Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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Nothing ventured, nothing gained; this phrase has been stated for years as a way for people to take chances, or better yet, opportunities that might stretch them. Anything new brings that sense of excitement, trepidation, fear of failure, and allure of success. Time also causes excitement and fear. It continues to march on and although we can never catch it, reflection of what it has taught us can open many fond memories or cause pain from the pictures stamped in our mind. As...
Love is in the air at the Lake Wales Public Library celebrating its annual membership drive during February. "This is a time for everyone, especially library support groups, to recognize the value of libraries," says Glenda Morgan, president of the Lake Wales Library Association - Friends of the Library. "All the work has been done without government funds because we raised $89,000 from people who give and give and give," Morgan states. "It's so exciting to see our local commu...
Jennifer Ardolino says the goal of her art is to "make people happy." It's definitely hard not to smile when viewing her tropical scenes or colorful abstracts. Ardolino is a regular in the art show circuit, exhibiting at the finest Florida shows and some festivals outside Florida. A significant body of her work is on display through March 14 at the Art Gallery at Melange, 250 E. Park Ave. in historic downtown Lake Wales. Melange is offering a number of abstract originals,...
The Polk Training Center in Lake Alfred will hold its annual Spring Plant and Yard Sale from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23. All plants will be on sale. The Center carries a large assortment of Florida friendly plants: perennials, landscape shrubs, flowering shrubs, succulents, palms, crape myrtle trees, herbs & vegetables and more. The event also includes free hot dogs and raffling off some plants. The Center also will be holding a yard sale with recycled treasures...
Come out to the Holy Spirit Catholic Church on Saturday, Feb. 23 from 7-10 a.m. for the Lake Wales Kiwanis Club's all-you-can eat breakfast of pancakes and sausage. The church is located at 644 S. 9th Street in Lake Wales. As part of the pancake festival activities, other events will run simultaneously with the breakfast, including a 20-family garage sale, silent auction and plant sale. A live auction will be held at 10 a.m. for golf opportunities, weekend trips, an airboat...
If you are looking for something fun to do on a Friday or Saturday night in Lake Wales, head out east of town on U.S. Highway 60, take a left on Boy Scout Road then a right on Camp Mack Road. You will drive right to Guy Harvey's Camp Mack's River Resort at 14900 Camp Mack Road, northeast of Lake Wales. The old Liar's Lair bar has been masterfully remodeled into Gator Mack's - a full liquor bar with pool tables, dart boards, and a great jukebox. The smoke-free Gator Mack's...
There is something very special happening in the downtown historic district of Lake Wales. Melange Antiques and Art Gallery has moved to a new location at the corner of Park Avenue and Scenic Highway, and is now offering much more than its former incarnation. Melange Antiques originated in Venice, Florida. Proprietor Linda Ann Truitt brought it in 2014 to Lake Wales, where it became Melange Antiques, Art Gallery & Wine Bar. In September 2018, the establishment moved down the...
In 1975, Florida's Escambia County and the city of Pensacola experienced a pernicious chain of events. A sheriff's deputy killed a young black man at point-blank range. Months of protests against police brutality followed, culminating in the arrest and conviction of the Reverend H. K. Matthews, the leading civil rights organizer in the county. Viewing the events of Escambia County within the context of the broader civil rights movement, Dr. J. Michael Butler demonstrates that...
The Reverend Tim Nunez is committed to helping families raise their children in the faith so they can become leaders for the next generation. Nunez is the new rector at the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd at 221 S.4th Street in Lake Wales. He began preaching at Good Shepherd in December, became Rector Jan. 1, and had the celebration of a new ministry on Sunday, Jan. 27, followed by a reception. Nunez served under Bishop Greg Brewer as Canon to the Ordinary for the...
Rotary on the Ridge has installed William Heath III as a new member. "Trey" is a REALTOR ® with Century 21 At Your Service Realty in Lake Wales. Trey's wife, Michelle, mother, Sara, and in-laws Ruthie and Ken Welch attended the installation service Jan. 28. "Trey obviously has a servant's heart," said sponsor Chevon Baccus, co-founder of the regional service club. "I am honored to sponsor him to become a Rotarian so he can put his energy and commitment to work serving our...
Traveling by car in Central Florida in 1929 wasn't easy. In the late 1920s, many Florida roads were clay. Yet, thousands of cars full of curious people headed to Lake Wales to see the President of the United States and to see Edward Bok's Bird Sanctuary. On Feb. 1, 1929, President Calvin Coolidge dedicated the Mountain Lake Sanctuary and Singing Tower, now known as Bok Tower Gardens. It was a very rare occasion to see the President in those days. To have the opportunity to...
Got a garden? Want one? So where do I start? (Is that a question or a statement – I'm not sure.) One thing for certain is you have to start where you are. Unless you're planning to move real soon, and then you could plant in containers and take them with you. Or you could dig it all up and move stuff and watch your plants either die or thrive. Or, like most of us do in life, struggle somewhere in between. I know I have and still do. Hi, my name is John and I'm a gardener - N...
The Lake Wales High School varsity basketball team won the District 10 championship Saturday, Feb. 16 with a 46-44 win over Sarasota Booker that went down to the last four seconds. They now move on to the first Class 6A state championship playoff game against Tampa Robinson at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21 in their home gym, 1 Highlander Way. Coached by Don Grant, the Highlanders went 20-7 for the season, 6-2 in the district. According to MAXPREPS, Tampa Robinson was 13-11 for the...
The City of Lake Wales is planning to add a new library branch and recreational facility on Chalet Suzanne Road on the northern edge of the city near the Eagle Ridge Mall. The new recreational facility would include playground equipment, picnic tables, a basketball court and bathroom facilities. The new branch would occupy an existing unused garage located on city property where the current northern Lake Wales Fire Department is located. The cost of the project, according to...
What do you think of when you hear the words "El Salvador"? Crime, gangs, earthquakes, a long war, refugees? But, El Salvador has a surprise, and it is none of the above. It is gourmet food! I am a "country counter" avidly trying to reach my personal goal of visiting 150 countries. I am at 107 currently. But to be truthful, El Salvador was not on the top of my list of countries I wanted to visit. It was not that I did not want to go there, it was just that I had not thought...
Laura Davis Conner passed away on Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2019 at Heart of Florida Regional Medical Center. She was born Oct. 19, 1925 in Avon Park, Florida to Carl H. Davis and Millie T. Davis. The family moved and settled in Lake Wales where she worked at Hunt Brothers and met her husband of almost 50 years, Bob Conner. She was a devoted wife and mother and enjoyed sharing life with many of her lifelong friends and families. She raised her family in the First Baptist Church of Lak...
J. Clyde Parlier of Lake Wales, Florida passed away Monday, Feb. 11, 2019 at his residence. Born on June 18, 1928 in Statesville, NC to Elisha Worth "E.W." and Ethel E. (Chappel) Parlier, he has been a resident of Lake Wales for 58 years. He was a well-known and prolific architect. Clyde enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1946 and served proudly for two years. He married his high school sweetheart, Florine (Flo) Blackburn in 1950, attended North Carolina State and the...
HEALTHY RECIPE OF THE WEEK Eat a salad every day Unless you have a health issue that forbids it, one of the best things you can do is eat a salad every day, even on a low carb diet. Sixteen ounces, one pound, of baby butter lettuce has only 10.67g carbs and when you subtract the fiber of 5.4g, your net carbs are 5.27g. For a pound! I'm probably the only person who has thought she could eat a whole pound of lettuce in one sitting. I don't recommend actually trying it. Bagged le...
The Lake Wales mayor and two city commissioners are seeking re-election. Potential challengers for all three have picked up campaign packets, and the qualifying period ends at noon, Feb. 15. To qualify, candidates must declare for office, name a treasurer, open a bank account, pay a qualifying fee and submit the signatures of 25 registered voters within their respective districts. Mayoral candidates may obtain signatures from registered voters who live anywhere in the City....
Chevon and Mike Baccus recently celebrated their 36th wedding anniversary. They were married Feb. 12, 1983, at Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Melbourne, FL. Mike is a retired elementary school teacher and Chevon serves as executive editor and publisher of LakeWalesNews.net, an online news site published by the Baccus Center for Engaged Communications and Leadership. Chevon was born in Ohio and moved to Lake Wales at the age of 5. She is a 1973 graduate of Lake Wales...
Lake Wales City Commissioner Curtis Gibson recently received a Patriot's Award from the Employer Support of Guard and Reserve Florida Committee. Gibson serves as head wrestling coach for Bartow High School and as a classroom assistant for the Polk County School Board at Chain of Lakes Elementary School. Gibson was nominated by George Sabillion for supporting his service in the U.S. Army Reserve. "The Patriot Award reflects the efforts made to support citizen warriors through...
Wellness is a broad term, but my hope as editor of this section is to provide articles that are informative and practical to our lives. I plan to cover body, mind, and spirit since we need to be healthy in all these areas, at least as much as we can be, to get the most out of life. For instance, the City of Lake Wales web site has a link for adult activities that lists shuffleboard, tennis, pickleball, ultimate Frisbee, and bridge. The library and the YMCA both have yoga...
Polk County commissioners sent plans for a large gas station and convenience store back to the Polk County Planning Commission after hearing public concerns that the development is too large for the area and might harm Crooked Lake. The gas station – a Circle K is being planned By Atlantic Funding Limited – would be at the intersection of U.S. 27 and County Road 640 just outside Lake Wales. It was proposed to have 28 spaces to pump gas. There would be no overnight par...
Lake Wales NAACP Branch #5109 is hosting its first annual "Unsung Heroes and SHeroes of Black History" event at 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22 at the James P. Austin Community Center, 315 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. John Kimbrough, Jr. will be guest speaker. The event is free but a public offering will be accepted. Public offering will be accepted! Kimbrough was born in Polk County on February 18, 1995, the son of John Kimbrough Jr. and Darlene Kimbrough. From a young age he knew...
Sometime ago I read where a Japanese man died at age 113 in his sleep. It was a remarkably long time to live, especially for a male. On the average women seem to outlive men. A Puerto Rican man died in 2007 at the age of 115; extraordinary to say the least. The most recent was a man who served in our Army in World War Two, who died at 110. This man was the oldest centenarian in this country to recently die. My mother's father was born in 1827 and lived to be 84, which is not...
