Charity Car Show & Model Airplane Display set for Feb. 25

By CJ HADDAD cjhaddad@breezenewspapers com

Car-lovers and enthusiasts across Southwest Florida can gather later this month for a charity show filled with classics, moderns and more

The seventh annual Cape Coral Charity Car Show & Model Airplane Display takes place Feb 25 at Mariner High School and is sponsored by Cape Coral First United Methodist Church The event, expected to be packed with 300 different makes, models and styles, will run from 9 a m to 3 p m , with 100% of the proceeds going directly to the Cape Coral Caring Center

Last year the show raised more than $48 000 for the local food pantry and has raised close to $300 000 since its inception

Event organizer Phil Deems said they expect this year s exposition to be the largest car show ever held in the Cape, expecting nearly 3,000 attendees

“The great thing about this show is it's a family show ” Deems said “It’s not just about cars We have a salute to first responders and military and veterans We also have a very nice Seahawk model airplane display, and a stock car coming in to fire up its engine every once in a while It s a little something for everyone ”

Deems said their fundraising goal is $75 000 with the need this year being greater due to Hurricane Ian

It only takes a few generous people to make a difference he said

The show includes a Tribute to the Military at noon including color guard pledge and live music; a DJ playing ’50s and ’60s music food; 50/50 drawings; and great door prizes

There will be many additional vendors plus information booths for the charity and church sponsor Judging will be done by co-sponsors with over 30 trophies being presented

For safety reasons, vehicle participants are asked to stay until 3 p m

Deems also noted the Cape Coral Caring Center which serves more than 12 000 people in need in the community and provides more than 143 tons of food to the less fortunate, can turn a $1 donation into $8 worth of food, making donations even more impactful

“We’re helping the community ” Deems said “A lot of people no longer have a table to sit down at because of the hur- ricane The shelves at the Caring Center need to be stocked to help people, including those that have lost jobs or have other things going on in their life ”

Just a few months back the Cape Coral Caring Center helped 600 families receive Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners; 300 children receive toys from Santa; and 300 children were given school supplies in a backpack They provide special food for older folks with special dietary restrictions linked to disability and illness The Cape Coral Caring Center also helps people build resumes for job searches and provides free bus passes so they can get to interviews The center s Executive Director, Julie Ferguson, said donations have been more critical following Ian

“The Cape Coral Caring Center is so grateful to be the beneficiary of the charity car show now more than ever ” Ferguson said “We are seeing people daily that have many needs due to the hurricane With the proceeds we will continue to be able to make sure our community has food and other necessities We have seen many new people that have lost so much due to Ian and we give them a kind listening ear load them up with food and give them lots of resources to help get their lives on track ”

Deems shared his thanks to Mariner High School and its JROTC program, that will present colors

There is a $20 day-of-show entry fee and $5 parking for spectators The event is rain or shine and pets are not permitted

Sponsorship opportunities are still available Those interested can contact Deems at 239-945-4545 for details

Mariner High School is at 701 Chiquita Blvd North Visit capecoralcharitycarshow com for more information

Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad cj

Cape Coral Quest scavenger hunt under way

By CJ HADDAD cjhaddad@breezenewspapers com

Exploring popular destinations and documenting your time around Cape Coral can now earn Southwest Floridians prizes

On Tuesday the city of Cape Coral in partnership with the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau announced a city- wide scavenger hunt titled "Cape Coral Quest" that can be completed on a mobile device

Those interested in partaking can access the free app scan codes at various locations throughout the Cape, and earn prizes Cape Coral is proud to partner with Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau to highlight our growing city ” stated Cape Coral Mayor John Gunter “We invite our locals and visitors alike to visit the unique amenities Cape Coral has to offer It s a great way to explore the area, discover new things to do, and win prizes

Among the locations in the scavenger hunt are:

■ Cape Coral Museum of History

■ Coral Oaks Golf Course

■ Cultural Parks Theatre

■ Del Prado Linear Park

■ Gator Mike s Family Fun Park

■ Rotary Park

■ The 28-foot-tall Big John Statue

■ Nauti Mermaid Dockside Pool Grill

■ Wicked Dolphin Rum Distillery

The app includes attractions in the Cape Coral area and exclusive deals During the scavenger hunt, participants will search for clues to find a code at each location There is a chance to earn points and trade them in for prizes Once 20 riddles are solved participants will be entered in the grand prize to win a two-night stay with breakfast each day at the Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village The scavenger hunt runs through Nov 30

Participants should pay close attention to clues Codes may be inside or outside properties Each participant should play with their own pass on their own device Points can be saved to redeem prizes, such as Cape Coral and Lee County swag

For more information and to get the free app, visit www visitfortmyers com/cape-coral-quest

CAPE CORAL BREE ZE

RAYMOND M ECKENRODE Publisher

VALARIE HARRING, Executive Editor CHRIS STRINE, Editor 2510 Del Prado Blvd • Cape Coral, FL, 33904

Phone 239-574-1110 – Fax 239-574-5693

Member Florida Press Association

Two steps forward, no steps back

Sometimes a single person can right a very big wrong

And sometimes that person is a child with courage greater than their years and their time in history

In 1963 a high school senior named Rosalind Blalock wanted to attend a Lee County high school that would better prepare her for the career she was planning

Rosalind wanted to attend Fort Myers High School, which had the lab equipment and books she thought would help get her ready for medical technology coursework

There were two problems:

Rosalind was Black

And the only public school open to her was Lee County s all-Black high school in Dunbar

She was denied admission for Fort Myers High although it was nearly a decade after the U S Supreme Court ruled in Brown v Board of Education of Topeka Kansas that “segregating children in the public schools by race was inherently unequal and that districts across the nation must move with all deliberate speed to desegregate their public schools

Rosalind sued

She won

And all told it took 35 years for the School District of Lee County to reach unitary status meaning the district had finally eliminated its dual systems of education

The history synopsis above is from the United States District Court Middle District of Florida which did not find compliance until 1999 when it ended the consent decree under which the School District of Lee County had been forced to operate until full desegregation was reached

As the School District of Lee County prepares to end its cumbersome School Choice lottery system, which has its roots in Rosalind’s lawsuit let us dip back into The Breeze story archives

Rosalind Blalock vs Lee County Schools was filed in 1964 with the help of the NAACP The suit led to the desegregating of the school system in 1969-1970 with the school district implementing a new and, ultimately, troublesome boundary-based assignment system

From 1970-1995 the district moved school boundaries as Lee County’s population grew often resulting in long bus rides, particularly for minority students

Unhappy with the transportation issues and shifting boundaries that changed assigned schools, students and parents protested

In 1996 the school board approved a new policy for the 1998-1999 school year the creation of three geographic zones that would allow parents to rank the schools within their zone with assignment to be determined by a School Choice lottery

The plan worked well enough to get the district into compliance with the court-issued consent decree but parents have long complained about the issue upon which Choice has come to fail again, transportation

Long bus rides for many

Late drop-offs resulting in tardies and missed classes

So School Choice as originally formulated is coming to an end

In its wake will come a new elementary school proximity plan, approved by the School Board of Lee County this week to save on transportation wear-and-tear and the resultant cost on kids and buses alike

Something similar at the middle and high school levels is coming next

District staffers and School Board officials alike see some pain ahead as the transition takes place as some parents now face the choice of changing their child s school or getting them there themselves as bus transportation out-of-zone will not be provided

They also see positives getting kids into seats more efficiently and having more money for classrooms to boot

District officials assure us parents, guardians and taxpayers all that choice of school (small c as there will be fewer schools from which to choose) will remain thus ensuring that schools offer the same learning opportunities and environment

As well Lee County s schools certainly should and must do

Let us also recall another courageous woman of color who painted a picture a tad more Orwellian

Former School Board member Gwynetta Gittens whose advocacy for the School District of Lee County s East Zone never lacked passion, pointed out that when looking hard at investments in infrastructure that schools may be equal but some schools seem more equal than others when it comes to adding seats and determining where and when to build or rebuild

For Proximity to be an improvement on Choice, not only the district staff, but the board itself, will need to follow the academic benchmarks and the money to make sure all schools are equal as in fair and appropriate among the new mini-zones

That will be the continuing task at hand and we urge our school system to make it a priority

May no school ever again be lesser-than

May no student find lesser-than their only option