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CONTENTS AUTUMN 2013 • VOL. 11 ISSUE 03

>> FEATURES 36

44

Bygone Days

80

A New Home for Historic Local Treasures

High Springs Nonprofit Helps Veterans Heal

BY LARRY BEHNKE

BY COURTNEY LINDWALL

School of Thought

88

BY DARLA KINNEY SCOLES

Citizen of the Year High Springs Chamber of Commerce Awards Gloria James

BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT

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Might as Well Jump Local Equestrian is Ranked Second in Florida in the High Children’s Jumper Division

BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT

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Going with the Flow Tips on Kayaking Northeast Florida Waterways

Newberry Elementary School Chosen to Serve as Knowledge Development Site

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IrishWaterdogs

BY SARAH A. HENDERSON

96

Poe Springs Back from the Brink

BY JENNIFER RIEK

104 Money Well Spent The Civilian Conservation Corps — Another Day, Another Dollar

BY DARLA KINNEY SCOLES

142 Beth Murphy New Interpretations

BY CRYSTAL HENRY

ON THE COVER

PHOTO BY TJ MORRISSEY / LOTUS STUDIOS

All in the family. Meet Newberry resident Morgan Gravely – and Banner, her Welsh Cob pony. Gravely, a 17-year-old champion equestrian, has ridden nearly her entire life. She lives next door to her grandmother, who bred Banner, and Gravely trains with her aunt on her farm in High Springs. Gravely recently came back from competition is high honors.

>> BOO!

26

Fright Night

By Christine Boatwright

Ghoul for Love The High Springs Lions Club does not have to change much about its house to host the second Madness and Mayhem fright night. Find out how strange supernatural occurrences and the mysterious history of the house explain how it really may be a haunted building.

The High Springs Lions Club’s Haunted House

BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT

T

hings will do more than go bump in the night at Madness and Mayhem, the High Springs Lions Club’s answer to Halloween fright. For the second year, the High Springs Lions Club members will transform their headquarters into a terrifying haunted house, complete with graveyards and guillotines.

The idea for Madness and Mayhem began with a conversation about fear.

“People want to be scared,” said Steve Eldredge, a Lions Club board member. “We felt maybe people wanted some place to go.

I’m not putting down anyone else’s goings on, but we wanted to bring

something to the community to have people come out and enjoy themselves.”

And what could be scarier than a haunted house housed in an actual haunted building?

Members of the Lions Club contacted North Florida Mystery Trackers, a non-profit team of paranormal investigators from Lake City, when they saw strange lights captured in pictures, Eldredge said.

In November 2012, North Florida Mystery Trackers inspected the group’s clubhouse for any supernatural occurrences.

“There was some very weird stuff that happened there,” said Jacob James, founder of the North

Florida Mystery Trackers. “I always tell people that what you see on TV [ghost-hunting shows] isn’t what it is. We do something completely different. I’m extremely scientific about it, point blank.”

James said his team uses media equipment, such as video cameras and audio equipment, to record paranormal activity.

“We never know what to really expect when we’re called in. The only thing we know is what they call us and tell us about the history and what goes on,” James said.

“Whenever we break out the equipment and start investigating, we never know what’s going to happen.

“We’re not out for money or fame. We tell it how it is,” he added.

“I would say their place has an

PHOTOS COURTESY OF HIGH SPRINGS LIONS CLUB

This year’s Madness and Mayhem event will take place outside by the Lions Club headquarters in High Springs. While the event is not recommended for children under 10 years old, some of the undead brought their ghoulish children to participate.

26 | Autumn 2013

>> PEP IN YOUR STEP

All Stars of

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Cheerleading Florida Team Cheer has Made Winning a Longstanding Tradition

By Mary Goodwin

Winning Tradition

BY MARY GOODWIN

M

ost teams have more than two minutes and thirty seconds to prove themselves — but these cheerleaders are not like most athletes.

The girls at Florida Team Cheer (FTC) might fool you with their feminine skirts, bright makeup and angelic bows, but their outfits are merely the final touch to the hours spent yelling, sweating, tumbling and lifting in the gym.

On May 4, the FTC junior and senior teams journeyed to Walt Disney World to compete against 462 teams from across the country in the first-ever Varsity All Star tournament titled “The Summit.”

As a spinoff to the level 5 Worlds

competition, which airs on ESPN and is dubbed “the super bowl of cheerleading,” The Summit provides a fresh opportunity for youth, junior and senior levels in non-Worlds division to face-off in a live competition. The top 10 percent of teams in the country are chosen to compete after earning bids — both paid and at-large — upon winning one of the 27 qualifying competitions.

After a series of victories, the FTC senior (level four) team and junior (level two) team received at-large bids, meaning they were invited to compete but had to pay their way to the tournament.

“When we got those bids, the parents pulled together to decide if we could raise the money,” said FTC owner Eileen Handberg. “We have

great parents who are very supportive, and they ended up getting a lot of community support.”

On the first day of the tournament, all of the teams competed to make it to the second day, where only 10 of those teams qualified to move on. The junior team competed against 21 teams on day one and placed seventh on day two; the senior team went up against eight teams across the country and placed fifth.

One advantage the opposing teams had, Handberg said, was a larger scale. Because FTC is smaller, it had to rely on athletes with a variety of skills to compete, whereas other teams could pick the “cream of the crop” to assemble their most competitive group.

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PHOTO COURTESY OF FLORIDA TEAM CHEER

This talented group of athletes may be small in number but is big in heart, as they go up against much larger cheerleading groups across the state to participate in high-level competitions.

>> SOUND OF MUSIC

134

Music in the Park

By Ellis Amburn

A Star is Born On every third Thursday of the month, James Paul Park behind the High Springs City Hall comes alive with the sound of music as musicians perform in the gazebo by the sinkhole. The event is free and the public is invited to come out and enjoy the show.

A Star Is Born in the High Springs Sinkhole

Michael Loveday (above) performs at a High Springs Sinkhole concert behind City Hall. He is the coordinator for the city’s monthly Music in the Park series.

Eighteen-year-old Cliff Dorsey (right) was one of the headliners at the Music in the Park concert in High Springs.

BY ELLIS AMBURN

R

emember this name: Cliff Dorsey.

The rangy 18-year-old cowboy is probably going to be a country & western singing star, though the audience he recently wowed at the sinkhole behind High Springs City Hall, also known as James Paul Park, was sparsely attended.

To make matters worse, a sudden downpour drenched the six or seven persons in attendance,

forcing them to dash to the gazebo that serves as a stage for the city’s Music in the Park series just as opening act Michael Loveday had started to play.

There, huddled just a few feet from the performers, visitors got an impromptu backstage pass to experience the show.

Later, as Dorsey performed, his listeners enjoyed a rare opportunity to watch a gifted artist work his magic with subtle variations in timbre and feeling.

Four songs in Dorsey’s set

showed his warm, testosteroneladen baritone voice — similar to that of a young Randy Travis — to advantage.

“You Make Me Want To,” written

by Luke Bryan, “didn’t make it on the radio,” Dorsey said. It may fare better if Dorsey ever records it.

His winning “southern-boy ways,” as the song puts it, lent sizzling conviction to his promise “to hold you like a hammock on a summer day… lay it down, kiss you ‘til you feel the truth.”

Before singing “Bible Camp” (or

PHOTOS BY ELLIS AMBURN

OPPOSITE: Singers in The Sinkhole (left to right): John D. Sterpe, Cliff Dorsey and Michael Loveday. “We have three acts every month,” said Music in the Park series coordinator Loveday, who played bass for 20 years with the rock group Hard Knocks. “I settled down when I got married.” The father of two, Loveday works at Bank of America.

134 | Autumn 2013

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Autumn 2013 | 135

The articles printed in Our Town Magazine™ do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Tower Publications, Inc. or their editorial staff. Our Town Magazine endeavors to accept reliable advertising; however, we can not be held responsible by the public for advertising claims. Our Town Magazine reserves the right to refuse or discontinue any advertisement. All rights reserved. © 2013 Tower Publications, Inc.

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>> FEATURES Published quarterly by Tower Publications, Inc. www.towerpublications.com

PUBLISHER Charlie Delatorre charlie@towerpublications.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Albert Isaac editor@towerpublications.com fax: 352-416-0175 OFFICE MANAGER Bonita Delatorre bonita@towerpublications.com ART DIRECTOR Hank McAfee hank@towerpublications.com DESIGNER Neil McKinney neil@towerpublications.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Ellis Amburn Larry Behnke Christine Boatwright Mary Goodwin Sarah A. Henderson Crystal Henry Courtney Lindwall Darla Kinney Scoles

162 That Old Black Water The Great Suwannee River Cleanup

BY COURTNEY LINDWALL

Crystal Henry ..................................................................... NAKED SALSA Donna Bonnell ........................................................... EMBRACING LIFE Albert Isaac ................................................................. DIFFERENT NOTE Kendra Siler-Marsiglio ............................................ HEALTHY EDGE Terri Schlichenmeyer ...................................... READING CORNER

Taste of the Town Community Calendar Gator Football Schedule Worship Centers

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156 Library Happenings 159 2013-2014 Alachua County School Calendar 168 Advertiser Index

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SPECIAL >> A NICE RING TO IT

Olympic Development n August, the Easton Newberry Sports Complex unveiled a high honor: the United States Olympic Committee has selected it as a Community Olympic Development Program (CODP).

At a luncheon commemorating the event, speakers included Mayor Bill Conrad, Greg Easton, president of the Easton Foundations and Outreach Director Doug Engh, among others, who spoke with pride of this accomplishment.

Easton Newberry Sports Complex, a shared-use facility that combines the Easton Foundation Archery Center with the City of Newberry Recreation Department, is now one of only 10 programs nationwide to receive this designation by the USOC for its ability to train coaches and athletes, and provide world-class venues in the sport of archery. This is the Easton Foundations’ first operating center to be awarded this designation.

The complex has hosted Florida’s Sunshine State Games in Archery for the last four years and is used by several U.S. Junior Olympic Archery Development

I

14 | Autumn 2013

clubs, according to Florida Sports.

Additionally, the complex hosts the annual Gator Cup, which USA Archery selected as a U.S. Archery Team qualifier series event.

“Receiving the designation as a USOC Community Olympic Development Program is an important step for the Easton Newberry Sports Complex, the Easton Foundations and the city of Newberry toward our missions of promoting the sport of archery and the City of Newberry as a sports destination,” said Greg Easton, president of the Easton Foundations in a press release. “We look forward to working closely with the USOC and the city of Newberry to promote archery, the city of Newberry and the Olympic spirit.”

Easton Foundations’ goal is to promote and maintain the viability of archery by growing the sport as a mainstream activity at the state, regional and national levels. By developing grassroots programs in communities and schools, and in supporting college and university programs, the foundation will help inspire the next generation of Olympic hopefuls.

“This is great news for the sport of archery given the sport’s tremendous growth over the past year,” said USA Archery CEO Denise Parker, according to teamusa.org.

“With a CODP designation, the Easton Newberry Sports Complex can be a major force in helping USA Archery grow the sport through events and outreach programming.”

The CODP will continue to serve as a regional archery center for all skill levels, teaching archers the National Training System of USA Archery while giving all interested archers opportunities for advancement. With 100 acres of multipurpose facilities – including dedicated areas for archery training and events – the organization currently reaches 6,200 people each year. The organization will also continue to conduct its mobile van program to promote archery throughout the surrounding communities.

After the lunch and presentations, attendees were invited to witness the unveiling of the Olympic Rings by Greg Easton and a group of young archers. s

MESSAGE >> FROM THE EDITOR

School Days And so it is that time of year once again, time to return to school – and cooler temperatures.

I sure enjoyed sleeping in, not having to get our youngest son off to school at the crack of dawn. Although it spoiled me a little bit.

Summer for us was a whirlwind of activity: soccer games, visiting granddaughters and a vacation to the mountains. It was wonderful and went by far too fast.

But now the buzz of that alarm jolts me from my peaceful slumber like a cattle prod to my temporal lobe. We have learned to keep the alarm out of reach so that I am forced to get out of bed to hit the snooze button. Most people may not realize this but the snooze is the enemy. It took me a long time to figure this out, even back in college when that racket was so awful that I would actually wake up just prior to the alarm and turn it off before it bothered me. I would then promptly go back to bed and sleep through my classes.

In later years I would hit that button endlessly.

Waking, sleeping, waking, sleeping. Torture you see. It wasn’t until recent years that I realized how miserable it is to be continually awakened. Much smarter to just get up out of bed and be done with it.

So that’s my routine now, no matter how tired I am, I must rise from bed, hit the alarm and immediately make my coffee and get to work rousing our youngster and preparing his lunch. Turns out I feel much better.

And yet somehow, I’m still late to work.

Speaking of work, and school, in this edition we bring you some news about Newberry Elementary School being selected as a Knowledge Development Site.

And while we’re talking about Newberry, I should mention we just got word that the Easton Newberry Sports Complex has been selected as a Community Olympic Development Program for Archery.

They may practice in Gainesville, but the members of Florida Team Cheer hail from Newberry, Alachua and Lake Butler, to name but a few. Read about this group’s accomplishments.

I’ve barely touched on the many stories to be found in this magazine, ranging from a young equestrian to Irish Waterdogs, from haunted houses to historical societies.

I think you’ll enjoy it – and you won’t need a snooze button. s

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STAFF >> CONTRIBUTORS Crystal Henry

Courtney Lindwall

is a freelance writer and columnist born and raised in West Texas. She received her B.S. in Journalism in 2006 from the University of Florida. She is in love with the Florida landscape.

is a Florida native, now studying journalism at UF. She loves telling and hearing good stories. In her little bit of free time, she enjoys hiking, camping and eating delicious food.

ces03k@gmail.com

c.lindwall@ufl.edu

Christine Boatwright

Sarah Henderson

grew up in Florida, but moved to Alabama for college and later married her college sweetheart, Lucas. She won journalism awards for her work for a county newspaper in Shelby County, Ala. The couple moved to Gainesville.

is a freelance writer and graduate of UF’s College of Journalism and Communications. She enjoys reading, watching movies and spending time outdoors. sahenderson88@gmail.com

ct_boatwright@yahoo.com

Mary Goodwin

Darla Kinney Scoles

is a freelance writer and a graduate of UF’s College of Journalism and Communications. She enjoys time with family and friends, writing, traveling, music, baking and spending entire days outdoors.

remembers taking a high school journalism class and falling in love with the process. Oodles of years, one husband, three daughters and multitudinous stories later, she’s still in love with it all.

That, and dark chocolate.

mgoodwin@ufl.edu

darlakinneyscoles@gmail.com

Ellis Amburn

Larry Behnke

is in the Hall of Excellence at TCU’s Schieffer School of Journalism. Involved daily in volunteer community service, the High Springs resident is the author of biographies of Roy Orbison, Elizabeth Taylor and others.

is an artist, writer, photographer and a graduate of the University of Michigan in cinematography and painting. He has used solar electricity since 1984 and lives in a dome home. lbehnke@windstream.net

ellis.amburn@gmail.com

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CHARITY OF THE MONTH

Big Cat Rescue MAY 2013 WINNER – 2,431 VOTES

With more than 100 exotic felines, life at Big Cat Rescue can get a little wild. s founder and CEO Carole Baskin says, “There’s no such thing as a normal day.”

The Tampa-based organization has won May’s SunState Charity of the Month with 2431 votes on Facebook. The nonprofit works as an educational sanctuary, housing 14 species of abandoned cats, such as lions, tigers and leopards. Many have been abused as performance animals, given up by ill-equipped pet owners or even saved from slaughter.

A

She raised them with the help from other owners, later giving them away as pets to what she believed would be good homes. However, as the years went by, failed pet owners would come back to Baskin, unable to handle their big cat’s transition to maturity. Since then, the true difficulties of raising a wild animal have become clear.

Unfortunately, the organization still takes in new cats from around the country that are in dire situations, especially from areas where laws against ownership are not strictly enforced. Just earlier this year, Big Cat Rescue saved six cats from a run-down enclosure in Kansas without proper food, clean water or space. Dead animals were found alongside soiled and unattended cages. The owner was said to have abandoned the property altogether.

In response to tragedies like this, Big Cat Rescue is pushing for federal legislation to ban exotic cats as pets, which Baskin said would solve much of the problem and redirect efforts toward sustaining wild populations.

“Our primary goal is to put ourselves out of business,” Baskin said. “There shouldn’t be a need to run around rescuing big cats.” s Learn more at www.bigcatrescue.org.

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Although the rescue’s saved cats are unable to be released into the wild, a big part of the organization’s mission is to raise awareness about the challenges of big cats in captivity. Baskin said people should be helping the wild populations.

“They’re too incredible to keep in cages,” Baskin said.

Big Cat Rescue is the largest sanctuary in the world dedicated specifically to abused or abandoned exotic cats. Beginning in 1992, the sanctuary now sits on 55 acres in North Tampa and brings in nearly 30,000 people a year for tours, all run by volunteers.

Since opening, Baskin’s beliefs about exotic pet ownership have evolved. Her introduction to the world of big cats started when she rescued 56 bobcat kittens that were going to be slaughtered for their fur.

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CHARITY OF THE MONTH

Phoenix Animal Rescue JUNE 2013 WINNER – 965 VOTES

The dogs arrive broken. They are abandoned, neglected and oftentimes sick. o make matters worse, many are pit bulls that must work against stereotypes to find new homes. But with the help of foster families and volunteers, Phoenix Animal Rescue works to make their lives whole again.

Phoenix Animal Rescue has won June’s SunState Federal Credit Union’s Charity of the Month contest with 965 votes on Facebook. The organization was nominated by Kim Lake.

T

Since its founding, the rescue has helped thousands of dogs find homes. This year alone, more than 150 dogs have already been adopted. Although the rescue does not have its own facility, a close-knit group of 40 or so foster homes offer space until adoption.

“We support each other and spend time with one another even outside of rescue,” Dunlap said.

Although the rescue receives dogs from a variety of places, it has become closely linked to Levy County Animal Services. In a single year, they were able to reduce the euthanasia rate at the shelter by 70 percent, Dunlap said. At the same time, their own adoption rate went up by 126 percent.

The rescue has also increased its exposure by participating in the Gainesville PetSmart adoption days on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Many of the dogs that come to the facility on adoption days are pit bulls, and the events help visitors see the truth about the breed that Dunlap believes to be highly misunderstood.

As for future plans, Dunlap is putting the prize money toward buying a larger piece of property in Levy County.

“It’ll be a farm where people can come and visit with our dogs, not to adopt but to volunteer,” Dunlap said. “It will be where dogs can go to heal, recover and retire.” s Learn more at www.facebook.com/phoenixanimalrescue.

June’s winners receiving their $1,000 prize.

The Gainesville-based rescue was founded in 2003

by Michelle Dunlap. After adopting her own dog, Chance, in 1999, Dunlap left her job teaching and began working with animal rescues instead. During this time, an unlikely relationship with a pit bull would impact her life forever.

The dog’s name was Phoenix. She had been stolen from her owner’s backyard and forced into dog fighting.

When the original owner finally tracked down Phoenix, Dunlap helped to rehabilitate what had become an anxious, withdrawn and traumatized dog.

In 18 months, Phoenix grew. She not only recovered — she thrived.

Phoenix went from being an abused and unsocial dog to receiving the AKC Canine Good Citizens Award.

Phoenix’s dramatic turnaround was symbolic of the positive effects that can come from the dedicated and compassionate work of animal rescuers. Phoenix became the rescue’s namesake, and to this day, the rescue works in memory of her story.

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CHARITY OF THE MONTH

Mystic Jungle JULY 2013 WINNER – 3,378 VOTES

Spike is the biggest of the big cats.

With legs the size of tree trunks, this Siberian tiger weighs more than 700 lbs. ut pretty soon, Spike will have a little more room to stretch out.

Mystic Jungle Educational Facility won the $1,000 prize for July’s SunState Federal Credit Union and Tower Publications’s Charity of the Month Contest.

It received 3,378 votes on Facebook.

Mystic Jungle Educational Facility is a conservation facility that houses exotic animals, such as cougars, alligators and rhesus monkeys. The $1,300 (that includes the $300 prize for nomination) is going toward Spike’s new half-acre enclosure, which will allow other residents to move to bigger enclosures, as well.

Co-founders Vera and Mark Chaples started the facility, based in Live Oak. The couple have decades of experience working with animals, including Vera’s overthirty years of experience as a veterinary technician and Mark’s lifetime of ranching. The transition toward Mystic Jungle began 18 years ago when Vera worked at a practice that specialized in exotic animals.

As ownership laws changed, many exotic pet owners had to surrender their animals, and there weren’t many options besides euthanasia.

But Vera and Mark opened their doors.

They began taking in exotic animals, with a focus on big cats, and giving them homes. The goal wasn’t to buy, sell or trade, but to care for them permanently.

They contacted other specialists to learn, and over time, became the experts themselves. And like that, Mystic Jungle was born. In 2009, it officially became a nonprofit and began to focus on education for the public, as well.

The facility is not a zoo and is not open to the public; however, free tours can be scheduled. Contributions from visitors help support Mystic Jungle, as well as the

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facility’s weekly yard sale of donated goods.

Currently, one of Mystic Jungle’s biggest projects is saving the Asian Leopard, which is being poached at a rate of four per week, Vera said.

Mark and Vera plan to go to India in 2014 to talk with the government about more direct ways to protect the species. And at home, Mystic Jungle helps conserve the leopard through its own breeding program.

Today, Mystic Jungle is still growing, but its mission remains the same.

“Our animals don’t do tricks. It’s not a sideshow,” Vera said. “I’m teaching.” s Learn more at www.facebook.com/ MysticJungleEducationalFacilityInc.

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>> BOO!

Fright Night The High Springs Lions Club’s Haunted House

BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT hings will do more than go bump in the night at Madness and Mayhem, the High Springs Lions Club’s answer to Halloween fright. For the second year, the High Springs Lions Club members will transform their headquarters into a terrifying haunted house, complete with graveyards and guillotines.

The idea for Madness and Mayhem began with a conversation about fear.

“People want to be scared,” said Steve Eldredge, a Lions Club board member. “We felt maybe people wanted some place to go.

I’m not putting down anyone else’s goings on, but we wanted to bring

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26 | Autumn 2013

something to the community to have people come out and enjoy themselves.”

And what could be scarier than a haunted house housed in an actual haunted building?

Members of the Lions Club contacted North Florida Mystery Trackers, a non-profit team of paranormal investigators from Lake City, when they saw strange lights captured in pictures, Eldredge said.

In November 2012, North Florida Mystery Trackers inspected the group’s clubhouse for any supernatural occurrences.

“There was some very weird stuff that happened there,” said Jacob James, founder of the North

Florida Mystery Trackers. “I always tell people that what you see on TV [ghost-hunting shows] isn’t what it is. We do something completely different. I’m extremely scientific about it, point blank.”

James said his team uses media equipment, such as video cameras and audio equipment, to record paranormal activity.

“We never know what to really expect when we’re called in. The only thing we know is what they call us and tell us about the history and what goes on,” James said.

“Whenever we break out the equipment and start investigating, we never know what’s going to happen.

“We’re not out for money or fame. We tell it how it is,” he added.

“I would say their place has an

PHOTOS COURTESY OF HIGH SPRINGS LIONS CLUB

This year’s Madness and Mayhem event will take place outside by the Lions Club headquarters in High Springs. While the event is not recommended for children under 10 years old, some of the undead brought their ghoulish children to participate.

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entity in there. It’s not much of a friendly ghost, but, as of right now, we don’t know who it is, why they’re there and what they want.”

According to Lions Club member Bob Watson, who is the haunted house’s director, the clubhouse was built in 1947. Sometime in the 1950s, a woman reportedly died in the women’s bathroom, and Watson believes she may be one of the ghosts still haunting the building.

In a storage area behind the clubhouse’s stage called

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“The Hole,” James and his team recorded their “best Electric Voice Phenomenon,” he said.

“There were just two of us — me and another guy — and one of the questions [I asked] was if [the ghost wants] to come and talk with us. We waited a minute to get a response, and when I listened to the tape back again the next day, I can hear a whisper in the background, a very faint, ‘No,’” James said in a harsh whisper.

At the conclusion of his

investigation, James said he had enough evidence to prove at least two spirits continue to haunt the High Springs Lions Club.

Watson said strange occurrences continue to happen during board meetings, such as objects crashing to the floor when no one was near them. Orbs, or round, glowing lights, continue to appear in photos, and a ghost has appeared at Halloween parties, Watson said.

“People come in and take pictures at the haunted house, and

PHOTOS COURTESY OF HIGH SPRINGS LIONS CLUB

Shocking! The electric chair will make an appearance at this year’s Madness and Mayhem. According to event director Bob Watson, a 40-by-60 foot outdoor tent will house a large graveyard scene.

Watson said the event will showcase “a lot of pneumatics, which are things that move” to frighten visitors.

During the grand finale of last year’s haunted house, the whole cast (top right) danced to “Monster Mash.”

IF YOU GO…

Madness and Mayhem High Springs Lions Club • 26900 West U.S. 27

October 11-12; 18-19; 25-26 7:30-10:30 p.m.

Costume Contest on Saturday, November 2nd. $10 per person and $5 per child 12 and under.

Children must be accompanied by an adult.

the cameras died when they came in because ghosts are sucking the energy out of the batteries,” Watson said.

Additional less supernatural, though still-as-frightening spirits will haunt the clubhouse for Madness and Mayhem in October.

Watson warned that the event is not for young children or the faint of heart.

“I wouldn’t bring young kids, because it’s scary. It’s at parents’ discretion, of course,” Watson said.

“Trust me, they’ll be scared. We have ways that, if a child freaks out, we get them out right away. We have procedure set for that. We’ll get them out real quick and fast if they get that scared.”

Proceeds from the event will go to children’s diabetes prevention,

www.VisitOurTowns.com

Watson said.

“The majority of what we do goes back to the community. We have different fundraisers throughout the year for different groups,” Eldredge said, noting a September fundraiser for wounded war veterans. “It’s a lot of fun and gives a sense of giving back to the community. A sense of accomplishment is the reward for everybody.” s

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www.VisitOurTowns.com

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COLUMN >> CRYSTAL HENRY

Naked Salsa Laundry and Flesh Wounds oday, as I looked at the calendar I realized two things. The first was that it is the drop-dead deadline for my column, and that I should probably kiss my wonderfully forgiving editor’s behind. The other is that tomorrow is my birthday.

Deadlines that creep up on me are nothing new. But birthdays are something to be anticipated for weeks in advance. See, I’m not one of those girls who dreads her birthaversary. I’ve tried to be demure and pretend that it’s just another day. “Pish posh. Don’t fuss over me.”

And I’ve tried to be the girl who just can’t believe she’s that much closer to the dreaded 3-0. Worrying about crow’s feet and wrinkles. But in all honesty I am so not that girl. I am the girl who freaking loves her birthday.

Maybe it’s narcissism, or maybe it’s that I’m just a perpetual 6-year-old. Either way, I totally relish the fact that there is one day out of the year that is all my own.

The rest of the year I consider myself a pretty thoughtful person. I love making other people feel important and special for 364 days in a row. But there is one day a year that I do milk for all it’s worth.

I am the person who doesn’t do laundry on her birthday. I refuse to have doctor’s appointments or any other nonsense that might interfere with my queen

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bee status. Even if no one else decides to spoil me, I will strut around with an air of superiority for 24 glorious hours because dang it it’s my birthday.

So as I sit here toiling away, watching the clock tick down to midnight, I can’t figure out how this birthday got away from me. I’m not afraid to admit that this

I woke my husband up to inform him of these grave circumstances, and he assured me that my birthday is in fact Saturday. I told him to go back to sleep before I cause him bodily harm. is my last year in my 20s. I won’t be celebrating my 29th birthday over and over as some ladies choose to do. I’ve been married almost a decade and I’ve got two wonderfully crazy children who have aged me far more than any old birthday could do. But is it possible though that I’ve outgrown my girlish love of myself and the sacredness of this one special day?

I looked at my calendar for tomorrow to see if I had any fun birthtivities planned. But horror of horrors the

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only thing on the agenda is a minor skin surgery to remove a “cluster of abnormal cells.” And to top it off I have to finish my laundry in the morning because my baby goose has swim lessons, and her swim suit is in the wash. Laundry and flesh wounds. That will be my 29th birthday.

I woke my husband up to inform him of these grave circumstances, and he assured me that my birthday is in fact Saturday. I told him to go back to sleep before I cause him bodily harm. He forgot my birthday too!

Normally I would have demanded justice. There should be a feast in my honor prepared by the townsfolk weeks in advance so that I know that for one day I am the center of the gall dern universe. But as I was sulking out of the room I heard a little whimper and saw a tiny hand in the moonlight reaching for my pillow. For my totally loyal readers, you’ll know already that I let my children sleep in my bed. This is no time for lectures. I’ve made peace with it, and so should you.

As those little whimpers got more persistent I rushed back to bed to cuddle up to my little Violet. She snuggled up to nurse and I melted into her sweet little chubby hands. Hubs threw his big lug arm over me and mumbled something about being an idiot and of course he knew tomorrow was my birthday. So I laid there in the arms of my big oaf while cuddling my tiny tot. And soon after I heard the pitter-patter of little feet running down the stairs and into my room. Without uttering a word my sleepy little Sunny girl climbed into bed in between the hubs and I and buried her sweet little face in the crook of my neck.

I knew I had to get up and write my column, but I just had to lay there and soak in that sweet moment.

And then I realized how the day snuck up on me. My life is filled with days where I am the end all be all to three of the most wonderful people on earth. I’m important and special and loved 364 days in a row. So a little fanfare on that one day makes less of a difference since I have such awesome admirers year-round.

That being said if there’s no cake tomorrow I know three precious heads that will roll. A girl deserves a little extra sweetness just once a year. s

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A Passion for Building William Weseman Construction, Inc.

W

illiam Weseman has always loved building things, and he knew from an early age that he would have a career in construction.

“When I was little, I was always playing with Lincoln Logs,” said Weseman, son of local builder Gary Weseman. “My dad always told me, ‘Find something you always enjoy doing, so you can do it for a long time.’”

And so he has. For the last six years, William Weseman Construction Inc. has been building new homes and remodeling existing ones. Whether you know exactly what you want in a new home or you have a vague idea for your dream bathroom, Weseman will create a design that suits both your needs and your budget.

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had already graduated from the building construction program at Santa Fe College and received his contracting license.

Weseman’s complete dedication to his customers is evident from the first estimate to the finished product. “I back everything I do,” he said. “I can’t sleep at night unless it’s right. That sounds cliché, but it really bothers me. I build a house that will last longer than I’m going to live. That’s what I really try to do.”

Weseman lives in Alachua with his wife, Ashley, and his four-year-old son, Andrew – who, like his father at that age, loves to play with Lincoln Logs.

Perhaps a third generation of family builders has already taken root; until then, however, Weseman will continue the work that has come so naturally to him nearly all of his life.

“I just really enjoy what I do,” he said. “It’s not work to me, it’s really not. When you enjoy what you do, work is not that difficult.”

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>> AT THE MUSEUM

Bygone

Days A New Home for Historic Local Treasures

BY LARRY BEHNKE he history of a town is not always visible, but there are clues. High Springs’ downtown buildings look old; a sign above the Great Outdoors says “Opera House;” the Woman’s Club sign says it was established in 1899; and a plaque in front of city hall gives a brief history, but there is little else.

That is changing with work by the High Springs Historical Society.

Incorporated by the state, the society has existed since 1988, but now it finally has a home in the

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recently refurbished old school.

In July the school got its official name: The Historic High Springs Elementary School and Community Center — quite a mouthful, so most folks still call it the “old school.”

The eastern room of the old school, the one nearest the police station, now houses part of the Historical Society’s collection. An earlier display was set up for the annual Pioneer Days last April. The response was very positive.

“Over 800 people visited the new museum that weekend,” said Bob Watson, Historical Society President.

“We then averaged 40 people each

weekend in May and June.”

The museum is currently open Saturdays and Sundays.

Displays show what life was like during the early years of the past century. A treadle sewing machine, tools, clothing, bottles and more are all local items found or donated.

But the majority of the artifacts relate to the railroad.

RAILROAD A hundred years ago High Springs was the major center for steam locomotives. It began in 1896 with groundbreaking for the Plant System railroad; it then became

PHOTO BY LARRY BEHNKE

Historical Society President Bob Watson, Treasurer Carolyn Frederick and Vice President Jim Dyksterhouse.

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www.VisitOurTowns.com

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PHOTOS BY LARRY BEHNKE and ALBERT ISAAC

A train model built to scale greets visitors to the museum. There are also plans for a model of the 1930s-era railroad yard, six feet wide by 18 feet long. A technical drawing (above) illustrates the layout of the old rail yard. Historic photographs and vintage clothing are just some of the many the items to be found at the museum. The Society is in need of a child-sized manikin to accommodate a drummer’s outfit that was worn by Ed Berry when he was 8 years old. Society secretary Rodger Chambers is also a mechanic and dreams of restoring the city’s old fire truck. The 1924 LaFrance fire truck (opposite, bottom right) is currently stored in the fire station.

the Atlantic Coast Line and then Seaboard Coast Line. A round table and repair shops for the huge engines were in the city’s “railroad town” area. Rooming houses, shops and even a hospital for railroad workers completed the scene.

Bob Watson built model trains as a child and never lost his fascination. When he moved to High Springs he opened a recycling shop,

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Global Green, in an old brick building on the corner of N.W. First Avenue at Ninth Street. He discovered that his building and that intersection was once the center of the railroad town and it renewed his interest in trains.

“I found a map of how it was laid out,” Watson said about the railroad yard. “I walked around out there and discovered the concrete pads for several of the structures.”

He did more research and found a photo of the yard with the huge turntable used to position the big steam engines when they needed repairing.

“At first the turntable was manual,” Watson said. “In 1928 they switched to electric operation, but when they used it all the lights in town would dim.”

“We’re doing everything we

can to inform people about the history of their town,” said Jim Dyksterhouse, Society vice president, “especially the railroad, because that’s what built this town.”

Dyksterhouse is now using the old map and photos to construct a model of the 1930s-era railroad yard using HO (1:87) scale trains.

Featuring the roundtable, shops, houses, little people and trains, the

re-creation is under way and will be six feet wide by 18 feet long. Society members have hopes of using a nearby empty room for the display.

“We asked the city about the room across the hall,” Watson said. “We could easily fill another two rooms, but that one could hold the rail yard recreation that Jim is working on.”

Other than the history museum, the rest of the building is little

www.VisitOurTowns.com

used. One large room is reserved for meetings and had a catered supper last December plus some other gatherings. The two western rooms were not a part of the renovation.

But they had been fixed up for the after-school youth center that lasted nearly a decade, and closed in 2005.

“Those rooms would be good for storage,” Watson said.

Museum members would like

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to revolve the historical displays to keep up interest for returning visitors. In August the Society was given use of one of those rooms and there is plenty of space in there to set up the model railroad yard.

Rodger Chambers is the Society’s secretary keeping track of meeting notes, inventory and donations to the museum. He once did cabinetwork for Hunter Marine, so he is working on the museum displays.

He has another angle too.

“I want to talk with local [American] Indians to see what their part was in our history,” he said. “Although they usually lived close to water out by the springs.”

Chambers is also a mechanic and dreams of restoring another of the city’s historic treasures, the 1924 LaFrance fire truck, currently in decent shape and parked in the firehouse. Members would like to display it near the museum. One idea is to possibly enclose a sheltered walkway by the police station to house it.

Carolyn Frederick is the

Historical Society’s treasurer; she joined in 1995.

“We would meet once a month, but we limped along for years,” she said. “We’re glad to have a home here in the old school.”

FUTURE PLANS “I want to work with the local schools,” Watson said. “We could have students visit the museum and show them what life here was once like.”

Visitors are now informed of the museum by weekend signs on surrounding streets.

“This would be a great place to visit after people spend a day on the river or at a spring,” Chambers added.

Dyksterhouse said he is praying for a grant writer, to help the museum.

“We would also like to do tributes to local people instrumental in railroad history,” he said. “People like Chief Engineer Estabrook, who drove several steam engines or Mike Johnson, who worked 30 years

for the railroad.”

Society members hope to draw people into the museum during the annual Fall Festival and Car Show in October. And they plan to have a place in December’s Christmas parade.

“We want to have a horse-drawn wagon,” Watson said. “We’d like people to dress in vintage clothing and walk in the parade.”

Watson has another idea to bring people to the museum: trivia cards.

“People could pick up a trivia card with questions at participating local restaurants or shops,” he said. “Then they would come to the museum to find the answers; all the answers are in our displays.”

People would then take the stamped card back to the shop for a discount of some kind.

Historical items have come from the community and donations to the museum are gratefully accepted. One display could use a child manikin as the museum has a drummer’s outfit that was worn

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The High Springs Historical Museum is located one block north of City Hall. Hours: Saturdays 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Sundays 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. or by appointment for special groups. Contact Bob Watson at 352-262-5068 for more information.

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sits empty and the asking price is around $250,000 — more than the Society or the city can afford.

During a city meeting, approval was given to have a commercial property appraisal for that building.

But in the meantime, the old school is already owned by the city and is in like-new condition. It

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by Ed Berry when he was 8 years old. Berry would play with the High Springs band at the train station for sendoffs or when dignitaries came to town. Berry and his wife Sunshine ran Berry’s Drug Store next to what is now the Great Outdoors Restaurant. These are some of the people in scores of old photos and copies the museum now displays.

“Our ultimate goal would be to move the museum into the actual train station,” Dyksterhouse said.

The old depot was built in 1907 and was relocated next to the Priest Theatre during the 1990s. For a couple of years it was a railroad museum, and then spent a decade as the Station Bakery until this year. It is the last remaining building of the once glorious railroad complex in High Springs. Now it

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ADVERTISEMENT

Five Ways You Can Help Homeless Animals for little or no money

Why not volunteer a little bit of your time to make life better for our homeless critters? Here’s five things you can do that will make tails wag!

By Deborah Cottrell DVM West End Animal Hospital

1. Provide a foster home for an animal until it gets adopted. Rescue groups have limited space, and every foster home is valuable. There is generally little or no financial responsibility to you. The animal just needs a place to stay and some TLC in between Adopt-A-Thons. You can foster for as little as a couple of weeks or as long as a few months.

2. Start volunteering a couple of hours a week with a rescue group. They always need help cleaning, feeding, walking dogs, and doing laundry. It’s a great way to be exposed to and learn about different species and breeds of animals. Rescues always appreciate someone who is dependable and will show up on time.

A FEW OF OUR LOCAL GROUPS: Phoenix Animal Rescue: 352-226-0228 admin@phoenixanimalrescue.org Animal Rescue Friends: 352-538-7470 stacey@AFRNorthFla.org Helping Hands Rescue: 352-281-4358 helpinghandspetrescue@gmail.com Operation CatNip: 352-380-0940 operationcatnip@nmhp.net Plenty of PitBulls: plentyofpitbulls.org gainesvillepitbulls@gmail.com And finally, be sure your pet never becomes homeless— microchip your pet for permanent identification.

3. Transport animals to Adopt-A-Thons. Many rescue groups need an extra vehicle to carry animals from foster homes or from their rescue facilities to Adopt-A-Thons at PetSmart, PetCo, the Oaks Mall or other venues.

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>> LEARNING TOGETHER

School of Thought Newberry Elementary Chosen to Serve as Knowledge Development Site

BY DARLA KINNEY SCOLES s the 510 new and returning Panthers filed into Newberry Elementary School (NES) for the 2013-14 academic year, they did so as automatic participants in a selective nationwide study. This was no surprise to them, and no small coincidence, either. A letter sent to parents this past spring informed them that NES had been chosen as one of only six schools in the U.S. to take part in a five-year, $24.5 million grant-backed program sponsored by the University of Kansas (KU) SWIFT Center.

The SWIFT (School-wide Integrated Framework for Transformation) Center and

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program of the same name were founded to assist districts and their schools in adapting their individual models to best achieve equity and excellence for all students, including those with the

adopted and the successes it has seen since implementing new, inclusive practices.

That model came as a result of a request by NES Principal Lacy Redd who felt that not all student

“We took a whole child approach in this. When educating a child at NES, we look at all needs and we look at learning behavior — all they need to be a good learner.” greatest needs. Chosen to serve as a Knowledge Development Site and regional model school for the Program, NES will share with the rest of the nation the model it has

needs were being met within the framework of the school’s prior plan. Redd asked for volunteer teachers willing to participate in a class offered by the University

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The SWIFT Project As part of a five-year, $24.5 million grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Education (the largest in the history of the University of Kansas), the SWIFT Center has been founded in order to assist districts and their schools to engage in a transformational process, in order to achieve equity and excellence for all students. Research done at KU has demonstrated that inclusive education significantly improves academic and behavior outcomes for all children.

The tools developed as a result of the first year of the SWIFT project will serve as resources to share the model with 64 schools across four states, in a mixture of rural and urban areas, training educators on how to implement high quality educational practices. The goal will be for those schools to spread the system to others in their districts, then to other districts in their state.

If the program performs well, it could be renewed at the end of the five-year period, providing an opportunity for the system to reach other states. As part of the SWIFT grant, the team will also establish and disseminate a national Knowledge Bank on school-wide inclusive reform.

of Florida. Nine such teachers stepped forward and attended an inclusiveness training class with Dr. James McLeskey, a professor in the School of Special Education, School Psychology and Early Childhood Studies at the University of Florida’s (UF) College of Education. A grant provided that opportunity as well.

“The class really opened our eyes as to how to help our students with disabilities,” Redd said.

“Having inclusive practices means that the majority of students with disabilities receive their education in regular classrooms. Our faculty made the decision to move to an inclusive model and the 10 involved in this class developed that model and a plan to put it into place.”

This translates in the classroom to teachers often working together in the same space and co-teaching

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the special education and typical students, especially during reading instruction. This requires creative scheduling, behavior tools and continuous parental communication. With 21 percent of the NES student population classified as Special Needs (this designation includes the gifted as well as the learning disabled), not adopting an inclusive approach meant that nearly one-fourth of the children would have been segregated for most of their education there.

Generally, the only time a special needs student is now pulled out of class is for speech, language, occupational or physical therapies. Some inclusive models keep even these practices inside the regular classroom.

“We took a whole child approach in this,” said Redd, who is starting

her 12th year at NES. “When educating a child at NES, we look at all needs and we look at learning behavior — all they need to be a good learner. This means that some students have an individualized behavior plan with a reward chart so they are prompted throughout the day with positive reinforcement.

Others might have a visual math chart or a picture schedule.”

One favorite student reward is a visit to the principal’s office to spend time on her iPad. “This approach also requires strong parent participation,” Redd said. “We are blessed to have many parents who volunteer at the school, provide supplies, attend field trips — and we in turn have created an open and parentfriendly environment here. Some of these parents struggle every day.

“What excites me most about this selection is that it is giving my staff the recognition they deserve. They work hard every day. Teachers need positive reinforcement, too!”

We want them to know that these kids’ needs are being met.”

Redd also works hard to be a part of the community and interact with parents there, as well. Those same parents were some of the first to participate in the SWIFT Program. They met in May as a focus group with SWIFT team researchers to provide the parents’ point of view and feedback in audio-recorded interviews.

At this time, specific data is

being collected on the school’s program and posted to the SWIFT website (www.swiftschools.org) for other schools to research.

“The inclusive model is datadriven,” Redd said. “We collect data from students and design programs to fit them, meeting the kids’ needs where they are. Data is collected on reading fluency, vocabulary, math facts, sound proficiency and behavior. We adapt our practices according to that data and then

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monitor those results to see if they are working or not.”

Redd is adamant that what is working is her staff, calling them “phenomenal” and praising them as “key to the whole effort” as they continually focus on what is needed to see that the students succeed.

“What excites me most about this selection is that it is giving my staff the recognition they deserve,” she said. “They work hard every day. Teachers need positive reinforcement, too!”

Three of those teachers spent time with Redd in Washington, D.C. this summer at the SWIFT Professional Institute, where they were able to talk with representatives from the five other designated schools. The educators shared practices and returned with many great ideas to make their inclusive

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THE SIX SCHOOLS CHOSEN:

model even better.

This fall, the SWIFT team will return to NES to videotape the classroom experience, which will also be posted on the website. A blog with staff contributions will soon debut, and an area there will be set up for the six SWIFT schools to collaborate.

In the meantime, the A-rated school continues to meet not only the needs of the special students, but of all the students, Redd said. She is

confident that the inclusive model they have chosen to implement — and the resulting designation as a Knowledge Development Site — is in no way a detriment to the typical students at NES. “I am the mother of both a special needs student and a typical student,” Redd said. “I serve as a principal from that perspective, working to see that all our kids are successful.” s

1

Newberry Elementary School (Grades K-4) Newberry, FL

2

Camdenton Middle School (Grades 7-8) Camdenton, MO

3

Fox Prairie Elementary School (Grades K-5) Stroughton, WI

4

William Henderson Inclusion School (Grades K-5) Boston (Dorchester), MA

5

WISH Charter School (Grades K-5) Los Angeles, CA

6

Willard Middle School (Grades 6-8) Berkeley, CA

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A Parent’s Perspective…

“Our son, Sam, has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. While at NES his physical abilities declined from being able to walk slowly to not being able to walk at all. When a child has a disability of any kind it can be very isolating. When that child is only in a classroom of other kids that have disabilities that promotes the idea that because those kids are different they should not be with ‘typical’ children and that there is something wrong with them. At NES, because of the inclusion program, the child with a disability is included in everything. They are not isolated at all. This interaction helps the child with a disability in many ways but many people don’t think about how this also helps the ‘typical’ children. Those children have daily contact with someone that has different needs than they do and they will learn valuable lessons that will stay with them for a lifetime.

“Everyone at NES throughout his six years there knows Sam. They know that he is just a regular kid that happens to get around on wheels. I had another parent approach me and tearfully tell me what a huge impact Sam had on her son and his attitude toward people. I’ve had multiple parents tell me that when they are feeling down they think of Sam and how his positive attitude in the face of all he has to deal with gives them motivation to get through what they are facing.

The inclusion program is a win-win situation for all of the children and the teachers and parents that get to experience it.”

— KRIS HERSOM, NES PARENT

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ivorce is a reality for about half of American couples.

Financial hardship during and after divorce is a reality and this can make an emotionally difficult situation even more stressful.

For nearly 20 years, Ashley Banks and Donna Carroll have worked together to help ensure that the financial burden of divorce and other life-changing situations is as minimal as possible.

Ashley Banks, a Certified Financial Planner and Morgan Stanley Branch Manager, and Donna Carroll are the only female advisors in the area who have the Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA) designation. They work with divorcees to help complete financial affidavits, budget analysis and settlement options for 5, 10 and 15 years following the divorce. This enables the person getting divorced

to take control of his or her finances, determine monetary needs, identify investable assets and develop a plan for their future.

They suggest clients meet with them at the onset of a divorce, if not sooner. This allows Banks and Carroll to learn as much as possible about the person’s finances and also enables them to recommend whether or not she or he is in a position to move forth with a divorce. Sometimes not getting a divorce makes more financial sense, at least for the immediate future.

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>> HIGH HONORS

Citizen of the Year High Springs Chamber of Commerce Awards Gloria James

BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT loria James had trouble believing her ears when she heard her name called out for the High Springs Chamber of Commerce’s Citizen of the Year award during a banquet in mid-July.

“You talk about a surprised person. It was definitely me,” James said, laughing. “I was happy about it. You know you do things, but you don’t know everybody else recognizes the fact you’re doing them as well. That’s how I felt that night.”

James’ easy-going laughter tumbled through her recollection of civic and community organizations she serves in High Springs. The list is lengthy, as she serves everyone from toddlers to senior adults. Her

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history with High Springs, however, dates back to her childhood.

A High Springs native, James graduated from the local high school before taking an academic scholarship to an Ohio college, though she only lasted one year because of trouble adjusting to the cold weather, she said. She then spent a year at Florida A&M before transferring to and graduating from Rutgers University in New Jersey.

James spent her career as a typist in service to the federal government and later worked in human resources. She retired from the Naval Air Warfare Center in Trenton, N.J. and moved back home to High Springs to take care of her

ailing mother in 2006.

“I didn’t mind the coming-back part so much, but it was the fact that the reason I had to do it was because she needed help,” she said.

While she was aiding her mother, James found herself with free time on her hands and a willingness to serve her community.

She began substitute teaching for the Alachua County School Board.

“I substitute teach on an as-needed basis when I’m available — from preschool right on up,” James said. “I try to stay out of high school as much as possible. If I’m with the little ones and middle school, I prefer that.”

James said her community

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY ALBERT ISAAC AND GLORIA JAMES

service projects tend to either support children or senior citizens.

“It’s always one extreme or the other — either the seniors or the little ones,” she said. “It just works out like that for me. I don’t know why. It seems like those are the two groups who need help, and that’s where I channel my energy. I enjoy it tremendously. I get as much out of it as they do. I really do.”

James also serves as secretary of High Springs’ Senior Citizens Gathering.

“We go — normally once a month — and visit all the care facilities we can in one day over in Gainesville,” she said. “We pack goody bags and visit with the patients, usually have prayer, sing spirituals, talk with them about whatever is of interest to them on that particular visit and we spend the day at it. We try to fit in as many as we possibly can during the day.”

James’ senior-citizen service continues as president of the local

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AARP chapter. The chapter meets on a monthly basis for fellowship over a potluck luncheon, and then hear from a guest speaker addressing topics that are beneficial to seniors.

When asked what senior citizens need most, James replied, “Companionship.”

“They need companionship more than anything else, because some of them have nobody,” she said. “It’s the simplest thing in the world. Just a few minutes, and that’s it.”

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PHOTOS PROVIDED BY ALBERT ISAAC AND GLORIA JAMES

TOP: Pastor James McDaniel and Gloria James at the Allen Chapel AME Church in High Springs. Gloria is also vice president of the Church’s missionary society.

Past AARP treasurer Janice Leavitt (bottom left) and James at a health fair held at Saint Luke AME Church in Alachua.

Local AARP chapter President Gloria James mans the desk with Secretary Veronica Maltbie (bottom right) at Saint Madeleine Catholic Church for another health fair.

James is also a member of the High Springs Women’s Club, the High Springs Chamber of Commerce. She serves as vice president for the Allen Chapel AME Church Missionary Society, as well as High Springs’ assistant election clerk and secretary of the Mebane Alumni Association. She is also the chairperson for the High Springs Planning Board.

“She does a lot to volunteer; she’s in so many different clubs,” said High Springs Chamber of Commerce President Sandra Webb.

“Mrs. Gloria James is a wonderful person and does a lot for the town.”

Without her knowledge, James’ friend, Eyvonne Andrews, nominated her for the award, as candidates cannot apply themselves, according to High Springs Chamber of Commerce Vice

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President Scott Thomason.

“We try not to pick anybody who is a board member. To me, it’s not fair if someone is a board member and they’re Citizen of Year,” Thomason said. “Anyone that lives in High Springs or even works in High Springs can nominate someone for Citizen of the Year.”

A committee then looked over the nominations and selected the award recipient.

“Gloria really stood out above everyone else. With everything she does, it was really a no-brainer,” Thomason said. “She was the best choice — very, very deserving.”

James recommended that everyone should find a place to serve in his or her community.

“If you want to know what’s going on in your community, the best way is to be involved in

what’s going on. That way, you know what’s happening,” James said. “John doesn’t have to tell you. Sally doesn’t have to tell you, because they’re going to put their spin on it, and it may or may not be the right spin. But if you’re really involved yourself, you get your own understanding and you can go from there.”

James said that was one of the reasons she became involved with High Springs when she moved back home.

“Like I said, I was born here, but when I left, half this place was still woods. It had developed more than I thought it had,” she said. “One way for me to find out where I was going and why I was going there was to just get involved in different things.

That’s how it started. One thing led to another, and it’s still going.” s

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COLUMN >> DONNA BONNELL

Embracing Life Sitting on the Dock of the Bay

hat did you do for your summer vacation? I vividly recall that being my first writing assignment upon return to grade school. Teachers may still assign that task, but nowadays details of those treasured trips are on social media almost immediately. Both venues serve the same purpose — they help us transition from the less stressful days of summer into the frenzy of fall festivities and upcoming holidays.

Have you ever noticed that countless people are refreshed by simply relaxing around water? Most postings on Facebook this summer included photos of folks having fun at the beach, tubing in our springs or hiking alongside mountain streams.

Happiness seeped through the computer screen.

Smiles illuminated the Internet as many used their free time to lounge at lakes, lagoons or lochs. Positive energy exuded and I became exhilarated by merely reading vacation stories. It seemed obvious that the rejuvenating effects of water were much greater than merely cooling off on a hot summer’s day. Of course, riveted by curiosity, I began my search for answers.

My first clues came from two very different performers — Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter (known as Beyoncé) and the late Otis Redding.

Beyoncé, the beautiful bright singer born in 1981, said, “I’m always happy when I’m surrounded by water, I think I’m a Mermaid or I was a mermaid. The ocean makes me feel really small and it makes me put my

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whole life into perspective…it humbles you and makes you feel almost like you’ve been baptized. I feel born again when I get out of the ocean.”

Redding co-wrote what would be his final song with Steve Cropper, just prior to his sudden death in 1967.

The following are excerpts from the tune inspired by time spent on a houseboat in Sausalito.

“Sitting in the morning sun I’ll be sitting when the evening comes Watching the ships roll in And I watch ‘em roll away again Sitting on the dock of the bay Watching the tide roll away I’m just sitting on the dock of the bay Wasting time” Why does water have a soothing effect? Could it be because our bodies contain about 50 quarts of water?

However, our body fluid is not water, rather a salt solution. I wondered why.

According to one theory, all land animals (including man) are descendants of organisms that once lived in the sea. The body fluid of these sea creatures was seawater. When they moved from the ocean to land, they retained the seawater. Thus, today our body fluid is salty.

In 2011, Wallace J. Nichols, research associate at the

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California Academy of Sciences organized a conference to study the similarities in chemical composition of the brain, body water and seawater.

Philippe Goldin, a neuroscientist and psychologist from Stanford spoke. He said, “There’s no lack of clarity that we came from the ocean. Seventy percent of my body is saltwater. My brain is bathed in saltwater. Even neurons fire because of salt level changes in the brain.”

My respect and fear of water (particularly the ocean) has grown in intensity.

Dr. Michael Merzenich, an emeritus professor of neuroscience from UC San Francisco believes, “This evolutionary connection to the ocean explains some of its draw.”

Scientists described how the ocean instills a sense of safety. Its flat horizon allows humans to spot oncoming threats; its smooth surface is soothing and naturally calming. We rationally know saltwater is not drinkable.

Yet, the abundance is comforting.

My respect and fear of water (particularly the ocean) has grown in intensity. Nonetheless, the trickling of a creek or the whoosh from waves spurs tranquility. It transcends me into a peaceful state of meditation. I am not alone; an estimated 60 percent of the world’s population lives along the world’s estuaries and coast.

Many others enjoy their summer vacations by soaking up the water’s serenity.

The purpose of this column is not to advocate the theory of evolution. I believe in God. However, I have an enigmatic drive to explore and share perplexing dilemmas. Our beloved former President John F. Kennedy said, “We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch – we are going back from whence we came.”

Perhaps he is embracing the afterlife by sailing the seas in Heaven. s

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>> PEP IN YOUR STEP

All Stars of

Cheerleading Florida Team Cheer has Made Winning a Longstanding Tradition

BY MARY GOODWIN ost teams have more than two minutes and thirty seconds to prove themselves — but these cheerleaders are not like most athletes.

The girls at Florida Team Cheer (FTC) might fool you with their feminine skirts, bright makeup and angelic bows, but their outfits are merely the final touch to the hours spent yelling, sweating, tumbling and lifting in the gym.

On May 4, the FTC junior and senior teams journeyed to Walt Disney World to compete against 462 teams from across the country in the first-ever Varsity All Star tournament titled “The Summit.”

As a spinoff to the level 5 Worlds

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competition, which airs on ESPN and is dubbed “the super bowl of cheerleading,” The Summit provides a fresh opportunity for youth, junior and senior levels in non-Worlds division to face-off in a live competition. The top 10 percent of teams in the country are chosen to compete after earning bids — both paid and at-large — upon winning one of the 27 qualifying competitions.

After a series of victories, the FTC senior (level four) team and junior (level two) team received at-large bids, meaning they were invited to compete but had to pay their way to the tournament.

“When we got those bids, the parents pulled together to decide if we could raise the money,” said FTC owner Eileen Handberg. “We have

great parents who are very supportive, and they ended up getting a lot of community support.”

On the first day of the tournament, all of the teams competed to make it to the second day, where only 10 of those teams qualified to move on. The junior team competed against 21 teams on day one and placed seventh on day two; the senior team went up against eight teams across the country and placed fifth.

One advantage the opposing teams had, Handberg said, was a larger scale. Because FTC is smaller, it had to rely on athletes with a variety of skills to compete, whereas other teams could pick the “cream of the crop” to assemble their most competitive group.

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PHOTO COURTESY OF FLORIDA TEAM CHEER

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF FLORIDA TEAM CHEER

TOP: Florida Team Cheer Senior Level 4 Team on stage, preparing to start their performance in January for Florida State Championships in Daytona.

ABOVE: State Champions! Team members celebrate their success.

“What is impressive is that our gym this year had about 60 kids, and we were competing against gyms that have 600 kids,” Handberg said. “When you think about that from an athlete’s standpoint, it speaks to the caliber of the coaches we have. We got a lot of comments from people who run tournaments at how impressed they were, given the size of our gym.”

This year, the FTC youth team also placed first at a competition at the Universal Cheerleaders

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Association, after competing against 580 national and international teams. The combined success of the gym and its coaches is made evident with the compilation of trophies and awards coating the walls.

“It is phenomenal how well the gym places,” said Missy Baker, whose daughter Erin has been cheering for five years. “It is always one of the top teams at competitions — for such a small gym, they do so well at competitions.”

Most of the cheerleaders are

from Gainesville, Newberry and Alachua, but some migrate to the twice-week practices from Ocala, Chiefland, Lake Butler and Palatka. There are additional cheer facilities in the surrounding areas, but the group continues to travel to FTC to win tournaments, learn from the experienced coaching staff and form friendships in a team atmosphere.

Given its success, it is hard to believe the gym’s doors were closed just three short years ago.

PHOTOS BY ALBERT ISAAC

The members of Florida Team Cheer run through their routines during an April Showcase at the Allstar Cheerleading gym in Gainesville. Presently, Christian is the only male in the group.

Founder Michelle Lewis, a coach and mother of four, closed the facility to spend more time with her children. In 2010, Handberg approached Lewis about reopening because her daughter wanted to pursue All Star cheerleading.

Now, three years later, the gym is flourishing with four team levels — the tinys: 3 to 5-year-olds, the minis: 8 and under, youth: 11 and under, juniors: 14 and under and seniors: 18 and under. All of the teams participate in a travel season, which extends from December to May, where the group voyages all over the U.S. to participate in high-level tournaments.

Choreographers are brought in from around the country to put together the two-and-a-half-minute

routines the group learns in the fall and begin performing in January. Each team practices at the gym twice a week, with two-hour sessions; unless it is the week of competition, when they practice every day. Each routine allows the athletes to master tumbling, stunting, choreography and dancing.

“It is a great sport for kids who like dance and gymnastics and want to perform; it has a mix of a lot of things,” Handberg said.

“Some kids get bored just doing dance, but All Star cheerleading is more physical, a lot of times, than some dance — and it is not as rigid as gymnastics.”

With tumbling and lifting

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instruction, the coaches make it a core focus to always be sure the stunts are executed safely and correctly. Some kids come onto the team with years of experience, and others are just starting out.

The teams are catered for all levels of experience, starting from the beginning and working all the way up to level 5 routines.

“Even for young kids, it is a sport requiring a fair amount of discipline in a team effort,” Handberg said. “If someone does not come to practice, the whole routine will not go. That helps them understand following through with commitments

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF FLORIDA TEAM CHEER

OPPOSITE: Teams from Florida Team Cheer perform and score high at national events.

ABOVE: Florida Team Cheer also participates in the Gator Homecoming Parade annually; the girls — and Christian — and coaches get a kick out of it.”

and being a part of a team.”

As the parents line up along the sidelines to cheer the team on, it is clear how close not only the teammates become, but also the parents.

“We have really enjoyed the family atmosphere here with the other families in the gym,” said Tami Vega, whose daughter has cheered for five years and is in her first year at FTC. “The parents enjoy it as much as the kids.”

Most of the children who come to try out for a team are placed.

Because of the varying levels of skill and age, the coaches try to incorporate everyone, even catering to physical limitations.

“Sometimes people get really

competitive and they want to be on the higher-level teams, but we would rather them be on an ageand skill-appropriate team and win than be on a different team and not be the best at it.”

The teams take on additions year round, but most of the tryouts are held in May. By the end of the summer, the cheerleaders are reassessed to finalize the squads for the season. This year, the teams consist of 17 youth athletes, 19 juniors and 28 seniors.

“We feel very strongly that we put our best foot forward on the floor, and we want the parents to feel their kids have been prepared to the best of their ability,” Handberg said.

www.VisitOurTowns.com

“As a parent, I like [FTC] because it is a good, diverse group of girls who come from all over,” said Cathy Kramer, whose daughter has been cheering for seven years total and joined FTC when it reopened. “I like cheerleading because it is a team sport that is very athletic — but they still get to wear makeup and bows.”

“One of arguments people make is that this is not a sport,” Handberg added. “When they come into practice, they tumble for an hour and lift kids their own size and throw them in the air. I wish people appreciated the physicality and all that it involves; if you could only see what they do in two minutes and 30 seconds…” s

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>> EQUUS

Might as well Jump Local Equestrian is Ranked Second in Florida in the High Children’s Jumper Division

BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT s Morgan Gravely urged her pony forward, closer to the looming three-foot jump, she sat straight in the saddle, heels down, eyes forward, staring down her target. Dragon’s Lair Banner, Gravely’s Welsh Cob pony, did not miss a beat as Gravely sent him flying over the fence in a sunlit field scattered with jumps.

After completing her round, Gravely rode Banner over to one of her trainers, 82-year-old Richard Watson, a lifetime horseman and former Grand Prix rider from Alachua. Watson instructed Gravely as she prepared for the U.S. National Pony Jumper Team Championship in Lexington, Ky., in early August.

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“It’s hard to believe she’s 17 years old,” Watson said of Gravely during a later interview. “She doesn’t look it, and she doesn’t act it. She’s a good kid and listens and tries. What more can you ask? She’s got the talent.”

Gravely’s talent was evident during her practice, and a small group of supporters watched her from a golf cart in the dewy grass on the early August morning. From the driver’s seat, Marianne Cobb, Gravely’s mother, watched her daughter signal her pony to jump fence after fence.

“I couldn’t watch her ride when she was little. I was too scared.

When she’s competing, a lot of

times I turn around, and then I peek,” Cobb said, imitating the action with her hands.

Gravely nearly was born in a saddle, as her grandmother, aunt and mother grew up in the farm life.

“She’s ridden all her life,” said Molly Cobb-Smith, Gravely’s aunt.

“We put her on a pony when she was 6 months old and held her up there.”

Cobb-Smith trains Gravely regularly on her farm, Pony Paddock at Cedar Lane in High Springs.

“I’m comfortable around her,” Gravely said of her aunt. “She was pretty close, so that’s convenient. I actually like it a lot. A lot of people, they don’t do so good riding with a family member, but I like it; it

PHOTO BY FLASHPOINT PHOTOGARPHY PHOTO BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT

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PHOTOS BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT

Morgan Gravely, 17, carries on her family’s tradition by riding a pony bred by her grandmother and training with her aunt.

She has worked with her 11-year-old Welsh pony, Dragon’s Lair Banner, for the past three years. She began jumping twofoot jumps with him, and has worked up to nearly four-foot jumps.

works for us pretty well.”

Gravely lives next door to her grandmother’s farm, Dragon’s Lair Farm, in Newberry. Her grandmother, Celia Evans, bred Gravely’s pony, Banner.

“It’s truly a family affair. Molly is the trainer; Marianne’s daughter is the rider; and I bred the pony,” Evans said. “That’s about as close as you can get it. My girls were both riders as children. I think we’re all living vicariously through this child,

72 | Autumn 2013

which is a lot of fun. She thinks she has three mothers.”

Gravely’s relatives picked an ideal source through which to live vicariously. Through Gravely’s talent as an equestrian she is ranked second in Florida in the High Children’s Jumper division, which has her jumping 3-foot-9-inch jumps. She is also ranked fourth in Zone 4, which includes Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina and Mississippi, and fourth in the

nation in the Pony Jumper division, as well as fifth in Zone 4 in the Low Children’s Jumper division.

Gravely also maintains a 4.6 GPA as an international baccalaureate student at Eastside High School in Gainesville.

“It’s hard to balance it [all] because you’re at the barn so much to keep your horse in shape,” Gravely said. “I’m in [international baccalaureate], so I have a whole bunch of school work, even during the

PHOTOS BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT

ABOVE: Richard Watson, a former Grand Prix rider from Alachua, coaches Morgan Gravely to prepare her for a competition in Lexington, Ky. RIGHT: Watson, a lifetime horseman, shares a horsey anecdote with Morgan Gravely’s aunt, Molly Cobb-Smith.

BELOW: Morgan Gravely tacking up her pony, Banner, to prepare for her lesson at Pony Paddock at Cedar Lane.

summer. It’s a challenge, balancing that between friends and everything.

It’s hard to do, but it’s doable.”

Gravely’s summer activities also included traveling to Atlanta in late June to compete in the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association Child/Adult Jumper Regional Championships, where Team Florida took home the gold.

“No one expected them to do well in Atlanta,” Cobb-Smith said. “They thought, ‘He’s just a pony, then

whoa!’ He beat all those horses.”

Cobb-Smith said her niece maintains a calm exterior while competing.

“She’s very determined and competitive. She does riding like she does school. Externally, she’s not very competitive, but inside, she’s stirring,” Cobb-Smith said.

In early August, Gravely traveled to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky., to compete in the U.S. National Pony Jumper Team

www.VisitOurTowns.com

Championship with her entourage, which included her mother, aunt and grandmother, as well as a member of last year’s championship team, Gainesville resident Barclay Powell, who has ridden with Gravely since they were both 5 years old.

Gravely joined with three other young equestrians from Zone 4, and the team had no faults, which meant no one knocked down a pole and everyone stayed within the time limit while completing the course.

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PHOTO BY FLASHPOINT PHOTOGARPHY

“The goal of the whole competition is to have zero jumping faults,” Gravely said. “For Zone 4, we had zero faults, which is pretty unheard of for every person on the team to have double clear rounds.”

During the three-day competition, family members and supportive friends donned orange in support of their competitors.

“It was really pretty phenomenal to see four young people meet for the first time and mesh the way those four did,” Evans said after she watched her granddaughter compete. “They were like an instant team. They just clicked. It was really fun to watch. It was fun to watch even after the team thing, because then they’re competing against each other, but they were cheering each other on.”

Gravely’s team won the gold medal, and she placed fourth based on her individual performance.

“It’s especially the icing on the cake for me, because I’ve raised Welsh ponies since 1969, and to

74 | Autumn 2013

PHOTO BY CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT (ABOVE)

LEFT: In June, Team Florida I captured the Gold Medal at the Children’s Jumper Regional Championship held in Georgia. Natalie Hughes, Morgan Gravely, Maaike Bentzon and Lauren Zavodney.

RIGHT: A group of supporters watches Morgan Gravely practice, including her mother, Marianne Cobb in the driver’s seat.

have my grandchild take one to national ranking is nice,” Evans said.

Evans said watching her granddaughter and pony compete was like a dream.

“I’m holding my breath. I’m watching this pony and watching this child. It’s like a dream,” Evans said. “When you raise children, you want them to succeed; when your raise ponies, you want to see them do their very best. When you have that pair, right now you’ve got it all.

It’s extremely exciting to me. It’s like a dream come true.”

According to Gravely, however, the experience was not quite so dreamlike. Before competing, she took the time to walk the course and decide on her best strategy.

“You go in the ring, and you try to work out what you had planned when you walked the course. Sometimes it happens, and sometimes it doesn’t,” Gravely said.

Gravely quoted advice she received from Watson during a lesson: “You’ve got to keep thinking.”

“That’s the biggest thing I’ve been working on all the time. Your mind has to be sharp. You can’t just go out there and expect it to happen. You have to think through every step,” Gravely said. “You get really nervous before going into the ring, at least I do. I go over the course in my head. As soon as you get out there, you aren’t nervous.

There are no nerves anymore.

That’s the only thing on your mind.

You don’t know what’s going on or hear the fans in the stadium. It’s just you and your horse and the jumps out there.”

Gravely’s future plans include competing in dressage regionals in October, as well as riding out her senior year at Eastside High.

“I want to ride on an equestrian team in college, and I’ve been thinking about taking some time off of school or taking time in the summer to just go and ride and learn,” Gravely said. “It’s something that I really like to do, and I want to keep doing it.” s

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COLUMN >> ALBERT ISAAC

Different Note MyFaceTimeSpaceBook ll this social media mayhem can wear a person out.

Even people like me, people that really enjoy keeping up with friends and relatives and relative strangers, can grow weary of some of the things people post.

I recently read that spending time on social media sites makes people unhappy. I read it on the Internet, therefore it must be true. Of course, another source portends that this is a rumor. A study indicated that spending time on social media sites makes people gloomy, but didn’t consider it might be because gloomy people are more likely to spend time on social media.

Which is correct? I guess it depends on what you want to believe. And nowadays, no matter what you choose to believe, there is probably a website to validate your convictions. If there’s not, you can always make one.

We call it the Information Age. I think a better term would be the Disinformation Age; an era in history in which the rumor mill can crank out the most profound untruths known to humankind and share them with millions of people in a matter of seconds.

Many of us — too many — don’t think twice about forwarding an email to everybody in our address book about the latest rumor, political transgression or ‘fact’

A

without bothering to check if it’s true – especially if it advances our particular viewpoint.

I think that while the World Wide Web has connected us all in ways unimaginable a few years ago, it has also isolated some of us from actual human contact.

In the early days of Internet Relay Chat, my brother and I would go online and communicate with each other and a bunch of local chatters. It can be addicting. And then one afternoon we all met up at a pool

How many of these anonymous trolls would say such atrocities face-to-face?

Not many, I’m guessing. hall. It was awkward. People were very quiet and had trouble talking to one another. One guy spilled his beer.

Another fell off his chair. But I’d bet dollars to donuts (whatever that means) if you put a keyboard in their hands you couldn’t shut ‘em up.

So it is that many of us become addicted to our social devices, living vicariously through the ethereal

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series of ones and zeros streaming across the vast World Wide Web, and staying up all night staring at the glow of our monitors. No small wonder that sleep deprivation is a national epidemic.

To make matters worse, our devices are physiologically disrupting our sleep patterns by producing blue light — a short-wavelength type of light that suppresses the production of melatonin, the major hormone secreted by the pineal gland that controls sleep and wake cycles.

TVs produce blue light. Cell phones, tablets and computer screens produce it. In fact, even normal levels of room lighting can suppress our melatonin.

The solution? Turn off our devices and dim the lights.

Or wear amber-lensed goggles. I’ve read there’s even an app for that; it changes the color of your screen at night to a warm glow.

While social media has been used for so many good things, it’s also used for mean-spirited hateful things. No one is safe from the Flamers of the world, those who delight in spewing their venom for no other reason other than they can. How many of these anonymous trolls would say such atrocities face-to-face? Not many, I’m guessing.

That’s what wears me out. Internet interaction can turn adults into children. That’s what makes me gloomy. I do my best to stay out of the fray and not indulge in any flame wars. Life’s too short.

On the flipside, however, social media has reconnected me to people I’ve not seen in decades. When my sister was recovering from cancer, her childhood friends were able to find her (after 30 years) on Facebook and they came to visit when she needed them the most. It was instrumental in reuniting me with my high school band director (just prior to his death) and my fellow classmates, most of which I’d lost touch with 30+ years ago. I can share in my friends’ triumphs and sorrows.

From across the globe I can watch their kids grow up. I can video-chat with our grandchildren.

Clearly, in my mind the good outweighs the bad.

And while I can’t claim it as my own (I found it on the Internet), I do have some advice for you when posting your thoughts to the world: T.H.I.N.K. before you type.

Ask yourself:

T H I N K

Is it True?

Is it Helpful?

Is it Inspiring?

Is it Necessary?

Is it Kind?

Now I’m off to search the web for some cheap goggles so that I may view the world through ambercolored glasses. (And no, that’s not really true.) s

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>> SERVICE

Irish Waterdogs High Springs Nonprofit Helps Veterans Heal

BY COURTNEY LINDWALL n the mornings of the kayak trips, the veterans are distant. As the volunteers welcome them to their day on the river, most stand alone.

Most are quiet.

But the water heals and binds.

The water brings the veterans together.

“At the end of the day, it’s all fistbumps and high-fives and talking smack,” Dave McDaid said. “They’re with their own.”

McDaid runs the nonprofit Irishwaterdogs Warriors, which

O

takes veterans on outdoor trips as a form of recreational therapy.

The nationwide organization, born in early 2010, is moving its headquarters from Jacksonville to High Springs.

It is the nonprofit wing of McDaid’s outdoor apparel store, Irishwaterdogs, which also hosts races, tournaments and climbs. The program has 16 branches in nine states — five just in Florida. The outdoor activities for the veterans vary based on location, but in North Florida, the veterans are almost always out on the river.

For Randy Sutton, 56, the trips

PHOTO BY ALBERT ISAAC

Founder Dave McDaid in his Irishwaterdogs shop in High Springs.

80 | Autumn 2013

bring him home.

Growing up, Sutton’s weekends were spent out on the Chesapeake Bay in big fishing boats with his dad. After serving two years in the Marine Corps, Sutton struggled to find his place. He has begun to find it again, currently living at The HONOR Center, Gainesville’s veteran domiciliary, and working toward a degree in social work at Santa Fe College.

The Irishwaterdogs Warriors program has been a part of this journey.

“There’s an unconditional respect and love they show us as

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVE MCDAID

The Irishwaterdogs Warriors is a monthly program for veterans and first responders, focused on kayaking, fishing, hiking and camping, and outdoor photography. Kayaking and kayak fishing offers a low-impact adaptive sport with both mental and physical benefits. The outdoor activities for the veterans vary based on location, but in North Florida, the veterans are almost always out on the river.

veterans,” Sutton said. “It’s the first time most of these veterans come in contact with someone who doesn’t want anything from them.”

That selflessness has an impact on those who may be struggling with both physical and emotional wounds, PTSD being one of the most difficult.

82 | Autumn 2013

The outdoors and the camaraderie among the veterans bring calm.

“The things that exist at the domiciliary don’t exist out there,” Sutton said.

A typical trip for the High Springs chapter would be a threeto four-hour kayak paddle down the Ichetucknee, ending in a cookout

for the veterans, their families and the volunteers.

McDaid wanted to emphasize that families of veterans are welcome, especially because many have already spent long times apart during deployment.

“They could be gone for two to three years, and their infants

IRISH WATERDOGS High Springs + Gainesville Chapter For companies, corporations or individuals interested in supporting The Irishwaterdogs Warriors Program, please contact Karen at the head office in High Springs. Karen McInerney: 352-317-7458. karen@irishwaterdogs.com.

would’ve turned into toddlers,” he said. “I always encourage them to come out to spend the day together.”

The organization provides the equipment, everything from kayaks to fishing rods to transportation.

For veterans with physical injuries such as missing limbs, kayaks are specially outfitted.

McDaid, a Dublin-born Irishman, has pulled heavily from his own resources to launch the nonprofit and keep it running at no cost to the veterans. Having come to the

United States while only in his 20s, McDaid may not be the obvious pick for an activist dedicated to veteran care.

But his relationship to the cause is personal, McDaid said.

He first moved to New York City from Ireland as a musician on tour.

He fell in love with the city and knew he would stay.

His proximity to the events of 9/11 made it feel all the more real when men and women began coming home from combat years

www.VisitOurTowns.com

later, many with emotional and physical damage.

McDaid saw a need he could fill. He could bring his love of the outdoors to struggling veterans.

He would put on a few events here and there to share his passion, until eventually the success of his apparel company allowed him to file as an official nonprofit.

“It really gives them hope,” McDaid said. “It changes the way they think about themselves and the way they think the

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PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVE MCDAID

Veterans and their family members are welcome and the trip typically ends with a cookout.

community views them.”

The program took off. In California, groups of veterans join in on mountain bike races. In Utah and Arizona, they head to the desert. In Miami, they take trips through the Everglades on airboats.

“In Florida, we do an awful lot of kayaking,” McDaid said.

Specifically in High Springs, there is a focus on recreational kayaking and nature photography.

McDaid has always been a kayaker. The reason he first moved to Jacksonville was its watery crevices — creeks, rivers, the Intracoastal Waterway, the ocean. On the weekends, he would head outdoors, but he found that resources were limited.

“I’d drive by a creek and then

84 | Autumn 2013

go home to Google the best place to launch, but it wasn’t there,” McDaid said. “I got kind of frustrated with that.”

He began his own blog, talking about his experiences outdoors, mapping GPS coordinates and uploading pictures. His passion for being out on the water translated naturally to a passion for equipment. It began with a few shirts, and then grew into a full-on brand that also sponsored events.

“There were calls from all over the country, just because of the spirit of adventure of the whole thing,” McDaid said. “It grew and grew and grew — now it’s enormous.”

McDaid said he hopes that moving the headquarters to High Springs will mean greater involvement with

local VA groups, such as clinics and transitional housing units.

Therapists at the HONOR Center, such as Alee Karpf, praise the type of treatment Irishwaterdogs Warriors offers, especially because most centers do not have the level of resources to provide something similar.

The responses from the veterans have been warm and full of thanks.

Sutton recently sent a letter of appreciation to the organization.

“The next time you hear a vet laugh or see a vet smile, know that you of Irishwaterdogs are making a huge difference,” he wrote. “You are serving your country, just like these men and women are serving theirs.” s

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>> WATER WORLD

Going with

the Flow

Kayaking Northeast Florida’s Waterways

BY SARAH A. HENDERSON ome lessons you learn the hard way.

The wind was in my face, the kayak was empty except for me, and my upper arms were numb with pain. Each time I sliced the salty water with my paddle, the effort accomplished nothing.

I was going nowhere fast, and my patience was dwindling faster.

There are a lot of important lessons you learn while kayaking, all of which I refused to accept in my first afternoon of kayaking through Talbot Islands State Park near Amelia Island, Fla. It was my first coastal kayak experience, and at the time, I was certain it would be my last.

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For that particular day trip, my kayak companions and I had our sights set on the more glamorous of two paddling trails available at our Kayak Amelia launch point. Instead of taking the southward trip to Ft. George River with the tide coming in, we decided for the more exciting, against-the-tide route whose endpoint is a beautiful sandbar on the Atlantic Ocean.

I hopped into the single-seat kayak, my companions — my brother and his girlfriend — in the tandem, and northward we paddled, into the wind, against the tide and toward the sandy shore we would never reach that day.

If you spent any time growing up in Northeast Florida as I did, you more than likely spent the majority

of that time in some kind of body of water. Cooling off with cousins in your grandparents’ pool. Collecting tadpoles in your neighborhood lake. Fishing Frisbees out of the creek in your friend’s backyard.

Trying — and failing — to skip stones on a local pond with your dad. Canoeing down the Suwannee with your mom. Fighting through the breakers of the Atlantic to show your sibling how it’s done. Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

Television, as you could guess, comes second to the outdoors in my family.

Kayaking, however, was something brand new to me all the way through to the summer before my junior year of college. I’ll admit that it wasn’t my idea. Kayaks’

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PHOTO BY SARAH A. HENDERSON

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double-paddle oar and proximity to wildlife-laden water scared me a little — a lot.

But being young and foolish and adventurous at the time — and, OK, dating a new boyfriend who knew how to kayak — had its pluses. We launched the kayak at the University of Florida’s Lake Wauburg, and while the young love I was paddling with did not last, a different love did — kayaking.

However, if you asked me if I loved kayaking on that Talbot Islands State Park trip where the wind was fierce, I was paddling my first single-seat kayak, and my arms felt like noodles, I probably would have given you a different answer. Understatement: that kayaking trip was rough. I told myself I would never attempt that water trail again.

Kayaking is something I do

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recreationally. I will be the first to admit I am a kayaking novice, and I learn as I go. I have read no books and was taught no official techniques; I just know what works for me. Until I learn even more lessons on the water, though, there are at least a few basics tips I can pass along to any new or aspiring kayakers:

Find out what type of kayak best suits you — a sit-in or sit-on-top kayak While sit-in kayaks give you slightly more speed and more protection from the sun, I learned quickly that I prefer sit-on-top kayaks, where my long-limbed frame is more comfortable and the boat a bit wider and more stable. You will also want to decide whether you want a tandem kayak or a single-seat kayak. For weaker arms like mine,

I find a single-seat kayak great for less-strenuous waters but tandems essential for windier days and stronger currents.

Water and snacks are necessary Nothing seems to make me thirstier than sitting at water level under the Florida sun, and nothing makes me hungrier than burning calories with an intense upper-body workout.

Pack light — crackers, dried fruit, a water canteen — because most kayaks contain only a small snack cubby or minimal bungee cords to pin down your belongings.

Sun protection is important Even if you are on a shaded waterway, a hat and sunscreen are always a good idea. Be sure to apply the sunscreen before you begin paddling, as kayaking is a water

PHOTO BY SARAH A. HENDERSON

Kayaking in Northeast Florida offers a decent workout plus plenty of nature sightseeing.

sport, after all, and you will get wet, possibility undoing just-applied sunscreen’s good intentions.

Water shoes are the best-kept secret, in my opinion.

My favorite kayaking-supplies investment, water shoes protect the soles of your feel from oysters

shells, slippery muck and other body-of-water bottom dwellers.

They also do double-duty by protecting your feet from sun and preventing the unnecessary ruining of your tennis shoes, sandals or flip-flops. They dry quickly, too, though the Florida heat might have something to do with that.

Check the weather and tides before setting out Kayaking against the current is doable, but for beginners, you will want to paddle with the flow of the current. As for the weather, a place you probably do not want to be during a thunderstorm is holding onto the aluminum handle of a paddle

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PHOTO BY SARAH A. HENDERSON

In addition to sunscreen and snacks, water shoes are helpful when kayaking in case you decide to explore the shallow waters of sandbars along your kayaking route.

in a plastic boat in the middle of a body of water. Been there, done that, and it is a unnerving life experience I would recommend forgoing.

Find some buddies to join you Kayaking alone is possible, of course, but it is much more fun with someone else, tandem or everyone in single-seat crafts. Not only are you sharing one of Florida’s coolest recreation activities with someone else, but your companions can also help keep a paddling rhythm with you and provide motivation when you start tuckering out. Your friends’ kayaks are a great vantage point from which to take photos of your adventure as well.

Everyone learns different lessons on the water, and that tough day near Amelia Island was a hard lesson in persistence and listening to the experts. Despite what we were told by Kayak Amelia officials about the tide moving in, we found ourselves going nowhere fast in one portion of the waterway where the wind was so intense that, as hard as I paddled, I made no movement forward.

Close to tears, I somehow powered through that small section of water, turned a bend or two, and my crew and I rested on a small cleared patch of the surrounding marsh. We recuperated for a little while, decided it was best not to continue against the tide, and hopped back in the kayaks for the return trip, never reaching our sandbar destination.

When my brother called nearly a year later about returning to that waterway, I was more than hesitant.

He insisted we would paddle with the tide this time, and — big surprise — it turned out to be a much more

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Kayak Amelia is not the only place to rent kayaks in Northeast Florida. Here a few other great options:

pleasant experience.

As luck would have it — or perhaps a reward for our tough work the first time — the tide was going out toward the ocean this time, in the direction of the sandbar. We made it there in record time and waited about an hour for the tide to shift. Even luckier, a beautiful rainstorm came through, cooled us down, and then about 15 minutes later, we were en route back to the Kayak Amelia headquarters.

Kayak Amelia is a great place to kayak all year long with rentals that include a floatation vest and paddle.

Plus, the organization offers many other activities, such as bike tours, kayaking tours and camps. But, of course,

• ALL WET SPORTS What’s fun about this place is that it is located on Jacksonville’s Pottsberg Creek. Rent kayaks here for a more urban water escape for an afternoon. Website: www.allwetsports.net • BLACK CREEK OUTFITTERS Located near Jacksonville’s St. Johns Town Center, this organization rents and sells kayaks as well as offers paddling classes and eco-tours. Website: www. blackcreekoutfitters.com • FIRST COAST OUTFITTERS This company headquartered in Jacksonville Beach offers paddling products, lessons and tours. Plus, its blog offers great kayaking tips. Website: www. firstcoastoutfitters.com For my next kayaking adventure, I would love to explore the Intracoastal Waterway. While I have not yet decided on a launch point, I know I will have my hat, sunscreen and water shoes on, I will be using a sit-on-top kayak, and I will have snacks, water and friends along for the ride.

Most importantly, though, no matter the heat or the after-adventure fatigue, you can bet I will be going with the flow – in kayak as in life. s

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>> GOOD NATURE

Poe Springs Back from the Brink

BY JENNIFER RIEK ince the first spring broke through the surface of the earth, more than 700 crystal clear pools have dotted the face of Florida maps. As individual as the swimmers who visit them, each can boast a distinctive trait. In High Springs, Poe Springs is known for its tranquil setting and small crowds.

It is also known for nearly dying because of the statewide drought.

In 2011, Florida had been experiencing a drought for nearly a year and a half, said Vernest LeGree, the acting superintendent of Alachua County Public Works.

Springs large and small throughout the state were reporting record low

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flows; some had ceased altogether.

At Poe Springs, the office of Public Works inspected the water level and concrete steps rising from the spring. The steps, shaped much like an amphitheater, no longer touched the water; they had eroded to the point of concern.

In what might have seen as irreparable damage to many people, LeGree, then the contracts and project coordinator, saw an opportunity to improve.

“During the time of the decrease, we decided to do the construction [to the existing steps] because the water was so low,” he said. “We thought it was just the right time.”

The team also asked for the funding and supplies to install an updated retaining wall, fresh

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POE SPRINGS PARK

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Recently reopened Poe Springs is one of the least crowded county springs in the region and is suitable for small children. Much-needed repairs and low flow had kept the park closed for 8 months.

landscaping, and new roofs and air-conditioning units for the park’s scattered buildings and pavilions.

The team began its work in December 2011 with a timeline of only six months.

And then the rains returned.

Like bears awakening from hibernation, storms thundered across the state. They saturated the forests and gorged the struggling springs. Tropical Storm Debby flooded the Santa Fe River, spilling

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black water into the springs. Liquid hands clambered up LeGree’s construction and dragged it into the dark. The team was then forced into a waiting game, which the public patiently played.

For eight months the rest of the 202-acre park — a baseball field, nature and hiking trails, fishing, a playground, and a volleyball court — remained closed along with the spring. Its reopening soothed some of the whispers over the extended

timeline, but LeGree and the team still faced what would become a six-month period waiting for the water levels to recede. When construction did resume the terrain was nothing like before.

“We were actually working in the water,” LeGree said, “and without [dry land] we had to use different construction techniques. It’s difficult to pour concrete underwater… and we were only halfway done.”

The steps then had to be built

outside of the water and lowered into place. The change required a switch from form and pour concrete work to precast, bumping the final cost of the project to an unanticipated $186,000. As LeGree and his team worked, the public began to grow anxious. LeGree was acutely aware of the mounting pressure and anticipation.

Finally, on July 3, 2013, LeGree pronounced the Poe Springs Park makeover complete. After a year and a half the front gates swung wide to welcome the public. The Fourth came with no fanfare or grand opening celebrations; LeGree said it was not necessary.

“We achieved everything we wanted,” he said. “It took us longer, but our objective was met in the process. The length of time didn’t compromise the quality of what we wanted to do.”

The updated steps are an asset to the park, he said, improving safety and refreshing aesthetics for patrons to enjoy.

Yet the danger has not passed for critically low water levels to return. Chris Bird, the environmental protection director of Alachua County, has been tracking the ebb and flow of local springs’ cycles and has several theories on what is to come and what is to blame.

“What people don’t understand is that you can have a big rain and the river goes up and it looks really good,” Bird said. “But it’s only rainwater and goes away after a few days. The springs flow; that’s the foundation of the Santa Fe River. If we’re losing that flow because the springs are weakening, you can’t just make it up with a rain here and there. That’s not a good system.”

When rain falls, a large geographical area known as a springshed drinks in the water and stores the supply in the underlying limestone of the Floridan aquifer. Springsheds can span hundreds of miles. The source feeding Poe Springs extends throughout Newberry, Alachua,

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and High Springs all the way up into Northwest Gainesville. The Santa Fe River acts as a dividing line between this and other Florida springsheds.

According to Bird, one of the main causes for low water levels is the increase of groundwater pumping. For thousands of years springs like Poe have been heaving forth a steady, flow of crystal clear water. As cities expand and populations grow, additional pumping of groundwater has become necessary to sustain the clean water supply citizens have become accustomed to.

And now the resources have become strained.

At its peak, Poe Springs pumped between 30 million and 45 million gallons of water a day, Bird said, and at the time of the park reconstruction it had dwindled to less than a million. According to a recent UF Geological Survey, Alachua County alone pulls between 55 and 60 million gallons a day out of the aquifer. Roughly

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half of this number is generated by agricultural ground water pumping, a depletion greatly increased when droughts leech water from every other available source. Around 40 percent is attributed to municipal wells, such as those in High Springs and Alachua, and municipalities such as Gainesville Regional Utilities. The remaining total is claimed by private wells, mainly for the use of homeowner lawn care. s each consumer fights for a greater share, the springs grow weaker and are unable to heal. Nitrogeninfused fertilizers bleed into the pools, and with less clean water to dilute the containment, algae begins to bloom. Storms force water levels to rise until the Santa Fe River overwhelms the translucent surface, making the springs tannic and dark.

Of the new park a single statement is unanimous: the spring is

A

not as clear as it once was.

Mike Walker, a childhood resident of Keystone Heights, used to swim at Poe Springs in the ‘70s before it was even a park. He can recall throwing a quarter into the depths and being able to see which side the coin fell on from 50 feet above.

“I’d rate the clarity now at a six out of 10,” Walker said. He complimented the new additions, but lamented the amount of structures that have been installed around the area. “I prefer to see it the way it was. I liked it when there was nothing here but a swimming hole and a tire swing.”

LeGree is also a longstanding visitor of the springs. Born in Columbia County, he lived in Fort White and Lake City as a child, and visited Poe as often as he could.

Like Walker, he has watched the area transform from a simple dirt road and a secret place to a park being managed by the state and county. He maintains high hopes

of it one day returning to its past pristine and natural beauty.

“When you travel down the river, you pass a lot of points. When you get along the area of Poe Springs, you know you’re in a special place, and you just want to explore it,” LeGree said. “I get a kick out of seeing other people for the first time getting to experience what I got to experience for a lifetime. I would love for it to be around for my grandkids to enjoy what I had… I have a special interest to make sure it stays a nice park.” s

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>> CONSERVATION

Money well Spent The Civilian Conservation Corps — Another Day, Another Dollar

STORY & PHOTOGRAPHY

BY DARLA KINNEY SCOLES t was 1933. Americans were unemployed, hungry and devoid of hope. Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal’s Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) changed all that, as well as changing the very landscape of the country, with a dollar a day, a big idea and muscle as its greatest resource. The two-fold program offered work and gave skills to an army of young men with few options, while simultaneously setting the stage for a system of conservation of natural lands not repeated since.

Starke resident Harry Cooney had three brothers who were CCC

I

Boys and credits the work they and the Corps did with changing the face of rural America.

“Before the CCC,” Cooney said, “it was like having a collection of eggs and no way for them to hatch. It was a time of many idle minds that were then given an opportunity to move forward with the understanding of new growth.

“I can remember clearly when electricity came into our rural life.

During that era of depression, when that $75 came to our home each month, it had been earned and paid for. It was not a free gift. It was advancement.”

Former CCC enrollee Jake Keene of Brooker also remembers the first $25 check the CCC sent home to his family. (CCC Boys earned $30 per month, keeping $5 and sending $25 home.)

“My mom used that first check to turn the lights on,” said the 94-year-old. “That meant so much. I spent two years in the Corps. I was the oldest of seven children and our father had abandoned us. They all appreciated me for my service and the money it provided.”

Keene, who learned to type while in high school, was promoted to company clerk while in the

OPPOSITE: A bronze likeness of a Civilian Conservation Corps Boy stands at O’Leno State Park, thanks to a local group of CCC alumni who created a museum there as well.

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Corps, compiling reports and payroll records — valuable skills that he used to procure a job after his time in the Corps. Such was the case, by design, with many Corps members.

On June 30, 1942 all CCC camps were closed because of World War II. Many enrollees joined the armed services, where their skills and training were valuable commodities.

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It was 1986. University of Florida urban planning graduate student, Kathleen Walston Pagan, chose a case study of the CCC in Florida for her master’s thesis and began interviewing local members about their experiences. Invigorated by their associations, a group was gathered, an alumni chapter created and friendships were forged from the common ground these men and their families worked so

hard to improve.

“My thesis work researching the Civilian Conservation Corps history in Florida left me with great gratitude that the New Deal began the development of many of the Florida State Parks we still enjoy today,” Pagan said of the experience then and since. “In my thesis I included a quote by Vice President Henry Wallace now paraphrased from my memory: although conservation

<<

Many of the cabins at O’Leno State Park, as well as the log pavilion, fire tower and suspension bridge were built

by CCC Workers.

Jake Keene, a CCC Boy and secretary-treasurer for a local CCC Legacy group, receives an award for his years of service to the chapter. The only such group left in Florida, the Legacy group met for the last time in June.

Members of the Florida Chapter of CCC Legacy (bottom left) met for a final time in June to reflect on the work done by the group and the CCC in the 1930s.

A local alumni chapter of CCC enrollees and their families created and filled this museum (bottom right) at O’Leno State Park with story-telling memorabilia.

has overtly to do with trees, its underlying purpose is social. The program helped Florida’s environment and people, as it did across the nation.”

Pagan has kept in touch and involved with the alumni group ever since, recently attending the chapter’s final meeting, where more stories were shared and tears shed for a special time long since gone. The aging members are few in number now, can no longer travel to meet and are disbanding the group.

“The strong intergenerational friendships and generosity of this group demonstrate the community and character values the program instilled in the young men,” Pagan said. As elders, their concern for the families of their friends was evident at every gathering, and in recent years included attending memorial services.”

“It’s been a good journey.

I’ve enjoyed being a part of a group that is so special.

I will miss this.”

It is 2013. The CCC is celebrating its 80th anniversary.

Americans continue to enjoy the fruits of the labors of the CCC Workers. State parks across the nation bear witness to the daily grit and determination this army in green put into creating a sustainable, enjoyable, natural experience for those who would follow. But the “boys” are getting old. Many are now in their 90s, such as the group of about 15 who gathered recently for a final meeting of the last remaining Chapter of the Florida CCC Legacy Group.

Keene, the group’s long-time secretary-treasurer, was presented with a plaque honoring his service over the past 25 years.

Chapter president, Joanne Stevens, whose father was a Corps enrollee who often shared his experiences with her, expressed appreciation for the dedication of the chapter and its members.

“It’s been a good journey,” Stevens said. “I’ve enjoyed

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Former CCC enrollee, Walter Atwood and friend Inez Williams, have traveled the U.S. this year to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the government program.

being a part of a group that is so special. I will miss this.”

“I appreciate the privilege of having a chapter,” added Keene.

“We’ve had about 170 people sign up in our chapter over the years and many wonderful people have passed through here.”

All fondly remember their time in the Corps. Walter Atwood, a CCC Boy for only one year, recalls the

difference those months made in not only his life, but for his seven siblings back home on the farm.

“The best part,” Atwood, 91, said, “was that you got three meals, a place to sleep and clothing. My family and community really liked the money we sent home, too. I worked in personnel in Wyoming and then Idaho.”

The work these men performed

did not stop when their time in the Corps came to an end in 1942. As an alumni chapter, they saw to it that improvements continued to be made, particularly to O’Leno State Park in the form of a CCC museum and bronze CCC Worker statue there.

Many of the cabins at O’Leno State Park were originally built by the Corps, with the original Florida CCC Boys also constructing the park’s log

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pavilion, fire tower training building and suspension bridge.

One such building was carefully restored by this Legacy chapter and now houses a generous archive of information and memorabilia donated by the alumni members and housed for visitors to enjoy.

The bronze likeness overlooks the museum, as proud as the men and families who worked to have it placed there.

Though the members of this special group are disappearing from the nation’s landscape, the work they did will not.

According to the Florida State Park Service, The Civilian Conservation Corps left a significant legacy in the state. In nine years, enrollees planted 18,924,000 trees, constructed 3,620 miles of trails and roads, built 2,736 bridges, spent 97,993 worker-days fighting fires, and developed eight state parks – all for a dollar a day. s For more information on the CCC visit www.ccclegacy.org

FDR’s message to the Civilian Conservation Corps PRESIDENT FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT’S MESSAGE AIRED ON NBC RADIO AT 7:30 P.M., FRIDAY, APRIL 17, 1936.

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COLUMN >> BY KENDRA SILER-MARSIGLIO

Healthy Edge Ouch! Dealing with Rejection ejection! It hurts all of us. As adults, we’ve mostly learned how to “deal” with it — whether it’s big or small. Kids and teens still have to learn coping mechanisms. Here’s how to help your kids keep negative emotions caused by rejection in check.

Intense emotions caused by rejection can keep us from going for and getting what we want in life. It can get debilitating.

So, what advice should we give our kids?

According to TeenHealth at Nemours, processing rejection follows a sequence of steps.

R

STEP 1: Be honest with yourself about what you think and feel. Instead of telling yourself to “suck it up” or ignoring the rejection, TeenHealth recommends that you acknowledge the rejection. It’s OK to feel rejected when it happens — everybody does.

STEP 2: Recognize the intensity of your feelings. Feel like crying? Do it. It’s a natural way to release pent up emotions. Maybe you feel like the rejection didn’t affect you all that much? Great!

STEP 3: Identify which emotions you’re feeling (and what “percentage”). Here’s TeenHealth’s list of rejection-induced feelings that can get your teen started: • • • • • • • • • •

Hurt (feelings or pride) Angry Upset Unworthy Sad Embarrassed Left Out Wounded Frustrated Disappointed

STEP 4: Talk to someone who is trusted about the situation and your feelings. It’s important to find someone to talk to (family or friend) who’s supportive and experienced. There are two benefits from this: it’s comforting to know someone understands, and it’s important to put feelings into words to release them.

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STEP 5: Time to start moving on to the good! It’s good to acknowledge feelings, but you don’t want to ruminate on them… it keeps you in the past.

STEP 6: Examine what you’ve learned and your inner voice. How are you explaining the rejection to yourself?

Are you sticking to facts? Are you learning accurate lessons?

STEP 7: Keep things in perspective. Do you feel like no one likes you because a girl you liked wasn’t interested in you “that way?” Is that really the case?

STEP 8: Keep an inventory of what’s good about you.

What are you good at? Who likes you? What are you proud of? My son has an “Accomplishment Wall” to remind him of who he is… It’s easy to forget when you meet setbacks.

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STEP 9: If you put yourself out there (and got rejected), give yourself credit for trying. It’s courageous to try for things, even if you don’t get them.

STEP 10: Learn, learn, learn. Where can you improve?

What actionable steps can you take to avoid rejection next time (that don’t include NOT trying)? Life is about learning new things and sharpening skills. Identify those parts of yourself that are talents or need work, and improve them.

STEP 11: Try again! You may not ask the same girl out again, but a different, really cool girl — AND YOU — can benefit from the improved, more confident, rejectionresilient you.

For more information about coping with rejection or teen health and well-being, go to the TeenHealth at Nemours website: kidshealth.org/teen/. To evaluate how well you cope with rejection, take the quiz at kidshealth.org/teen/school_jobs/jobs/rejection.html. s Kendra Siler-Marsiglio, Ph.D. is the Director of the Rural Health Partnership at WellFlorida Council and Co-Director of CommunityHealth IT (communityhealthit.org).

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Taste of the Town

SPECIAL RESTAURANT ADVERTISING SECTION. CALL 352.372-5468 FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION.

Newberry’s Backyard BBQ 25405 W Newberry Rd, Newberry Monday-Wednesday 11am-9pm • Thursday 11am-9pm Friday and Saturday 11am-11pm • Sunday 10:30am-8pm

352.472.7260

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BBQ — The one and only Newberry’s Backyard BBQ is located in our historic building in beautiful downtown Newberry. Our pork, chicken, beef, and turkey is smoked to perfection daily. Our salads and sides are always fresh. If you are thirsty we have the best sweet tea in the South and a full bar as well. Make sure to bring your kids, we serve their meals on a frisbee that they take home. For your entertainment, we always have live music on Friday nights and Karaoke on Saturday evenings. Always remember big or small we cater all gatherings.

Saboré 13005 SW 1st Road, Tioga, FL 32669 (Tioga Town Center) Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday: 11am – 10pm Fri. & Sat.: 11am – 11pm • Open Mondays for special events only

352-332-2727

www.saborerestaurant.com

FUSION — Saboré [sa-bohr-ay] is a modern world-fusion restaurant featuring a variety of dishes inspired by dynamic cuisine from places like Europe, Asia, and South America. Their recipe is simple: authentic global flavors, quality ingredients, expert craftsmanship, and exceptional service. Saboré offers customers a unique dining experience, shareable plates, delicious dishes, signature cocktails and desserts that will keep you coming back for more. So let us surprise your palate with our global flair and exotic ingredients. Experiencing world cuisine this fresh usually requires a passport.

Brown’s Country Buffet 14423 NW US Hwy 441, Alachua, FL 32616 Monday-Friday: 7am - 8pm Saturday: 7am - 2pm Sunday: 8am - 3pm

386-462-3000 Brown’s Country Buffet is country-style cooking at its finest, just like Grandma’s house! A buffet style restaurant, Brown’s Country Buffet is open seven days a week! Foods like fried chicken, grilled pork chops, real mashed potatoes, steamed cabbage, banana pudding and coconut pie, just to name a few, are served in a laid back, relaxing environment.

We offer AYCE fried shrimp on Friday nights from 4-8 along with whole catfish & ribs. In addition to their buffet, Brown’s also offers a full menu to choose from. You are sure to find something to satisfy any craving at Brown’s. Serving lunch and dinner daily and a breakfast buffet Friday-Sunday until 10:30am, you’re sure to leave satisfied, no matter when you go. So, when you’re in the mood for some good home cooking, Grandma’s style, visit Brown’s Country Buffet.

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Dave’s New York Deli 12921 SW 1st Road • Tioga Town Center Open 7 Days

352-333-0291

www.DavesNYDeli.com

AUTHENTIC NY DELI — The Reviews are in and here’s what customers are saying about Dave’s NY Deli Tioga Town Center!

“Best Reuben, Best Pastrami, Best Philly, and Best Wings” Dave’s continues to be the place to go for authentic NY Deli food and Philly Cheesesteaks. Owner Dave Anders says “Nothing beats quality ingredients combined with a friendly staff. We bring in all of our Pastrami and Corned Beef and Cheesecake from New York’s Carnegie Deli. In addition we offer Nathan’s Hot Dogs, NY Kettle Boiled Bagels, Nova Salmon, Knish, Cannolies, Philly Cheesesteaks, Wings, Cubans, Subs, Kids Menu and more.”

Come out and enjoy Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at Dave’s NY Deli.

Now serving beer and wine.

Northwest Grille 5115 Northwest 39th Ave., Gainesville 32606 Open 7 Days: 11am to 10pm (Friday open until 11pm) Saturday & Sunday: Serving brunch 10am to 3pm

352-376-0500

www.northwestgrillegainesville.com

SEAFOOD — Locally owned and operated, Northwest Grille has been providing the finest quality fish and seafood entrees in a friendly atmosphere since 1996. Whether it’s their fresh, local seafood and fish, or handcrafted sauces and specialty desserts, Northwest Grille has something to please your palate. Meat lovers will enjoy the hand-cut steaks and vegetarians will love the wide range of vegetarian options.

Serving lunch and dinner daily, Northwest Grille, offers an extensive brunch menu on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am-3pm. Northwest Grille also features a full liquor bar with nightly drink specials. Happy hour is served daily from 3pm-7pm and all day on Wednesday – offering a wide assortment of craft beer, wine and $5 martinis.

Gator Tales Sports Bar 5112 NW 34th Street (across from the YMCA) Gameday Saturdays: 8am Breakfast - Takeout All Day Sun - Tues 2pm - Midnight • Wed, Thurs, Fri & Sat 2pm - 2am

(352)-376-9500

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BAR & GRILL — GATOR TALES Sports Bar features 3 large separate entertainment areas! You can relax at our Tiki bar in a large covered outdoor patio with tropical tunes enjoying 3 large screen TV’s and a full outdoor liquor bar. If you prefer to be inside, visit the sports bar, where you can find large TV’s, a performance stage with nightly entertainment including karaoke, live bands and acoustical sets. We have a separate pool hall and offer two happy hours every day. Gator Tales has a variety of domestic and import beers including a local favorite Swamphead Stompknocker. Our menu has a lot to choose from, appetizers, black angus burgers, gator tail, and salads.

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CALENDAR If you would like to have an event considered for publication in this calendar, please submit information directly. post 4400 NW 36th Ave., Gainesville, FL 32606 | e-mail editor@towerpublications.com | fax 352-373-9178

SOCCER FOR ALL!

VISUALIZE THE YEARLING

Multiple Dates 5:00pm – 7:00pm

Aug. 22 - Sept. 15 Times Vary

GAINESVILLE - Albert “Ray” Massey (Westside) Park, Ball Field #3. Sept.: 22, and 29; Oct.: 6,13, 20, and 27; Nov.: 2. City of Gainesville Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department and Noah’s Endeavor proudly offer Soccer for All! This free program is offered through a partnership with the non-profit corporation Noah’s Endeavor, Inc., for children with special physical and developmental needs. The program teaches children to be comfortable on the field while they have fun and learn important safety skills.

Noah’s Endeavor: 352-275-9639; noahsendeavor.org or

LOCATIONS VARY Alachua County branch libraries. Celebrate the 75th anniversary of local Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings’ book “The Yearling.” Discussions about the setting and characters will take place with Anne Pierce, a board member of the Friends of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Farm and Society. www.aclib.us.

info@noahsendeavor.org. cityofgainesvilleparks.org.

ARTWALK GAINESVILLE Last Friday of Month 7:00pm - 10:00pm GAINESVILLE - Bo Diddley Plaza. Self-guided tour of downtown’s galleries, eateries and businesses. Pick up a map near Bo Diddley Plaza, visit more than a dozen spots, including local landmarks like the Hippodrome and The Sequential Artists Workshop. Watch live performances throughout the night, as well. artwalkgainesville.com.

118 | Autumn 2013

LADY GAMERS Every First Friday 1:30pm HIGH SPRINGS - The High Springs Woman’s Club, 40 NW 1st Ave. The Lady Gamers meet for fun, friendship and food — and let’s not forget the cards, board games and any other activities you would like to bring to the group.

MUSIC IN THE PARK Every Third Sunday 2:00pm - 4:00pm HIGH SPRINGS - James Paul Park and Community Garden, 110 NW First Ave. Every third Sunday, come enjoy local music and fresh air out in the park. Bring lawn chairs, refreshments, and blankets. Admission is free. 352-275-4190.

PAINT OUT Sept. 13 - 15 10:00am - 5:00pm GAINESVILLE - Kanapaha Gardens, 4700 SW 58th Dr. Local landscape artists will be gathering to create live

paintings at Kanapaha Botanical Gardens. The three-day event is part of the 11th Worldwide Artist Paint out.

Witness the creative process first hand as you stroll through the gardens, artist to artist.

352-372-4981.

FLORIDA MONARCH FESTIVAL Saturday, Sept. 14 10:00am - 2:00pm ALACHUA - Greathouse Butterfly Farm, 20329 NE State Road 26.

Celebrate the migratory wonder that is the Monarch butterfly.

Tour the farm and even hand-feed the butterflies yourself.

Butterfly-friendly plants will be available, and you can even purchase your own Monarch chrysalis.

Children’s programs like face painting and a bounce house mean it will be a fun, family event. $5 admission.

352-475-2088.

JT GLISSON AUTHOR VISIT Sunday, Sept. 15 2:00pm HIGH SPRINGS - High Springs Branch Library, 135 NW First Ave. Author J.T. Glisson will discuss his two books (“The Creek” and “Guardian Angel 911”), artwork and memories growing up near Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, the local Pulitzer Prize-winning author. www.aclib.us.

FREE INTRO TO SQUARE DANCING Sept. 17 and 24 6:30pm - 7:30pm GAINESVILLE - United Universalist Fellowship, 4225 NW 34th St. Come join the Grand Squares Square Dance Club in free instructional lessons. It is nonprofit community organization interested in promoting square dancing as a fun, family activity. Dress is casual.

www.lonligon.com.

FEAST YOUR EYES ON DOWNTOWN Friday, Sept. 20 6:00pm - 10:00pm GAINESVILLE - Downtown.

Put your favorite downtown restaurant to the test at the first United Downtown Quick Fire Challenge.

Sponsored by United Way of North Central Florida, the event is part of the larger series of free street parties on the nights before home football games.

352-331-2800.

THE GREAT SUWANNEE RIVER CLEANUP KICKOFF Saturday, Sept. 21 9:00am BRANFORD - Ivey Memorial Park. There will be food for all who help. This year the group encourages everyone to work on the Suwannee or any other river in the basin — the Withlacoochee,

Santa Fe, Ichetucknee or even Alapaha. As in the past, the cleanup will consist of many small cleanups all along the rivers during a 3-month window from Sept. through Nov. Call 352-264-6827 or email

aar@currentproblems.org.

WATER CRISIS SUMMIT Saturday, Sept. 21 9:00am - 4:00pm OCALA - Ft. King Presbyterian Church, 13 NE 36th Ave. Everyone knows Marion County has a water crisis on its hands. Who will mobilize concerned citizens to action?

Help envision an agenda to protect and preserve the water and advance an action plant to make an impact. $15 registration covers lunch and refreshments. Register at watercrisissummit.com.

COMMUNITY BAND CONCERT Sunday, Sept. 22 2:00pm

Don’t Dress for Dinner Aug. 30 - Sept. 22

Times Vary

GAINESVILLE - Hippodrome Theater, 25 SE 2nd Pl. A major hit on Broadway and in London, Don’t Dress for Dinner is the hilarious sequel to Boeing-Boeing. It’s the raucous story of infidelity gone awry, when Bernard’s wife stays in town the same weekend as his mistress comes for a romantic rendezvous. Everyone is guaranteed a good time at this hilarious romp through the French countryside. www.thehipp.org

GAINESVILLE - Santa Fe College Performing Arts Center. Memorial concert to honor Dr. Charles Dean, deceased band member and trumpet player. A trumpet will be awarded to a deserving middle school student at this event. The music for this concert features some flashy trumpet pieces and includes several accomplished Florida composers including Richard Bowles, Chris Sharp and Alfred Reed.

CANINES AND COCKTAILS

Free Concert Series

Canines and Cocktails for a Cause Thursday, Sept. 26

Fridays 8:00pm

6:00PM - 8:00PM GAINESVILLE - Chop Stix Bistro, Thornebrooke Village, 2441 NW 43rd St. Join Daytime Dogs

GAINESVILLE - Bo Diddley Plaza. From April to Nov., Friday nights come alive as local and regional bands are showcased under the stars in downtown Gainesville. Hundreds come out to enjoy the free live music and shows in a family-friendly environment. www.gvluculturalaffairs.org

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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ARTIFACTS EXQUISITE & EXTRAORDINARY Through Sept. 28 Times Vary

Birds and Conservation Thurs, Oct. 10 7:00pm GAINESVILLE - Tower Road Library, 3020 SW 75th St. Join Mike Manetz for a look at Costa Rica’s fabulous birds, seen on his recent Birds and Conservation tours, which feature the photography of Diana Manetz. 352-333-2840.

and Friends for a night of pet-friendly fun at Chop Stix Bistro — on the patio — to support animals in need. Specialty treats and water for your canine best friend will be provided while their humans can enjoy cocktails and complimentary hor d’oeuvres. A Cash Bar will be available (for humans only).

This month’s event to benefit PAWS ON PAROLE Animal Rescue. A $3.00 donation is suggested per Human.

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LIFE IN THE SON CHRISTIAN MUSIC FESTIVAL Sept. 27 - 29 Times Vary MICANOPY - Camp McConnell, 210 SE 134th Ave. Come enjoy the music of modern Christian artists such Newsong, Aaron Shust, Royal Tailor, and Love & the Outcome. Camp out or rent a cabin for this three-day festival. Family-friendly activities such as swimming, volleyball, tennis, and more will be available. lifeintheson.com.

GAINESVILLE - The Thomas Center, 302 NE 6th Ave. The Thomas Center’s new exhibit, “Artifacts Exquisite and Extraordinary: From the Theatre of Memory Collection,” is inspired by the centuries-old “Cabinet of Curiosities” tradition of eclectic and encyclopedic personal collections. A diverse range of material will be shown, ranging from ancient Chinese jade to meteors from space.

352-334-5064.

RIVER CLEANUP Saturday, Sept. 28 9:00am - 12:00pm HIGH SPRINGS - O’Leno State Park. National Public Lands Day is the nation’s largest hands-on volunteer effort to improve and enhance the public lands Americans enjoy.

O’Leno State Park will be hosting a Santa Fe River Clean-up and Sandhill Restoration project in honor of NPLD. Bring your canoe or kayak, or show up in old shoes and work from the riverbank.

This river cleanup will take place between Bible Camp Road boat ramp and continue to the River Sink within O’Leno State Park.

386-454-0723.

SWAMPTOBERFEST Friday, Oct. 4 5:00pm GAINESVILLE - The Opera House, 110 SE First St. Join Gainesville’s largest happy hour with food and drink specials at over 35 participating locations around town. The event will feature a series of drinking games and contests with prizes, as well as Swamptoberfest craft beer and German-inspired cuisine. This is part of the “First Friday” event series. Donate laundry detergent to The Opera House to get a discounted VIP wristband. www.

firstfridaygainesville.com.

DUDLEY FARM QUILT SHOW Saturday, Oct. 5 10:00am - 3:00pm NEWBERRY - Dudley Farm Historic State Park, 18730 West Newberry Rd. Come see traditional, appliqued, vintage and art quilts. At 11 a.m., there will be a “bed turning” where quilt experts will look at each quilt and discuss age, condition, colors and patterns.

352-472-1142.

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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ZOMBIE TOWN: A DOCUMENTARY PLAY Oct. 9 - Nov. 3 Times Vary GAINESVILLE - The Hippodrome Theatre, 25 SE Second Pl. Join the walking dead of Harwood, Texas, as a theater group tries to interview the survivors of a zombie apocalypse. This “mockumentary” will feed your appetite for all things zombie. www.

thehipp.org.

UNITED NATIONS DAY Thursday, Oct. 10 9:00am – 1:00pm

Newberry Festival Saturday, October 12

Time TBA

NEWBERRY - Newberry Main Street is proud to announce its 7th Annual Newberry Fall Market Festival and Bar-B-Q Cook-off and is looking for vendors for this family friendly event.

Women’s Wellness 5K Saturday, November 16

5:00pm

ALACHUA - San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park, 12720 NW 109th Ln. Enjoy the beauty of Florida woodlands while running to support local women. Put on by the North Central Florida Chapter of the American College Nurse Midwives, the proceeds will go toward screening, prevention and treatment of cervical cancer. The last day for registration is Nov. 15, before the race. Register online at www.active.com.

GAINESVILLE - The Gainesville Woman’s Club. “Why the World Still Needs the UN and How the UN Needs the World.” Please join the Gainesville Chapter of the UNA/USA in celebrating United Nations Day; a group of dedicated professionals will explore this vital topic. UN Day Chair is Patricia Hilliard-Nunn, Adjunct Associate Professor African-American Studies at UF. The Keynote Speaker is Stephen Karnik , Chief Administrative Officer for the Baha’i International Community, United Nations and European Union Offices. NonProfit organizations are invited to have table displays for a donation of $25. A $17 Box Lunch will be served and Around the World Bazaar will have items for sale. Reservations for lunch must be made in advance.

Profits support the activities of the UNA throughout the year.

Info: Lisa Renner at 352-378-4853 or

ejrenner@hotmail.com.

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• Playground • Picnic tables & grills • Campsites w/ electric and water • Primitive wooded campsites

MADNESS AND MAYHEM Oct. 11-12, 18-19, 25-26 7:30pm - 10:30pm HIGH SPRINGS - High Springs Lions Club, 26900 West U.S. 27.

Haunted House Friday and Saturday nights and Costume Contest on Saturday, Nov. 2.

The events cost $10 per person and $5 per child 12 and under. Children must be accompanied by an adult. E-clubhouse.

org/sites/highspringslionsfl.

GAINESVILLE SENIOR GAMES Friday, Oct. 11 9:00am GAINESVILLE - Gainesville Sports Commission, 300 East University Ave. Hundreds of athletes ages 50 and older will come together to compete in archery, basketball, bowling, cycling, golf, swimming, table tennis, track and field, and a 5K road race. Medals will be awarded in each event. Cost is $15 for first event and $5 for each subsequent event.

352-338-9300.

GFAA ART FESTIVAL Oct. 12 - 13 10:00am - 5:00pm GAINESVILLE Thornebrook Village, 2400 NW 43rd St. More than 120 fine art booths will be along the tree-covered paths in Thornebrook Village for the 29th-annual art festival. Music, children’s activities, and food will be available.

www.thornebrookart.org.

IHN GOLF EVENT Monday, Oct. 14 7:00am GAINESVILLE - Mark Bostick Golf Course, 2800 SW Second Ave. The Interfaith

Hospitality Network will be holding its 13th Annual “Fore the Families” golf charity event. Sponsorship opportunities available.

352-378-2030.

SENIOR HEALTH FAIR Thursday, Oct. 17 9:00am - 12:00pm GAINESVILLE - Senior Recreation Center, 5701 NW 34th Blvd.

Make your health a first priority! Vendors will be conducting free diagnostics, such as blood pressure checks, cholesterol and hearing screens, and flu and pneumonia shots. There will also be opportunities for prizes.

352-265-9040.

GAINESVILLE KIDS TRIATHLON Saturday, Oct. 19 8:00am GAINESVILLE - Citizens Field, 1100 NE 14th St. The Fourth Annual Gainesville Kids Triathlon will be open for kids ages five to 15.

The race will consist of swimming, biking and running. There will also be a Tri4fun division will be open to anyone over the age of five that would like to participate just for fun.

Registration is $35. www.

gainesvillekidstri.com.

PAYNES PRAIRIE 5K Saturday, Oct. 19 8:00am MICANOPY - Paynes Prairie State Park, 100 Savannah Blvd.

Start your day with the sunrise at Lake Wauberg and enjoy this mostly-trail run through the uplands of Paynes Prairie. Registration closes on Oct. 17.

352-466-4966.

BUTTERFLYFEST Oct. 19 - 20 10:00am - 5:00pm GAINESVILLE - Florida Museum of Natural History. Explore the lives of bats, bees, birds, and butterflies at this fall’s ButterflyFest.

There will be a butterfly plant sale, butterfly releases, a pollinator parade where guests can come dressed as their favorite pollinator.

352-846-2000.

FALL PLANT SALE AND ORCHID SHOW Oct. 19 - 20 9:00am - 5:00pm GAINESVILLE - Kanapaha Gardens, 4700 SW 58th Dr. Come see the Kanapaha facility admission-free, while also browsing around 40 booths of plants.

The event celebrates Kanapaha’s Oct. opening in 1987. The American Orchid Society’s judged orchid show will take place inside Kanapaha’s entrance building.

352-372-4981.

FALL FESTIVAL AND CAR SHOW

October 18 - 20 9:00am - 5:00pm HIGH SPRINGS - O’Leno State Park, 410 SE O’Leno Park Rd. Experience a Native American gathering with dancers, musicians, artisans and traders, as well as a living history reenactment of the 1836 Seminole War Battle of San Felasco Hammock. 386-454-1853.

NOCHE DE GALA Saturday, Oct. 26 7:00pm - 12:00am MICANOPY - Besilu Farm, 6800 NW 193rd St. The Sixth Annual Noche de Gala will be held at Besilu Farm, Micanopy’s equestrian facility.

Catered with live music, the event is sponsored by the Sebastian Ferrero Foundation and supports the Shands Hospital for Children.

www.nochedegala.org.

Saturday, Oct. 26 Times Vary HIGH SPRINGS Downtown. Come enjoy a day of beautiful cars and trucks, old and new and chatting with friends. Music, food and all around family fun.

www.highspringsrotary.org.

Alligator Warrior Festival

FLORIDA BAT FESTIVAL Saturday, Oct. 26 10:00am - 4:00pm GAINESVILLE - Lubee Bat Conservancy, 1309 NW 192nd Ave. The 9th Annual Florida

Bat Festival will be a chance to view giant fruit bats, enjoy the great outdoors and learn about the importance of bats to the ecosystem.

The event will be on conservancy grounds, which are usually closed to the public.

www.batconservancy.org.

HALLOWEEN SWING DANCE AUTISM FUNDRAISER Saturday, Oct. 26 7:30pm - 12:30am GAINESVILLE - The Movement, 1212 North Main St. Come dressed up and ready to dance at the third-annual “Swingin’ for Autism”

Halloween Swing Dance. Professional swing dancer Demery Strickland will be teaching a workshop, as well, to help raise funds for the UF Center for Autism and Related Disabilities.

There will be Halloween costume contests and raffles. Admission is $20, $10 for students.

352-514-4238.

TRICK OR TREAT ON MAIN STREET Thursday, Oct. 31 Time TBA ALACHUA - Downtown.

Visit beautiful Main Street and see Scarecrow Street.

Trick or treat and wear a costume!

352-462-3333.

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Join us in supporting

Saturday, October 26, 2013 7 p.m. to midnight at Besilu Collection Micanopy, Florida

Senator Bill Nelson

Senator Marco Rubio

Congressman Ted Yoho

Bernie and Chris Machen

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Honorary Chair

Honorary Chair

Honorary Chair

Jon and Kelly Pritchett

Horst and Luisa Ferrero

Freddie and Daurine Wehbe

Richard and Pam Astrom

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Ocala Co-Chairs

Charlie and Linda Brink

John and Christine Barnes

John and Louise Glover

Tampa Co-Chairs

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John and Dawn Moore Jacksonville Co-Chairs

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Alachua County Fair October 18 - 26

Times Vary

GAINESVILLE - Alachua County Fairgrounds, 3100 NE 39th Ave. Come celebrate fall season with rides, vendors and your favorite fair foods. General admission is $5. www.alachuacountyfair.com

BOO AT ZOO Thursday, Oct. 31 3:00pm - 7:30pm GAINESVILLE - Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo, 3000 NW 83rd St. Admission to the Trick or Treat Event is one can of food per person.

Canned goods will be donated to local food banks. www.sfcollege.edu.

GO GATORS! FIRST FRIDAY Friday, Nov. 1 5:00pm - 10:00pm GAINESVILLE - Downtown.

This school-spirited event will feature tailgate Olympics, a street-wide singalong of “We Are the Boys,” Gator-themed trivia, and contests. It’s Gainesville’s largest happy hour, with food and drink specials at more than 35 participating locations.

www.firstfridaygainesville.com.

FLORIDA STATE MOUNTAIN BIKE CHAMPIONSHIPS Sunday, Nov. 3 Times Vary by Race ALACHUA - San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park, 12720 NW 109th Ln. The fifth round of the 2013 Florida State Championship will take place at San Felasco Hammock Preserve.

The challenging and beautiful trails will host different races based on age and experience.

The course will be between six and seven miles. Register at www.

to the UF campus.

Call 352-392-5500 for information on purchasing tickets.

retired military have free access to the gardens on Veteran’s Day. 352-372-4981.

HARVEST FESTIVAL

STARRY NIGHT

Sunday, Nov. 10 11:00am - 5:00pm

Friday, Nov. 15 5:30pm - 10:00pm

alachuabusiness.com.

GAINESVILLE - Florida Museum of Natural History, 3215 Hull Rd. Enjoy the night sky with the Alachua Astronomy Club.

Sunset will be at 5:34pm, and food and drinks will be provided.

Around 1,000 people are expected to attend.

352-846-2000.

CHRIS TOMLIN

VETERAN’S DAY SPECIAL

RUN/WALK FOR LIFE

Tuesday, Nov. 5 7:00pm

Monday, Nov. 11 9:00am - 5:00pm

Saturday, Nov. 16 10:00am

GAINESVILLE - Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Chris Tomlin, contemporary Christian music artist, will be coming

GAINESVILLE - Kanapaha Gardens, 4700 SW 58th Dr. Kanapaha thanks you for your service. Active or

HIGH SPRINGS Crossroads Pregnancy Center, 19930 U.S. 441.

Come support the Crossroads Pregnancy

ALACHUA - Main Street.

Free and open to the public. Twice a year since 2003, residents, visitors and 200 vendors come together for a leisurely afternoon of music on two stages, fun food and free childfriendly activities. www.

goneriding.com.

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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Center at its annual run/walk for life.

The 5K will tour the neighborhood behind the center, and afterward, there will be food, music and children’s activities.

Register online at www.

active.com.

DOWNTOWN FESTIVAL AND ART SHOW Nov. 16 - 17 10:00am - 5:00pm

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GAINESVILLE - Downtown Community Plaza, East University Ave. and SE First St. Enjoy a masterful blend of art, music and entertainment during the 32nd Annual Festival and Art Show.

Enjoy the displays from the over-250 participating vendors, performers on three different stages, and the Blues Concert on Friday night. www.

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ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION Wednesday, Nov. 20 7:00pm GAINESVILLE - Millhopper Library, 3145 NW 43rd St. Karl Miller will discuss the ecology, distribution and population status of the Southeastern American Kestrel, sharing insights and photographs from nearly a decade of research and monitoring. Miller is a bird biologist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

352-334-1272.

CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING Friday, Nov. 29 Dusk HIGH SPRINGS Downtown. Annual Christmas Tree lighting.

DUDLEY FARM CANE DAY Saturday, Dec. 7 9:00am - 3:00pm NEWBERRY - Dudley Farm Historic State Park, 18730 W Newberry Rd. Come celebrate Ms. Myrtle Dudley’s birthday by grinding sugar cane in the original method and making cane syrup. There will be farm tours, craft demonstrations, music and children’s activities. 352-472-1142.

UPTOWN ART HOP FOR THE HOLIDAYS Friday, Dec. 13 6:00pm - 9:00pm GAINESVILLE Thornebrooke Village, 2441 NW 43rd St. Celebrate the season with a night of gallery hopping and Christmas shopping. The event is free and open to the public. 352-378-4947.

CHRISTMAS PARADE Saturday, Dec. 14 Time TBA HIGH SPRINGS Downtown. Come see the floats on Main Street!

NUTCRACKER Dec. 20 - 22 Times Vary GAINESVILLE - Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, 3295 Hull Rd. Dance Alive National Ballet will be putting on the holiday classic, Nutcracker.

Enjoy the childhood favorites, like the sugarplum fairy or the tiny toy soldiers.

Ticket price ranges from $15 to $40.

352-371-2986. s

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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Tips for protecting your skin: • WEAR A PROFESSIONAL GRADE SUNSCREEN LIKE ELTAMD OR BLUE LIZARD. • STAY IN THE SHADE WHEN POSSIBLE.

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• WEAR A HAT TO PROTECT YOUR FACE. • TAKE BREAKS FROM THE SUN TO REAPPLY SUNSCREEN. Examine your skin on a regular basis for signs of skin cancer and consult a dermatologist if you notice anything suspicious. This can help ensure that skin cancer is diagnosed in its earliest, most treatable stage.

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ONE-OF-A-KIND HORSE FARM!

NEWBERRY OAKS Beautifully maintained 4BR/2BA home. Lovely kitchen w/breakfast bar & ample cabinet space including large pantry. Dining room w/French doors opening to covered porch. Split floor plan, master bath w/separate tub & shower. There’s not a thing to do but move in! $179,900 MLS 344891

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Lovely 2 story, 4BR/3.5BA, 3470 sf home on 30 horse ready acres. True gourmet kitchen w/Viking appliances, wood floors, huge family room w/ fireplace and luxury master suite. Center aisle, 8 stall barn w/feed & tack room, 64x84 hay barn w/office & more. $749,900. MLS 340643

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2013 Gator Football Aug 31

Toledo

Gainesville, FL

12:21pm

Sep 7

Miami

Miami Gardens, FL

12:30pm

Sep 21

Tennessee *

Gainesville, FL

TBA

Sep 28

Kentucky *

Lexington, KY

TBA

Oct 5

Arkansas *

Gainesville, FL

TBA

Oct 12

LSU *

Baton Rouge, LA

TBA

Oct 19

Missouri *

Columbia, MO

TBA

Nov 2

Georgia *

Jacksonville, FL

3:30pm

Nov 9

Vanderbilt (Homecoming) *

Gainesville, FL

TBA

Nov 16

South Carolina *

Columbia, SC

TBA

Nov 23

Georgia Southern

Gainesville, FL

TBA

Nov 30

Florida State

Gainesville, FL

TBA

For complete match-up breakdowns for each game, pick up a copy of the Fall 2013 Gator Country Magazine.

Available for sale at every home game, United Downtown on select Friday nights and at many retail locations. www.VisitOurTowns.com

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>> SOUND OF MUSIC

Music in the Park A Star Is Born in the High Springs Sinkhole

BY ELLIS AMBURN emember this name: Cliff Dorsey.

The rangy 18-year-old cowboy is probably going to be a country & western singing star, though the audience he recently wowed at the sinkhole behind High Springs City Hall, also known as James Paul Park, was sparsely attended.

To make matters worse, a sudden downpour drenched the six or seven persons in attendance,

R

forcing them to dash to the gazebo that serves as a stage for the city’s Music in the Park series just as opening act Michael Loveday had started to play.

There, huddled just a few feet from the performers, visitors got an impromptu backstage pass to experience the show.

Later, as Dorsey performed, his listeners enjoyed a rare opportunity to watch a gifted artist work his magic with subtle variations in timbre and feeling.

Four songs in Dorsey’s set

showed his warm, testosteroneladen baritone voice — similar to that of a young Randy Travis — to advantage.

“You Make Me Want To,” written

by Luke Bryan, “didn’t make it on the radio,” Dorsey said. It may fare better if Dorsey ever records it.

His winning “southern-boy ways,” as the song puts it, lent sizzling conviction to his promise “to hold you like a hammock on a summer day… lay it down, kiss you ‘til you feel the truth.”

Before singing “Bible Camp” (or

PHOTOS BY ELLIS AMBURN

OPPOSITE: Singers in The Sinkhole (left to right): John D. Sterpe, Cliff Dorsey and Michael Loveday. “We have three acts every month,” said Music in the Park series coordinator Loveday, who played bass for 20 years with the rock group Hard Knocks. “I settled down when I got married.” The father of two, Loveday works at Bank of America.

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Michael Loveday (above) performs at a High Springs Sinkhole concert behind City Hall. He is the coordinator for the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s monthly Music in the Park series.

Eighteen-year-old Cliff Dorsey (right) was one of the headliners at the Music in the Park concert in High Springs.

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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PHOTOS BY ELLIS AMBURN

David Wells and Linda Heyl of High Springs came to James Paul Park to hear Michael Loveday, Cliff Dorsey, and John Sterpe sing at a Music in the Park concert. In the backgroundˇis a relic of the city’s past as a North Florida railroad center.

Sharon Yeago (top left), who started the High Springs Farmers Market, enjoyed the sun after the rains stopped at a recent Music in the Park concert.

Strumming his guitar in James Paul Park at an openmike Music in the Park event in High Springs, 62-yearold Nelson Harmon said, “I sing bluegrass and what they used to call country, songs like Roy Acuff’s ‘Great Speckled Bird.’” He served as a Marine in Vietnam, 1969-1972, surviving a crushed skull and broken back as well as a motorcycle wreck in 1968.

The Soldier’s Song), he said, “If you don’t know I mean Bible Camp Road, you don’t live here.”

In a later telephone interview he explained, “It’s up by O’Leno State Park.”

A rollicking yet rueful celebration of cracker derring-do, the tune begins, “When I was 18 I got a GTO and drove it as fast as it could go down toward Bible Camp Road…

Only the good die young.”

Late in his set he sang Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues,” “the first song I ever remember hearing

136 | Autumn 2013

in my life,” he recalled.

Dorsey started strumming a guitar at 15.

“I took a few lessons; didn’t know I could sing,” he said.

Then he worked up several tunes to perform at family holidays.

“After some lessons, I taught myself, took some more lessons, then realized I was good at it,” he said. “That’s been a love I’ve chased ever since. I hope to develop a name singing in Alachua and Gainesville, make some trips to Nashville, and eventually move there.”

Other headliners at the Music in the Park concert were Michael Loveday and John D. Sterpe.

Opening the concert, Loveday, whose stage name is ThreeChordStrum, put a poignant spin on Bob Seger’s “Turn the Page,” which tells of a rocker’s emotional ups and down on the road.

Dorsey came on next, followed

by Sterpe, who was scheduled to close until he surprised the audience by announcing that he was not about “to follow Cliff Dorsey.”

By now the rains had stopped

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Music in the Park Series James Paul Park behind City Hall 110 NW 1st Avenue Every third Sunday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and Sterpe was squatting with his guitar on the slope near the gazebo.

The enthusiastic audience persuaded him to go on stage, and he performed his composition “Life on the Santa Fe.” Evoking the river’s erratic nature, he sang, “First the water’s high, then the water’s low, and that’s life on the Santa Fe.” In 2011, Sterpe took first-place in the Santa Fe River Singing and Songwriter Contest with “Keeper of the Santa Fe River.” Second place went to Loveday for “Come on Down to the Santa Fe.” The following year, first-place honors went to Don Austin of the Mellow D’s. In “Up and Down the Santa Fe With You,” Austin sang, “When my work week is done and I want to get some fun in, I go up that lazy river [and] sooner or later we can see a gator.”

The 2013 contest is scheduled for Sunday, October 6, at 4 p.m.,

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at Rum 138, 2070 SW CR 138, Fort White, on the way to Rum Island, according to the web site Our Santa Fe River Song Contest.

At the High Springs Sinkhole show, Michael Loveday, 43, said he is the city’s coordinator for Music in the Park, which has an average attendance is 60-100.

Loveday also helps the Chamber of Commerce with its fall and spring festivals, and has already booked six acts for the October 26 event.

In addition he is involved with the High Springs Community School’s Christmas Extravaganza.

Last December 16, the show drew 500 to James Paul Park, where Band Director Vito Montauk conducted the High Springs Community School’s 116-member ensemble, The Hawks, in a two-hour program.

Like other Music in the Park concerts, The Hawks’ Christmas program occurs on the third Sunday of the month. The 2013

yuletide concert is set for The Sinkhole December 15, Loveday said in a telephone interview.

Though Loveday “has two kids and a full-time job as an operation specialist at Bank of America,” he somehow finds time to be the announcer at the High Springs Christmas Parade and to work with City Commissioner Bob Barnas on Veterans Day at the High Springs Civic Center Park. This year, the event is scheduled for November 14.

In recognition of their community service, the City of High Springs decreed that every December 16 belongs to Loveday and Chamberof-Commerce member Sandra Webb. In another honor, the Chamber of Commerce nominated Loveday citizen of the year “for bringing musical awareness to the public in High Springs.”

“Rain or shine,” Cliff Dorsey told the little crowd at the sinkhole, “ya’ll been great, and I appreciate you.” s

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>> A GOOD SIGN

Beth Murphy New Interpretations

BY CRYSTAL HENRY ithout interpretive signs, strolling through the Florida nature parks would be just another walk in the woods. But thanks to the creativity and hard work of nature enthusiasts like Beth Murphy, hiking the trails is an educational adventure.

Murphy is a graphic designer, technical writer and editor who moved to High Springs with her husband to be near the springs.

They are cave divers, and Murphy said her passion for the springs

W

deepened while working at Karst Productions, Inc. for the late nature filmmaker Wes Skiles. While working on the Water’s Journey documentary she realized the critical need to protect the water sources in Florida.

After her work with Karst Productions, she left to start her own graphic design company, New Moon Promotions. Soon after she got a call from her friend Tom Morris, a local biologist who wanted her to create interpretive signs for San Felasco County Park.

Her love of nature and national parks stemmed from her childhood,

PHOTO BY JERRY MURPHY

Beth Murphy working in her home office, a converted sun porch.

142 | Autumn 2013

and she was thrilled to get the call.

“I was one of those odd kids who just gobbled up every sign and informational kiosk in those parks,” Murphy said in an email interview.

And so her professional journey through education and the natural world began. Murphy now works with scientists, photographers and her partner, Georgia Shemitz, to create the signs that line the paths of the Florida parks system as well as entities such as North Florida Community College and the Suwannee River Water Management District and the signs for the boat ramps along the Santa

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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PHOTO COURTESY OF KELLY JESSOP

Three years ago volunteers from the North Florida Springs Alliance erected seven signs at the Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park. The signs, which mark an interpretive trail through the park, were designed by Beth Murphy to provide educational insight into the natural wonders of the park. Murphy combines her love of nature with her eye for graphics to create educational nature signs throughout Florida.

Fe River. Her work has been topnotch, said Fritzi Olson, executive director of Current Problems. But it is not just Murphy’s love of nature that makes the signs successful.

Olson said Murphy’s eye for design is what sets her apart in her field and brings the signs to life.

“They’re just beautiful,” Olson said.

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Murphy said although she loved reading the signs as a child, she wanted to take the concept to the next level and tell a story.

And she has done that with her work at the Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park. The North Florida Springs Alliance came to her with a vision to create a trail that

passed directly over a network of cave passages. She would be taking hikers on a virtual cave dive, but they gave her no other direction.

This project was a blank slate for the nature artist to create.

The alliance built a trail directly over the cave system using transmitters to pick up signals

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Murphy said this job combines the natural world with her passion for good design and compelling prose. to find the exact cave path, said Kelly Jessop, president of the North Florida Springs Alliance.

Peacock Springs State Park has one of the largest underwater cave systems in the United States, and the park is a karst terrain, a very unique landscape with superficial limestone. It would be the perfect interpretive opportunity to educate people on this natural treasure.

“Beth was a godsend in helping to design the signs along the trail,” Jessop said.

Since Murphy’s husband is a geologist, she said she has a love for karst geology and she saw an opportunity to tell a broader story of the geology of the park.

So with help from her husband and people from the Florida Geological Survey, she wrote and

designed the eight kiosks along the trail telling stories about dry sinkholes, caves, karst windows and the majestic springs.

But the geology was not the only component visitors would learn about. Jessop said Murphy walked the trail with a professor in plant biology to explore the plant life along the path. Pairing that with her own well-rounded knowledge, she designed 20 plant-identification signs to educate hikers about the different topography they encountered such as the upland forest, watersheds and the swamp.

The final phase of the project opened at the end of August when the newest kiosk was unveiled to tell of the historical influences of the park.

Jessop said he has heard nothing

but glowing reviews about the trail, and the wildlife cameras that were placed to capture evidence of wildlife have also shown an abundance of people walking the trails.

“Beth has played a primary role in that process,” Jessop said.

He said not only has she brought the concept to life through her creativity, but also she was pivotal in the entire process when dealing with the state entities with drafts, meetings and approvals.

“To me she goes above and beyond what she needs to do,” Jessop said.

Murphy said this job combines the natural world with her passion for good design and compelling prose.

“And if I’ve done my job well, our signs educate the public and hopefully create impassioned environmental stewards,” Murphy said. s Wes Skiles Peacock Springs State Park is located at 18081 185th Road in Live Oak, Florida. For more information, call 386-776-2194.

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> TERRI SCHLICHENMEYER BOOK REVIE REVIEW EW >>

Make the Grade written by Lesley Schwartz Martin c.2013, Zest Books $14.99 / $18.99 Canada 143 pages our grades were an embarrassment last year.

Sometime over this summer, though, you realized something that everybody had been saying for eons: you can do better. You have potential, so you’ve decided that you’re going to study harder, work smarter and get good grades.

Problem is, you don’t know where to start. How do the best students get the best marks? In “Make the Grade” by Lesley Schwartz Martin you’ll find out how, and how you can do it too.

There are kids in your class who seem like a different species. They’re super-smart, get good grades and they make it look easy. The thing to remember is that if you can learn to prioritize and follow through, you too can get better grades. Bonus: the skills you learn will help you when you look for a job or go to college.

Y

150 | Autumn 2013

Your starting place is with goal making. Figure out where you want to be in school by using SMART goals: be Specifi Specific, c, make it Measurable, make your goals Achievable, make them Relevant, and make them Time-Based by setting a deadline.

Next, take a look at your current schedule. Write it all down, then take a hard look at it. When are you doing homework? Do you have enough time for sleep, hanging out with friends, watching TV, recharging? If not, then (this is gonna hurt!) what can you drop or put off — at least temporarily?

Next, get your parents on board. Tell them that you want to do whatever you can to get better grades and how you’ll do it. This will “reduce your parents’ anxiety and nip interrogations in the bud.” Then tell your teachers too.

Even after all this, there might be problems, though…

What if you’re absolutely not interested in a certain subject? What if you positively can not stand the teacher? What if you get lost in class or fall behind? Is there a fail-safe way of making sure that you remember what your instructor said? How do the smart kids stay organized? Can you learn to do better on tests?

And finally, what’s the best single thing you can do to improve your memory?

No doubt about it, “Make the Grade” is pretty basic.

For students with room for improvement, though, I think that’s perfect. Author Lesley Schwartz Martin takes readers step-by-step from goal-setting to gradegetting — including the harder parts, like paring a schedule or dealing with personality conflicts between students and teachers.

Though there are minor glitches in this book, I was impressed by that latter point; many how-to’s of this sort don’t touch upon such truths. I was also glad to see lots of tiny, easy-to-implement tips that, when done, can seem like big progress. These things make this a happy book to give to a student who’s struggling and vows that that’ll end.

While this book is meant more for high schoolers, I think a determined middle schooler will get a lot out of it, as well. Overall, for that student, “Make the Grade” gets a solid B+. s Terri Schlichenmeyer has been reading since she was 3 years old and she never goes anywhere without a book. She lives with her two dogs and 11,000 books.

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WORSHIP CENTERS If we have left out a church or have incomplete / incorrect information, please let us know! Send your corrections by faxing 352-373-9178 or emailing editor@towerpublications.com. We welcome your contributions and suggestions.

HIGH SPRINGS ALLEN CHAPEL A.M.E. CHURCH 386-454-3574 10 S.E. MLK Drive Pastor James McDaniel ANDERSON MEMORIAL CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST 386-454-3433 935 SE Lincoln Ave. BETHLEHEM UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 386-454-1996 County Road 778 Pastor Clarence Desue CHRIST ANGLICAN FELLOWSHIP 386-454-1845 323 SW CR 778 Pastor Michael LaCagnina CHRISTIAN FAMILY WORSHIP CENTER 386-454-2367 220 NE 1ST Ave. Dr. Lloyd S. Williams CHURCH OF CHRIST 386-454-2930 520 NE Santa Fe Blvd.

CHURCH OF GOD

BY FAITH 386-454-1015 US Hwy 27 THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS 386-454-4282 24455 NW 174th Ave. Pres. Keith Brown HIGH SPRINGS CHURCH OF GOD 386-454-1757 210 NW 182 Ave. Pastor Terry W. Hull

152 | Autumn 2013

FELLOWSHIP CHURCH 386-454-1700 16916 NW U.S. Hwy. 441 Pastor Jeff Powell FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH 386-454-1505 20112 North US Hwy. 441 Pastor Derek Lambert FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 386-454-1037 205 North Main Street Pastor Glen A. Busby FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH of HIGH SPRINGS 386-454-1255 17405 NW US Hwy 441 Pastor Benton Mangueira

MT CARMEL UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 386-454-4568 1230 NW 1st Ave. Pastor Byran Williams MT. PLEASANT BAPTIST CHURCH 14105 NW 298th Street 386-454-2161 Pastor Dan Howard MOUNT OLIVE BAPTIST CHURCH 386-454-3447 948 SE Railroad Ave. THE NORTH EAST CHURCH OF CHRIST 4330 NE County Road 340 nechurchofchrist.net

GRACE CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE 210 Santa Fe Blvd.

Pastor Preston Ponce

SAINT MADELEINE CATHOLIC CHURCH 386-454-2358 17155 NW Highway 441

HOLY TEMPLE CHURCH WITH GOD 386-454-0313 615 SE ML King Drive

SEVENTH DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH 386-454-2360 230 NW 1st Avenue Pastor Mark Swaisgood

IMPACT FAMILY CHURCH 386-454-1563 16710 NW US 441 Pastors Edwin & Angela Anderson JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES 386-454-3509 330 SE 7th Ave. MIRACLE TEMPLE CHURCH 386-454-4298 605 SE 1st Place THE MISSION CHURCH OF HIGH SPRINGS Meeting at the Seventh Day Adventist Building 230 NW 1st Ave. 352-870-0247 Pastor Keith Helsel

SHILOH BAPTIST CHURCH 386-454-4978 Shiloh Church Rd. Pastor Earl Tuten SHILOH MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH 386-454-3126 1505 NW Main St. SPRING RIDGE FIRST CHURCH OF GOD 386-454-3600 5529 NE 52nd Place Pastor Todd L Wymer SPRINGRIDGE FIRST CHURCH OF GOD 386-454-4400 420 Spring Ave.

THE SUMMIT 352-575-0786 610 NE Santa Fe Blvd Pastor Rick Lawrence thesummitchurch.info ST. BARTHOLOMEW’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH 386-454-9812 1st Ave. (next to city hall) Rev. David Kidd SPRING HILL UNITED METHODIST CHURCH Located at High Springs exit 79 off I-75 North of Gainesville (on Old Bellamy Rd.) Pastor James Richardson VISION TABERNACLE 352-339-4942 220 N.E. 1st Avenue Pastor Lawrence R. Haley

ALACHUA ALACHUA CHURCH OF CHRIST 386-462-3326 14505 NW 145th Avenue Minister Doug Frazier ANTIOCH BAPTIST CHURCH 386-497-3121 Jordan Road (Ft. White) BAHA’I FAITH 352-870-3097 Turkey Creek CALVARY BAPTIST CHURCH 13920 NW Hwy 4141 386-462-2966 Pastor Marty D. Basinger calvarybaptistgainesville.org CHRIST CENTRAL ALACHUA 386-418-8185 14906 Main St. www.ccalachua.com CHURCH OF GOD BY FAITH 386-462-2549 13220 NW 150th Ave.

CRUSADERS FOR CHRIST, INC. 386-462-4811 NW 158th Ave. FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF ALACHUA 386-462-1337 14005 NW 146th Avenue Pastor Doug Felton FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF ALACHUA 386-462-2443 14805 NW 140th St. Pastor Lamar Albritton FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF ALACHUA 386-462-1549 14623 NW 140th St. Rev. Virginia McDaniel FOREST GROVE BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-3921 22575 NW 94 Avenue GREATER NEW HOPE MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-4617 15205 NW 278th Ave. HAGUE BAPTIST CHURCH 6725 NW 126th Ave Gainesville, Fl 32653 Pastor Sam Brown HARE KRISHNA TEMPLE 386-462-2017 17306 NW 112th Blvd.

LEGACY BAPTIST CHURCH 352-462-2150 13719 NW 146th St. Pastor John Jernigan LIVING COVENANT CHURCH 386-462-7375 Pastor Troy Rumore NEW OAK GROVE BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-3390 County Road 1491 Pastor Terry Elixson, Jr. NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH OF GOD AND CHRIST 386-462-4891 1310 NW 155 Place Pastor R. L. Cooper

NORTH PLEASANT GROVE BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-3317 25330 NW CR 239 Pastor Steve Hutcheson NEW SAINT MARY BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-7129 13800 NW 158th Ave. PARADISE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH OF ALACHUA 386-462-0162 14889 MLK Blvd.

Pastor Rev. James D. Johnson, Sr. SANTA FE BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-7541 7505 NW CR 236 Pastor Scott Brown MT NEBO UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 386-418-1038 9975 NW 143rd St. Pastor Ricardo George Jr. NEW SHILOH BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-2095 18610 NW CR 237 NEW ST MARY BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-7129 13800 NW 158th Ave. OLD SHILOH MISSIONARY BAPTIST 386-462-4894 16810 NW CR 239 RIVER OF LIFE ASSEMBLY OF GOD 352-870-7288 14200 NW 148th Place Pastor Greg Evans ST LUKE AME CHURCH 386-462-2732 US Highway 441 S. ST MATHEWS BAPTIST CHURCH 386-462-2205 15712 NW 140 Street Pastor Isaac Miles TEMPLE OF THE UNIVERSE 386-462-7279 15808 NW 90 Street www.tou.org

WESTSIDE CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST 386-418-0649 15535 NW 141st St.

NEWBERRY ABIDING SAVIOR LUTHERAN CHURCH 352-331-4409 9700 West Newberry Rd. BETHEL AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH 352-474-6215 23530 NW 3rd Ave. Pastor Theodora Black BRONSON ROAD CHURCH Located on 337 Between Newberry and Bronson On the County Line 352 486-2898 Pastor Andy Cook CHURCH OF GOD BY FAITH 352-472-2739 610 NW 2nd St. Pastor: Jesse Hampton THE CHURCH AT STEEPLECHASE 352-472-6232 Meeting at Sun Country Sports Center 333 SW 140th Terrace (Jonesville) Pastor Buddy Hurlston FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF NEWBERRY 352-472-2351 25520 W. Newberry Rd. Rev. Jack Andrews GRACE COMMUNITY CHURCH 352-472-9200 22405 W. Newberry Rd. Pastor Ty Keys JONESVILLE BAPTIST CHURCH 352-472-3835 17722 SW 15th Ave. Pastor Corey Cheramie JOURNEY CHURCH 352-281-0701 22405 W. Newberry Rd. Milam Funeral Home Chapel Dr. Michael O’Carroll, Pastor

www.VisitOurTowns.com

CHRISTIAN LIFE FELLOWSHIP 352-472-5433 Pastor Gary Bracewell MT ZURA FULL GOSPEL BAPTIST CHURCH 352-472-4056 225 NW 2nd Ave. Pastor Natron Curtis NEW ST PAUL BAPTIST CHURCH 352-472-3836 215 NW 8TH Ave. Pastor Charles Welch NEWBERRY CHURCH OF CHRIST 352-472-4961 24045 W. Newberry Rd. Minister Batsell Spivy NEWBERRY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 352-472-4005 24845 W. Newberry Rd. Rev. Robert B. Roseberry, Pastor DESTINY COMMUNITY CHURCH 352-472-3284 420 SW 250th Street Pastor Rocky McKinley OAK DALE BAPTIST CHURCH 352-472-2992 Highway 26 and 241 S. PLEASANT PLAIN UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 352-472-1863 1910 NW 166th St. Pastor Theo Jackson ST JOSEPH’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH 352-472-2951 16921 W. Newberry Rd. Pastor Richard Pelkey TURNING POINT OF NEWBERRY, INC 5577 NW 290 Street 352-472-7770 Pastor Henry M. Rodgers UNION BAPTIST CHURCH 352-472-3845 6259 SE 75TH Ave Pastor Travis Moody

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ADVERTISEMEN T

DON’T LEAVE YOURSELF

High and Dry KNOWING THE SIGNS OF DEHYDRATION CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE

T

he hot summer months can take their toll on anyone, but for seniors the threat is especially dangerous.

“Dehydration is a significant issue with the elderly,” said Jami Proctor, a clinical manager at Mederi Caretenders of Gainesville. “It can occur in less than eight hours and it’s a significant reason for hospitalization. Approximately 18 percent of seniors admitted to a hospital for dehydration die within 30 days.”

Seniors often have a decreased level of perspiration, a delayed sense of thirst or decreased senses of taste and smell.

Medications can suppress hunger or thirst.

And even in hot weather many seniors choose not to use air conditioning, opting instead to open windows or turn on fans to avoid high energy bills or a house that feels too cold for them.

Caretenders personnel educate seniors and caregivers on the signs of dehydration and ways to avoid it. Some obvious symptoms may include increased confusion or disorientation, fainting, headaches and dryness of the nose and mouth.

“The tongue can get sticky or tacky, and the skin loses elasticity,” Proctor explained. “If you pinch the skin up and it very slowly goes back down, that is a 154 | Autumn 2013

sign of dehydration.”

Left unchecked, dehydration can lead to complications such as stroke or heart failure. Yet the danger can be averted with simple planning. Proctor suggests providing attractive containers such as colorful glasses and pitchers to entice clients to drink fluids, or adding a little fruit to water to give variety in appearance and flavor.

“Have things prepared ahead of time and placed where seniors can easily reach them,” said Proctor. “Call them through the day and monitor their eating and drinking habits.”

Water does not have to be the only option; liquids that are low in sugar can help keep dehydration at bay. Incorporate plenty of fruit, vegetables and other foods with high water content into the diet. Sugar-free popsicles and smoothies are also good ways to get fluids into a senior’s diet.

Save outdoor activities for the early morning or evening when temperatures are lower, and wear a hat and loose fitting, cotton clothes that allow skin to breathe. If a senior shows signs of heat stroke – high body temperature, rapid pulse and vomiting – get him or her to a hospital immediately.

With a little knowledge and some preventive measures, independent seniors can still enjoy “the good old summertime!”

“I wondered if my family could manage all the care I needed after leaving the hospital.”

A Special Kind of Caring...

That’s the Caretenders Tradition A dedicated team of compassionate, highly skilled healthcare professionals who treat their patients like family is our hallmark.

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352-379-6217 Call For More Information About How Caretenders Can Help You.

Committed To The Highest Quality Home Care Services.

LIC# HHA299991306

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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LIBRARY SCHEDULE Alachua Branch Library .....................14913 NW 140th St. .............................. 386-462-2592 High Springs Branch Library ...........135 NW 1st Ave........................................ 386-454-2512 Newberry Branch Library .................110 South Seaboard Dr. ..........................352-472-1135 For further information on scheduled events visit www.acld.lib.fl.us All branches are closed: NOV 12, NOV 22, NOV 23. Early closings: NOV 21.

ALACHUA PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN Team Pitbull Preteen Club First and Third Tuesdays - 3pm After-school group for ages 8-12 to explore stories and make story-related arts and crafts.

Lego Club Wednesdays - 3pm Preteens meet to create challenging structures.

Preschool Storytime Thursdays - 11am Join us for stories, songs and dance.

Preschool Holiday Music Extravaganza Dec. 19, 11am 11:30am Children under 5 can come celebrate the holidays with song and dance.

PROGRAMS FOR TEENS Yu-Gi-Oh Club Mondays - 4pm Friends meet to challenge each other over Yu-Gi-Oh. Teen Advisory Group Second and Fourth Tuesdays - 4pm Teens 12 - 18 meet to discuss upcoming teen events and books.

Zombies in the Library Oct. 31, 4pm - 5pm The Teen Advisory Group will be invading and infecting the library for the afternoon.

Join in to combat the lurching teenage undead. Makeup and costume optional.

dance steps derived from Latin music.

Computer Class Wednesdays, Through Nov. - 11am Learn basic computer skills from using a mouse and keyboard to email and word processing. Class seating is limited.

Poets and Writers Among Us Last Wednesdays of the Month - 4pm Poets and writers meet to inspire and be inspired.

PROGRAMS FOR ADULTS

Pilates Classes Wednesdays - 6pm Pilates focuses on building strength without bulk. Improve flexibility and agility, and prevent injuries.

Zumba Classes Mondays - 6pm Mix of body-sculpting movements with

Alachua Needlers Thursdays - 2pm Do you have a needlecraft that you love?

Would you like to meet and socialize with others who also share your love of needlecrafts? If so, bring your knitting, crochet, embroidery, cross-stitch, or any other craft that involves a needle!

Groundbreaking Reads Last Thursdays of the Month, beginning in Oct. - 4pm Our Adult Summer Reading Program will focus on books that have been “groundbreaking” in our lives, have made a difference. Bring to share, even swap, for our roundtable discussion.

Author Talk with Stephanie A. Smith Oct. 24, 5pm - 7pm Local author Stephanie Smith will be discussing her books, including Baby Rocket and War Paint.

CHIMNEY SWEEPS OF AMERICA It’s time to clean your chimney and dryer vent.

Prevent home fires.

We don’t monkey around!

FALL IS COMING BE PREPARED $

5.00 OFF

DISCOUNT with this ad or

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386-462-7050 352-378-7020 156 | Autumn 2013

Uptown Services With Hometown Care

Also offering UPS, Notary, Digital Printing, Fax, Scan, Copies, Signs, Banners.

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SUPER SWEESaPyys!

454.8403

5 NW 1st AVE HIGH SPRINGS

PROGRAMS FOR ALL AGES Alachua Fit Club Tuesdays in Sept. - 6pm Exercise to the Beach Body Training video with Coach Ramos.

Latino Film Festival Oct. 6, 2pm - 4:30pm Come enjoy the annual Latino Film Festival with a showing of Latin/Hebrew film “Salsa Tel Aviv.” Free admission.

HIGH SPRINGS PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN Mary’s Marvelous Storytime Tuesdays - 11am Books, songs, puppets and dancing.

Afternoon at the Movies Sept. 26, Oct.3, Nov. 7, Dec. 5, 3pm School’s out, so come on down to the library to check out a book and watch a new movie on the big screen. In Sept., this event is on both the second and fourth Thursday.

Wii Fun and Games Oct. 17, Nov. 21, Dec. 19, 3pm Come play Wii Sports, Resort or Mario Kart, and play board games while you wait for your turn.

Oct. 15, Nov. 19, Dec. 17, 4pm - 5:30pm Play Wii Resort, Sports, or Mario Kart while munching on snacks provided by High Springs Friends of the Lioness.

Fall Craft Fun Last Tuesday of the Month, Through Nov. Times Vary Come make themed crafts for fall, Halloween and Thanksgiving.

Teen Book to Movie Oct. 25, 2pm - 4pm Spend your day off school watching popular teen movie “Beautiful Creatures,” snacks included.

Pumpkin Time Oct. 8, 3pm - 4pm Learn about fall, pick a pumpkin and carve a Jack-o-Lantern. Wear a costume if you want!

Princeton Review SAT Prep Nov. 2, 9am - 1pm Take a full-length SAT practice test under real testing conditions and raise your score!

Review your scores on Nov. 21 at 6:30pm.

Butterfly Bonanza Nov. 12, 3pm - 4pm Learn about the beautiful world of butterflies from the folks of the Greathouse Butterfly Farm.

Santa’s at the Library Dec. 17, 6pm - 7pm Come see Santa and get a treat bag. Make sure to bring a camera to get a picture with the big guy.

PROGRAMS FOR TEENS Teen Wii Sept. 27, 1:30pm 3:30pm

Thumbs Up RIDING SCHOOL

• Balanced Seat Riding: “Control - Communication Confidence - Relaxation”

• Boarding & Instruction • Private Lesson for Children & Adults

LLC

PROGRAMS FOR ADULTS Crafter’s Circle Wednesdays Through Dec. 18, 1pm If you embroider, quilt, knit or enjoy doing any other “non-messy” craft, this is the group for you.

The Rug Bunch First and Third Wednesdays - 3pm Crochet a rag rug with a group of fellow enthusiasts.

Now in Alachua!

Computer Basics Every First Friday and Second Wednesday 11:00am Learn how to use a computer in a relaxed setting at your own pace. Topics covered may include how to use a mouse, word processing, email, and the Internet.

Registration required.

Register online at www.aclib.us or by calling 386-454-2515.

VIVA Florida 500 Author J.T. Glisson Sept. 15, 2pm As a young boy, J.T. Glisson was a neighbor to Florida’s famous author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.

Come hear about his adventures, his two books (“The Creek” and “Guardian Angel 911”) and his memories of growing up near Rawlings in Cross Creek. eBooks from your Library Sept. 19, Oct. 25, Nov. 7, Dec. 3 - Times Vary Bring your eReader device and learn how to get eBooks from your library.

TREE SERVICE

Special intro price

Tree Cutting, Trimming, Removing and Stump Grinding 24hr Emergency Service

$

35

for a 1/2 hour

near ar LaCrosse LaCro

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www.VisitOurTowns.com

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Senior Insurance Info Oct. 11, 11am - 12pm SHINE (Serving Health Insurance Needs of Elders) brings an afternoon of unbiased insurance counseling.

Friends of the Library Board Meeting Oct. 28, 10:30am 12:30pm Sit in for the Friends of the Library quarterly board meeting.

PROGRAMS FOR ALL AGES Gingerbread House Competition Dec. 12, 4pm - 6pm Teens can come build their gingerbread masterpiece. Materials will be supplied, and the winner will receive a gift certificate.

NEWBERRY PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN Junior Panther Den Tuesdays, 3:15pm Preteens play, create and learn after school.

Some weeks not scheduled; check with library, 352-472-1135.

Preschool Storytime Wednesdays - 11am Stories, songs, and activities for the preschool set.

Butterfly and Flower Origami Sept. 16, 3pm - 4pm Create your own paper butterfly and flower origami.

Halloween Storytelling Oct. 28, 3:30pm 4:30pm Enjoy a special Halloween treat with funny and spooky stories by a master storyteller.

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Halloween Party Oct. 31, 3:30pm 4:30pm Come for ghoulish games and freaky fun.

Feel free to come in costume!

PROGRAMS FOR TEENS Senior Panther Den Tuesdays Starting Aug. 20, 4:15pm Play sports and dance with Wii games, tune your groove with karaoke, or create a wacky craft.

Midweek Movie Madness Wednesdays - 2pm Watch some of the latest movies as well as the best of the oldest.

Teen Book Club Third Thursdays - 4pm Read and discuss the latest and most popular teen books.

Teen Life Skills Oct. 3, Nov. 7, Dec. 5 4pm Learn problem solving skills, making decisions, finding and keeping a job, money management, transportation, health and hygiene, housekeeping, communication skills, and stress management skills.

Teen Advisory Group Oct. 10, Dec. 12 - 4pm Join the fun and plan teen events at the library while earning volunteer hours.

Teen Craft Club Nov. 14, 4pm - 5:15pm Create your own masterpieces with these fun crafts just for teens!

PROGRAMS FOR ADULTS Needlecrafters Tuesdays - 1:05pm 2:20pm If you crochet, knit, embroider, needlepoint, quilt, or enjoy doing any other “nonmessy” craft, this is the group for you.

Tempting Reads Book Club Fourth Wednesdays 6pm Read popular and recently published books including books recommended by participants. In Dec., pushed to third Wednesday for holidays.

Newberry Walking Club Thursdays - 11am Walk with friends to help boost brain power, control weight and increase cardiovascular fitness and muscular strength.

Quit Smoking Now Sept. 23, 5:30pm 7:30pm Gain support to quit smoking.

Facebook 101 Sept. 27, 11am - 1pm This class will cover how to set up a Facebook account. An active email account and understanding of how to use the keyboard and mouse are required for this class. Please call the Newberry Branch Library (352) 472-1135 to sign up.

Latino Film Festival Oct. 13, 2pm - 4pm Join in Gainesville’s 2013 Latino Film Festival with the film “Tapas.”

Digging Up Your Family History (Basic Genealogy) Oct. 14, 6pm - 7:30pm Learn the tips and tricks to genealogy research using the Library’s databases and online resources.

Computers for Beginners Oct. 17, 11am - 1pm Learn the basics in a relaxed setting. On Dec. 3, advance to the “More than Basics” class at 4pm. Call to sign up in advance.

You want what book? How to use the library’s website and databases Oct. 24, Dec. 10, 11am Come learn about downloadable media, the Library databases, and how to reserve a book online. Basic computer skills required.

Finding Your Ethnic Roots Oct. 27, 2pm - 3:30pm Explore your ethnic past with the genealogy librarian.

PROGRAMS FOR ALL AGES Santa Fe Teaching Zoo Sept. 17, 3:45pm 4:45pm Learn about and see zoo animals from experts.

Gingerbread House Contest Dec. 18, 3pm - 4pm Celebrate the holidays by building your own gingerbread house for a prize, and even if you don’t win, take home your creation. s

Monday, August 12 – Friday, August 16 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pre-Planning (5 weekdays) Monday, August 19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . First Day for Students Monday, September 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Holiday - Labor Day Tuesday, September 24 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Send Interim Reports Home Monday, October 21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . End of First Nine Weeks Friday, October 25. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pupil Holiday / Teacher Workday Tuesday, November 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Send Report Cards Home Friday, November 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Holiday – UF Homecoming Monday, November 11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Holiday – Veterans Day * Monday, November 25 - Wednesday, November 27 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pupil/Teacher Holidays Thursday November 28 – Friday November 29 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Thanksgiving Holidays Friday, December 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Send Interim Reports Home Monday, December 23 - Friday, January 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Winter Holidays (10 weekdays) Monday, January 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Classes Resume Thursday, January 16 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . End of First Semester * Friday, January 17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pupil Holiday / Teacher Workday Monday, January 20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Holiday - ML King Day Tuesday, January 21. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Begin Second Semester Thursday, January 30 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Send Report Cards Home Monday, February 17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Holiday – Presidents’ Day Wednesday, February 26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Send Interim Reports Home Monday, March 24 - Friday, March 28 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Spring Holidays (5 weekdays) Tuesday, April 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . End of Third Nine Weeks * Friday, April 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pupil Holiday / Teacher Workday Thursday, April 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Send Report Cards Home Thursday, May 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Send Interim Reports Home Monday, May 26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Holiday - Memorial Day Thursday, June 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . School Out - Last Day for Students Friday, June 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Post-Planning for Teachers Monday, June 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Post-Planning for Teachers * THESE DAYS MAY BE USED TO MAKE UP DAYS CANCELLED DUE TO HURRICANES OR OTHER EMERGENCIES. FOR THE 2012-13 CALENDAR, THEY WILL BE USED IN THE FOLLOWING ORDER:

(1) November 25 (2) January 17 (3) April 4

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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Alachua Business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION. CALL 352.372-5468 FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION.

ON MAIN STREET IN DOWNTOWN BEAUTIFUL ALACHUA G R ATIN CELEB

25 Years

25th anniversary celebration week is 9/16/13 Mon through 9/21/13 Sat. Gifts and Prizes every day that week.

15572 NW 136th Terrace, Alachua Fl

MODELS OPEN SAT-SUN FROM 1PM-5PM

Conestogas 352-3332-339112

R e staurant “Family dining with a little something for everyone” www.ConestogasRestaurant.com

386-462-1294

Garden Gallery Inc .

HOME • GARDEN • GIFTS Est. 1998

Don’t miss our

Thanksgiving Weekend Sale!

Friday & Saturday 10:30am – 6pm

386-462-0555

M A I N S T R E E T • A L AC H UA

info@h @haartley eybr brothers rs.com

CGC-1520103

1325 NW 53rd Ave • Suite D Gainesville, FL 32609

YOUR HOMETOWN PIZZA PLACE! PIZZA • CALZONES • WINGS • SUBS • STROMBOLI • SALADS • DESSERTS

Don’t forget to check out our retail shop next door.

FEATURING • Camo Shirts, Coozies, Bags, etc.

• Dang Chick, Simply Southern, & Girlie Girl Tees • Softball Accessories • Candles and More!!

386-462-0661

•

14933 Main Street

•

Alachua

Family Owned & Operated since 2007

Florida Retirement (FRS) or DROP?

LET’S TALK!

Colleen’s Kloset Re-Sale Boutique WOMEN’S • JUNIORS • BABY • CHILDREN’S HOME GOODS • SCHOOL UNIFORMS

Call today to schedule your financial review.

Edward R. Potts Financial Advisor 14423 US Hwy. 441, Suite 9 Alachua, Florida 32615 386-462-0417

We carry a complete line of baby items and furniture, as well as designer clothing, shoes, purses and more!

Designer Brands: Hollister • Abercrombie & Fitch • American Eagle Chicos • Talbots • Ann Taylor & Many others WE CARRY A COMPLETE BELVAH LINE:

Member SIPC

Purses, Backpacks Totes and Wallets

Hours:

Monday-Saturday 10am to 5:30pm

14839 Main Street • Alachua • 386-462-0768 160 | Autumn 2013

Music, Food, Rides and Fun!! n!!

Consignment Boutique

Our Huge store is full of Chico’s, Talbots, Ann Taylor, Coldwater Creek and more top name brands at a fraction of their original cost. We e carry everything from juniors through Women’s 5x and all the shoes, handbags and accessoreis to go with them. We also have formal wear and over 100 Wedding gowns.

Mon. & Sat. 10am to 5pm • Tues. - Fri. 10am to 6pm

14822 Main Street, Alachua

386.462.2230 www.valeriesloft.com

ALACHUA A HARVEST T FESTIVAL

In Historic Downtown wn City off Alachua Alach hua ainesville - Exit 399 on I-75 10 Miles North of Gainesville

SUNDAY: November 10th, 2013 • 11 am - 5 pm Free and Open to the Public Enjoy a wonderful Sunday afternoon with the family while strolling along Historic Downtown Main Street in Alachua, lined with lovely Victorians. Savor delicious food while listening to local musicians and chatting with friends, neighbors and gracious shopkeepers and unique vendors! We look forward to seeing you!!

Sponsored By: Alachua Busin Business League, The City of Alachua, SunState Su Federal Credit Union, Gator Dominos Do and Alachua Printing For more information: alachua alachua.business@gmail.com

next door to newberry newberry’ss b backyard bbq Now offering d Fudge an t u n a e P Brittle!

Homemade: H Jellies, Pickles, Honey and Canned Goods

Handmade: H Quilts, Aprons, Candles, Jewelry, Lotions, Crafts and One of a Kind Gifts.

Thurston Garden Design Reg# 47222925

Visit our farm to view our great selection of flowers, plants and fruit trees.

• Garden Design • Installation • Maintenance

• Consultations • Problem Solving • and more!

Lion Oaks Farm • 20114 NW 78th Ave • Alachua tom@gardenplants.com

25425 W. Newberry RD BackyardMarketandGifts.com

Schedule a free consultation:

386.462.9641

A Green Rose The Green Gator Network

www.Green Rosabella.com

Green Partners for products and services in Alachua County www.TheGreenGator.Net www.alachuabusiness.com /a-green-rose/

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>> GOOD STEWARDS

That Old

Black Water The Great Suwannee River Cleanup

BY COURTNEY LINDWALL lorida is famous for its rivers. There is the St. Johns River, brimming with gators, and the Withlacoochee, which flows from the swamp. There is the Homosassa River, home to the manatees, and the Apalachicola, which stretches to Georgia.

But there is nothing quite like the Suwannee.

Strong, wide and dark, the Suwannee is a picture of Florida itself. Flowing from Georgia, it twists and turns for around 250 miles through North Florida.

Woven in history, it first supported American Indian tribes who lived on its banks and later was the site of Civil War forts.

F

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But these days it needs help.

Current Problems, a local environmental organization, is back for its fourth annual Great Suwannee River Cleanup, which will include the Suwannee tributaries this year.

“You get your message out far better by dragging people out to see it,” said Fritzi Olson, Current Problems executive director.

The cleanup is a three-month project running from September to November, spilling a bit into August and December if necessary.

Volunteers will sign up for different portions of the river and then bring their own equipment and manpower out to clean.

The work is done out on the water.

Groups bring canoes, kayaks or even powerboats, combing slowly to

weed out the hundreds of pounds of garbage polluting the river.

Everything from tires to Band-Aids to empty and rusted metal drums are dredged out and hauled away.

Current Problems encourages volunteers to work on the Suwannee or any other river in the basin, including the tributaries — the Withlacoochee, Santa Fe, Ichetucknee or Alapaha. The organization also stated that it is looking to focus on “hot spots” of contamination and needs help finding them.

Taking on the added mileage of the tributaries has made it more challenging.

When Current Problems was asked by the water management district and the volunteers of the

PHOTOS COURTESY OF CURRENT PROBLEMS

In the Great Suwannee River Cleanup’s first year, 576 volunteers removed 29,153 pounds of garbage in just one season — nearly 15 tons of trash. Fifteen community sponsors supported the efforts, such as Save our Suwannee and American Rivers. While most are in boats or on foot scouring the shore, certified cave divers, such as organizer Debbie Meeks, also help clean below the surface.

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF CURRENT PROBLEMS

The final amount of waste removed is weighed and the numbers are reported to other environmental organizations.

GREAT SUWANNEE RIVER CLEANUP 2013 Kickoff — 9:00 a.m.

Saturday, September 21 at Ivey Memorial Park in Branford.

The cleanup will consist of many small cleanups all along the rivers during a 3-month window from September through November.

When you are spending a day out on the river just for fun, you may not notice the pollution, “but when you go out looking for the trash, you’re amazed.”

Suwannee River Wilderness Trail to take it on, they were not sure it was possible, Olson said.

But with a little more support and time, they decided to try.

In previous years, hundreds of volunteers have come out. In 2011, Olson estimated the numbers around 500. And although 2012’s flooding caused certain sections of the river to be off-limits, the cleanup still brought around 300 volunteers.

This year, they hope for even more.

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The issue of water pollution is personal for avid cave diver and Florida nature enthusiast, Debbie Meeks. She has helped organize the Suwannee cleanup all four years.

“It’s important to keep the water looking natural,” she said. “This is supposed to be a natural recreational area and bring natural tourism.”

People are out on the river to enjoy its beauty, she said, but can’t when there is trash. But the issue of contamination is one that goes beyond just aesthetics.

“Tires and plastics break down and leach chemicals,” Meeks said.

“These are then taken up by fish and wildlife.”

Chemicals such as PCBs (Polychlorinated Biphenyls) are sometimes detected in water, even though the chemicals have been banned from use since the 1970s. Many products that contain them are still in use today or are ending up in landfills and rivers.

Another controversial chemical that is regularly reported in water supplies is BPA, often associated with plastic water bottles.

These contaminants affect wildlife, but also the drinking water.

As Current Problems’ website states, “Although you may not live near water, you are actually closer

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PHOTO COURTESY OF CURRENT PROBLEMS

All in a day’s work. Volunteers stand by the their haul after a previous cleanup. Current Problems has opportunities for action, but also education. Its website, www.currentproblems.org, offers resources for those wanting to learn more. It provides links to other community supporters, environmental action groups and informational sites.

to it than you think! Florida’s karst topography has only a thin veneer of soil over a porous, Swiss-cheese layer of limestone separating us from our drinking water.”

Meaning, problems with the water are everyone’s business.

With each project, Current Problems aims to deal with more than just this year’s trash. It raises consciousness in the community about water health in general.

As Meeks said, when you are spending a day out on the river just for fun, you may not notice the pollution, “but when you go out looking for the trash, you’re amazed.”

Current Problems takes on other projects, as well.

Restore a Shore is its program that improves waterfront vegetation, protecting habitat and creating a buffer to absorb contaminants.

Instead of a heavily fertilized lawn

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growing right to the edge of a pond, volunteers will rebuild a wellvegetated shoreline of native plants.

Other water health projects are Plant a Pond and Adopt a River.

But the Great Suwannee River Cleanup is one of the year’s biggest events.

A cleanup kickoff was scheduled for September 21 at the Ivey Memorial Park in Branford, with food for the volunteers.

“We’re a small organization, but we have a big volunteer base,” Olson said.

So many come out because a day on the river can be fun, Meeks said — even when picking up trash.

Volunteer groups like the Boy Scouts are especially perfect for tackling the project, she said.

At the end of the three months, Current Problems forwards its results to the larger environmental

organizations Ocean Conservancy and American Rivers so that its totals are included in theirs, as well. Their annual cleanup projects, respectively called the International Coastal Cleanup and the National River Cleanup, yield impressive results.

In 2012, the National River Cleanup reported 3.5 million pounds of trash removed from America’s waterways.

Hundreds of those pounds were from Florida’s treasured Suwannee.

Even if someone cannot go out on the river, he or she can be a sponsor and provide funding or equipment for the cleanup, such as canoes.

It is about pitching in and lending a hand, doing what is best to solve a problem that was no one person’s fault. It is about health and community. And most clearly, it is about cherishing the beauty and history of Florida’s winding waters. s For more information, call 352-264-6827 or visit www.currentproblems.org.

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ADVERTISER INDEX 4400 NW 36th Avenue • Gainesville, FL 32606 352-372-5468 352-373-9178 fax AUTOMOTIVE City Boys Tire & Brake ................................ 92 Gainesville Harley Davidson ..................... 43 Jim Doglas Sales & Service ......................40 Newberry Auto Repair ............................... 68 RPM Automotive .......................................... 69 Sun City Auto Sales....................................147 Tuffy Tire & Auto Service .............................2

REAL ESTATE Atrium at Gainesville................................... 87 Forrester Realty ............................................ 78 Hartley Brothers Inc. ................................. 160 Horizon Realty ..............................................132 Miller Real Estate .......................................... 43 PRO Realty ...................................................... 111 The Village Senior Living .......................... 95

FINANCIAL / LAW Allstate Insurance, Hugh Cain ................. 86 A+ Tax & Bookkeeping Center ................50 Edward Jones - Ed Potts................... 61, 160 Ference Insurance Agency ....................... 77 Gateway Bank................................................. 51 Morgan Stanley - Banks/Carroll.............. 52 ProActive Tax & Accounting .................... 53 Sunshine State Insurance .........................124 SunState Federal Credit Union ...................................... 21, 23, 25 Three Rivers Insurance ............................. 130

FITNESS and BEAUTY Advanced Hair Removal & Skin Inst. .....40 Audrey’s Flair for Hair ...............................145 Charisma for Hair ......................................... 58 Emerge ........................................................... 100 Hair & Nail Depot........................................... 61 Jodie’s Beauty & Barber ............................. 111 Jonesville Traditional Barber ................... 77 Nails-N-Spa...................................................... 111 Plexus Slim ...................................................... 33 Salon Eye Candy .......................................... 86 Warehouse Gyms, Inc. ................................ 112

PETS and VETS Animal Health Center ................................. 76 Bed & Biscuit Inn ..........................................151 Dancin’ Dogs Boarding .............................. 69 Dream Dogz ..................................................149 Flying Fish Aquatics..................................... 111 Invisible Fence ................................................ 91 Pamper Your Pet ..........................................114 Springhill Equine .........................................145 Susie’s Pet Sitting & Grooming ............... 59 West End Animal Hospital ........................ 42

EDUCATION & CHILD CARE Alachua Learning Center ......................... 172 Gainesville Country Day School .............. 17 Millhopper Montessori School .................. 15 The Rock School..........................................167

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MEDICAL / HEALTH 1st Choice Urgent Care...............................50 Affordable Dentures ..................................102 Alachua Dental .............................................139 Alliance Pediatrics ....................................... 92 Caretenders ...................................................154 City Drugs Pharmacy..................................110 Clear Sound Audiology.................................7 Douglas Adel, DDS ..................................... 137 Gainesville Dermatology ...................75, 132 Gainesville OB/GYN .......................................6 Dr. Greg Borganelli Pediatric Dent. ....... 94 Hunter Family Dentistry ............................ 77 Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery ................. 31 Samant Dental Group ................................. 85 Town & Country Eye Care ......................... 69 UF Health ......................................................... 13

RETAIL / RECREATION Alachua Farm & Lumber ..........................107 Alachua Harvest Festival ...........................161 Alachua Pawn & Jewelry ..........................170 Backyard Market & Gifts ............................161 Bambi’s Organic Country Farm .............. 112 Beacher’s Lodge..........................................125 Blue Springs ..................................................124 City of Gainesville .......................................120 The Coffee Clutch Café.............................. 112 Coin & Jewelry Gallery ...............................115 Colleen’s Kloset........................................... 160 Columbia Country Fair ..............................123 Cootie Coo Creations ................................149 Dance Alive! ...................................................131 Family Jewels & Purse Strings ................ 77 Garden Gallery ............................................ 160 Gary’s Tackle Box .......................................... 16 Gator Fine Wine & Spirits .........................171 A Green Rose .................................................161 High Springs Farmers Market ..................110 Hippodrome State Theatre......................128 Jane’s Tower Garden ................................... 112 Jewelry Designs by Donna .......................110 Klaus Fine Jewelry ..........................................4 Lentz House of Time ...................................114 Liquor & Wine Shoppe ...............................171 Monsters & Munchkins................................. 61 Newberry Main Street Organization ..... 121 Noche De Gala .............................................126 Oaks Pawn ......................................................30 Old Fart Studios ........................................... 69 Paddywhack..................................................149 Pawn Pro ........................................................170 Raider Run 5K.................................................57 Rum 138 ...........................................................101 Stephen Foster Cultural Center .............. 99 Sumter Swap Meets ...................................125 Tennis Unlimited ........................................... 112 Thumbs Up Riding School ....................... 157 Thurston Garden Design ...........................161 Tioga Town Center..........................................8 Valerie’s Loft Consignment ...............79, 161

MISCELLANEOUS Girl Scouts of Gateway Council .............102 Holy Trinity Episcopal Church ................. 93 Partnership for Strong Families .............107

SERVICE A&K Outdoor Services ..............................167 A-1 Pest Control .................................... 77, 137 Alpha Bytes Computers .......................... 130 Best Restoration .......................................... 137 Chimney Sweeps of America..................156 Computer Repair .........................................156 COX Communications ................................113 Creekside Outdoor Improvements ..60, 141 Gainesville Regional Airport ...................103 Gonzalez Site Prep .....................................103 Grease Busters .............................................102 Growers Fertilizer .........................................151 GRU Natural Gas........................................... 33 Jack’s Small Engine Repair......................103 Johnson & Son Tree Service ................... 157 Lotus Studios Photography ...................... 18 Mac Johnson Roofing .................................115 Oliver & Dahlman .........................................110 Quality Cleaners ........................................... 32 Southern Land & Lawn...............................60 Stitch In Time Embroidery ........................ 69 William Weseman Construction ............. 34

HOME IMPROVEMENT Al Mincey Site Prep ....................................102 America’s Swimming Pool Co. ...............103 Bloominghouse Nursery .......................... 108 Cook’s Portable Buildings ....................... 140 Floor Store ...................................................... 68 Griffis Lumber................................................151 H2Oasis Custom Pool & Spa .................... 48 Overhead Door ............................................148 Pools & More .....................................................3 Red Barn Home Center .............................. 59 United Rent-All.............................................146 Whitfield Window & Door........................165

RESTAURANT Brown’s Country Buffet .............................116 Conestogas ................................................... 160 Copper Monkey West ....................................5 Dave’s NY Deli ............................................... 117 The Diner ....................................................... 109 El Toro............................................................... 86 Gator Tales Sports Bar ............................... 117 Main Street Pie Co. A Pizzeria ............... 160 Mason’s Tavern ...............................................75 Newberry Backyard BBQ ..........................116 Northwest Grille ............................................ 117 Saboré ..............................................................116 TCBY ................................................................. 79

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62 >> FLYING HIGH

A few of the members of Florida Team Cheer share a light moment on the University of Florida campus. Each year the team takes part in UFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Homecoming Parade. Most of the cheerleaders are from Newberry, Alachua and Gainesville, but some come from Ocala, Chiefland, Lake Butler and Palatka to practice twice a week at the Florida Team Cheer All-Star Cheerleading Gym in Gainesville.

www.VisitOurTowns.com

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Go Gators!

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Like us on facebook for tastings and events! www.VisitOurTowns.com Autumn 2013 | 171

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You Have a Choice for your child’s education.

Alachua Learning Center Elementary and Middle School located just North of the town of Alachua on State Road 235, serves students from all parts of Alachua and neighboring counties.

Charter Schools are part of the Florida Alternative System of Public School Choice and charge no tuition.

While having the benefits of a “small-school” environment the Alachua Learning Center provides a challenging and fulfilling academic, cultural and physical educational program for students from kindergarten through eighth grade.

The Alachua Learning Center has consistently been rated an “A” school by the State of Florida.

Our varied physical education curriculum includes on-campus rock climbing and subscribes to the “President’s Fitness Program”.

The Alachua Learning Center offers inspiring classes on a variety of subjects: Science, Social Studies, Language Arts, Math, P.E. Sports, Rock Climbing, Drama, Music, Clay Sculpting, Computer Graphics, individual Student Book Publishing (writing, design, illustrating), Drawing, Painting, Crafts, Community Service Display Projects, and exciting Field Trips.

Alachua Learning Center 386-418-2080

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