Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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The Lake Wales Arts Center is offering two impressive performances to the public this Saturday, March 8, and they are both completely free. The Classern String Quartet promises a spectacular evening of music as they return to the Lake Wales Arts Council for this unforgettable double feature concert. The Classern Quartet will kick off the evening with a 4 p.m. performance that brings together the best of the two worlds they share - classical favorites with modern twists. The...
A celebration and ribbon-cutting ceremony planned for Friday evening in downtown Lake Wales will mark the successful completion of the biggest element to date in the city's pursuit of the Lake Wales Connected plan. The transformative redevelopment of Park Avenue and the Market Plaza will be celebrated by residents, business owners, and city officials alike, all of whom are eager to show off the beauty of the new streetscape. The event will be held in the expanded new Market...
Walburga "Wallie" Sylvia of Lake Wales passed away Thursday, February 20, 2025 at Forsythe Hospice House in Auburndale. She was born May 20, 1937 in Augsburg, Germany to the late Englebert and Walburga Schafhauser; she moved to Lake Wales from Derry, New Hampshire in 1980. Wallie was a homemaker and of the Catholic faith. She loved music and visiting the VFW. Wallie loved spending time with her husband, especially fishing and dancing. Wallie was preceded in death by her...
The city of Lake Wales is moving forward with the expansion of the city's fire department after city commission approval of design work for a third station planned for Hunt Brothers Road. A five acre site at the southeast corner of South Ninth Street (Nest Egg Road) was purchased at a cost of $300,000 in November after a search in that area turned up no other site that was both appropriate and available. Fire Department Chief Joe Jenkins told the commission at that time that...
AdventHealth Lake Wales has announced the addition of cardiologist, Saiyed Mohib, MD to its roster of expert physicians. Dr. Mohib is a board-certified cardiologist who is now accepting new patients in Lake Wales at the AdventHealth Medical Group General Surgery Office, located at 423 Linden Lane. With over 20 years of experience in cardiology, Dr. Mohib is an expert in assessing and preventing heart attacks and other heart-related diseases. He offers nutritional counseling...
A ceremonial ground-breaking for a multi-million dollar water desalination facility east of Lake Wales has marked the next step in a multi-jurisdictional effort to assure adequate water supplies for the future of Polk County. The rapid development taking place across the region has created a looming water crisis, with at least one town, Dundee, forced to declare a building moratorium due to a lack of potable water supply. Led by the Southwest Florida Water Management District...
Wayne Helm of Lake Wales passed away Saturday, February 22, 2025 at his residence. He was born October 20, 1948 in Lake Wales to the late Elmer and Lola Helm; he has been a lifelong resident of Lake Wales. Wayne was a retired Captain for the Lake Wales Police Department and served with the United States Army in Vietnam. He and his wife, Laura, were fans of the band Alabama and the University of Florida Gators. Before becoming ill, Wayne loved his cigars, going fishing, and...
The murder of a 22-year-old Frostproof man Sunday has led to murder and accessory charges against an Avon Park man, his teenage son, and his son's friend. 22-year-old Juan German-Garo, Jr. was found deceased in his vehicle on Washington Terrace in Frostproof shortly after 5 p.m. on Sunday with multiple gunshot wounds. Two large bags of marijuana were found in the victim's vehicle. Witnesses gave a description of two suspects to detectives, who canvassed the area and located...
A pageant of color and music will burst onto the streets of Lake Wales this weekend in the form of the annual city-wide Mardi Gras celebration. Highlighted by a two-day music festival and a traditional parade, the festival is expected to draw thousands to the downtown streets and the lakeshore festival grounds. The Lake Wales Mardi Gras, now in its fifth decade of existence, includes numerous private parties, along with ticketed public events including those sponsored by more...
With only days remaining until the peak of the zany season, the Lake Wales Mardi Gras kicks off this weekend with the annual Shiner Ball, hosted by the "Loyal Order of Wild Shiners." The party is billed as a gathering of their unique group, named after the popular bait fish, at "the Center of the Universe." Lake Wales Mardi Gras is a tradition in Lake Wales, now in its fifth decade. The festival features a two day music festival, numerous private and public celebrations, and...
Art lovers from across central Florida are expected to flock to the shores of Lake Wailes this weekend for the 54th annual Lake Wales Arts Festival, which takes place Saturday and Sunday under the shade of the live oaks. The juried show will feature scores of artists displaying artistic creations in multiple categories. Prize awards and purchase prizes totaling thousands of dollars await the winners chosen by judges. The art will be exhibited from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on both...
After months of intensive reconstruction, the intersection of Park Avenue and Scenic Highway is expected to open to traffic this week, marking the end of one phase of an expansive Lake Wales Connected project to reconfigure and beautify the urban core of Lake Wales. Merchants, residents, and visitors alike are ready to celebrate the opening of the refurbished Park Avenue, which features wider, pedestrian-friendly sidewalks with room for outdoor café seating, as well as lush la...
Billie Jo Worsham Whidden, 80, keeper of family lore and devoted mother, and grandmother, passed away on February 12th 2025 surrounded by her children. Born on 19 December 1944, in Tampa, Florida, she made it her life's mission to preserve and share her family's rich history. Her passion for genealogy led her to embrace the Worsham and Hough family history. She also actively participated in the Daughter's of the American Revolution chapter in Lake Wales. As an educator for 35...
Two candidates have qualified for the Lake Wales mayoral election slated for April 1, 2025. Incumbent Mayor Jack Hilligoss will face a challenge from former city commissioner Curtis Gibson. Hilligoss is the pastor of High Point Church in Lake Wales, while Gibson is the manager of the Eagle Ridge Mall. The election will also feature a referendum on future elections that, if approved, will require a run-off vote in the case of multiple-candidate races where no one receives a...
Polk State College will host open house events on each campus during the Spring 2025 Semester. Prospective students and families are invited to tour campuses, meet faculty and staff, learn about academic programs and student life, complete college applications, receive assistance with applying for financial aid, enter to win scholarships, and more. Open house on the Winter Haven Campus will take place March 27 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 999 Ave. H N.E. in the Student Center...
Ed Lamar of Lake Wales left this earthly life to join the Lord on Friday, January 31, 2025, at AdventHealth Lake Wales. Born September 5, 1953 in Thomaston, Georgia to William Perry Lamar and Doris White Lamar, Ed moved with his parents and two brothers to Lake Wales in 1963. A member of the Lake Wales Highlander Band, Ed graduated high school in 1971 and then attended Stetson University as a music major (French Horn). He returned to Lake Wales to help run his family's...
Riding high on the emotional juice of their first district title in years, the Lake Wales High School Highlanders will host round one of the regional championship tournament Tuesday at Legion Field in Lake Wales. The local squad took the district title with a convincing 6-1 victory over Middleton Thursday evening before hundreds of joyous fans. Middleton had previously knocked off the district's top-seeded team, Lake Region, by a 4-2 score. The Highlanders will next face the S...
A controversial proposal for a new toll expressway running through eastern Polk County is meeting with opposition, including a likely resolution from the Lake Wales City Commission. A map showing four potential routes for the proposed limited-access highway was recently released by Florida’s Turnpike, a state agency that is proposing the route. The proposed road is intended to more-directly link SR 60 and the greater Orlando area, eventually connecting, at least indirectly, wi...
The southern portions of Polk County and much of the Lake Wales Ridge are expected to endure worsening drought conditions over the next month, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS). Long-term models and forecasts are predicting little to no rain for the area. The warning comes on the heels of a very dry December and limited January rainfall. One brief outburst of rain between January 18 and 22 left between an inch and two inches of rain...
The Lake Wales High School Highlanders' soccer squad will host the Class 4-A District 2 Championship game against Middleton Thursday night at Legion Field in Lake Wales, hoping for their first district title since 2017. "It's gonna' be a big game," said Highlanders Varsity Assistant Head Coach Mehki Williams. The Orange and Black earned a first-round bye and second seed in the tournament by virtue of their 9-8-1 record. Middleton, 6-8-1 on the season, climbed up the board by...
A light spectacle in honor of the Lake Wales High School Class of '75 will guild the white limestone walls of the Walesbilt Hotel Friday night and the sponsor has promised that "as bright light will shine over uptown Lake Wales." A changing display of graphic images will be projected on the walls of the ten-story building in Lake Wales by River City Lights, a production company based in Decatur, Ala. The show will include school logos and 70's themed images with a "more...
A wrong-way driver took the life of another motorist in a pre-dawn crash on SR 60 early Saturday morning after two vehicles collided head-on about a half-mile east of Logistics Parkway. First responders, including Polk County Fire Rescue and the Polk County Sheriff's Department, were dispatched to the scene, about six miles west of Lake Wales and 10 miles east of Bartow, at about 4:25 a.m. That location is in the midst of the Peace Creek floodplain. Upon arrival they found...
Prominent Lake Wales business and community leader Edwin Morris Friedlander passed away peacefully in his home on January 19 at the age of 93. Friedlander was well-known among area business and civic circles, having participated in a number of non-profit boards and community efforts, including Lake Wales Hospital, the Chamber of Commerce, and Rotary. He was among a group of business leaders who helped lead a privately-funded urban renewal project in downtown Lake Wales in the...
A celebration to mark the anniversary of the official recognition of the Ridge Scenic Highway will include music, refreshments, and a historical presentation highlighting the significance of the designation, which took place 20 years ago. Representatives of the municipalities, organizations, and communities along State Road 17, now known as the Scenic Highway, joined forces with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) in 2003 to advocate for the designation of a...
A proposed toll expressway linking Lake Wales to US 17-92 and indirectly to metro Orlando was the subject of a public presentation that brought plenty of critical questions and skepticism from the public but support from major land owners and development interests. The Central Polk Parkway East is proposed to run from SR 60 on the west side of Lake Wales to connect to 17-92. A planned Poinciana Connector segment will link 17-92 directly to I-4. The route is seen as a way to...
