The LAKER
ee r F
EAST PASCO EDITION
LAKERLUTZNEWS.COM
Auto Accident? Slip and Fall? FREE CONSULTATION
No Fees Or Costs Unless You Win HOLLIDAY KARATINOS LAW FIRM, PLLC
O C TO B E R 7 , 2 0 2 0
Pasco Extension gets a new home
By B.C. Manion bcmanion@lakerlutznews.com
Pasco County Extension is operating out of a new building at the Pasco County Fairgrounds. The organization, which operates under a partnership between the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences and Pasco County, also has adapted its programming to provide services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr.Whitney Elmore, director of UF/IFAS Pasco County Extension, recently provided a
tour of the new office to a reporter from The Laker/Lutz News. The 6,400-square-foot facility is a massive upgrade from the Extension’s old office. It features a large, open classroom area — with the potential of adding a sliding wall, to convert the space into two rooms. It also has a small kitchenette and several offices. “It’s a fantastic new opportunity, not only for the team, but for the citizens — to be able to come here and enjoy it — a very functional space,” Elmore said. The new office, which opened in June, was about five years in the making.
It was constructed through a $1.1-million state grant combined with $244,000 in funding from Pasco County and $197,000 from the Pasco County Fair Association.The fair association applied for the state grant, which required local matching funds. “Now, we have this nice, new facility that really meets our needs, and again, is an excellent educational facility,” Elmore said. Though the doors are open, people aren’t streaming in yet — as Extension takes precautions to prevent the spread of See EXTENSION, page 11A
HelpingInjuredPeople.com Call Attorney
JIM HOLLIDAY “I Will Aggressively Fight To Protect Your Legal Rights”
813-868-1887 OR
352-597-0009
LOC AL W ILDLLIFE IFE CAL WILD
COURTESY OF SCOTLAND YARDS GOLF CLUB
Scotland Yards Golf Club, in Dade City
Getting into the swing of things
STEFFA ANIE BURLINGAM ME/STAFF PHOTO
Share your wildlife pho otos If you’ve captured a photograph of an interesting bird or wild creature, we’d love to share your image with our readers.
sider If you’d like us to consider graph, publishing your photograph, please email it to us att news@lakerlutzne ew ws.c com.
COURTESY OF SILVERADO GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB
Silverado Golf and Country Club, in Zephyrhills
Golfers within The Laker/Lutz News coverage area have plenty of choices for golf courses, stretching from Lutz to Zephyrhills. Some have rolling hills. Some are more challenging than others. Some offer plentiful wildlife sightings. To learn about the individual courses, please turn to Sports, on page 12A.
Zephyrhills bids farewell to local fire department
Please be sure to include what kind of animal it is, and where you took the picture. Also include your ur contact information, so we can get in touch with you, if we need to.
We want yoou to join
By Kevin Weiss kweiss@lakerlutznews.com
the air to provide perspective. And, when Lightning players returned to Tampa for the championship celebration, it was Peckham who emceed the proceedings at Raymond James Stadium. “All of it was truly amazing and I consider myself so fortunate to have been a part of it all,’’ said Peckham, 65. Peckham, a graduate of Kent State University, worked minor-league hockey in Rochester, New York, then with the NHL’s Hartford Whalers before joining the Lightning in 1995-1996. Peckham and his family — wife Vickie and their two sons — settled into Calusa Trace in 1996 and have lived on a lake at Wellington Manor for the past 13 years. Lutz feels like home. “When we got to the Tampa Bay area, everything seemed to be growing out in this direction,’’ Peckham said.“It seemed like a convenient place to be, and it turned out to be a great decision. Everything about it suggested a great family area — kids playing in the neighborhood and riding their bikes to school — and we have loved being here. “There has been growth, maybe too much growth in the minds of some people, but it has brought a lot of conveniences. I’m so glad we chose this area because we have made a lot of memories and now I’m looking forward to what’s to come.’’ Peckham might still be involved with
The Zephyrhills Fire Department — as it has been known for some 100 years — has made its last service call. The department officially became part of Pasco County Fire Rescue on Sept. 27, through an interlocal agreement that was approved in May. The hometown fire department’s 24 fulltime employees, two stations and apparatus are now part of the county’s fire and rescue operations. The fire stations’ computer and audio systems become unified within the county’s 911 operations center. Along with the change, the city’s two stations have been renamed from Zephyrhills Fire Department Station 1 and Zephyrhills Fire Department Station 2, to Pasco County Fire Rescue Station 25 and Pasco Country Fire Rescue Station 29, respectively. The merger had been coming for some time. Besides a ballooning annual budget, Zephyrhills Fire Department over the years battled personnel turnover, staffing shortages and outdated equipment. The city hasn’t had a fire chief for over 18 months, instead dividing those duties among three battalion chiefs. The merger is a “win-win” for all parties involved, said Pasco County Commissioner Ron Oakley, who made an appearance at a Sept. 28 Zephyrhills City Council meeting. Oakley, himself a Zephyrhills resident, explained that the community will benefit from increased staffing at both fire stations and two operable ambulances, quickening response times inside city limits and surrounding unincorporated areas. “You’re going to see much better service than you’ve ever seen before,” said Oakley, noting the transition was “very seamless.” Oakley also underscored the importance of the county economy of scale to takeover and fully fund the two fire stations, located on Sixth Avenue and Dairy Road, respectively.
See BROADCAST, page 11A
See FIRE, page 11A
COURTESY OF FOX SPORTS SUN
Rick Peckham, left, and his Lightning broadcast partner, Brian Engblom.
CL C LUB We have some great prom motional items to share with you — stickers, pens, fishing bobbers, old-ffashioned fans and even handy notebbooks — all you have to do is sign-uup for our readerSHIP d SHIP P club! l b! It’s It’ FREE! FR REE! We'll be sending newsletters to our club members filled with exclusive updates, fun prizes, behind-thescenes footage and so much more.
Sign up FREE at:
LakerLutzNews.com
KNOW YOUR HISTORY INSIDE, PAGE 1B
B
Reflecting on a storied broadcast career with the Tampa Bay Lightning By Joey Johnston Special to The Laker/Lutz News
He’s the enduring voice you think about when watching the Tampa Bay Lightning on television. He’s the unflappable personality who always knows the right words, when to be serious, when to be dramatic, when to explain the situation and when to add a dash of humor. Now, it’s time to put down the microphone, slow down a bit, count his blessings after 42 years in broadcasting and enjoy his life in Lutz. It was Rick Peckham’s plan all along to call it quits after this past season with the Lightning, where he served as the television play-by-play announcer for 25 seasons. Who knew he would have this kind of exit? The National Hockey League season was halted in March by COVID-19, then resumed in August at the Canadian virus-bubble cities of Toronto and Edmonton. Peckham’s last official call — Brayden Point’s overtime game-winner at the clinching Game 5 against Columbus in the Eastern Conference first-round series — was working off a video screen from an Amalie Arena studio. When NBC’s national team picked up the remainder of playoff coverage and the Lightning clinched the franchise’s second Stanley Cup championship, Peckham was exchanging high-fives with his postgameshow broadcast partners at Amalie, then on