Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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There’s simply no substitute for a hometown newspaper – except a hometown news website – and I’m thrilled to learn that we now have one! I literally grew up with the hometown newspaper – two of them, actually. Late every afternoon when I was a kid growing up in Ridge Manor, I looked forward to seeing the paperboy ride by on his bike. The pages were smaller than the big-city papers and after being rolled tight (and rubber-banded even tighter) it could be thrown a long way...
Dr. Tameka Bradley Hobbs set the tone with famed jazz singer Billie Holiday's haunting 1939 classic "Strange Fruit," a musical tale of lynchings, burning flesh and dripping blood. Her Black History lecture Thursday, Feb. 21 at the Lake Wales Museum continued with fascinating but disturbing stories, statistics and photos of far too many black men and women hung from trees in the South. While many Black History lectures celebrate the accomplishments of African Americans, Hobbs...
The Lake Wales Branch of the American Association of University Women is offering Educational Achievement Awards to mature women residents of Polk County who are interested in continuing their education. Recipients must be enrolled in an accredited institution of higher education. The postmark deadline is Friday, March 8 for applicants to write a letter with proof of college admission. Award winner will be chosen by March 31, and selected recipients must attend AAUW luncheon o...
A free lecture by Jim Sawgrass, a member of the Muskogee Creek Indian Tribe, will be held Tuesday, March 12 at the Polk County History Center, 100 E. Main St. in Bartow. The presentation from 5:30-7:30 p.m. will offer insight about Southeastern native tribes and their culture. A native Floridian, Sawgrass has been sharing his knowledge about Native American culture for more than 30 years. He served on the Florida Indian Council from 1991-1995. His lecture includes information...
Chevon Baccus, executive editor and publisher of LakeWalesNews.net spoke to the members of the GFWC Woman's Club of Lake Wales Thursday, March 7 about the community's new online publication. Baccus told the group that since its soft launch Feb. 13 the online news site has published more than 100 stories and nearly 500 photos. "The site is growing in popularity and readership and we're looking forward to a bright future," Baccus said. The loss of the local newspaper, The Lake...
Not all of a student's education comes from a teacher. Classrooms are often like melting pots, as children from different backgrounds and experiences learn valuable lessons from each other. In Polk County Public Schools, nearly 76 percent of students with disabilities spend the majority of their day (at least 80 percent of their time in school each day) in the regular education classroom sitting alongside their peers without disabilities, according to the most recent data and...
With enthusiasm for details and processes, Polk State College students in the Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) Program explain to faculty and staff members what they have learned through assistantships, lab experiences, and national conferences made possible by the LSAMP Grant, and how these skills will assist them in pursuing degrees and careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). The LSAMP Program, funded by the National Scie...
Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society recently announced Polk State College President Angela Garcia Falconetti as a 2019 Paragon Award for New Presidents and Regional Distinguished Service Award recipient for her dedication to students and their success. More than 500 college presidents were eligible for the Paragon Award, with only 25 being chosen by the international organization, which will recognize Falconetti during the Society's annual convention in Orlando this April. "Phi...
Nearly a month into his new position as Dean of Academic Affairs on the Polk State College Lakeland Campus, John Glenn already has his finger on the pulse of what students need because "I am our students," he says. "I was the student who didn't know how to go to college," Glenn explains, pointing to the demographics of Polk State's students, including the 52 percent who are the first generation in their families to go to college. In addition to 75 percent of students enrolled...
The Lake Wales Public Library will host Add Color to Your Landscape with Flowering Bulbs at noon, Thursday, March 7. This program is part of the library's Lifelong Learning Series sponsored by Florida's Natural Growers Foundation and the Lake Wales Library Association. A horticulture specialist from UF/IFIS Polk County will present information on growing flowering bulbs in your Florida landscape. This presentation is a lunch 'n learn program and is free; registration is...
The latest addition to Roosevelt Academy is bubbling with promise. In a modest 400-gallon tank at Roosevelt's outdoor FFA facility, a small school of gambusia appear to be thriving. As implied by their more common name - mosquito fish - the tiny gambusia are famous for their pest-devouring abilities, and Roosevelt students could help boost their numbers in Polk County. If all goes well, the Roosevelt team will soon expand their project to house approximately 1,000 mosquito...
The Reverend Tim Nunez is committed to helping families raise their children in the faith so they can become leaders for the next generation. Nunez is the new rector at the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd at 221 S.4th Street in Lake Wales. He began preaching at Good Shepherd in December, became Rector Jan. 1, and had the celebration of a new ministry on Sunday, Jan. 27, followed by a reception. Nunez served under Bishop Greg Brewer as Canon to the Ordinary for the...
Rotary on the Ridge has installed William Heath III as a new member. "Trey" is a REALTOR ® with Century 21 At Your Service Realty in Lake Wales. Trey's wife, Michelle, mother, Sara, and in-laws Ruthie and Ken Welch attended the installation service Jan. 28. "Trey obviously has a servant's heart," said sponsor Chevon Baccus, co-founder of the regional service club. "I am honored to sponsor him to become a Rotarian so he can put his energy and commitment to work serving our...
Got a garden? Want one? So where do I start? (Is that a question or a statement – I'm not sure.) One thing for certain is you have to start where you are. Unless you're planning to move real soon, and then you could plant in containers and take them with you. Or you could dig it all up and move stuff and watch your plants either die or thrive. Or, like most of us do in life, struggle somewhere in between. I know I have and still do. Hi, my name is John and I'm a gardener - N...
The City of Lake Wales is planning to add a new library branch and recreational facility on Chalet Suzanne Road on the northern edge of the city near the Eagle Ridge Mall. The new recreational facility would include playground equipment, picnic tables, a basketball court and bathroom facilities. The new branch would occupy an existing unused garage located on city property where the current northern Lake Wales Fire Department is located. The cost of the project, according to...
Rotary on the Ridge installed Jonathan Lamont White as a new member Monday, Feb. 18. White is an investor with Empower Through Enterprise and also works to promote the Bartow real estate business of his wife, Destini Lewis, Heavyweight of Real Estate. Curtis Gibson sponsored White into the club and vouched for his character and commitment to community service. "Jonathan wants to really make a difference in the community," Gibson said. "He will be a great addition to our...
Yes, Jessica and Michelle Mathews, there really is a Barney Moore. During a celebration of the 10th anniversary of Barney's Dream Park on Saturday, Feb. 9, two sisters were thrilled to meet the man who inspired the creation of the fully handicap-accessible playground on the shores of Lake Wailes. Their mom, Michelle, says her girls play in the park just about every day but didn't know who he was. The 58-year-old, born with cerebral palsy quad-atonic who has spent most of his l...
The Lake Wales High School 4x800 meter track relay team set a new Polk County record at the George Jenkins Invitational tournament Feb. 16. Their time of 8:04.29 bested the school record by 3 seconds and is now the 2nd fastest in the state and nation. Relay team members in their running order were Stephen Ward, 12th grade; Ladarius Tellis, 10th grade; Joesem Torres, 10th grade; and Anderson Denton, 11th grade. They won the race by 19 seconds. Denton also finished first in the...
Principal Donna Dunson may or may not have shed a few tears when she was interviewing Lillian Anderson a while back. But what is clear is Dunson was convinced Anderson needed to teach at Lake Wales High School, and that she was going to do whatever it took to get her there. Seven years later, Anderson has been named Teacher of the Year for the Lake Wales Charter System, honored recently along with teachers and support staff from each of its seven schools during the system's...
In its efforts to get more voters to the polls this November, the Democrat Party moved its headquarters to a more centrally located place in Polk County. On Feb 2 the local political party had an open house at 1549 E. Combee Road in Lakeland moving from Haines City. "This is wonderful," said Polk state committeewoman Karen Welzel. "This is the beginning of what we'll turn in Polk County." About 100 people attended the opening of the office in Polk and Chair and the Executive...
Three Lake Wales Charter schools were among 21 schools in Polk County recognized recently as Five Star School award winners by the Florida Department of Education. Dale R. Fair Babson Park Elementary School, Hillcrest Elementary School and Polk Avenue Elementary School were among about 700 schools statewide to receive the honor for the 2017-18 school year. The Five Star School award honors schools for exemplary community involvement and their commitment to incorporating...
Bullish is the still the word - and the outlook - for the U.S. economy, and its net positive trickle-down effects at the state, regional, and local levels can't be ignored. That's the viewpoint from Jeffrey D. Saut, the chief investment strategist for Raymond James Financial, Inc., and the company's managing director of equity research. Saut's talk about the economy - as it stands now and the trend for the near future - was the highlight when friends of the Lake Wales Area...
Three Polk County chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution joined together to host a visit from Florida DAR State Regent Dawn Lemongello in January. Upon an early arrival at the Polk County History Center, Lemongello was welcomed by the chapter regents: Doris Wooden, Bartow chapter; Earlene Head, Lake Wales chapter; and Christine Page, Ponce de Leon Chapter in Winter Haven. Myrtice Young, Historic Preservation Manager for the historic old courthouse and a Bartow...
Polk County commissioners sent plans for a large gas station and convenience store back to the Polk County Planning Commission after hearing public concerns that the development is too large for the area and might harm Crooked Lake. The gas station – a Circle K is being planned By Atlantic Funding Limited – would be at the intersection of U.S. 27 and County Road 640 just outside Lake Wales. It was proposed to have 28 spaces to pump gas. There would be no overnight par...
Lake Wales NAACP Branch #5109 is hosting its first annual "Unsung Heroes and SHeroes of Black History" event at 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22 at the James P. Austin Community Center, 315 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. John Kimbrough, Jr. will be guest speaker. The event is free but a public offering will be accepted. Public offering will be accepted! Kimbrough was born in Polk County on February 18, 1995, the son of John Kimbrough Jr. and Darlene Kimbrough. From a young age he knew...
