the beginning of the school year, and the United Methodist Children’s Home.

Grace United Methodist Church holds a worship service at 10 a.m. Sundays. A special Christmas Eve service will be held at 7 p.m. Dec. 24.

Grace United hosts Candy Cane lane

keepsakes by Matt Mauney | Associate Editor

nelda Johnson was the woman responsible for making these adorable crocheted animals.

vince Williams admired this homemade ornament.

nancy Williams loved this cute snowman decoration.


Students enrolled in Strawberry Crest High School’s drama classes took center stage Nov. 30, during the school’s Night of One Acts.

The night featured four different one-act productions — “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to

Fifth Period,” “The Role of Della,” “Perfect Score” and

“Dinner with the Mac-Guffins.” Each produc-

tion was directed by a student and featured casts comprising both veterans and stage newcomers.

FARM FRESH PRODUCE

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We have available for you all year round Paradise Candied Fruit * Dixie Lilly Flour • Meal-Grits * Dry Beans *Hoover Flour * Carvel Ice Cream Cakes

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10 lb. Pkg. $29.99

Whole Fresh Lean CutPork PiCniC $1.18 lb.

Fresh Lean PorksPare ribs $1.89 lb.

Fresh FryerDruMstiCks

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Bar-S FrozenCorn Dogs3lb. box $4.99

Dakin Milk GALLON .......................................................................... $3.19Apple, Pumpkin & Sweet Potatoe Pies ....................................... $4.99Quaker instant Grits 12 oz. pkg. .............................................2 for $4.00Jet Puffed Marshmallow creme 7 oz. pkg .......................................... $.99Ragu Spaghetti Sauce 24 oz. pkg. .................................................. $1.99Ronzoni lasagne 16 oz. pkg. ....................................BUy 1 GET 1 FREEEssential or Domino Sugar 4 lb. pkg. .........................................2 for $5.00Essential Dark or Light or Powdered Sugar 2 lb. pkg...................2 for $4.00

Collard, Mustard & Turnip Greens Bunch ..................................... $2.99

Bananas ......................................................................................... $.49 lb.

All Purpose Onions 3 lb. Bag ............................................................ $.99

All Purpose Potatoes 5 lb. bag .......................................................... $1.29

California Navel Oranges 8 lb. bag ............................................... $3.99

California lettuce .......................................................................$1.29 each

Idaho Baking Potatoes 4 pack .......................................................... $.99

Fresh Smoked Slab Spare Ribs ................................ $15.99 each package8 Piece Fried Chicken ............................................. $5.99 each package

Farmland Chopped Ham ........................................................... $1.89 lb.

Deli Bologna .............................................................................. $1.99 lb.

Honeycomb beeF triPe

10 lb. box $17.99

Fresh LeangrounD beeF

(Any Size Pkg) $1.89 lb.

IBP Red Bucket ChitterLings 10 lb. Pkg. $8.89

boston butt roast

$1.69 lb.

Whole Fresh Lean Boneless Pork Loin

Cut-Free $2.29 lb.

Lean Assorted Family PackPork ChoPs$1.69 lb.

Heavy Western Beef

sirloin steak $4.39 lb.

Heavy Western Beef

top round London broil $3.39 lb.

FeLton’s

giFt CarDs

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Heavy Western Beef Full Cut

round steak $2.99lb. For The Holidays We Have Available:

Standing Rib Roasts • Crown Pork Roasts Turkeys • Smoked Turkeys 12-14 lb. Pre-Cooked Wt. Roasting Hens, Whole or Half HamsHow Can We Best Serve You? CALL EARLY!!

Fresh roasting hens

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Boneless SkinlessChiCken breast

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Market StylebaCon

$3.39 lb.

Panamei CookeD shriMP

(71/90) 2 lb. Pkg. $11.99

Frozen tiLaPia

2 lb. Pkg. $6.99

Bar-SMeat Franks12 oz. Pkg $1.09

Fresh (Never Frozen)

MuLLet $1.39 lb.

Happy Holidays

Strawberry Crestthespians shine

annika ellenbogen starred as Emma in “The Role of Della.”

Right: The Night of One Acts featured student actors of all skill levels.

ACTiNg Up by Michael eng | Managing Editor

olivia Houghtalin starred as Shelly in “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Fifth period.”

sinead stephens portrayed the hippie ivy in “perfect Score.”

Katrina Grosskopf por-trayed Hannah in “perfect Score.”

Right: rebecca stevens played the sympathetic character Elizabeth in “The Role of Della.”

Harrison strickland and aaron Grinsley were two of the stars in “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Fifth period.”


www.firstbaptistdover.org

3223 N. Gallagher Rd. • Dover, FL 33527

813.719.2273

Jesus Is The Reason For The Season!

Merry Christmas From Our Families To Yours!

Left to Right: Rev. Rolla Utley, Rev. Kevin Parker, Rev. Ken Caffey, Dr. Benny E. Keck, Rev. Billy Bellott, Rev. Luis Ramirez

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FirstBaptistChurchDover

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St Peter’s Episcopal Church302 N Carey Street, Plant City 813 752-5061

On Baker Street (92 West), 1/2 mile west of Wheeler Street (SR 39), at the corner of Carey Street

An Advent Festival of Lessons and Carols

First held on Christmas Eve, 1918, at King’s College, Cambridge, this holiday tradition has spread throughout the world as a blessed way

to prepare for the arrival of our Savior on Christmas morning.

You are invited to join our congregation and gifted choir as we ‘look forward to the yearly remembrance of Christ’s birth

with hymns and songs of praise.’

Sunday, December 16, 2012, 10:30 a.m.

Childcare provided.

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Stone Ledge Manor, an assisted living and memory care facility in Thonotosassa, treated residents and guests to a fun-filled open house Dec. 1. The event featured plenty of treats, raffle prizes and live entertainment.

Stone Ledge Manor hosts open house

WELCOME by Michael eng | Managing Editor

Residents and their guests enjoyed an afternoon of live music, prizes and snacks.

nedine sims loved lis-tening to the music.

The dining room at Stone Ledge Manor is decked out for Christmas.

Right: Glenda northcutt provided musical entertainment.

Members of the Plant City Photo Archives & History Center’s Admirals Club enjoyed a nau-tical-themed recep-tion Nov. 29, at the Plant City Photo Archives & History Center, in Historic Downtown Plant City.

Guests donned their best nautical attire and enjoyed an evening of hors d’oeuvres, wine and good company.

Courtesy photos

Plant City Photo Archives & History Center Executive Director Gil Gott, Darcy stottlemyer, amanda verner and anne Haywood

Photo Archives Admirals Clubsets sail with evening reception

all aboard submitted by Gil Gott | Contributor

Plant City Observer owners Felix Haynes and ed verner, former state Rep. rich Glorioso and City Commissioner bill Dodson


GET YOUR ADVANCE TICKETS TODAY • www.flstrawberryfestival.com

Thu. Feb. 28 10:30 Jimmy Sturr & His Orchestra FREEThu. Feb. 28 3:30 Chubby Checker $15 & $20Thu. Feb. 28 7:30 FOREIGNER $25

Fri. Mar. 1 3:30 Gene Watson $15 & $20Fri. Mar. 1 7:30 Casting Crowns $20 & $25

Sat. Mar. 2 1:00 Caroline Kole FREESat. Mar. 2 3:30 Sat. Mar. 2 7:30 Justin Moore $15 & $20

Sun. Mar. 3 3:30 Randy Houser $15 & $20 Sun. Mar. 3 7:30

Mon. Mar. 4 3:30 Grits & Glamour Tour with Lorrie Morgan/Pam Tillis $15 & $20Mon. Mar. 4 7:30 Dwight Yoakam $20 & $25

Tues. Mar. 5 3:30 Bobby Vinton $15 & $20Tues. Mar. 5 7:30 Martina McBride $30

Wed. Mar. 6 3:30 Neal McCoy $15 & $20Wed. Mar. 6 7:30 Trace Adkins $30

Thu. Mar. 7 10:30 Steve Hall & the Shotgun Red Show FREEThu. Mar. 7 3:30 Mel Tillis $15 & $20Thu. Mar. 7 7:30 Brantley Gilbert $35

Fri. Mar. 8 3:30 T.G. Sheppard/Janie Fricke $15 & $20Fri. Mar. 8 7:30 Scotty McCreery $25 & $30

Sat. Mar. 9 3:30 Gaither Vocal Band $20 & $25Sat. Mar. 9 7:30 Bret Michaels $25 & $30

Sun. Mar. 10 3:30 Sun. Mar. 10 7:30 Blake Shelton $55

Artists Appearing on the Soundstage:

Concert dates and times are subject to change

Limited Free Grandstand Seating Times are 3:30 & 7:30 pm. and are on a first come, first seated basis.

Order: www.fl strawberryfestival.com or 813-754-1996

C O M I N G S O O N

C O M I N G S O O N

C O M I N G S O O N

MARTINA McBRIDE

SCOTTY McCREERYBLAKE SHELTON DWIGHT YOAKAM

JUSTIN MOORE

TRACE ADKINS

BRANTLEY GILBERT

PAM TILLIS Grits and Glamour Tour

LORRIE MORGAN Grits and Glamour Tour

CHUBBY CHECKER

NEAL McCOY

JANIE FRICKET.G. SHEPPARD

CASTING CROWNS

FOREIGNER

MEL TILLIS

BOBBY VINTON JIMMY STURR AND

HIS ORCHESTRA

GENE WATSON

RANDY HOUSER

Steve Hall & the Shotgun Red Show CAROLINE KOLE

GAITHER VOCAL BAND

BRET MICHAELS

FLORIDA STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL®

FEB. 28 - MAR. 10, 2013 • PLANT CITY, FLORIDA

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Don’t Miss these special eDitions!

December 20, Christmas IssueDeadline: Tuesday, December 11, 4pm

December 27, Year in PicturesDeadline: Wednesday, December 12, 4pm

January 3, Look Ahead to 2013Deadline: Thursday, December 13, 4pm

Early Holiday Deadlines for The Observers

PLANT CITY

Observer

Happy Holidays from all your friends

at The Observer

The Observer office will be closed from Dec. 24 until Jan. 2

To reserve spaceor for questions,

contact your Observer advertising representative

813.704.6850

||||||||||||||||

CROSS_ANS_120612

This week’s Cryptogram answers

This week’s Crossword answers

2012

1. Show me a thesaurus that features a synonym for synonym! Wow!

2. A wacky car repair man said to his client: “By the way, I couldn’t repair your brakes, so I made the horn louder.”

The MacDonald Training Cen-ter at James Ranch held its 34th annual Christmas luncheon Dec. 3, at Plant City’s First Baptist Church.

The luncheon was sponsored by the Greater Tampa Associa-tion of Realtors Inc.

Nancy Wingate was the mis-tress of ceremonies, and foun-

dation chair Richard Diaz wel-comed guests with a few words.

“This event is a way to cel-ebrate the Christmas season and is also a fundraising event to raise money to support the MacDon-ald Training Center,” Diaz said.

MTC is a non-profit organiza-tion that empowers people with disabilities to live the lives they

choose. MTC is dedicated to con-tinuously improving the quality of the vocational, employment and residential services they pro-vide to people with developmen-tal disabilities in the Tampa Bay area.

The Plant City location, called James Ranch, is located at 2902 Cork Road.

MacDonald Training Center celebrates Christmas luncheon

richard Damschen, richard Parrish, James selvey and richard Diaz. All are Realtors or former Realtors.

eric Gooms and sawn liebler enjoyed the luncheon.

William corsi came dressed for the special occasion.

Margret vest, craig albertson and Freddie Walters enjoyed the event.

one fine day by Matt Mauney | Associate Editor


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Join Haught Funeral Home during the month of December as we remember those we have lost. Stop by during regular business hours and place a personalized Angel on our Angel Tree. There is no cost for the angel. This is our way of remember-ing our loved ones during the holiday season. This service is available to everyone in our community. Also plan on joining us Tuesday December 18 at 7:00pm for

our Service of Remembrance. Our address is 708 W. Dr. M.L.K. Jr. Blvd.

Please Join us as we remember.

Join Haught Funeral Home during the month of December as we remember those we have lost. Stop by during regular business hours and place a personalized Angel on our Angel Tree. There is no cost for the angel. This is our way of remember-ing our loved ones during the holiday season. This service is available to everyone in our community. Also plan on joining us Tuesday December 18 at 7:00pm for

our Service of Remembrance. Our address is 708 W. Dr. M.L.K. Jr. Blvd.

Please Join us as we remember.

Join Haught Funeral Home during the month of December as we remember those we have lost.

Stop by during regular business hours and place a personalized Angel on our Angel Tree.

There is no cost for the angel. This is our way of remembering

our loved ones during the holiday season. This service is available to everyone in our community.

Also plan on joining us Tuesday December 18 at 7:00pm for our Service of Remembrance.

Our address is 708 W. Dr. M.L.K. Jr. Blvd.Please Join us as we remember.

HAUGHT FUNERAL HOME(813) 717-9300

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OBSERVEROBITUARIES TRiBUTE by amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor

For 33 years, Bethanne Pearce was a favor-ite teacher and beloved faculty member at Tomlin Middle School.

On Nov. 22, Thanksgiving Day, Pearce died after a short battle with cancer.

“She loved her kids, she loved her commu-nity and she was a very good teacher,” Tom-lin Principal Susan Sullivan said.

Pearce began as an ESE teacher at Tom-lin, teaching special-education students. Af-ter 10 years, she became the ESE specialist, in charge of the department, and handled schedules, testing and ensuring the classes were following state and federal guidelines — all while still teaching three classes.

In the classroom, she upheld her rules but offered fun incentives to push the students to achieve. Pearce also was active outside of her classroom. She organized the eighth-grade dance. She matched any funds her students raised for Relay for Life. She led the annual canned food drive for the United Food Bank of Plant City. Last year, she helped collect 7,400 pounds of canned food. This year, the school is trying to reach a goal of 8,000 pounds.

“That’s the thing I remember most about her, was the canned food drive,” Sullivan said. “She always volunteered whenever I needed her, and she never wanted recogni-tion for all of her work.”

Pearce was diagnosed with cancer in Au-gust. She waited to start chemotherapy in October, because her mother recently had heart surgery. Pearce wanted to take care of her before starting her own treatment.

Dedicated to her job, Pearce was still at school the week before school let out for the Thanksgiving holiday.

“The last thing she said to me is, ‘I’ll see you on Monday,’” Sullivan said.

The sudden shock of Pearce’s death stunned the school.

“It probably hit the faculty more than the kids, because some of them have worked with her for so long,” Sullivan said. “It was just so sudden. When I found out, I felt I had been kicked in the stomach.”

A crisis team was on Tomlin’s campus Nov. 26, for students and faculty. Former principals, students and teachers attended a service for Pearce Nov. 27, at Hope Weav-er Church.

“She was a very giving, very generous person,” Sullivan said. “She was very loved and will be missed.”

In addition to teaching, Pearce loved her two dogs, traveling and her family: hus-band Richard and stepsons Trevor and Greg.

Tomlin’s Bethanne Pearceremembered for dedication

Courtesy photo

bethanne Pearce was a popular ESE teach-er at Tomlin Middle School.

Robert E. GarrettRobert E. Garrett, 87, of Plant City,

died Nov. 22. He was born April 1, 1925, in Bal-

timore, Md. He married Helen L. (Thompson), who is deceased.

Mr. Garrett was a World War II vet-eran of the U.S. Army. He worked as a printer for the federal government for more than 30 years, including working on the Manhat-tan Project during World War II.

Robert and his wife, Helen, will be interred together at Florida National Cemetery at a later date.

Memorials may be made to St. Peter’s Episcopal Church Endowment Fund, 302 Carey St., Plant City, FL. 33563.

Leota Cain Miley Mauersberg

Leota Cain Miley Mauersberg, for-merly of Plant City and North Fort My-ers, died Nov. 29, in Easton, Md., from stroke-related complications.

Mrs. Mauersberg was born Dec. 29, 1934, in Plant City, to Athal and Quincy Cain. She later married her childhood sweetheart, Ken-neth Miley, and moved to North Fort Myers, where they founded Mi-ley’s Diesel Service Inc., a Caterpillar marine parts and service dealership. They also raised their son, Steve, who worked with them in the family business.

She is survived by her husband, Richard Mauersberg, of Easton, Md.; a son, Steve (Donna) Miley, of North Fort

Myers; a brother Harold (Betty) Cain, of Lake Wales; a grandson, Greg Miley, of North Fort Myers; and a multitude of extended family and dear friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Athal and Quincy; grandson, Stephen Miley; and her beloved first husband, Kenneth.

The family will receive friends from 12:30 to 1 p.m. Dec. 7, at Haught Fu-neral Home. A funeral service will be held at 1 p.m.

Online condolences may be made at haughtfuneralhome.com.

Farrell Norton RobertsFarrell Norton Roberts, 81, of Plant

City, died Nov. 20.Born July 15, 1931, in Gloucester,

Mass., he was the son of the late Os-car Roberts and the late Kathleen Gray. He was the husband of Carolyn Swift Roberts.

Mr. Roberts was a master sergeant in the U.S. Air Force from 1950 until 1975, serving in Vietnam and receiv-ing the Bronze Star Medal.

Mr. Roberts was active civically, with memberships in the Elks Lodge of Plant City (exalted ruler), Ameri-can Legion, VFW and AMVETS. He was a superintendent of the Walden Lake Country Club.

Survivors include sons, Farrell, Lee, Bruce and Dean Roberts; eight grandchildren; and one great-grand-child.

A graveside service was Nov. 30, at Florida National Cemetery, with full military honors.

The family wishes to acknowledge the outstanding care received by Cornerstone Hospice and asks that in lieu of flowers any who wish may donate to them in Mr. Roberts’ name.

Online condolences may be made at haughtfuneralhome.com.

When I first got this job at the end of May and learned I would be moving to Plant City and covering the sports scene there, I started scouring the web to find out what exactly

that scene entailed.

From de-scriptions in my interview and with a little research, I saw many similarities between Plant City and the three small, hometown

cities I covered in Northeast Georgia for my previous newspaper. It was obvious high school football was a big deal down here, as well as high school sports in general.

Prep sports is a natural beat for a community newspaper, but I also wanted to find out what else Plant City had to offer.

What I found then — and what I continue to see — is that Plant City is a major player as a host city for big events, and that’s impressive for a city of our size.

Take, for instance, the United Youth Football League national championship tour-nament going on this week at the Otis. M. Andrews Sports Complex. That event brought around 140 teams from around the country to com-pete, along with their family members and friends.

On top of bringing in a

Y O U T H | H I G H S C H O O L | G O L F | S E N I O R S | C O M M U N I T Y | T E N N I S

SportsATHLETE OF

THE WEEKPlant City High’s

kicker impressive at One Buc Place. 19

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2012PLANTCITYObserver.COm

SEE MAUNEY / PAGE 16

SHOW ME THE MAUNEY

MATTMAUNEY

The next crop of national high school, college and maybe even NFL stars are lacing up their cleats and strapping on their shoulder pads this week, at Otis M. An-drews Sports Complex.

The Plant City complex is host-ing the United Youth Football League National Championships, which features 110 youth foot-ball teams from 22 states. Players, ranging from ages 6 to 16, came to Plant City for the second consec-utive year through a partnership

with the Tampa Bay Sports Com-mission and the Plant City Recre-ation and Parks Department.

The tournament began Dec. 2 and will conclude Saturday with the final championship games. A national cheerleading competi-tion featuring 110 cheer squads also will be held in Hillsborough County Dec. 8, at the University of South Florida Sun Dome in Tampa.

There’s zero seniors and just two juniors. The rest is filled out by freshmen and sophomores. When looking down the roster, you would think you’re looking at the roster of a junior varsity team.

But, this is the varsity roster of the Strawberry Crest girls’ basket-ball team.

Despite not having a veteran group full of three- and four-year starters, the Lady Chargers bring plenty of talent to the floor.

Strawberry Crest began the sea-

son on a roll, going 5-0 and out-scoring opponents 323-134. Since then, the Lady Chargers have dropped three straight, including a hard-fought loss to undefeated Sickles Tuesday night at home.

Talent can go a long way, but experience generally goes further. There are several players on this year’s team who have some quali-ty playing experience, but accord-ing to head coach La’Tosha Lewis, her team will have to start relying on that experience and believing

in themselves. “We’re a very talented group, but

sometimes, my players are lacking confidence on the floor and are unsure of themselves,” she said. “What has really cost us in most of the games is our free-throw shoot-ing and turnovers.”

Both of those negated a possible win over Sickles for their first loss of the season. Strawberry Crest missed 15 free throws, including

Small townattracts big sports events

PIGsKIN PArTY

Strawberry Crest team is young but talented With no seniors and only two juniors, the Lady Chargers are one of the youngest teams in the county but have talent beyond their years.

girl basketball by matt mauney | Associate Editor

Matt Mauney

Aliyah Gregory is one of the leaders on a young Lady Chargers basket-ball team this year.

Youth teams from throughout the country migrated to Plant City for the United Youth Football League National Championships.

SEE FOOTBALL / PAGE 18

Photos by Matt Mauney

Zamir Knighten (4) was one of the smaller players on the field for the Plant City Raiders, but he had some nice moves against the Oak Leaf Knights (Jacksonville).

CHAMPIONSHIPS by matt mauney | Associate Editor

SEE BASKETBALL / PAGE 16

Gunner Thomas and Chase Lawson recovered this onside kick for the Plant City Dolphins junior varsity team in its game with the Buffalo Ravens (Buffalo, N.Y.).


97

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key ones in the fourth quarter, and turned the ball over late in the game that led to easy transition points for Sickles.

“When some of our key players started to foul out, we started to give up transition baskets,” Lewis said.

The program Lewis is building has grown steadily since the school opened in 2009. After a 0-21 inaugural season, the Lady Chargers went 15-12 in 2010-11.

Last season, Strawberry Crest went 11-11 after moving up from Class 4A to 6A. Both of those .500-or-better teams only had one senior each, so this year’s senior-less group is not unfamiliar territory for Lewis.

“I had five freshmen last year and four starting for me,” she said.

This year’s 5-0 start was the best in school history, but the Lady Chargers now find themselves at 5-3 after their three-game skid against Steinbrenner, Armwood and Sickles. Those three teams have a combined 17-1 record this sea-son.

Despite the losses, those powerhouses serve as an inspi-ration for Lewis and her Lady Chargers, and she expects to make her young program into a powerhouse team in the upcoming years.

With a young but talented team, that outcome is likely. Junior Aliyah Gregory is one of the leaders for the young

Lady Chargers. The 5-11 shooting guard/power forward was a First Team Western Conference selection last season and set a school record for 31 points in a single game.

Gregory scored 22 in a valiant effort against Sickles Tues-day, while sophomore Maiya Trigg contributed 19 points. Gregory is just one of two juniors on this year’s team, with point guard Sonia Correa as the other. The rest of the team comprises four sophomores and four freshmen.

What those younger players may not have in varsity play-ing experience, they make up for in talent, including 5-9 freshman Terra Brooks, who was also a standout for the Strawberry Crest varsity volleyball team this year.

The road ahead isn’t an easy one for the Lady Chargers, with rematches against Sickles and Armwood and the Seff-ner Christian Christmas Tournament Dec. 21-22, but Lewis remains optimistic her team can go far.

“My younger players coming up are unsure right now when it comes to confidence,” she said. “The only thing I can do to get them more mature is practice. In practice, I’ve got my older ones going up against my younger play-ers to push them and emulate a game. I told them that if you don’t have confidence in yourself, no one else can have confidence in you.”

Strawberry Crest will look to snap their three-game losing streak and pick up their first Class 6A District 11 win Friday at home against King.

Contact Matt Mauney at [email protected].

A total of 140 teams registered for the UYFL tournament, with 110 ac-tually making the trip down to Plant City. That total eclipses last year’s tournament, which drew 99 teams.

The large field consisted of teams from Chicago, New York, Charlotte, Detroit and more. In that field, some of the best young football players competed on the Otis Andrews mul-tipurpose fields, which were con-verted into six regulation football fields.

Several local team also got into the action, with the benefit of competing against some of the best teams in the nation without having to travel far to do it.

Local teams included two Plant City Dolphins teams — Mitey-Mites and Junior Midgets — two Plant City Eagles teams (Beesville) — Cadets and 15U — and the 10U Plant City Raiders, who will be playing for the championship Friday.

Ron Maxwell, the president of the UYFL, said many of the programs that are currently involved with the organization used to be involved with similar organizations, such as Pop Warner, and that those organiza-tions also have their national tour-naments in Florida because of the state’s weather.

“We decided, rather than com-peting with those tournaments, let’s

go to the other coast and hold ours there, so we contacted the Tampa Bay Sports Commission, and they’ve been great in setting us up here for the past two years,” Maxwell said.

Maxwell noted that Plant City had the ideal location — close to Tampa and still not too far away from the Or-lando attractions.

“It’s right off the highway and is just a perfect location,” he said.

Jack Holland, director of the Plant City Recreation and Parks Depart-ment, said being able to provide the facilities for the UYFL national cham-pionship is a boon for Plant City and

adds a boost to the local economy. “With the teams staying in hotels

and going to the store and buying Gatorade or water and, of course, fuel, or going out to eat, it’s a huge impact to our community to help our local businesses,” Holland said.

Maxwell said that he has been pleased with Otis M. Andrews Park.

“It was basically a soccer complex that we turned into a football com-plex with the help of Plant City, who have been tremendous in helping us make this happen,” he said.

Contact Matt Mauney at [email protected].

great and prestigious tournament, this also means big money for the local economy here, with hotel stays, gas purchases, entertainment and shopping.

With the International Softball Federation calling Plant City home, there are several big softball tournaments on the calendar that will take place at the impressive Plant City Stadium and Randy L. Larson Softball FourPlex, including the ISF men’s fast and slow pitch tournaments in January that will bring teams from across the nation.

The complex also will host the National Softball Asso-ciation Winter World Series for men’s softball in Febru-ary.

When it comes to hosting large baseball tournaments, Plant City has that covered, too. Five USSSA youth baseball tournaments will bring hundreds to our city in February and March.

Also during that time, the National Club Baseball and Softball Association will hold their college spring training here. More than 60 teams are expected during a four- to five-week timeframe this year. Participants will include baseball teams from Michigan State, Penn State, Virginia Tech, Kentucky and the University of Missouri, just to name a few.

It doesn’t stop there. The Florida Suncoast Sports youth baseball tourna-

ment will be held here in March, along with an Amateur Athletic Union travel ball youth baseball tournament. The Florida Suncoast Sports President’s Cup soccer tour-nament also will call Plant City home in February.

So how why does Plant City attract so many statewide and national tournaments? It’s rather simple.

The facilities here are just top-notch, and that’s some-thing that is notable in its own right considering the relatively small size of the Recreation and Parks Depart-ment. On top of great facilities, Plant City is blessed with a great location.

Plant City is close enough to the hustle and bustle of the major Tampa Bay market — but far enough away so teams can feel at home and comfortable while they are down here.

The economic impact that these events bring is sig-nificant. Even if teams end up staying in hotels outside of Plant City, they still are likely to fill their gas tanks and grab a few bites to eat while they’re here.

Plant City may be small compared to some other regional spots, but when it comes to sports, this town is setting a high standard.

MaUney/PaGe 15

basKetball/PaGe 15

MaUney/PaGe 15

Matt Mauney

alex ramirez ran tough for the Plant City Eagles (Beesville) 15U team in their game against the Eastside Ravens (Baltimore, Md.).


Osceola High (Kissimmee) was dominant at the 17th annual Cougar Invitational wrestling tournament Dec. 1, at the Evelyn and Batista Madonia Sr. Agricul-tural Show Center on the Straw-berry Festival grounds.

The Cowboys took first place at the 26-team tournament, which was hosted by Durant.

The 26-team field consisted of some of the best teams from Florida and Georgia.

Osceola scored 258 points as a team, well ahead of second place Camden County (Ga.) and Win-ter Springs.

Host Durant finished in 13th place as a team with 92 points.

Austin Haley, of Durant, fin-ished third at 126, beating Palm

Harbor’s Mike May by a 3-0 de-cision in the third-place match. Darrien Kelly finished in fourth in the 132-pound weight class, while Matthew Millard took sixth at 160.

Strawberry Crest joined the Cougars as the other local team to take part in the individual-bracketed tournament. The young Chargers team finished in 25th place, but new head coach Ryan Joyce saw some things he liked about the way his team competed.

“They’re starting to buy into what we’re trying to do,” Joyce said. “This was a great tourna-ment for us, because it showed me our flaws and where we can improve. On paper, the results

may not look good, but every loss we had will translate to wins later this season.”

T.J. MacNamee and Tyler

Glenn had the top performances for the Chargers at the tourna-ment.

Durant will be back in action

Dec. 8, when it hosts a six-way dual featuring Bloomingdale, Chamberlain, Plant, Sickles and Tampa Bay Tech.

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Teams learn, improve at Cougar Invitational

BEST OF THE BAY by Matt Mauney | Associate Editor

Durant’s austin Haley fought hard against last year’s state champ.

Durant’s Darrien Kelly was coming off a first-place finish at the Tiger Invitational Nov. 17.

Durant’s Keith Watford would be eliminated in a 7-4 decision to Lake Highland Prep’s conner andrew in Consolation Round 5.

Durant’s evan booher won this match over Springstead High’s robert Holdway by a 9-2 decision.


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JUSTTHESTATS

The listed weight of Juan Harris, a 6-3 line-man from the Chicagoland eighth-grade All-Star football team competing this week at the

United Youth Football League National Championships at Otis M. Andrews Park. Harris is considered one of the top young prospects in the nation at his position.

The total number of yards gained in the regular season by for-mer Plant City High football standout Daz’mond Patterson for the Ohio University Bobcats. The true-freshman was used in multitude of ways this year for the Mid-Atlantic Conference school, es-pecially as a kick returner, where he leads the team with 558 yards.

848

355

The number of teams that attended the GSA youth baseball tournament in November. Another tournament will be played on 19 Plant City fields and six Lakeland ball fields Dec. 7 to 9.

135The number of points scored by Plant City girls’ basketball player avery brown in a 44-39 win over Wharton Nov. 29.19

The number of first-half goals by the East Bay girls’ soccer team against Strawberry Crest Dec. 3. The Lady Cougars lost 4-1.

The number of points scored by Kyle White for the Durant boys

basketball team in a 74-46 loss to East Bay Dec. 3.

20


O B S E RV E R C RO S S WO R DEdited by Timothy E. Parker

CRYPTOGRAMS

1. E M A X J D B U M D E B P O P E U M B U G D B U P O D E B E R W A W R J G A O

E R W A W R J ! X A X !

2. F E F Y B Q Y F V V T I F Z V D F W M F Z A P L G Z M Y S Z T W P : “ U Q P G T

E F Q , Z Y L K S A W ’ P V T I F Z V Q L K V U V F B T M , M L Z D F A T P G T

G L V W S L K A T V. ”

ACROSS 1 Big cat hybrid 6 Freezing cold 11 Inclination 16 The peacock

network 19 A sister of Clio 20 Eat at the beach? 21 Bullfighters’

entrance march 22 “ ___ the ramparts

...” 23 Unconditionally 26 Actress Charlotte

of “The Facts of Life”

27 Not intentional 28 Linen sale

purchase 29 Garbage

emanations 31 The last one brings

it up 32 Yodeler’s mountain 34 Rock for miners 35 Liquidation sale 38 Sea eagles 39 Prefix meaning

“new” 40 Journalist Shriver 42 Little

troublemakers 43 ___ Beach, Calif. 47 Powerful canine 49 Barry of Green

Beret ballad fame 53 Tylenol target 54 Make a decision 55 Sing Sing disorder 57 St. ___ (largest U.S.

Virgin Island) 58 Samurai, e.g. 60 Bridge supports 61 Unpopular spots 62 Tenth anniversary

gift 63 Deg. for an

executive 64 He’ll rub you the

right way 66 Greek letter after pi

67 Warning from the postal service

71 Genes material 72 Confession

receivers 74 Jed Clampett’s find 75 Crumb runner 76 Letterman’s house? 77 The golden calf

and others 78 Cut in thin strips,

as carrots 81 Ecological

community 82 Remove flawed

ones 83 Sales ___

(company agent, for short)

84 Buttonhole, e.g. 85 Intensely hot 86 Old word for

75-Across 88 Confused 90 ___ in comparison 92 Posed a question 94 Hallow ending? 95 Window frame 99 New Testament

section 101 Plus additional

things 104 Beatty in

“Network” 105 Spread in a tub 106 Odd-numbered

page, often 107 Asian goatlike

animal 109 Design in advance 111 Nest egg option,

briefly 112 Warning from a TV

announcer 117 Qtr. starter 118 “Bye!” 119 Legendary

McQueen 120 Credits as a source 121 “With all ___

respect ...”

122 Middle Eastern country on the Red Sea

123 Country crooner Tucker

124 ___ a clue (is naive)

dOwn 1 What most college

professors desire 2 One with pressing

issues? 3 Certain meter

reader 4 Marine mammals

with webbed feet 5 Prolific romance

writer Roberts 6 Less harsh 7 Joule fraction 8 Forfeiture 9 Potato named after

its state 10 Discourage from

proceeding 11 Brief quarrel 12 Lancelot du ___

(knight of the Round Table)

13 Burnout result 14 Formerly, on the

wedding page 15 Big fusses 16 Accuracy required 17 Face hardship

bravely 18 Family emblems 24 Twice as dumb 25 Rain in buckets 30 More than exalts 33 ___ Beach, Fla. 35 Vegas game

featuring shooters 36 What Santa checks

twice 37 Horse’s nibble 41 Indifferent to right

and wrong 43 Evil spell 44 Sculling need 45 What to call an

elderly gentleman 46 Philosophy in an

Orwell novel 48 From Dublin 49 Kind of neckwear

50 Way out of date 51 Warning on some

keys 52 Tell a tall tale 56 Enormous,

destructive wave 58 Takes first place 59 Band of geishas? 60 Time you can’t

relive 62 Rocky crags 64 Male lion’s

distinction 65 Put on a scale of 1

to 10 67 Secluded valleys 68 Rogaine alternative 69 Wire measure 70 Camper’s water

flask 73 Height of sanctity 76 Evergreen tree 78 Yanks 79 Yale collegian 80 Vote down 81 Jazz genre 83 “All ___!” (court

phrase) 85 Icy wasteland 87 Prefix for “content” 89 Like some divers 90 “End of story!” 91 Quick impression 93 Big bucks? 95 “Houseboat”

actress Loren 96 Metes out 97 Mariners 98 “I’m telling you the

truth!” 100 “Without delay,”

facetiously 102 Lovers’

engagement 103 Terra ___ 107 “Star Trek” phaser

setting 108 Timely question? 110 ___-A-Sketch 113 Poetic form 114 Game played with

counters 115 It props up a golf

ball 116 League of 79-Down

A nEGATIVE PUZZLE by Kathy Islund

2

CROSSWORD_120612

BASKETBALL

+ Strawberry Crest boys down Sickles

The Strawberry Crest boys basketball team moved to the .500 mark with an impressive 61-49 win over Sickles Dec. 4, in Dover.

Junior guard Malik channer led the Chargers with 20 points, along with 10 assists, giving him a double-double.

Karel Hamilton contributed 14 points in the win, while fel-low senior guard Devin Diggs had 12 points.

With that performance, Diggs passed the 1,000-point mark for his high school career.

The Chargers played a guard-heavy lineup against Sickles, and according to head coach andre lewis, they played their first complete game for four quarters.

“We’ve played very well at times this season, but this was the first game that we played well for all four quarters,” he said. “We were patient and poised with our offense all night.”

Strawberry Crest (2-2, 1-1 Class 6A District 11) will be back in action Dec. 7, when they host King.

SOCCER

+ Strawberry Crest boys get win over East Bay

The Strawberry Crest High boys soccer team picked up a 4-1 win Dec. 3, at East Bay.

The boys team improved to 4-1-1 on the season and 2-0-1 in Class 4A District 9 play and faced Freedom High after press time Dec. 5.

The Strawberry Crest girls soccer team fell to 2-4-3 on the season with a 4-1 loss at East Bay. The Lady Chargers fell behind 3-0 in that game at the half and traded goals with the Lady Indians in the second half. The Lady Chargers also hosted Freedom Dec. 5 after press time.

+ Plant City soccerto hold alumni night

The Plant City boys soccer program will be holding an alumni night during its Dec. 14 game against Strawberry Crest.

This will be the second year head coach chris black has held an alumni night. Last year’s event saw 33 former players attend.

There are several Plant City alum who are former college players or currently playing in the college ranks, including Black’s son, a.J., and cameron roberts, the younger brother of PCHS girls soccer coach caleb roberts.

Both play for Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, which recently competed in the NCCAA Men’s National Tournament in Kissimmee.

So how did all of this come about at the local competition?

I was just out there supporting my younger brother, and he and some of my friends wanted me to do it. I didn’t really want to, honestly, but I ended up doing it and getting a decent score. I wasn’t even going to turn my score sheet in, but by brother took it from me and turned it in.

What was the sectional tour-nament like at One Buc Place?

It was cool getting to see the fields where the Buccaneers prac-ticed. That was fun.

What was the team championship like?

It was cool, because I’ve never been to Ray-mond James Stadium. It was fun going with my little brother and my dad, and we were all excited when I won.

Overall, what was the experience like?

It all really came down to my little brother and mak-ing him happy. Seeing him smile and tell people, “That’s my big brother,” made me feel good. I wasn’t really trying to get anything out of it, but what I did, I enjoyed.

What was the actual competition like?Honestly, it was a little different, because

I kick for the high school team, and the equipment they use in the competition was different than what I’m used to.

How long have you been kicking?This last season was my first year.

How long have you been playing soccer?

Since I was 3 or 4, but I’m getting more into football now.

What’s the biggest difference be-tween playing soccer and being a foot-

ball kicker?There’s a lot more pressure

in football, because you may only get one chance to prove yourself.

What do you like to do when you’re not playing sports?

I love to read. I read books like crazy.

What’s your favorite type of book?

I like war books.

Any other hobbies?I like designing clothes. I like

looking at examples and see-ing how detailed they are. You can tell they put a lot of work into it.

Jorge Navarrete It took Jorge Navarrete’s little brother Tebo, to convince him to compete in the local NFL Punt,

Pass and Kick competition in late September. It’s a good thing he did, because Navarrete went on to win that competition, take first at the sectional competition Oct. 7 and eventually win the Tampa Bay Buccaneers team competition Nov. 25, at Raymond James Stadium for the 14-15 boys age group. Navarrete, a sophomore, is also the varsity kicker for Plant City High School.

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK by Matt Mauney | Associate EditorSIDELINES


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Plant City Observer 12.06.12

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