VOLUME 7 ISSUE 36
Indonesian Extravaganza Night
$3
Page A4
September 4 - 10 2026
“RENT” comes to The Civic
A lasting legacy of service
One of the longest running musicals in Broadway history remains relevant today.
Former Police Chief Samuel “Sam” Williams passes away in Ocala at age 79. By Susan Smiley-Height susan@magnoliamediaco.com
Former Ocala Police Chief Samuel “Sam” Williams [Photo courtesy OPD]
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amuel “Sam” Williams has been described as a man of integrity, visionary leadership and community service. Williams was named Chief of Police for the Ocala Police Department in 2003. He served in the position until 2011. He passed away in Ocala on Aug. 28 at the age of 79. According to information posted on the OPD Facebook page in February, in honor of Black History Month, Williams was the second African American to hold the position of chief in more than 120 years. The first was Burrell Dawkins, who served as town marshal from 1869 to 1881 and lost his life in the line of duty. Williams, a Vietnam War veteran, began his career with the Miami-Dade Police Department in 1971, where he held numerous leadership positions. Later, he served as the assistant county manager before transitioning to Ocala, the post noted. During his tenure as chief, Williams modernized OPD’s technology systems, secured more than $1 million in grants and prioritized staff development by supporting participation in leadership programs, including the FBI Academy. See A lasting legacy, page A6
Hailee Barrett, left, and Iyanna Lynell, right, dance together as they rehearse a scene from “RENT” at the Ocala Civic Theatre in Ocala, Fla. on Sept. 1, 2026. The play runs from Sept. 3-20. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2026.
By Susan Smiley-Height susan@magnoliamediaco.com
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ome stage performances continue to resonate with audiences even years after the first opening curtain and final closing act. That has been the case with “RENT.” The Pulitzer Prize-winning rock musical created by composer Jonathan Larson was inspired by the even more time-honored “La Bohème,” the 1896 opera by Giacomo Puccini, which, according to britannica. com, depicts the “tragic romance of bohemian youths in Paris.”
The play, the site notes, was recognized for raising national awareness about issues related to poverty, addiction, gentrification and the AIDS epidemic. It celebrates the lives of a group of young, racially diverse, LGBTQ artists and activists in New York City’s East Village. On Jan. 25, 1996, Larson died of an aortic aneurysm at age 35, hours before the first preview at the Off-Broadway New York Theatre Workshop, where he had developed the musical. It was an immediate critical and commercial success and became a pop culture phenomenon. It opened on Broadway for a run of 5,123 performances,
making it one of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history, the site notes. And now, “RENT” is coming to the Ocala Civic Theatre, or The Civic, from Sept. 3-20. “Through seasons of love. Set in the vibrant East Village of New York City from 1989 to 1990, Jonathan Larson’s iconic rock musical follows a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive, dream and create under the shadow of HIV/AIDS,” according to materials provided by The Civic. See “RENT” comes to The Civic, page A8
The math isn’t mathing
School board’s financial challenges piling up on workshop agenda. By Jennifer Hunt jennifer@ocalagazette.com
M
arion County Public School officials are facing a complex financial and logistical puzzle as they scramble to balance uneven student growth, a shifting
demographic landscape and a massive multimillion-dollar state voucher program that redirects taxpayer funds to private and at-home learning with virtually no public oversight. The scope of these challenges will come to a head Sept. 3 when the Marion County School Board
meets for a crucial workshop to examine debt service and major capital project proposals, including a massive Certificates of Participation (COPs) borrowing plan to fund tens of millions of dollars in school infrastructure. See School, page A7
Students cast long shadows as they walk through the courtyard on the first day of school at the new South Marion High School in Marion Oaks on Aug. 10, 2026. [Bruce Ackerman/ Ocala Gazette file photo]
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