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LAND O’ LAKES/LUTZ EDITION
M AY 4 , 2 0 1 6
Panhandling off-limits in Pasco By Kathy Steele
Commissioners were unmoved, and on April 26 unanimously approved the total ban. The ordinance is similar to ones in Hillsborough County and the City of St. Petersburg. It bans “soliciting or attempts to solicit employment, business, contributions, donations, or sales or exchanges, of any kind from the driver or an occupant of a motor vehicle, or distributing or attempting to distribute any goods or materials to the driver or an occupant” of the motor vehicle. Data presented to commissioners reported 173 pedestrian-related crashes in 2015,
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com
Pasco County commissioners have approved a ban aimed at preventing street-corner panhandling in the county. That action came despite pleas from those who had been selling newspapers in the county on Sundays. By adopting a total ban, the county would cost workers’ wages and jobs, opponents said. “I’m begging you, please understand you are affecting so many people,” said Renee Contreras, who oversees workers who sell newspapers on Sundays in the Wesley Chapel area.
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Land O’ Lakes students shine at nationals By B.C. Manion
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Five students from Land O’ Lakes Christian School claimed national awards at the 39th annual American Association of Christian Schools National Competition held at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. The contest, held from April 12 to April 14, drew approximately 1,800 competitors from 29 states. Participants earned the right to compete by capturing the top awards in their state contests. The students represented nearly 200 Christian high schools. They competed in 76 categories in the areas of Bible, music, speech, art and academics. Three students from Land O’ Lakes Christian School won first place awards in the competition and two others finished among the top five. Tommy Campbell took first place in Topical Preaching and first place in Original Persuasive Oratory. Ruth Zhang took first place in Calligraphy, third place in Algebra/Geometry and third place in Advanced Math. Emily Mengel took first place in Printmaking. Paul Wei took second place in Extemporaneous Speaking and Logan Juday took third place in Accounting. The Bible competition included Bible quiz teams, preaching and teaching.The aca-
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Ruth Zhang demonstrated her considerable calligraphy and artistic skills in the 39th annual American Association of Christian Schools National Competition, and she brought home a first place award to Land O’ Lakes Christian School.
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demic competition included academic testing and a science fair. The music students challenged each other in solo and group competitions, in both vocal and instrumental music. Speech contestants competed in such categories as debate, dramatic interpretation, original oratory, acting and other categories. Art students displayed their works for judging. The Land O’ Lakes Christian School students were thrilled and surprised by their impressive showing. “I was not expecting to win. The other people were extremely good. I thought I would be blessed just to place. Even at state I wasn’t expecting to win,” said Campbell, a senior. In the Topical Preaching category, he preached about faith, with his remarks aimed at encouraging people to “have faith and trust God” in their decision-making. For Original Persuasive Oratory, he foSee FINALS, page 11A
B.C. MANION/STAFF PHOTOS
Emily Mengel impressed the judges with her printmaking skills, capturing top honors at the 39th annual American Association of Christian Schools National Competition.
Inmate labor proves cost-effective, will expand By Kathy Steele
ksteele@lakerlutznews.com SUPER SERVICE AWARD 2012 ,2013, 2014, 2015
COURTESY OF LAND O’ LAKES CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
These five students from Land O’ Lakes Christian School were among the top five finishers at the 39th annual American Association of Christian Schools National Competition. In descending order, they are: Tommy Campbell, Logan Juday, Paul Wei, Ruth Zhang and Emily Mengel. Campbell, Zhang and Mengel all brought home first place honors.
A program that assigns inmate labor to county departments worked so well in the past year, it is being tripled in size. Pasco County commissioners have agreed to increase the program from one crew, up to three crews, effective April 25. Animal services, public works, parks and recreation, and facilities management are the beneficiaries. The funds for the expansion weren’t initially in the fiscal year 2016 budget. But, county staff members say the program saves the county from contracting for services or hiring additional employees. “Staff believes we get a lot of bang for the buck,” said Heather Grimes, Pasco’s assistant county administrator. Commissioners approved about $161,000 to cover the remaining months
for fiscal year 2016, and about $215,000 as an ongoing annual amount for the program. Inmates serving time for nonviolent crimes, and who have been screened by the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, can be considered for the program. Previously, several departments shared a single crew of five inmates who might work at one location in the morning, eat lunch and then be driven to another work site to finish the day. Now, a five-member crew will work Monday-Friday at animal services; another five-member crew, also Monday-Friday, will divide time between parks and recreation, and facilities management.And, a four-member crew will work a four-day week with the public works department. Duties will include cleaning cages and dog runs at the animal shelter, as well as roadside ditch cleaning, weed control, landscaping and maintenance, graffiti removal,
roadside litter collection, street sweeping, and painting at various locations. Inmate labor has been a success at animal services, said Mike Shumate, the county’s animal services director. Previously, the animal shelter could stay open until 6:30 p.m., on Thursday only. Now, he said the shelter extends its hours to 6:30 p.m., on Tuesday through Saturday, with the goal of increasing adoptions and making it easier for residents to pick up their impounded pets. The program’s expansion is another opportunity to improve services and adoptions, Shumate said. For instance, he said, an animal behaviorist will show inmates how to train the dogs, so the animals interact better with people looking to adopt. “We can socialize them a little better,” said Shumate.“We’ll get them ready to adopt out.”