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VOLUME 117 ISSUE 5
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2022
Not officially associated with the University of Florida
Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida
‘For DaeDae’: Hundreds gather for funeral of Eastside High School football player HIS COACH DESCRIBED HIM AS A ‘JOY TO BE AROUND’
By Omar Ateyah Alligator Staff Writer
Caleb Ross // Alligator Contributing Photographer
Eastside High School community members gather at the school to remember athlete Dabien White Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022. The offensive lineman died on Sept. 4, 2022.
A stadium’s worth of people filled Eastside High School’s auditorium last weekend — not to celebrate a winning game, but rather to celebrate the life of beloved football player Dabien White. Near the front of the room, a glass box encapsulated a pristine jersey, which the adored athlete once wore. In front of the jersey, about 30 members of the Eastside football team sat in a group together donning white-and-orange jerseys in honor of their teammate. The football team made up only a small portion of about 300 mourners gathered at Eastside High School, located at 1201 SE 43rd St., Sept. 17 to mourn the life of White, a 17-year-old offensive lineman at the school. White was born on Jan. 17, 2005 and died in the early hours of Sept. 4. His obituary doesn’t mention a cause of death. White’s coffin was surrounded
by gold, red and black balloons, along with more balloons forming the number 55, the digits on White’s jersey. Throughout the funeral service, members of the crowd grieved together — some embracing each other between sobs while others laid their heads in their hands. As pallbearers carried White’s coffin out of the auditorium, some of his loved ones wept as they followed it out of the room. Harold Hoskins, Eastside’s football coach, presented White’s encased jersey to his family at the service. He described White as a “joy to be around” who was cherished by his teammates. “No way we can replace him,” Hoskins said. “We’ll honor him every day the way that we live. I talked to the boys about every day, every play, ‘We gonna dedicate the rest of this season to DaeDae.’” White, nicknamed “DaeDae” by his loved ones, was remembered as a gentle giant in his obituary. The obituary describes football as his passion and notes
SEE FUNERAL, PAGE 4
Gators football fuels Gainesville Fifty and fireproof: The Hippodrome has more than an anniversary to celebrate gameday micro-economy THE THEATER REVELS IN ITS POSTPANDEMIC COMEBACK
Saturday home games both help and hurt local businesses By Rylan DiGiacomo-Rapp Alligator Staff Writer
Almost every Florida Gators football home game, William Hatfield stands behind a booth decked out in an array of gator-themed jewelry on West University Avenue. The orange and blue jewelry — created by the 69-year-old Jonesville resident’s wife Karen Hatfield — has always turned heads, leading the couple to eventually start selling her pieces at their booth during football games. They’ve been doing it for 17 years, he said. As local shops and restaurants were crowded out by new development, Hatfield said they’ve gotten even more customers. “All of a sudden, our business last year went up dramatically,” he said.
SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT Gators barely beat Bulls
Story description finish with comma, Florida faces a top-25 opponent pg# for the third time this season next weekend. Read more on pg. 11.
Because their jewelry-making venture has been so successful, Hatfield said the couple will continue to sell during home games for as long as they can. Gainesville — normally a city full of residents commuting to work and students heading to class — dramatically transforms on game days. Students, alumni and loyal fans flock to Midtown just to see the Gators play at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, sometimes traveling hours from out of town. This season has seen record-setting attendance numbers too — a total of 90,799 people crammed themselves in the stands despite the stadium’s maximum capacity of 88,548. Beneath all the noise is a thriving gameday micro-economy, ranging from some of
SEE GAMEDAY, PAGE 5
By Averi Kremposky Alligator Staff Writer
The Hippodrome Theatre is used to overcoming the challenges the last few years have thrown at it. Now, it’s celebrating a monumental anniversary and wishing a warm welcome back to live theater. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hippodrome was forced to reduce its full-time 44-person staff to just 12 part-time employees, the theater’s artistic director Stephanie Lynge said. At the time, live shows were only recently becoming feasible, and the theater’s limited staff worked tirelessly to split the work meant for a team of more than 40 people, she said. A year later, Lynge has hopeful news to share with Gainesville’s entertainment community.
Marston Science Library renovations are almost completed The popular UF library is getting a facelift, pg. 5
“We have a full production staff back, we have a full front of house staff back and we have a much stronger team up on the admin floor,” Lynge said. “I’d say we’re back about 85 to 90 percent, and it’s just been amazing.” Every staff member who was forced to work part-time during the pandemic has resumed their full-time positions, Lynge said. In addition, across all theater programming areas — mainstage, education, cinema and events — there has been a steady increase in ticket sales. On top of the public’s eagerness to attend live entertainment after strict quarantine guidelines were lifted, the Hippodrome received a 2021 federal Shuttered Venue Operators Grant, which gave the theater the necessary funds to rehire most of their staff. The grant was established to support the ongoing operations of eligible live venues during the uncertain economic conditions
SEE HIPPODROME, PAGE 8
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County animal seeks new beginning
With a new director, the center has implemented new animal intake strategies, pg. 8
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