Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
NURSING SCHOOL 4 SEPTEMBER 2021
VOLUME 8, NO. 2
How to join the ‘wave of kindness’ Effort to raise 1,000 $20 restaurant gift cards for health care workers crosses halfway mark PAGE 7
FCSO’s general counsel resigns Theresa Pontieri posted videos critical of the Black Lives Matter movement. JONATHAN SIMMONS NEWS EDITOR
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office’s general counsel resigned Aug. 24 after the Daytona Beach News-Journal asked questions about a podcast-style video series she’d posted in which she criticized the Black Lives Matter movement. The general counsel, Theresa Pontieri, is white. She had posted the videos on a social media video-sharing platform called Rumble, and they have since been removed. Pontieri had worked for the Sheriff’s Office for less than two months: She’d started on July 6, FCSO Chief of Staff Mark Strobridge said. “The statements and choice of words in her online commentary do not represent or reflect Sheriff Staly’s proven values,” Strobridge said in an emailed statement. “A private, members only podcast, which was made in April 2021 before she was employed with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, was brought to our attention on August 23, 2021, and was not disclosed or found in the hiring process. The comments
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SEE PONTIERI PAGE 2
New in town Burntwood Tavern now open at The Trails Shopping Center JARLEENE ALMENAS ASSOCIATE EDITOR
A new tavern-style restaurant has found a home in The Trails Shopping Center, and its management is hoping it becomes the “go-to” place for all locals. Burntwood Tavern’s opened on Thursday, Aug. 19, in a 6,000-square-foot building at 250 N. Nova Road. This will be the 15th location opened by the Ohio-based restaurant group, and the fifth in Florida. The restaurant boasts its upscale tavern fare including sandwiches, small plate appetizers and burgers, as well as its specials on beer, wine and liquor. Burntwood Tavern also infuses its own vodkas with ingredients like blueberries, strawberries, jalapeños and bacon. Bryan Kelley, director of operations for Chef Art Pour ResPhoto by Jarleene Almenas
SEE BURNTWOOD PAGE 7
Treating COVID
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Monoclonal antibody therapy treatment site opens in Ormond Beach
Bryan Kelley, director of operations for Chef Art Pour Restaurant Group, said they’re excited to open their new restaurant at the Trails Shopping Center.
JARLEENE ALMENAS ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Gov. Ron DeSantis is continuing to increase access to monoclonal antibody therapy treatment, and on Thursday, Aug. 19, he announced the opening of a treatment site at the Ormond Beach Senior Center. The governor expressed his confidence that the state will see a reduction in hospital admissions with the introduction of these treatment sites, particularly naming the treatment by biotechnology company Regeneron. At the time of the press conference, DeSantis had announced the opening of monoclonal antibody therapy treatment sites in Jacksonville, Orlando, Merritt Island, Pembroke Pines and West Palm Beach. As of Tuesday, Aug. 24, he’d opened 18 sites across the state. “It’s our belief that if this SEE TREATING PAGE 2
Photo by Jarleene Almenas
Gov. Ron DeSantis announces the opening of a new monoclonal antibody therapy treatment site in Ormond Beach.