Palm Coast Observer 12-26-24 by Observer Local News

PALM COAST

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Looking back on 2024

puts the toes to the nose. Photo by Jake Montgomery

The Flagler County School Board fired Attorney Kristy Gavin 17 months before her contract was due to expire. Her termination letter

JAN 11: Margaritaville continues construction on Central Avenue in Flagler Beach. Photo by Sierra Williams

JAN 23: Flagler County Fire Lt. Jason Powell, a member of the Southern Area Engine Academy cadre, fires a fire flare gun in a prescribed burn. Photo by Jarleene Almenas

JAN. 23: Raquel Schenone plays Pippi, an exotic dancer who just moved to Armadillo Acres in "The Great American Trailer Park Musical." Photo by Sierra Williams

February

Economic growth, public safety and quality of life were just a few of the topics highlighted in Palm Coast’s 2024 State of the City Address on Feb. 1.

“It’s the dawn of another year in our beautiful city,” Mayor David Alfin said, “marking a time of renewal and revitalization.”

Ormond Beach and Flagler County representatives met to discuss potential resolutions that would avoid further litigation. Ormond Beach filed a lawsuit against the developer U.S. Capital Alliance, LLC and Flagler County on Oct. 27, 2023, over what the city calls violations to its development agreement with U.S. Capital’s Hunter’s Ridge development.

The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office arrested 35 people in connection to a yearlong undercover investigation called Operation: Heartbreaker.

March

The March 7 edition of the Palm Coast Observer, delivered accidentally in a black bag to the Flagler County Courthouse, incited a call to the bomb squad and was eventually exploded as a training exercise.

Flagler Beach City Commissioner Eric Cooley was reelected for another three years on the City Commission. Patti King, as the only candidate to file and qualify for candidacy, is Flagler Beach’s new mayor.

The Palm Coast City Council voted 3-2 to fire Denise Bevan as city manager, effective immediately, and without cause. Mayor David Alfin made the motion to terminate Bevan’s position without cause at the March 19 council meeting. Council members Theresa Carli Pontieri and Nick Klufas voted against terminating Bevan's contract.

April

Flagler County and Bunnell elected officials celebrated 20 years of work on Monday, April 1, when the county and city finally broke ground on the road that will connect State Road 100 to Highway U.S. 1. A team of high schoolers from Jacksonville won first place at the University of North Florida and Palm Coast 2024 MedNexus Innovation Challenge. Second place went to Team Project Rethink, from Matanzas High School.

Bronx House in the Hammock, with musician and rapper Vanilla Ice, hosted a fundraiser for the nonprofit Little Smiles. The restaurant made almost $50,000 in sales at the Feb. 25 event and donated 100% of it to Little Smiles. The remaining funds were raised through donations.

Palm Coast's new Southern Recreation Center, a 11,500-square-foot facility, officially opens for residents.

Bunnell's historic Chicken Pantry restaurant closed its doors after 68 years.

With Flagler County School Board Chair Will Furry saying it is “time to stop the bleeding,” the board voted 3-2 on Tuesday, March 26, to convert the Belle Terre Swim and Racquet Club into a student-use only facility.

The winning bid for a pig at the Flagler County Fair and Youth Show was $74 a pound as the community banded together to help the family of 4-H member Riley Lauremore, who suffered a traumatic head injury in a boating accident.

Imagine School at Town Center hosted one of its first pep rallies as a rousing sendoff for its Electro-Lions robotics club, heading to an international championship competition in Houston.

The city of Flagler Beach has extended its moratorium on new building applications for an additional six months if the commission does not agree to lift it sooner. The City Commission later held a joint workshop meeting with the city’s Planning and Architectural Review Board to review the city’s 35-foot building height policy.

FEB. 26: The Southern Recreation Center, which opened on Feb. 26, has 12 pickleball courts, including six covered courts.

Photo by Sierra Williams

MAR. 23: Ella Bell and Adelyn Bell visited Warbirds Over Flagler on Saturday, March 23, at the Flagler Executive Airport. The event raised over $1,100 to benefit the Rotary Club of Flagler Beach’s efforts to serve those in need in the community. Photo by Brian McMillan

MARCH 10: Alexa Gilbert shows off the strawberries at the festival. The strawberries at the Strawberry Festival were from Pablo & Sons Farms in Plant City, Florida. Photo by Sierra Williams

FEB. 3: Andrew Gulyas, a member of Flagler Palm Coast High School’s Fire Academy, crosses the Tunnel to Towers finish line in his fire fighter gear Photo by Sierra Williams

MAR. 7: Saving Veda: Palm Coast family fundraises for clinical trial of rare illness. Photo courtesy of the Ulrich family

MAR. 14: Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore and Old Kings Elementary School Principal Nicole Critcher joined the celebration for Coach Michael D’Ascheberg’s final field day. Courtesy photo

APRIL 8: Turtle Patrol volunteers bring the rehabilitated sea turtle down the beach. Photo by Sierra Williams

APRIL 16: Mason Herr and Lacy Westbrook present their pigs at the Flagler County Fair and Youth Show.

Photo by Jake Montgomery

Flagler County School Board member Sally Hunt announces she won’t be on the board by November, which likely means Gov. Ron DeSantis will appoint a new board member to complete her term.

JUNE 5

Flagler County's five constitutional officer seats were won in unopposed elections after candidate qualifying closed on June 14.

After over 20 years, Flagler County officials, alongside multiple agency and state and local representatives, broke ground on the county’s beach renourishment project with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Indian Trails Middle School students became Future Problem Solving world champions. Two Community Problem Solving projects — Tyson Landon and the Project BOSS team — placed first in their divisions.

Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin, city staff and project owners broke ground on The Promenade at Town Center, a future collection of six, four-story commercial and residential buildings. The Promenade will be located directly across Central Park at Town Center.

JULY 2

Former Flagler County engineer Faith Alkhatib filed a discrimination and retaliation lawsuit against the county over her termination.

Alkhatib worked for the county for almost two decades but filed a lawsuit stating she was unjustly terminated.

Flagler County and Palm Coast netted collective $132 million in state appropriations, with $82 million of that going to Palm Coast’s westward expansion projects.

The Palm Coast City Council passed a resolution requiring any future City Council to place any potential utility franchise fee up for public vote before that council can begin negotiating a contract. The language in the resolution makes the outcome of that vote binding.

A South Florida Youtuber bought 10 used police cars for $13,500 — including five retired Bunnell Police Department cruisers. The cruisers still had official city decals on them, as well as police lights and sirens, and several still had internal attachments: PA systems, a police radio system, laptop holders and ticket printers.

Flagler Beach Commission unanimously adopted a new curfew for minors, prohibiting them from public spaces unattended after 11 p.m. From Sunday through Thursday, excepting legal holidays, a minor — defined in the ordinance as those 16 and under — can not be in a public place between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. the next day. On Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, the curfew is extended to the hours of 12:01 a.m. and 6 a.m. the next day.

Almost a year after a fire tore through the Flagler Playhouse's main building, destroying the theater, the burned remains of the historic church building were torn down.

degree felony charges for the

Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly announced the arrest of

11-year-old Virginia boy in connection to over 20 swatting phone calls multiple Flagler schools received in May 2024. The 11-year-old of Henrico County, Virginia, is facing multiple second-

swatting calls.

JUNE 1: Peyton Crave, 7, catches a wave in the future division at the Her Turn Surf Festival in Flagler Beach. Photo by Jake Montgomery

JUNE 17: Flagler County and state and local officials broke ground on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project on June 17. Photo by Sierra Williams

JUNE 5-9: Indian Trails Middle School’s Project BOSS brought home the first-place trophy in the Community Problem Solving Team Middle Division at the Future Problem Solving International Conference at Indiana University. From left, Kendall Willis, Paris Milton, Wesley Kopach, Liam O’Connor, Jorge Guerrero, Arlo Bottonelli and Dempsey Manhart. Courtesy photos

JULY 24: A demolition team tears down the burnt shell of the Flagler Playhouse. Photo by Sierra Williams

JULY 4: Dressed for the Fourth of the July. Photo by Jake Montgomery

A multistate district of the United States has 17,000 workers went on strike across the Southeast. In Palm Coast, around 15-20 technicians protested outside AT&T;’s Palm Coast Central Office at 5 Clubhouse Drive since the start of the strike in early August.

An international military packaging company will make Palm Coast the home of its first U.S. manufacturing, production and testing facility. The global company Astor Defence is currently the sole-source supplier of metal ammunition containers for the British Army and provides critical services for armed forces across the NATO alliance.

The Flagler County Commission has agreed to give a Flagler Beach pier boardwalk project the full $745,000 of a county tourism grant, despite concerns about the project's timeline. The project includes three phases, totaling over $3 million, to renovate the pier's bathrooms, boardwalk, surf radio station and bait shop and add a promenade area.

Aug. 23, just under two years into her term. She submitted her resignation letter to Acting City Manager Lauren Johnston via text on Aug. 18, according to Director of Communications Brittany Kershaw.

Former Palm Coast Mayor candidate Alan Lowe filed an injunction in the Flagler County court system to remove the Palm Coast Charter Amendment from the Nov. 5 ballot. Lowe said the charter amendment, which aimed to remove limitations on the city’s borrowing power, was “misleading and confusing.”

The Flagler County School Board has agreed to lease the historic county courthouse for a minimum of two years. The 100-year-old building will provide space for various programs while freeing up 10 classrooms for other uses.

Two races in Flagler County in the Primary Election on Aug. 20 triggered a recount when the votes were less than .5% apart. On Aug. 26, a recount of the ballots determined Pam Richardson defeated Palm Coast Vice Mayor Ed Danko for a Flagler County Commission seat and Palm Coast City Council District 3 candidate Ray Stevens bested Mark Stancel. Stevens would later face opponent Andrew Werner in the November election.

The Palm Coast City Council voted 3-1 to adopt a $421.5 million budget for the 2025 fiscal year, including $61 million for the city’s general fund, which is primarily funded by property taxes.

Around 20,000 people in Flagler County had their power knocked out from Hurricane Helene and the county also saw a peak of winds as high as 63 mph. Damage in most areas were minimal, with multiple reports of downed trees and damaged fences countywide.

AUG. 5:

Photo by Sierra Williams

AUG 24: Josh Wooten holds up the ceremonial big key from the National Auto Body Council and Geico. Courtesy photo

AUG. 9: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continued the Flagler Beach beach renourishment project on Aug. 9. Photo by Jake Montgomery

U.S. Army Reserve Brig. Gen. Charles Gambaro Jr. was appointed to replace former District 4 council member Cathy Heighter with a 3-1 vote. He was immediately sworn into the office and took up the seat and will serve for the remaining two years of Heighter’s elected term.

The Palm Coast City Council unanimously approved preserving the 50-year-old fire station while still adding 90 parking spaces to the Palm Coast Community Center. The city began exploring options to expand the Community Center’s parking spaces in February 2023 when an analysis from an architecture firm showed the fire station needed expensive refurbishments to meet current codes.

Palm Coast will have the first disc golf course in Flagler County, thanks to park land donated to the city by a development. The nine-acre course, located at the southwest corner of Pine Lakes Parkway and White Mill Drive, will have 18 holes, water stations, a 20-30 spot parking lot and be connected to the Pine Lakes Parkway multiuse trail.

A second Chick-fil-A is confirmed for Palm Coast, to be located on State Road 100 in the BJ’s Wholesale shopping plaza. According to a site plan submitted to Palm Coast and sent to the Observer, the Chick-fil-A will be almost 5,000 square feet in size and seat 70 inside, with an additional 16 exterior seats.

County officials, alongside State Rep. Paul Renner and State Sen. Tom Wright, broke ground at a new Florida State Guard training facility that is being built in Flagler County. The facility will become a regional, multiagency training facility that will allow for state-ofthe-art training.

Flagler County on the barrier island, the first step in funding the county’s beach management plan.

DEC. 3

Hurricane Milton caused at least $19 million in residential damage across Flagler County, according to preliminary numbers from the county’s damage assessment.

14: Flagler Beach

Palm Coast broke ground on its first new fire station in nearly two decades, at 72 Airport Commerce Center Way and dedicated to the Seminole Woods and Quail Hollow areas.

Palm Coast receives a state demand from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to upgrade its Wastewater Treatment Facility 1 by 2028. The demand comes because the facility was found to be averaging at or higher than its permitted amount of water flow in at least four of the last 12 months.

After a Flagler County judge denied a lawsuit demanding votes on a Palm Coast charter amendment be tossed out, Palm Coast residents ultimately ousted the amendment at the ballot box. Over 58% of 52,500 Palm Coast voters voted against the charter amendment.

Mike Norris was elected as Palm Coast’s new mayor in a record-setting election in Flagler County. The 2024 general election had a record-breaking turnout of 83.37%, the county’s highest turnout in an election since 1996.

A Flagler County Court judge has found the owners of the Old Dixie Motel in contempt for not making a court-ordered payment. The motel owners are now required to pay a $250,000 deposit owed to Flagler County, and file missing paperwork regarding their financial situation within 14 days of the court’s ruling. If the property owners fail to comply in time, they will owe an additional $1,000 per day until the deposit is made.

A new high school and a new middle school are both on Flagler Schools’ 10-year infrastructure plan, according to district documents presented to the School Board at a Dec. 10 workshop. The design phase for the new schools is scheduled to begin in 2029 with the construction projects continuing into the 2033-34 school year.

Palm Coast’s Knights of Columbus Notre Dame Council 10514 is donating over $41,000 to install a Safe Haven Baby Box at Palm Coast Fire Station 25. The box is installed in the wall of a first responder facility and a person on the outside can place a baby safely inside the box, which then alerts first responders to come retrieve the child.

The controversial annexation of the 899-acre Veranda Bay development was postponed after the Flagler Beach City Commission received a legal letter arguing that the annexation would violate state statutes. A law firm sent the Flagler Beach City Commission a letter stating that adding the 899 acres to Flagler Beach would create an enclave of unincorporated Flagler County land within Flagler Beach city limits.

DEC. 17: Flagler County Sheriff's Office deputies and employees take children shopping for Christmas.

Photo by Sierra Williams

The annual Palm Coast Open tennis tournament — a USTA pro-circuit event — will now include a women’s tournament, as well as its men’s tournament. The tournaments will be held at the Southern Recreation Center in January.

Flagler

The Palm Coast City Council voted 3-1 to censure Vice Mayor Ed Danko for allegedly working with citizens to sue the city over a Nov. 5 charter amendment while also representing the city in that same lawsuit. The ensure was mostly a parliamentary procedure.

The new Flagler School Board, Flagler County Commission and Palm Coast City Council members are sworn into office. The new school board members are: Derek Barrs, Lauren Ramirez and Janie Ruddy. On the Flagler County Commission, commissioner Andy Dance took his oath again for the second time while Pam Richardson and Kim Carney were sworn in for their first terms. Palm Coast Mayor Mike Norris and council members Ty Miller and Ray Stevens filled the seats on the city council.

The Flagler County Commission approved in a 4-0 vote a resolution that would open the door for a new property assessment tax in unincorporated

JAN. 28 NOT CHICKENING OUT

7:54 p.m. — 600 block of Ocean Shore Boulevard, Flagler Beach

Trespass. A police officer was called to a restaurant and bar to trespass a woman who did not pay her $23 tab. When the officer got to the restaurant, the woman was asking multiple other customers to pay her bill for her. The officer issued her a trespass warning and escorted her off. Less than an hour later, the officer returned to the restaurant because the woman had returned. She was sitting by the restaurant’s fireplace asking people for money and eating chicken. She was arrested.

MAY 2

FIVE STRIKES

7:50 p.m. — 2200 block of State Road 100, Flagler Beach Disorderly conduct. A Flagler Beach homeless man was arrested for disorderly conduct after being trespassed from five different locations in one day.

JUNE 20 TRAFFIC STOPPER

9:18 a.m. — first block of Boulder Rock Drive, Palm Coast Resist officer, fail to obey. A Palm Coast man was arrested for blocking traffic as he stopped in the street to accuse a Sheriff’s Office deputy in the middle of a traffic stop of blocking traffic.

The deputy heard someone yelling at him as he was talking to the driver he pulled over. Turning around, he saw a man driving a red Toyota stopped in the middle of the road, blocking traffic, accord-

ing to an arrest report. The Toyota driver asked the deputy if he was stupid and told him he needed to move the traffic stop somewhere else because he was blocking the road. The deputy asked the man to keep driving because the man was actually the one blocking traffic. When the man refuseD to leave, the deputy told him to pull over. Instead, the man drove off. The suspect was pulled over minutes later by another deputy and arrested.

AUG. 2

MIND ON THE MONEY

2:41 a.m. — First block of Old Kings Road, Palm Coast Possession of methamphetamine, marijuana. Deputies arrested a 28-year-old Miami man who was seen sleeping in his car in the parking lot of a local fast food restaurant.

The deputy reports he spotted a rolled marijuana cigarette container in the center console, at which point he woke the man up. The man said he was on his way to New Jersey to visit family, and that he’d stopped in Palm Coast to rest. He told the deputy that the container was for medical marijuana, but he wasn’t carrying his medical marijuana card.

While conducting a search in the vehicle, the deputy also found two plastic bags containing methamphetamine inside two chocolate candy containers, according to the report.

The man said the meth, which he referred to as “product,” was left in his car by other people; he said he worked as an Uber driver. When asked why he didn’t get rid of it or contact law enforcement, the man said “honestly I was hoping to see if I could just sell it off in the streets to make a couple extra bucks.”

Police found 1.26 grams of meth and 6 grams of marijuana in his car. He was taken to jail.

SEPT. 7

BLOOMING LOVE

9:57 p.m. — Intersection of Palm Coast Parkway, Belle Terre parkway, Palm Coast Criminal mischief. A local homeless man was arrested after a deputy caught him drawing a flower on a traffic sign in honor of his girlfriend.

The homeless man, 54, was known locally to the deputy, as well as his on-again, offagain relationship with his girlfriend, according to an arrest report. The drawing included a message to his girlfriend, saying the flower was hers and “only blooms once in a lifetime.”

The deputy approached the man to ask about the graffiti and the man originally denied drawing it, but then admitted to drawing on the sign.

The man said that as a taxpayer, he owns the sign and could draw on it if he wanted to, the report said.

OCT. 10

BIRTHDAY BLUES

11:33 p.m. — Intersection of Belle Terre and Palm Coast Parkway, Palm Coast DUI. During an overnight curfew in response to the the hurricane, a Sheriff’s Office deputy was on patrol when he saw a man making repeated U-turns from the middle lanes of an intersection just before midnight, well after the county’s curfew.

The deputy asked the man why he was out after curfew. The man told the deputy that it was his birthday — he had just turned 57 — and he was trying to find a store open so he could buy cigarettes, the press release said.

As the man was talking, the deputy noticed the man’s speech was slurred and his eyes were red and dilated. He asked the man to step out of the vehicle and, after a sobriety test, the deputy arrested the man for driving under the influence. The man later admitted to eating marijuana edibles.

44 years at Palm Coast United Methodist

Anniversary service will be held on Dec. 29.

CHURCH ANNIVERSARY COMMITTEE

GUEST WRITERS

Every month the congregation at Palm Coast United Methodist Church celebrates churchgoers’ birthdays by asking them to stand and singing happy birthday to them.

But it’s been a while since Palm Coast United Methodist Church celebrated its own anniversary or birthday serving the community, said Drucilla Singleton.

So, Drucilla, who has been a member since 1999, set out to change that.

And change she did: Palm Coast United Methodist Church will celebrate its 44th anniversary at a service starting at 10 a.m. on Dec. 29.

Palm Coast United Methodist Church typically has two services on Sunday, one at 8:30 a.m. and another at 10:30 a.m. But this occasion will be celebrated by everyone with the single service at 10 a.m., Drucilla said.

Drucilla is the leader of the United Women in Faith at the church. She has been president of the group for 13 years. She said it was the Holy Spirit that moved her to work on a celebration of the church anniversary.

“I always ask God for vision and wisdom and knowledge, and when I do that in Jesus’ name, he reveals visions,” Drucilla said.

Drucilla, who is known as the hat lady because she always wears a hat to church, said learning about the church’s past has been a good experience.

“It’s just filling me with joy,” she said.

Palm Coast United Methodist Church began in 1979 as a mission in what was then the former YMCA in the city’s old community center on Palm Coast Parkway.

Members of the Flagler Beach United Methodist Church would pack up candles, Bibles, hymnals and a portable cross and then travel to the mainland to hold a service in Palm Coast led by the Rev. Cheryl Pingel from the Flagler Beach church.

Eighteen people were at

the first service in 1979. But the numbers kept growing as Palm Coast grew.

And as the city grew, church leaders decided they needed more than a mission. That led to a Christmas gift for the faithful: Palm Coast United Methodist Church was chartered on Dec. 19, 1980.

The groundbreaking for the new church was on Jan 22, 1981 at 5200 Belle Terre Parkway.

The first service was held on June 20, 1982 in what would later become the fellowship hall. The United Methodist Christian School opened on Aug. 25, 1983. The congregation kept growing, leading to another groundbreaking, on Jan. 24, 1993 for a new sanctuary at the campus at 5200 Belle Terre Parkway.

The first service in the new sanctuary was held on Jan. 16, 1994. It was a roomy and airy worship hall touched off with stained-glass.

But the church kept looking toward the future by purchasing 20.2 acres to the north. And in 2022, ground was broken for the new church.

That newest Palm Coast United Methodist Church welcomed worshippers on March 3, 2024, at 6500 Belle Terre Parkway.

During its history, the churches’ members and visitors have been ministered to by the Rev. Cheryl Pingel, the Rev. Robert Finch, the Rev. John Bartha, the Rev. Dr. Wayne Wiatt, the Rev. Frank Edwards, the Rev. Scott Farman, the Rev. Durwood Foshee and the Rev. Dr. Kevin James Sr.

The members of the church reflect the community’s diversity and its welcoming culture.

And the church continues its various programs and ministries, including Vacation Bible School, Stephen Ministry, Our Father’s Table, worship time at Flagler Pines

Nursing Home, a Shut-In Ministry and involvement with the Family Life Center and the Methodist Children’s Home.

Drucilla said it’s all part of God’s vision.

“It’s written somewhere in the Bible, if you don’t have no vision you perish. And so we had this vision and we didn’t perish,” she said.

She said the new Palm Coast United Methodist Church is a dream come true.

“I’m so glad that I am alive to see this,” Drucilla said, “because this is like a dream, because there’s a lot more who started out with this dream, and probably wish they would have been here to fulfill it, but they’re in heaven. I feel like smiling on us.”

The church is looking toward attracting younger families and members like the Baumert brothers.

Aidan Baumert, 17, and Andrew Baumert, 21, are a great example of the impact of the church.

Aidan is dual-enrolled at Daytona State College and at Flagler Palm Coast High School, where he is a senior. He works on the media team at the church helping with things like the sound, lights and screen.

He said Palm Coast United Methodist Church has made a positive difference in his life, and he has made many friends through the youth group.

“I’ve never really been scared to be who I am at church,” Aidan said. Andrew is a senior at Florida State University studying biomedical engineering. He said the church has helped him control any worry he may have in academics.

“I know God’s got me, and whatever happens will happen. And I can’t really change what God’s plans are, so that kind of helps me not stress out,” Andrew said.

The new building broke ground in 2022 at 6500 Belle Terre Parkway, and is now open.

COMICS

SPORTS IN 2024

Heartwarming and heartbreaking stories topped this year’s headlines

BRENT WORONOFF

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

THE YEAR OF CRONK

It’s been a banner year for Flagler Palm Coast senior Colby Cronk. He won a state track and field championship, set four school records in two sports and accepted a college football scholarship.

The defensive end committed last spring to play football at North Carolina State and signed with the Wolfpack on Dec. 4. In between his commitment and signing, he won the Class 4A state shot put championship and was the Class 4A runnerup in discus. He played hurt throughout his senior football season but still finished with school records of 27 sacks for the season and 50 for his career. The old career sacks record was 32.5. Cronk had 120 total tackles this season and 283 in his four years playing varsity football.

And yet the highlight of his athletic year might have been in track and field. At the state championships, his school-record shot put of 19.22 meters (63 feet, 0.75 inches) was not only the best in the state in all classifications, but the 10th-best all-time. He also set a new school record in discus with a throw of 183

A banner year for Colby Cronk; four wrestling titles; a courageous comeback for Leah Stevens Photos

feet, 11 inches to win the silver.

A relative newcomer in both throwing events, Cronk is “just scratching the surface of the technical aspect,” his coach, David Halliday, said.

GREAT SEASON, TOUGH ENDING FPC’s football team had a phenomenal season in coach Daniel Fish’s second year. After finishing 3-7 in 2023, the Bulldogs went 9-1 during the 2024 regular season and hosted a regional quarterfinal against Spruce Creek.

Unfortunately the ending left a sour taste in the Bulldogs’ mouths as game officials from Lakeland mistakenly took a down away from FPC. The Bulldogs were driving deep into Spruce Creek territory in the final seconds, trailing the Hawks 36-35. Third down suddenly became fourth down and the Bulldogs fell short of converting a first down.

“I’m so proud of this group,” Fish said after the game. “It was an amazing turnaround. They established the culture and they made history this year. And I just hate that they had to go out that way.”

One of the reasons for the turnaround was the addition of quarterback Hayden Hayes. The Seabreeze transfer set FPC single-season school passing records for yards (3,068) and touchdowns (34). His six touchdown passes in the Bulldogs’ first game against Spruce Creek on Oct. 25 also set a school record.

Marcus Mitchell, meanwhile, broke the school career rushing record, a mark his late father once held. He ran for 1,749 yards and 16 touchdowns this season to finish with 4,570 yards and 42 touchdowns in his career.

MARCH 14: Flagler Palm Coast reliever Isaiah Munoz threw submarine pitches in the seventh inning in a baseball game against Matanzas.

EXCELLENCE ON THE MAT

Four Flagler County high school wrestlers were crowned state champions on March 2 in Kissimmee. It was a historic day for Matanzas High’s Jordan and Mariah Mills who became the first brother and sister to win titles at a state wrestling championship.

Jordan completed a perfect 52-0 season to win the Class 2A 190-pound championship a year after missing the postseason due to shoulder surgery. He dislocated the same shoulder in the title match and overcame a 5-0 deficit to win 8-7 in an ultimate tiebreaker. Mariah went 37-1 and won the 110-pound girls title. Her only loss was to the 10th-ranked wrestler at the Wonder Woman tournament in Missouri.

Flagler Palm Coast wrestlers

Christina Borgmann and Joslyn Johnson also made history becoming the first girls to win state titles for FPC, a school rich in wrestling tradition. Borgmann won the 125-pound title, completing a perfect 25-0 season despite missing a month with a shoulder injury. Johnson won the 100-pound title. An escape with three seconds remaining gave her a 4-3 win the final.

The Bulldogs placed second behind girls team champ Brooksville Hernando despite sending just four wrestlers to the championships. Ana Vilar and Alexa Calidonio won fourth-place medals. Matanzas, the 2023 girls state champ, was third with two other wrestlers winning medals: Tiana Fries, second at 140 pounds and Ani Brown seventh at 190 pounds.

Borgmann and Mariah Mills each added national championships to their expanding resumes, winning titles at High School Nationals on April 7 in Virginia Beach.

The pair went on to wrestle for Team USA in Bahrain, helping the U.S. win gold in the AAU/ISF Bahrain Gymnasiade U17 women’s wrestling championships in October. Borgmann won silver and Mills took bronze in their weight classes.

BOY, HE’S FAST

Seventh grader Douglas Seth established himself as one of the fastest middle school distance runners in the country.

He ran the fastest middle school 3-kilometer indoor time in 2024 and 13th fastest all-time — 9:33.40 — at

the Florida Middle School Indoor Track Championships on Feb. 10. At the outdoor championships in May, the Buddy Taylor Middle School student who runs for the Imagine Town Center Club team, placed among the top six in two distance events. Now an eighth grader, Seth, 14, won the club division at the Middle school cross country championships on Oct. 26 and placed 12th out of 325 runners in the 4K race at the Middle School Cross Country National Championships on Nov. 9 in Louisville, Kentucky.

SHE’S FAST, TOO

Not to be outdone, Peyton Cerasi is establishing herself as one of the fastest high school freshman distance runners in the state.

At the Florida Youth Running Association’s middle school outdoor track championships, she matched Seth’s finishes of fourth place in the 3,000 meters and sixth in the 1,500 meters. She then handled the transition to high school with ease, winning her first 5K cross country race at the Spikes and Spurs Classic on Aug. 24 at the Flagler County Fairgrounds and leading the FPC girls team to their first-ever championship in their event.

She broke FPC’s school record on Oct. 19 with a time of 18:35 in a Jacksonville meet. She shattered that mark with a time of 18:19.2 to place seventh at the Class 4A state championship Nov. 16 at Apalachee Park in Tallahassee. Three other FPC runners broke 20 minutes to help the Bulldogs to a third-place finish, their best result in program history.

ALL THE WAY BACK

Matanzas softball pitcher Leah Stevens missed her entire sophomore season after suffering a rare stroke caused by a blood clot in the brain’s venous sinuses. Stevens was on blood thinners and blood-clot dissolving medications for over a year. During that time she wasn’t even allowed to be on the field during a practice for fear of getting hit in the head. She was finally cleared on Feb. 26. The next day, she pitched a sixinning one-hitter, striking out 14 of 21 batters. She finished her junior season with an 11-4 record, a staggering 0.87 earned run average and 196 strikeouts in 88.2 innings

pitched.

“I think I have a different appreciation for the game now,” she said in March. “I know we can get all caught up in the stats and the numbers, but I really wanted everybody to know that when I’m back on the field I want everyone to have fun, and that’s the big thing. That’s my main goal out there.”

SUBSEQUENT INSERTIONS

THIRD INSERTION

NOTICE OF ACTION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SEVENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT,

IN AND FOR FLAGLER COUNTY, FLORIDA FAMILY LAW DIVISION

Case No.: 2024 DR 001072

Division: Domestic Relations Family Richard Louis Steenhagen Jr., Petitioner, and Kaylee Marie Thompson, Respondent.

TO: Kaylee Marie Thompson

36 Laguna Forest Trail Palm Coast, FL 32164

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 Richard Louis Steenhagen Jr., whose address is 1080 Center St Muskegon MI 49442, on or before 1/17/25, 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.

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 office notified of your current address. Future papers in this lawsuit will be mailed to the address(es) on record at the Clerk’s office.

Dated: 12/5/24

CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT (SEAL) By: /s/ Makaela McCarthy Deputy Clerk Dec. 12, 19, 26, 2024; Jan. 2, 2025 24-00283G

SECOND INSERTION PUBLIC NOTICE Extra Space Storage will hold a public auction to sell personal property described below belonging to those

SECOND INSERTION NOTICE TO CREDITORS IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR FLAGLER COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION File No. 2024-CP-000618

IN RE: ESTATE OF EUSEBIO MANUEL DELGADO, a/k/a E. MANUEL DELGADO, a/k/a EUSEBIO M. DELGADO Deceased. The administration of the estate of Eusebio Manuel Delgado, a/k/a E. Manuel Delgado, a/k/a Eusebio M. Delgado, deceased, whose date of death was May 4, 2024, is pending in the Circuit Court for Flagler County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 1769 E Moody Blvd, Bldg. 1, Bunnell, Florida 32110-0787. The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below. All creditors of the Decedent and other persons having claims or demands against Decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS

AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM. All other creditors of the Decedent and other persons having claims or demands against Decedent’s estate must 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 PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. A personal representative or curator has no duty to discover whether any property held at the time of the decedent’s death by the decedent or the decedent’s surviving spouse is property to which the Florida Uniform Disposition of Community Property Rights at Death Act as described in sections 732.216-732.228, applies, or may apply, unless a written demand is made by a creditor as specified under section 732.2211.

The date of first publication of this notice is: December 19, 2024. Personal Representative: Omar Delgado 50 Points of View Warwick, New York 10990 FAMILY FIRST FIRM

Attorney for Personal Representative: /s/ Ryan J. Saboff

Beth Roland, Esquire

Florida Bar Number: 103764

Ryan J. Saboff, Esquire

Florida Bar Number: 1010852 1030 West Canton Avenue, Suite 102 Winter Park, Florida 32789

SECOND INSERTION NOTICE TO CREDITORS IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR FLAGLER COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION File No. . 2024-CP-000809 Division 48 IN RE: ESTATE OF DOREEN DUNCAN-COBB Deceased. The administration of the estate of DOREEN DUNCAN-COBB, deceased, whose date of death was September 2, 2024, is pending in the Circuit Court for FLAGLER County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 1769 E Moody Blvd, Bldg. 1, Bunnell, FL 32110. The name and address of the Personal Representative are: ELAINE VELEZ, 621 Center Avenue, Holly Hill, Florida 32117. The name and address of the Petitioner’s attorney are set forth below. All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against the decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF A DATE THAT IS 3 MONTHS AFTER THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER YOU RECEIVE A COPY OF THIS NOTICE. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons who have claims or demands against the decedent’s estate, including unmatured, contingent, or unliquidated claims, must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE.

A personal representative or curator has no duty to discover whether any property held at the time of the decedent’s death by the decedent or the decedent’s surviving spouse is property to which the Florida Uniform Disposition of Community Property Rights at Death Act as described in Florida Statutes Sections 732.216-732.228, applies, or may apply, unless a written demand is made by a creditor as specified under Florida Statutes Section 732.2211. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING

The

Service

THIRD 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 FAMILY LAW DIVISION

Case No.: 2024 DR 001045 Division: 47

Joseph NiceForo Petitioner, and Zulma Violeta NiceForo Respondent, TO: Zulma Violeta NiceForo 12364 SW 265th Terr. Homestead, FL 33030 YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action for Dissolution of Marriage with Children has been filed against you and that you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it on Joseph NiceForo, whose address is 6 Rivertown Road, Palm Coast, Florida 32137, on or before 1/10/25, and file the original with the Clerk of this Court at Kim C. Hammond Justice Center, 1769 E. Moody Blvd., Bld. 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: 12364 SW 265th Terr. Homestead, FL 33030 Dade County

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 office notified of your current address. Future papers in this lawsuit will be mailed to the address(es) on record at the Clerk’s office.

Dated: 12/4/24

CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT (SEAL) By: /s/ Makaela McCarthy Deputy Clerk Dec. 12, 19, 26, 2024; Jan. 2, 2025 24-00282G

Telephone: (407) 574-8125

Fax: (407) 476-1101

E-Mail: beth.roland@fff.law

E-Mail: ryan.saboff@fff.law

Secondary E-Mail: probate@familyfirstfirm.com

December 19, 26, 202424-00284G

SECOND INSERTION

NOTICE TO CREDITORS (summary administration) IN THE SEVENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT COURT, IN AND FOR FLAGLER COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION File No.: 24-CP-902 Division: 48 IN RE: ESTATE OF ANDREA T BIMONTE, Deceased.

TO ALL PERSONS HAVING CLAIMS OR DEMANDS AGAINST THE ABOVE

ESTATE:

You are hereby notified that an Order of Summary Administration has been entered in the estate of ANDREA T BIMONTE, deceased, File Number 24-CP-902, by the Circuit Court for FLAGLER County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 1769 E Moody Blvd, Building #1, Bunnell, FL 32110; that the decedent’s date of death was July 15, 2024; that the total value of the estate is Stocks less than $75,000 and that the names and addresses of those to whom it has been assigned by such order are: Name Address

PATRICIA V. REIGER 17995 West Amber Ridge Way Goodyear, AZ 85338 ALL INTERESTED PERSONS ARE NOTIFIED THAT: The personal representative has no duty to discover whether any property held at the time of the decedent’s death by the decedent or the decedent’s surviving spouse is property to which the Florida Uniform

Disposition of Community Property Rights at Death Act as described in Florida Statute ss. 732.216-732.228, applies, or may apply, unless a written demand is made by a creditor as specified under s. 732.2211, Florida Statutes. All creditors of the estate of the decedent and persons having claims or demands against the estate of the decedent other than those for whom provision for full payment was made in the Order of Summary Administration must file their claims with this court WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702. ALL CLAIMS AND DEMANDS NOT SO FILED WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER APPLICABLE TIME PERIOD, 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 December 19, 2024. Person Giving Notice: SANDRA CURRY 146 Palm Coast Resort Blvd, Unit 402 Palm Coast, FL 32137 Attorney for Person Giving Notice: Heather S. Maltby HEATHER@EPPGLAW.COM

Florida Bar No. 116571

E.P.P.G. Law of St. Johns, PLLC 200 Malaga Street, Suite 2 St. Augustine, FL 32084 Telephone: 904-875-3774 December 19, 26, 2024 24-00285G

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