Communication Builds Our Community
Communication Builds Our Community
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The Southwest Florida Water Management District has announced changes to rules governing camping reservations on District lands. These rules went into effect June 23 and will be enforced beginning Oct. 1, 2021. The draft rules were submitted to the Florida Legislature during the 2021 legislative session. The newly implemented rules "provide more fair opportunities for all users and create greater consistency with the other water management districts," SWFWMD stated in a news...
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's (FWC) Division of Law Enforcement reminds boaters to exercise caution and practice safe boating during the Labor Day holiday weekend, traditionally a time of increased boating traffic on waterways. Boaters are reminded not to operate vessels under the influence. In addition to decreasing the operator's ability to make sound judgments, the consumption of alcohol also negatively affects the ability of passengers to respond...
Circumstances, challenges, drifting, distractions, perfectionism, and fear of criticism sometimes lead us off the path on which we were. If that path truly was what God intended for us, and still has for us, we would be wise to just get back on the path while we have opportunity to do so. We will likely not be perfect at doing the things we are called to, and we will almost certainly encounter challenges, distractions, and criticism from others. We may feel we are not...
The Lake Wales Public Library, in partnership with the Polk County History Center, will offer a series of three Genealogy Workshops. The workshops will be led by the Polk County Historical & Genealogical Library's Research and Genealogy Historian, Preston Petermeier. Preston has instituted an excellent series of workshops for the Polk County History Center. He's bringing his expertise to our library for these informative sessions. The series begins, at 11 a.m., Wednesday,...
A We Swim Splash Party will be held from 6-8 p.m. Friday, June 18 at the Lake Wales YMCA, 1001 Burns Ave. The event will include free music and food. It is designed to bring families to the Y to sign up for free swim lessons for their children. The City of Lake Wales will be providing vouchers for children to sign up for free swim lessons, which normally would cost $30 to $70. City residents also can register for free access to the pool during designated hours: 11 a.m. to 1...
When spring is in the air, motorcycles are everywhere. Do you long for the freedom that comes with riding on the open road? Then it's critical to respect your machine and improve your skills throughout your lifetime. But that's only half the story. Motorists interested only in four-wheeled vehicles still have a major responsibility in keeping motorcyclists safe on the road. In recognition of National Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month in May, the National Safety Council reminds...
With National Safe Boating Week and the release of the 2020 Boating Accident Statistical Report, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) encourages boaters to focus on simple, effective steps that make boating safer. If you plan to enjoy our beautiful waterways, check out MyFWC.com/Boating for boating safety tips. Safety is never optional! "National Safe Boating Week is May 22-28 and we want to encourage boaters to boat safely while enjoying Florida's...
The Lake Wales Public Library will provide a new class in June, Basic Sewing for Children. With funding provided by the Lake Wales Library Association, the library has purchased six Singer sewing machines. The class will be taught by Lake Wales Library Association President, Jodie Schmidt. Basic Sewing for Children will provide instruction in safely using a sewing machine, threading a machine and joining fabric. Also included are pinning, feeding, hemming, decorative...
About 75 people gathered in Lake Wales at noon Thursday, May 6 for the annual National Day of Prayer observance. The event took place outside in the breezeway of the city administration building at 201 W. Central Ave. This year's theme is "Lord, Pour Out Your Love, Life, and Liberty." It is based on the Bible verse 2 Corinthians 3:17, which says "Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." The program was opened in prayer by John Motis, deacon at Episcopal Church of...
The Lake Wales Arts Council and the Lake Wales Library Association have partnered to create a unique program that will allow library patrons to check out passes to utilize the Lake Wales Arts Center's studios for creative expression. The Studio Experience Pass program was the brainchild of the Lake Wales Arts Center's Director of Programs, Amanda McCallister. She reached out to the Lake Wales Public Library with the proposal. The Lake Wales Library Association, the library's...
Lake Wales area pastors invite the public to gather at noon Thursday, May 6 for the annual National Day of Prayer observance. The event will take place outside in the breezeway of the city administration building at 201 W. Central Ave. This year's theme is "Lord, Pour Out Your Love, Life, and Liberty." It is based on the Bible verse 2 Corinthians 3:17, which says "Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." The featured speaker offering a brief devotional will be Col....
This week, the Lake Wales Public Library encourages all community members to visit their website to explore and access virtual services and programs. The Lake Wales Public Library offers a wide array of online resources that are available from the comfort of home, including online training resources through Gale Courses and Gale Presents Udemy. The website also features downloadable eBooks, audiobooks, movies, television and magazines with their OverDrive, Hoopla and Flipster...
Offering one of the most picturesque race routes in the country, the Carillon Classic 5K presented by AdventHealth returns to Bok Tower Gardens, Saturday, May 1 at 7:30 a.m. Registration for the event began Friday, March 12, and is available at www.boktowergardens.org. The cost is $30 per participant and includes an event t-shirt, event momento, and post-race refreshments (price increases to $35 week of race). Prizes will be awarded for the top three runners in each age...
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) invites you to celebrate Gopher Tortoise Day on April 10. This year, you can celebrate gopher tortoises by making your yard tortoise friendly and participating in our new recognition program. The FWC's new Gopher Tortoise Friendly Yard Recognition Program honors Florida's private landowners for contributing to wildlife conservation. Gopher tortoises live in every Florida county and, since more than half of the land...
Many times life here and now is challenging for us and extremely challenging for many others. We can easily feel overwhelmed by our personal and community circumstances when we look at how our goals can be accomplished using only "our" resources, physical strength, intellectualism, craftiness, or our ability to manipulate others. When we fail to see what God can do when we truly and continually line ourselves up with His will for our lives, we can get depressed that there are...
Editor's Note: We are republishing a past story, remembering the Passion Play during Easter Week. Easter Week always brings fond memories of the three months each winter that the Lake Wales community came together to participate as "extras" to help dramatically depict the last seven days of Jesus Christ on Earth. I don't remember exactly how many years I participated in the Black Hills Passion Play winter productions – so many Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays and a...
EASTER I love Easter. It's my favorite holiday. May you enjoy this remembrance from Easter 2004 . . . It was my first Easter without my beloved father. I was in line at Walmart and noticed the plaid shirt of the elderly man in front of me. He also was waiting to check out. His shirt was worn paper thin and showed hand-stitched patches of repair in various areas. My Dad had loved plaid. I wanted so much to treat this stranger to a new shirt. But...how? He was ahead of me and...
Five years ago the Gopher Tortoise Council declared April 10 Gopher Tortoise Day. This day was proclaimed to celebrate all things gopher tortoise, giving one of Florida's most important reptiles a much deserved bask in the sunlight. April 10 is again set aside this year to celebrate and raise awareness for this native tortoise species. How can you get involved? There are plenty of easy ways to get involved in Gopher Tortoise Day! • Ask your local officials to adopt a r...
Due to the overwhelming positive response to their "Drive-Thru Christmas" and since there remains concern about the spread of COVID-19, a local church in Lake Wales is presenting a "Drive-Thru Easter" during Easter weekend in 2021. This dramatic event will be presented by the membership of First Baptist Church of Lake Wales on their church grounds for two evenings, Friday April 2 and Saturday April 3 from 7-9 p.m. nightly. The event will feature four scenes from the biblical...
Central Florida's Visitor Information Center (CFVIC) will host an Easter Egg Hunt event on Saturday, April 3. This free event will take place from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m., featuring kid-friendly activities, giveaways and egg hunts beginning at the top of each hour (children will be separated into three age groups for each of the four sessions). There will be chances to win LEGOLAND® Florida Resort and Bok Tower Gardens tickets and vendors will be on hand with local goods and t...
The Lake Wales History Museum has been awarded a Community Project Grant of $5,000 from Florida Humanities and $10,000 from the Duke Energy Foundation to create a new Lake Wales African American Archive and Exhibit. The project will include conducting new research, collecting oral histories, and securing new donations to establish the archive. Emmanuel George, a Florida historian, has been hired to conduct intensive research for six-weeks from March 2 to April 15, 2021. His...
The deadline is fast approaching for the 2021 Art of Conservation™ Florida Fish Art Contest, hosted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). This contest is open to youth in grades kindergarten through twelfth grade from across the globe. The deadline to enter is March 31. Students from Florida can win top honors, international recognition and prizes while learning about fish, fishing and aquatic conservation. The Art of Conservation inspires young p...
I woke up Sunday morning, March 14th at 6 a.m., or was it 7, or 8? Before going to sleep Saturday evening, I changed the time on the clock on my nightstand, "springing it forward" an hour for Daylight Savings Time. I was unaware that it would automatically recognize Daylight Savings and set itself. My phone, I thought would recognize Daylight Savings, and would adjust accordingly, but I wasn't certain. When I woke up at 6 a.m. Sunday morning, my phone displayed 6 (I believed...
"Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;" (Matthew 5:43, 44) Jesus foretold of His impending death many times times during His earthly ministry. We find this declaration no less than six times in Matthew's Gospel (Matt. 12:40; 16:21; 17:22,23; 20:17-19, 27,28;...
Editor's Note: Due to expected rain, the opening ceremony has been moved to 9 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 20. Artist E.J. Nieves of Ocala will be painting a street mural over the Feb. 19-21 weekend in the city's northwest business district and the community is invited to participate. An opening ceremony will be held at 9 a.m. Friday, Feb. 19 for the mural at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and C Street. A food truck will be on hand serving breakfast. In addition to Nieves,...
