Inweekly April 21 2022 Issue

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Independent News | April 21, 2022 | Volume 23 | Number 16

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winners & losers 4

outtakes 5

news

6, 8, 9

I think Justin Bieber's great...

buzz 10

publisher Rick Outzen editor & creative director Joani Delezen

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feature story 14

contributing writers Gina Castro, Savannah Evanoff, Jennifer Leigh, Jeremy Morrison, Sydney Robinson, C.S. Satterwhite, Tom St. Myer

contact us info@inweekly.net

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Independent News is published by Inweekly Media, Inc., P.O. Box 12082, Pensacola, FL 32591. (850)438-8115. All materials published in Independent News are copyrighted. © 2022 Inweekly Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

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winners & losers

Cmdr. Armatas / Photo Courtesy of DVIDS

James Calkins / Photo Courtesy of Santa Rosa County

winners

losers

ALEXANDER ARMATAS The U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, announced Cmdr. Armatas will succeed Capt. Brian Kesselring as the commanding officer at the end of the 2022 show season in November. Armatas joins the Blue Angels after serving as the commanding officer of the "Gunslingers" of VFA-105. His previous assignments include multiple squadron tours, where he deployed aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in support of Operation FREEDOM's SENTINEL. Armatas has more than 4,000 flight hours and more than 900 carrier arrested landings.

JAMES CALKINS The Santa Rosa County commissioner accused Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried of intentionally trying to burn down Santa Rosa County. On April 8, a prescribed burn in the Garcon Point area got out of control, burning nearly 200 acres. At a county commission meeting, Calkins pointed out Fried was the only Democrat in the Florida Cabinet. He said, "What happened in Santa Rosa County was intentional." Commissioner Fried responded on WCOA, "I cannot believe that would ever come out of the mouth of an elected official." Welcome to Santa Rosa County, Commissioner Fried.

USAF The United States Air Force has stepped up its services to help LGBTQ airmen, guardians and their LGBTQ dependents concerned about Florida's new "Don't Say Gay" law. The department has assignment, medical, legal and other resources available to support airmen, guardians and families. Under Secretary of the Air Force Gina Ortiz Jones said, "The health, care and resilience of our DAF personnel and their families is not just our top priority—it's essential to our ability to accomplish the mission. We are closely tracking state laws and legislation to ensure we prepare for and mitigate effects to our Airmen, Guardians and their families." Nearby Eglin AFB is the largest USAF base in the United States, spanning portions of Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties. Service members and their families can seek additional support through their local Airman and Family Readiness Center, the Military and Family Life Counseling Program or Military OneSource, which can be contacted 24/7 at (800) 342-9647.

CARMELA COOK The Naval Aviation Museum

For more information about the event and the sponsorship opportunities available, contact Entrepreneurial Manager Gracie Price at gprice@studeri.org.

The Studer Community Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

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Foundation announced Cook, a member of the 2017 Inweekly Rising Star class, as its new director of Marketing and Public Relations. Cook's marketing and PR career started when she interned in marketing and communications for the Council on Aging of West Florida and then worked as a Communications Specialist at Covenant Hospice of Pensacola. In 2013, Cook began working at Baptist Health Care as a public relations specialist. Later she was promoted to the Corporate Service Line Marketing Manager at Baptist, leading marketing campaigns and branding strategies for the organization.

NO-KNOCK WARRANTS The Washington

Post reviewed the law enforcement database of fatal shootings by police nationwide since 2015 and found 21 no-knock warrants led to at least 22 people being killed. Of those killed, 13 were Black or Hispanic. In at least five raids, police killed someone who was not a focus of the warrant. In the vast majority of the cases, police said they were searching for illegal drugs and expected the subjects to be armed. In 12 of the 13 cases the Post reviewed, officers recovered less than three pounds of drugs combined.

REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE

The group voted to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates because the bipartisan organization refused to enact its demands.

The commission has hosted debates on college campuses since 1988. Inweekly covered debates at the University of Mississippi and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. RNC will require its presidential candidates to pledge they will only appear at party-sanctioned debates.

EUGENE HUELSMAN The California man pled guilty last week to one count of transmission of a threat in interstate commerce. During the plea hearing, Huelsman admitted that on Jan. 9, 2021, he telephoned Congressman Matt Gaetz's district office in Pensacola. When no one answered, he left a profanity-laced voicemail threatening to kill Gaetz, threatening to "put a bullet in" Rep. Gaetz and his family members. Sentencing is currently set for June 30. Huelsman faces up to five years' imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. inweekly.net

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outtakes

By Rick Outzen

FIGHTING THOUGHT POLICE Gov. Ron DeSantis sees education as an indoctrination process that he must control with his thought police. The views of the majority of the state don't matter. His vision must be upheld and enforced as he returns Florida to the days of Jim Crow.

George Orwell created the thought police in his novel "1984." The Thinkpol uncovered and punished those with thoughts unapproved by the government. They sought to preserve the authority of the Party and the regime of Big Brother. Now, I'm not sure our children will even be allowed to read the book as DeSantis and his minions seek to ban such books that might make them uncomfortable.

The boogeyman is critical race theory—a college-level theory that no one has uncovered ever being taught in any K-12 classroom in Florida. But the new law has put such a fear in school districts that some have prohibited speakers from talking to students and teachers about the civil rights movement and social justice.

They don't want to upset Big Brother DeSantis.

In January, the Osceola County School District canceled a professor's civil rights movement history seminar for teachers, citing concerns over the critical race theory, even though it wasn't even part of his lecture. The professor was Dr. Michael Butler, a Flagler College history professor who wrote "Beyond Integration: The Black Freedom Struggle in Escambia County, Florida, 19601980" and "Victory After the Fall: The Memories of the Civil Rights Activist, H.K. Matthews."

Last month, the Escambia County School District turned down an offer for social justice advocate Lisa McNair to speak to its classes.

McNair was in Pensacola for a CivicCon engagement on racial reconciliation. She spoke at Milton High School but not at any of Escambia's high schools. Again, fear of DeSantis reared its head.

On Friday, April 15, the Florida Department of Education proudly announced, under the headline "Florida rejects publishers' attempts to

indoctrinate students," it had rejected 54 math textbooks, alleging the books had "references to Critical Race Theory (CRT), inclusions of Common Core, and the unsolicited addition of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) in mathematics."

In the press release, Gov. DeSantis proclaimed, "It seems that some publishers attempted to slap a coat of paint on an old house built on the foundation of Common Core and indoctrinating concepts like race essentialism, especially, bizarrely, for elementary school students."

The governor didn't provide any evidence of the concepts uncovered by his thought police, but he wanted us to know he "saved" our children from unapproved ideas. It also made me dust off my copy of "1984" and see what will be the next move in the governor's playbook.

Drunk on power, DeSantis doesn't answer to anyone. His spin machine wants us to believe there's little we can do to stop his mean-spirited views from being forced down our throats. The intellectual debate of ideas in our schools is quickly becoming a crime. The civil rights movement may be wiped from the state's history just as Reconstruction was done when white supremacists took over and rewrote the Florida constitution.

But I have a pen, and though it's a small instrument of resistance, I will use it. Recently, I sat down with Rev. H.K. Matthews to record his recollections of his arrest and imprisonment for challenging an Escambia County sheriff. His arrest came the day after he refused a bribe to walk away from the protest.

We had already seen his biographer, Dr. Butler, blocked from talking about the civil rights movement. I wanted to memorialize the brutal treatment of Rev. Matthews for our grandchildren. His sacrifices and courage can't be allowed to be wiped away, and I will share them in a future issue.

Students may not be able to find my articles in their school library, but they will be on the web—at least until the next legislative session. {in} rick@inweekly.net

The boogeyman is critical race theory—a college-level theory that no one has uncovered ever being taught in any K-12 classroom in Florida.

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FRIED RETURNS TO PANHANDLE

Nikki Fried / Courtesy Photo

By Rick Outzen Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried visited Northwest Florida last week. She used the trip to cover official state business and make a few appearances to build support for her campaign to be Florida's next governor.

The official business focused on her agency's investigation of a prescribed burn on Friday, April 8, in the Oyster Bar area of Santa Rosa County that got out of control. The Florida Forest Service had approved the burn managed by Northwest Florida Water Management, but since the forest service is under the Department of Agriculture, some have tried to pin the blame for the wildfire that spanned nearly 200 acres on Fried (See "The Buzz").

The agriculture commissioner dismissed the partisan political attacks and focused on the investigation. She said the weather was checked the previous night and the morning of the prescribed burn, and Northwest Florida Water Management's certified burner decided to proceed.

"Once we give them the permission to do so, it is then their responsibility to continue monitoring weather conditions, make sure they've got the right equipment on site," Fried told Inweekly.

"From our understanding that about a couple hours inside into the burn, the weather patterns changed," she said. "We are still investigating that

and seeing what things he should have done differently under those circumstances. This is something that could have been prevented, of course, if he had actually continued monitoring it and seeing the weather conditions change. We should have been able to get in there and immediately put things out."

The final report on the wildfire investigation hadn't been released as of the newspaper deadline but will be posted on ricksblog. biz when received.

During her visit, Fried took off time to meet with Democrats in Escambia, Santa Rosa and Okaloosa counties. In the Democratic primary, she faces Congressman Charlie Crist, who served as governor from 2007-2011 as a Republican, and State Senator Annette Taddeo. The polls have Crist eight percentage points ahead of Fried, with Taddeo a distant third. The Democratic primary is Aug. 23.

The polls don't discourage Fried, who upset favored GOP candidate Matt Caldwell to become the first Democrat on the Florida Cabinet in two decades.

"We feel very confident about the primary because we are seeing the momentum on the ground," she said. "The Democrats want a fighter.

They want somebody who's been a champion for our issues. And that is what I've done, not just in the last three and a half years as commissioner, but my entire life."

She continued, "From doing soup kitchens and Habitat for Humanity growing up in high school, to fighting for homeowners during the foreclosure crisis, to being a past public defender and fighting for individuals' rights, I have been a champion for the people my entire life and have been that advocate. Democrats don't want somebody who has been a career politician, who's been running almost seven times statewide. They want a new perspective, fresh ideas, a fighter, a

champion, an advocate. And that's what I bring to the table."

Fried hasn't been afraid to call out Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-control state legislature for focusing on divisive cultural issues rather than what she sees as the kitchen table topics.

"It's heartbreaking, what happened this legislative session," said Fried. "Gov. DeSantis and the Republican legislature spent more time attacking a women's right to choose, our teachers, our school system, dividing our state, taking out away more rights when it comes to putting on the initiatives on the ballot, to even going after our voting rights once again. Every step along the way, they've done just the opposite of what people needed."

She listed the topics the Republicans ignored—condominium safety in light of the Surfside collapse that caused 92 deaths, soaring property insurance rates and the severe shortage of affordable housing around the state. Fried said, "They missed the ball on a lot of economic issues.

It's time that we make some changes and try something new in Tallahassee."

On Wednesday, April 13, Nikki Fried held a press conference outside the Florida Sun Estates mobile home park in Tallahassee to discuss affordable housing. Earlier this year, the trailer park's owners drew criticism for doubling their rent in 2021. The stop was part of Fried's "Lower Costs, Higher Standards" tour. She hit on affordable housing with Inweekly, calling it the one consistent issue across Florida.

"We are seeing home increases and doubling in price," said Fried. "We're seeing young professionals who are just graduating that can't afford to buy homes. We're seeing teachers, our first responders and others in our workforce that can't afford homes. And the same thing on rent. So, we started our statewide tour on Monday, calling for lower costs, higher standards because we need to be lowering the costs of the people that live here in our state."

If elected, Fried plans to declare a housing emergency. She said, "It's a state of emergency, which is exactly what it is. That gives me an opportunity to release power from the executive

office to dole out additional funds and resources to start building homes immediately, finding ways to get resources into our community."

She noted that the Republicans have repeatedly raided the Sadowski Housing Trust Fund, which is funded by documentary stamps and intended to help Floridians buy homes. Fried said, "Roughly over the last 25 years, about $2.1 billion have been gutted from the Sadowski fund. Can you imagine how many homes could have been built if we had those billion extra dollars?"

Fried also would propose a constitutional amendment to increase the homestead exemption from $50,000 to $100,000. She said, "That way, there's a little bit less pressure and stress on the homeowner paying property taxes. We have to deal with property insurance. I mean, there is just so many things that can be done and so many great ideas that I've been hearing on the campaign trail, but bureaucratic red tape in Tallahassee has been stopping forward progress."

Fried lamented how contentious politics have become and how far the Republican Party has moved away from its cornerstone principles. She said, "It's funny; my dad is a diehard Republican.

When I was growing up, he used to teach me the Republican Party is supposed to be about less taxes, less spending, local control, free market."

Fried continued, "Unfortunately, this Republican party that's in Tallahassee has done literally just the opposite on all of those issues. You're seeing the Democrats talking about home rule, local control, free market, less taxes, less spending."

Her homestead exemption proposal would be the largest tax cut in state history. She pledged that her first budget would be less than DeSantis' $112.1 billion spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year. She said, "We're going to stay out of people's way to let them do what they need to do for their families, for their businesses. And that's how we're going to win."

Fried added, "There's too much anger, too much hostility that's going on right now in politics.

And we need somebody who is going to get things done, who's going to bring people together, who knows how to work on both sides of an aisle but is going to fight for what she believes in. " She smiled, "I'm that leader." {in}

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BRINGING MENTAL HEALTH TO THE FOREFRONT

Michelle Salzman / Photo Courtesy of myfloridahouse.gov

By Tom St. Myer In the past, state legislators have attempted and failed in their regions to organize a community-wide campaign that emphasizes mental health, so when State Rep. Michelle Salzman announced her intentions for a collaborative effort in Northwest Florida, she heard from her share of naysayers.

"They'd say, 'That's a great idea, but we don't think folks are going to show up, and if you get them to, they're just not going to share data,'" she said.

The region is proving its doubters wrong with extraordinary community buy-in as the Mental Health Task Force of Northwest Florida is in the second quarter of a year-long campaign to raise awareness about mental health and encourage community support.

The expanding task force initially began with Salzman collaborating with health care administrators to address a void in mental health awareness in the community and now includes business, government, law enforcement, school districts and various nonprofit agencies. The task force consists of 80 committee members and dozens of other participants.

Task force subcommittees include prevention88

intervention, psychiatry, counseling, medication-assisted treatment, diversion, community-based/services and in-patient treatment/ crisis care.

"As we talked to people in this environment, they would continue to add folks that they felt were necessary to be at the table," Salzman said. "All the different agencies have sent people to the meetings, and they're very engaged. There's no exclusivity. We try to be really inclusive."

The task force launched its second-quarter campaign on April 1. The "Take 5" campaign reminds people to take five minutes to shut down the outside world and focus on themselves by taking a walk, listening to music and breathing slowly and deeply among other forms of self-mediation. The "Take 5" campaign follows the "Ask 5" campaign that reminded people to take a moment to ask five others if they're OK. Mental health ranked second only to overweight/obesity among perceived health issues in the two counties, according to a 2021 report

by Achieve Healthy EscaRosa. Nearly 50% of those surveyed in Escambia and over 41% in Santa Rosa said mental health services when asked which health care services are difficult to get in their community. That easily topped

alcohol and drug treatment for No. 1 in both counties.

Lakeview Center is among the health care providers with multiple representatives on the task force. In 2021 alone, Lakeview Center Behavioral Health Services served 28,205 people in Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties for substance abuse and mental health, with a 51-49% split among the two categories. In addition, Lakeview Center provided 96,706 telehealth appointments and 7,312 service contacts to people in crisis.

"It immediately sparked my passion to have an elected leader at the state level have a passion for this topic," said Shawn Salamida, Lakeview Behavioral Health Services president and task force committee member. "I wanted to hitch Lakeview to that wagon and say, 'Hey, we're here to work with you.'"

The task force's primary goal is to act as a positive catalyst influencing the working and communal culture through the promotion of wellness and including optimal mental well-being for the workforce in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. The target audience includes bolstering mental health services for children. In 2021, over 400 children in Escambia County received counseling and mental health services from the Children's Home Society. The age ranges of 6-14 accounted for nearly 90% of the clients.

"A majority of the people who are not getting access to therapy are the uninsured who don't have Medicaid." Michelle Salzman Salzman considered the first quarter to be extremely successful for the task force. Firstquarter "wins" include an increased focus on mental health by employers, Sacred Heart hiring two adolescent mental health advisors, Baptist expanding its number of beds for mental health patients, Escambia County Sheriff's Office adding three service dogs and each EMS ambulance being stocked with Narcan, an emergency treatment of opioid overdose.

Salzman expects the wins list to grow substantially as the task force extends its outreach.

Initiatives include developing a strategic and data-driven plan that incorporates collecting data from dozens of agencies over a year-long period and creating a pipeline for free counseling sessions from licensed therapists willing to volunteer their services. The committee formed a list of about 1,000 therapists in the area to ask to volunteer four-eight hours of free care each month for a year.

"A majority of the people who are not getting access to therapy are the uninsured who don't have Medicaid," Salzman said. "Creating a pipeline for them was a priority."

Another task force initiative underway is implementing a statewide phone line for callers to speak to mental health experts. The model is based off 211, a number that connects callers to highly trained experts who offer assistance for food, shelter and mental health.

The free, confidential service is powered in Northwest Florida by United Way. United Way of West Florida President/CEO Laura Gilliam serves on the task force committee and is providing her expertise on how to implement a similar model to 211 for Floridians.

"A lot of the work 211 is already doing is related to mental health," Gilliam said. "We have a database with resources in it that deal with mental health issues. We're looking at exploring options for a small pilot that could be for mental health and other things as well, such as connecting people to health care."

The American Psychiatric Association conducted a 2019 national poll and found that mental health stigma is still a major challenge in the workplace. About half of the workers admitted concerns about discussing mental health issues at their jobs, and over one-third voiced concern about retaliation or being fired if they sought mental health care.

Gilliam said a stigma against mental health issues is obviously still prevalent, but she senses a changing of perspective among younger generations. Her children are ages 27 and 31, respectively, and she finds that people in that age range are more willing to seek therapy and discuss mental health issues than their elders.

Efforts by the task force to bring mental health awareness to the forefront are beginning to put a sizable dent in that stigma. Salzman said the community is creating a blueprint for the rest of the state to follow and potentially someday be a state-funded initiative.

"There are no bylaws or standing rules or president," Salzman said. "We are just the community leaders coming together and saying we realize this needs to be a priority, and we're willing to make it one."

The task force encourages community members and organizations to pledge to make a positive impact by actively promoting mental health and wellness at their workplaces and to encourage their coworkers to share social media materials available at mentalhealthtaskforce.org. {in} inweekly.net

ESCAMBIA COUNTY REACTS TO "DON'T SAY GAY" BILL

By Gina Castro Florida's recent passing of the Parental Rights in Education bill (HB 1557) has resulted in nationwide outrage. Critics call it the "Don't Say Gay" bill, and there have been protests, school walkouts and calls to ban traveling or doing business in the state because of it. The law firm the National Center for Lesbian Rights is representing LGBTQ advocacy groups Equality Florida and Family Equality as well as same-sex couple Lourdes Casares and Kimberly Feinberg in a lawsuit arguing the bill is unconstitutional.

The law has received criticism because it prohibits discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten-third grade. The bill also grants parents access to students' education and health records maintained by the school district.

However, Escambia County School District Superintendent Tim Smith said state law already gives parents permission to these records.

"So I think for this particular bill, we've already had that in place where it's important for us, as a school district, to work with our parents, and I'm not sure why we would keep serious matters that are impacting students, whatever that may be, from our parents," Smith said.

Escambia County School Board member Patty Hightower was previously president of the Florida Parent Teacher Association and is passionate about parental rights. She says parents can already access their children's curriculum and even review all the books the children have access to at school libraries.

"I think that this bill, though well meaning, may be looked at as doing more than it actually says in the bill," Hightower said. "I just wasn't sure it was necessary because here in Escambia County, especially with this particular board member, I spend most of my time helping parents maneuver through the system. If they have a complaint, you know, we help them figure out who it is they need to talk to."

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Inweekly reached out to 32 Escambia County elementary school principals for their opinion on the bill. None of them chose to respond.

Cody Strother, the Escambia County School District marketing and public relations coordinator, gave the following statement on their behalf—"While it is premature to determine any impacts to our classrooms, as with any type of legislation relevant to public education, we will await guidance from the Florida State Department of Education."

Inweekly also reached out to all Escambia County school board members. Hightower and Kevin Adams were the only members to respond. Adams fully supports the bill.

"One of the great hallmarks of a great teacher is that the student would not know the political party nor the gender identity of the teacher," Adams said. "We hire teachers to teach the curriculum approved by our state legislators in accordance with current statutes. And in my opinion, discussions by teachers of sexual orientation, gender identity in a classroom is not age appropriate and should remain off limits."

In 2022 alone, state lawmakers nationwide have filed 238 bills targeting LGBTQ+ rights.

For LGBTQ+ activists like Devin Cole, the president of Strive: Socialist Trans Initiative, the Florida bill is intentionally disguised as a parental rights bill, but the bill's purpose is to further suppress the LGBTQ+ community. Cole believes the Trump administration sparked the growing number of anti-gay rights bills.

"Ever since then, there's been this rise from the fascistic, reactionary right wing to basically delegitimize queer and trans people," Cole said.

"And, of course, the first people they're going to go after are children to, of course, try and cut them off at the root. This 'Don't Say Gay' bill, it's no coincidence that it's being aimed at kindergarten-third graders."

Cole explained that for many trans and queer people, kindergarten-third grade is a significant time for their identities.

"That's when many of us discover or learn, for the first time, our queerness, or our transness," Cole said. "These lawmakers are not stupid. They understand that these ages are among the most formative years of childhood. And of course, that's where they're attempting to attack first."

"It absolutely is going to cause an uptick in mental illness and emotional instability for these children." Devin Cole Superintendent Smith and Hightower stated that before this bill passed, they hadn't received any complaints from parents or educators about sexuality or gender identity discussion in school.

"It has never come up as a complaint," Hightower said. "I know, our teachers have sometimes shared with me, situations where students have shared with them, you know, and that's what I worry about is, how is that going to be handled?"

The bill prohibits school district personnel from not telling parents about "critical decisions affecting a student's mental, emotional or physical well-being." This aspect of the bill could put teachers who students may have shared their sexuality with in a tricky spot.

"But then there is language in the bill that does say that if the school, whether the teacher or a counselor or whomever gets this information, feels like there might be some danger to the child—that there'll be other procedures," Hightower said. "That's when our attorney will get into the training process, and we will come up with some procedures that will ensure the safety and the privacy of all concerned."

This aspect of the bill is intentionally made to isolate gay, queer and trans children from their teachers, Cole said.

"It's extremely violent," Cole said. "It absolutely is going to cause an uptick in mental illness and emotional instability for these children.

It's going to cause them to feel like there's no one to turn to, which, of course, is the goal. The right-wing reactionary people, they want queer and trans children dead."

Critics of the bill have argued that if children are too young to learn about homosexuality, then they are too young to learn about heterosexuality. Inweekly asked Superintendent Smith if kindergarten-third graders read or discuss heterosexual relationships. He said the students don't.

"No, that wouldn't be in our K-third student experience," Smith said. "To my knowledge, we don't. You're right that there are books and books and books out there. We also sometimes have books donated, but even in the past, we've had an experience where we're having some good books donated and it wasn't in line with our standards and our expectations for the class. So we pulled those."

Strive, which is focused on advocating for the transgender community in Escambia County and surrounding areas, posted on social media asking for Florida trans and queer kids to share their opinion on the bill.

One submission Strive received was from a child in South Florida discussing how this bill will only embolden their classmates who intentionally misgender them.

"Of course, the kid says, you know, 'I'm not gonna let them stop me for being who I am.' But like, it's disturbing," Cole said. "You have these kids who are 14 and 15 years old, very impressionable ages, and people are already telling them to kill themselves and they would be better off dead. You know, the mental and the psychological and emotional toll that that takes on anybody really, but especially a child, is horrific."

Strive's submissions for comments are still open.

You can submit via email (strivepensacola@gmail. com) or on social media (@strivepensacola). {in}

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Steven Barry / Photo Courtesy of myescambia.com

A STEP CLOSER Escambia County continues

to edge toward getting high-speed internet to rural areas in the county. On April 14, Magellan Advisors presented at the Board of County Commissioners' Committee of the Whole its report on how to create a county-wide broadband network. The board had already approved a budget for the project.

"When the board voted on Thursday, April 7, to set aside $10 million of American Rescue Plan funds toward build-out, it was a monumental day," Commissioner Steven Barry, the driving force behind the broadband initiative, told Inweekly. "It's the kind of thing five years ago you couldn't have imagined happening."

He doesn't think the county should fund the entire project, which could top $20 million.

Barry said, "I think the best scenario is we take

a fixed amount of money and set it in a pot.

Then we say, 'OK, private sector, this is basically the funds that we're going to subsidize a private build-out, and we're going to expect you to deliver real highspeed service to every home.

What can you do?' And I know that we'll have a handful of folks who will take a very aggressive look at bidding on that."

Barry represents District 5, which covers the county's north end. He said the broadband network was the topic of discussion at a recent Farm Bureau board in Molino.

"It's been seen as just a cavern of despair as far as access to high-speed internet," said the commissioner. "They were very interested as to whether it's going to happen. If you're trying to farm 10,000, 15,000 acres across 20 different parcels and now can rely on having high-speed internet at some point in the future, it makes a big difference."

POLITICS OF 2022 Last week, Santa Rosa County Commissioner James Calkins accused Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried of intentionally trying to burn down Santa Rosa County.

On April 8, a prescribed burn in the Garcon Point area got out of control, burning nearly 200 acres. At a county commission meeting,

Calkins said, "The head of the Florida Department of Agriculture is Nikki Fried. She's the only Democrat in the state that's in the cabinet. What happened in Santa Rosa County was intentional."

Commissioner Fried wasn't amused, calling Calkins' statement, "the most disgusting, outrageous claim that I've heard yet, to date."

She told Inweekly, "The men and women of the forestry firefighters and our wildlife preserve individuals are heroes. We all know that.

They come out here into the Panhandle and deal with forest fires all the time, putting their own lives at risk, saving properties, saving land, saving individuals."

She continued, "And to think that anybody would ever put any of them in harm's way is so outrageous and ludicrous. I cannot believe that would ever come out of the mouth of an elected official. But welcome to politics of 2022, and it's just unfortunate that's even something that it seems to need to be discussed."

ECAT DRIVER SAFETY Earlier this month, Escambia County Area Transit began the installation of barriers in its buses. Escambia County's Mass Transit director Rodriques Kimbrough told Inweekly, "We are installing protective barriers to not only prevent COVID protocols, but we also want to prevent any possible assaults to any of our employees."

He added, "Now, not to say that we have any assaults and things of that nature, but we want to make sure that we do everything that we can to ensure that the employee's safety is a primary concern."

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1395 President Mike Lowery worked for three years to get the barriers, fighting County Administrator Janice Gilley. He praised Kimbrough's leadership.

"In 2019, a tragic attack on a bus operator in Tampa triggered across the country the ATU trying to get a bill passed to protect bus operators from assault," said Lowery. "During 2019, 2020, and even 2021, I was pushing hard with Janice Gilley as the administrator and former transit director, Tonya Ellis, and even the commissioners trying to get their attention that we

needed to take our transit system to another level to protect the riders."

The ATU Local 1395 president continued, "When Rodriques Kimbrough came along and became the mass transit director, and even before that when he was the deputy transit director, I could immediately see that we were moving in a new direction. And it's very exciting."

Kimbrough has high expectations for ECAT. He said, "Within the next three to five years, I see us being an award-winning transit agency in the state of Florida. That's our goal because our citizens deserve it, and we have excellent staff."

BRODERSEN PROMOTED On Thursday,

April 14, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the appointment of Judge Amy Brodersen to serve as a judge on the First Judicial Circuit Court.

Brodersen has served as an Escambia County court judge since her appointment by Gov. Rick Scott in 2016. Previously, she served as an Assistant City Attorney for the Pensacola Police Department and an Assistant State Attorney for seven years in the First Judicial Circuit. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of South Alabama and her law degree from Florida Coastal. Brodersen fills the judicial vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Thomas V. Dannheisser, who moved on to be the county attorney for Santa Rosa County.

COUNTY'S STRATEGY Escambia County

Commission Chair Jeff Bergosh is tired of hearing naysayers say the county has no economic development strategy.

"Anyone that says that is ignorant, frankly," said Bergosh on WCOA last week. "I'll tell you, there's a cult of a few and a cult of one on the board who think that the government should never be involved in any kind of economic development."

He continued, "And every time I do a town hall, I always ask that question, 'Should your county government go after like Navy Federal Credit Union, like Ascend?' And without question, resounding yeses go up in the air. So, I think there are a few people that they're out of touch."

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Bergosh sits on the joint county-city commission that oversees economic development, the Pensacola-Escambia Development Commission. Hinting that more job announcements will be made in the upcoming weeks, he said, "FloridaWest and Scott Luth are always working. The PEDC, we're doing the best we can.

We'll work and bring in good jobs. " Commissioner Bergosh added, "It doesn't sell newspapers. It's not real sexy. But I'll tell you what, for the people that get those jobs, it's a big deal to them. So, I'm dedicated to it.

I'm committed to it."

"It doesn't sell newspapers. It's not real sexy. But I'll tell you what, for the people that get those jobs, it's a big deal to them." Jeff Bergosh MORE GOOD NEWS According to the Flori-

da Department of Economic Opportunity, the Pensacola area gained 8,300 private-sector jobs (+5.3%) over the year in March 2022. The Pensacola area labor force increased by 7,138 over the year, a 3.1% increase. The Pensacola area unemployment rate was 2.6% in March 2022, down 2.0 percentage points from the same month last year.

The industries gaining the most jobs over the year were trade, transportation and utilities (+3,000 jobs) and leisure and hospitality (+2,200 jobs). In March 2022, the Pensacola metro area had the fastest over-the-year job growth rate compared to all the metro areas in the state in trade, transportation and utilities (+8.8%).

BUT THEN United Way of West Florida released

its latest ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) report. The statistics are from 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, and they show that the majority of children in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties lived in households that couldn't afford the basics three years ago.

ALICE in Focus: Children also reveals the disproportionate impact of financial hardship on the community's Black and Hispanic children, 66% and 69%, respectively. The report finds traditional poverty measures have severely undercounted the number of children of all races ages 18 and younger in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties who are growing up in financially insecure households.

While 16% of all children in the state were deemed in poverty in 2019, the report shows that 37%—more than twice as many—lived in families that earn more than the Federal Poverty Level but less than what it costs to live and work in the modern economy.

Combined, 53% of children in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties lived in households below the ALICE Threshold, with income that April 21, 2022

doesn't meet the basic costs of housing, childcare, health care, transportation and a smartphone plan.

"Undercounting the number of children who are at risk can have lifelong consequences," said Laura Gilliam, United Way of West Florida president and CEO. "Thousands of children are locked out of receiving critical support for stable housing, food and quality education, which can inhibit healthy child development."

More data is available through the ALICE in Focus: Children interactive data dashboard, which provides filters for regional and local geographies, age, race, disability status, living arrangements and household work status. Visit unitedforalice.org/focus-children.

In November 2020, Escambia County voters passed a referendum to increase their property taxes to fund the Escambia Children's Trust.

These ALICE numbers show they made a wise decision. To follow what the trust is doing, visit escambiachildrenstrust.org.

NEW SPRING COHORT The Spring Entrepreneur Hub has announced its Spring 2022 cohort for its Venture Mentoring Service (VMS): •Elevate Waste Solutions, Cary Stephens, Owner: Primarily manages businesses' waste and recycling services.

•Joe Hobbs Art Glass, Joe Hobbs, Owner/Artist: A familiar name to Inweekly readers, Hobbs is famous for his glass artistry.

•MI SU Street Food, Hylene and Alden Garcia, Co-owners: Best of the Coast-winning food truck and regular at Odd Colony Brewing Wednesdays-Saturdays.

•Stallworth Insurance Services, Tameka Stallworth, Owner: An independent insurance agency since 2018.

•TASTEbuds Snacks LLC, Michael Hobbs, Owner: Ice cream shop in Pace.

•What Limits Project, Jack Johnson, CEO: A nonprofit that works with men in addiction recovery to train and run a 5K race and beyond.

•WolfGang LLC, Jessica and Kim Wolford, Coowners: Creates and organizes dog-friendly events in the Pensacola area.

By adding new cohorts every six months, The Spring VMS has doubled in size in its first two years, growing from 10-27 businesses served. The program has 36 mentors. The 20 companies that have participated to date created 74 jobs last year—an average of 3.7 per company.

"We are thrilled to expand the program to include more local companies," SCI President Rachael Gillette said. "These seven businesses have the heart, desire and energy to grow and create more opportunity right here in Pensacola."

The Spring VMS is based on the VMS program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which is tailored specifically to communities looking to bolster entrepreneurship.

"The Spring VMS is a free program that offers confidential team mentoring services to entrepreneurs across our community," said Gracie Price, Entrepreneurial manager at The 11

Spring. "Our goal is for the program to continue to expand later this year to include more companies and experts in residence."

She added, "We're able to provide these free services due to the amazing volunteer support of the mentors, and we are looking for sponsors and partners to help fund the programs so that we may continue offering them to the community at no cost."

For more information and to discuss sponsorship opportunities, please contact Price at gprice@studeri.org.

FIRE SAFETY INSPECTIONS While there are several ways a fire can be started at your home, Escambia County Fire Rescue encourages residents to stay prepared and protect their property by requesting a fire safety inspection. The county inspectors can identify hazards that could have gone unnoticed.

Since the free fire safety inspection service began last January, four Escambia County homes have been fully inspected, leading to preventative actions to ensure safety in the homes.

If you are interested in a courtesy fire safety inspection for your home, contact Ray Melton at remelton@myescambia.com, or call

212 1

(850) 471-6525. The service has translators, so questions in any language can be answered.

CONSULT-A-NURSE HCA Florida Health-

care has a new statewide Consult-A-Nurse® line. By calling the free 24/7 line, (844) 70-NURSE (6-8773), the public can speak with nurses ready to provide quick, convenient expert care advice and support.

"We're really excited about this service," said HCA Florida West Hospital's Kendrick Doidge. "Anybody who's been discharged or had a loved one discharged knows there's always some follow-up questions. So, this number, (844) 70-NURSE, you can call it 24 hours a day, seven days a week, get clarification on discharge instruction."

He continued, "I've got kids and have been up in the middle of the night. You can ask a nurse in the middle of the night to explain the symptoms that your child's having and get answers."

Doidge said the nurses would have evidence-based protocols. He said, "They will be able to tell you what to do, including if you need to go to the hospital, they'll instruct you to call 911 and get to the nearest emergency room, or they'll instruct you to go back to your

primary care physician or your pediatrician or the closest urgent care center."

He added, "If you need help finding those, our nurses will be able to get your ZIP code and direct you to the closest and most appropriate location."

COUNTY JOB FAIR Escambia County will

host a career fair Saturday, April 23, from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Pensacola Bay Center, 210 E Gregory St. The event is free and open to members of the public looking for a career with Escambia County. The event will occur in the Bay Center's meeting space, located on the second floor.

During the event, potential candidates will have the chance to speak one-on-one with representatives from the county's various departments, including public works, corrections and mass transit. They will also be able to apply for jobs in person at the career fair. Human resources employees will be available to share more information on all the county's benefits, such as health care coverage, salaries, the $2,000 recruitment incentive, tuition reimbursement and retirement packages.

"We invite anyone looking to start a career to come out and see what's available," said Human Resources Director Crystal Dadura.

"We've recently raised our salaries in several positions, including corrections—making us one of the highest-paid in Northwest Florida— fire rescue and EMS. We're also proud to offer an incredible benefits package with medical, dental and vision coverage; flexible spending accounts (FSA) and health savings accounts (HSA); an employee assistance program; a free employee health clinic; and free use of our county gyms. We hope you'll join us at our career fair to learn more about what we offer."

To see a full list of open positions in the county, visit myescambia.com/careers.

YOUTH ACTION BOARD Opening Doors

Northwest Florida wants to launch a Youth Action Board (YAB), a group of exceptional volunteers, ages 18-24, to offer guidance and plan and approve projects that combat youth homelessness.

If you are interested in using your experience and expertise to guide efforts to end youth homelessness in the community, please join this meeting to assist in the YAB's development phase. The meeting is 5-6 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, at Opening Doors Northwest Florida, 1020 N. New Warrington Road. {in}

inweekly.net

Find your stage.

The Center serves as downtown Pensacola’s cultural and artistic hub.

It is home to local theatre, ballet, education, events, community organizations and more. As we look to the future, we plan to reimagine our space, and we invite you to join us on the journey. learn more at findyour center pensacola.com

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April 21, 2022

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4/14/22 12:47 PM

RECORD STORE DAY DONE RIGHT

By Savannah Evanoff

Eric Jones is living proof that if you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life.

Every time he opens the doors at his East Hill shop, he’s starting another day doing what he loves, where he loves to do it—selling records at his record store, Revolver Records.

Saturday, April 23, aka Record Store Day 2022, will be no different.

On Record Store Day, Jones (along with many other record store owners worldwide) will sell exclusive vinyl records being released to drive record enthusiasts to independently owned record stores.

"It is extra effort, but I enjoy everything about it—from the very first email you get saying, 'Alright, here they are; tell us what you want,' to getting people excited about it and hyping it on the social platforms and getting stuff in and taking quick snapshots and throwing it out on our shop feed to seeing a long line of people waiting for you at nine in the morning to get in—that puts a smile on my face," Jones said. "There's nothing I don't like about Record Store Day."

RECORD REVIVAL

Record Store Day is what revived Rick Johnson's love for vinyl.

The Record Store Day coordinator has collected records since he was a preteen in the '70s. He suspects his first record was either Queen's "Live Killers" or the Bee Gees' "Saturday Night Fever."

"I used to go to the local radio station as like a 12- or 11-year-old and the DJs would let me in, and back then it was all vinyl," Johnson said. "I'd watch them spin it and watch the two turntables go. It was just so much fun … Back 414 1

then you could barely afford one record, so you really had to make a good purchase. And now, people can say, 'Alexa, please play this,' and you can just hear everything, but there's something about having a record and having a 12-by-12 cover to look at."

Johnson was working at the record store in Winston-Salem, N.C., when CDs became popular and people started dumping their albums. He held onto his, though, stashing around 2,000 of them in crates at his parents' house in Statesville for a decade … until Record Store Day. “Record Store Day was conceived in 2007 at a gathering of independent record store owners and employees as a way to celebrate and spread the word about the unique culture surrounding the nearly 1, 400 independently owned record stores in the U.S. and thousands of similar stores internationally,” according to the official website. This year, Record Store Day is celebrating its 15th anniversary.

Johnson has known Record Store Day co-founders Michael Kurtz and Carrie Colliton since the late 1990s, when they worked together for The Record Exchange, a chain of record stores in North Carolina and Virginia.

"Michael and Carrie with Record Store Day, when they started it to promote the independent record stores, they sort of reintroduced vinyl to the world and I rediscovered my vinyl," Johnson said. "It was really crazy. It was still there at my parents' house. I guess I've always just loved vinyl, not just vinyl, but I've always loved music, but there's just something about it."

The first Record Store Day took place on April 19, 2008. Today, there are participating stores on every continent except Antarctica, according to the official website.

Johnson believes the invented holiday is still important now for the same reasons as when it was established.

"Several record store owners were sitting around trying to figure out how to keep their stores in business, how to make it in this streaming world," Johnson said.

They took a page from Free Comic Book Day and decided to have several artists release limited edition albums only at independent record stores, or "the mom-and-pop shops," not the big chains, Johnson said.

"Record Store Day, to me, is like that little boost that all the stores need, maybe once or twice a year, to remind everybody to go to your independent record store," Johnson said. "I think it's important to have Record Store Day to support the independent record stores and to keep them alive and thriving."

RECORD RESILIENCE

Like with many other business initiatives, the mission of Record Store Day was threatened in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I remember the day that they canceled it for April," Johnson said. "I was like, 'Dude, what's gonna happen?' (Kurtz) was like, 'I don't know. I think half the stores are gonna go out of business.

Half the stores are gonna shut down. It's just crazy.' And I'm like, 'No, people are gonna get through it. This is not going to wipe out half of the record stores.' And it didn't. If anything, it made people stronger."

Record store owners got creative, Johnson said.

"I have a friend, Jonathan Hodges, who owns the store Underdog Records in WinstonSalem, N.C.," Johnson said. "He closed the store, but he started doing home deliveries.

Like if you bought two or three records, he would drive them to your house. Other people were just doing different things, like letting two or three people in at a time."

Record Store Day adapted, too, hosting small drops that record stores could sell in their own way—through social distancing in-store or online orders.

From Jones' experience, the coronavirus was actually a bit of a boost because people were at home more.

"What's the only real major platform to listen to music that you almost have to be at home to enjoy? That's vinyl records," Jones said. "If you've got an MP3 player, you don't need to be at home. You can go jogging. If you listen to Spotify on your phone, obviously you don't have to be at your house. You can be driving in your car. The fact that people were at home more, I think, helped record stores probably worldwide.”

The true fallout from COVID-19, though, are the supply chain issues, Johnson said.

Many pressing plants shut down, he said.

"We can get the raw materials, but just having the plants open long enough to catch up," Johnson said. "We're now having to plan maybe a year out. We're already talking about records for Record Store Day 2023 and getting them decided upon and getting them in line to be pressed, so we're having to back up our decision-making process some."

Acknowledging the potential production and shipping delays, the team behind Record Store Day is being proactive by designating a second drop date for June 18. That date will serve as a "street date safety net" for titles that couldn't make it into stores on April 23. inweekly.net

Of this year's official Record Store Day releases, Johnson thinks something "exceptionally cool" is this year's collaboration with Vans.

"Vans has worked with us on this album called 'Portraits of Her,' which highlights female artists in the music business," Johnson said. "I think Taylor Swift is the first track. She's our Record Store Day Ambassador this year, and we're very excited to have her represent Record Store Day and also represent all of the women in the music business."

LOCAL LOVE

For the majority of Jones' time standing behind the counter at Revolver Records, there has not been a Record Store Day, he said. Vinyl was nearly extinct.

"It's like Christmas and Fourth of July and all other major holidays wrapped up into one day for a vinyl lover."

Eric Jones

"It was kind of lonely behind that counter at times after Napster and downloading and iPods," Jones said.

Then came Record Store Day. Jones' first time participating was April of 2011, just after he reopened downtown on Gregory Street.

To be honest, he thought it was "badass."

"I was like, 'Wow, cool, because of these releases—Flaming Lips, these records with jelly inside, or whatever Fleetwood Mac bootlegs from Tokyo, all these cool weird awesome records for record lovers,’" Jones said. "'I didn't know this recording even existed—certainly not in a physical format—and I'm gonna have it in my record store, and it won't be on Amazon or in a chain store, that's pretty cool.' And then you get there and there's already a line of people waiting to get in. It's like Christmas and Fourth of July and all other major holidays wrapped up into one day for a vinyl lover."

In big cities, people will camp out, Jones said, reminding him of his childhood, when people camped out for "Star Wars" movie tickets. Jones has seen restaurant and bar employees leave work around 4 a.m. and wait in lawn chairs outside his shop until he opens five hours later.

"It's flattering to think people will do that just to get inside your record shop," Jones said.

"That puts a smile on my face. That tells me there's definitely hope for the industry."

Jones can tell what releases will be popular based on phone calls or private messages. It's a wide variety, he said.

"Some people will look for Allman Brothers, electronic stuff, obscure '60s garage bands or mono jazz recordings from the '50s before even I was born," Jones said. "So it runs the gamut across all genres. But there will certainly be at least half a dozen heavy hitters every year, via Iron Maiden, Cher or Miles Davis."

Because he doesn't know which items he will receive in advance, Jones posts a video the night before Record Store Day on social media to show people the inventory.

Also participating in Record Store Day locally is the Music Box on Navy Boulevard.

April 21, 2022

Co-owner Ray Thall said the store has done Record Store Day since he and Chuck Gardner bought it in April of 2013.

"They wait in line out front; it's like a party atmosphere," Thall said. "It's special releases, and most of them won't be released again. It's like a treat for our customers."

Thall laughs because many of the attendees they only see on Record Store Day. "It's like Christmas and Easter when they go to church; they don't get out to the record store unless it's Record Store Day," Thall said.

"But we know probably 50% of our customers by first name."

"A HAPPY COINCIDENCE"

When asked about the 2022 special releases, Jones said he’s looking forward to the Ramones' "The Sire Albums (1981-1989)" boxset and The Replacements' "Unsuitable for Airplay: The Lost KFAI Concert (Live)."

"I'm showing my age here with some good old American '80s, rock 'n' roll stuff, but you can't change the colors on a—whatever the old saying is," Jones said. "So, for me, I'm being the typical, late-middle-aged record store bro. I'm not going with Justin Bieber or Taylor Swift or Megan Thee Stallion."

To clarify, he likes pop music. Look, he's not John Cusack's "snooty" character in the 2000 movie "High Fidelity."

"I think Justin Bieber's great; Miley Cyrus is enjoyable; I really like Adele," Jones said. "And I'm not just saying that. I'll listen to anything. If you're going to work in a record store, you can't get stuck in a rut; you can't get stuck in your ways.

You can't bury your head in the sand and say, 'They don't make music like they used to.' They do. I can't keep up with all the great music coming out these days."

Revolver Records is now under the same roof as Jitterbug Beverage Co. and The Magnolia, so Pensacola shoppers can get food or coffee after they secure their Record Store Day purchases.

They can also enjoy live music, just up the street in East Hill, this year, too, Jones said.

East Hill Barbershop and Alga Beer Co. are hosting an all-day party to celebrate the barbershops’ fifth anniversary on Saturday, April 23.

The event will feature a classic car show, food trucks and five bands including local favorites Faux/Fox. "It just a happy coincidence," Jones said. {in}

RECORD STORE DAY 2022 WHEN: Saturday, April 23 DETAILS: recordstoreday.com

LOCAL PARTICIPATING STORES: REVOLVER RECORDS

WHEN: Doors open at 9 a.m. on Record Store Day WHERE: 2050 N. 12th Ave. DETAILS: facebook.com/revolverfl

MUSIC BOX

WHEN: Doors open at 9 a.m. on Record Store Day WHERE: 3960 W. Navy Blvd., #3 DETAILS: facebook.com/musicboxpensacola 15

a&e happenings —NONPROFITS & FUNDRAISERS—

ANIMAL ALLIES BINGO Animal Allies Florida is hosting Bingo at Scenic Hills Country Club, located at 8891 Burning Tree Road, twice a month.

Proceeds go to help local animals. The fun starts at 7 p.m. $10 gets you 30 cards. Winners share the pot. Food and drink will be available for purchase. You must be 18 years old to play.

CAT ADOPTIONS Animal Allies will be at Pet

Supermarket, 6857 N. Ninth Ave., from 11 a.m.3 p.m., and Everett Animal Welfare Group will be at PetSmart on North Davis Highway from noon-4 p.m. on Saturday, April 23. All cats are up-to-date on shots, and adoption fee includes spay or neuter with microchip.

OVER THE EDGE FOR ARC GATEWAY Get

an adrenaline rush for a good cause Saturday, April 23, from 9 a.m.-noon at 130 E. Government St. Over the Edge has a few requirements—participants must be 16 years old or over (everyone under 18 needs parent/guardian to sign a waiver), weigh between 100-300 pounds and raise a minimum of $1,000. No prior experience is necessary—just enough courage to step Over the Edge. If you want to become a sponsor, please contact Brittany Houghton at (850) 434-2638, ext. 1105, or email bhoughton@arc-gateway.org.

GRILLIN' IN THE BREEZE Join Gulf Breeze Natural Gas and WEAR-TV on Saturday, April 23, from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., at Shoreline Park in Gulf Breeze for Grillin' in the Breeze. Taste grilled and smoked delicacies, cast your vote for the People's Choice award, listen to live music and bid on terrific silent auction items throughout the day. The Pensacola MESS Hall will be on site with activities for all ages, and The Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge will be there with their Ambassador Animals. Celebrity chef Bob Solarski and grill master Kevin Jones will be serving up a special menu in the VIP tent. All proceeds support education in Santa Rosa County. General Admission is $10 in advance and $12 day of event, and VIP tickets are $40 in advance and $45 day of event.

Admission is free for children 10 and under. For more information, visit grillininthebreeze.com.

GULF COAST LOVE AFFAIR In collaboration with other community partners such as the Belmont-DeVilliers Neighborhood Association, Truth for Youth and Michael Allen, Change Tomorrow Today 365 (CTT365) is hosting the First Annual Gulf Coast Community Love Affair on Saturday, April 30, from 7 a.m.-9 p.m.

The theme for this year's event is "SelfSustainability: Let's Survive, Grow & Prosper."

The First Annual Gulf Coast Community Love Affair is an opportunity to provide the community with the tools needed to endure the good and the bad of life while keeping focus on personal goals and coming together as a community. This will provide an improved quality of life for all citizens of the community.

The First Annual Gulf Coast Community Love Affair is a free event for the public and is sponsored by a variety of organizations, 616 1

including Florida Power & Light, Tobacco Free Florida and CareerSource Escarosa. More details can be found at changetomorrowtoday365.org/communityloveaffair.

—CALL TO ARTISTS—

GARDEN & GUN'S 13TH-ANNUAL MADE IN THE SOUTH AWARDS The official call

for entries for Garden & Gun's 13th-annual Made in the South Awards is open through June 15. The magazine is seeking Southernmade product entries in six categories—Food, Drink, Home, Style, Outdoors and Crafts. The overall winner receives a $10,000 cash prize and is prominently featured alongside the other category winners and runners-up in the magazine's December 2022/January 2023 issue, which hits newsstands in November 2022.

The 2022 Made in the South Awards judges are NBC Host Al Roker, New Orleansbased author Wayne Curtis, interior designer Charlotte Moss, designer Mignonne Gavigan, ceramic artists Connie and Alex Matisse, and Raleigh-based author T. Edward Nickens.

All Southern artisans or businesses with a product in one of the six categories that will be available for sale through January 2023 may apply. For entry forms, category descriptions and rules, visit madeinthesouthawards.com.

A discounted entry fee of $50 will be available through April 22, but entries will be accepted until midnight eastern time on June 15. Winners will be publicly announced in the December 2022/January 2023 issue of Garden & Gun. To follow along with the Made in the South Awards, use #madeinthesouthawards on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, or visit us at gardenandgun.com.

FOO FOO FEST APPLICATIONS Applica-

tions are open for vendors to join Pensacola's Foo Foo Festival taking place Nov. 3-14.

In 2022, the Pensacola Foo Foo Festival will once again fund top-scoring grant applicants, with the number of grants to be awarded contingent upon the number of submissions.

This year, the Foo Foo Festival will provide up to $400,000 in grant funding, and grant applicants can apply for up to $100,000 in grant funding. All organizations, businesses and community partners are encouraged to submit their various events (occurring Nov. 3-14, 2022) for consideration to become a "Friend of Foo," receiving visibility as part of the regional marketing campaign and throughout the 12-day event. To apply for this year's Foo Foo Festival, visit acepensacola.org. To apply for consideration as a "Friend of Foo," visit foofoofest.com.

Foo Foo Fest Application Timeline: •Friday, May 6 - Foo Foo Fest Grant Application Deadline (Noon CT) •Tuesday, May 24 - Public Grant Scoring and Official Announcements

—ARTS & CULTURE—

GALLERY 1060 MEMBERS SHOW RECEPTION The Members Show reception for Gal-

lery 1060 is Thursday, April 21, from 5:30-7:30 p.m., at Gallery 1060, 1060 Guillemard St. Visit gallery1060.com for more information.

UWF SINGERS: "SONGS OF SURVIVAL"

The University of West Florida's Dr. Grier Williams School of Music presents UWF Singers "Songs of Survival" on Thursday, April 21, at 7:30 p.m., in the Rolfs Music Hall at the Center for Fine and Performing Arts, 11000 University Parkway. This event is free and open to the public, but tickets are required. For tickets or more information, visit uwf.edu/cfpa.

FRIENDS OF WEST FLORIDA PUBLIC LIBRARY BOOK SALE It's time to stock up on

books, DVDs, audiobooks and CDs at the Big Spring Book Sale Friday, April 22-Sunday, April 24. Books will be sorted into different genres to make it easier to find your favorites. Inventory grew tremendously during the pandemic, so you'll find a wonderful selection. The book sale will be 3-7 p.m. Friday, April 22, $5 admission and free to members; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, April 23, half-off day; and 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

Sunday, April 24, for the $7 Bag Sale. Credit cards will be accepted. Contributions support West Florida Public Libraries.

BALLET PENSACOLA PRESENTS: THE WIZARD OF OZ Take a trip to the Emerald

City with Ballet Pensacola with their latest production, "The Wizard of Oz," at 7 p.m. Fridays, April 22 and 29; Saturdays, April 23 and 30; and 2:30 p.m. Sundays, April 24 and May 1, at Pensacola Cultural Center, 400 S. Jefferson St. Tickets are $30-$43 and can be purchased online at pensacolalittletheatre.com.

CREEK PRAYER CEREMONY COMES TO EARTH DAY PENSACOLA The Santa Rosa

Creek Tribe invites all to celebrate Earth Day by praying with them in ceremony over the earth, land, water and all festival goers—human and non-human alike—at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, April 23, at the Bayview Community Center on the shores of Bayou Texar. Photography or any sort of recording of the ceremony is prohibited. Please respect the privacy and sanctity of indigenous people and culture.

EARTH DAY CLEAN UP All are welcomed to join the clean-up on Saturday, April 22, at 8:30 a.m. at Bruce Beach, 601 W. Main St. Volunteers will pick up trash for an hour and a half or more, if needed, in Bruce Beach and surrounding areas. Visit escapetobeyond.com/blog/ earth for more information.

PENSACOLA'S EARTH DAY CELEBRATION Pensacola's 32nd Annual Earth Day fes-

tival will be from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, April 23, at Bayview Park, located at 2001 E. Lloyd St. There will be live music and entertainment, Pensacola Arts Market, plant-based food vendors, garden display and children's activities.

Earth Day Pensacola is currently accepting applications for sponsors and vendors who would like to participate in this year's event.

For full details, please visit the event website at earthdaypensacola.org.

KEEP PENSACOLA BEAUTIFUL BAG SWAP Bring your plastic bags (no less than

20) and receive a Keep Pensacola Beautiful reusable tote at various dates and locations in

April. For more information about the initiative, visit keeppensacolabeautiful.org.

Upcoming dates: 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday, April 23, at Earth Day Pensacola, 2001 E. Lloyd St. 4-7 p.m., Wednesday, April 27, at Ever'man, 1000 E. Nine Mile Road

WHAT'S SHOWING AT PENSACOLA CINEMA ART PCA is located at the Studer Community Institute, 220 W. Garden St. Tickets are $10 cash donation per person. Face masks are recommended. Reservations are not required.

Visit pensacolacinemaart.com for more information and the latest showtimes.

BROADWAY BOOGIE: GROWN-UPS Join

this weekly class on the basics of boogie in a fun, easy-going, non-judgmental setting. Classes are Fridays, April 1-May 20, from 5-6 p.m., at The Gordon Art Center, 306 N. DeVilliers St. This class teaches the fundamentals of musical theatre style dancing including jazz, tap, ballet, ballroom, fosse and more. This class is a beginner-level class for teens and adults, ages 16 and up. Registration is open through March 15 at myneighborhoodtheatre.com.

PENSACOLA ARTS MARKET Enjoy shop-

ping for a variety of handcrafted wares at Pensacola Arts Saturdays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at 1401 W. Intendencia St. Enjoy art, espresso, vintage goods, baked treats, handcrafted unique gifts and more. Admission is free. For more information, visit facebook.com/pensacolaartsmarket.

EASY GOING GALLERY ART MARKET

Every Sunday, Easy Going Gallery and Carter J Studios present a weekly art market Sundays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at Easy Going Gallery, located at 701 N. V St. Enjoy art, espresso, vintage goods, baked treats, handcrafted unique gifts and more. Vendors can participate for a $20 fee. For more information, contact easygoinggalleryart@gmail.com.

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Tony-winning

director Bartlett Sher brings a fresh and authentic vision to this beloved theatrical masterpiece from Tony winner Joseph Stein and Pulitzer Prize winners Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick. Two shows at 1 and 6:30 p.m. will be at the Saenger Theatre, 118 S. Palafox, on Sunday, April 24. Tickets are $58-$83. Visit saengertheatre.com.

MOLINO BOOK CLUB DISCUSSION: WINTER IN SOKCHO Visit Molino Library,

6450-A Highgway 95A, to discuss "Winter in Sokcho" by Elisa Shua Dusapin at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 25. Molino Book Club will meet the last Monday of the month.

EXPLORING NATURAL PIGMENTS AND DYES Artist Angelica Tilton will give a brief

tour of her current exhibit "Exploring Natural Pigments" in the Stairwell Gallery and will discuss her experience working with natural paints, pigments and dyes in a workshop on Friday, April 29, from 6-8 p.m. Participants

inweekly.net

a&e happenings will have the opportunity to experience natural pigments and paint a piece inspired by the Gulf Coast's wildlife together using some of the artist's watercolors made from natural pigments.

The class is $20. Register online at pensacolamuseum.org.

When the war ended, the U.S. believed the fort threatened the institution of slavery and must be destroyed. To the Maroon people who lived there, however, the fort at Prospect Bluff was a beacon of freedom worth fighting for.

For more information, visit fpan.us.

SPINNING EARTH DAY CRAFT Love the planet? Visit Molino Library, 6450-A Highway 95A, to create a spinning Earth of your very own on Thursday, April 28, from 3-4 p.m.

SYNTHESIS, A GROUP BFA EXIT EXHIBITION The Art Gallery at the University of

UPCYCLE FOR THE PETS Upcycle for a cause by making brand-new toys for pets and those waiting for adoption at Escambia County Animal Shelter. Bring your clean, well-worn T-shirts and jeans to use 10:30-11:30 a.m.

Saturday, April 30, at Pensacola Library, 239 Spring St. THE MAROON MARINES: ARCHAEOLOGY AT PROSPECT BLUFF A new tempo-

rary exhibit at The Destination Archaeology Resource Center, located at 207 E. Main St., features the story of the largest free black settlement in what is now the United States.

This exhibit is sponsored by City of Pensacola Councilmember Teniadé Broughton.

During the War of 1812, a fort was built by Black British Colonial Marines and Indigenous people along the Apalachicola River. Called "Negro Fort" by American officials, it eventually became the center of the largest free Black settlement in what is now the United States.

West Florida (TAG) and the Pensacola Museum of Art (PMA) present "SynThesis, a Group BFA Exit Exhibition." This exhibition will be on display at TAG April 28-May 15 and at the PMA April 15-May 15. A reception will be at TAG on April 28 from 5-7 p.m. TAG is located in The Center for Fine and Performing Arts, Bldg. 82.

TAG is open Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

All events are free and open to the public. For more information, visit uwf.edu/tag.

GALLERY 1050 MEMBERS SHOW The art-

ists of First City Art Center will be showcasing their work through April 23 at the center's 1060 Gallery, located at 1060 Guillemard St. For more information, visit gallery1060.com.

MONOCHROMATIC Artel Gallery's latest

juried show is "Monochromatic," where artists created a work of art in any medium using only one color. The exhibit is on view through May 6. Also on display is PanHandle Potters and works from Vivian Spencer. Artel Gallery is located at 223 S. Palafox. Visit artelgallery.org for more information.

NEW BEGINNINGS Gallery 1060's newest

The exhibit explores the shifting topography of Northwest Florida through a series of maps selected from the Trust Archive. Visualized Landscapes: A Selection of Northwest Florida Maps is on view on the second floor of the Pensacola Museum of History until August.

For more information about the UWF Historic Trust or to purchase tickets, visit historicpensacola.org.

PMA MEMBERS SHOW The PMA Members

VISIONARY APONTE: ART AND BLACK FREEDOM Visionary Aponte: Art and Black

exhibit, "New Beginnings," opens on April 25 and runs through June 11 with a show reception to be held the evening of May 6 to coincide with First City Art Center's resumption of it's Hot Glass/Cold Brew series.

The show is free and open to the public during normal Gallery 1060 open hours. More information can be found at gallery1060.com.

Show is on view at Pensacola Museum of Art through May 29. View works of art from local artists. For more information, visit pensacolamusuem.org.

INTO THE MIRROR: CARRIE ANN BAADE

2021 Members Show winner Carrie Ann Baade describes herself as steward and axman, returning to the haunting moments in art history in order to reclaim them. By using the "bone yard" of Western painting with reverence, she cuts them up into fragments resulting in collage. In their repainting, these are fierce feminist parables.

Paintings made of paintings; the old masterworks are infused with the artist's own experience. The exhibit is on view through May 29. For more information, visit pensacolamusuem.org.

MAPPING NORTHWEST FLORIDA EXHIBIT AT THE PENSACOLA MUSEUM OF HISTORY Visualized Landscapes: A Selection

of Northwest Florida Maps is now on view at Pensacola Museum of History.

Freedom is from creator José Antonio Aponte, a free black carpenter, artist and former soldier who was also the leader of an ambitious antislavery conspiracy in Cuba in 1812. The exhibit is on view at Pensacola Museum of Art through March 27.

Visit pensacolamuseum.org for more information.

2000 MEN: BLACK POLITICIANS DURING RECONSTRUCTION A new exhibit at the

Pensacola Museum of History shares the stories and histories of Black politicians during the Reconstruction period. The Pensacola Museum of History is located at 330 S. Jefferson St. For more information, visit historicpensacola.org.

FINDING 1821 Finding 1821 is part of the

UWF Historic Trust's Suddenly American exhibit. Using historic newspapers, maps and documents, it is possible to locate where businesses stood in the 1820s. From taverns to parasol shops, each site on the Finding 1821 trail reflects a local establishment that was

HELP US MAKE PENSACOLA AMERICA’S FIRST EARLY LEARNING CITY! Parents, grandparents and caregivers of children ages 5 and under sign up for the Pensacola Basics and receive FREE weekly text messages that include science-based facts and helpful activities to boost your child’s early brain development and learning!

Visit Studeri.org/pensacolabasics or use the QR code below to enroll now.

Pensacola Contact Frency Moore at fmoore@studeri.org or 850.525.4386 The Studer Community Institute is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

April 21, 2022

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a&e happenings near that location 200 years ago. Outside each business is a QR code that links to a corresponding advert from an early 1820s newspaper. Over a dozen sites have been identified so far. Take a stroll around town, visit local shops and explore the history of Pensacola through today's technology. Visit historicpensacola.org for more information.

SCRIPTEASERS WITH PENSACOLA LITTLE THEATRE Scripteasers, Studio 400's and

Pensacola Little Theatre's Script Reading Club invites you to monthly script readings at PLT, 400 S. Jefferson St. Want to bring your scripts for the group to read and discuss? Contact Pensacola Little Theatre to get in queue. The group reads prospective scripts for future seasons as well as new scripts that need a table read before the next edit. Not a playwright but love to read out loud? This is your easy, fun theatre night. Fascinated by the play selection process? Sit in for a listen and usually a lot of laughs. Visit facebook.com/pensacolalittletheatre for more information and the latest dates.

OPEN MIC AT THE GORDON Show off

your talents on the second Thursday of every month at The Gordon's Open Mic showcase from 7-10 p.m. Admission is free. The Gordon is located at 306 N. DeVilliers St. Visit thegordon.org for more information.

OPEN MIC COMEDY AT BIG TOP BREWERY Try out some new jokes or enjoy some

a.m.-3 p.m. Both classes are free. For a full calendar of events, visit studiosouthon9mileroad. com. Studio South is located at 955 E. Nine Mile Road.

homegrown talent every Monday at 7 p.m. for Open Mic Comedy at Big Top Brewery, located at 21 W. Romano St. Everyone gets five minutes depending on the number of sign-ups.

Registration begins at 6:30 p.m.

CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS AT FIRST CITY ART First City Art Center offers a wide

NEW CLASSES AT MIXON MAGIC PERFORMING ARTS Mixon Magic Performing

range of classes and workshops for artists of all levels. Classes include glass blowing, ceramics, painting and drawing, kiln-forming, stained glass and more. For a complete list of classes and times, visit firstcityart.org.

Arts (MMPA), a boutique performing arts studio located at 1010 N. 12th Ave., Ste. 238, will be offering a limited class schedule this fall.

MMPA offers professional dance, fitness and "Mommy and Me" instruction for all ages and skill levels with weekly classes including, but not limited to, Creative Movement, Ballet/Jazz Combo, Broadway, Tap, Showstoppers, Acting and Voice. Classes will be provided for children as young as 2 years old (with a parent or guardian) through adult.

MMPA is dedicated to the safety and wellbeing of all students and families and has implemented protocols based on guidance from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Masks are required for entry into the building and studio. More information about Mixon Magic Performing Arts can be found at mixonmagic.com, by contacting hello@mixonmagic.com or emily@mixonmagic.com or by calling (850) 221-7438.

—FOOD + DRINKS—

THE HOUSE OF TAITTINGER: A CHAMPAGNE DINNER Angelena's next special

dinner is a champagne dinner at 6 p.m. on Thursday, April 21.

Chef James and Brooke will work closely with Mark Spaulding, lead luxury wine specialist of RNDC and Taittinger Champagne representative, to lead you through a luxury champagne dinner like no other. Fresh Gulf seafood, light Italian cheeses and more will round out this memorable event. Event cost is $175 per person (plus tax and gratuity). Angelena's is located at 101 E. Intendencia St. Reservations are required and can be made by calling (850) 542-8398.

CRAFT CLASSES AT STUDIO SOUTH ON NINE MILE Learn a new craft or meet up with

NASHVILLE HOT CHICKEN DEMONSTRATION Join Bodacious as Chef Lamar

other makers at Studio South. Tuesday is Knit Night 4-7 p.m., and Sit & Stitch is Saturdays 11

Brown demonstrates this classic Southern dish Friday, April 22, at 6 p.m. at Bodacious, 407-D

AYCE: FAT

APRIL 19-24

April 19 • 6:35 pm AYCE Buffet (90-min.) + Game Ticket & Hat for ONLY $26!

ONE PRICE

Wednesday

Montgomery Biscuits

April 20 • 6:35 pm All Box, Reserve, & SRO tickets include a hot dog, chips, & soda FOR JUST $17!

MULLET

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NIL Night: Blue Wahoos brand ambassador selected 818 1 BW0651_Homestand2_vs_Biscuits_IN-Half-page.indd 1

20TH ANNUAL CRAWFISH FESTIVAL

Head to Pensacola Beach April 22-24th for Bamboo Willie's 20th Annual Crawfish Festival, 400 Quietwater Beach Road, with live bands all weekend.

RECORD STORE DAY BEER RELEASE AT ODD COLONY In celebration of Record Store

Day, Odd Colony brewed up an annual collaboration beer with Revolver Records—Vinyl Static Hazy IPA. Enjoy the new brew Saturday, April 23, at Odd Colony, 260 N. Palafox. Visit oddcolony.com.

PENSACOLA BEACH BEER FEST Ten different local craft breweries will be serving up beers for Pensacola Beach Beer Fest from 3-7 p.m. Saturday, April 23. Water Pig BBQ will be serving barbecue during the event. There will be door prizes, raffles and live music from Tyler Mac Band. Tickets are $40 and available on eventbrite.com.

HANDS-ON PASTA MAKING CLASS Join

Chef Lamar Brown in this hands-on and interactive pasta making class Sunday, April 24, at 1 p.m. at Bodacious, 407-D S. Palafox. Tickets are $65 and can be purchased at bodaciousshops.com.

MEDITERRANEAN BRAISED CHICKEN & RICE DEMONSTRATION DINNER Join

GIVEAWAY

Tuesay

Thursday

S. Palafox. Tickets are $65. Visit bodaciousshops.com for more information.

DOUBLE-A AFFILIATES

NEXT HOMESTAND: MAY 10-15 VS. ROCKET CITY TRASH PANDAS TUNE IN TO CATCH THE GAMES ON

GAME TIMES

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Mon.-Fri. 6:35 pm Sat. 6:05 pm Sun. 4:05 pm All pre-game activities start 45 minutes prior to game time.

Friday

April 22 • 6:35 pm 10th Season T-Shirts to the first 2,000 fans Women In Sports Night featuring Michelle Snow, Beth Barr and Michelle Miller

FIREWORKS

Saturday

April 23 • 6:05 pm Stay for Pensacola’s BEST Fireworks Spectacular after the game!

MILITARY FAMILY

Sunday

April 24 • 4:05 pm Kids Run the Bases and Family Toss after the game inweekly.net 4/11/22 1:02 PM

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a&e happenings "Food Network" Chef Penny Davidi as she teaches the classic Mediterranean Braised Chicken traditional dinner at Bodacious, 6 p.m. Monday, April 25, at 407-D S. Palafox. Tickets are $69 and can be purchased at bodaciousshops.com.

CELEBRATION OF OREGON WINES Bodacious hosts an evening of Oregon Wines and wine pairing dinner Wednesday, April 27, at 6 p.m. at 407-D S. Palafox. Tickets are $89 and can be purchased at bodcaciousshops.com.

MONTHLY WINE TASTING IN AGAPI GARDEN Visit Agapi Garden, at 555 Scenic

Highway, from 5-7 p.m. to sample five wines for $10. For more information, call (850) 813-5683.

SUNDAY FUNDAY BRUNCH AT THE WELL The Well, located at 42 E. Garden St., has expanded its offerings with a Sunday Funday Brunch cocktail menu including items such as Spicy Paloma made with Mezcal, a cold brew cocktail with Irish whiskey, a cucumberinfused spritz and a Bloody Mary spiced with house-made hot sauce and garnished with fresh pickled vegetables. Price range is $9$12. Brunch hours are Sundays from noon-4 p.m. Other small plate offerings are available Thursday-Saturday from 4 p.m.-one hour before closing. For more information, visit facebook.com/thewellpensacola.

FIRST FRIDAY FINE WINES Visit The Nest

General Store at 11 S. Palafox, Ste. C, on the first Friday of every month for a wine tasting from 6-8 p.m. Visit bluejaysbakery.com for more information.

BAYOU BUZZ COFFEE TASTING TOUR

Seville Savories Food Tour will host a coffee tour of downtown Pensacola Tuesdays-Fridays from 8:30-11:30 a.m. Tickets are available online at sevillesavoriesfoodtour.com.

BURGERS AND BORDEAUX AT UNION PUBLIC HOUSE Every Tuesday night, enjoy

a specialty burger and a glass of Bordeaux for $18 at Union Public House, located at 309 S. Reus St. For more information, visit facebook. com/unionpensacola.

WEEKNIGHT HAPPY HOUR Every week-

night before 6 p.m. at The 5 Barrel, get $1 off all The 5 Barrel pints, $2 wine by the glass and half off hummus plates when you buy a pint of beer.

Visit the5barrel.com for more information.

The 5 Barrel. There will be prizes for every round and select drafts for $3. Find out more at facebook.com/the5barrel.

THURSDAY BIERGARTEN TRIVIA NIGHT

Gary's Brewery Trivia Night is back by popular demand. Thursdays from 7-9 p.m., test your trivia skills with a glass of beer or wine. Arrive early to grab a spot. Gary's Brewery is located at 208 Newman Ave. For more information, visit facebook.com/garysbrew.

PALAFOX MARKET Palafox Market is back

at its regular location in MLK Jr. Plaza. In a carefully planned, phased reopening, Palafox Market has launched with about half its regular vendors, showcasing food, farm produce and products geared toward safety and sanitation such as handmade soaps and face masks. For more information, visit facebook.com/downtownpensacola.

Visit Ever'Man at 1000 E. Nine Mile Road on the fourth Saturday of each month for the Ever'Market with food, music, giveaways, activities and more. Visit everman.org for more information.

200 SOUTH SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY Every first Saturday of the month, the

businesses at 200 South will host Small Business Saturday to show support for local businesses. Bring a receipt from a purchase from any other downtown business and receive 10% off your bill at Graffiti Pizza, World of Beer, Taco Agave and Blend Lounge.

SATURDAYS AT THE MARKET OUTDOOR VENDOR EVENT Located at 5300 Berryhill

Road, the outdoor market features artisans and crafters alike from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. Social distancing guidelines will be in effect. For more information, email saturdaysatthemarket@gmail.com.

UPTOWN PENSACOLA MARKET Check

THURSDAY TRIVIA NIGHT AT THE 5 BARREL Gather a group for a weekly Thurs-

TWILIGHT THREE-COURSE SPECIAL The

April 21, 2022

freE admisSion

each Sunday from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. in MLK Plaza on Palafox. Local makers, growers and creators gather each under the oak trees to sell their goods to the community. Interested vendors can request an application by emailing requeaskmikellah@gmail.com. For more information, visit facebook.com/palafoxmarkets.

ARAGON WINE TASTINGS Wine tastings at

day Trivia Night Thursdays from 7-9 p.m. at

SATURDAY ONLY from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., bring your documents to be shredded thanks to Hancock Whitney and Shred It!

PENSACOLA POSITIVITY'S SUNDAY MARKETS Sunday Markets on Palafox Street happen

PENSACOLA POP-UP FARMERS MARKET Check out fresh and organic produce,

Aragon Wine Market are back every Thursday from 5-7 p.m. in store at 27 S. Ninth Ave. For more information, visit aragonwinemarket.com.

PENSACOLA FAIRGROUNDS

EVER'MARKET AT NINE MILE ROAD

TABLETOP TUESDAYS AT THE 5 BARREL

Join The 5 Barrel for a special Tabletop Tuesday event at 6 p.m. every Tuesday in March. A wide variety of games ranging from the classic chess to the crowd favorite Catan will be available.

Players are welcome to bring their own games.

APRIL 30 – MAY 1

milk, eggs, meat, fresh-baked bread, mushrooms, lumber, grits, cornmeal, pies and plants Saturdays from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at East Hill Market, located at 1216 N. Ninth Ave. For a list of vendors, visit facebook.com/easthillmarket.

out local vendors of art, produce and other local treasures every Saturday at 7201 N. Ninth Ave. from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/uptownmarketpensacola.

District's Twilight Three-Course special is back 19

a&e happenings Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 4:30-6 p.m. Guests enjoy three courses for $35 per person. Diners must be seated by 6 p.m. for offer to be valid. To make a reservation, call (850) 332-5224, or go to districtstreaks.com.

The District is located at 123 E. Government St.

—LIVE MUSIC—

BANDS ON THE BLACKWATER Stormfolk

will be playing Bands on the Blackwater at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 22. The concert is held at Jernigan's Landing, 5158 Willing St., in Milton.

HELLZAPOPPIN CIRCUS SIDESHOW Hell-

zapoppin Circus Sideshow will be performing at Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox, on Friday, April 22. Doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets are $20-$45.

Visit vinylmusichall.com for more information.

JOHN FOWLER Fowler will be playing at

Gary's Brewery & Biergarten, 208 Newman Ave., Friday, April 22, at 6 p.m. Visit facebook. com/garysbrew for more information.

STEREOSCOPIC SPECTACULAR Visit Easy Going Gallery, 701 N. V St., to hear Candy Cigarette, Accidant Prone, Giggle Out Loud and Lot G on Friday, April 22, starting at 7 p.m. Visit facebook.com/easygoinggallery for more information.

COLE SWINDELL AT WIND CREEK CASINO

Cole Swindell will take the Wind Creek Casino & Hotel Atmore Amphitheater stage on Saturday,

April 23, at 8 p.m. at 303 Poarch Road in Atmore, Ala. Tickets are available at ticketmaster.com.

at 7 p.m. Tickets are $30-70. Visit vinylmusichall.com for more information.

JUSTIN MOORE AT PENSACOLA BAY CENTER Justin Moore, along with Granger

BANDS ON THE BEACH Join Santa Rosa Island Authority for free weekly concerts every Tuesday night from 7-9 p.m. at the Gulfside Pavilion on Pensacola Beach.

Smith, will be performing at Pensacola Bay Center, 201 E. Gregory St., on Saturday, April 23.

Show starts at 7 p.m. Tickets are $41-$93. Visit pensacolabaycenter.com for more information.

WAYWARD SISTER Wayward Sister will be

playing at Gary's Brewery & Biergarten, 208 Newman Ave., Saturday, April 23, at 6 p.m. Visit facebook.com/garysbrew for more information.

WHITE TIE ROCK ENSEMBLE The White Tie

Rock Ensemble presents The Beatles classic album "Abbey Road" Saturday, April 23, at 8 p.m. at Pensacola Bay Center, 201 E. Gregory St. Tickets can be purchased at pensacolabaycenter.com.

PENSACOLA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PRESENTS: BEETHOVEN LIVES UPSTAIRS

Join Pensacola Symphony Orchestra for a family event featuring a theatrical concert designed especially for young audiences and their grownups followed by hands-on musical activities at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 23, at Saenger Theatre, 118 S. Palafox. Tickets are $5. For more information, visit pensacolasaenger.com.

WISHBONE ASH: THE PHOENIX RISING TOUR See Wishbone Ash at Vinyl Music Hall,

2 S. Palafox on Tuesday, April 26. Doors open

Upcoming dates: April 26: Whitesands Panhandle Band May 3: The Astronauts

JOE OCCHIPINTI JAZZABOUTS Catch Joe

Occhipinti and guests at Alice's Restaurant & Wine Bar, 1504 W. Intendencia St., Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30 p.m. and at Calvert's Restaurant & Bar, 670 Scenic Highway, Sundays from noon-3 p.m.

SAXOPHONIST JIM ANDREWS AT ALICE'S RESTAURANT Saxophonist Jim An-

drews will be performing at Alice's Restaurant, located at 1504 W. Intendencia St., on the first Friday of every month from 6-9:30 p.m.

MONDAY NIGHT BLUES AT SEVILLE QUARTER Blues Society of Northwest Flori-

da and Seville Quarter present Monday Night Blues, the longest running weekly Blues Jam in Florida, starting at 7 p.m. with an opening and followed by the Blues Jam at 9 p.m. Seville Quarter is located at 130 E. Government St. For more information, visit sevillequarter.com.

JAZZ CONCERTS AT THE PENSACOLA LIBRARY Visit Pensacola Library, located at 239 N. Spring St., for a free jazz concert from 1-3 p.m. on the first and fourth Tuesday of the month through July. The next concert is March 22. Visit jazzpensacola.com for more information.

LIVE MUSIC AT RED FISH BLUE FISH PENSACOLA BEACH Head to Red Fish Blue Fish for live performances from local bands all day on Fridays and Saturdays. For musician lineups, visit facebook.com/redfishbluefishpensacolabeach.

JAZZ BY THE BOOK Join Joe Occhipinti and the Jazzabouts at the Pensacola Library, 239 N. Spring St., every Tuesday from 1-3 p.m. for classic jazz favorites.

RAY COLEY AT CAZADORES MEXICAN RESTAURANT Ray Coley performs oldies

mix with jazz and blues every weekend with keyboard, horn and flute. Fridays and Saturdays from 6-9 p.m. and a jazz set on Sundays from 12-3 p.m. on the patio at Cazadores Mexican restaurant, located at 8183 W. Fairfield Dr. Weather permitting.

CURT BOL JAZZ QUARTET Visit Five Sis-

ters Blues Café, located at 421 W. Belmont St., Sundays from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and listen to Curt Bol Jazz Quartet. Visit curtbolband.com for more information.

OPEN JAM AT ARTEL GALLERY Artel Gallery is open from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesdays and

Wildflower Latté

made with Wildflower East Hill Honey and lavender syrup. Served hot or iced.

Butterfly Pea Tea

APRIL

FLOWER POWER D RI

N K SPE CIA L S

served with choice of citrus to experience the color-changing effect of the butterfly pea flower. Served hot or iced.

Hibiscus Rose Cold Brew Coffee made with a homemade Rose and Hibiscus-infused simple syrup.

Served iced.

407 SOUTH PALAFOX STREET | BODACIOUSSHOPS.COM

020 2

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a&e happenings Saturdays for open jam with Pensacola Folk Music Society. Feel free to visit and listen to music.

Artel Gallery is located at 223 S. Palafox.

6:35 p.m. Friday, April 22 6:35 p.m. Saturday, April 23 4:05 p.m. Sunday, April 24

KARAOKE AT MUGS AND JUGS Sing your heart out Sundays at Mugs & Jugs, 12080 Scenic Highway, or just enjoy drinks friends with $4 Smirnoff and $6.50 domestic pitcher drink deals from 7 p.m.-3 a.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/mugsjugs.

BLUE WAHOOS WELCOME MICHELLE SNOW, BETH BARR AND MELISSA MILLER-SCHUBECK FOR WOMEN IN SPORTS SEMINAR The Pensacola Blue Wahoos have

LIVE MUSIC SATURDAYS AT THE WELL

Visit The Well, 42 E. Garden St., on Saturdays from 4-7 p.m. for live music. Visit facebook. com/thewellpensacola for more information.

LIVE MUSIC AT HUB STACEY'S Sit back with good food and live music at Hub Stacey's, located at 312 E. Government St. For a full calendar of bands, check hubstaceys.com.

MONDAY NIGHT BLUES AT SEVILLE QUARTER Seville Quarter and the Blues Soci-

ety of Northwest Florida bring the "Blues" back to the Seville Quarter Entertainment District, located at 130 E. Government St. every Monday night in End O' the Alley starting at 7 p.m. For more information, visit sevillequarter.com.

TUESDAY NIGHT JAZZ AT SEVILLE QUARTER Enjoy smooth jazz with Melodious

Allen and The Funk Heads every Tuesday night at Lili Marlene's in Seville Quarter, located at 130 E. Government St. Show starts at 6:30 p.m.

Visit sevillequarter.com for more information.

—FITNESS + RECREATION—

BLUE WAHOOS STADIUM TO HOST FAN KICKBALL LEAGUE Join the Blue Wahoos

Stadium Kickball League, a co-ed adult league (18 years and up). The league will play on Monday evenings at the ballpark weekly from June-August.

Team rosters can consist of up to 18 players, and each team will play a minimum of 11 games throughout the season. Every player will take home an exclusive league T-shirt to wear during games, and an on-field bar will serve drinks (21 years and up) each night.

Official league rules are available at bluewahoos.com. The entrance fee per team is $500 ($27.75 per person on an 18-player roster) and includes a T-shirt for each player, equipment and umpires, and a full season of fun.

Teams can register to play at milb.com/pensacola/events/kickball. Registration will remain open until May 11. Fans with questions may reach out to Jordan at jmorrow@bluewahoos.com or call the Blue Wahoos office at (850) 934-8444.

ESCAMBIA COUNTY HIRING FAIR Escam-

bia County will host a career fair Saturday, April 23, from 8 a.m.-3 p.m., at the Pensacola Bay Center, 201 E. Gregory St. The event open to members of the public looking for a career with Escambia County. The event will take place in the Bay Center's meeting space, located on the second floor.

BLUE WAHOOS GAMES The Blue Wahoos are

back in season at Blue Wahoos Stadium, 351 W. Cedar St. Tickets are available at bluewahoos.com.

Upcoming home games: 6:35 p.m. Thursday, April 21 April 21, 2022

joined local athletic legends Michelle Snow, Beth Barr and Melissa Miller-Schubeck to present Women in Sports Night on Friday, April 22, at Blue Wahoos Stadium, located at 351 W. Cedar St. Prior to the Blue Wahoos game against the Montgomery Biscuits that evening, Snow, Barr and Miller-Schubeck will lead a seminar for female high school and college students focused on inspiring young women in our community to pursue opportunities and careers in athletics.

Tickets are available for $14 at bluewahoos. com and include the leadership seminar and the Blue Wahoos game that evening. The seminar will begin at 4:30 p.m. in the Blue Wahoos Stadium Lounge. Gates at the ballpark will open at 5:30 p.m. for the game, with first pitch scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

WORLD T'AI CHI DAY Celebrate World T'ai Chi Day Saturday, April 30, from 10-11 a.m., at Bayview Park, 2001 E. Lloyd St. No experience necessary. All are invited to participate for a free hour of T'ai Chi and Qigong.

FREE YOGA IN THE PARK SCHEDULE RELEASED FOR 2022 Breathe Yoga and

Wellness Center in partnership with the City of Pensacola will offer free one-hour yoga classes to citizens on the first Sunday of every month at 9:30 a.m. in Bayview Park, located at 2001 E. Lloyd St., and Community Maritime Park, located at 301 W. Main St. All ages and levels of experience are welcome. Participants must bring their own mat and other accessories they would like to use.

Participants are asked to bring a bottle of water to stay hydrated, as water will not be provided.

Upcoming Dates: May 1: Bayview Park

CHESS CLUB Learn how to play one of the

oldest games in the world with West Florida Public Libraries. Whether you are a beginner or a master chess player, this is a chance to learn new skills, practice your moves and improve your game in a friendly environment. The library will provide all the chessboards and pieces.

Upcoming dates: 1-3:30 p.m. Saturday, April 23, at Southwest Library 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday, April 30, at Genealogy Library

OVER 50 DANCE CLUB Take part in the Over 50 Dance Club at Sanders Beach Resource Center, located at 913 S. I St., Tuesdays from 6:30-9 p.m. The dress code is dressy; cover is $5-$10. This club is tobacco- and alcohol-free.

For more information, call (850) 623-5013. for more listings visit inweekly.net 21

free will astrology WEEK OF APRIL 21 ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19): Ar-

ies author Marge Piercy writes, "I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart, who pull like water buffalo, with massive patience, who strain in the mud and the muck to move things forward, who do what has to be done, again and again." According to my analysis of the astrological factors, you'll be wise to be like a person Piercy describes. You're entering a phase of your cycle when diligent work and impeccable self-discipline are most necessary and most likely to yield stellar rewards.

TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): In 1879, Taurus-born Williamina Fleming was working as a maid for astronomer Edward Charles Pickering, director of the Harvard Observatory. Impressed with her intelligence, Pickering hired Fleming to do scientific work. By 1893, she had become a prominent, award-winning astronomer. Ultimately, she discovered the Horsehead Nebula, helped develop a system for identifying stars, and cataloged thousands of astronomical phenomena. I propose that we make her your role model for the duration of 2022.

If there has ever been a year when you might achieve progress like Fleming's, it's this one.

GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): For 2500 years, Egypt was a conquered territory ruled by non-Egyptians. Persians took control in 525 BCE. Greeks replaced them. In succeeding centuries, Egypt had to submit to the authority of the Roman Empire, the Persians again, the Byzantine Empire, the Arab Islamic Caliphate, the Mamluk Sultanate, the Ottomans and the British. When British troops withdrew from their occupation in 1956, Egypt was finally an independent nation self-ruled by Egyptians.

If there are any elements of your own life story that even partially resemble Egypt's history, I have good news—2022 is the year you can achieve a more complete version of sovereignty than you have ever enjoyed. And the next phase of your freedom work begins now.

CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): During the next four weeks, some of the best lessons you can study and learn will come to you while you're socializing and communicating.

By Rob Brezsny

Even more than is usually the case, your friends and allies will offer you crucial information that has the power to catalyze dynamic decisions.

Lucky encounters with Very Interesting People may open up possibilities worth investigating. And here's a fun X-factor—the sometimes-surprising words that fly out of your mouth during lively conversations will provide clues about what your deep self has been half-consciously dreaming of.

During the next four weeks, some of the best lessons you can study and learn will come to you while you're socializing and communicating.

LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22): "Hold on tight, I would tell myself, but there was nothing for me to hold on to." A character in one of Haruki Murakami's novels says that. In contrast to that poor soul, Leo, I'm happy to tell you that there will indeed be a reliable and sturdy source for you to hold onto in the coming weeks—maybe more than one. I'm glad! In my astrological opinion, now is a time when you'll be smart to get thoroughly anchored. It's not that I think you will be in jeopardy. Rather, you're in a phase when it's more important than usual to identify what makes you feel stable and secure. It's time to bolster your foundations and strengthen your roots.

VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22): In the latter half of the 19th century, the US government collaborated with professional hunters to kill millions of bison living in America's Great Plains. Why? It was an effort to subjugate the indigenous people who lived there by eliminating the animals that were their source of food, clothing, shelter, bedding, ropes, shields and ornaments. The beloved and useful creatures might have gone extinct altogether if it had not been for the intervention of a Virgo rancher named Mary Ann "Molly" Goodnight. She single-handedly rebuilt the bison herds from a few remaining survivors. I propose that we make Goodnight your inspirational role model for the

rest of 2022. What dwindling resources or atrisk assets could you restore to health?

LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): British Admiral Horatio Nelson (1758–1805) was born under the sign of Libra. He was a brilliant and unconventional strategist whose leadership brought many naval victories for his country.

Yet he was blind in one eye, was missing most of his right arm from a battle wound and was in constant discomfort from chronic seasickness. I propose we make him one of your patron saints for the coming weeks. May he inspire you to do your best and surpass your previous accomplishments even if you're not feeling perfect.

(But also keep in mind—the problems you have to deal with will be far milder than Nelson's.)

SCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): Anti-

apartheid activist Bantu Stephen Biko (1946– 1977) was profoundly committed to authenticity. The repressive South African government hated that about him. Biko said, "I'm going to be me as I am, and you can beat me or jail me or even kill me, but I'm not going to be what you want me to be." Fortunately for you, Scorpio, you're in far less danger as you become more and more of your genuine self. That's not to say the task of learning how to be true to your deep soul is entirely risk-free. There are people out there, even allies, who may be afraid of or resistant to your efforts. Don't let their pressure influence you to dilute your holy quest.

SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC. 21): "The artist must train not only his eye but also his soul," said Sagittarian painter Wassily Kandinsky. Inspired by his observation, I'm telling you, "The practical dreamer should train not only her reasoning abilities but also her primal intuition, creative imagination, non-rational perceptivity, animal instincts, and rowdy wisdom." I especially urge you to embody my advice in the coming weeks, Sagittarius. Now is a favorable time to make abundant use of the other modes of intelligence that help you understand life as it really is—and not merely as the logical, analytical mind conceives it to be.

CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19):

The language spoken by the indigenous Cherokee people is at least 3,000 years old. But it

never had a written component until the 1820s.

Then a Cherokee polymath named Sequoyah formulated a syllabary, making it possible for the first time to read and write the language.

It was a herculean accomplishment with few precedents in history. I propose we name him your inspirational role model for the rest of 2022. In my astrological understanding, you are poised to make dramatic breakthroughs in self-expression and communication that will serve you and others for a long time.

AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18): A study by psychologists concludes there is a good way to enhance your willpower: For a given time, say one week, use your non-dominant hand to brush your teeth, wield your computer mouse, open your front door with your key, or perform other habitual activities. Doing so boosts your ability to overcome regular patterns that tend to keep you mired in inertia. You're more likely to summon the resolution and drive necessary to initiate new approaches in all areas of your life—and stick with them. The coming weeks will be an especially favorable time to try this experiment. (For more info, go to tinyurl.com/boostwillpower.)

PISCES (FEB. 19-MARCH 20): In his

book "Thus Spoke Zarathustra," philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote, "You have your way.

I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist."

According to my reading of the astrological omens, you will be justified to say something like that in the near future. Now is a favorable time to honestly acknowledge differences between you and others—and accept those differences just as they are. The important point is to do what you need to do without decreeing that other people are wrong or misguided.

THIS WEEK'S HOMEWORK: What's your favorite ethical trick? newsletter.freewillastrology.com.

freewillastrology.com

freewillastrology@freewillastrology.com Rob Brezsny © Copyright 2022

Winner Best Late Night Eats & Runner Up Best Bar–West Pensacola/Perdido Key, Best Bar Ambiance, Best Bar Food & Best Bar for Games

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inweekly.net

news of the weird LET SOMEONE ELSE EAT CAKE A birthday party for an employee at Gravity Diagnostics in Kentucky cost the company $450,000, but it wasn't an expensive cake and decorations that ran up the bill, WLKY-TV reported. The employee, whose birthday fell on Aug. 7, asked the office manager days before to forgo the usual celebration because such affairs trigger his anxiety disorder, and "being the center of attention" would cause him to suffer a panic attack. However, the manager went ahead with planning a lunchtime to-do in the break room, which caused the guest of honor to flee to his car to eat his lunch.

The next day, the birthday boy was called into a meeting and scolded for his reaction and was later fired "because of the events of the previous week," according to a lawsuit he filed against the company. In the suit, the former employee said the company didn't accommodate his anxiety disorder and caused him to suffer a "loss of income and benefits and emotional distress and mental anxiety." The Kenton County jury agreed and awarded him the six-figure amount.

IT'S A DIRTY JOB In Australia, Queensland's Bill Edgar is known to some as the Coffin Confessor. As such, Edgar shows up at funerals and speaks for the deceased, telling off family members, setting friends straight and delivering bad news about beneficiaries, News.com.au reported on April 14. But Edgar's job doesn't stop there. His services, for which he charges $2,000 to $10,000, have expanded to removing items from the deceased's home that they'd rather the family not see: "Could be sex toys, messages of hate, love, whatever it is they've written down, that they want removed from their web browsers. One gentleman had ... a sex dungeon in one of his bedrooms. And that gentleman was 88 years of age, believe it or not," Edgar said. He even delivers his services in the United States and United Kingdom, and he said Paramount has picked up the story for a movie.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION According to Washingtonian magazine, a five-bedroom house for sale in Fairfax, Virginia, listed for $800,000, will "go quickly" in a neighborhood where many homes sell for $1 million or more.

It's not in great shape, granted, but the biggest drawback? The home has "a person(s) living in lower level with no lease in place." And prospective buyers can't see the lower level. Listing agent Zinta K. Rodgers-Rickert said the basement resident has "weaseled her way in" and does not pay rent, and the current owners can't "emotionally deal with the eviction." Nevertheless, the house already had attracted at least one offer, with more expected. Rodgers-Rickert helpfully drew a picture of the basement for one potential buyer and said it's in no worse shape than the rest of the house. Except for that squatter, of course.

NOW, WHERE DID I PUT THAT On April 11, ITV News reported that a dead body had been left in a "side room" at the Diana, Princess of

By the Editors at Andrews McMeel

Wales Hospital in Grimsby, England, for four days.

Once discovered, the body was removed to the hospital's mortuary, and the deceased's family was notified. Officials, who did not reveal the identity of the body, have launched an investigation and offered their apologies to the patient's family.

THE TECH REVOLUTION It may have been April 1, but it was no April Fools' prank. A San Francisco police officer approached an idling car with its headlights off around 10 p.m. and saw that it was empty, SFGate reported. That's when the car moved forward, crossed the intersection and came to a stop with its emergency flashers on. As it turned out, the AV, or autonomous vehicle, was operated by Cruise, and was just trying to move into a safe position before yielding to officers. "An officer contacted Cruise personnel, and no citation was issued," the company explained in a statement.

A maintenance team was dispatched to take control of the vehicle.

THE JOB OF THE RESEARCHER In preparing to reconstruct Paris' Notre-Dame cathedral after a devastating fire in 2019, scientists have discovered a sarcophagus that may date to the 14th century, France24 reported. It was buried 65 feet underground, among the brick pipes of an old heating system, and extracted from the cathedral on April 12. They were able to look inside using an endoscopic camera, where they saw a skeleton, a pillow of leaves and fabric, among other items. Lead archaeologist Christophe Besnier noted that "if it turns out that it is in fact ... from the Middle Ages, we are dealing with an extremely rare burial practice." France's Institute of Forensic Medicine will study the body and contents of the sarcophagus and try to determine the social rank of the person. Afterward, it will be returned "as an anthropological asset" and could possibly be reinterred at Notre-Dame.

NOT YOUR ORDINARY QUICKIE MART A "convenience store" called Skraptyques in a Lumberton, New Jersey, strip mall was selling more than scratch-offs and cigarettes, according to Yahoo! News. In-the-know customers allegedly surrendered their cellphones to an armed guard in a bulletproof vest and were scanned by handheld metal detectors before being shown into a back room, where they could shop for marijuana, edibles and psychedelic mushrooms with colorful packages mimicking popular food items such as "Cheetos, Life Savers, Nerds and Skittles," the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office said. The store's owners, Matthew Quinn, 44, and Crystal Cain, 30, were charged in late March with possessing marijuana and psilocybin mushrooms, along with other offenses; three employees were also charged. {in} From Andrews McMeel Syndication News Of The Weird © 2022 Andrews McMeel

Send your weird news items to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com April 21, 2022

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