Ormond Beach Observer 7-6-23

Coaches’ training

Photos by

Photo by Michele Meyers Flagler Palm Coast players Samantha Jennings and Taylor’s Aaliyah Galarza battle for the ball during a drill at the FACA soccer clinic at the Ormond Beach Sports Complex.

CITY WATCH

FDOT seeks to improve Nova Road

JARLEENE ALMENAS

City staff: Deny Tomoka Reserve

The Ormond Beach Planning Board will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, July 13, to discuss the proposed development of the Tomoka Oaks golf course. The proposal is coming before the board with a city staff recommendation to deny.

City planning staff cited incompatibility with the existing Tomoka Oaks subdivision, as well as concerns with the proposed buffer and the design of the subdivision, in a city staff report. The report stated that the subdivision“could cause nuisances or have visual impacts on adjoining properties.”

The Planning Board will meet at Calvary Christian Center, located at 1687 W. Granada Blvd., rather than at City Hall.

Initially, the developers were seeking to build 300 homes on the golf course, but a new site plan proposes the construction of 276 singlefamily homes, with a minimum lot size of 110 feet by 50 feet. The Planning Board will review the developer’s request for a development order. The course is zoned as a Planned Residential Development due to a 2006 attempt to develop about 30 acres of the golf course.

The Florida Department of Transportation has known Nova Road is dangerous for years.

In 2016, FDOT and the city of Ormond Beach held a public meeting to gather input about adding medians in the stretch on Nova Road from Sterthaus Drive to Wilmette Avenue.

Seven years later, the road segment remains median-less.

But could safety improvements finally be in the works?

At 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 11, FDOT will hold a community event to discuss transportation solutions for a 3.91 mile segment of Nova Road between Flomich Street in Holly Hill

and U.S. 1 in Ormond Beach.

The meeting will be held at The Casements, located at 25 Riverside Drive, where people will be able to view a looping presentation, examine project displays and speak with FDOT project team members. There will also be a virtual option in a webinar format, though it requires advance registration. People may register by visiting bit.ly/44h0jM0. FDOT stated in a news release that the maintenance project “will rehabilitate the pavement while incorporating proposed safety improvements that can be implemented within the existing right of way.”

Attend a Regrow the Loop meeting

The next Regrow the Loop community workshop will be held from 4-5:30 p.m. Thursday, July 13, at the Ormond Beach Regional Public Library at 30 S. Beach St.

The workshop’s theme is “Florida-friendly landscaping principles and how to apply [them] to your landscape.” Regrow the Loop is a oneyear pilot program designed to restore and enhance the 30-mile Ormond Scenic Loop and Trail. Visit volusia. org/services/communityservices/resourcestewardship/regrow-the-loop. stml.

School Way Café providing meals

Through July 27, School Way Café is providing free breakfasts and lunches Mondays through Thursdays at select school sites to youth 18 or younger.

A coalition named the Nova Road Coalition was also formed to study the corridor, identify issues and reach out to the community to determine safety improvement solutions. The project is focusing on a half-mile segment of Nova Road from Granada Boulevard to Wilmette Avenue.

The coalition, FDOT stated, “is evaluating a variety of factors including safety, speed management, and pedestrian and bicyclist mobility to identify improvements that can be incorporated into this maintenance project.”

The program is provided through the USDA Summer Food Service Program and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, according to a news release from Volusia County Schools. Parents or guardians who are interested in the meals and whose children are not participating in school summer programs must place an order for meals 24 hours in advance by contacting the front office of the participating school site.

Local school sites participating are:

„ Mainland High School, 1255

W. International Speedway Blvd.

„ Seabreeze High School, 2700 N. Oleander Ave.

„ Hinson Middle School, 1860

N. Clyde Morris Blvd.

„ Pathways Elementary, 2100 Airport Road.

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Photo by Jarleene Almenas Nova Road from Sterthaus Drive to Wilmette Avenue remains without medians.

SENIOR EDITOR

“We’ll take it. I was happy to hear we got five extra dollars, so that exceeds my expectations.”

Volusia County School Board member Ruben Colon on projection of $43 million increase in state funding for schools for next fiscal year. See Page 5A

Seeking care

Facing restrictive new laws, some transgender locals look to leave Florida.

SIERRA WILLIAMS

JONATHAN SIMMONS

Until recently, Brendon’s life mostly revolved around the typical college student stuff. He hangs out with his friends and partner, studies photography and cares for his dog Magic, parakeet Bluey and bearded dragon Mushu.

But now Brendon, 19, is facing a less typical worry.

New state legislation limiting gender-affirming care for adults and banning it for minors has made it harder for Brendon — a Palm Coast transgender man taking prescribed testosterone — to get his medication.

Some Floridians are leaving the state because of the restrictions. Palm Coast resident Cris, 45, has an 11-yearold transgender son, Finn.

Cris said she’s already planning to move out of state with Finn.

She wants him to be able to get gender-affirming care if he needs it, and she worries that the state could take him away: One provision of a new state law labels gender transition care for minors as “serious physical harm” warranting court intervention.

“If we move [north], the state of Florida can’t easily force Finn to come back,” Cris said.

Flagler Pride co-founder Erica Rivera said she knows multiple trans people who want to leave the state, and one Flagler resident who already has.

“It hurts my soul to see them go through that,” she said.

On social media, trans Floridians discuss possible future restrictions and how to fight or circumvent them. Some debate the safest states to move to, referencing trans writer Erin Reed’s Anti-Trans Legislative Risk Map, which color-codes states based on whether they have passed or are considering restrictive or protective laws. One state — Florida — is dark red, labeled “Do Not Travel” in the map key.

Leaving Florida is a backup plan for Brendon and his partner.

Brendon would like to stay. His whole world is in the Sunshine State: his family, his school and his dream job at Disney.

But now he’s constantly worrying about his and his friends’ safety. “Things are getting really bad,” Brendon said. His partner’s lease is ending soon. Then, they might leave.

“I’ve lived here my entire life, and now I just don’t feel safe here,” he said. “Florida doesn’t feel like a home anymore.”

NEW LEGISLATION

Senate Bill 254, the Florida law that’s worrying Brendon and Cris, is part of a wave of legislation placing new restrictions on trans people.

Twenty states have enacted laws banning or limiting gender-affirming care, mostly for minors, in recent years. Most passed during the 2023 legislative session, when Republican legislators across the U.S. proposed more than 450 bills affecting the LGBT community.

In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a series of LGBTrelated bills into law. One bars transgender people from using the restrooms matching their gender identity in government buildings, one bans the use of trans people’s pronouns in schools, and another, recently found unconstitutional by a federal judge, bans drag performances in places where children could view them.

SB 254, “Treatments for Sex Reassignment,” took effect immediately after DeSantis signed it on May 17.

It prohibits gender-affirming treatments for minors and limits access for adults.

Health care practitioners who provide puberty-blocking medication, cross-sex hormones or gender-affirming surgery to minors face third-degree felony charges and suspension of their medical license. An exception allows minors who were already taking gender-affirming medication as of May 17 to continue.

The law also bars health care providers other than Floridalicensed physicians from pre-

scribing cross-sex hormone therapy to adults or children, mandates that doctors see trans patients in person and not through telehealth, and requires trans patients to sign a new consent form approved by the Board of Medicine and Board of Osteopathic Medicine.

Another section of the law allows courts to remove a child from their family if the child “has been subjected to or is threatened with being subjected to sex-reassignment prescriptions or procedures.”

The law also bans the use of state funds for genderaffirming care for minors and adults and bars government insurance plans in Florida from expending state money to cover it.

DEBATES OVER REGRET

Republican legislators pushing new restrictions on trans health care say they are trying to save young people from irreversibly changing their bodies before they are mature enough to know what’s right for them.

Rep. Randy Fine, R-Palm Bay, has been a vocal opponent of gender-affirming care.

“The butchering of children will be illegal in Florida, Florida citizens will not be obligated to pay for the sexual mutilation of adults, and those tricked into this evil will have 30 years to sue those who misled them,” Fine wrote on Twitter March 3 about a related bill he’d introduced. “That’s HB 1421 and I am proud to file it.”

No major U.S. medical associations have supported legislative restrictions on gender transition care.

Instead, many, including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychiatric Association, have issued statements opposing restrictive

legislation.

Licensed clinical social worker Cynthia Fischer, of Emergence Counseling in Daytona Beach, has been working primarily with transgender people for 11 years.

She said people seeking gender-affirming care already go through a thorough evaluation process before any permanent interventions.

“It is intended to reduce regret,” she said.

Fischer said detransition — in which someone who has started a gender transition reverses it — is uncommon.

When it does happen, people who have detransitioned can be left with distress that parallels the dysphoria that trans people transition to mitigate.

A 2021 study by psychiatrist Dr. Jack Turban, then of Stanford University, and colleagues at Harvard Medical School and Boston University notes that there is “a paucity of data” on detransitioning. It reports a detransition rate of 13% and states that of those who detransitioned, 83% cited external factors like family rejection or social stigma as reasons for doing so.

A 2022 study from the Netherlands followed 720 youths who began puberty blockers. It found that 98% continued with their transition, progressing to cross-sex hormones. A 2021 analysis of 27 studies and 7,928 transgender surgery patients found that approximately 1% regretted their surgeries.

Some experts have urged caution, pointing out that the number of young people identifying as transgender and seeking gender-affirming care is rising, and it’s not clear if the low regret rates seen in previous generations of trans patients will hold for youths transitioning today.

A Reuters analysis found that almost three times as many youths received gender

BOARDS APPROVE NEW RULES, CONSENT FORMS FOR TRANS PATIENTS

Transgender Florida residents starting or continuing gender-affirming hormone therapy or seeking surgery must now comply with new emergency rules approved by the Florida Board of Medicine and Board of Osteopathic Medicine on June 30.

The emergency administrative rules require adult trans people to receive a “thorough psychological and social evaluation performed by a Florida licensed boardcertified psychiatrist or a Florida licensed psychologist” before starting hormone therapy and then at least once every two years thereafter to continue.

Patients already taking cross-sex hormones must have their evaluation within two years of the emergency rule taking effect.

Patients must also sign consent forms approved by the boards to begin or continue gender-affirming hormone therapy or to have gender-affirming surgery.

The forms must be signed in person and require patients to initial a statement attesting that they will “continue therapy with a licensed mental health care professional during treatment.”

The rules are a departure

from existing standards of care in the medical community, which do not mandate therapy and regular psychological evaluations in perpetuity for transgender people who have already transitioned.

Health care practitioners and transgender Floridians criticized those requirements during the public comment period at the board meeting, saying the new requirements are needlessly burdensome.

Many accused the board members, who are appointed by the governor, of prioritizing politics over health care. None encouraged additional restrictions.

“This Board of Medicine is grossly exceeding the scope of your authority and going much further than what’s required under SB 254,” Dr. Michael Haller, professor and chief of Pediatric Endocrinology at the University of Florida, told the boards at the meeting. “What you’re proposing is not an informed consent form. You’re going far further and essentially trying to create a new standard of care when one already exists.”

The new consent forms state that gender-affirming care is “based on very

limited, poor-quality research with only subtle improvements seen in some patient’s psychological functioning in some, but not all, research studies.”

Haller objected to that language, calling its inclusion “shameful.”

“You know there’s far less evidence on the opposite side,” he said. “And so to try to put this specific language in the consent form is, again, entirely disingenuous.”

Other criteria for beginning or continuing hormone therapy are listed on the consent forms. They require, among other things, that an adult patient “has psychological and social support during treatment” and “does not suffer from psychiatric comorbidity that interferes with the diagnostic work-up or treatment.”

Some Floridians who spoke during the meeting expressed concern that those two provisions could be used to block trans people with conditions like autism or ADHD, or those who have unaccepting family members, from transitioning.

Board members said that was not the intent of the language.

A set of more stringent

dysphoria diagnoses in 2021 as in 2017.

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health’s most recent Standards of Care, released in 2022, acknowledges the limitations of the data.

“Despite the slowly growing body of evidence supporting the effectiveness of early medical intervention, the number of studies is still low, and there are few outcome studies that follow youth into adulthood,” it states.

Cris said Finn can decide for himself what surgeries he wants once he’s 18, and even if he changes his mind, she would support him.

But Fischer said that in 11 years, she only knows of one person who detransitioned. Even that client, she said, didn’t regret taking crosssex hormones, but found that transitioning wasn’t for them.

She can’t count how many have told her that transitioning saved them.

Cris said the fact that some people regret their choices isn’t a reason to remove the choice for everyone.

“We all do things that we regret,” she said. “And we don’t have laws that then take those rights away from us.”

WHY PEOPLE TRANSITION

People who seek genderaffirming care generally do so to alleviate gender dysphoria — the distress arising from a mismatch between a person’s gender identity and their sex at birth.

The medical community recognizes individually tailored gender transition care as medically necessary for many transgender people who have dysphoria.

It has worked for Brendon.

He experienced gender dysphoria as his body developed through female puberty. He began wearing a chest binder. He kept it on all the time.

“I felt like I had to have it,” he said. “I would sleep in it because of [my dysphoria].”

At 16, he tried to kill himself.

control group.

Fischer said gender-affirming care starts with genderaffirming therapy — nothing permanent.

Patients may take a new name and change pronouns, cut their hair short or grow it long, and wear clothes associated with a different gender.

From there, patients under 18 are evaluated by multiple health care professionals and must meet specific criteria before they begin medical intervention.

Once a patient enters the early stages of puberty, a doctor may prescribe pubertyblocking medications to prevent a trans girl from growing facial hair and developing a deep voice, and keep a trans boy from growing breasts — changes that can cause severe distress in transgender youth and are difficult and sometimes impossible to undo.

To start puberty blockers, Fischer said, patients must have begun puberty and need two recommendation letters from physicians and therapists.

“These are not prepubescent children,” Fischer said. “I know people who are 12, 13 years old, and they don’t qualify for puberty blockers yet because they haven’t developed enough, physically.”

Cross-sex hormone therapy promotes breast growth and female fat distribution patterns in trans girls and induces beard growth and voice lowering in trans boys.

criteria was initially proposed for both adults and for minors who were already receiving gender-affirming medications as of the law’s enactment on May 17, and are therefore allowed to continue.

In the adult forms, the boards removed those provisions from the list of requirements, and instead included them in a section listing measures that “may also be recommended by your prescribing physician.”

But many such provisions — requirements for quarterly in-person evaluations by a physician, quarterly suicide assessments during the first year and annual ones thereafter, annual bone density scans for the first five years and annual mental health assessments — will remain requirements for minors who are continuing genderaffirming medications.

The finalized consent forms and emergency rules are expected to be posted to the websites of the Board of Medicine and Board of Osteopathic Medicine within two weeks. The boards will craft permanent rules for gender-affirming care at future meetings.

Now, three years of hormone therapy and one chestmasculinization surgery later, he is much more comfortable.

“I feel like I’m complete,” he said. His story isn’t unusual.

Transgender people are at elevated risk of depression and suicidality: A 2022 Canadian study of 6,800 teens found that trans teens were 7.6 times more likely to attempt suicide than teens who were not transgender. Studies on the psychological impacts of gender-affirming hormone therapy and surgery are limited, but some suggest that gender-affirming care reduces depression and suicidality along with gender dysphoria.

A 2022 study by researchers from the University of Washington and Seattle Children’s Hospital found that genderaffirming puberty blockers and hormones were associated with “60% lower odds of moderate or severe depression and 73% lower odds of suicidality over a 12-month followup.”

Other studies have come to similar conclusions, and a 2020 Dutch study found that trans youth on a waiting list for gender-affirming care had poorer psychological wellbeing than non-transgender peers, but that the well-being of trans youth on puberty suppression matched or exceeded that of the non-transgender

Trans youth can’t start those medications until they’re in their late teens, Fischer said. Young children can’t get surgery, and it’s rare in teens under 18. Adults must also go through an additional multistep approval process to access it.

ACCESS RESTRICTED

Many transgender Floridians access hormone treatments through nurse practitioners, not doctors, as the new law mandates.

The new law also requires patients to sign a consent form created by the Boards of Medicine and Osteopathic Medicine to continue receiving their medications, and when the law took effect on May 17, those boards had not yet drafted the required form, creating a catch-22 for doctors and patients.

Those provisions led some providers of transgender hormone replacement therapy, like Planned Parenthood, to suspend trans patients’ appointments and hormone prescription approvals until the boards, in June, approved an emergency six-month suspension of the new rules for trans patients who are continuing an existing prescription regimen.

Brendon said he has had trouble getting his prescrip-

“I’ve lived here my entire life, and now I just don’t feel safe here. Florida doesn’t feel like a home anymore.”

BRENDON, transgender Floridian

Trans laws impact Floridians

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3A

tion filled since the law was signed. “I’ve switched to like three different pharmacies now,” he said. “Since May.”

He gets his prescriptions from a doctor in Fort Myers, where he was originally diagnosed. But since moving to Palm Coast, he’s been seeing that doctor through telehealth.

The law requires trans patients to see their doctors in person.

Fischer said many trans adults are running into similar problems.

On social media, trans Floridians have been sharing information about how and where to buy black-market hormones. Some said they had been taking less than their prescribed doses, so they could stockpile medications and avoid being cut off suddenly as restrictions take effect.

Losing access to hor -

mone therapy means facing unwanted physical changes.

If a trans person halts hormone therapy and hasn’t had surgery that removes their ovaries or testes, the sex hormones associated with their natal sex will become dominant again and reverse some effects of hormone therapy:

Trans women might grow facial hair; trans men might begin menstruating.

Those who have had surgery wouldn’t have that problem, but would face medical complications such as decreased energy and bone density.

The changing laws and uncertainty about future access to care are straining Fischer’s clients.

“I have already observed a downturn in the mental health of all of my clients, across the board,” Fischer said. “Of all ages.”

At a June 30 meeting, the Board of Medicine and Board of Osteopathic Medi-

FLORIDA PASSES LGBT LAWS

„ HB 1557: Known to opponents as the “don’t say gay” law. Signed into law March 2022. Bans discussion of sexual orientation, gender identity in certain grade levels.

„ HB 1069: Signed into law on May 17. Requires the use of pronouns that align with a person’s natal sex for students and teachers at school. Expands prohibitions in HB 1557 through grade 8. Effective July 1.

„ SB 254: Signed and effective May 17. Bans genderaffirming care for minors, restricts it for adults and bars the use of state money to pay for it.

„ HB 1521: Signed into law on May 17. Prohibits

individuals from using restrooms or changing rooms that do not match their birth-assigned sex in public schools, colleges, universities, and state and local government facilities.

Effective July 1.

„ SB 1580: Signed May 12. Allows health care practitioners to refuse to provide care based on their moral, ethical and religious convictions. Effective July 1.

„ Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration published a rule eliminating Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming care. It went into effect on Aug. 21, 2022, but a U.S. district judge struck down the policy on June 21.

cine finalized the new consent form the law requires. The boards also added new requirements for trans adults seeking to start or continue hormone therapy.

They now must have a thorough psychological evaluation by a psychologist or psychiatrist before starting, and then at least once every two years as long as they’re on the medication. The psychologist must present a letter of confirmation to the doctor who prescribes the medication.

The consent form also requires patients to sign an attestation that they’ll attend therapy.

Brendon called the Board of Medicine’s new requirements impractical.

He said he already underwent a psychological evaluation to begin transitioning, and requiring it every two years is a waste of time and money — especially when transitioning is already so expensive.

“I think they’re just amplifying all of the rules to make it almost impossible for trans people to get on HRT,” he said. “I’ve already had to prove myself, and now I just have to prove myself over and over and over again.”

Gender-affirming care bans around the country have been losing in federal court, and the Florida law’s restrictions for minors have already been challenged.

On June 6, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle, a federal judge in Florida’s northern district, granted a preliminary injunction of SB 254 to allow the three minors plaintiffs to receive puberty blockers and hormone therapy.

Hinkle wrote in his ruling that gender identity is real and that the plaintiffs were likely to prevail in the case. While gender dysphoria is complex to treat, he wrote, “There is now extensive clinical experience showing excellent results from GnRH agonists [puberty blockers] and cross-sex hormones.”

“If these treatments are prohibited, many patients will suffer needlessly,” he added.

“…The statute and the rules were an exercise in politics, not good medicine,” Hinkle wrote.

On June 20, a federal judge struck down a similar law barring gender-affirming care for minors — the first passed in the country — in Arkansas, calling the law unconstitutional and stating that forcing transgender minors through the pubertal changes associated with their birth sex could cause significant distress.

“Not all adolescents with gender dysphoria will live to age 18 if they are unable to get gender-affirming medical treatment,” U.S. District Judge James Moody wrote in the 80-page ruling.

And last week, federal judges blocked similar youth gender-affirming care restrictions in Tennessee and Kentucky.

As the legal fights proceed, Flagler Pride is linking trans people to resources.

Rivera said she worries about the law’s impact on trans youth.

“The suicide rate, that’s kind of what sticks in my mind — I don’t want to see that go up, especially in our community,” Rivera said. “Even if gender-affirming care is not available at this time, I want to make sure that our youth in our LGBT community have affordable therapy that they can reach out to if needed. … Because obviously, we can’t change the law overnight. But if we can save a life, I think that is most important.”

Brendon said the rhetoric from legislators is dehumanizing.

These people are elected to look out for their state and the people who live here — which includes transgender people, he said.

“They just don’t like us because we’re different,” he said. “But we’re not different. We’re human beings.”

OBPD earns reaccreditation

OBSERVER STAFF

The Ormond Beach Police Department earned its reaccreditation from the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation on Thursday, June 29, the city announced on its Facebook page.

In order to be reaccredited, assessors from the commission must review the agency’s policies, procedures, management, operations and

support services, which took place in March. The process is repeated every three years.

Reaccreditation is “a testament to the exceptional leadership of Chief Godfrey and the unwavering commitment of our police officers,” the city stated on its Facebook post. OBPD has consecutively been an accredited agency since 2014. Prior to that, it was reaccredited by the commission in 2002, 2006 and 2009.

BRIEFS

DOE releases assessment data

The Florida Department of Education has released the 2023 spring assessments results, including FAST (Florida Assessment of Student Thinking) reading and math scores, statewide science assessment scores and endof-course exam scores in all other subjects. The 2022-23 school year was the first year that the FAST progress monitoring system was in place. School grades will be released this fall.

In Volusia County Schools: „ The percentage of students in grades three, four and seven who scored at or above the proficiency level in

English Language Arts (ELA) increased compared to last year.

„ The percentage of students in grades three through five scoring at or above the proficiency level in ELA ranked in the top four among all 11 districts in the Central Florida Coalition.

„ The percentage of students scoring at or above the proficiency level in math increased in all grade levels three through eight compared to last year.

„ In grade five, the percentage of students scoring at or above proficiency level in science is 10 percentage points above the state average.

„ Students maintained or closed the achievement gap compared to the state on three out of five end-ofcourse assessments.

The

Photo courtesy of the city of Ormond Beach Ormond Beach City Manager Joyce Shanahan, Ormond Beach Police Capt. DW Smith, Chief Jesse Godfrey, Accreditation Manager Jeff Owens and Ormond Beach Police Capt. Chris Roos.

Volusia County Schools to get more state funding for 2023-2024

VCS expects to receive $559.9 million from the state’s Florida Education Finance Program, up from last year’s $516.9 million.

ALEXIS MILLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Volusia County Schools is slated to get a $43 million boost in state dollars for 2023-2024. The rise is mainly due to increases in funding for teacher salaries and student enrollment.

District staff presented the Volusia County School Board with the preliminary budget for the upcoming fiscal year on June 27.

Staff is still working on the budget, which will be presented Sept. 7, but VCS expects to receive $559.9 million from the Florida Education Finance

“We were losing personnel. We wanted to make sure we gave enough raise, increase, so we could retain those highly-effective teachers, so we were able to use ESSER to do that. But at the end, it kind of bites us a little bit, so we have to now get those positions back into the general fund.”

SEIS, chief financial officer

TODD

Program. The district received $516.9 million in FEFP dollars last fiscal year.

The district also reported that its student population is expected to increase by approximately 1,261 students this upcoming school year, a 1.9% increase from 2022-2023.

Chief Financial Officer Todd Seis stressed that the numbers are preliminary.

“We know this information is going to change when we receive the tentative budget information,” Seis said. “... Every day, we’re receiving new information.”

The district initially planned to advertise a tentative millage rate of 5.48 mills, or $5.48 for every $1,000 of taxable property value. But Seis told the board that the millage rate — which is dictated by the Department of Education — will change because the taxable value has gone down.

“So what does that mean?” Seis said. “It’s going to actually change the millage rates, that will most likely have to be levied for our required local effort.”

The required local effort is the amount of money the district must provide to receive FEFP funds.

The district also reported that its Base Student Allocation is set to increase by 12% from last year because many programs have been rolled into the BSA funding umbrella. Those programs include the Teacher Classroom Supply Assistance program, instructional materials allocation, reading instructional allocation and funding compression allocation.

The BSA is projected to total $5,139.73 per student; last year, it was $4,421.79.

Two FEFP funding programs were also eliminated this year: the Florida Digital Classroom Allocation and the Funding Compression and Hold Harmless Allocation.

The Teacher Salary Increase Allocation will now be included in the total BSA.

For this upcoming school year, 1.4% of the total BSA increase will go toward salary increases for teachers, according to the district. Programs aside, the BSA went up

2.4% — or about $110 — per student, Seis said.

School Board member Ruben Colon called the funding increase “historic,” especially in light of previous years, including a recent year in which the district’s BSA rose by less than a dollar for students.

“We’ll take it,” Colon said. “I was happy to hear we got five extra dollars, so that exceeds my expectations.”

The state also eliminated the District Cost Differential — a metric that adjusted state funding for individual school districts based on their respective cost of living — for fiscal year 2023-2024.

“That was a windfall for this district, but it was a one-time windfall,” Seis said.

At the end of the 2023-2024 school year, the district will have used all of its federal coronavirus relief dollars, known as ESSER funds. The district is now using ESSER funds for $46 million in reoccurring oper-

“We know this information is going to change when we receive the tentative budget information. ... Every day, we’re receiving new information.”

SEIS, chief financial officer

ating expenses. Seis said using the ESSER money was a strategic move by the district when state funding wasn’t enough to increase salaries for teachers and school staff.

“We were losing personnel,” Seis said. “We wanted to make sure we gave enough raise, increase, so we could retain those highly-effective teachers, so we were able to use ESSER to do that. But at the end, it kind of bites us a little bit, so we have to now get those positions back into the general fund.”

The district can use its fund balance to offset salary costs in the

future, he added.

School Board Chair Jamie Haynes was also concerned about the Oct. 1 deadline for salary distribution plans, since the district missed last year’s deadline and had to report to the DOE.

“We seem to have fallen into a pattern here where we’re not getting our raises to people until March, April, May, June,” Haynes said. “I’d like to meet the deadline this year, if at all possible.”

Senior Editor Jarleene Almenas contributed to this story.

TODD

We ride on Saturday, July 22 for the Tour de Palm Coast! Join Parks & Rec for a leisurely bike tour on our beautiful trails. There will be stops for sightseeing. Riders must wear a helmet.

COPS CORNER

JUNE 23

BUSINESS WANTED

4:40 p.m. — 100 block of East Granada Boulevard, Ormond Beach Fraud. A 56-year-old North Carolina man fell victim to a scam when he tried to contribute $1,500 to a fraudulent business startup.

The man had responded to a Craigslist ad about opening a laundromat business, according to a police report.

He connected with a man who claimed to be a Californian businessman in the film industry.

The victim then agreed to travel to Ormond to meet with an 83-year-old Ormond Beach man at a local restaurant, where the victim signed contracts for the laundromat stating that he would be responsible for a lease for a few years. He also handed the 83-yearold two money orders totaling $1,500.

When the victim began asking questions about the legitimacy of the business, according to the report, the suspect told him “he

should have thought about all of that before sending the money and committing to a contract.”

The victim then realized he had been scammed. He wants to pursue charges.

JUNE 26

GRAVE SIGN

8:33 a.m. — 100 block of Seton Trail, Ormond Beach

Non-reportable offense. Police responded to a local cemetery for a possible vandalism case after someone reported damage to a mausoleum.

When the reporting officer arrived, he saw no damages that appeared intentional — no graffiti or strikes from a tool, according to a police report. Instead, the officer noted, it appeared the mausoleum had collapsed under its own weight.

JUNE 26 FAMILY BONDING 5:05 p.m. — 5100 block of State Road 100, Palm Coast

Grand theft. A 22-year-old Bunnell woman took her two underaged sisters for a shopping spree where they allegedly attempted to steal over $1,100 worth of merchandise.

A loss prevention employee spotted the woman and her sisters — a 12-year-old and a 16-year-old — stuffing merchandise into bags the three had brought with them.

The three girls pocketed bracelets, clothing, beauty products, sunglasses and more, the report said. The merchandise totaled $1,113.48.

Sheriff’s Office deputies stopped the three as they left the store. While talking to deputies, the 12-year-old admitted that she and her sisters had shoplifted multiple times, the report said.

The 12-year-old was sent home with her mother while the other two were arrested, the report said.

The 22-year-old woman was charged with grand theft, marijuana possession and two counts of causing child delin

JUNE 26

ACTIONS AND CONSEQUENCES

3:28 p.m. — 2200 block of State Road 100, Flagler County Battery of an officer. A man lying on the sidewalk near Wadsworth Park was arrested after he allegedly shoved a Sheriff’s Office deputy.

The first deputy responded to the scene and asked the man, who was on the sidewalk next to a bicycle, if he was okay, according to the man’s arrest report. The man tried to sit up and almost fell over, but told the deputy he was fine.

He admitted he was intoxicated, but said he was on his way home with his bike.

Once he stood up, however, he was “clearly swaying and unsteady,” the deputy noted in the report.

As another deputy pulled up to the scene, the first deputy asked the man if he could call anyone to get him.

The man approached the second deputy — who had not yet spoken to the man — and held up his hands inches from the deputy.

The man was ordered to back up, but instead pushed the deputy. He was arrested and taken to the county jail.

JUNE 29

GIFT THAT KEEPS ON TAKING

3:48 p.m. — First block of Misty Falls Drive, Ormond Beach Grand theft. A 79-year-old woman was contacted on social media and informed that she had won $350,000.

The woman told police that she had been told to contact a “rewards agent” on the platform by a friend, who also fell for the scam, according to a police report.

The “agent” told the woman that while she had won the $350,000, she was responsible for shipping and processing fees. The agent told her to send $500 in online retail gift cards to pay. The woman did so.

For more information or to register, visit parksandrec.fun Check out

The next day, the agent told her she needed to send another $400, this time for a different online retailer, for a shipping certificate. The woman again complied.

She was then contacted a third time and told to send $1,500 in gift cards, but the woman called police instead.

Police believe the “agent” is from outside of the U.S. They warned the woman that the chances of identifying the suspect are slim. Officers advised her on ways to try to recover her money.

BRIEFS

A1A resurfacing meeting planned

The Florida Department of Transportation will hold a public meeting at 5:30 p.m. July 20 about resurfacing State Road A1A in Flagler Beach.

The resurfacing project is expected to extend from South 8th Street to North 18th Street, according to a press release from Flagler County.

The meeting is accessible virtually, by phone and in person at an open house at the Flagler Woman’s Club on 1524 S. Central Avenue.

FDOT will provide details about the project at the meeting and residents can provide feedback if they attend in person or virtually.

If attending virtually, residents must register at https://bit.ly/ SR_A1A_Resurfacing. If calling in to listen, residents should dial 1-877568-4108 and enter the passcode 144-288-819 when prompted.

The in-person open house will extend from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. and residents can come in at any time to view a looping presentation, speak with project team members and submit comments.

All meeting materials, including the presentation, will be available at www.cflroads.com/project/448795-1 before the meeting.

Permit issued for Katz building demolition

Palm Coast issued a permit on June

26 for the demolition of the Paul Katz building at 1 Florida Park Drive South. A Wawa is expected to be constructed in its place.

The permit is for the demolition a three-story structure and a onestory structure, according to city documents. Samsula Demolition of New Smyrna Beach is the listed contractor on the permit.

Equity Holding Corp of Flagler, Inc. — owned by Paul Katz — owns the office building at 1 Florida Park Drive. The building was constructed in 1986, sits on 2.9 acres of land and is valued at $2 million, according to the Flagler County Property Appraiser’s website.

An application for a new Wawa at the site is under review by city staff.

If approved, it would be Palm Coast’s second Wawa. The first opened in 2020 on State Road 100.

The Wawa applicant — RMC Property Group — will eventually have to seek approval from the Palm Coast Planning and Land Development Regulation Board.

Libraries designated as ‘cooling stations’

With the heat index regularly topping 100 degrees, Volusia County officials have designated the county’s 14 public library branches as cooling stations.

Emergency management officials recommend that people without air conditioning escape dangerous temperatures by finding cool places.

This is especially important for children, the elderly and people with

CRIME REPORT

Man sentenced for shooting dog

A Palm Coast man who shot his dog has been sentenced to 18 months in state prison.

Jamier Lee-Bright

was arrested for shooting and injuring his dog in April 2022. Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies took the dog, Rocky, to an animal hospital.

Lee-Bright pled guilty to felony animal cruelty and tampering with evidence, according to a press release from the FCSO.

After his 18-month sentence, Lee-Bright will serve 42 months on probation, be placed on an animal abuse registry, must forfeit his firearm and can have no contact with

disabilities or chronic illnesses, a Volusia County news release states. The following libraries are located in or near Ormond Beach:

„ Daytona Beach Regional Library, 105 Jackie Robinson Parkway, Daytona Beach — open 12-5 p.m. Sunday; 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

„ Hope Place Public Library, 1310 Wright St., Daytona Beach — open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

„ John H. Dickerson Heritage Library, 4111 S. Keech St., Daytona Beach — open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday.

„ Ormond Beach Regional Library, 30 S. Beach St., Ormond Beach — open 12-5 p.m. Sunday; 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Library branches will close at 5 p.m. July 3 and will remain closed on July 4.

Flagler Schools’ Café EDU to begin offering free lunches

Flagler Schools’ Café EDU will start offering a free lunch program on Aug. 10 alongside its free breakfast program, according to a news release from Flagler Schools. The program, made possible through the USDA’s CEP program, a part of the National School Lunch Program, is a three-year commitment.

animals.

Rocky, a brindle shepherd and terrier mix, made a full recovery and was adopted by FCSO Crime Analyst Hayden Ore and his wife.

“Justice has finally been served to Rocky’s shooter,” Sheriff Rick Staly said. “Lashing out against your pet is never the right answer. Thankfully, Rocky is now living happily with Analyst Ore and his wife and no longer has to live in fear.”

Man charged with child molestation

A 51-year-old Palm Coast man has

“For the next three years, and possibly beyond, families will not have to worry about meal debt. Nor will our staff members,” said Angela Bush, Food Services director at Flagler Schools. “That is a peace of mind to be grateful for.”

The lunch menu will include diverse options, including options for vegetarian students and students with dietary preferences and restrictions. For more information, visit flaglerschools.com/studentsfamilies/lunch-breakfast.

Motorcyclist dies in A1A crash

The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a three-car crash in Flagler County that killed a 53-year-old St. Augustine man.

The crash happened at 5:45 p.m. June 29 on State Road A1A and Bay Drive when a pickup truck failed to stop behind another vehicle that was turning, according to a FHP crash report. The pickup truck had been driving south on S.R. A1A behind an SUV when the SUV signaled it was turning left onto Bay Drive and slowed to a stop, the report said.

The truck rear-ended the SUV and rotated towards the centerline, striking a motorcycle in the northbound lane.

There were two people on the motorcycle. A 53-year-old St. Augustine man was driving, and a 52-year-old woman, also from St. Augustine, was his passenger. The man was pronounced dead at AdventHealth Palm

been arrested on charges of molesting a girl over the course of several years.

Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Michael Wayne Jennelle on June 30 and charged him with sexual battery on a victim under 12 and two counts of lewd and lascivious molestation on a victim under 12.

The child told deputies that the abuse happened over the last three to four years, since she was 7, according to Jennelle’s arrest report.

The victim told deputies that Jennelle — an adult who had access to her home — would constantly

Coast, and the woman is in serious condition. The pickup truck driver and the three occupants of the SUV were not injured.

State issues alert about malaria cases

The Florida Department of Health has issued a statewide mosquitoborne illness advisory after four people contracted malaria in Sarasota County.

All four have since recovered, according to a news release from the Health Department.

Malaria is transmitted through infected mosquitoes. Residents throughout the state should take precautions by applying bug spray, avoiding areas with high mosquito populations, and wearing long pants and shirts when possible — especially during sunrise and sunset, when mosquitoes are most active.

The Department is working with local partners and county mosquito control, and aerial and ground mosquito spraying is being conducted to mitigate the risk of further transmission.

In Florida, Malaria is transmitted through infected Anopheles mosquitoes. The cause of malaria in these cases has been identified as the Plasmodium vivax species. Effective treatment is readily available through hospitals and other health care providers.

Individuals in this area with symptoms of fever, chills, sweats, nausea/ vomiting, and headache should seek immediate medical attention.

expose his genitals when they were alone and masturbate. She said the incidents happened “more times than she could remember” in both Florida and Virginia.

Jennelle was also recently indicted in Virginia on similar sexual battery charges, including indecent liberties with a child and sexual battery on a victim under 13, an FCSO press release said.

The Virginia case is awaiting trial, the arrest report said.

Jennelle is being held at the Flagler County jail without bond.

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Photo courtesy of FCSO Rocky

Development, real estate + business news

Money Pages Volusia celebrates 10 years of business

Father-son duo Don and Walker Grindle launched the first Money Pages Volusia magazine in Ormond Beach in 2013.

JARLEENE ALMENAS

SENIOR EDITOR

For the last 10 years, Ormond Beach resident Don Grindle has been helping the local community save dollars.

It’s a milestone Grindle, the franchise owner of Money Pages Volusia, celebrated on Thursday, June 29, in front of friends, family and members of the community at the Ormond Memorial Art Museum. Money Pages Volusia was the first franchise of the marketing magazine in the state, and the first issue launched in June 2013 in Ormond Beach.

Since then, the monthly Money Pages Volusia has expanded, with magazines in Port Orange, Daytona Beach and New Smyrna Beach in

2014, 2018 and 2019, respectively.

Its circulation totals about 105,000 a month, and its office is located at

555 W. Granada Blvd., Suite A6.

“I couldn’t have found a better fit or a better business model,” Grindle said. Grindle launched the magazine

with his son Walker Grindle, the vice president of sales for Money Pages Volusia. Watching the business grow over the years has been amazing, Walker Grindle said.

“My dad was in a very fortunate position where he was 55 years old — he could have retired, but he wasn’t

ready to retire,” Walker Grindle said. “And I thank him every day, because he gave me the opportunity to not only be in business with each other, but gave me the opportunity and platform to be where I am today.”

Since launching, the Grindles have hired Diana Flint, an account executive, and she’s been vital to the growth in New Smyrna Beach, Don Grindle said.

Don Grindle and his wife, Katherine, moved to Ormond Beach in 1987 from Birmingham, Alabama. For 25 years, he worked as the senior vice president of operations for a sunglass company. When the company sold, the distribution was moved to Rhode Island, and Don Grindle then started to look at franchising opportunities — from Subway, to UPS, Ace Hardware and Safe Ship.

“I was just fortunate enough to run across this opportunity,” he said.

Don Grindle met the CEO of Money Pages through his financial advisor, which is how he discovered that Money Pages was getting ready to start franchising in Florida.

Ormond Beach’s resiliency planning, vulnerability assessment underway

A Resilient Ormond Beach Vulnerability Assessment workshop was held on Wednesday, June 28.

JARLEENE ALMENAS

SENIOR EDITOR

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration projects that Florida could see anywhere from 1.75 feet to 6.08 feet of sea level rise by 2100.

In 2021, the Legislature passed a law recognizing that the state is vulnerable to impacts caused by flooding, storm surge and sea level rise. Coastal cities, like Ormond Beach, are on the front lines of trying to understand, plan for and pay for projects to address these climate change issues, said Jason Evans, executive director for the Institute for Water and Environmental Resilience at Stetson University, during a community outreach workshop on Wednesday, June 28.

“I think last year you got a good taste of it with Ian and then of course with Nichole,” Evans said. “And

so it’s hurricanes, and erosion and flooding, and what do you do? What does it mean to be resilient? You got real-time lessons there.”

The Resilient Ormond Beach Vulnerability Assessment workshop was held in partnership with the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, and was made possible due to the city’s receipt of a Resilient Florida grant. This grant was created by the state in 2021 to facilitate a comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise data set and assessment, and Ormond Beach’s is underway.

Once the assessment is completed, governments have access to implementation funding, said Brenda Defoe-Surprenant, director of planning for the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council.

Every county in the state and several local governments within them, she said, received funding for vulnerability assessments, but the dollars vary based on the county’s size and scope.

“Once you do a vulnerability assessment, you get opened up to another pot of money that allows local governments to actually do

mitigation,” Defoe-Suprenant said. “This can range from things like green infrastructure to more hard infrastructure like stormwater systems.”

Ormond Beach is starting to work on local resiliency projects. It has prepared FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program applications for two city projects from Hurricane Ian — a flood protection project for Strickland Creek and the acquisition of two generators for Fire Station 92 and 93, City Senior Planner Becky Weedo said in an email to the Observer

The city is also looking to apply for grants under FEMA’s Flood Mitigation Assistance Program for seven projects: the elevation of six floodprone homes and the acquisition and demolition of one flood-prone home.

“These grant applications will be due to the state in November 2023,” Weedo said. “Because the FMA program is highly competitive nationwide, in order to maximize the chances of getting funded, the city is focusing on flood mitigating structures located within floodplains with a history of recurring flooding and that are classified as repetitive loss

properties or severe repetitive loss properties by FEMA.”

As sea levels continue to rise — they have risen about 11 inches over the past 100 years, according to data from Stetson’s Institute for Water and Environmental Resilience — infrastructure will see the greatest impact, Defoe-Suprenant said.

In 2018, the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council presented alternate sea level projections for Brevard and Volusia County. These ranged from 5.15 feet of sea level rise by 2100 to 8.48 feet by 2100.

Both the RPC and NOAA projections will be used to complete the vulnerability assessment for Ormond Beach, which Defoe-Suprenant said she aims to have completed by the end of 2023.

Evans said he recommends local governments plan for one meter of sea level rise, or about 3.2 feet by 2100, with a focus on its stormwater systems.

“With one meter by 2100, there are reasonable adaptation options,” he said. “It will be challenging, but at least it’s reasonable.”

Since launching Money Pages Volusia, the Grindles achieved a milestone of over $1 million in sales by 2019, according to a proclamation issued by the mayor at the magazine’s 10th anniversary celebration last week.

Don Grindle was also recognized by the mayor for his community advocacy, having served on the board of directors of the Ormond Beach Chamber of Commerce since 2018. In 2022, Don Grindle served as the board’s chair. Of Money Pages Volusia’s over 900 clients, Walker Grindle said, about 35% have been with them since the beginning.

“The relationships that we’ve been able to cultivate and having a product that can help their business accelerate and take it to the next level is very fulfilling,” Walker Grindle said. They couldn’t do their jobs without the local businesses that partner with Money Pages Volusia, he added.

“It’s just been great venture and [I’m looking forward to the next 10 years,” Don Grindle said.

BIZ BUZZ

SOUTHERN STATES MANAGEMENT GROUP RELOCATES

Southern States Management Group has relocated its main headquarters. The new office is located at 785 W. Granada Blvd., Suite 5, in Ormond Beach, and offers fully-staffed facilities with conference rooms and meeting spaces. There will be no changes to email addresses or phone numbers or to the company’s office space in New Smyrna Beach or Rockledge.

Clients in Volusia County who have been served from the location at 1190 Pelican Bay Drive will now be served from SSMG’s new headquarter in Ormond Beach.

JOHNNY GUTIERREZ JOINS EXIT BEACH REALTY IN ORMOND

Johnny Gutierrez has joined EXIT Beach Realty’s team of real estate sales professionals. EXIT Beach Realty, located at 1650 Ocean Shore Blvd., is a member of EXIT Southeast’s network of independently owned and operated brokerages across the region.

Photo by Jarleene Almenas

Don and Walker Grindle are celebrating 10 years of business with Money Pages Volusia.

LETTERS

Make your voice heard

Dear Editor:

On Thursday, July 13, the Ormond Beach Planning Board will be hearing the application to develop the Tomoka Oaks golf course property. The hearing is expected to draw a large crowd of residents who oppose the development of 276 homes on this green, open space treasure. To accommodate the expected crowds, the hearing will occur at Calvary Christian Center, 1687 W. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach (located west of I-95). Calvary has a large campus, so city staff will be in the parking lot directing residents to

the building where the hearing will be held.

I encourage anyone who opposes this residential development to attend the hearing to let our Planning Board know we do not want this development. You do not need to be a Tomoka Oaks resident to attend. And anyone wishing to speak can address the Planning Board for 3 minutes.

The developer is presenting this development as if it were doing the city of Ormond Beach a favor. First, they proposed 299 single-family lots. After getting pushback from residents during the neighborhood meeting in February, the developer reduced the site plan to 276 lots. And we are supposed to view that as a significant concession on their

part? I don’t think so. The proposed development will be entirely surrounded by the established Tomoka Oaks subdivision. Our residents are concerned about critical issues such as traffic safety, quality of life, diminished property values, and loss of our established landmark character.

Many residents of The Trails, Escondido, and Talaquah are also expressing strong disapproval of this proposed development which is projected to add 2,774 additional daily car trips to our already busy, congested roadways. A traffic signal will be required by FDOT at Nova and Tomoka Oaks Blvd to handle this additional traffic. Morning peak hours will see even more delays as residents wait to turn onto

Nova. And evening traffic returning to Tomoka Oaks, Escondido, Talaquah, and The Trails will be even heavier. Plus, has the impact on Tomoka Oaks North Condos been factored into this traffic equation? Not that I have seen. And how far will traffic stack up when Nova is closed while trains cross Nova throughout the day?

Please plan to attend the hearing on July 13 to show your opposition. Thank you.

CAROLYN DAVIS Ormond Beach

Send letters up to 400 words to Jarleene@observerlocalnews.com. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

LOCAL GRAD NAMED SPRUCE CREEK’S ‘HAWK OF THE YEAR’

Recent Spruce Creek High School graduate Matthew Monroe, of Ormond Beach, was named his school’s “Hawk of the Year” during a senior awards ceremony June 1.

Monroe’s photo will join those of previous award winners on his school’s wall of fame, his mother, Cynthia Petrie Monroe, told the Observer

“He was thrilled for this recognition,” she said. “It really culminated a wonderful high school experience.”

Monroe also received an Outstanding Actor award during the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center Applause Awards on June 3 for his role as Damian Hubbard in Spruce Creek High School’s production of “Mean Girls.”

The awards program recognized almost 300 high school musical students from 33 schools and seven counties, selected by a 12-person panel of statewide casting agents. In the fall, Monroe will head to Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

YOUNG ADULT PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST OPENS

Photographers ages 12 through 17 are invited to compete in Ormond Beach’s new Young Adult Photography Contest, created in memory of the late city photographer David Pizzo.

The theme of the contest is “Ormond Beach parks, nature and green spaces.”

It is open to all children residing in Volusia County.

The contest opened July 1, and entries will be accepted through July 14.

To enter, submit up to three highresolution photos (in a JPEG format)

BRIEFS

HHS to open dog adoption center

Halifax Humane Society is partnering with the Volusia Mall to establish an off-campus dog adoption center. This collaboration emerged as a response to challenges HHS faced due to the recent upper respiratory infection outbreak, according to a news release. The new center is in the design phase and will be located at the former Rack Room Shoes space within the Volusia Mall.

“The decision to open a dedicated dog adoption center within the mall

WOMEN HELP RENOVATE LOCAL KINGDOM HALL

Wearing her hard hat and other personal protective gear instead of her normal 9-to-5 office attire, Baylee

Dutra from Titusville tears down old walls and ceilings in the Kingdom

Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses at 801 Hand Ave. in Ormond Beach, which is undergoing a major renovation.

“During this past year, I have been able to volunteer several days each

week at Kingdom Hall construction sites in Merritt Island, Port St. John, Deland and now Ormond,” Dutra said.

Much of the work is being done by women like Dutra, who enjoy the challenge of learning new skills.

Women represent only 3.9% of tradespeople in construction nationally, according to a Institute

ORMOND LIONS INSTALL NEW OFFICERS

The Ormond-by-the-Sea Lions Club started the new Lions year by installing officers in the presence of 46 members and guests on June 28. Attending from across the district were District Gov. Glenn Brown of Mount Dora, First Vice District Gov. Bob Armstrong of Davenport, Past District Gov. Harry Williams and District Secretary Maggiy Williams of Lake Alfred.

Ormond Beach Mayor Bill Partington conducted the lighthouse installation ceremony for the officers below.

LIONS OFFICERS:

„ President: Kathleen Trutschel

„ First Vice President: Bobbie Cheh

„ Second Vice President: Aleta Dick

„ Secretary: Jean Cerullo

„ Treasurer: Greg Evans

to the city and complete the entry form at bit.ly/3JHzKas.

Prizes will be awarded on Aug. 5 to the third, second, first and best-inshow recipients. Award ribbons will be sponsored by The Casements Camera Club.

Entries will be displayed at The Casements in August. For more information, call 386-676-3293 or 386-676-3216.

reflects our commitment to finding innovative solutions that bring our wonderful dogs closer to loving families,” the news release states.

“By establishing a centrally-located adoption center, we aim to provide a convenient and welcoming environment for potential adopters to meet and connect with our adorable furry friends.”

The dog adoption center will feature spaces designed to facilitate the adoption process.

“Together, we can raise awareness about the immeasurable joy and fulfillment that comes with adopting a shelter dog,” the news release states. “We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Volusia Mall for their

„ Tail Twister: Les Walters

„ Lion Tamer: Frank White

„ Club members recognized with awards for the year were:

„ Melvin Jones Fellowship — Melinda Uebel

FORMER CONGRESSMAN

ALLEN WEST VISITS ORMOND BEACH

Atlantic Federated Republican Women hosted a gathering of over 100 guests on Sunday, June 25 at the Forever Ranch in Ormond Beach featuring former Florida congressman and retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Allen West.

partnership in making a positive difference in the lives of animals and families.”

County plans to meet about how to use $329 million grant

The Volusia County Government has received $328.9 million in Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The money will spearhead a recovery initiative called Transform386. The county will host several meetings, known as the CDBG-DR

“If we are to build a better world, we must remember that the guiding principle is this — a policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy.”

Friedrich Hayek

“Road to Serfdom,” 1944

Publisher John Walsh, jwalsh@observerlocalnews.com

Managing Editor Jonathan Simmons, jonathan@observerlocalnews.com

Senior Editor Jarleene Almenas, jarleene@observerlocalnews.com

Associate Editor Brent Woronoff, brent@observerlocalnews.com

Staff Writer Sierra Williams, sierra@observerlocalnews.com

Design Editor Hailey McMillan, hailey@observerlocalnews.com

Director of Engagement Kaitlyn Stier, kstier@observerlocalnews.com

Senior Media Specialist Susan Moore, susan@observerlocalnews.com

Advertising Coordinator Jessica Boone, jessica@observerlocalnews.com

Operations Manager Bonnie Hamilton, bonnie@observerlocalnews.com Circulation Coordinator, Draven Owens, dowens@observerlocalnews.com

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for Women’s Policy Research report

that cites U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

In contrast, the Witnesses’ construction projects regularly see large percentages of female volunteers, both skilled and unskilled.

“We would be lost without our vast number of women volunteers,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesperson for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “Their attention to detail, high quality of work

and infectious enthusiasm are all vital to the success of our building projects.”

Volunteers have come to the site from the three local congregations that will share the facility, and from as far away as Michigan. The project is scheduled for completion this summer.

„ Janet King Memorial Award (Lion of the Year) — Maureen Hamilton

„ Grand Lion Award — Bobbie Cheh

„ Diabetic Foundation Progressive Life Membership — Frank White

„ Florida Lions Eye Foundation Third Level Membership — Kathleen Trutschel

West represented Florida’s 22nd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2011 to 2013 and served as the chairman of the Republican Party of Texas from 2020 to 2021.

Guests included County Councilman Matt Reinhart, Daytona Beach City Commissioner Monica Paris and several professors and a student from Bethune-Cookman University.

Community Engagement Series, to gather insights about unmet needs in the community. The money can be allocated toward a range of areas, including infrastructure restoration, housing, economic revitalization and mitigation.

Priority will be given to assisting low- to moderate-income households.

Volusia County residents are invited to participate in the following community engagement meetings, scheduled to take place from 5-7 p.m. on the following dates:

„ Monday, July 10, at the Ormond Beach Regional Library, 30 S. Beach St.

„ Youth Exchange Scholarship Trust

Fund Life Membership — Carolyn and Tom Botchie

„ Project Right to Sight Life Memberships — Jean Cerullo and Mary Yochum Call 386-441-4421 to learn more about the OBTS Lions.

As recognition of his service to our country, including a tour in Iraq, a Bronze Star, and three meritorious service medals, West was presented with a flag-design quilt by Quilts of Valor State Coordinator Terry Burchtell.

Email Senior Editor Jarleene Almenas at Jarleene@observerlocalnews. com.

„

Thursday, July 13, at the DeLand Regional Library, 130 E. Howry Ave

„

Thursday, July 20, at the Deltona Regional Library, 2150 Eustace Ave.

„

Thursday, July 27, at the New Smyrna Beach Regional Library, 1001 S. Dixie Freeway

„

Thursday, Aug. 3, at the Daytona Beach Regional Library, 105 Jackie Robinson Parkway. Individuals unable to attend these meetings may complete the unmet needs survey at transform386.org. An action plan draft for the use of the funds is slated for publication in August or September.

Courtesy photos

Baylee Dutra is among the female volunteers helping in the Kingdom Hall renovation project in Ormond Beach.

Lions President Greg Evans and Melvin Jones Fellow Lion Melinda Uebel.

First Vice District Gov. Bob Armstrong and District Gov. Glenn Brown.

YOUR NEIGHBORS

Freedom sparks

The skies above the Halifax River shone red, white and blue as Ormond Beach held its annual Independence Day Celebration event on Tuesday, July 4. Locals and visitors alike gathered at Rockefeller Gardens for the event, featuring entertainment by the Traces of Gold band, as they awaited the annual fireworks display provided by Fireworks by Santore. This year marked the 247th anniversary of the United States’ independence.

–OBSERVER STAFF

Left to right: Katie Marie Hobbs, Dalton Hobbs and Mandi Marshall, from Georgia, await the fireworks while vacationing.

Elliot, Krista, and 7-year-old Kiera, of Ormond Beach, enjoy sparklers while waiting for the fireworks.

Leilani Perez, of Ormond Beach, hugs Luna, 5, and Koa, 3, on the Fourth of July.

Fireworks over the Halifax River on the Fourth of July

Emery Stevens, 5, front, and (left to right): Carter Stevens, Amanda Mohr, Kasey Barnard, Kaylynn Mohr, Karla Ralston and Lucy the dog, of Palm Coast, await the fireworks at Rockefeller Gardens.

Linda Weiss, 6, of Ormond Beach, is excited for the fireworks.

Photos by Suzanne McCarthy

FRIDAY, JULY 7

FIRST FRIDAY GARDEN WALK

When: 10-11 a.m.

Where: Washington Oaks Gardens State Park, 6400 N. Oceanshore

Blvd., Palm Coast

Details: Come out the first Friday of the month to learn more about the gardens and history of Washington Oaks. No registration necessary; the walk is included with the park’s entry fees. Meet at the garden parking lot at 10 a.m. and wear comfortable walking shoes. Tours last one hour.

SATURDAY, JULY 8

FAMILY LIFE CENTER BASEBALL

FUNDRAISER

When: 6 p.m.

Where: Historic Jackie Robinson Ballpark, 105 E. Orange Ave., Daytona Beach

Details: Support

TRIBUTES

General:

Robert Sherman was born February 7th, 1939 to John and Anne Sherman in Detroit, Michigan. He and his sister, Dolores Sherman Cebulski, were raised in Dearborn, Michigan, steeped in Ukrainian culture. Robert was proud of his heritage throughout his life.

After graduating from Chadsey High School, Bob served in the Navy from 1956-1958 and the Merchant Marines from 1959-1961. Upon graduation, he attended the University of Michigan while also working at Ford’s Motor Corporation as a Metallurgist.

Bob graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Business in 1963 and became the first member of his family to receive a college degree.

Shortly thereafter, he took a job with Burroughs Corporation in Detroit. However, with a true entrepreneurial spirit, Bob left Burroughs Corporation and started his own company (the first of several) called North American Leasing Corporation.

Due to a severe recession in the early 80s, Bob looked for new opportunities by relocating to Marietta Georgia with his family. Working in various roles in both Florida and Georgia, he eventually made his home in Daytona Beach, Florida.

In 1996, Bob began a new business providing senior adult care, called American Care Group. This was a

this fundraiser supporting victims of sexual assault and domestic violence, hosted by the Family Life Center. A buffet will begin at 6 p.m., and the Daytona Tortugas game starts at 6:35 p.m. Tickets cost $35 for adults; $25 for for children.

TUESDAY, JULY 11

GIVING STORE BREAKFAST

When: 8:30 a.m.

Where: The Hilton Garden Inn, 55 Town Center Blvd., Palm Coast

Details: Help kick off fundraising efforts for Flagler Volunteer Service’s 2023 Giving Store program. The giving store allows children in kindergarten through fifth grade to “shop” for holiday gifts for their family members. Tickets for the breakfast cost $30. Bring an unwrapped gift to the breakfast in exchange for a raffle ticket. Purchase tickets at 2729 E. Moody Blvd., Building 2, Suite 201, or at https://www.needsconnector.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 12

PROBUS CLUB OF PALM COAST

When: 11:00 AM to Noon

Where: Social Club of Palm Coast, 51 N Old Kings Road

Details: Probus, a social club for retired and semi-retired men and women, meets monthly with a guest speaker of interest. This month’s speaker is Kris Wilson, an occupational therapist who specializes in home safety and fall prevention to help seniors, veterans and people with disabilities. All are welcome. Free. For more information contact Larry Wright at:palmcoastprobusclub@gmail. com or at 386-597-3055.

THURSDAY, JULY 13

‘THE GIRL WHO WORE FREEDOM’

When: 5 p.m.

Where: Ormond Memorial Art Museum, 78 E. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach

Details: OMAM will be hosting a community screening of “The Girl Who Wore Freedom” to discover the stories of D-Day from the men,

thriving business and served many clients and their families well in the Daytona Beach area. Bob was a natural working with the elderly and provided a much needed service with great care to a great many. He worked in this capacity until 2014, when he sold his business and retired.

Family: Robert, as his sister and mother would call him, dearly loved his family. His Father, John Sherman, passed away January 1966, the same year his first child, Eric John was born to him and Cheryl Steele Rollins. Jeffery Blake was soon to follow, born in 1968. His beloved daughter Heidi was born in March of 1971. Their life in Detroit and then in Walled Lake were filled with wonderful memories raising his children in an ideal setting in the vicinity of their cousins and Grandma Anne, celebrating the Ukranian and Polish culture of his family’s heritage. Family dinners were filled with love and delicious Ukranian and Polish Food. Conrad and Dolores Cebulski, Bob’s sister and husband, had three children also, Bobby, Michael, and Janet.

Robert dearly loved his children and attend attended the weddings of all three of his children, Eric and Laura (1997), Heidi and Michael Flisser (2003), Jeffrey and Catherine (2016). In 2009, Robert’s beloved mother, Anne Sherman, died. Robert continued successfully operating the American Care Group until he sold the business in 2014. In 2017, Robert

women and children who lived through German occupation and Allied liberation of Normandy, France. There will be a wine and cheese reception at 5 p.m., as well as a chance to meet filmmaker Christian Taylor. The film screening will take place across the street at the St. James Episcopal Church’s Parish Hall at 6 p.m. Free event. Visit ormondartmuseum.org for tickets.

FIRST TIME HOMEBUYER SEMINAR

When: 5:306:30 p.m.

Where: Palm Coast Community Center exploration room, 305 Palm Coast Parkway NE, Palm Coast

Details: Attend this free seminar to learn about the home-buying process and get pre-approved.

FRIDAY, JULY 14

SUMMER SOUNDS

When: 6-8 p.m.

Where: The Casements, 25 Riverside Drive, Ormond Beach

Details: See the Cool Breeze band perform all styles of seaside soul music. Grab a lawn chair or a blanket and celebrate summertime with the city of Ormond Beach’s Department of Leisure Services. Free.

SATURDAY, JULY 15

ONE DAY BIBLE CAMP, ‘GONE FISHING’

When: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Where: Tomoka United Methodist Church, 1000 Old Tomoka Road, Ormond Beach

met Donna Wright and they enjoyed life together until Robert’s death in July 2021.

Robert was a generous giver throughout his life, supporting organizations that care for teens aging out of foster care. Among things that Robert enjoyed included: playing golf, cards, backgammon, traveling, socializing with friends, and watching any sports associated with University of Michigan. Bob would purchase batches of U of M football tickets every year and invite his children, and the cousins to attend for every year for nearly a decade. It was a special time that they would never forget.

Robert is survived by his children Eric Sherman and wife, Laura; Jeffrey Sherman and his wife Catherene; Heidi Flisser and her husband, Mike Flisser; his five grandchildren, Jack and Henry Sherman, Angelo Sherman; Noah and Camryn Flisser; and his sister, Dolores Cebulski.

Robert passed on July 23rd, 2021. He asked that his family spread his ashes in the ocean. His surviving children gathered on July 4th in Mexico City, Florida to honor his wishes.

Details: Tomoka United Methodist Church is hosting a free Bible camp for rising kindergarteners through fifth grade students. Lunch will be provided, with optional water activities during the last hour. Must enroll by July 8. Call 386-672-6722. Visit tomokaumc.org.

FIRST PALM COAST CHILDREN’S

BUSINESS FAIR

11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Where: Hammock Community Center, 79 Malacompra Road, Palm Coast

Details: Fifteen young entrepreneurs ages 6-16 will take part in this fair, hosted by Culinary Wellness in partnership with Acton Children’s Business Fair. Free and open to the public.

ONGOING SIX-WEEK BEGINNERS PHOTOGRAPHY CLASS

When: Saturday, July 8, 15, 22; Aug. 5 and 12

Where: Art League of Daytona Beach, 433 S. Palmetto Ave., Daytona Beach

Details: Instructor Rafael Torres will teach the basics of photography, lighting and use of equipment. Students will partici pate in a series of exercises, and the classes will feature short local field trips to the historic district, downtown Daytona Beach and the Halifax River. All levels of experience welcome. Register by Friday, July 7. Visit artleague. org/classes.

INSPIRATIONS AND REFLECTIONS

When: June 4 through July 15 Where: Expressions Art Gallery, 2298 Colbert Lane,

Rufina Policarpio Sarbida

1923-2023

Palm Coast Details: See this exhibition featuring artists Suzanne Barrett and Louise Kennedy.

EXERCISES FOR THE MATURING

10:30 a.m. Mondays and Thursdays

First Baptist Church of Palm Coast, 6050 Palm Coast Parkway, Palm Coast

Details: Attend upbeat classes presented by Synergy Senior Fitness and taught by Senior Fitness Specialist Artie Gardella. Classes are ongoing. Insurances that cover fitness accepted, or a donation for those with no coverage. Visit Synergyseniorfitness.com.

MOAS EXHIBITIONS

10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sunday Where: Museum of Arts and Sciences, 352 S. Nova Road, Daytona Beach

Details: Want to spend a day looking at fine art? The Museum of Arts and Sciences has the following shows on display: “Unfolding the Universe: The James Webb Space Telescope,” and “Caribbean Indigenous Resistance.”

We are sad to announce the passing of our beloved Rufina Policarpio Sarbida on June 11, 2023.

She died peacefully in her sleep at her home in Sta. Mesa, Manila, Philippines.

She celebrated her 100th birthday last May 21, 2023 surrounded by many relatives and friends.

She was born to Pedro Policarpio and Jacinta Macaraeg on May 22, 1923 in Manila. Rufina attended Samson Fashion School and became a successful dressmaker that supported her family. She loved gardening and was a great cook. She lived in Hillside, NJ and Palm Coast, FL from 1981 to 1992.

She was predeceased by her parents and siblings Justo, Cirilo, Felix, and

sister Nene Torres, and many nephews, nieces, and cousins.

She is survived by her daughters Rosalina S. Lalog, Estela S. Policarpio, son-inlaw Jose O Lalog, Jr,; grandchildren Joy Policarpio, Joel Lalog, Dr. Christina Lalog Seal and husband Chris Seal, Renz Policarpio and Jhoey Policarpio; greatgrandchildren Ethan Dunn, Remiel Policarpio, Eli Seal, and Stella Seal and many relatives.

She was laid to rest on June 16, 2023 at Loyola Memorial Park in Marikina, Philippines, next to her husband Jorge Barba Sarbida, a US Army Veteran WWII.

Eternal Rest grant unto them.

Robert (Bob) James Sherman 1939-2021

"Early Spring in the Countryside" by Suzanne Barrett Tree Spirit, by Louise Kennedy

STEVE RIOS, AUTHOR

Ormond author’s children’s books introduce topic of foster care

JARLEENE ALMENAS SENIOR EDITOR

There are almost 400,000 children in foster care in the country, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families. But a statistic not often cited, said local author Steve Rios, is that there are more than 12 million Americans who lived in foster care at one point in their life.

Rios has been working with foster children for the past 30 years, and has spent the last eight as the senior director of Positive Pathways, a Florida Department of Children and Families Program that helps children in foster care pursue higher education. A former features reporter for the Miami Herald, Rios initially dreamed of becoming a public speaker.

"In the early ’90s, I was just graduated and was trying to figure out what to do with my life," he said. "And I listened to Les Brown, and Willie Jolly, who are wonderful motivational speakers who just said, 'Live your dream.'"

So when Rios, who splits his time between Ormond Beach and South Florida, decided to begin writing again, he found himself gravitating toward children's books — and his characters, Oly and Opi, a pair of dumbo octopus twins, were born.

He's since written five books in the Oly and Opi series, which eases the readers into the topic of foster care. The books are available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

The Observer recently spoke with Rios about his children's book series.

until they’re born. So she puts a few of them here, a few of them there and moves on, which plays perfectly into my background, which is in foster care.

So these little Dumbo octopuses, they’re so cute. The reality is that the real ones look just like cartoon characters. And so we have these books.

How does your background in foster care contribute or add to your love of writing?

For me, it’s writing with a real purpose. It’s not necessarily to make a lot of money. It is because the message has to be delivered, and if you see the books, Tia Pinky tells the little octopuses, “Look, I know I don’t look like you. It’s hard for you to be here in this home, but I want you to know that your mom loves you and that I love you, and that it’ll be okay.” And this is what a lot of these little children need to hear, and so my writing is truly an outgrowth of my passion and my mission.

Is there a central message you’re trying to communicate to the readers of your books?

These little boys and girls — or in this case, little octopuses — they’re very sensitive, and it’s not easy for them to ask even the most basic questions about, “Why am I here, in this home, instead of being with my home,” right? And so it’s really to help the people who take care of these kids, give them a way to communicate with them. When the little ones see these characters asking Tia Pinky, “Where’s our mom?” That might give them an opportunity to say, “Do you ever think about that as well?” But then we move on from there and then the other books are just wonderful, fun adventures that just happen to be with these same characters. So it doesn’t harp on the foster care thing after the first book is done. Then we just go on to other books

that are just regular children’s books.

What has been the most rewarding experience so far now that you’ve been writing?

About three months ago, I made a presentation to a group of foster children and they were from 1 year old to like 11 years old, and so it wasn’t easy to make the presentation. It was like a one-room schoolhouse and so I had to do a variety of different activities, but I did have the chance to share with them,

especially the little girls, that a lot of these scientists who work with these animals in real life are female and so one of the little girls at the end said, “You know, before you came here, I thought that I wanted to be a scientist, but now I’m 100% convinced that I want that,” and she came up and she gave me a hug. So that’s exactly what I’m hoping, that these children earlier in life will be inspired by these characters and the people who help us all learn about these characters.

Photo by Jarleene Almenas

Steve Rios has written five books in his Oly and Opi series.

Courtesy photo

One of five books in the Oly and Opi series

YOUR NEIGHBORS

Clinic for coaches

for growth and development.

MICHELE MEYERS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

High school soccer coaches gathered for the annual Florida Athletic Coaches Association girls soccer clinic on Monday, June 26, for three days of indoor and outdoor sessions covering various aspects of coaching a soccer team.

The Shores Resort & Spa located in Daytona Beach Shores was the host hotel for the event where the coaches could attend business lectures for half of the event before heading to the Ormond Beach Sports Complex for skills training and demonstrations.

FACA was founded in 1936 by a group of head coaches in the member schools of the Big Ten Athletic Conference, according to the association’s website. It was designed to support high school coaches in every sport by offering sport-specific training, liability insurance and information about the business of coaching a team. The organization now has approximately 8,000 members.

Flagler Palm Coast High School’s girls soccer coach Peter Hald has

been a member of the FACA for 33 years. For 10 of those years, he was the north regional coordinator, and for the past three years, he has been the girls soccer state chair and spearheads the annual event. FPC is a member school, which means every head coach gets a free FACA membership.

“Two main events that we do are the All-Star weekend, where we go to a location and have the North play the South and the East play the West and the winners play,” Hald said.

“The second event is the state clinic. It’s an opportunity for us to bring in advanced coaches. We bring them in to help high school coaches in their growth and development as a coach.”

Indoor sessions were held in the Bill France Ballroom at the hotel. Lectures included recruiting rules, marketing players, program branding through graphics, program fundraising, fitness and information about sport-related health concerns.

Outdoor sessions at the sports complex were run by multiple toptier coaches. Mike Pickett, head coach of the St. Johns Country Day School and the North Florida Soccer Academy; French native Thomas Chameraud, Embry-Riddle assistant men’s coach; Lucas Zachary, Stetson University goalkeeping coach; and Scott Carswell, the head women’s

soccer coach at Eastern Florida State College, ran the outdoor training sessions.

Carswell resigned from coaching the girls soccer team at Merritt Island High School after 17 years, three state championships and an offer to coach at Eastern Florida. He has been there for four years and has been sharing his expertise at the FACA soccer clinic for three.

He asked Hald what topics he thought would be relevant for high school coaches.

“A big topic is fitness — making fitness fun,” Carswell said. “How can you incorporate fitness into the games you play instead of just having your players take off and run sprints.

I was kind of surprised. It was hot as heck but when we got into those games, because it’s competitive and fun, the kids were into it. We try to paint a picture for the coaches, and those kids gave us exactly what we needed them to do. They were working hard as opposed to ‘Oh, get on the line, we’re going to run sprints.’” Carswell wants the coaches to know their players and what they need.

“I think coaches need to know what they are working with,” he said. “If it’s too easy for good players then of course they don’t get challenged, but if you make something too hard for kids who aren’t ready, then it just becomes frustrating. Our big thing to them is it doesn’t have to look like what we did today; you just got to figure out what your group needs, what size they need, how much time they need, all those different factors.”

Taylor High School girls soccer coach Claudio Paulino and Hald brought their teams to assist the coaches with demonstrations and instruction. This was FPC senior Savannah O’Grady’s second year at the clinic.

“It’s good to get new coaching styles from different coaches and learn from them,” center midfielder O’Grady said. “They are definitely demanding more and making you use your soccer IQ. It’s just helping build off of your game. I think that it impacts you as a center mid because you need to be aware of 360 degrees. You have to know what’s going on all around you. I’m definitely going to take it into the next season.”

Coach John Mendoza drove from Tampa to attend the clinic. He coaches at Cambridge Christian School following an 11-year stint coaching at the University of South Florida.

Last season, the Lancers finished their regular season undefeated.

For Mendoza, the most important part of the clinic was being able to talk with other coaches from different districts, not only about soccer, but about dealing with team issues — academics, class attendance and emotional aspects.

“We are all trying to do the same thing,” he said. “We’re trying to grab a student athlete and mentor that kid academically, mentor that kid athletically and emotionally. When they’re done playing soccer we want them to be good citizens off the field as well. We are given an opportunity to mentor these kids on and off the field.”

Mendoza asked FPC assistant coach Cat Bradley where O’Grady is going to college. He was told she did not have a school yet. He contacted three coaches for the midfielder.

“I love helping other kids,” he said.

“Sometimes their coaches don’t have connections. When I see that kids want to play but no one’s really looked at them, I’m like, ‘I’ll make some phone calls for you.’”

“...The second event is the state clinic. It’s an opportunity for us to bring in advanced coaches. We bring them in to help high school coaches in their growth and development as a coach.”

FPC player Miranda Spencer goes for the pass during a demonstration game.

Ava Castro smiles as she waits with fellow soccer players to run through another drill at the FACA soccer clinic.

FPC players Katherine Ouellette (left) and Ivy Chen go for the ball during a drill.

Flagler Palm Coast soccer player Heidi Michaels gets to use her hands during a demonstration game.

Florida Athletic Coaches Association soccer clinic is an opportunity

Photos by Michele Meyers

PETER HALD, FPC girls soccer coach and FACA girls soccer state chair

Flagler Palm Coast assistant soccer coach Cat Bradley observes the drills.

Local women win division at 12.5-mile Swim Around Key West race

Alana Shawah, Carrie Purdy and Dr. Sonia Millan won the three-person female division with a time of 4:55:28 on June 17.

The Swim Around Key West race had been on Carrie Purdy’s bucket list for a while. She just needed a little push.

Purdy, the swim coach at Matanzas High and the Flagler Fluid Swim Team, had suggested a couple of years ago to fellow swimmers Alana Shawah and Dr. Sonia Millan that they form a team and share the 12.5mile open-water swim.

“I swam in way worse conditions but not for this long. I was kind of nervous. As I swam out, I saw a big tarpon. That freaked me out. I swam through a bunch of seagrass, and that wasn’t pleasant.”

ALANA SHAWAH

This year, Millan decided it was time to enter.

“Carrie had mentioned that it was on her bucket list,” Millan said. “In the winter, I said, ‘That’s it, I’m pulling the trigger.’ So I registered us. I asked, ‘What do you want our team name to be?’ Crickets. So I picked ‘Swims Like a Hippo.’ It was kind of ironic, because they don’t look graceful at all, but they’re pretty good swimmers.”

The “Swims Like a Hippo” team consists of pretty good swimmers too. On June 17, Shawah, Purdy and Millan finished first in the Swim Around Key West three-person female relay division with a time of 4 hours, 55 minutes and 28 seconds.

They received conch shell trophies for their achievement. They found out after the race that the water might have been warmer and choppier than any time in the race’s 47-year history.

The trio trained to each swim a 4.1or 4.2-mile leg. But because of the water temperature, which topped 90 degrees, the race director suggested they switch off with shorter stints. So, they decided to start off an hour in the water each and then switch swimmers every half hour.

“Hot water is my Kryptonite,” said Millan, who has the most openwater swimming experience among the three women.

Millan has completed the eightmile Swim for Alligator Lighthouse race at Islamorada. In that grueling event, she got stung by a jellyfish and saw a shark. Millan is a sports medicine physician with AdventHealth. She lives in Ormond-by-the-Sea and swims on the Masters swim team at the Ormond Beach YMCA.

Shawah and Purdy both swam in

REBECCA SMITH SWIMS FOR TWO

While Carrie Purdy, Alana Shawah and Dr. Sonia Millan were swimming the 12.5-mile Swim Around Key West race, Flagler Palm Coast High School swim coach Rebecca Smith swam in the 10-kilometer (6.1 miles) event.

“I saw an ad on Facebook, and I thought I might as well challenge myself,” the former Rebecca Cronk said. “As a coach, I want the kids to know you can have goals outside of high school in swimming. Swimming doesn’t have to stop.”

She trained four days a week at Belle Terre Swim & Racquet Club and swam up to 8,500 meters during one practice, she said.

Then, a couple of weeks before the race on June 17, she found out she is pregnant.

“I was told I could maintain activity, but if I was overheated I needed to back off. I had a thermometer with me to check my temperature.”

Near the end, with the water temperature nearing 92 degrees,

college and have more pool experience than Millan. While Purdy has some open water swim experience in lifeguard competitions, Shawah only swam in open water in sprint triathlons. At Key West, she swam the first one-hour leg, which turned out to be the roughest. She also swam the last leg.

“We calculated I swam almost five miles,” Shawah said. “I swam in way worse conditions but not for this long. I was kind of nervous. As I swam out, I saw a big tarpon. That freaked me out. I swam through a bunch of seagrass, and that wasn’t pleasant.”

Shawah, a dietitian and health education program manager with the Flagler Department of Health, swims in the Fluid Masters program. The swimmers were led by a motorboat and a kayak, which Pur-

she was getting too hot and quit. She swam at least five miles, she said. She also treaded water for about half an hour, because her first kayaker started sinking, and she had to wait for a new kayaker.

“It was definitely a challenge,” she said. “ You start out going past the pier, and the waves were nuts, but once you’re out there you’re going parallel to the shoreline, and I was cruising. But in the second half the waves were picking up sand, and I couldn’t see anything. I had to start picking up my head a lot more. I am personally terrified of sharks. The worst thing, I thought, was picking up my head and seeing a shark.”

She said she only saw little nurse sharks.

“It was a lot of fun,” Smith said. “My husband, Zayne, went with me, and my two sisters-in-law went with me as well. I didn’t swim in college. Right after high school, I went into the military. But I kept swimming. I’ve been in the water all my life.”

dy’s husband and Shawah’s and Millan’s boyfriends took turns paddling. The kayakers stayed close to the swimmers and handed them food and water.

“Navigating the path was tough,” Purdy said. “We relied so much on the boat and the kayaker to lead us.” Purdy’s children came along on the boat. Her 14-year-old daughter said she’d like to try the swim next year.

“I’m pretty proud of all of us,” Purdy said. “It was an experience. We might try to get a group of high school swimmers who swim for Fluid to try it next year. It’s a teambuilding and a friendship-building accomplishment.”

Said Shawah: “It was a great overall experience doing it with these two women and the whole crew. The guys did a great job kayaking, and the girls did a great job swimming.”

Courtesy photo

Alana Shawah, Carrie Purdy and Dr. Sonia Millan placed first among three-person female relay teams at Swim Around Key West on June 17.

Passing grade: Medlock trains QBs

FPC’s new offensive coordinator has brought his quarterback training academy to Flagler County twice a week.

BRENT WORONOFF ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Matanzas football team honors fallen hero

The Pirates completed a ‘Hero Workout of the Day’ followed by a game of ‘Pirate Ball’ and hot dogs for lunch.

BRENT WORONOFF ASSOCIATE EDITOR

The annual Red, White and Blue Workout is one of the toughest of the year for the Matanzas High School football team. It marks the end of the Pirates’ first phase of summer workouts. Each year on the Friday before the Fourth of July, they honor a service member or first responder who died in the line of duty with a CrossFit Hero Workout of the Day.

On the morning of June 30, the Pirates honored 1st Lt. Derek Hines, who died in 2005 when his Army unit came under attack in Afghanistan.

Coach Matt Forrest read Hines’ biography to the team before the workout. The U.S. Military Academy graduate was born on July 9, 1980, and grew up in Massachusetts. After graduating from West Point, he completed Ranger

and Airborne School.

The buddy workout — sharing the total reps with a partner — consisted of a buy-in of 50 pushups, sit-ups and air squats; 25 100-meter shuttle runs in 25 minutes; and a cash-out of 50 air squats, situps and pushups.

The workout was designed by Robert Kinney, a former battalion commander and trained coach. The 50 repetitions of three exercises in the buy-in and cash-out commemorates Hines’ service in the 2nd Battalion (Airborne) 503rd Infantry Regiment, “the Rock.”

“To be able to do what

you do is very special, and it doesn’t come without a price,” Forrest told the players before the workout. “You may not have paid it, but someone paid it for you.”

Many of the players wore red, white and blue shorts, T-shirts and hats. After the workout, the team played Pirate Ball, which is Ultimate Frisbee with a fooball instead of a disc, and enjoyed a hotdog cookout.

The players have a week off before beginning their second phase of summer conditioning.

“Hips and legs are the key to the position baby,” barks former college quarterback Jake Medlock to his young students. “If you don’t use your legs, your arm will die.”

To prove his point, Medlock heaves a long pass to the other end of the Wadsworth Park football field. One of his Flagler Palm Coast receivers runs under and catches the ball.

Medlock has brought his quarterback training academy to Flagler County twice a week during the summer.

He lives in Orlando and trains quarterbacks there — from Pop Warner to college players. But now, at the urging of his former Valdosta State University teammate — FPC head coach Daniel Fish — he accepted the job as the Bulldogs’ offensive coordinator. He commutes every morning during the week for FPC’s summer conditioning. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, he drives back to Orlando and returns to Flagler County in the late afternoon to train three or four, and sometimes as many as 10, fledgling QBs.

“There hasn’t been local quarterback training here for a while, not specific to the position,” said Jason Ebding, whose son, Jason Jr., 14, participated in the training session on Thursday, June 29 at Wadsworth Park. Brothers Luke Elsbree, 10, and Brody Elsbree, 7, also participated.

Jacob Daugherty, 13, traveled from Port Orange to learn from Medlock.

“This is the first time we came,” said Jacob’s father, Rob Daugherty. “He just started playing quarterback last year, and he hasn’t had this type of instruction before.”

Several FPC receivers and defensive backs ran routes for the young students.

Medlock, who is from Jacksonville, played quarterback at Florida International University and Valdosta State. He coached at Jacksonville Sandalwood High School, Shorter University, Missouri Southern State University, South Cobb High School in Georgia and finally at Catawba College, where he was let go last year after the head coach was fired.

“I was tired of having others dictate to me, so I decided to move back to Florida and train quarterbacks full time,” he said.

But then Fish called shortly before FPC’s spring practice and took Medlock out to dinner at Break-Awayz in Flagler Beach.

“He said, ‘I need your help,’” Medlock relayed. Medlock doesn’t know how long he’ll stay at FPC, but right now he’s loving it, coaching high school kids and running an offense and then training

younger kids in the same area.

“It’s fun getting to pass on knowledge to the next generation. Where else would a 10-year-old learn how to remesh?” he asked.

“I want to fill this field up with kids,” he added. “The best feeling is before a game when a kid on the opposite team is a kid you trained, and he comes over and gives you a hug and then tells you he’s going to kick your butt.”

For more information on Medlock’s quarterback training, call 904-909-0394.

Coach Matt Forrest explains the workout to the Pirates’ players.

Photos by Brent Woronoff

Jaden Sao (left) and Kevin Gilpin watch each other doing pushups at the Matanzas football team’s Red, White and Blue Workout.

Photos by Brent Woronoff Jake Medlock accepted FPC’s offensive coordinator position and has started working with Flagler County’s young quarterbacks.

Luke Elsbree, 10, steps into the pocket and flings the ball.

Matanzas wrestlers shine at Scholastic Duals as coaches win honor

Mike Fries and staff were recognized by the National Wrestling Coaches Association.

BRENT WORONOFF ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Matanzas girls wrestling coach Mike Fries didn’t know that the National Wrestling Coaches Association recognized high school coaches of the year.

Fries, who led the Pirates to the 2023 state girls wrestling championship, has been named the NWCA Florida Girls Wrestling Coach of the Year. His staff — which includes boys coach TJ Gillin and assistant Jeremiah Marschka — was named the the Girls Assistant Staff of the Year. Not one to rest on his own or his team’s laurels, Fries now has his sights set higher.

“Now that we got state coach and staff of the year, I want us to win section coaches of the year and compete for the overall,” he said. “So, all right, let’s repeat as state champs, and if we don’t do it then, maybe if we threepeat they’ll give it to us. I never knew

they named national coaches of the year. Now that I know, I want it.” In April, Fries was named the Florida Dairy Farmers-sponsored state Girls Wrestling Coach of the Year. With a group dominated by underclassmen, the Pirates won the title largely due to their preparation. They finished the season ranked 13th in the nation by USA Wrestling.

Since last year, Fries has been taking Matanzas and Legend Athletics club wrestlers to elite tournaments all over the country. During the high school season, he woke up at 3:30 each morning to watch matches of returning wrestlers who had placed at state the previous season. With that knowledge and his team’s extensive tournament

experience, his wrestlers were ready for anyone they would face at state.

On June 21-23, the Pirate wrestlers continued their busy offseason schedule competing on Fries’ Charlie’s Angels Florida Pink team at the AAU Scholastic Duals tournament at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando.

Eight Matanzas wrestlers joined

other Florida elite wrestlers on the team. The team won seven of 10 dual matches to place fifth in the Girls All-Star Division.

The Pirates’ Christina Borgmann won all 10 of her matches to win the first-place medal at 125 pounds.

Tiana Fries (130 pounds) and Mariah Mills (110 pounds) each won seven of 10 matches and placed third. Brielle Bibla, who is headed to the University of Mount Olive to wrestle in college, went 6-2 to win a thirdplace medal in 135 pounds. Kendall Bibla (145) went 6-4.

Mainland’s Mya Hill (145) and Cheyenne Wigley (heavyweight), wrestling with the Orange City Titans in another division, each went 6-4 at the tournament.

On Friday, June 30, the Pirates received their state championship rings.

“The rings are beautiful,” Mike Fries said, thanking Matanzas Principal Kristin Bozeman for allowing the team to choose any style it wanted.

The Pirates have already begun their quest to add another ring to their fingers next year.

PCLL Senior Baseball all-stars advance to state tournament

The Palm Coast Little League team defeated Hilliard twice to win the Section 3 title.

OBSERVER STAFF

Palm Coast Little League’s Senior Baseball all-stars won the Section 3 title on July 2 in St. Augustine to advance to this weekend’s state tournament.

The PCLL Alphas went 2-1 in the section tournament to improve to

4-1 in their two tournaments. They beat Hilliard 11-4 on July 2 to clinch the section title. Dioz Cruz and Ayden Normandin each had two hits in the victory. Nolan Schmidt allowed three hits and struck out seven in five innings.

The Alphas forced the third game with a 6-5 win over Hilliard on July 1. Cruz struck out 10 in 5.2 innings, and Ryan Penton collected three hits in the win.

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Head Coach Mike Fries, right, and the The Charlie’s Angels Florida Pink team pose after placing fifth in the Girls All-Star Division at the AAU Scholastic Duals. Eight Matanzas wrestlers were on the team: Christina Borgmann, who went 10-0 at the tourney, Tiana Fries, Gabby Proctor, Mariah Mills, Kendall Bibla, Brooklyn Watt, Ani Brown and Brielle Bibla, who graduated in June.

Courtesy photo

The Palm Coast Little League Senior all-stars won the Section 3 title on July

to advance to the state tournament.

Photo by Rachel Mills

STATE BRIEF

DeSantis vetoes criminal justice bills

Gov. Ron DeSantis on June 27 vetoed two criminal-justice bills passed during the legislative session that ended last month.

One of the vetoed bills (HB 605) would have revised a law that prohibits adults from having criminal records expunged if they had records expunged as juveniles.

The bill — approved 107-2 in the House and 38-0 in the Senate — would have created an exception to the one-time expunction limit in certain circumstances and led to an increase in the number of records eligible for expunction, according to a House staff analysis.

The other vetoed bill (SB 1478) sought to build on recent efforts to reduce incarcerations over technical probation violations.

The House and Senate unanimously passed it. DeSantis did not detail reasons Tuesday for the vetoes.

DeSantis signs landlord-tenant bill

Gov. Ron DeSantis on June 29 signed a bill that will lead to state law overriding local regulations involving landlords and tenants.

The bill (HB 1417) was one of six measures that DeSantis signed Thursday from the 2023 legislative session, which ended May 5.

In recent years, cities and counties, including in heavily populated areas such as Miami-Dade, Broward, Orange, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties, have passed ordinances — frequently described as a tenant “bill of rights” — that go beyond a state law known as the Florida Residential Landlord and Tenant Act.

The bill will lead to the state law trumping — or “preempting” — the local ordinances. It was approved by the House in an 81-33 vote and by the Senate in a 29-8 vote. – NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

REAL ESTATE

House in Hammock Dunes

tops sales list in Flagler

Ahouse in Hammock Dunes was the top real estate transaction for May 18-24 in Palm Coast and Flagler County. Ann Tranzow, as trustee, and Jerald Tranzow, of Washington, Missouri, sold 11 Via Marino to Michael De Castro and Mary Kuhar De Castro, of Center Valley, Pennsylvania, for $1,349,000. Built in 2002, the house is a 4/4.5 and has a fireplace, a pool, a hot tub, an outdoor kitchen and 4,375 square feet.

ALEXIS MILLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Condos

Amanda Ruth Dietz, of St. Petersburg, sold 60 Surfview Drive, Unit 807, to Michael and Michelle Jordan, of Palm Coast, for $659,900. Built in 2004, the condo is a 3/2.5 and has 1,640 square feet. It sold in 2005 for $150,000.

Donald and Nancy Sanford, of Oviedo, sold 15 Ave. De La Mer, Unit 2205, to Integra Holdings, LLP, of Palm Coast, for $500,000. Built in 1996, the condo is a 2/2 and has 1,458 square feet. It sold in 2015 for $320,000.

David Fenlon, as trustee, sold 2450 N. Ocean Shore Blvd., Unit 210, to Paul and Susan Concannon, of Flagler Beach, for $735,000, Built in 2007, the condo is a 3/3 and has 1,749 square feet. It sold in 2011 for $249,900.

Thomas Edward Kane and Toula Liapis Kane, of Bluffton, South Carolina, sold 60 Surfview Drive, Unit 317, to David and Marcia Zaitchik, of Palm Coast, for $675,000. Built in 2004, the condo is a 3/2.5 and has 1,640 square feet. It sold in 2019 for $410,000.

Lisa Burris, of Newport News, Virginia, sold 2127 N. Ocean Shore Blvd. to Parker Martin, of Ormond Beach, for $495,000. Built in 1984, the condo is a 2/2 and has 1,300 square feet. It sold in 2017 for $89,700.

Keith Hanzel and Heidi Van Voorhis, as trustees, sold 106 Club House Drive, Unit 211, to John and Teresa Avery, of Palm Coast, for $620,000. Built in 2005, the condo is a 3/3 and has 2,611 square feet. It sold in 2014 for $400,000.

Lea Lee Land, of Denver, North Carolina, sold 900 Cinnamon Beach Way, Unit 822, to Craig and Julie Smith, of Batavia, Ohio, for $675,000. Built in 2003, the condo is a 3/2 and has 1,684 square feet. It sold in 2018 for $425,000.

BUNNELL

Grand ReserveD.R. Horton, Inc., of St. Johns, sold 19 Grand View Drive to Carol and Robert Riegel, of Bunnell, for $292,000. Built in 2022, the house is a 3/2 and has 1,402 square feet.

FLAGLER BEACH

FuquayRobert James Lauchlan, Jr., of Coronado, California, sold 1303 South Daytona Ave. to Tyler Patrick Gulliksen and Andrea Nicole

Gulliksen, of Flagler Beach, for $550,000. Built in 1973, the house is a 2/2 and has 1,267 square feet. It sold in 2004 for $340,000.

Palm Island Daniel and Tina Elder, of Flagler Beach, sold 344 Palm Circle to Marjorie McCraney, of Bunnell, for $815,000. Built in 1990, the house is a 3/2 and has a fireplace, a boat dock, a pool and 1,701 square feet. It sold in 2000 for $185,000.

PALM COAST

Belle Terre Scott Tetrauit and Casey June Tetrauit, of Palm Coast, sold 52 Perrotti Lane to Loutan Rentals, LLC, of Lebanon, New Jersey, for $364,500. Built in 2004, the house is a 5/2.5 and has a pool and 2,904 square feet. It sold in 2018 for $269,900.

Cypress Knoll Barbara Serge, of Palm Coast, sold 7 Edward Drive to James and Sue Johnson, of Palm Coast, for $425,000. Built in 2000, the house is a 3/2 and has a pool and 2,091 square feet. It sold in 2017 for $275,000.

Grand Haven Martin James Marion and Tracy Marion, of Palm Coast, sold 6 Marshview Lane to Anthony and Michelle Arcaro, of Palm Coast, for $509,900. Built in 2006, the house is a 3/2 and has a fireplace, a pool and 1,988 square feet. It sold in 2020 for $355,000.

Island Estates Marvin Cecil Summers, Jr. and Larisa Inga Summers, of Palm Coast, sold 59 Island Estates Parkway to John and Martina Tocci, of Watchung, New Jersey, for $1,295,000. Built in 1996, the house is a 4/3 and has two half baths, a pool, a fireplace, a hot tub, a boat dock and 3,705 square feet. It sold in 2020 for $747,000.

Palm Harbor Maria Silva, of Palm Coast, sold 6 Carlson Place to Francisco Velez, of Palm Coast, for $550,000. Built in 1995, the house is a 3/2 and has a pool and 2,237 square feet. It sold in 2017 for $248,500.

Richard Marcovecchio, of Huntington Station, New York, sold 73 Forrester Place to Maria and Jose Pacheco, of Palm Coast, for $695,000. Built in 2010, the house is a 4/3 and has a pool, a hot tub and 2,686 square feet.

David and Janice Perkins, of Dorset, England, sold 4 Crossgate Court West to Eric Wayne Josten and Stefanie Ruth Josten, of Palm Coast, for $589,000. Built in 1988, the house is a 4/2.5 and has a pool and 2,059 square feet. It sold in 2012 for $240,000.

Pine Lakes Linda Malcomson, of Palm Coast, sold 67 Westover Lane to Leslie Warren and Lorna Lynne Burbank, of Palm Coast, for $435,000. Built in 1999, the house is a 3/2 and has a pool and 1,858 square feet. It sold in 2009 for $200,000.

Boris Braunshteyn and Helen Funk, of Palm Coast, sold 18 Wellwater Drive to Gene and Yuliya Neyma, as trustees, for $549,900. Built in 1995, the house is a 4/2 and has a pool, an outdoor kitchen and 2,404 square feet. It sold in 2020 for $365,000.

Seminole Woods Steve and Anne Campbell, of Crawfordville, sold 19 Seckel Court to William Mears and Priscilla Echeverria Bonilla, of Palm Coast, for $360,000. Built in 2013, the house is a 3/2 and has 1,841 square feet. It sold in 2013 for $177,400.

Toby Tobin, of gotoby.com, contributed to this report.

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Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

REAL ESTATE

House in Halifax Plantation tops sales list in Ormond

Ahouse in Halifax Plantation was the top real estate transaction for May 21-27 in Ormond Beach and Ormond-by-the-Sea. Rodrigo and Ana Marques, of Colonia, New Jersey, sold 1460 Pecos Drive to Harry Lewis Humphries and Lori Humphries, as trustees, for $700,000. Built in 1994, the house is a 4/2 and has a fireplace, a pool, a hot tub and 2,619 square feet. It sold in 2020 for $363,000.

ALEXIS MILLER

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Condos

South Atlantic Condo, LLC, of Arvada, Colorado, sold 89 South Atlantic Ave., Unit 502, to Jeffrey and Sally Keilman, of Ormond Beach, for $299,500. Built in 1979, the condo is a 2/2 and has 1,200 square feet. It sold in 2016 for $175,000.

Karen Gleason, of Ormond Beach, sold 640 North Nova Road, Unit 416, to Jeanne Sandblom, as trustee, for $150,000. Built in 1976, the condo is a 2/2 and has 950 square feet. It sold in 2002 for $60,000.

Susan Parker, as a personal representative of the Estate of Chester Bonek, of Holly Hill, sold 10 Lynnhurst Drive, Unit 1020, to Pamela Groome, of Ormond Beach, for $159,900. Built in 1974, the condo is a 2/1.5 and has 930 square feet. It sold in 2011 for $40,426.

Roger and Joy Randolph, of Palm Coast, sold 1513 Ocean Shore Blvd., Unit 11B, to Julea Glynn Garner, as trustee, for $640,000. Built in 1985, the condo is a 2/2 and has 1,690 square feet. It sold in 2011 for $191,900.

ORMOND BEACH

BrookwoodBiscayne Holdings NA, LLC, of Miami, sold 35 Mayfield Circle to 3AS Real Estate Investments, LLC, of Port Orange, for $280,000. Built in 1976, the house is a 3/2 and has a pool and 2,004 square feet. It sold in 1994 for $89,000.

Daytona Oak Ridge Pamela Skilling, of Ormond Beach, sold 11 Magnolia Ave. to Daniel Jose Gierbolini, of Ormond Beach, for $345,000. Built in 1997, the house is a 3/2 and has 1,366 square feet. It sold in 2000 for $117,500.

Halifax Plantation

D.R. Horton, Inc., of Orlando, sold 2970 Monaghan Drive to Helen and Patrick Garrett, of Loveland, Ohio, for $506,000. Built in 2023, the house is a 4/3 and has 2,107 square feet.

Hunters Ridge James Harold Medcalf, Jr. and Cornelia Elise Medcalf, of Flagler Beach, sold 33 Hunt Master Court to Joshua Reid Cooper and Caroline Spencer Oliver, of Ormond Beach, for $455,000. Built in 1995, the house is a 3/2 and has 2,169 square feet. It sold in 2021 for $390,000.

Oak Forest Frank Pezzimenti, of Troy, Ohio, sold 7 Sycamore Circle to Michael Adkins, of Ormond Beach, for $393,000. Built in 1980, the house is a 3/2 with a pool, hot tub and 1,923 square feet. It sold in 1980 for $73,500.

Ormond Beach Estates

TBA Investments, LLC, of Orlando, sold 329 South Ridgewood Ave. to Jeremy Paul Weinstein, of Hinsdale, New Hampshire, for $280,000. Built in 1961, the house is a 2/1 and has 1,050 square feet. It sold in 2015 for $139,900.

Ormond Golfridge

Christopher Dungan, of Port Orange, sold 47 Pinehurst Circle to Eugene DiGenova, of Ormond Beach, for $285,000. Built in 1976, the house is a 3/2 and has 1,160 square feet. It sold in 2005 for $204,900.

Pine Crest Carol Siedelhofer, of Ormond Beach, sold 82 Wildwood Ave. to Craig Sakraida, of Ormond Beach, for $400,000. Built in 1961, the house is a 2/2.1 with a fireplace and 1,754 square feet. It sold in 1997 for $107,000.

Pine Trails Richard and Joyce Mangsen, as trustees, sold 12 Ocean Pines Drive to Armm Asset Company 2 LLC, of Austin, Texas, for $322,000. Built in 1995, the house is a 3/2 and has 1,520 square feet. It sold in 1995 for $123,300.

Rio Vista

Paula Yetman, of Ormond Beach, sold 651 South Ridgewood Ave. to Gerard DiCanio and Cynthia Lee Daily DiCanio, of Ormond Beach, for $240,000. Built in 1950, the house is a 2/1.5 a fireplace and 1,436 square feet. It sold in 2015 for $119,900.

Trails North Forty Henry Juenemann Jr. and John Juenemann, of Ormond Beach, sold 68 Big Buck Trail to Ralena Kay Mulford Sanders, of Ormond Beach, for $285,000. Built in 1990, the house is a 3/2 and has a fireplace and 1,972 square feet. It sold in

STATE BRIEF

2003 for $152,000.

Tymber Creek Hellenic Properties 1, LLC, of Daytona Beach, sold 5 Creeksbridge Court to Tracy Lee Pooler, of Ormond Beach, for $315,000. Built in 1977, the house is a 3/3 and has a fireplace and 2,106 square feet. It sold in 2022 for $243,000.

Woodmere William and Cathy Adagio, of Ormond Beach, sold 44 Carrolwood Circle to Moritz Property, LLC, of Ormond Beach, for $394,900. Built in 1967, the house is a 3/2 and has 1,834 square feet. It sold in 2020 for $260,000.

ORMOND BY THE SEA

Donald Small, of Ormond Beach, sold 4 Emerald Isle Circle to Kara Lynn Knight and Gary Develle Knight, of Ormond Beach, for $385,000. Built in 1963, the house is a 3/3 and has 1,976 square feet. It sold in 2000 for $137,000.

Lisa Kemp, of Titusville, sold 2927 Anchor Drive to Alicia Suzanne Roney and Ashley Dawn Gilmore, of Ormond Beach, for $655,000. Built in 1967, the house is a 3/3 and has a pool and 2,889 square feet. It sold in 2016 for $179,000.

Davis and Ruth Haw, of Ormond Beach, sold 49 Sunset Blvd. to Alyson Kent, of Little Silver, New Jersey, for $379,000. Built in 1959, the house is a 2/2 and has 1,194 square feet. It sold in 1999 for $107,000.

Margarita Perez, of Ormond Beach, sold 6 Raymonde Circle to Paul Tyler Femia and Patricia Theresa Femia, of Ormond Beach, for $342,000. Built in 1957, the house is a 2/1 and has 984 square feet. It sold in 2020 for $230,000.

John Adams, of Adams, Cameron & Co. Realtors, contributed to this report.

TikTok, adult performances targeted at schools

The state Department of Education on June 27 released a series of proposed rules that would outline restrictions on “adult live performances” at field trips, prohibit school districts from using the social-media app TikTok and allow parents to control “any deviation from their child’s legal name” in schools.

Some of the proposed rules stem from controversial new state laws set to go into effect July 1.

The proposal dealing with adult live performances was spurred by a law (SB 1438) aimed at blocking children from attending drag shows.

Gov. Ron DeSantis touted the change in a May 17 press release announcing the signing of the live performance bill and other measures.

“Florida is proud to lead the way in standing up for our children,” DeSantis said in the release. “As the world goes mad, Florida represents a refuge of sanity and a citadel of normalcy.”

The proposed rule puts guidelines on “school-sponsored events or activities” which include things such as field trips and extracurricular activities. The proposal includes provisions that would bar districts from admitting “a child to an adult live performance” and prevent such performances from being held in buildings or properties owned or leased by districts.

The regulation also seeks to bolster procedures for notifying parents about field trips and other activities.

The proposed rule also specifically targets the popular social-media app TikTok. Using TikTok would be prohibited on district devices or over schools’ internet, and the app also could not be “used to communicate or promote any school district, school, school-sponsored club, extracurricular organization, or athletic team.”

–RYAN DAILEY, NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

The Board of Supervisors (“the Board”) of the Town Center at Palm Coast Community Development District (“the District”) currently has one vacancy in Seat #3 with the term expiring November 2026. The Board is seeking Qualified Elector candidates to fill the seat.

Per Florida Statute, 190.003(17), “Qualified elector” means any person at least 18 years of age who is a citizen of the United States a legal resident of Florida and of the District and who registers to vote with the Supervisor of Elections in the county in which the District land is located.”

The meetings schedule is available at:

https://www.towncenteratpalmcoast.org/ meetings

All interested and qualified candidates are asked to contact the District Manager, Bob Koncar, by email at bob.koncar@inframark.com, or by telephone at (904) 6260593. Any correspondence of expressions of interest and/or résumés that candidates would like to have presented to the Board for consideration of their candidacy must be provided to the District Manager no later than July 13, 2023. Please note that all materials provided become part of the public record. Interested candidates will be required to attend the next meeting (July 21, 2023 at 10:00 a.m.) so that they may address the Board regarding their candidacy, and, if appointed, be able to immediately assume office at that meeting.

July 6, 2023 23-00163F

NOTICE OF ACTIONCONSTRUCTIVE SERVICE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SEVENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR FLAGLER COUNTY, FLORIDA GENERAL JURISDICTION DIVISION CASE NO. 2021 CA 000413

REVERSE MORTGAGE SOLUTIONS, INC., Plaintiff, vs. DONNA L. GIBEAUT AND DONNA

L. GIBEAUT AS TRUSTEE OF THE HARLEY SAM’S REVOCABLE TRUST DATED 12/13/2012, et. al.

Defendant(s), TO: THE UNKNOWN HEIRS, BENEFICIARIES, DEVISEES, GRANTEES, ASSIGNEES, LIENORS, CREDITORS, TRUSTEES AND ALL OTHERS WHO MAY CLAIM AN INTEREST IN THE ESTATE OF DONNA

L. GIBEAUT, DECEASED, and THE UNKNOWN HEIRS, BENEFICIARIES, DEVISEES, GRANTEES, ASSIGNEES, LIENORS, CREDITORS, TRUSTEES AND ALL OTHERS WHO MAY CLAIM AN INTEREST IN THE ESTATE OF CECIL E BOWYER, DECEASED, whose residence is unknown if he/she/they be living; and if he/she/they be dead, the unknown defendants who may be spouses, heirs, devisees, grantees, assignees, lienors,

FLAGLER COUNTY LEGAL NOTICES

FIRST INSERTION NOTICE OF ACTION IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE Seventh JUDICIAL CIRCUIT OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA, IN AND FOR FLAGLER COUNTY Case No.: 2023 CA 000653 Division: 49 MARCIA M. WILK and THEODORE

F. WILK Plaintiffs, vs. JAMES ALLEN, Deceased, ANNE E. ALLEN, spouse, heirs, devisees, Grantees, judgment creditors, and all other parties claiming by, through, under, or against him; and all unknown natural persons if alive, and if dead or not known to be dead or alive, their several and respective unknown spouses, heirs, devisees, grantees, and judgment creditors, or other parties claiming by, through, or under those unknown natural persons, and all claimants, persons or parties, natural or corporate, or whose exact legal status is unknown, claiming under any of the above named or described defendants or parties, Defendant(s ).

SECOND INSERTION NOTICE TO CREDITORS IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 7TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR FLAGLER COUNTY, FLORIDA

file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIOD SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this notice is July 6,

TO: JAMES ALLEN, Deceased, under, or against him; and all unknown natural persons if alive, and if dead or not known to be dead or alive, their several and respective unknown spouses, heirs, devisees, grantees, and judgment creditors, or other parties claiming by, through, or under those unknown natural persons, and all claimants, persons or parties, natural or corporate, or whose exact legal status is unknown, claiming under any of the above named or described defendants or parties, YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action to quiet title to the following property in Flagler County, Florida: LOT 1 AND 10, BLOCK 2, LINCOLN HEIGHTS SUBDIVISION, A SUBDIVISION ACCORDING TO THE PLAT OR MAP THEREOF DESCRIBED IN PLAT BOOK 2, AT PAGE(S) 18, OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF FLAGLER COUNTY, FLORIDA. has been filed against you and you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it on Vincent L.

0568139

Josh A. Kravec, Esq. Florida Bar No. 1025518 dpinnock@bakerdonelson.com jkravec@bakerdonelson.com breid@bakerdonelson.com

July 6, 13, 2023 23-00094G

FOURTH INSERTION NOTICE OF ACTION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE (NO CHILD OR FINANCIAL SUPPORT) IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE Seventh JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR Flagler COUNTY, FLORIDA Case No.: 2023 DR 000551 Division: 47 Luis M Rodrigues, Petitioner, and Maria De Lurdes Tomas Figueiredo Rodrigues Respondent,

TO: Maria De Lurdes Tomas Figueiredo Rodrigues {Respondent’s last known address} Unknown YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action for dissolution of marriage has been filed against you and that you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it on {name of Petitioner}, whose address is 13 Flemington Lane Palm Coast FL 32137 on or before 7/22/23, and file the original with the clerk of this Court at 1769 E. Moody Blvd. Bldg 1 Bunnell, FL 32110 before service on Petitioner or immediately thereafter. If you fail to do so, a default may be entered against you for the relief demanded in the petition. The action is asking the court to decide how the following real or personal property should be divided: ____ Copies of all court documents in this case, including orders, are available at the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office. You may review these documents upon request. You must keep the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s

RED

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Notice: All real estate advertised herein is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation, or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis.

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