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Senior Center gets kitchen makeover
By Kevin Weiss
kweiss@lakerlutznews.com
Less waiting where it matters most – our emergency room. We work diligently to have you initially seen by a medical professional* in 30 minutes – or less.
The Zephyrhills Senior Center has upgraded its kitchen. The Pasco County Elderly Nutrition Division reopened the Zephyrhills Senior Center on June 5, after a nine-month kitchen renovation. The facility, at St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church, 5855 16th St., closed in September after black mold was discovered next to a kitchen cabinet. A kitchen renovation project had been planned, but discovery of the mold expedited the process, according to Karen Blackburn, the center’s nutrition site attendant.“It had to be addressed right away,” she said. The $33,000 in upgrades was completely
KEVIN WEISS
The Zephyrhills Senior Center is located at St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church, 5855 16th St. It officially reopened June 5, after a ninemonth kitchen renovation.
funded by the church, which has a publicprivate partnership with Pasco County
Elderly Nutrition, a division of Pasco County Community Services. Improvements include several stainlesssteel, commercial-grade appliances, including a dishwasher, fridge-freezer, oven range and hand-washing station. Other notable features include newly installed cabinets and countertops, plus brick-style floors and fresh lighting. From old kitchen to new, the transformation is “unbelievable,” Blackburn said. “It’s like night and day,” said Blackburn, who’s worked at the senior center for about two years. “It was just like a little country kitchen that the church used that wasn’t designed to accommodate dozens of seniors.” “It’s definitely 100 percent so much better,” said George Papadopolous, Pasco See KITCHEN, page 11A
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COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL HISPANIC INSTITUTE
Dr. William J. Lennox, president of Saint Leo University, and Ana DiDonato, vice president of student success at Saint Leo, are seated with the audience during the opening ceremony for the International Collegiate World Series program at Saint Leo University on June 28.
Helping to develop Hispanic leaders The Laker/Lutz News Staff Report
The National Hispanic Institute —the largest Latino youth organization in the United States —convened its 2017 International Collegiate World Series program on June 28 at Saint Leo University. Saint Leo University, west of Dade City, is the NHI’s latest partner in its nearly 40-yearold program, according to a news release. The International CWS is part of NHI’s “immersive-disruptive” approach to leadership education, the release says. It allows students to gather and address issues facing today’s Latino community.This program brings top-performing Latino high school students together to talk about the college application process, to introduce
them to inquiry-based learning, and to encourage them to maintain civic engagement while pursuing degrees, the release adds. Dr. William J. Lennox, president of Saint Leo, and Ana DiDonato, vice president of student success, addressed the visiting students during a ceremony in the student community center. John F. Lopez, an NHI board member, and Zachary Gonzalez, director of collegiate affairs, represented NHI, the release states. The NHI program uses a self-directed, student-centered learning method that encourages critical thinking — challenging society’s assumptions and conventions, the news release says. See HISPANIC, page 11A
COURTESY OF SAINT LEO UNIVERSITY
Students learn the ins and outs of crafting a resume recently during the International Collegiate World Series program at Saint Leo University.
Mosaic’s fertilizer footprint discussed at Chamber breakfast By Kevin Weiss
kweiss@lakerlutznews.com
As the global population is slated to reach 9 billion by 2050, food production will need to increase by 70 percent, according to Mosaic’s Ron Yasurek, the general manager of the fertilizer producer’s Plant City phosphate facility. Yet, only a small portion of those largescale food needs —about 10 percent — can be solved from developing additional farmland. “We’ve got to find a way to be more efficient and effective with the land that is currently in crop production,”Yasurek said. “The land is just not there,” said Yasurek, the featured speaker at The Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce July 6 breakfast meeting. The general manager explained Mosaic’s history and what the company does. Mosaic is the world’s leading integrated producer and marketer of concentrated phosphate and potash, he said, noting the Minnesota-based company was formed in 2004 by a merger of IMC Global with the crop nutrition division of Cargill. Florida’s phosphate deposits — first discovered by an U.S.Army Corps of Engineers captain in 1881 — are the basis of an $85 billion industry that supplies three-fourths of the phosphate used in the United States. Mosaic currently mines phosphate rock from 200,000 acres in central Florida, while potash is mined from four mines in North America, primarily in Saskatchewan. Its products are processed into crop nutrients, and then shipped via rail, barge and ocean-going vessel to customers in major agricultural centers throughout the world.
KEVIN WEISS
Mosaic’s Ron Yasurek was the featured speaker at The Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce July 6 breakfast meeting. He said food production will likely need to increase by 70 percent by 2050.
The Plant City facility is involved in the production of phosphate fertilizers, combined heat electrical power and fluoridation ingredients. Finished products include Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) and Monoammonium Phosphate (MAP). Globally, one of Mosaic’s ongoing initiatives is smarter agronomy — the science and technology of producing and using plants for food, fuel, fiber, and land reclamation—to meet the world’s rapidly growing needs. The company has reclaimed 48,000 acres of mined land, of which 34,000 acres has been released completely,Yasurek said. Today, Mosaic generates about $7 billion in annual sales. And, much of its product flows through the Port of Tampa. Mosaic represents about 71 percent of the Port’s business, while nearly 50 percent of the jobs associated with the Port are relat-
ed to the phosphate business,Yasurek said. Mosaic, meanwhile, employs nearly 9,000 people in six countries, including 3,700 in Florida. Over 1,200 people are employed by Mosaic in Hillsborough County alone — and 400 at the Plant City facility — not including hundreds of support contractors for ongoing capital projects. Statewide, Mosaic divvies up about $44 million in payroll annually. Those figures soon could see an increase in the next three decades. Yasurek said additional growth opportunities for distribution and production are likely to occur in either in Florida or internationally, particularly Brazil. In December, Mosaic agreed to buy Vale Fertilizantes from Brazilian mining company Vale for $2.5 billion.The deal lands Mosaic See MOSAIC, page 11A