Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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After causing a scare in the east Polk region by approaching Florida from the southwest, Hurricane Idalia behaved much as the computer models had predicted, staying well offshore of Florida's west coast before slamming into the Big Bend Area of the state as a Category Four hurricane. That course left the Lake Wales area and surrounding communities undamaged due to winds. Three times during the overnight hours tornado warnings caused alarms to sound on phones and tablets in...
Precautions are advised for strong winds and heavy rains due to the approach of Hurricane Idalia, still expected to move near Florida's Gulf Coast overnight on Wednesday. The 11:00 am, update from the National Hurricane Center in Miami indicates that the center of the storm is still on a generally northward track of five degrees, indicating a slight eastward movement. Any increased eastward adjustment in the course would raise the potential impacts of the storm in the east Pol...
Who will be the next "Pioneer of the Year?" That's a honor you may have a hand in deciding. The annual honor of Pioneer of the Year has been a highlight of the two-day Pioneer Days festival in Lake Wales since Morris Jones won the honor in 1978. Now it's time for the community to step forward to nominate another honoree. The award is bestowed by the Lake Wales History Museum, which has announced the commencement of nominations for the 2023 award. This accolade celebrates...
Thousands of area students will stream back to school tomorrow for an unusual Friday start to the new school year. Seven schools operated by Lake Wales Charter Schools and several other area schools controlled by the Polk School District will draw in more than 5,000 students to face the new academic year with high hopes. Some students in the northwestern portion of the Lake Wales area will be assigned to a new elementary school in southeast Winter Haven, which has changed...
An aggressive facilities expansion to add a high school to the campus of McLaughlin School of Excellence has been devastating to the landscape at the school, but help is coming from unexpected directions, according to McLaughlin Principal Dr. Debra Wright-Hudson. A local non-profit, private citizens, and the project contractor are seeing to the green side of things by assisting school leaders in providing new gardens around two sides of the school. Wright-Hudson lauded the...
A new 64-unit infill subdivision received approval from the Lake Wales City Commission Tuesday night after being heralded as "magnificent" by Deputy Mayor Robin Gibson for its compliance with the commission's set of eight "aspirations" for future development. The project is planned to include a mix of townhomes and single-family residences on a site that has long stymied would-be developers. Largely land-locked, the nine-acre parcel lies between Quails Bluff apartments, and...
A Lake Wales High School graduate bound for college will be honored at a special celebration hosted by a local auto dealership Friday. Hannah Battles, a 2023 graduate, will be celebrating her scholarship signing at Lake Wales Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram on Friday at 4:00 pm. Battles was part of the Highlanders softball team that won the 2023 state championship. "Hannah Battles is a shining example of what dedication, hard work, and perseverance can achieve," said Mark Graham,...
The sudden resignation of Bok Academy South Middle School Principal Damian Rosado has resulted in the quick appointment of Dr. Julio Acevedo to fill the role on a temporary basis. Dr. Wayne Rodolfich, superintendent of the seven-school Lake Wales Charter School System, said the resignation came as a surprise during the Polk State College backpack giveaway event Saturday morning, where he was promoting his "Read 20" program. He told LakeWalesNews.net that Rosado informed him...
The critical importance of volunteers who help to keep the Lake Wales Arts Council and its many programs running was emphasized by director Tommy Frank at a special reception organized to thank those who step up to support the efforts of the Council. Each volunteer present was awarded a certificate and a custom, artistically hand-crafted ceramic mug. The Monday evening reception at the Arts Center drew a small crowd how shared refreshments and conversation before Fran...
Lake Wales' first school building could become its newest as well if the efforts of the local Charter School Foundation are successful. They are preparing to launch a fund drive to raise $1.5 million, needed to complete the $6 million remodeling of the attractive two-story red-brick structure. "We want to take this eyesore out" to create a useful and beautiful new facility, Lake Wales Charter School System Superintendent Wayne Rodolfich told a group of 25 community leaders...
As McLaughlin Academy of Excellence completes its transformation from a middle school to a middle-high school, community organizations are stepping up to support the effort. Students at McLaughlin are as at home in Fine Arts Classes as they are in Electrical Technician training. The well-rounded nature of education at McLaughlin Academy of Excellence caught the attention of the Dyer Difference Award Committee, which celebrates the school and its dedication to producing...
A face and voice familiar to most Polk County residents will soon be sharing lots of information about Lake Wales as Ken Suarez begins his duties. No stranger to the camera, the long-time Tampa Bay-area broadcaster recently left his full-time job as a television journalist to begin serving the City of Lake Wales as part-time host of a video series about events in the area. Suarez worked for years at WINK TV in Fort Myers before moving into the Tampa market almost 35 years...
Judith Ann Blair Fry of Garrettsville, Ohio (formerly of Franklin, Pennsylvania) passed away on Saturday, July 8, 2023 at her daughter’s home where she has resided for the past several years. Born in Franklin, Pennsylvania on November 8, 1939, she was the daughter of the late Donald Burnett Blair and Ruth Helen Kiskadden Blair. She graduated from Franklin High School in 1957 and on May 16, 1958 she married Francis William Fry, who preceded her in death on May 15, 2016. They r...
The conversion of the former McLaughlin Academy of Excellence, a middle school, into McLaughlin Middle/High School is moving ahead with the construction of a new gymnasium, the first of several new facilities that will be added to the school's 38-acre campus in coming months and years. The new gymnasium will serve the full line-up of athletics anticipated for the McLaughlin Phoenix teams. The 28,300 square-foot gymnasium will host a variety of athletic programs, including...
The women of the Lake Wales High School softball team were all smiles in Clermont Thursday afternoon after winning the state softball class with 7-2 a victory over Wakulla. The Crawfordville school came into the playoffs with a better overall record, but the Highlanders had played a tougher schedule, and it showed. The Highlanders earned their way to the title game by defeating Lemon Bay by a 5-0 score on Wednesday. The day started well for the Highlanders as shortstop Zamya...
A typical day at a local high school suddenly turned even weirder by an outbreak of brain-hungry zombies in the Lake Wales Little Theatre production of "Not Your Average Zombie Apocalypse." Presented as the annual teen production of the theatre, a cast of 25 brings plenty of light-hearted entertainment. The humorous spoof of all things Zombie is filled with funny vignettes and some of the common "jock vs. nerd" themes and the awkward social interactions of teen years. The fun...
The outsized impact of a relatively small number of Lake Wales women continues to shape and improve the lives of Lake Wales residents. With only two dozen members, the GFWC Woman's Club of Lake Wales continues to be a dynamic contributing force within the community. Part of the international Greater Federation of Women's Clubs, the local organization has served the community for more than 100 years. Operating from their historic clubhouse and auditorium at 275 East Park...
An annual "celebration of music, community, and nature" is returning to Lake Wales for a ninth year and is expected to draw crowds of music-lovers to town for the early December festival. The Orange Blossom Revue is a two-day event featuring a lineup of top musical acts in a wide range of genres ranging from "R&B to country to folk to jazz," according to festival organizer Rusty Ingley. Ingley and Reid Hardman have been running the concert since its inception. "it was an...
The Lake Wales High School Softball team is angling to bring back a second state championship in a single scholastic year after defeating Lemon Bay (Englewood) 5-0 in a semifinal game played in Clermont. The game was scheduled to start at 11:00 am, but was moved an hour earlier to avoid anticipated heavy rains in the afternoon. The Highlanders will face the winner of the other semifinal game between Key West and Wakulla. The Highlanders are the top seed in the tournament. The...
An early-morning fire that left Lake Wales firefighters battling the blaze until dawn left a gaping hole in a local apartment building, and in the lives of 23 residents of the building. At least eight units appear to have been heavily affected by flames, smoke, and water. The hours of flames burned away much of the roof of the building, leaving melted siding and charred timbers The American Red Cross is currently providing assistance to nine families, a spokesperson for the...
May 3, 2023- Quadruple murder suspect Al Joseph Stenson has been killed in a shootout with police after fleeing to a motel in Sanford, Florida, Lake Wales Police have reported. Police believe that Stenson may have murdered a mother and her three children early yesterday morning. Stenson was the only suspect in a horrific quadruple-murder that took place in Lake Wales Tuesday. Police confirmed that he was known to the victims, and was likely injured during the predawn event....
Billy Kahler of Babson Park passed away Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at his residence. He was born January 30, 1956, in Lake Wales to the late Richard and Nancy Kahler; and he was a lifelong resident. He graduated from Lake Wales High School in 1974 and Florida State University in 1978. He retired from UPS and a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Lake Wales. He was also the owner and operator of Gary's Boating Center and loved the outdoors. He enjoyed fishing, scuba...
Cathryn "Cathy" Sullivan Powers, 73, of Lake Wales, passed away Thursday, April 20, 2023, at her residence. She was born June 1, 1949, in Greenville, Mississippi to the late James K. Sullivan and Gloria K. (Weathers) Sullivan. She spent her formative years between Greenville, Dallas, Texas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Cathy graduated from Highland Park High School in Dallas, TX in 1967. She graduated from the University of Mississippi with a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education...
Dozens of Lake Wales High School students will be able to dress up and attend the annual Junior-Senior prom this year thanks to the work of a dedicated group of volunteers from the GFWC Woman's Club of Lake Wales. Club members held a grand opening Monday morning of their special, free "Prom Store" on the school campus where those needing the clothing could "shop" to fulfill their dreams. The members gathered prom dresses, suits, dress coats, ties, high heel shoes, men's dress...
Lake Wales preschool director and owner of Blessed Child Daycare Vivian Lewter Loydd understands the literacy dilemma in the United States, and resolved to do something about it. Florida has the third highest percentage of adults lacking basic prose literacy skills and its population has a literacy rate of just 80.3 percent. With over 22 years of experience, the poet Loydd had a great idea to foster that love with her 4 and 5-year-old students recently. She realized that the...
