Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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Lake Wales Police are working a traffic investigation as a result of a crash on Scenic Highway. The location of the incident is within a school zone for McLaughlin Middle-Senior High, but the zone was not believed to have been active at the time. A driver attempting to make a left turn from north-bound Scenic Highway to Winston Avenue early Wednesday afternoon was struck from behind by a Honda SUV and pushed more than 200 feet into a streetlight. The streetlight support pole...
Sir Richard V. Giordano KBE, an iconic American business leader who led a transformation of British corporate culture, creator of the BOC Challenge sailing race and Knight Commander of the British Empire for his contributions to British industry, died on December 27, 2022 at 88 years of age at his home in Lake Wales, Florida, surrounded by his family. Born on March 24, 1934, in the Bronx, New York, Giordano was the youngest son of Italian immigrants. A proud product of New...
There's still time to register for those wishing to compete in the annual Polk Senior Games, but that window is closing fast!. The games are an annual two-week series of 33 Olympic-style sports and games for men and women 50 years of age and over. The 30th Polk Senior Games begin on Saturday February 25th and end on Saturday March 11. Registration began January 1 and ends February 10. Gold, silver, and bronze medals are awarded in each event and age division. The Games...
A written appeal for re-instatement has been sent to Governor Ron DeSantis by former Lake Wales City Commissioner Kris Fitzgerald, who was found not guilty in October of charges lodged against her only weeks after her election in April 2021. Fitzgerald faced a weapons charge after confronting a young relative who was accused of a sexual assault on her daughter. Her acquittal in an October jury trial came more than a year after her arrest. Florida Statutes 112.51.6 allows the...
A $4,000 grant from Florida's Natural Growers Foundation will support Victory Ridge Academy's School Wide Behavior Management System, school officials have announced. Victory Ridge Academy, located at 501 Burns Avenue in Lake Wales, is a Title 1 non-profit public charter school that exclusively serves children and adolescents with special needs. According to Penelope Updike, Grants/Public Relations representative, Victory Ridge Academy "recognizes the importance of...
Thursday was an exciting day for both students and administrators of Lake Wales' McLaughlin Middle/High School as they broke ground for a new $15 million gymnasium, and welcomed back former student Amar'e Stoudemire to give a keynote address. Stoudemire brought a message of encouragement to students hoping to follow his success as a "student athlete. "Hard work" was the repeated theme he share. Highlighting the need for education as well as athletics, he proudly announced his...
The Lake Wales Highlanders won their semi-final football game Friday night and will face the Mainland Buccaneers of Daytona Beach in the state Class 3S Championship game, which will be held in a neutral stadium on December 16. Game time, tentatively set for 11:00 am, has yet to be confirmed by the Florida High School Athletic Association. The Lake Wales Highlanders moved to 14-0 after defeating the Columbia High School Tigers by a score of 37-7 under the lights of Legion...
Former Lake Wales resident and NBA great Amar'e Stoudemire was arrested in Miami Saturday, only two days after speaking to students and faculty at McLaughlin Middle/High school in Lake Wales. Stoudemire is alleged to have entered the room of his teenage daughter and punched her after believing that she had been disrespectful to her grandmother. His unidentified daughter was reportedly left with a bloody nose. According to a police report, one of the responding officers "observ...
As the Lake Wales Highlanders take on Daytona Beach Mainland in the Class 3S Football Championship, fans have some options for viewing the game, which will be live-streamed on the internet. Those wishing to attend in person also have the opportunity to reserve a seat on a chartered bus. The 14-0 Highlanders will face the Mainland Buccaneers in a 1:00 pm start on Friday, December 16. The game is being held in the neutral grounds of DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, which seat...
A rare opportunity to touch and operate a surgical robot got a group of Lake Wales High School medical academy students excited this week, after AdventHealth Lake Wales offered them access to the sophisticated equipment. "This is an exciting day for us. These students are our future health care providers," said AdventHealth Lake Wales President and CEO Royce Brown. "We want to do whatever we can to encourage them to follow their dreams and continue their pursuit of a career...
Lake Wales area students in high school or middle school levels are able to sign up for a one-time special Saturday class that will leave them with surprising facts about our community. Those on a college-bound track will appreciate a "Student Naturalist Certificate of Achievement" that will be awarded upon completion of the three-hour program, according to local educator Kyra Love Harriage, who is leading the curriculum for the classes. The history-making people who founded...
"Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin" is the song Harriett Griffin Harris would sing to all of her campers every early morning for 30 years. On November 17, 2022 at 5:29 am, Harriett's dawn began with a light, brighter than the sun, and in the arms of her Savior, Jesus Christ. She was accompanied with the singing of her family in her home surrounding her until her glorious, beautiful morning. There's all of us, and then there's Harriett. There's no one quite like Harriett with 2Ts....
UPDATE: Highlanders Advance. See the story here A Friday night Regional Championship game will be the first hosted at Lake Wales' Legion Field in memory, according to long-time area football fans, and the undefeated and top-seeded Highlanders are hoping for a big turnout of support as they take on the number three seed Zephyrhills Bulldogs. When the two squads met earlier this season the Lake Wales Highlanders won the day with a 33-0 score, but such games have a way of...
Robert Wayne (Bob) Peppel passed away peacefully at home at age 81 in Tallahassee, Florida, on Saturday, November 5, 2022. He was born December 21,1940 in Steubenville, Ohio. He lived a long and joyous life, and was well loved by everyone he knew. He was always quick to lend a hand and loved serving others. Bob graduated from Gainesville High School in Gainesville, FL, the University of Florida and was a proud Veteran US Naval Officer. He was a long time resident of Tucker,...
The undefeated and top-seeded Lake Wales High School Highlanders football team has drawn a rematch with the eight-seeded Auburndale Bloodhounds in the first round of the Regional playoffs, state football officials have announced. Due to their seed they will host at least through the Regional games. The Highlanders are 10-0 on the season, and have outscored their opponents 429 to 41 in games that were rarely in doubt after the the first quarter. The Highlanders defeated...
The top-seeded Lake Wales Highlander football team advanced their 2022 playoff hopes Friday night at Legion Field with a decisive 34-10 victory over the eighth-seed Auburndale Bloodhounds, making a small step forward to their season-long goal of a state title that has proved elusive. The Highlanders have advanced as far as the championship game in past seasons, but never brought home the trophy. Their hopes are riding high this year on the strength of their undefeated season,...
A special free learning opportunity is being offered to area Middle and High School students, who will learn and earn a special completion certificate as "Student Naturalists."The program is being offered in special Saturday events at Lake Wales Public Library, and will be led by certified Florida educators. The three-hour educational program, described as "a fun experience," is being hosted by Lake Wales Heritage, a local non-profit endeavoring to recreate the "garden city"...
A special free learning opportunity is being offered to area Middle and High School students, who will learn and earn a special completion certificate as "Student Naturalists."The program is being offered in special Saturday events at Lake Wales Public Library, and will be led by certified Florida educators. The three-hour educational program is being hosted by Lake Wales Heritage, a local non-profit endeavoring to recreate the "garden city" envisioned by city founders. While...
After tearing through a schedule that was expected to present challenges, the Lake wales Highlanders take on their district foes, the Liberty High School Chargers, tonight in Kissimmee. At 0-7 on the season the Osceola County team is not expected to present a a serious obstacle. Now ranked in the top slot among in 3-S District 8 teams, and 5th statewide in the re-shuffled state classification system, the Highlanders have been led through their remarkable season by senior...
Carol Benson Lassiter passed away Sunday, October 9, 2022 at her residence. Carol was born on January 23, 1931 in High Springs, Florida to Arthur V. and Glendora (Covert) Benson. She came to Lake Wales in 1952 after graduating from Florida State University. She met Harold A. Lassiter in 1953 and they married in June of 1954. Carol was a homemaker and educator with the Polk County School System for 33 years. She was also the lead teacher in 1957 of the Methodist preschool in...
Travis Michael Wilbanks of Lake Wales passed away Tuesday, September 27, 2022 at AdventHealth Lake Wales. He was born March 13, 1995 in Winter Haven. Travis was the manager at Bonefish Grill and loved to work on cars. He loved music and played the guitar. He enjoyed working out, especially running and was in the High School Band. Travis loved his family and his brothers; he was caring and compassionate. Travis is survived by his mother, Dedra LaSalle; father, Michael Wilbanks...
There are no shelters designated to open in the Lake Wales area, according to Polk County and Polk School System officials. No explanation has been offered for that situation. Available shelters in Polk County will open Tuesday at the following locations: • Horizons Elementary School, 1700 Forest Lake Dr, Davenport • Sleepy Hill Elementary School, 2285 Sleepy Hill Rd, Lakeland • R. Bruce Wagner Elementary School, 5500 Yates Rd, Lakeland • Chain Of Lakes Elementary School....
As Hurricane Ian threatens Florida and the Lake Wales area, Polk County has announced that thirteen shelters will be opened across the county, None are in Lake Wales. The only designated shelter in the city, located at Spook Hill Elementary, will apparently not be opened despite the demand from those living in several large mobile home communities in southeast Polk. The LakeWalesNews.net had highlighted this continued neglect of the region in a story published at the start of...
William B. Newton ("Bill") of Scottsdale, Arizona, passed away last Thursday afternoon, September 1, 2022, at the Scottsdale Honor Health Hospital on 92nd street and Shea after a nine-month battle with nocardiosis. His wife of 58 years, Pamela (Pam) Newton, and his daughter, Elena A. Newton, were by his side throughout the day, holding him and telling him how dearly he is loved. All of his family spoke with him, thanked him, and shared their enduring love for him - his son...
Thomas D McKeon, D.C., 72, of Reunion, Florida passed away Tuesday morning August 30, 2022, in Orlando, Florida. Tom was born August 26, 1950, and was a devoted chiropractor and community leader. Always ready with a joke or a story, Tom’s sense of humor and skill as a chiropractor made him a popular doctor in Lake Wales with many patients seeing him for decades. His commitment to his hometown, his dedication to community service, and his ability to get things done made him a...
