PALM COAST
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 6, NO. 33
FREE
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PAGE 15
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2015
Who’s in those shoes?
A new experience in arch support for these arch enemies of domestic abuse ... 12-13 In five years, 855 women and children have taken refuge in the Family Life Center.
RIPPLE
After a fundraiser with an impressive attendance, the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club Advisory Committee hope their bid will save the facility.
UNDEFEATED
YOUR TOWN FOLLOWING IN HIS FATHER’S FOOTSTEPS
Anastasia Pagello
David with his son, Daniel Malta
EFFECT
Thirteen new deputies were sworn into the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office on Sept. 21, and to at least one of them, it felt like coming home. Daniel Malta, a 2013 Flagler Palm Coast High School graduate, is the third male in his family to become a Flagler County officer. “Ever since I can remember, I have always aspired to be a deputy,” Daniel Malta said.” “It has been a proud day for his mother and I to watch him get sworn in; he got to this point all on his own,” said Daniel’s father, David Malta. “ ... Daniel was raised in this county, now he will be protecting the community he grew up in.” David Malta is the most senior law enforcement officer in the agency and has worked for the department for 29 years. Also present for the ceremony was Daniel’s grandfather, retired Lt. Jim Schweers, of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
INSIDE CHAMBER ‘MIXER’ Photo by Anastasia Pagello
Syncho Belles swimmers Alex Alvarado, Sarah Morris and Ella Steinwehr performed at a fundraiser for the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club on Sept. 20, at 78 Patricia Drive, JONATHAN SIMMONS NEWS EDITOR
There were raffles and duck diving games at the Belle Terre pool Sunday, Sept. 20, as a crowd of hundreds gathered around the pool under a bright afternoon sun, trying to raise money to keep the facility from closing to the public.
Members of the Synchro Belles, a local youth synchronized swimming team, put on a show as attendees munched on food donated by local restaurants. The event was a final push by the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club Advisory Committee — a group of members trying to keep the pool open — to raise enough
“If you want to see a community effort, this is a community effort. I think this is a pretty good indicator of how the community wants this to stay open.” DOUG COURTNEY, Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club Advisory Committeee president
money to submit a viable proposal to the School Board to take over the facility, which has been losing money each year in the school district’s hands. “If you want to see a community effort, this is a community effort,” Advisory Committee President Doug Courtney said, gesturing to the crowd gathered around the pool. “I think this is a pretty good indicator of how the community wants this to stay open.” The Advisory Committee has raised about $25,000 to respond to the School Board’s request for proposal, Courtney said. That’s
about half of the committee’s original goal of $50,000, he said, but still a significant amount raised through word of mouth in only a month. The Advisory Committee incorporated on Aug. 24 and has filed for 501c3 nonprofit status, Courtney said, but for now, all effort is focused on getting the School Board bid. “We either get it, or we don’t,” he said. But he was hopeful. “We’ve got a lot of support from the county, a lot of support from the city,” he said. SEE ATTENDANCE PAGE 4
Joe Donoughe is the creator of the “Be the Hamster” drink maker. Find out how the Flagler and Ormond Beach chambers took advantage of the creation. PAGE 28
NOT SO HOT ... A man lit a cigaratte in his car, next to a gas can. The results? Cops Corner: PAGE 8