Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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Polk State College is hosting its annual school supply giveaway event to provide students and families with support and resources as the new school year begins, including up to 500 backpacks and 1,500 books. Students and families are invited to attend Polk State College's "Ready to Soar" event August 17 at the JD Alexander Center in Lake Wales. The Center is located at 152 East. Central Avenue in Lake Wales. The event is open to the public and intended for students from...
Dual-enrollment of Lake Wales Charter School students in STEM courses at Webber International University will result from a a $10,000 Impact Polk grant from the George W. Jenkins Fund within GiveWell Community Foundation. The grant will provide greater access to students pursuing careers as registered nurses or occupational therapy assistants, according to Dr. Nelson Marquez, President/CEO of Webber. STEM refers to concentrations in the areas of science, technology, engineerin...
The closure of SR 17 (Scenic Highway) at Hillcrest Avenue, originally announced as a 30-day project, is expected to continue well after the beginning of the school year, forcing additional traffic onto South 4th Street past McLaughlin Middle-High School. Crews closed Scenic Highway from Grove Avenue to Hillcrest Avenue in June to begin installing new drainage structures. Sidewalks in the area are also detoured. According to the Florida Department of Transportation, the...
With the threat of a "long, expensive, and distracting" lawsuit looming, the Lake Wales Charter School board will have an opportunity to reconsider their June 7 decision to summarily fire Superintendent Dr. Wayne V. Rodolfich "for cause," according to an attorney representing him. The board agreed without objection to place the issue on their July 22 agenda after hearing from attorney Kemp Brinson, who is representing Rodolfich. Brinson, in a special presentation that was the...
UPDATE: An argument between two young men who had known each other since high school near a recently-constructed county football field led to a shooting that left one dead around 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday evening in Lake Wales. The incident happened outside city limits near a county-owned sports park on W. Northside Drive, about 200 feet north of Washington Avenue. According to a preliminary report from Polk Sheriff's investigators, Vincent Thomas, Jr., 21, arrived in a car at a...
A team of civic-minded volunteers from Lake Wales Heritage took advantage of the rainier weather this week to work on the organization's ongoing streetscaping project. Monday morning found a team of volunteers planting nine young lemon bottlebrush trees on South 4th Street. The trees were replacements for some lost due to heat stress and drought this spring. "Now that the seasonal monsoon rain season has begun, the time is right," said Heritage volunteer director Preston...
Keeping fit and active is important for thousands of Lake Wales residents, so the City of Lake Wales is now making an extra effort to see that the sports facilities they use are in top shape. J.C. White is now in charge of making the town's many sports fields look their very best. White is Lake Wales' new Athletic Turf Superintendent, which places him in charge of bringing the athletic fields 'up to snuff,' where they deserve to be. With 16 baseball and softball fields and sev...
The Lake Wales Charter School board summarily dismissed School Superintendent Dr. Wayne V. Rodolfich during a meeting this afternoon after hearing a report from the Tampa law firm of Barbas Cremer regarding their investigation into anonymous grievances which were filed against Rodolfich earlier this year. Dr. Rodolfich has led the seven-school charter district since July 2022 after a year-long hunt ended in his hiring in March of that year. He came to Lake Wales after leading...
Lovers of laughs and comedy, be it stand-up or SNL varieties, will enjoy a fun outing to Lake Wales Little Theatre to see "Just Another High School Play," which is anything but that. Performed by an ensemble cast of 26 talented young actors, the play is based upon the premise that their opening night has found them without a director and unprepared to perform. A box full of old un-matching scripts gives each actor an excuse for the often-hysterical chaos that follows. In what...
Timothy Paul Connors of Lakeland, FL died Thursday, May 23. He was born February 7, 1954 to the late Paul T. and Mary L. Connors. He was a retired lieutenant for the City of Lakeland fire department, a graduate of the Firefighters Academy and a trained Emergency Medical Technician. Tim was a former resident of Lake Wales and a 1972 graduate of Lake Wales High School where he participated in track and football. As an adult he enjoyed golf and participated in numerous leagues an...
Life-long resident and supporter of numerous area charitable causes, Dale Patrick Cain of Lake Wales passed away Monday, May 20. Pat, as he was known to his many friends, was a third generation Lake Wales resident who served as a Lake Wales City Commissioner from 1988 until 1992, serving as mayor in 1991-1992. A 1965 graduate of Lake Wales High School, he played both offense and defense on the Highlander football squads in two undefeated seasons in 1963 and 1964, as more...
Dale Patrick Cain (Pat) of Lake Wales passed away Monday, May 20, 2024 at his residence after a short battle with cancer. Pat was a third generation Lake Walean born on October 16, 1947 to the late Lucas and Mary Cain. He attended the Georgia Institute of Technology on a football scholarship and later graduated with a major in finance from the University of Florida. Pat was in the financial planning industry for over 29 years following many years as owner and operator of...
William Robert Simpkins, age 76, passed away on Saturday, May 11, 2024, at his home in Bartow, FL after a long courageous battle with Parkinson's Disease. He was born on November 8, 1947, in Millville, NJ to parents Janice and William. He graduated from Vineland High School in 1966 and completed his education at Warner University in Lake Wales, FL where he graduated in 2001 with a bachelor's degree. He served in the U.S. Naval Reserved from 1965-1967. He worked in law enforcem...
Failure to yield the right-of-way resulted in a crash with injuries on 4th Street at the edge of the McLaughlin Middle/High School campus recently. The incident happened at approximately 6 p.m. after the school zone had cleared for the day. The incident happened when a vehicle driven by a woman identified by Lake Wales Police as Laken Taylor Upchurch was driving westbound on Grove Avenue in a 2019 Ford Expedition and "slowed" for a stop sign before entering the path of a 2004...
A celebration of life for a beloved community leader was combined with a celebration of new life recently as the staff of McLaughlin Middle/High School joined volunteers from Lake Wales Heritage to mark the dedication of 40 trees planted on the Lake Wales school campus. The trees were a gift from Lake Wales Heritage and its supporters in honor of the late Lee A. (Alex) Wheeler, who served as treasurer for the non-profit organization. Wheeler, who died in 2020, was also a...
A large group of dedicated students at Lake Wales High School dedicated scores of their free hours and singing talents to three recent performances of "High School Musical." The play drew large audiences to their weekend performances, according to Emily Fournier, who helped direct and produce the play along with co-director Kimberlee Diallo. The two are dedicated educators at the local school. "We have been working on the play since December, meeting three days a week with a...
Eleven local non-profit organizations benefitted from grants distributed recently by the Lake Wales Mardi Gras Committee. Several dozen representatives and community members gathered at the Lake Wales Arts Center for the annual check presentation. The Lake Wales Mardi Gras Committee and Lake Wales Mardi Gras President Joshua Curchy presented a total of $20,000 from proceeds raised in the 2024 Mardi Gras event. The Mardi Gras celebration, now planning for its 41st year, draws t...
Lake Wales Charter Schools Superintendent Dr. Wayne Rodolfich has spent more than two weeks "working from home" after anonymous grievances were filed, apparently by employees who had worked with him in the school district's home office on Central Avenue in Lake Wales. The charter school's human resources officer, LaQuanda Burroughs, reported to the at a special meeting on March 28 that three different grievances had been filed. After hearing of the grievances, charter school...
Mary Starling Sullivan, 91, of Babson Park, FL, died on Saturday, March 30 after a full life and quality time with family and loved ones. She was born on January 17, 1933, in Miami, FL, to Clyde and Georgia Starling. In 1950, she graduated from Miami Edison High School. Mary met Richard J. Sullivan (Dick) in Connecticut. They were married at Forest Park Christian Church of Miami, in 1952. Mary and Dick began their family in south Florida. In 1973, they relocated to Babson...
UPDATED The horrifying murder of a second grade teacher has shocked residents of Frostproof and the surrounding area. Elvia Espinoza, who taught second grade at Ben Hill Griffin Elementary School in Frostproof, was stabbed to death by her own son after he returned home from college for a family gathering. Espinoza, 46, was attacked after opening the door to her home in the Sun Ray neighborhood her son, 21-year-old Emmanuel Espinoza, who had just arrived after driving from...
A new welding program at Roosevelt Academy is allowing students to learn basic and advanced welding techniques, preparing them for immediate careers. Students involved in the program also receive dual enrollment credits that could be used to further their welding training at Ridge Technical College. Seniors planning to take the test this year, including Fred Miller, Joseph Fletcher, McLens Pierre, and Juan Villalpando, will receive certification by the American Welding...
Women Who Made History on the Ridge was the theme of three awards granted by the Laker Wales chapter of the American Association of University Women this week. Dr. Glenda Morgan and two former mayors of Lake Wales, Linda Kimbrough and Kathy Manry Smith, were honored for their years of contributions to the community at a luncheon at the Good Shepherd Church March 12. Each of the three was introduced by Lake Wales City Clerk Jennifer Nanek, who included personal anecdotes of...
Kristine Marie Wanamaker (Trainham) was born on July 4, 1948, in Watertown, NY, to her late parents John and Alexandra Trainham. She peacefully passed away on March 21, 2024, at the age of 75 in Lake Wales, Florida. Kristine was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. She married her beloved husband James on October 10, 1970, at Holy Family Church. Together, they shared a love for road trips, camping, and most importantly, their family. Retirement led them to Lake Wales,...
Leah Morgan Robbins, a cherished resident of Satellite Beach, FL, passed away on February 25, 2024, surrounded by loved ones after bravely confronting both lung cancer and Vaccine-Induced Thrombocytic Thrombocytopenia (VITT). Born on December 27, 1969, in San Diego, CA, to Glenda and James D. Morgan, Leah's life was marked by her passion for reptiles and her dedication to education. After graduating from Lake Wales High School in 1987, Leah pursued a degree in Elementary...
Sylvia Marsee Griner died at home surrounded by her family on February 24, 2024, at 8 p,m, due to a lung disease she had for many years. She was 85 years old, and was born June 17, 1938. She was preceded in death by her parents, Rubin Lee Marsee and Flarida Marsee, brother Ray Marsee, and sisters Stella Willene and Fay Juanita. She is survived by her husband Aaron Beal Griner and four children. Brenda Griner Schell (Steven), Treasa Griner McLean (Ken), Kenneth Aaron Griner...
