bserver O EAST COUNTY FREE • Thursday, APRIL 11, 2013
You. Your neighbors. Your neighborhood.
NEIGHBORHOOD
SPORTS
Florida Wine & Balloon Festival takes flight in East County. PAGE 1B
OUR TOWN
Mustangs swing into regionals. PAGE 13A
Members and guests of the Lakewood Ranch Women’s Club traveled March 27, to Ed Smith Stadium to watch a training game of the Baltimore Orioles as they competed against the New York Yankees. Ladies and their guests enjoyed barbecue in the left-field bullpen picnic area, before donning their “Northern duds” and blankets and braving the chilly weather to see the Orioles capture an 11-8 victory.
Gumbo competition heats up at Linger Lodge. PAGE 6A
winning time by Josh Siegel | Staff writer
District leader announces goals Manatee County’s new superintendent, Rick Mills, isn’t afraid to make big decisions, and he wants the community to be a part of them.
+ Ranch women head to ball game
UPCOMING
EAST COUNTY — If you follow Rick Mills’ words and demeanor, you could feel like you’re on the sidelines of a football game at West Point Military Academy. Mills, the new Manatee County Schools superintendent and former military man in his 12th year of public education, uses words such as stakeholder, teamwork, strategic, change and winning.
TASTE TEST
He likes to command the conversation and, when he’s not, he fiddles with his hands, anxious to inject his presence — and it’s big. Not overly tall or wide, he towers over the room with his blunt assertiveness, making longrange proclamations, like he did when he coached football players at West Point. In his first two weeks on the
job, Mills, the former CEO of Minneapolis Public Schools and director of Chicago’s JROTC program, has made decisions that speak to a man in control. In his first move — one in the works before Mills formally took over — the district announced it will eliminate 188 staff positions for the 2013/2014 school year in the aftermath of a $3.4 million budget deficit. The change addresses non-conformance with state class-size requirements.
SEE MILLS / PAGE 8A
Josh Siegel
Rick Mills hung his unit colors and coins from his time in the military in his office.
by Josh Siegel | Staff Writer
Healthy Habits
+ Friends, neighbors give warm send-off Residents in the Summerfield Pines section of Lakewood Ranch gathered recently to bid farewell to neighbors Jason and Phyllis Morales, before they moved into a retirement community. “They will be truly missed,” Jason Morales said of his friends.
+ Christian Retreat graduates ministers Christian Retreat’s Institute of Ministry celebrated the graduation of 25 students during a ceremony March 28. Upon completion of the 10-week school, students are given “Able Minister” diplomas. They then return to their respective communities to serve in various ministerial capacities. The class was the 103rd to be conducted at the East County facility. The first Institute of Ministry class was held in 1975; Dr. Gerald Derstine founded the program.
SEE OUR TOWN / PAGE 4A
Courtesy photos
Emilio Vega, an 11-year-old Gullett Elementary School student from Colombia, was one of two students to be chosen randomly to work side-by-side with first lady Michelle Obama, as she planted a garden at the White House.
HEALTHY
REWARD Five Gullett Elementary School fifthgraders were selected to represent their wellness-oriented school and help first lady Michelle Obama plant the White House Kitchen Garden.
LAKEWOOD RANCH — Gullett Elementary School’s Emilio Vega has only known English for two years, but he can speak first lady Michelle Obama’s language fluently. He and Obama conversed easily about kale, whole-grain pizza crust and childhood obesity April 4, as they worked side-by-side planting the White House Kitchen Garden to promote the first lady’s HealthierUS Schools Challenge. Emilio, a Colombia native, placed seeds into the open palms of Obama, whose green gardening
SEE GULLETT / PAGE 9A
This year, Gullett Elementary School has gone beyond Manatee County School District standards that require students to eat a halfcup of fruit or vegetables at lunch. More than half of the school’s menu items, including pasta, sandwiches and chicken nuggets, are made with whole grains. Salads — 100 prepared per day — feature the more fibrous romaine lettuce. Each week includes a special Fresh From Florida product, such as blueberries or corn. The kitchen staff uses lettuce, strawberries, peppers and other produce grown at Gullett as part of its studentgardening program in an after-school cooking class offered to children.
First lady Michelle Obama hugs Gullett students Robby Goecker and Noe Antuna.
INDEX Business............ 13B Calendar............ 10A
Classifieds ........ 17B Cops Corner..........9A
Crossword.......... 16B Real Estate........ 10B
Sports................ 13A Weather............. 16B
Vol. 14, No. 15 | Two sections YourObserver.com