Independent News | February 25, 2021 | Volume 22 | Number 8
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winners & losers
outtakes
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5
news 6
It’s OK to feel exhausted.
cover story
buzz 8
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publisher Rick Outzen
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contributing writers Savannah Evanoff, Jennifer Leigh, Jeremy Morrison, C.S. Satterwhite
a&e 13
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. © 2018 Inweekly Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
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*Board Certification by the Florida Bar Association and the National Board Of Trial Advocacy. Statistical information current as of April 2020.
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February 25, 2021
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winners & losers
Robert Bender / myescambia.com
winners
losers
ROBERT BENDER The Board of County Commissioners chairman put in long hours to develop a new hybrid master plan for Outlying Landing Field 8 (OLF-8). Bender was able to get DPZ CoDesign, Navy Federal Credit Union, FloridaWest, Pensacola-Escambia Development Commission and the county to openly discuss possible solutions that meet the desires of their groups and the community. The proposal truly moved the discussion forward, and most see it as a win-win.
GROVER ROBINSON Come on, Grover. We have seen decreases in new COVID cases and hospitalizations as vaccinations have increased. Why issue a permit to let 5,000 runners participate in the 44th annual McGuire's 5K and run the risk of creating another super-spreader event that will balloon as partiers roam throughout downtown without masks? We are so close to containing the virus that has killed over 600 people in our community.
KEVIN MCKONE Costa Enterprises
RON DESANTIS Florida's governor has
McDonald's has promoted its director of operations to be its new vice president of operations. McKone has 45 years of experience with McDonald's and has been with the Costa Enterprises team for the last decade. He started his career with the McDonald's corporation as a crew person at 16 years old to pay his way through Catholic high school. McKone rose through the ranks serving as an hourly manager, assistant manager and then general manager. He also later served as an area supervisor, training consultant, field service business consultant, training manager, field service manager and "McOpCo" operations manager before retiring and moving to Northwest Florida.
GULF BREEZE ZOO The Gulf Breeze Zoo
and its Zoofari Parks sister zoos, Virginia Safari Park in Natural Bridge, Va., and Alabama Safari Park in Hope Hull, Ala., donated $50,000 to conservation programs worldwide in 2020. The programs, administered through the Conservation Coordinator, funded grants to 17 nonprofit wildlife conservation programs, spanning 130 countries. Through admissions and animal encounters, each guest to the zoo contributes to the conservation programs.
UWF AI TEAMS Two University of West Florida teams placed in the top five of the prestigious AI Tracks at Sea Challenge. UWF graduate computer science students Tobias Jacob, Raffaele Galliera and Muddasar Ali placed third, winning $35,000 for the UWF Department of Computer Science. The second UWF team, ArgoTracks, finished fifth and secured $20,000 for the Department of Intelligent Systems & Robotics. The team consisted of Bhavyansh Mishra, a doctoral student in intelligent systems & robotics, and mechanical engineering majors Brendon Ortolano and Luke Fina. 44
Grover Robinson / City of Pensacola
a difficult time staying out of the losers' column. Black elected officials challenged what they see as Gov. DeSantis's pattern of prioritizing COVID-19 vaccines for people in affluent, mostly white neighborhoods. The media confronted the governor with concerns raised by some Manatee County officials that the new vaccine pop-up site in an upscale development was not in an area of most need. DeSantis replied, "If Manatee County doesn't like us doing this, then we are totally fine with putting this in counties that want it." He added that local officials should be thankful because they didn't need to set up the site.
VOTING BY MAIL Florida Senate Republicans agree that Florida's vote-bymail process worked smoothly in the last election cycle, but that doesn't mean they don't want to make it harder next year. The lawmakers want to erase all standing requests for mail-in ballots in 2022 and require voters to start over. After a record 4.8 million Floridians voted by mail in November, the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee approved SB 90 along party lines to limit vote-by-mail applications to one election cycle. GREG ABBOTT The Texas governor told Fox News that the state's crippling power outages during last week's winter storms were caused by failures of Texas solar and wind sources. He said, "This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America." However, the senior director for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas reported that frozen wind turbines had been "the least significant factor in the blackouts." He attributed the outages to "frozen instruments at natural gas, coal and even nuclear facilities." inweekly.net
outtakes By Rick Outzen
VOTING POWER Our vote is the power we each have that politicians covet and the rich and powerful can't control. Millions can be spent pushing candidates, policies and "alternative facts," but the ballot box still is the ultimate authority in the United States. My father was an election supervisor in Washington County, Miss. He worked diligently to register voters—white, people of color, Republican, Democrat, rich and poor. Dad believed that every adult should participate in the election process and did everything he could to make sure votes were cast and counted correctly. At Ole Miss, I got involved in student government my sophomore year. The campus had several voting blocks, the most powerful one being the law students. We beat the political machine by attracting students that didn't usually vote in elections. In Escambia County, I've watched the voters defy those in power several times. In 2006, Save Our City leaders had already defeated one referendum for a park and auditorium on the land on Pensacola Bay across from Pensacola City Hall. They believed they could get voters to turn down the Community Maritime Park, only to lose to energized young professionals and Black community leaders that got new voters to the polling places. That same year, we saw Grover Robinson build a coalition of parents that upset long-term incumbent Tom Banjanin, who had huge support from Pensacola Christian and was considered unbeatable. Six years later, Lumon May organized a political engine that overwhelmed his competitors and swept him into Escambia County's District 3 seat. Voters, not money, decided those elections, which is why I am so disturbed by Gov. Ron DeSantis' efforts to make it harder for us to vote in 2022. Though he admitted that Florida's 2020 elections were the "smoothest and most successful election of any state," the governor wants to make it more difficult to vote by mail in the future. On Friday, Feb. 19, DeSantis acted like
he was going to take our election process to some new level—"It's going to be transparent. It's going to be above board. It's going to be a confidence-inspiring process." Hasn't it been already? However, the GOP-controlled state legislature is looking to require vote-by-mail ballots to be requested each general-election cycle. Escambia County had 69,882 voters vote by mail for the November 2020 election. Only 40,222 voted on election day. With the COVID-19 pandemic causing many people to be reluctant to go to the polls, more than 4.85 million Floridians cast votes by mail in the November election. That included about 2.19 million registered Democrats and 1.5 million registered Republicans, with the rest of the ballots cast by unaffiliated or third-party voters. DeSantis wants more scrutiny of vote-by-mail ballot signatures, requiring them to match the most recent signatures on file and also wants voters to request vote-by-mail ballots each general election cycle. Currently, voters can sign up to receive vote-by-mail ballots for two consecutive general-election cycles. He wants county supervisors of election to post online over-vote ballots that are to be considered by canvassing boards and to prohibit counties from receiving grants from private organizations for "get out the vote" initiatives. Senate President Wilton Simpson, R-Trilby, and House Speaker Chris Sprowls, R-Palm Harbor, back DeSantis' proposals, saying in a joint written statement, "We don't want to backslide. We are here to keep Florida a model for the rest of America." Florida Democratic Party Chairman Manny Diaz countered, "They want to limit vote-by-mail because they know that more people voting threatens their power, so they are turning back to the Trump Republican authoritarian playbook—voter suppression and incendiary rhetoric about election integrity." We should be finding ways to make voting easier, not more difficult, just like my dad did 40 years ago. {in} rick@inweekly.net
Voters, not money, decided those elections, which is why I am so disturbed by Gov. Ron DeSantis' efforts to make it harder for us to vote in 2022.
February 25, 2021
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TORCH PASSED
Robert Blanchard, Virginia Buchanan, Mark Proctor, Troy Rafferty, Brian Barr, Fred Levin and Brett Vigodsky / Photo by Levin Papantonio Rafferty
By Rick Outzen Last month, Pensacola lost one of its most colorful and nationally known native sons, Fred Levin, the patriarch of the Levin, Papantonio, Thomas, Mitchell, Rafferty and Proctor law firm. Before his death, Levin got to see the passing of the torch to the next generation of the firm started by his brother David in 1955. With the retirement of shareholders Leo Thomas and Clay Mitchell and firm Vice President Robert Blanchard, the firm elevated Troy Rafferty, Virginia Buchanan, Tim O'Brien, Brian Barr and Peter Mougey to its masthead—Levin, Papantonio, Rafferty, Proctor, Buchanan, O'Brien, Barr, Mougey, P.A. The firm will be referred to as Levin Papantonio Rafferty. "Troy, Virginia, Tim, Brian and Peter have distinguished themselves both in terms of legal expertise as well as character and commitment to our firm," said Levin Papantonio Rafferty President Mark Proctor in the press release. "They deserve our honor and recognition for dedicating their careers to advancing the rights of others in our civil justice system and who have performed in an exemplary manner." On the name change, Mike Papantonio shared with Inweekly, "Fred and I would talk a good bit about the sustainability of the firm. How will we sustain it for another 60 years? And it's actually a lot easier than you think. 66
The way you sustain it is, you put leadership in place that has a long-game vision." He added, "My job is to continue, in a joint effort with Troy and with Proctor, to keep our eye on sustainability of this firm, because this firm matters. I know this is going to sound like a bold statement, but I promise this—if this firm were to go away, some of the most important projects on behalf of consumers in this country would be at an end." According to Papantonio, leaders that were visionary, fighters and compassionate are vital to the firm's long-term sustainability, and Troy Rafferty "hits it on every cylinder." Rafferty has achieved state and national recognition as a trial lawyer and has handled some of the nation's largest pharmaceutical and mass tort cases. The American Trial Lawyers selected him as one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers. He is a fellow in the International Society of Barristers and one of only 500 U.S. attorneys inducted into the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. Rafferty has been active in the Florida Justice Association (FJA), where he served as president from 2014-2015. In 2016, FJA awarded him the Perry Nichols Award, its highest award given to attorneys whose perseverance, commitment and unmatched dedication to the civil justice system are at the forefront of their lives. Recently, Rafferty sat down with
Inweekly to discuss his journey from Comstock, Mich., to Pensacola and his rise of only one of two associates at Levin, Middlebrooks, Mabie, Thomas, Mays and Mitchell in 1994 to a leader of a firm that is the nationally recognized leader in personal injury and mass tort litigation.
WINGS & BEER
As he was set to graduate magna cum laude from the Valparaiso University School of Law, Rafferty flew to Pensacola for a job interview with the Levin firm. "I met Martin Levin at Sidelines, where we talked over chicken wings and a pitcher of beer," Rafferty told Inweekly. "I'd been on a lot of other interviews with some of the bigger law firms throughout the country, especially in Chicago. And they would always take you to very fancy dinners, so it was refreshing to meet Martin at Sidelines and have some chicken wings, which are more my style." Rafferty didn't know how his interviews with the other partners would go, but he knew he wanted to live in Pensacola. He said, "I remember going back to the hotel, going out on the beach, sitting and calling back home and saying, 'I don't know if I'm going to get the job or not, but I'm staying. Pensacola is such a beautiful town.'" The firm did offer him a job. Since he was only one of two associates in a firm of over a dozen seasoned, veteran lawyers,
he worked in all areas of the law, including employment, civil rights, personal injury, criminal and mass torts. "The firm was in Seville Tower when I first started," said Rafferty. "They put me on the second floor in a tiny little office with a sliding glass window overlooking the hallway. Pap used to come up and joke all the time about ordering a summary judgment response like he was at a drivethrough window." Rafferty wanted to earn his place in the firm and focused on being the first in the office every day, but he had competition— Martin Levin. "The first day I showed up for work, they said the offices opened at 8:30, so I got there at 7:30, and Martin's car was already there, as were others," said Rafferty. "The next day, I showed up at 7 a.m. Martin's car was there and several others. I just kept going until I started showing up about 5:30 in the morning and finally beat Martin to the office. And I remember Martin coming down and stopping down in my office and saying, 'Hey, I touched the hood of your car. It was still warm. So I know you just got here.' I said, 'Yeah, but I beat you.'" He liked being the first in and last out of the office because he got a chance to talk to the shareholders, get to know them and bounce ideas off of them. He added, "And so it was definitely a win-win from that perspective." His first big case as an associate was a breast implant trial with Papantonio that lasted three months in Houston. He said, "I was staying up all night doing research and writing memos. The case was an education on a hundred different levels." Rafferty added, "I learned from Pap that when you walk into a courtroom, you just have to own it. He never had any fear. He was never intimidated, even though we were going up against a huge corporation with massive resources and massive numbers of lawyers on the other side in the country's biggest civil case. The closing argument was actually held in a law school auditorium because so many people were watching."
"I learned from Pap that when you walk into a courtroom, you just have to own it. He never had any fear." Troy Rafferty "If anything, they were the ones intimidated," he said, "I probably learned more watching that breast implant trial than I learned in three years of law school." Papantonio made a conscious decision to have the young associate part of his trial team, even though "it was one of the biggest breast implant trials in the country, and everything was riding on this case." He inweekly.net
told Inweekly, "Troy had been out of law school one month, and out of everybody I had to select to take to trial, he was the one I said, 'Yeah, I want to go to trial with Troy.'" "I wanted an overachiever, someone when it matters that they get results," explained Papantonio. "With Troy Rafferty, it was just so apparent to me that he was going to do great things as a lawyer. And he's proved me right every step of the way." Rafferty appreciated the opportunity and enjoyed running his later cases by accomplished attorneys like Fred, Pap and Martin. He said, "One of the great things back then, and still today, is they were very open and very willing to let you go in and handle things and try cases. And that was a big deal for me." He explained, "All I ever wanted to do is be in trial. And there are a lot of firms out that say, 'No, you work the case up,' as a young guy, and then one of the senior guys would come in and try it. The culture at the firm has always been, 'No, you go try the case.' And listen, the only way you learn things is by doing it." In the 1990s, the Levin firm nearly split up because of the debate of whether it would expand in the rapidly growing field of mass torts or handle only personal injury cases, but Fred and Martin worked out how to keep the firm together. After watching Papantonio's success in mass torts, Rafferty knew he wanted to try those cases, but he wouldn't do them exclusively. "It became clear to me very quickly that if you want to be practicing law and trying
cases at the highest level throughout the country, mass torts was the way to go," he said. "And so I kept a combination of the two. I thought it was crucial for my own development and education to continue to try cases here locally." Rafferty explained, "I love this community, and I wanted to continue maintaining cases here locally for local families. Also, I wanted to be in trial, going over across the street to the M.C. Blanchard Judicial Center and trying cases because you learn something from every trial."
his high school's track team with his classmates, the coach had laughed at him and told him not to bother. He wouldn't make the team in the fall.
THE SPORTS CONNECTION
Rafferty said, "I spent months getting up every day and riding my bike to the cross country track up at the school. I'd run it, and I'd run it, and I'd run it, and I'd run it. And finally, when the trials came, I ran it. And I'll never forget. The coach was standing at the finish line with a stopwatch. And he's like, 'Wow, that's incredible. Congratulations. You qualify.'" He told the coach, "Great, no thanks. I don't really want to be on the team. I just wanted to prove to you that I could do it. You should never tell me I can't do something." The attorney also met Lumon May, founder of the Southern Youth Sports Association, not long after arriving in Pensacola. He was impressed by how much Lumon and his wife Tammy were doing for children with youth sports. "What Lumon does is so important for the community," said Rafferty. "It's centered around sports, but it's much more
The Michigan native appreciates how Pensacola accepted him when he first moved to town, and he, along with his wife Ashley, has shown his gratitude by supporting youth and high school sports. "I always found Pensacola to be very welcoming," he said. "When I started with the firm, I was working one Saturday. I had heard about a Notre Dame Club that met over at Seville Quarter to watch the football games. A group invited me to sit with them, not knowing anything about me, and 27 years later, we watch almost every Notre Dame football game together—the original group sitting up at that table has become lifelong friends." Why has he focused his philanthropy on sports? Rafferty said, "I was never a great athlete, by any means, but sports was a great way to learn about commitment, teamwork and determination." He shared that when he signed up for
"I was never a great athlete, by any means, but sports was a great way to learn about commitment, teamwork and determination." Rafferty
than that. It's a place for kids to go and gather and not be negatively influenced." He asked May what he could do to help. According to the attorney, May said, "Our children need hope. They need to know that if they work hard and give back to their community that there's going to be something there for them, that they'll have an opportunity." Rafferty and his wife created the Rafferty Hope Scholarship that is given each year to two underprivileged children to pay their college tuition. He also funds two local scholarships under his name that are awarded annually to two area high school prep athletes. Area high schools also compete to be awarded the Rafferty Cup for excellence in athletic achievement. In 2020, Pensacola Sports named Rafferty its Sportsman of the Year.
THE FIRM'S FUTURE
Rafferty is enthusiastic about Levin Papantonio Rafferty's future and sees it continuing to grow in size, stature and reach. "The legacy of Fred Levin is he built an operation that we've been able to use, and we'll be able to continue to expand," he said. "He instilled so many different characteristics and traits into the practice and each one of us lawyers." He added, "Our foundation has been laid for many, many years. You don't stick around for over 60 years of practicing law without having the foundation on which to continue to build. And that's what we keep trying to instill in everybody in the firm." {in}
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THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING Your Support Will Change Lives Congratulations and thank you to all those who volunteered their time and financial support to the creation of the Escambia Children’s Trust. Thanks to you, we receivedand overwhelming 61 percent approval to better support kids in Escambia County.
We encourage you all to take part in ECT Board meetings, to voice your opinions and to help the Board do a good job for our kids as it moves forward. We are all committed to seeing the ECT flourish as it works to identify needs and establish measurable outcomes for every contract it awards.
Over the next 10 years, the ECT will raise $100 million to change the lives of the children in our county. As volunteers, we no longer have an official role to play as there is no Transition Team,but we owe it to our kids to stay involved and help identify the needs in our community.
We look forward to a brighter future for all children in Escambia County thanks to your support.
February 25, 2021
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Making A Difference Through Education 7
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The OLF-8 master plan will be on the agenda on March 11, after commissioners have had a chance to analyze the hybrid proposal.
CPAC UPDATE On Thursday,
Image courtesy of Naval Aviation Museum Foundation
LEGACY WALL The Naval Aviation Museum
Foundation has chosen seven service members for its new Legacy Wall's initial honorees. The honorees were selected from many story submissions to recognize their legacies of service and contributions to Naval Aviation. The first seven honorees for the Naval Aviation Museum's Legacy Wall are: •Lt. Cmdr. Charles Walker, USN, Served 2008-2019 •Maj. Eugene "Red" James, USMC, Served 1942-1956 •Col. Simon J. Kittler, USMC, Served 1953-1982 •Lt. Cmdr. Cash Barber, USN, Served 1941-1971 •Cmdr. Frank Erickson, USCG, Served 1928-1954 •Capt. Vince "Vinnie" Segars, USN, Served 1990-2020 •Col. Henry Steadman, USMC, Served 1945-1978 "These seven individuals represent an impressive group of 'plankowners' based on their unique achievements and contributions to Naval Aviation," said retired Rear Adm. Kyle Cozad, president and CEO of the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation. "It's our people that make our military services strong," Cozad shared. "Their contributions can vary from several short years wearing the cloth of our nation to over 30 years. We're excited that our Legacy Wall provides a means to recognize those who have serviced our nation with honor." The Legacy Wall plaque program recognizes individuals and command groups as a part of Naval Aviation history in a permanent indoor exhibit on the second level of the National Naval Aviation Museum. Individual or group plaques will be on display for visitor viewing at the museum for generations to come. The Legacy Wall also serves as a source of education on the lives of the U.S. men and women currently serving or who have served honorably in the United States military. 88
OLF-8 COMPROMISE The Escambia Board
of County Commissioners gave a thumbs up to a modified hybrid master plan for Outlying Landing Field 8 (OLF-8) at its Thursday, Feb. 18, regular meeting. The plan was developed in a meeting called by Commission Chairman Robert Bender on Feb. 17 and tweaked by DPZ CoDesign, the county's planning consultant, shortly before the meeting. "After last week's discussion, I decided to try and pull together some stakeholders that were part of the overall master plan," explained Bender. "We had a meeting to discuss the plan that was presented last Thursday and how we could move forward." Bender brought together DPZ, FloridaWest CEO Scott Luth, Navy Federal's Keith Hoskins and Lewis Bear of the Pensacola-Escambia Development Commission and believed the group came up with a compromise proposal that covered the county's priority of creating high-paying jobs and residents' desires for green space and amenities. He said that Navy Federal was on the call and reviewed the plans and offered no pushback. "They believe that it has what they want, and they have faith in DPZ to develop a good product," said Bender. "It allows us and FloridaWest to market and have what they deem as adequate land to market for commerce." The plan allocates 271 acres to commerce, 45 acres for public amenities such as a post office and school, 61 acres for highdensity residential such as townhouses and multi-family units, and 47 acres for mixeduse areas such as a community center or retail. The allocations are done in phases and are flexible depending on the projects presented to the commissioners in the future. All four commissioners praised Bender's leadership and felt the proposal gave the board a foundation to finalize the OLF-8 master plan. DPZ offered to host a town hall meeting to garner public input on the revised hybrid plan.
Feb. 18, the discussions were denser and the participation greater during the second in a pair of town halls for Pensacola's Citizen Police Advisory Committee, with members being asked to "take a look at policing from a different angle" and "rethink the whole idea of police." Julie Patton, a retired University of West Florida Department of Social Work professor who has focused on police reform issues, told committee members that she felt law enforcement should pull back from certain communities instead of further engaging on more positive levels. "The Black areas in many ways seem over-policed," Patton told the committee, later adding, "I would actually like to see the police decrease their interactions with communities of color." Pensacola Mayor Grover Robinson formed CPAC in response to the 2019 killing of Tymar Crawford by a former Pensacola Police Department detective during a traffic stop. The committee is tasked with making recommendations to the mayor to facilitate a better relationship between the PPD and the community it serves. The Feb. 18 engagement at the Bayview Community Center attracted more people and resulted in a more in-depth discussion than the first town hall. Among the suggestions provided was the notion of scaling back the use of law enforcement in general, particularly when it comes to responding to instances involving individuals with mental issues. Also stressed was the need to remove police officers from school campuses, where they are utilized as school resource officers but retain their authority to arrest. "I would like to see us, in a formal way, ask the police to do less," Patton told CPAC. Mary Williams, an attorney who moved to the area from Washington D.C., suggested that, compared with larger urban areas with higher rates of violent crime, Pensacola has a "perception" issue and that police needed to take efforts to reorient how the community viewed their presence. "It's their job to make the community feel safe by their presence, not unsafe," she said. Also up for discussion was CPAC's general purpose. The committee's future beyond the deliverance of its recommendations in March remains unclear. CPAC Chairman Drew Buchanan said he felt the committee's work should be ongoing and indefinite.
"There's no intent for this committee to go away," he said. "It's certainly my opinion that this committee should be around forever." The town hall also served as an opportunity to weigh in on the city's current search for a new police chief. "I'm a law-and-order guy," a retired Marine told the committee. "I'm counting on the police department to hire people of character because character matter over diversity because diversity seems to be all about color." Other speakers stressed the importance of seeking a candidate with a diverse perspective and someone conscious of the ongoing evolution of law enforcement. Patton said, "I'd like to see a police chief that's maybe younger and open to new ideas." CPAC will continue its discussions at city hall, with a final report of recommendations due next month.
TRAILBLAZERS In honor of Black History Month, the University of West Florida and Epps Christian Center partnered to award eight community members who have made a lasting impact on the community. The fifth annual Trailblazer Awards was hosted virtually on Feb. 18. "I look forward to the Trailblazer Awards every year because I get to see the great work so many individuals are doing to make their community thrive," said Dr. Kim LeDuff, UWF chief diversity officer and vice president for the Division of Academic Engagement and Student Affairs. Over the last five years, the committee has recognized 43 difference-makers in the community. "Every year, I look forward to this collaboration between Epps Christian Center and the University of West Florida," said Rev. Sylvia Tisdale, founder of the Epps Christian Center. "Being able to recognize these amazing community leaders for their daily service is an honor and a privilege that I enjoy being part of." The following people were named recipients of the 2021 Trailblazer Awards: •Pastor Reginald Benjamin, Helping Hand Award •Bishop Charles E. Young, Faith and Service Award •Brigette Brooks, Community Service Award •Dr. Laura Dortch Edler, Education Leadership Award •Fannie Finkley, Servant Leader Award •Vernon Watson, Community Voice Award •Dr. Vanessa Phillips, Alumni Trailblazer Award •Dianne Krumel, Trailblazer Award Krumel was honored with the signature Trailblazer Award. The award committee selected the longtime activist for her impact on the community, not only in preserving public ownership of land on Pensacola Beach through her "Save Pensacola Beach" campaign but also her charity work, which benefits inweekly.net
multiple nonprofit organizations throughout the region. "I am absolutely humbled and honored to have been selected as the recipient of the 2021 Trailblazer Award, as there are others who would have certainly qualified for this special recognition," Krumel said.
VACCINATIONS FOR SENIORS On
Thursday, Feb. 18, Marie Mott, the director of the Escambia office of the Florida Department of Health, reported to the Escambia County Commission that the county is doing a better job of provided citizens 65 or older with the COVID vaccine, 49%, than the state average of 41%, and the numbers continue to increase. Unfortunately, less than 20% of the minority community has been vaccinated. FDOH is working on a public service campaign to improve the percentage. For the latest information on vaccines, visit myescambia.com/ news#coronavirus.
BEER ON SUNDAY MORNINGS The Es-
cambia County Commission voted on Thursday, Feb. 18, to approve an ordinance allowing retail alcohol sales seven days a week except between 2:30 and 6 a.m. Currently, retail sales are prohibited 2:30-6 a.m. daily, except 2:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Sundays, except for Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key, where Sunday sales begin at 7 a.m. The ordinance went into effect on Feb. 18 after filing with the Florida Department of State in Tallahassee.
BRIDGE OPENS IN MARCH After a recent
assessment of the Pensacola Bay Bridge's repairs, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) announced its plan to re-open the Pensacola Bay Bridge in phases beginning with restoring two lanes of traffic in March 2021. The first phase will open two lanes of traffic (one in each direction) for the first 4,000 feet on the Pensacola side. The remaining approximately two miles of the bridge will be open to four traffic lanes (two in each direction). During this initial phase, the speed limit
will be temporarily set at 35 mph, and emergency refuge areas will be available on the bridge. To quickly clear travel lanes following vehicle incidents, assist drivers in the event of mechanical breakdowns and keep the bridge free of debris, FDOT's Road Ranger Service Patrol will be stationed on each end of the bridge from 5 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7 a.m.-10 p.m. on weekends and major holidays. At other times, at least one unit will be on-call and available. The second phase, which consists of opening the remaining 4,000 feet to four lanes of traffic, will be complete by Memorial Day.
PENSACOLA'S MOSAIC Escambia County
turns 200 years old on Saturday, July 17. The 200th Anniversary Commission co-chairs, Dr. Judy Bense and Margo Stringfield, gave an update to the county commission on Thursday, Feb. 18. The commission's website is visitpensacola.com/200th. "We in the historic preservation and archaeological community are aware of our long history, as I know you are," said Bense. "But every once in a while, we come up with a date that is significant that most people have forgotten, and it's our responsibility to remind people what we have been doing as a county." She noted that Florida only had two counties, Escambia and St. Johns, in 1821. Bense said, "Florida was a colony of the King of Spain in an empire that was imperialistic prior to July 17, 1821. As we are involved in the democratic form of government that we hold dear, and with all of its warts, we continue to pursue the will of the people and put it into action. That's what happened really, governmental-wise, in July of 1821. We went from an autocracy to a democracy." Gov. Andrew Jackson appointed the commissioners, sheriff and the mayor of Pensacola. Bense said, "We like people to be elected. So the very next year, 1822, there was an election, and there's been an election ever since. So that is significant." Bense also said the News Journal would
run weekly columns on "what really did happen at the transition, and what it was like after 1821 when we joined the United States." Stringfield added, "While Andrew Jackson will be part of this commemoration all the way through, what we are focusing on are the people that made our community what it was then and what it is today. We were a very diverse community in 1821, and it's reflected in our modern community today." The commission has planned a series of events that will build up to a re-creation of the Spanish's handoff of the state on July 17. "What we're doing here is looking at people that would have been here in 1821 and are here today," said Stringfield. "One of the most poignant moments of the re-creation of the ceremony will actually take place at dawn and Museum Plaza. And that is when the Santa Rosa County Creek Tribe will do the traditional blessing of what is to them an important day." The West Florida Genealogy Society has identified everybody who lived in Pensacola— "with a little give-and-take"—in 1821. "They're creating a database of information so that you will be able to go online and you can just click and see who was here, what they did," said Stringfield. "And we're going to ask people to send their faces in, send a picture of yourself; it's going to flow through the Pensacola News Journal, and you will be part of the mosaic of Pensacola and Escambia County. Your face will be there standing for someone that was here in 1821."
HONORING REV. MATTHEWS In observance of Black History Month, the Escambia Board of County Commissioners issued a proclamation honoring Rev. H.K. Matthews for his dedication to racial and social justice, servant leadership and the continuous dedication to making our community. A native of Snow Hill, Ala., Matthews attended Alabama A&M and served in the Korean War. He was involved in the local NAACP and Southern Leadership Conference chapters during the civil rights movement. While presi-
dent of the Pensacola Council of Ministers, Rev. Matthews led sit-in protests that successfully integrated Palafox Street lunch counters. He also marched alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the Selma to Montgomery marches.
CERVANTES WORK BEGINS The Florida
Department of Transportation will begin a $7 million construction project this month to improve pedestrian safety along a 2.2mile section of West Cervantes Street, from Dominguez Street to A Street. A Virtual Project Update with maps, drawings and other information is available online at nwflroads.com/ projects/443769-1. Planned improvements along West Cervantes Street include constructing seven lighted midblock crosswalks, ADA-compliant ramps and a wider multi-use path. New traffic signals will be added at four intersections, and existing signals will be enhanced with upgraded pedestrian features. Vehicle lane widths will be reduced, and the speed limit will be lowered to 30 mph. A raised center median with a low barrier and designated openings for pedestrians at selected locations will be constructed within the project limits. The project also includes enhanced lighting and landscaping and irrigation improvements. Crews will mill and resurface the roadway where median and signal work is performed. The construction activities will require traffic shifts and lane closures that will be limited to 8 p.m.-6 a.m. The work will be sequenced to allow continuous pedestrian access between signalized intersections on at least one side of West Cervantes Street. The work is estimated for completion in early 2022. Funding for the project is a collaborative effort between the City of Pensacola, Escambia County and the Florida Department of Transportation.
COMMUNITY CENTER CLOSED Sand-
ers Beach-Corinne Jones Resource Center is temporarily closed to the public during the City
Stock Market Losses? Hire a lawyer who is a former Merril Lynch stock broker.
11 East Romana Street | Pensacola, Fl 32502
genemitchell.org February 25, 2021
9
of Pensacola event restriction period scheduled to be re-evaluated on March 11 based on COVID-19 conditions. All center programming scheduled inside of the building has been discontinued until further notice. Sanders Beach-Corinne Jones Resource Center will operate pre-existing scheduled private events only until March 11. The following building renovations will take place during the center's extended closure: •New wood plank floor installation in the ballroom •Cardio room repurposed as a meeting space (cardio room has been relocated) •New vinyl tile floor installation in new meeting space (former cardio room) •Kitchen updates •Ballroom stage refinishing The City of Pensacola has extended the previously implemented COVID-19 restrictions and guidelines for city-permitted events through Thursday, March 11. The restrictions were initially set to expire on Feb. 28.
MARCH MADNESS The 2021 Sun Belt
Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships will be held Friday, March 5-Monday, March 8, at the Pensacola Bay Center. Individual tickets are available through Ticketmaster or at the Pensacola Bay Center Box Office during normal business hours. "We are excited to welcome schools from the Sun Belt Conference and their fans to Pensacola. We hope everyone enjoys their time spent in our historic city and on our beautiful beaches as they cheer on their team," said Darien Schaefer, president and CEO of Visit Pensacola. All 12 members of the Sun Belt Conference will compete in the single-elimination tournament for women's and men's basketball. The men's and women's brackets will each include 11 games to be played over the course of four days. The first round of the tournament has four games for the men and for the women slated for Friday, March 5. The top four teams in the conference will receive a bye and
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will face the first-round winners on Saturday, March 6. The semi-finals will be played on Sunday, March 7. The women's and men's champions will be crowned on Monday and advance to the NCAA Women's and Men's Basketball Tournament. Per COVID-19 protocols, fans attending must wear a facial covering and seating at the Pensacola Bay Center will be at 50% arena capacity for each tournament session. A free trolley will run around Downtown Pensacola on Saturday and Sunday, stopping at 12 host bars dedicated to each team. On Sunday, March 7, a special "Fan Fest" event will occur outside the Bay Center from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. with food and drink, games and activities planned. For updates, visit visitpensacola.com/sunbelt.
CO-WORK SPACE COMING The
Spring's Co-Working Space is slated to open in April 2021 and has begun the process of collecting interest from potential members for space. The Hub will serve as the physical front door to the entrepreneur ecosystem and offer an energetic atmosphere to local entrepreneurs looking for flexible shared spaces. Members will have conference rooms, amenities and unique areas to ensure productivity and collaboration. To join the co-work space mailing list, visit bit.ly/2LYX6xG.
FINANCIAL LITERACY APP Central Credit Union of Florida has entered into a partnership with Zogo to bring a financial literacy app to its members and the communities it serves. The app, developed by Duke University students, guides teens and young adults through 300plus bite-sized financial educational modules. "We wanted to create a financial education experience our peers would actually use," states Bolun Li, CEO and co-founder of Zogo. He goes on to state, "We are excited to partner with Central Credit Union of Florida to bring this vision to life." Through Central Credit Union of Florida's partnership, the Zogo app is now available
at no cost on both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
COVID COMEBACK PLAN As restrictions begin to ease and restaurants are moving toward returning to full occupancy, it is crucial to consider the changes forced by the pandemic upon this industry. Surviving COVID-19 will depend on a thorough plan to create a new, positive and profitable guest experience. Florida SBDC at UWF will host a webinar from 10-11 a.m. on Wednesday, March 3, which will focus on strategies, resources and best practices for executing a Comeback Plan. Register at sbdc. uwf.edu under "Training & Events." Registration ends 24 hours before start time. A link for joining this no-cost webinar will be sent to those who register. VIRTUAL FUN RUN Escambia County 4-H is hosting a public virtual 4-mile fun run from Tuesday, March 4-Sunday, March 14. This virtual run will support the youth of the Discovery 4-H Club as they dig into archaeology opportunities across the state of Florida. Participants must register individually at bit.ly/3rXBcu0 by March 3. The race opens at 8 a.m. on March 4 and runs through 5 p.m. on March 14. For additional information, visit bit.ly/3pl8bGN. If you would like to make a donation, please write a check to Escambia County 4H Foundation and mark the memo "2021 4-H Fun Run." Please send it to Escambia County 4-H, 3730 Stefani Road, Cantonment, FL 32533. FUND THE FELINES Help the Pensacola
Humane Society prepare for kitten season by donating to the Fund the Felines campaign now-Feb. 28. The goal is to raise nearly $35,000 to help 500 neonate and juvenile kittens through their vulnerable early weeks of life. The kittens will be cared for by volunteer fosters dedicated to giving them a healthy start and preparing them for future adoption. Donations of cash can be made online at pensacolahumane.org by clicking on Fund
the Felines. The online event will also feature educational posts on raising kittens and how you can become a foster. Among the supplies needed are food, formula, bottles, blankets, carriers, scales, litter boxes and toys. The PHS wish list can be found on the Pensacola Humane Society website, and supplies may be dropped off at the shelter during regular business hours. For more information, visit pensacolahumane.org.
NONPROFIT SEMINAR Nonprofits in Pensacola and Northwest Florida have an opportunity to learn best practices for successful approaches to win grants at a special CivicCon and Studer Community Institute session on March 23. Jill Miller, president of Bethesda Inc. in Cincinnati, will share what her organization expects from nonprofit grant requests and the rigor used in determining which requests win funding. The free virtual event is scheduled from 10-11 a.m. on Tuesday, March 23. This is not grant-writing training. It is aimed at nonprofit leaders and board members. It will cover best practices in operating a nonprofit as well as how to better align with the missions of foundations where they seek money. Bethesda Inc. is a major funder of health care transformation and co-sponsor of TriHealth, the leading integrated health delivery system in Southwest Ohio. Since 2010, Bethesda Inc. has invested over $27 million in grants to transform health care delivery in Greater Cincinnati. In addition to this session for nonprofits, Jill Miller will return to Pensacola on May 17 to conduct a best practices session for foundations in Northwest Florida that make grants to nonprofits. It is free to staff and board members of foundations. If you have an interest in these sessions, please reach out to Terry Horne, CivicCon executive director, at thorne@civicconversations. org. Invitations will also be sent to Northwest Florida nonprofits. {in}
inweekly.net
FLORIDA MAT TERS
If we learned anything from 2020, it's that elections have consequences and that staying engaged during non-election years is important, especially in Florida where the headlines never seem to stop. Here at Inweekly, we focus mostly on local politics, but that doesn't mean what's happening at the state level isn't on our radar, too. We've been following Gov. Ron DeSantis' "Protest Bill" since early January, for example. He also laid out a new legislative proposal last Friday to restrict voting by mail that immediately went on our watch list. In addition to the governor, we keep tabs on our local state lawmakers through social media, and you should, too, especially right now because they're about to go into session. In the spirit of Pensacola Votes (which you might remember from this past fall as the name of our weekly voter education guide), here's a primer for the 2021 state legislative session that's kicking off next week (on Tuesday, March 2) in Tallahassee. In it, we included key bills on the agenda, a quick refresher on our local representation and details on how to contact them should any of these bills move you to do so. Contacting your reps does have an impact outside of D.C., after all.
Session Lowdown
The Florida legislature meets in a 60day regular legislative session each year. In odd-numbered years, sessions begin on the first Tuesday in March and on the second Tuesday in January during even-numbered years. Based on those rules, the 2021 session dates are Tuesday, March 2-Friday, April 30. Presiding over the House is Speaker Chris Sprowls (R-Palm Harbor) and at the Senate is President Wilton Simpson (R-Trilby). Sen. Gary Farmer and Rep. Bobby DuBose, both Democrats from Fort Lauderdale, lead the minority party in their chambers. Locally, in Escambia County, we are represented by Republicans Michelle Salzman in District 1 and Alex Andrade in District 2 in the House and by Doug Broxson in the Senate. Salzman was elected in 2020; Andrade and Broxson are both returning after being re-elected. Salzman serves on the Judiciary Committee and several subcommittees. Andrade sits on multiple committees with an emphasis on education, including the Education and Employment Committee, where he is the current Republican Committee Whip. Broxson is the chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Education and vice chair of the Banking and Insurance Committee. The big dog of our delegation is Rep. Jayer Williamson (R) in Santa Rosa County. He serves on the powerful Appropriations Committee and is chair of the Infrastructure and Tourism Appropriations Subcommittee. Williamson will be at the table when the final state budget is hammered out. February 25, 2021
A 2021 State Legislative Primer
Issues To Watch
According to Jim Saunders of the News Service of Florida, here are 10 big issues to watch during the session:
BUDGET With the economic fallout of
the COVID-19 pandemic reducing expected tax revenues, legislative leaders have warned repeatedly that they likely will make budget cuts. But Gov. Ron DeSantis in January released a record $96.6 billion budget proposal for the 2021-2022 fiscal year, which will start July 1. DeSantis' proposal is a starting point for lawmakers, who have continued to offer a less-rosy view of the state's finances.
EDUCATION Continuing years of
Republican efforts to boost school choice, lawmakers are considering a major schoolvouchers bill that includes expanding eligibility for scholarship programs and creating what are known as "education savings accounts." Meanwhile, public schools will be a key budget issue, in part because lawmakers will have to decide how to address nearly 88,000 students who did not enroll as expected this year during the pandemic.
ELECTIONS Republican leaders are backing controversial proposals that would change the vote-by-mail process. As an example, one proposal would require voters to request vote-by-mail ballots more frequently, while another would prevent volunteers from collecting vote-by-mail ballots from people outside of their families. Critics argue the proposals are aimed at reducing mail-in voting, which Democrats used heavily during the 2020 elections. ENVIRONMENT DeSantis is asking lawmakers for $625 million to continue a multi-year effort to restore the Everglades and address other water-related issues, such as springs restoration. But he also is pitching a new "Resilient Florida" program, which would involve issuing bonds to help provide $1 billion over four years to state and local governments to address climatechange impacts, such as rising sea levels. HEALTH CARE As the largest part
of the state budget, health and human services will play a key role as lawmakers negotiate a new spending plan. One closely watched issue will be Medicaid reimbursement rates for hospitals and nursing homes. Lawmakers could look to reduce state dollars going into Medicaid without slashing rates, possibly through a new hospital arrangement that would involve local money being used to draw down federal matching funds.
INSURANCE Senate leaders are backing a long-debated idea to eliminate Florida's no-fault auto insurance system and the requirement that motorists carry personal-injury protection, or PIP, coverage. The proposal would lead to motorists being required to carry bodily injury coverage. Also, lawmakers could make changes in the property-insurance system, as premiums increase and more homeowners turn to the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. LIABILITY Health-care providers and
other businesses are clamoring for protections from coronavirus-related lawsuits. The House is poised to quickly pass a bill that would shield non-health care businesses from liability, But lawmakers are wrestling with some thorny issues, including details of protections for nursing homes and assisted living facilities, which have seen more than 10,000 deaths during the pandemic.
PROTESTS One of the hottest debates during the session could center on proposals by Republican leaders to enhance penalties associated with violent protests, create new crimes when mobs attack property or police and make it difficult for cities to trim law-enforcement spending. The proposals have drawn criticism from Democrats who say they are unnecessary and divisive and could be used to squash peaceful assemblies. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES Senate Re-
publicans are backing a controversial proposal that would affect public-employee union dues, while also looking at possibly moving away from the state's traditional pension system for government workers. Unions have lined up to fight the union dues proposal, which would put additional requirements on the process for deducting dues from paychecks. The other proposal could shift new workers to a 401(k)-style system.
TAXES With Florida businesses pushing for the change, lawmakers are considering a proposal that would require out-of-state online retailers to collect sales taxes on purchases made by Floridians. Currently, retailers that have a physical presence in Florida must collect and remit sales taxes for items sold in the state. The bill seeks to put the same responsibility on retailers that don't have such a presence but sell products to Floridians. "Ten Big Issues To Watch During the 2021 Session" by Jim Saunders was originally published Monday, Feb. 22 by the News Service of Florida. News Service staff writer Christine Sexton also contributed to the report.
Ways to Keep Up
If you want to stay engaged during the 2021 session—and we hope you do—here are some resources we recommend.
Gary Fineout's Florida Playbook for Politico A weekday newsletter that
gives an informative rundown of politics throughout the state and includes links for further reading politico.com/newsletters/floridaplaybook
John Kennedy on Twitter
A reporter for the Gannett Capital Bureau twitter.com/jkennedyreport
Florida Politics A statewide media
platform covering campaigns, elections, government, policy and lobbying floridapolitics.com
Progress Florida A nonprofit organiza-
tion promoting progressive values through digital organizing, media outreach and collaborating with Florida's leading progressive organizations progressflorida.org
League of Women Voters of Florida (LWVFL) A nonpartisan
political organization that publishes regular "Capitol Reports" lwvfl.org
Contact Information We included Facebook links for everyone and Twitter for Andrade because he's pretty active on there. We also included email and street addresses in case you want to contact them about certain bills and votes during the session.
REP. ALEX ANDRADE
•facebook.com/votealexandrade •twitter.com/ralexandradefl •alex.andrade@myfloridahouse.gov •226 S. Palafox, Ste. 401B, Pensacola, FL 32502
REP. MICHELLE SALZMAN
•facebook.com/thepeoplesconservative •info@michellesalzmanforhouse.com •3101 W. Michigan Ave., Ste. G, Pensacola, FL 32526
REP. JAYER WILLIAMSON
•facebook.com/repjayerwilliamson •jayer.williamson@myfloridahouse.gov •4519 Woodbine Road, Pace, FL 32571
SEN. DOUG BROXSON
•facebook.com/dougbroxsonfl •broxson.doug.web@flsenate.gov •221 S. Palafox, Ste. 400, Pensacola, FL 32502 11
Great Flavors Fun Classes F E B R U A R Y FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26 Lunch & Learn: Oil & Vinegar Basics (vinegar, marinade, etc.) $30 Join us for an educational lunch on how to use olive oils and vinegars in your kitchen, featuring Bodacious oils and vinegars! M A R C H MONDAY, MARCH 1 Cast Iron Filet & Shrimp $65 Cooking in cast iron can be intimidating, but this class will show you how to make pan-seared filet alongside a fabulous shrimp dish! WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3 Soup & Salad Lunch & Learn $30 We will be featuring different soups and salads to make and eat throughout the evening! MONDAY, MARCH 8 Seafood & Stuffing Cooking Class $65 Join us at Bodacious as we learn the best tips and tricks for cooking the best that the Gulf has to offer! WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10 Date Night Class: Bouillabaisse for 2 (Charcuterie for 2 & Strawberry Shortcake for 2, pair of tickets for $90) $90 We will we teaching how to make this three-course romantic dinner for two guests as well as serving you the courses for a romantic dinner meal! FRIDAY, MARCH 12 St. Patrick’s Day Dinner $95 Enjoy five chef-curated courses to celebrate the best foods that the Irish have to offer! TUESDAY, MARCH 23 Heritage Cooking Class: Eastern European $65 We will be highlighting different dishes from all over Eastern Europe to create a fun and interactive cooking class experience!!
Always
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24 BBQ Beef Brisket & Chicken Cooking Class with special White BBQ Sauce (traditional sides) Lunch & Learn $30 This cooking class will be showing you all how to be the best pit master for BBQ in your own home! FRIDAY, MARCH 26 Crab Cake Lunch & Learn (on a bed of salad with a dessert) $30 This class will cover the art of cooking and enjoying crab cakes! WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31 Cast Iron Ribeye & Crab Cake $65 Learn how to master the art of cooking with a cast iron skillet! You will be a skilled surf and turf chef by the time the class has concluded! A P R I L FRIDAY, APRIL 2 Stuffed Lobster Tails with Lobster Risotto & Lobster Bisque $65 We will demonstrate how to utilize whole lobsters to make a luxurious lobster risotto topped with stuffed lobster tails and a delicious lobster bisque! MONDAY, APRIL 5 Brunch Favorites Lunch & Learn $30 We will be demonstrating how to create a wonderful brunch spread ranging from French Toast to decadent bacon and eggs! WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7 Hibachi Steak & Gulf Shrimp $65 Join us for our Steak & Shrimp Hibachi class and learn how to put on the best Hibachi menu from the comfort of your home kitchen! FRIDAY, APRIL 9 Ramen Lunch & Learn $30 Join us for a special lunch class featuring homemade Ramen!
MONDAY, APRIL 12 Cast Iron Ribeye & Crab Cake $65 Learn how to master the art of cooking with a cast iron skillet! You will be a skilled surf and turf chef by the time the class has concluded! WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14 Curry Cooking Class (kebabs, thai & Indian curry entrée) $65 In this class, Chef Nick will be demonstrate different ways to cook Thai & Indian curry! MONDAY, APRIL 19 Morel Mushroom Cooking Class $65 Learn how to cook this decadent mushroom at home! Spend an evening learning about the delectable and wild Morel mushrooms! Our Chefs will be demonstrating how to create a gorgeous dish made of Morel mushrooms and how to highlight the mushrooms flavor. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21 “Don’t Tell Grandma” Southern Vegan L&L $30 In this class, Chef Jernigan will be showcasing how to make decadent and delicious vegan food, with a Southern twist! MONDAY, APRIL 26 Carpaccio & Beef Wellington Class $65 The Chef’s at Bodacious are excited to demonstrate how to make this classic Beef Wellington at home! We will also be featuring Carpaccio as our first course of this class! WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28 Hungarian Cuisine Cooking Class $65 Chef Nick will be creating a three-course cooking class demonstration celebrating the cuisine of his heritage and showing you all how to make it from your own home!
bodaciousshops.com •
/BodaciousShops
Your health and safety remain our TOP priority. At Bodacious, all cooking classes are demonstration style (hands off) at this time. Food and beverage staff are practicing the highest safety standards with daily temperature readings and wearing medical-grade face masks and gloves at all times. Guests will remain at recommended distances while enjoying a gourmet meal, a delicious glass of wine and a fresh Bodacious cooking experience. Due to limited product availability during COVID, our Chef may have to make menu substitutions based on the availability. Cooking Class Cancellation Policy: Classes must meet a minimum of 10 reservations. We reserve the right to cancel and undersold classes will be rescheduled. Reservation fees will be refunded within 24 hours. Full refund if cancellation is 48 hours before the date of the event. If cancellation is not 48 hours before the event, you can transfer your credit to an upcoming class. You cannot receive a full refund after the 48-hour mark. Thank you for your understanding! 212 1
inweekly.net
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 25-MARCH 3
Arts & Encouragement hope, help and other signs of humanity at a time when we really need it...
A "Fearless" Voice By Savannah Evanoff
Kristie Tobias / Photo by Kate Treick Photography
Kristie Tobias has just lit a soft fragrance candle, is drinking wine from a coffee mug and is doing some work because, honestly, she just isn't feeling it. And she is totally cool with that. You should be, too. Tobias' new book, "Fearlessly Made You," is all about owning who you are and how you're feeling. "Let's be honest about the messiness and imperfections of life and not try to pretend you always have to have a quick fix or that you have to be perfect," Tobias said. "It's OK to sit in those imperfections. It's OK to feel frustrated. It's OK to feel exhausted. You have to own that." "Fearlessly Made You" isn't just the name of her book; Tobias is fearlessly made. In the book, she shares her experience with sexual assault and the post-traumatic stress disorder that came after. "There's that fear of a large portion of the story that's being told that's surrounding the post-traumatic stress disorder February 25, 2021
is about being attacked and raped by a person who still is out there living," Tobias said. "We tried prosecuting but it didn't work. There's parts of me that could be afraid of that, but the part where I'm at in my life now, I'm like, 'Nope, there are other people out there who are literally living in that moment right now.'" Tobias hopes telling her story will help get them out of it. She told Inweekly writing the book was cathartic for her. "There were so many memories that for so long I held deep in my heart or so many things that made me bitter," Tobias said. "And to tell a story, you have to release some of that bitterness." Tobias has always spoken up. She has spoken on stage since she was a teenager competing in pageants but never about topics close to her heart, she said. "The older I got, the more I felt the need to share the story about my posttraumatic stress disorder and about the
situations that surrounded it," Tobias said. "In doing that, I found that people appreciated the vulnerability; they appreciated a story that looked like theirs being told." Tobias started not only speaking it but writing it—in blog form. Many of the stories in her book originated there. She and her mother, Jackie Tobias, made feedback a key factor in deciding whether to write a book. "Speaking your story and being on stage for like an hour, two hours, people are energized and excited, and the response is different than when someone is sitting in their home, maybe in a really dark place, and reading a story that is either resonating with them or causing a trigger," Tobias said. "The resounding feedback I received from people was, 'This story speaks to me right now in this moment.'" Tobias said hearing her story resonated with people in other stages of life was also encouraging. "It's more than just the PTSD," Tobias said. "I want to break the mold of what people think PTSD looks like. I want to break apart the mold of what people think trauma looks like— now especially. I think we are all going through a period of trauma. We use the word 'trauma' to personify this major event, and we forget that life in and of itself can be traumatizing— and also something to celebrate." When Indie River Publishing offered to publish a book she wrote, that was the ultimate deciding factor. She spent two weeks with her parents in North Carolina, where she is originally from, writing the beginning of the book in July of 2019. A lot of people don't realize she wrote the book in 2019. "There's a lot of people who have said, 'Oh, I guess it's what you did during COVID,'" Tobias said. "I was like, 'No, this was written well before COVID.' Book two will be a totally different book." She finished the book in October of 2019, and it was released earlier this month. Her parents have read it and loved it. "There are some moments in the book that my mom didn't know," Tobias said. "She said she cried, and she said there were moments that made her question for herself, 'Did I do the right things as a mom?' But she said it perfectly, 'The fact that this is coming out says I did.'" Her mother was much of the inspiration. She came to the U.S. from Jamaica when she was 17 and faced discrimination.
"It took her until we were grown to find her footing, start really understanding her own voice, even though, ironically, she instilled it in us because she couldn't find it for herself," Tobias said. "She has inspired me and motivated me because throughout my entire life, she never allowed me to think that I was less than or incapable or that the struggles and the trauma were more than me. She always pushed me to remember who I am and whose I am and to be comfortable being uncomfortable but don't dwell in that place. And push forward because no one else is going to push forward except for you." Her parents also influenced the title. While the book is not inherently spiritual, the title is based on a Bible verse they read to her, Psalm 139:14, "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful; I know that full well." "My parents always told us, 'You were made to be just exactly who you were, so be OK with that," Tobias said. "The song, 'Fearless,' by Jasmine Murray, that started playing over and over a lot when I was thinking about writing the blog. My mom and I were thinking about what the title should be; it started playing and we were like, 'That's it, "Fearlessly Made You,"' because the conversation around her song is fearless, and it's not saying you're without fear; it's that you don't allow fear to own you." That thought resonated with Tobias, even when choosing the book cover. The photo was taken by Kate Treik when Tobias was the keynote speaker at Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast's Pursue Your Passion conference. "I call it my sexy girl outfit," Tobias said. "There are so many photos, and almost every single photo in that dress was amazing. It was only fitting that if I'm going to be this fearless woman, I should have that fearless, sexy picture be the cover." Tobias hopes the book will help readers embrace their fearlessness, too. "I hope it will show people your life is your life," Tobias said. "You are responsible for owning your journey, and you don't need to live in this comparison in trying to think someone else's journey is your journey as well. You are the only person who was meant to live your life. So own that and be OK with that." {in} For more with Kristie Tobias and details on purchasing a copy of "Fearlessly Made You: Surviving and Thriving in a Perfectly Imperfect Life," visit fearlesslymadeyou.com/book. 13
a&e happenings jazzpensacola.com. Only original art and handmade crafts will be accepted. No commercial/ mass-produced products will be accepted. All entries are $200 for a 10-by-10-foot canopy or smaller. All fees go to support Pensacola JazzFest, a free event for the community. For more information, call Jazz Pensacola administrator Alice Crann Good at (850) 433-8382, Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m.-1 p.m., or visit jazzpensacola.com.
ARTISTS/GRAPHIC DESIGNERS: 2021 JAZZFEST POSTER Jazz Pensacola in-
Attending "normal" events might not be happening yet—but that doesn't mean local businesses and nonprofits aren't still keeping the community connected in creative ways.
NONPROFITS + FUNDRAISERS
GULF COAST KID'S HOUSE EAST HILL YARD SALE Gulf Coast Kid's House
(GCKH) is hosting the first ever East Hill Yard Sale from 8 a.m.-noon, Saturday, Feb. 27. The sale is free to attend. Vendor spots are available for a suggested donation of $25. Any unsold items can be donated to Teen Challenge. Pensacola EggFest will be grilling up tasty grub for purchase. Funds raised allow GCKH to help child victims of abuse. To become a vendor, email outreach@gulfcoastkidshouse.org. For more information, visit gulfcoastkidshouse.org.
PENSACOLA HABITAT FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL RETURNS IN MARCH Pen-
sacola Habitat for Humanity will be hosting their fifth annual award-winning Pensacola Habitat Food Truck Festival on Friday, March 12, and Saturday, March 13, at Community Maritime Park, located at 351 W. Cedar St. Pensacola Habitat for Humanity has been working hard to plan a safe, unique event during these difficult times in order to continue raising funds to support their mission of building homes, communities and hope in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. Each week, Pensacola Habitat will release a "habi-hint," or clue, to the public regarding exciting, new elements of the festival. Participants will be entered into weekly drawings to win various prizes. Visit Pensacola Habitat's Facebook page, facebook.com/pensacolahabitat, for more information.
$108,000 AVAILABLE FOR 2021 SUNDAY'S CHILD GRANTS Sunday's Child
held its annual Kickoff Event on Thursday, Jan. 21, via a COVID-safe virtual meeting. This year, there will be four grants awarded for $27,000 each, for a total of $108,000 raised by 161 members. These grants will be bestowed to nonprofit organizations 414 1
that place value on diversity, inclusion and equality within the Pensacola Bay Area. Sunday's Child will award the four grants of $27,000 in June. Letters of intent may be submitted now through Feb. 24, 2021. For further information, visit sundayschild.org. To learn more about Sunday's Child, donate or apply for a grant, visit sundayschild.org. Send press inquiries to press@ sundayschild.org.
HELP PENSACOLA HUMANE 'FUND THE FELINES' Help the Pensacola Hu-
mane Society prepare for kitten season by donating to the Fund the Felines campaign now through Feb. 28. The goal is to raise nearly $35,000 to help 500 neonate and juvenile kittens through their vulnerable early weeks of life. The kittens will be cared for by volunteer fosters who are dedicated to giving them a healthy start and preparing them for future adoption. Donations of cash can be made online at pensacolahumane.org by clicking on Fund the Felines. The online event will also feature educational posts on raising kittens and information on how you can become a foster. Among the supplies needed are food, formula, bottles, blankets, carriers, scales, litter boxes and toys. The PHS wish list can be found on our website, and supplies may be dropped off at the shelter, located at 5 N. Q St., during normal business hours.
CAT AND KITTEN ADOPTIONS Animal Allies will be hosting cat and kitten adoptions Saturday, Feb. 27, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., at Pet Supermarket, 6857 N. Ninth Ave. Visit aaflorida.org for more information.
CALL TO ARTISTS
VENDORS AND CRAFT EXHIBITORS FOR JAZZ PENSACOLA 2021 Jazz Pen-
sacola is calling arts and crafts exhibitors to submit applications for the 2021 Pensacola JazzFest planned for May 15-16 at Seville Square in historic downtown Pensacola. Application forms can be downloaded at
vites fine artists/graphic designers to submit renderings for the official 2021 Pensacola JazzFest poster. The commission is $500. Submissions should conform to a vertical orientation using a ratio that will fit, with margin, on a final poster size of 18 inches wide by 24 inches high. All content must be the submitter's original creation and must be unpublished. The submitter must have all rights to images and graphics used in the final artwork and during the design process. The poster must include the name of the festival—2021 Pensacola JazzFest. The festival event information, including date, location, sponsors and any additional information, will be added to the poster in the graphic production process. There is no need to include this information within the artwork. Any mixed media suitable for twodimensional mechanical reproduction is allowed, including both hand-drawn and computer-generated graphics. Rough drafts or sketches can be submitted, but, if selected, the final art must conform to the submitted draft or sketch. Substantial deviation from the submitted sketch or draft will result in forfeiture by the artist of the cash prize and the selection of a new winner by Jazz Pensacola. Submissions must be in low-res (72 ppi) JPEG format and emailed to info@ jazzpensacola.com. There is no limit to the number of entries by a single artist. Each entry must include the artist's name, address, email and telephone number. The submission deadline is March 8, 2021. If selected, the completed art deadline is April 19, 2021. For more information, visit jazzpensacola.com.
FOO FOO FEST GRANT APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN Pensacola's Foo Foo
Festival officially announced its plans for its seventh annual events, taking place Nov. 4-15, 2021. In 2021, 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 $315,000 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 participate as "Friends of Foo," receiving visibility at the 12-day event. To apply for this year's Foo Foo Festival, visit foofoofest.com. The Foo Foo Fest team will continue to
monitor developments surrounding COVID-19 leading up to November's events and will fully cooperate with any instructions heeded for Escambia County by local and state officials and the CDC. The Foo Foo Fest grant application is Friday, April 30, 2021. On Wednesday, May 12, 2021, there will be an announcement of the public grant scoring. For more information, visit foofoofest.com.
ARTS & CULTURE
CELTIC WOMAN CELEBRATION Gram-
my-nominated, multi-platinum international music group Celtic Woman will perform at Saenger Theatre on Thursday, Feb. 25, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $42 and up. If you purchased a ticket for a 2020 tour date that was postponed, it will be honored. For more information, visit pensacolasaenger.com.
EVOLVE 'N THRIVE THIRD ANNUAL GAY…LA The third annual Gay…la hosted
by Evolve 'n Thrive events will be Saturday, Feb. 27, at the Sanders Beach-Corinne Jones Resource Center, located at 913 S. I St. Performers include Raven Samore, Monica Heart, Wyntier Kandiey, Sunny Daze, Alastina Jade Samore and Snowy Marie. Tickets are $49 each and help support more inclusive events in the South. For more information, visit evolventhrive.com.
PENSACOLA LITTLE THEATRE PRESENTS: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM PLT will present a family-friendly
version of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" 7:30 p.m. on March 5-6, March 11-12, and March 18-20 and 3 p.m. on March 7, 14 and 21 at Pensacola Little Theatre, 400 S. Jefferson St. Tickets are $16-$31. On Thursdays, tickets are half price. Streaming is also available. For more information, visit pensacolalittletheatre.com.
OPEN BOOKS BOOKSTORE & PRISON BOOK PROJECT Open Books will have several thousand books on sale Saturday, March 6, starting at 10 a.m. Individual titles are $1, or fill a whole bag for $5. Open Books is located at 1040 N. Guillemard St. For more information, visit facebook.com/ openbooksbookstore.
GALLERY 1060 MEMBERS' SHOW First City Art's annual Members Show will be on display March 18-May 1 featuring works of art from past, present and future FCAC members and staff. A virtual reception will take place in April. For more information, visit gallery1060.com.
PENSACOLA OPERA: H.M.S. PINAFORE Pensacola Opera's latest production will debut Friday, March 12, at 7:30 p.m. at the Saenger Theatre with a matinee Sunday, March 14, at 2 p.m. Due to social-distancing measures, limited seating is available for our mainstage shows this season. Inperson performance tickets are only available for this event by calling the Pensacola Opera office at 433-6737.
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a&e happenings A special Director's Champagne Brunch will be 11:45 a.m. Sunday, March 14. Tickets available online. Unable to join in person? Purchase tickets for the live stream experience. For more information, visit pensacolaopera.com.
THE CHORAL SOCIETY OF PENSACOLA PRESENTS: SONGS OF IRELAND, SCOTLAND AND WALES Just in time for St. Patrick's Day, the Choral Society presents a program featuring traditional and contemporary Irish songs, as well as music from neighboring Scotland and Wales. The performance is set for Saturday, March 13, at 2 p.m. in the parking garage of 316, Inc. (316 S. Baylen St.). Admission to the half-hour program is free, but donations are welcome. Bring your own seating. Masks and distancing are required for audience members. For more information, visit choralsocietyofpensacola.org.
PENSACON RESCHEDULED FOR MAY 21-23 After extensive consultation with
partner venues, Pensacon organizers have announced the convention will now take place May 21-23. To ensure safety, attendees will be required to wear face coverings while on all Pensacon grounds and within all Pensacon venues, outside of designated, distanced eating spaces. Among other precautions, handsanitizing stations will be set up throughout
the convention, and social distancing policies, including seating/capacity limitations at some venues, will be employed. For those who have already purchased tickets for the original February dates, your tickets are already rolled over to the new dates. For those who are unable to attend in May, your unused tickets will be rolled over to Pensacon 2022, which is expected to return to the convention's usual February timeframe. Those who still need tickets can get them at pensacon.com. Weekend passes, which include admission for all three days of the convention, are $80. Single-day tickets are available at a cost of $35 for Friday, May 21; $45 for Saturday, May 22; and $40 for Sunday, May 23. VIP Experience weekend passes are $155 and include early admission to the Pensacola Bay Center, preferred seating at panel venues, front-ofline privileges for celebrity autographs and photo ops, and exclusive T-shirt, spaceavailable parking and other perks. Additional taxes and fees apply to all tickets. For a complete list of guests scheduled to appear, visit pensacon.com.
STAND-UP COMEDY AT THE REX THEATRE Visit The REX Theatre every
Friday at 8 p.m. for national stand up acts. Tickets are $26-$35 at the door. For more information, visit rexpensacola.com.
COMEDY MAGIC SHOW AT THE REX THEATRE Comedy magician Tom Coverly,
known as "The Illusionist," performs Saturday nights at The Rex Theatre, located at 18 N. Palafox. Shows start at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10-$35. For more information, visit rexpensacola.com.
ON VIEW AT THE PENSACOLA MUSEUM OF ART "Youth Art Focus" will be
on display through Feb. 28. "Antarctica" is another new exhibition on view through April 4 at the downstairs gallery. Other exhibitions include "Pretty/Ugly" the UWF BFA exit show of Madisen Pooton and "In Memoriam," from Panhandle Slim, which honors the lives of Ensign Joshua Kaleb Watson, Airman Mohammed Haitham and Airman Cameron Walters, who were killed in a terrorist attack at Naval Air Station Pensacola. For more information and hours of operation, visit pensacolamuseum.org.
NEW EXHIBITIONS AT ARTEL GALLERY Three new exhibitions will be on display at Artel Gallery through Feb. 25. In the main gallery is "Celebrating Diversity" with various artists. In the vault is "Black Arts Matter" from artists Carter J., Kenneth Burrell, Ashley Gibson, Alys Richardson and Bobby Booker. And in the alcove is "Shadowland" by Diane Collins. For more information and hours of operation, visit artelgallery.org.
GREAT GULFCOAST ARTS FESTIVAL 2020 LIMITED-EDITION POSTER AVAILABLE ONLINE With the cancel-
lation of this year's Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival due to COVID-19, the festival committee invited local artist Kreg Yingst to create a poster for 2020 in his original woodcut print design. The 250 limited-edition posters are each signed and numbered by the artist. Festival posters have become a local collector's item and are available online this year only. The posters are available at ggaf.org for $27, including shipping and sales tax. Yingst, a long-time GGAF artist, received his B.A. from Trinity University in San Antonio after attending the University of Texas and his M.A. in painting from Eastern Illinois University. After graduation, he taught art for 13 years and has been a full-time artist since 2003. The Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival returns Nov. 5, 6 and 7, 2021, at Seville Square, Fountain Park, Bartram Park and Museum Plaza in Downtown Pensacola.
DRAG SHOWS AT DOLCE AND GELATO Head to Dolce and Gelato, located at 2050 N. 12th Ave., for regular drag shows. The next date is Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/dolcegelatopensacola
PENSACOLA OPERA AL FRESCO
Pensacola Opera's outdoor live concerts
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a&e happenings are Saturdays at 2 p.m. in the UWF Historic Trust Museum Plaza. For more information, visit pensacolaopera.com.
OPERALIVE: THROWBACK THURSDAYS Take a walk down memory lane with
friends of the Pensacola Opera. Learn more about the craft and look back on past productions with live discussions on Facebook Live Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. Viewers are encouraged to join in the conversation. Tune in at facebook.com/pensacolaopera.
NEW CLASSES AT MIXON MAGIC PERFORMING ARTS Mixon Magic Per-
forming 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 well-being 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
616 1
contacting hello@mixonmagic.com or emily@mixonmagic.com or by calling 221-7438.
NOW SHOWING AT PENSACOLA CINEMA ART New films coming soon
to Pensacola Cinema Art at the Studer Community Institute building, 220 W. Garden St. Admission is $7. Face masks are required, and there will be 50% maximum seating capacity. Tickets can be reserved by calling or texting 863-446-7300 or emailing jpncinema@gmail.com. For more information, visit pensacolacinemaart.com.
BLACK CITIZENSHIP IN THE AGE OF JIM CROW On view at Voices of Pensacola
is "Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow," a traveling exhibition from the New York Historical Society Museum & Library with additions from the African American Heritage Society of Pensacola. To learn more about it, visit africanamericanheritagesociety.org. Voices of Pensacola is located at 117 E. Government St. and open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
CRAFT CLASSES AT STUDIO SOUTH ON NINE MILE Learn a new craft or meet
up with other makers at Studio South. Tuesday is Knit Night 4-7 p.m., and Sit & Stitch is Saturdays 11 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.
CLASSES AND WORKSHOPS AT FIRST CITY ART First City Art Center of-
fers a wide 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.
GALLERY NIGHT PENSACOLA PRESENTS: ARTIST TALKS Join Gallery Night
N. 12th Ave., for live music from Pat Meusel at 4 p.m. on Saturdays, March 6 and 27 and April 3. For more information, visit facebook.com/dolcegelatopensacola.
LOCAL MUSICIAN JAM Enjoy live tunes for local artists while enjoying handmade gelato at Dolce and Gelato, Saturday, March 13, starting at 6 p.m. For more information, visit facebook.com/dolcegelatopensacola.
Director Sydney Robinson as she interviews Pensacola area artists about their creative process. The Artist Talks series is a biweekly virtual event available on Facebook Live. Join in by visiting facebook.com/ gallerynightpensacola.
CURT BOL JAZZ QUARTET Visit Five
SUNDAYS ON THE MEZZANINE Enjoy
Gallery is open from 5-7 p.m. Wednesdays and 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.
a full-length concert series on select Sundays at 3 p.m. on Facebook. Tickets are $9.99 and can be purchased online at facebook.com/pensacolaopera.
LIVE MUSIC
JORDAN RICHARDS AT ODD COLONY Local musician Jordan Richards will be performing at Odd Colony Brewing Co. from 7-10 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27. Masks are required. For more information, visit facebook.com/oddcolony.
PAT MEUSEL AT DOLCE AND GELATO Head to Dolce and Gelato, located at 2050
Sisters 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
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. 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.
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a&e happenings MONDAY NIGHT BLUES AT SEVILLE QUARTER Seville Quarter and the Blues
Society 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 Me-
lodious 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
KEEP PENSACOLA BEAUTIFUL THIRD ANNUAL COMMUNI-TEE CUP
Keep Pensacola Beautiful (KPB) is hosting their third annual Communi-Tee Cup fundraiser at Goofy Golf, located at 3924 W. Navy Blvd., Thursday, Feb. 25, from 5:30-8:30 pm. This year's Communi-Tee Cup will feature three food trucks, a snack bar with a keg donated from Big Top Brewery and lots of drawing prizes from local businesses. Trophies will be awarded to the first, second and third place teams. Individual and Team tickets are on sale now. Each ticket includes a round of mini-golf, a drawing ticket and a drink ticket. Individual tickets are $25, and team tickets are $90 for four-player admission. All proceeds will benefit KPB's youth education programs like the Youth Advisory Council, Waste-In-Place activities for students in K-eighth grades and online resources for distance learning. Masks will be required and sanitization stations will be available throughout this event. For more information, visit keeppensacolabeautiful.org/communi-tee-cup.
2021 SUN BELT CONFERENCE The 2021
Sun Belt Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships will be held Friday, March 5-Monday, March 8, at the Pensacola Bay Center, located at 201 E. Gregory St. Individual tickets are on sale through ticketmaster.com. Per COVID-19 protocols, fans attending must wear a facial covering, and seating at the Pensacola Bay Center will be at 50% arena capacity for each tournament session. A free trolley will run around Downtown Pensacola on Saturday and Sunday, stopping at 12 host bars dedicated to each team. On Sunday, March 7, a special "Fan Fest" event will take place outside the Bay Center from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. with food and drink, games and activities planned. For more information visit sunbeltsports.org.
BLUE WAHOOS ANNOUNCE 2021 SCHEDULE The 2021 season schedule for
the Pensacola Blue Wahoos begins in May. Under the new Professional Development License system through Major League Baseball, the Blue Wahoos will play as part of the Double-A South league. The league will adopt a six-game series February 25, 2021
format in 2021 with teams playing TuesdaySunday each week. Mondays will serve as a league-wide off day to facilitate team travel. Stadium capacity limits are expected to be implemented to ensure fan safety during the 2021 season and will be announced leading up to the season. Game times and the team's promotional schedule will be released at a later date. For tickets, visit bluewahoos.com. UPCOMING HOME GAMES: •May 11-16 vs Birmingham Barons •May 18-23 vs Rocket City Trash Pandas •June 1-6 vs Mississippi Braves •June 15-20 vs Montgomery Biscuits •June 29-July 4 vs Biloxi Shuckers
RELEASE & RENEW AT FITNESS IMPACT TRAINING At 8:15 a.m. on
Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, release into a yin yoga flow centered around low-stress training for high-stress individuals. The focus will be on the basics of breath and openness in the shoulders, hips and spine. For more info, go to mindandmetta.online. Cost is $12 per class, and the location is 375 N. Ninth Ave., Ste. B. Limited space available. Ask about membership pricing.
GULF COAST BREWERY RUN Thurs-
days at 6 p.m., join Pensacola Runners Association for a 5K fun run. Enjoy a free beer after the run and complimentary games such as cornhole, ping pong and more. Gulf Coast Brewery is located at 500 E. Heinberg St. For more information, visit facebook.com/gulfcoastbrewery.
OCEAN HOUR BEACH CLEAN-UPS
Ocean Hour has picked up its weekly beach clean-ups in the Pensacola area Saturdays at 8:45 a.m. On Saturday, Jan. 30, volunteers will be at Philip A. Payne Bridge. Supplies will be provided, but volunteers are welcome to bring their own. For locations, visit oceanhourfl.com.
BEER GARDEN YOGA Join Coastal County Brewing Company Saturdays at 9 a.m. for the new Yoga in the Garden Series. Classes will be led by Tara Taylor, a highly experienced instructor from Breathe Pensacola. All skill levels are welcome. Cost is $10 and includes a pint of beer after the class. Coastal County Brewing Company is located at 3041 E. Olive Road. For more information, visit facebook.com/coastalcounty. SOUL FLOW YOGA AT BEAUTIFUL YOU STUDIO Every Tuesday at 7 a.m., flow
and vibe with some soulful music to start the day. This hour-long class will center around engaging the core through smooth yet strong yoga sequences. Cost is $10 per class or $99 for an unlimited 30-day pass. Located at 513 W. Intendencia St. For more info, go to mindandmetta.online.
for more listings visit inweekly.net 17
free will astrology WEEK OF FEBRUARY 25 ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19): I invite
you to think about one or two types of physical discomforts and symptoms that your body seems most susceptible to. Meditate on the possibility that there are specific moods or feelings associated with those discomforts and symptoms—perhaps either caused by them or the cause of them. The next step is to formulate an intention to monitor any interactions that might transpire between the bodily states and emotional states. Then make a plan for how you will address them both with your own healing power whenever they visit you in the future.
TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): Poet Billy Collins describes "standing on the edge of a lake on a moonlit night and the light of the moon is always pointing straight at you." I have high hopes that your entire life will be like that in the coming weeks: that you'll feel as if the world is alive with special messages just for you; that every situation you're in will feel like you belong there; that every intuition welling up from your subconscious mind into your conscious awareness will be specifically what you need at the moment it arrives. GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): You're en-
tering a potentially heroic phase of your astrological cycle. The coming weeks will be a time when I hope you will be motivated to raise your integrity and impeccability to record levels. To inspire you, I've grabbed a few affirmations from a moral code reputed to be written by a 14th-century Samurai warrior. Try saying them, and see if they rouse you to make your good character even better. 1. "I have no divine power; I make honesty my divine power." 2. "I have no miracles; I make right action my miracle." 3. "I have no enemy; I make carelessness my enemy." 4. "I have no designs; I make 'seizing opportunity' my design." 5. "I have no magic secrets; I make character my magic secret." 6. "I have no armor; I make benevolence and righteousness my armor."
CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): "The only way to live is by accepting each minute as an unrepeatable miracle," writes Cancerian
GRAPHIC NOVELS
By Rob Brezsny
author and Buddhist teacher Jack Kornfield. I disagree with him. There are many other modes of awareness that can be useful as we navigate our labyrinthine path through this crazy world. Regarding each minute as an opportunity to learn something new, for instance: That's an excellent way to live. Or, for another example, treating each minute as another chance to creatively express our love. But I do acknowledge that Kornfield's approach is sublime and appealing. And I think it will be especially apropos for you during the coming weeks.
cal point of view, now is the right time to schedule an appointment for a consultation with your favorite healer, even if just by Zoom. In addition, I urge you to consult a soul doctor for a complete metaphysical check-up. Chances are that your mental health is in fair shape, too. But right now it's not enough for your body and soul to be merely adequate; they need to receive intense doses of well-wrought love and nurturing. So I urge you to ask for omens and signs and dreams about what precisely you can do to treat yourself with exquisite care.
LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22): The coming
SCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): "Love
weeks will be a poignant and healing time for you to remember the people in your life who have died—as well as ancestors whom you never met or didn't know well. They have clues to offer you, rich feelings to nourish you with, course corrections to suggest. Get in touch with them through your dreams, meditations and reminiscences. Now read this inspiration from poet Rainer Maria Rilke— "They, who passed away long ago, still exist in us, as predisposition, as burden upon our fate, as murmuring blood, and as gesture that rises up from the depths of time." (Translation from the German by Stephen Mitchell.)
VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22): I'm fond of
18th-century Virgo painter Quentin de La Tour. Why? 1. He specialized in creating portraits that brought out his subjects' charm and intelligence. 2. As he grew wealthier, he became a philanthropist who specialized in helping poor women and artists with disabilities. 3. While most painters of his era did self-portraits that were solemn, even ponderous, de La Tour's self-portraits showed him smiling and good-humored. 4. Later in his life, when being entirely reasonable was no longer a top priority, de La Tour enjoyed conversing with trees. In accordance with the astrological omens, I propose that we make him your patron saint for now. I hope you'll be inspired to tap into your inner Quentin de la Tour.
LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): I'm not saying there's anything wrong with your overall health, Libra. In fact, I expect it's probably quite adequate. But from an astrologi-
commands a vast army of moods," writes author Diane Ackerman. "Frantic and serene, vigilant and calm, wrung-out and fortified, explosive and sedate." This fact of life will be prominently featured in your life during the coming weeks. Now is a fertile time to expand your understanding of how eros and romance work when they're at their best—and to expand your repertoire of responses to love's rich challenges. Don't think of it as a tough test; imagine it as an interesting research project.
SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC. 21):
Sagittarian poet and visual artist William Blake (1757–1827) cultivated a close relationship with lofty thoughts and mystical visions. He lived with his wife Catherine for the last 45 years of his life, but there were times when he was so preoccupied with his amazing creations that he neglected his bond with her. Catherine once said, "I have very little of Mr. Blake's company. He is always in Paradise." I hope that you won't be like that in the coming weeks. Practical matters and intimate alliances need more of your attention than usual. Consider the possibility, at least for now, of spending less time in paradise and more on earth.
ized beliefs. In fact, it's quite possible that if we invite poetry to retrain our perceptions, we will develop a more tolerant and inclusive perspective toward everything. I'm telling you this, Capricorn, because whether or not you read a lot of poetry in the coming weeks, it will be wise and healthy for you to celebrate, not just tolerate, how paradoxical and mysterious the world is.
AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18): The
coming weeks will be a favorable time to shed old habits that waste your energy, and create constructive new habits that will serve you well for months and years to come. To inspire and guide your efforts, I offer these thoughts from author and naturalist Henry David Thoreau—"As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives."
PISCES (FEB. 19-MARCH 20): Piscean
author Anais Nin was a maestro of metamorphosis, a virtuoso of variation, an adept at alteration. She regarded her ceaseless evolution as a privilege and luxury, not an oppressive inconvenience. "I take pleasure in my transformations," she wrote. "I look quiet and consistent, but few know how many women there are in me." Her approach is a healthy model for most of you Pisceans—and will be especially worth adopting in the coming weeks. I invite you to be a Change Specialist whose nickname is Flux Mojo. THIS WEEK'S HOMEWORK: Complete this sentence—"Sooner or later the pandemic will lose its power to limit us. When it does, I will _______________."
CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19): Poet
Robert Graves regarded the ambiguity of poetry as a virtue, not a problem. In his view, poetry's inscrutability reflects life's true nature. As we read its enigmatic ideas and feelings, we may be inspired to understand that experience is too complex to be reduced to simplistic descriptions and overgeneral-
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news of the weird IT'S A DOG'S LIFE Bill Dorris, a successful Nashville, Tennessee, businessman, was 84 years old when he passed away late last year, WTVF-TV reported, leaving $5 million to his beloved 8-year-old border collie, Lulu. Dorris, who was unmarried and traveled frequently, often left Lulu in the care of his friend Martha Burton, 88, who will continue to keep the dog and will be reimbursed for reasonable monthly expenses from the trust established for Lulu by the will. Burton was chill about the whole thing: "I don't really know what to think about it to tell you the truth," she said. "He just really loved that dog." ANNALS OF EDUCATION Concordia University student Aaron Asuini wanted to ask a question in the online art history class he was taking, but when he tried to reach out to the lecturer, Francois-Marc Gagnon, he couldn't find any contact information in the school's portal. So he Googled the professor's name—and found an obituary. The Verge reported Gagnon passed away in March 2019, and although the course syllabus listed someone else as the class's official instructor, it also noted that Gagnon would be the lecturer. A Concordia spokesperson expressed regret at the misunderstanding, but Asuini is still unsettled about it: "I don't really even want to watch the lectures anymore. ... I think it lacked tact and respect for this teacher's life." AWESOME! Appalachian Bear Rescue is on the lookout for a wild mother bear to foster three newborn cubs found in the crawl space under a home in Sevier County, Tennessee, according to United Press International. Utility workers called to the home on Feb. 13 to repair a gas leak found the "ample caboose of a very large snoozing bear" when they entered the crawl space under the house, the wildlife agency said. "There was no way to safely repair the gas line while the bear was in residence," so wildlife officials tempted the bear out of her den but found three babies had been left behind. They will remain with Appalachian Bear Rescue until a foster mom is found. NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH Homeowners in the Quail Hollow neighborhood of Charlotte, North Carolina, have been frustrated by a mail thief since late 2020, so when Lacy Hayes spotted a car lurking near his mailbox on Feb. 11 and saw the driver, who appeared to be an elderly woman, reach inside it, he took action. Hayes reached through the driver's window and removed the keys from the ignition. The woman hit him with her cellphone, so he took that too, called 911, then took a picture of the driver and the tags, The Charlotte Observer reported. The driver got away, but neighbor
By the Editors at Andrews McMeel
Nicole Kern got online and, using Hayes' photo and facial recognition software, soon found a match—a man, wanted in Greenville, South Carolina. Neighbors rejoiced when a man with the same name was booked into the Mecklenburg County jail on Feb. 13 on a fugitive extradition warrant and a charge of resisting a law enforcement officer. Police declined to comment on whether the man is also a suspect in the mail thefts. The unnamed criminal was held on $2 million bail. DESPERATE TIMES Police in the Ukrainian village of Hrybova Rudnya determined that the unnamed man who called them Feb. 13 and confessed to seriously injuring his stepfather, made the call in order to get the road in front of his house cleared of snow. Police spokeswoman Yulia Kovtun told the BBC the man insisted that officers would need special equipment to get to him because of the snow, but when police arrived, they found no assault or murder, and the road had already been cleared by a tractor. The man was charged with filing a false report and fined. LEAST COMPETENT CRIMINAL Robert Joseph Hallick of Chattanooga, Tennessee, was arrested Feb. 11 and charged with perjury, forgery and identity theft after applying for a handgun permit using former President Barack Obama's name, according to court documents. The arrest report also said his application included a letter with a United States of America seal and U.S. Department of State letterhead, along with a $50 check, WTVC-TV reported. In November, Hallick had been denied a handgun permit under his own name due to an active warrant for his arrest in Michigan. WEIRD HISTORY In an auction in Chesapeake City, Maryland, that closed on Feb. 8, a white wooden toilet seat pilfered from Adolf Hitler's retreat in the Bavarian Alps sold for about $18,750, The Sun reported. Ragnvald C. Borch, a U.S. soldier who spoke German and French, was one of the first to arrive at the Berghof at the end of World War II. His senior officers told him to "get what you want" from the damaged property, so Borch grabbed a toilet seat and shipped it home to New Jersey, where he displayed it in his basement. Bill Panagopulos of Alexander Auctions said, "This was as close to a 'throne' as the dictator would ever get." Borch's son put the "trophy" up for auction; the buyer was not identified. {in}
From Andrews McMeel Syndication News Of The Weird © 2021 Andrews McMeel
Send your weird news items to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com February 25, 2021
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Independent News | February 25, 2021 | inweekly.net