Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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Wielding spades and smiles, some two dozen volunteers planted 30 young trees along Fourth Street South in Lake Wales Saturday morning, the first of more than 1,000 trees Lake Wales Heritage intends to plant over several years to complete a historic landscape plan. "People don't know much about Olmsted," volunteer Preston Troutman told a group of 15 students from Lake Wales High School. The students, members of the school's Interact Club, had just help complete the first...
A group of Democratic lawmakers unveiled an energy-efficiency plan this week that would reward farmers for conserving energy, assess energy efficiency in state-funded buildings, and create "floating solar" systems – among other projects. The plan - a bill for consideration in the 2022 legislative session - is sponsored by state Sen. Tina Polsky and state Rep. Kelly Skidmore, both of Palm Beach County, with backing from Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Commissioner Nikki F...
Ready for some laughs to brighten up your life? Well, Lake Wales Little Theatre is ready for you, offering a three-weekend run of a comedy that seems guaranteed to make you chuckle, or laugh out loud. "The Last Roundup of the Guacamole Queens" opens Friday, Nov. 5 and offers what Dramatists Play Service describes as a "Southern-fried comedy. The play was written by the trio of authors of the popular "Red Velvet Cake Wars," presented in 2012 at LWLT. Directed by Chevon and...
A 30-year extension of the life of the Lake Wales Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) will guarantee a continuing flow of revenue for community improvements, including street and sidewalk construction, lighting, street trees and more. Community Redevelopment Agency funds are being used to pay for the Lake Wales Connected plan reconstruction and landscaping of Park Avenue and First Street, expected to begin shortly. The CRA is funded by capturing about 90% of the City and...
Do you play the lottery? I've been known to purchase a ticket or two when the payoff gets enough zeroes. The fact that I am still writing for a living should tell you how good I am at picking numbers. Once, I ducked into Publix to purchase a Powerball ticket and discovered a knot of people around a well-tanned, white-haired customer. It was former Gov. Charlie Crist in a blue blazer, silk tie, and tassel loafers, waiting his turn to wager a couple of bucks. "You can't win if...
Returning to the form that marked the early games of the season, the Lake Wales Highlanders struck early and often against the Hardee Wildcats, running up a score of 21-0 barely halfway through the first quarter in a Friday night contest in Wauchula that was never in doubt. Hardee, a non-conference 5-A foe, came into the game with a 3-2 record. The Highlanders' first two touchdowns came on the strength of their explosive ground game led by running back Marquish Seabon, who...
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Service is inviting you to join them on Thursday, October 14 for their virtual MarineQuest 2021 event. This is a live on-line event that will include a number of nature-oriented features that begin at 9:00 am. Tune in even earlier, at 8:40 am for field videos of sandhill crane banding, searching for skunks and weasels with Cowboy, the scat-sniffing dog, pulling nets with their fisheries monitoring team in Tampa Bay, and much more! Viewers will...
Sammy E. Sullivan of Lake Wales passed away Sunday, October 10, 2021 at Forsythe Hospice House in Auburndale. He was born July 30, 1946 in Columbus, Georgia to the late Sam and Aline Sullivan; he moved to Lake Wales in 2007. Sammy was a retired Project Manager and Supervisor of iron workers and was a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, serving from 1963 until 1967. He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Lake Wales and was a Shriner and a Mason. He loved to...
Jay M. Price, Jr., 63 June 8, 1958 to October 2, 2021 At the age of 63, Jay lost his battle to cancer. Pre-Deceased by his beloved infant daughter Jaime Lynn Price. Survived by his parents Jay and Barbara (Drusbacky) Price of East Hartford. Along with his son Jeremiah Price and two granddaughters, Maddison and Audrinna Price of Connecticut. His Daughter Jessica (Price) Preston and wife Mandy of Lutz, Fl. Sister Penny (Price) Manganello and husband Mark, nephew Vincent...
Katherine Beatrice (Taylor) Ciszek (1/10/1926 - 10/7/2021), was born, just prior to the Great Depression, in Lake Wales, Fl. to Mamie (Douglas) and L.E. Taylor. She was the third youngest of 11 children, all who preceded her in passing. Katherine married John S. Ciszek in 1945 following his Air Force discharge and after 1 year in Chicago (his home), they settled in Lake Wales where they raised, what would eventually be, 7 children. Every Sunday, the family would fill an...
John Charles Burris of Frostproof passed away Sunday, October 10, 2021 at Advent Health Lake Wales. He was born July 9, 1932 in Cambridge, Ohio to the late John and Jane Burris; he moved to Lake Wales from Keystone Heights in 1996. John was a retired District Supervisor for Florida Power and Light and was a veteran of the United States Navy, serving from 1951 until 1955 in the Korean war. John is survived by his wife of 66 years, Helen J. Burris; daughter, Janice Kay Rowton...
Dayanara Ortiz Nieves of Lakeshore passed away Tuesday, October 5, 2021 at Advent Health Lake Wales. She was born May 29, 1993 in Puerto Rico; she moved to Lake Wales four years ago. Dayanara was a Nutritional Assistant for the Polk County School District. She enjoyed going to the beach and hosting friends and family. She was an excellent baker and an avid Boston Red Sox fan, and an unbreakable faith in Christ Jesus. Dayanara is survived by her wife of three years, Kayla...
Outdoor lovers are invited to attend the 35th Annual Civilian Conservation Corps Festival scheduled for November 13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Highlands Hammock State Park. Festival highlights include featured guest speaker Florida folklorist Robert Stone, who will speak about Cattle King William B. Hooker and present Florida Cattle Ranching: Five Centuries of Tradition Two members of the Florida Artists Blacksmith Association will forge a fish wall sculpture as a silent...
The more things change, the more they stay the same! One result from the TrophyCatch Hall of Fame 100 survey not shown above is that the plastic worm caught more HOF bass than any other lure! Despite newer lures and the fact that bass have been seeing plastic worms for over 150 years, the plastic worm is still a top bass producer. And for good reason. First, worms are easily rigged weedless, letting you reach bass a crankbait can't touch. They're also fairly economical, so whe...
June May, 81 of Lake Wales, died at Advent Health Hospital, Lake Wales....
With hundreds of new homes slated for construction along the booming Buck Moore Road, Lake Wales City Commissioners have unanimously approved hiring an engineering firm to conduct a traffic study to keep things moving along that corridor. "This is a proactive step to anticipate and mitigate any impacts" from the new subdivisions, City Manager James Slaton said in introducing the proposal at a Commission workshop. "We want to do the corridor study now to have it in place when...
Lake Wales will likely have to tweak the borders of its four voting districts since the 2020 U.S. Census showed the city had grown by about 15 percent in the last decade. The official census count in 2020 was 16,351 residents, up from 14.225 in 2010. In order to redraw voting district lines, a special five-person Census Redistricting Committee will be formed to suggest the new boundaries, which will then have to be formally adopted by the city commission. The city has four...
Mrs. Johnnie Mae Bryant, 68 of Lake Wales, died at Advent Health Hospital, Lake Wales. Graveside Service: Saturday, October 16, 2021, 12 Noon at Lake Wales Memorial Gardens Cemetery, 581 Hunt Brothers Road, Lake Wales 33898. Mask Required. Visitation: Friday, October 15, 2021 from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at Epps Chapel. Mask Required....
The Florida Department of Education has finally submitted a plan outlining how federal relief funds will be used to help schools recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan is four months late and Florida was the last state in the nation to submit one. On the line is $2.3 billion in additional COVID relief funds, adding up to a total $15 billion earmarked for Florida's COVID recovery in schools. The Florida Phoenix has been writing about the issue for months now, with the...
Susan C. Keen of Lake Wales passed away Wednesday, October 6, 2021 at her residence. She was born January 21, 1945 in Detroit, Michigan to the late Francis and Bernice Contway; she moved to Lake Wales from Detroit with her parents when she was 12. Susan was an international sales representative for Florida Natural for 39 years. She was a member of Holy Spirit Catholic Church where she was involved with many church activities. Susan volunteered for the All Children's Academy an...
Cindy Michelle Lambeth of Indian Lake Estates passed away Sunday, Oct 3, 2021 at her residence. She was born February 4, 1981 in Lake Wales to Wayne and Debbie Lambeth. Cindy was a configuration analyst for Ferguson Enterprises and an adjunct professor at Polk State College. She loved to travel and had a great sense of humor, was big in education, and had a strong work ethic. Cindy is survived by her son, Brian Wilson of Indian Lake Estates; father, Wayne Lambeth of Lake...
Leonard A. "Al" LeBlanc, Jr. of Lake Wales passed away Sunday, October 3, 2021 at Winter Haven Hospital. He was born June 26, 1964 in Dorchester, Massachusetts; he moved to Lake Wales from Massachusetts four years ago. Al was a carpenter and a member of a pool league. Al was preceded in death by his father, Leonard A. LeBlanc, Sr. He is survived by his wife of 2 years, Cheryl McCormack; step-sons, Joshua Gammon, and Michael McCormack (Melissa) of South Carolina;...
A lighted football field proposed for Washington Park near US 27 is expected to make a big difference to hundreds of young people involved in two Lake Wales youth football leagues. The new facility is proposed to be built by Polk County Parks and Recreation using Community Development Block Grant funds. CDBG funds are restricted to projects serving underserved neighborhoods and communities. Among users of the new football facility are likely to be the Lake Wales Youth Football...
William Paul Creech, age 68, passed away on Friday, September 17th, 2021, while at the Lake Wales Hospital. Born on November 13, 1952 and originally from Greenville, Alabama, he lived in Lake Wales, Polk County, Florida for most of his adult life. He worked for the state of Florida as an Inspector. In 1992, he met the love of his life, Barbara Waddle, at an IHop. He loved cooking and spending time with his family. William was preceded in death by his father, William Parmer...
