03.01.18 PLCO by Plant City Observer

PLANT CITY

Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

VOLUME 5, NO. 35

FREE

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St. Clement’s shortcake.

PAGE 4

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

New ‘figs’ on the block A used LEGO store is coming to downtown Plant City. SEE PAGE 3

‘WE GOT IT’

Raiders win 5A soccer state championship. SEE PAGE 11.

YOUR TOWN New day, same great coverage The Plant City Observer is now hitting racks all over town bright and early every Thursday morning. The community-centered content is the same, but our readers will now receive the latest news one day sooner. Grab your cup of coffee, find the nearest rack next Thursday morning and enjoy the same in-depth neighborhood coverage.

Courtesy photo

Justin Kline

Plant City Observer embarks on new path The Plant City Times & Observer is officially the Plant City Observer following a mutual split from the Tampa Bay Times. OBSERVER STAFF

The Plant City Times & Observer is back to its roots. It is the Plant City Observer again. The owners of the newspaper announced Tuesday the Plant City partners have acquired the 50% stake owned by the Times Publishing Co., publishers of the Tampa Bay Times, in a friendly transaction. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. “We’re very proud to have been partners of this award-winning weekly newspaper for the past four years,” Bruce Faulmann, Tampa Bay Times vice president of Advertising and Marketing, said. “Since the purchase of the Tampa Tribune in 2016, the Tampa Bay Times has become the dai-

ly newspaper for the bay area. As we focus our efforts on the Times, we know the Plant City Observer will continue to thrive.” Ed Verner, one of the partners of Plant City Observer LLC, the group that started the paper in 2012, commented on the transaction Wednesday. “I have appreciated our joint venture with the Times, but I am happy with the direction the Plant City Observer is moving, as a home-grown, home operated, and once again home-owned small weekly newspaper," Verner said. "I look forward to continued support from our town. We are unique, as is our city, and to serve it best, we should stand on

our own.” Plant City Observer LLC’s other partners include Plant City Commissioner and CPA Nate Kilton; Felix Haynes, retired president of the Plant City campus of Hillsborough Community College; Karen Berry, publisher of the Plant City Observer and In the Field Magazine; and Sarasotabased Observer Media Group Inc. Faulmann said Tampa Bay Times subscribers will continue to receive the east Hillsborough edition of the Tampa Tribune every Friday inside the daily newspaper. The Plant City Observer will revert to delivery on ThursSEE OBSERVER PAGE 9

2018 StrawBuddy Selfie Tour Challenge The Plant City Observer’s mascot, StrawBuddy, is back for the 2018 Strawbuddy Selfie Tour Challenge. If you find him, take a selfie and post it to social media using the hashtags #BerryFest18, #PlantCityStrawbuddy and #VisitPlantCity for a chance to go to the Reba McEntire concert on March 4 or the Brad Paisley concert on March 11. The cutoffs will be 5 p.m. March 1 for Reba and March 8 for Paisley tickets. Winners will be announced March 2 and 9 and the tickets may be picked up at the Plant City Chamber of Commerce booth at the festival on the days of the shows. Come by the Plant City Observer office or visit the participating locations, which are found on plantcityobserver.com, to join the challenge.

PlantCityObserver.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

WEEK OF MARCH 1, 2018 BY THE NUMBERS

1,549

The number of homeless people counted in Hillsborough County in 2017. SEE PAGE 8.

The number of boxes of supplies Brendan Rollyson hopes to send to troops for his Eagle Project. SEE PAGE 6

The number of years Plant City High School’s team sports state championship drought lasted before Feb. 24’s soccer state title win. SEE PAGE 11.

MEETINGS PLANT CITY TOASTMASTERS 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. March 1 at The Community Room in the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce, 106 N Evers St. The meeting is for the Plant City Toastmasters Club #4051.

“This will be my first time at the Strawberry Festival, but I have heard great things about it from other artists. I really love these type of events. It may be in a smaller town, but the crowds come out to celebrate and have a good time. That always makes for a great show.”

Students perform for Black History Month

— Gary Allan, country artist. READ MORE ON PAGE 10.

RELAY FOR LIFE JUST AROUND THE CORNER

he 20th annual Relay for Life of Plant City is just around the corner. The event is for attendees of all ages and raises money for the American Cancer Society, which uses the funds for research grants and patient programs like free rides to cancer treatment and 24-hour support through the National Cancer Information Center. Register before April 27. Call the American Cancer Society at 800-227-2345 and say you’re registering for the Plant City event, or visit www.relayforlife. org/plantcityFL to register online. The event is held at the Plant City High School football stadium from 6 p.m. April 27 until 10 a.m. April 28. Sponsorships are still being accepted. A single donation of $1,500 or more made by March 7 ensures your business's name is printed on the back of the event t-shirt. All sponsors will be displayed at the event as well as in various social media outlets. Contact Laurie Curtis at laurie. curtis.rfl@gmail.com or Bonnie Gibson at bonnie.gibson@cancer. org for more information.

Plant City High School students presented performances in honor of Black History Month on Feb. 22. Students sang, read poems, danced and acted out moments throughout history like the persecution faced during pre-civil war, the Civil Rights Movement, the Harlem Renaissance and more.

Plant City’s new garden center

File Photo

There’s still time to get involved in Relay for Life of Plant City.

Abundant Gardens, Plant City’s new garden center, is now officially open. Located a quarter mile north of I-4 on Alexander Street, the center sells a variety of plants including orchids, fruit trees, palms and even fairy gardens. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do my whole life,” Duane Piercy, owner of Abundant Gardens, said. “I really want it to be more than just a place to sell plants. I want it to be an experience for people to come to.” One day, Piercy said he hopes to have relaxing nature trails on the back of the property and hopes to make Abundant Gardens the ‘go-to’ location for horticulture. The center is open from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. For more information, visit the Abundant Gardens Plant City Facebook page, go to www. abundantgardens.net or call 813-716-7835.

P R O P E R T Y M A N AG E M E N T C O M M E R C I A L R E N TA L S R E S I D E N T I A L R E N TA L S

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For questions, Contact Debbie Hoy at foxvintiques@gmail.com

Shiloh Baptist Church 905 W. Terrace Dr. Plant City, FL 33563 | (813) 752-8645 267872

PLANT CITY OBSERVER

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WH AT’S H APPENING

PLANT CITY OBSERVER

PlantCityObserver.com

Let go my

LEGO

LEGO The new Brick City Bricks used LEGO store is bringing its ‘awesome’ inventory to Plant City. BREANNE WILLIAMS STAFF WRITER

In the world of LEGO, everything is awesome and cool when you’re part of a team. Gregory Williams is hoping to carve his place in downtown Plant City with Brick City Bricks, his new used LEGO store. While the shop will feature everything from Minifigures to LEGO modulars, Williams said he is hoping to transform the establishment into a destination for his community. Only half of the building is dedicated to inventory, though the red, blue and yellow shelves hold hundreds of unique product. The back half of the establishment has been converted into a party room where children’s birthday parties, adult game nights, master builder seminars and camps can be held yearround. Never one to back down from a challenge, Williams plans on having his grand opening March 16 and 17, but will throw open the door from March 12 to 15 for spring break camps. “When kids have walked in here their jaws have just dropped,” Williams said. “They keep using the word ‘awesome,’ just like that song in the LEGO movie. And it is, it’s awesome.” Williams began collecting LEGO approximately six years ago. After around two years, he started selling his purchases at an online store. He said he saw great investment potential in buying products from the largest toy company on the planet. Plus, he said the toys themselves are a lot of fun. For years, his home was flooded with colorful bricks. He and his wife eventually decided to look around for a location in town where they could start selling the product to the community they cherish. When an opening was available in the heart of downtown, Williams said they jumped at the opportunity. Brick City Bricks features many retired sets, Minifigures modulars, individual parts and more. If you want something Williams doesn’t have, you can tell him and he will “go on the hunt.” He also knows that many in Plant City have loved ones who live out of state. If you order an item from his store, he will wrap it and have it shipped himself. To add to the experience, the LEGO movies will be playing at all times on a TV in the shop. Supporting his community is a

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

FACT S

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Photos by Breanne Williams

Top: Gregory Williams has been collecting LEGO for years and is looking forward to sharing his collection with Plant City. Above: Hundreds of LEGO sets ranging from relatively new to retired pieces are available at Brick City Bricks.

major goal for Williams. He said he plans to begin to partner with local schools to offer an incentive program for students, work with hospitals to have LEGO Christmas events and wants to begin working with veterans, a cause he holds dear to his heart in part due to his own military service. In the 1990s, Williams owned a baseball card shop in Plant City and would do trading nights once a week. He wants to implement that idea with Minifigures at the LEGO store and start offering more events to help in the movement to draw people downtown. He’ll be doing demonstrations at the Florida Strawberry Festival and plans on building a giant Plant City strawberry water tower for the 2019 event. For the grand opening, the first 50 customers on Friday and Saturday will receive giveaways and those who spend $25 will be entered into a drawing for either $100 gift cards to LEGOLAND or two passes to the theme park.

IF YOU GO BRICK CITY BRICKS GRAND OPENING When: March 16-17 Hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday through Saturday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday Where: 107 E. Reynolds St.

He said he hopes having this unique store in Plant City will help spark local children’s imagination and encourage future projects, like potentially a LEGO robotics class, in town. “With LEGO you can do anything,” Williams said. “It’s imagination. You can run wild. When kids walk in here they go straight to our build table and just start putting pieces together. They can be imaginative and build their own creations.”

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PLANT CITY OBSERVER

PlantCityObserver.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

The house that shortcake built St. Clement Catholic Church is celebrating its 45th year of the Make-your-Own Shortcake booth at the Florida Strawberry Festival and getting ready to serve its four-millionth shortcake. DANIEL FIGUEROA IV

BY THE NUMBERS

STAFF WRITER

A light breeze carried the sweet smell of fresh strawberries from Cronin Hall across the St. Clement’s parking lot and onto Alexander Street Wednesday morning, marking the beginning of the church’s 45th festival season. More than 100 volunteers gathered to prep the berries, pumping out two and a half buckets per minute as the church gets ready to ask “cake or biscuit?” for the 4 millionth time at this year’s Florida Strawberry Festival. The prep always starts the day before. Volunteers cut the berries and drop them into buckets, which are then loaded onto a conveyer belt where they are washed and sliced, then mixed with sugar and sent off to the festival. St. Clement’s iconic “topper berries” will get prepped today. “That top berry is one of the things that makes St. Clements unique,” Jessica Bazely, a spokesperson for the operation, said. “When you see a shortcake at the festival you can tell it’s a St Clement’s shortcake because of that top berry.” The line at Booth 15 in the Parke Building often stretches far and long while people wait the eight-

2017 MAKE-YOUR-OWN SHORTCAKE STATS

99,519

Number of shortcakes made

More than 5,500 Flats of strawberries

79,000

Number of cakes

25,000

Number of biscuits

4,050 lbs. Sugar

22,000 lbs. Whipped topping

minute average time to build their dream shortcake. Two crews of 37 volunteers each man the booth every day, while an average of 120 meet in Cronin Hall each morning to prep more berries. Now in its sapphire year with the festival, much of the profit made from shortcakes over the years has helped St. Clement go from a brick building downtown to its

current multi-building facility. “We literally pay the mortgage with shortcake,” Bazely said. Last year, she said the church made $200,000 from shortcake sales, and that’s after donating to local food banks, Relay for Life and a number of charitable causes. This year, the church will use some of the funds raised to bring water wells to countries like

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PLANT CITY OBSERVER

PlantCityObserver.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

SHORTCAKE SHORTCUT

1. Strawberries from a parishioner family’s farm are stemmed and loaded into buckets for prep. 2. Stemmed strawberries are loaded onto a conveyor belt and rinsed. 3. Rinsed strawberries are checked for quality and sent up the line to the slicer. 4. Sugar is dumped onto the sliced strawberries. 5. The drill-stirrer-thingy (St. Clement’s official name) mixes strawberries and sugar. 6. The strawberry mix is cleaned, topped and loaded onto a truck to find its final home atop a cake or biscuit.

3 6

at the festival in 1974. Rutherford, 78, started in 1975 when the church was still downtown. He started coming around to help his wife, who was a member of the church at the time. She died in 1985 and he became a member himself in 1986. He never stopped showing up to help cut berries. “This is a good thing going on and I always want to be part of

good things,” Rutherford said. “I am proud to be here.” Over the years, his children, who have since moved away, also became members of the church and volunteered during festival season. As long as he can hold the knife, Rutherford will keep showing up. Make-Your-Own Shortcake has evolved throughout its 45

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McFaul said, he’ll give back to the volunteers with a dinner and award ceremony. And though the festival only lasts 11 days, coordinating the creation of nearly 100,000 shortcakes per festival can take a year. “The festival ends March 11 this year,” he said. “I’ll start getting prepared March 12.”

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years. From the cleaning and sorting machines to a special unit designed to wash the topper berries, air conditioning in the booth and a partnership with Publix, which sells advanced tickets for Make-Your-Own-Shortcake in 20 of its stores. Last year, the booth made $42,000 from Publix ticket sales alone. Sometime after the festival,

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Haiti, where some have to walk miles upon miles for a five-gallon bucket of water, Program Coordinator Kevin McFaul said. Each year brings in a batch of new volunteers along with familiar faces. Some, like Ray Rutherford, have been around since nearly the beginning. St. Clement’s congregation started serving up shortcakes

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LEGAL NOTICE

Abundant Gardens

PUBLIC AUCTION STORAGE SALE

In accordance with the provisions of the Florida Self Storage Act (sections 83.801 - 83.809), there being due and unpaid charges for which the undersigned is entitled to satisfy an owner and/or manager’s lien of the goods hereinafter described and stored at the Life Storage location listed below.

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And, due notice having been given, to the owner of said property and all parties known to claim an interest therein, and the time specified in such notice for payment of such having expired, the goods will be sold at public auction at the below stated location(s) to the highest bidder or otherwise disposed of on Wednesday, 9:00 am, March 14, 2018, at 1005 South Alexander Street, Plant City, FL 33563, 813-759-9526. INVENTORY

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PlantCityObserver.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

Breanne Williams

Brendan Rollyson with a box of donations at RollysonFearnow Insurance.

Local scout collecting donations for troops for Eagle project A local Boy Scout is collecting donations for troops based out of the Plant City National Guard Armory. BREANNE WILLIAMS STAFF WRITER

When Brendan Rollyson began to plan his Eagle Scout Project venture, he knew exactly who he wanted to serve. Rollyson has been a Boy Scout since he was in fifth grade. Now a 14-year-old freshman in high school, he is pursuing the highest rank in the program, the coveted Eagle Scout. To do so, he needs to create a project to serve his community. He looked to the Plant City National Guard Armory to

find out what needs he could address in his own backyard. He found out about the 3rd Battalion 116th Field Artillery Unit comprised of more than 125 soldiers and decided to send 25 large boxes of supplies to the group. He is collecting toiletries, beef jerky, cooling towels, magazines and more to send these soldiers a “piece of home.” “Last year we did an ‘adopta-soldier’ project and I really

wanted more of a personal connection,” Rollyson said. “When you’re overseas you can sometimes feel lost and I guess kind of feel far away. But when you get stuff from people you know and your home town it will let you know you’re not that far away.” Though he has just begun, Rollyson has already raised approximately $2,500 in supplies and donations. He hopes to double that before the deadline draws near. As an Eagle Scout he will strive to be someone people can trust, a person who is known for going out of their way to help others. He said scouts has taught him to be independent, a leader and has given him skills he hopes to continue to develop for the rest of his life. Captain Rory Yarbrough from the Plant City Armory said the project comes at a perfect time. During deployment the Guard will normally have a Family Readiness Group, comprised of friends and family of those in the unit, that will donate and send supplies to the soldiers. However, he said that normally doesn’t take place until the soldiers are settled into the new location. “It takes a little while and things begin to trickle in, but for him to get ahead of the curve and start to actually procure some donations and some of the product and to get that ball rolling, this will go fairly well,” Yarbrough said. “I believe it will time up just about perfectly to where when they’re in country and settled in we’ll start having care packages delivered pretty seamlessly.” Yarbrough has been with this

battalion for 15 years and is working as Rollyson’s liaison to get the care packages to the unit. He said the dedication of citizens in Plant City to the military has always been special. “I can tell you that I have a lot of relatives in Plant City, and even going there when I just worked on the weekends, the community is just very supportive,” Yarbrough said. “I’ve always gotten comments like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe so many people stopped me to say thank you for your service and want to shake your hand.’ It gives soldiers a little bit of extra strength to be resilient and to do things that are hard when they know the community is supporting them. A lot of things get hard either on missions or at home financially and to know the community is supporting them is giving them a little bit more to rest on.” Rollyson hopes his packages will be able to give soldiers that extra layer of support, both with physical items and with letters to the troops. He has partnered with the JROTC at Plant City High School to get the letters written to send with each box. He plans to collect donations from now until the end of March. Donations can be collected at Rollyson-Fearnow Insurance and he will also set up outside of Publix a few times to collect donations. The plan is to have the packages finalized and ready to ship out at the beginning of the summer. “No one likes to be away from everyone they love,” Rollyson said. “I just hope this will give them some hope and happiness.”

AROUND TOWN

SPONSORED BY HOPEWELL FUNERAL HOME

We asked: What is your favorite fair food? Because the Florida Strawberry Festival is officially underway here in Plant City and more than 500,000 people will be walking the grounds, checking out the entertainment and enjoying the unique food over the next 11 days.

“I usually go for the gyros because I don’t really like a lot of fried foods.” — Andy Abreu, 25

“St. Clement’s, where you make your own strawberry shortcake. I make mine with a lot of whipped cream and extra strawberries.”

“Deep-fried whatever. Deepfried chocolate, cookie dough, anything.”

“Steak and potatoes. It’s always consistently good.” — Hunter Rousseau, 19

— Erin Bush, 31

— Athena Batten, 18

“Funnel cake. I get the classic with just powdered sugar. I’m a big fan of pancakes, waffles, that type of doughy food. That’s it for me.” — James LeBlanc, 62

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Back to her roots, Jayme Harris, Plant City native, PCHS graduate c/o 1990 and USAF veteran has officially opened her new boutique in Downtown Plant City. A PEACE of Plant City offers an array of boutique style retail items to include locally made strawberry-themed shirts, hats, jewelry, organic soaps, lip balm and lotions. Veteran-made pens and man cave stuff. Repurposed, refurbished and original state antique furniture and household decor. This UNIQUE BOUTIQUE is located at 120 North Collins Street, Suite 101 in the heart of downtown Plant City.

CAMERON

Daniel Figueroa IV

The building where James Meeks is alleged to have fatally stabbed Moses Wilson.

DANIEL FIGUEROA IV STAFF WRITER

For James Meeks, the honor of his race was worth a life. So he took one. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said Meeks stabbed Moses Wilson multiple times with a pocket knife late Saturday evening. Wilson, 49, died at the scene. Witnesses told police Meeks said Wilson punched him in the face and called him a “cracker,” so he had to do something about it. Meeks is white, Wilson black. “It’s bull sh—, stupid. This didn’t need to happen,” a friend of Wilson’s who witnessed the attack, but asked not to be named, said. According to HCSO, Meeks and Wilson began arguing outside of 4308 James L. Redman Parkway around 10:10 p.m. Saturday. The building operates as a garage where Wilson worked. Meeks, 23,

armed himself with the knife and began threatening Wilson. Wilson retreated inside the building and Meeks followed. A witness said Meeks told Wilson he was “going to stick his ass.” He got him twice in the left leg and once in the right thigh. Deputies arrived on scene and administered first aid to Wilson, but he died shortly after. Two witnesses identified Meeks as the culprit and deputies took him into custody. According to Meeks’ HCSO arrest report, he was read his rights, then admitted to stabbing Wilson. He said it was self-defense. The witnesses, however, said otherwise. Wilson, they said, was never armed. Meeks was booked into Orient Road Jail where he was charged with second degree murder, plus a weapons offense enhancement for using a weapon to commit murder. His bond was set at $500,000. As of Wednesday, he remains in jail.

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a full head-on collision, but a front-to-front impact.” Both vehicles deflected south into a grassy area. PCPD received a call about the crash just after noon and was on scene within 10 minutes. Upon arrival, Van Duyne said, Virgen Salgado-Feliciano, 32, the driver of the Eclipse, and her two-year-old daughter were pronounced dead at the scene. Her four-year-old son was airlifted to Tampa General Hospital with life-threatening injuries, but is expected to survive. The driver of the truck was uninjured. Van Duyne said speed is not believed to be a factor in the crash, but the disparity in size and weight of the vehicles was. The crash closed a portion of Sydney Road between Old Sydney Road and Airport Road for more than three hours Monday. Van Duyne said no charges are expected to be filed.

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A third victim was airlifted to Tampa General Hospital.

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VOLUNTEERS UNITE for accurate count of local homeless

PLANT CITY

Observer “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 / Karen Berry KBerry@PlantCityObserver.com Managing Editor / Sarah Holt SHolt@PlantCityObserver.com Associate Editor / Sports Editor / Justin Kline JKline@PlantCityObserver.com Staff Writer / Daniel Figueroa IV DFigueroa@PlantCityObserver.com Staff Writer / Breanne Williams BWilliams@PlantCityObserver.com Editorial Designer / C.J. Major CMajor@yourobserver.com Circulation/ Office Manager / Linda Lancaster LLancaster@PlantCityObserver.com

Photos by Daniel Figueroa IV

Jennifer Anderson gives instructions to Wawa, one of her homeless scouts, as he readies to lead a group of volunteers to count homeless people in East Hillsborough.

Plant City’s Hands of Hope took over coordination for the area and enlisted more than 50 volunteers to boost the Homeless Point-in-Time count’s accuracy.

Call (813) 704-6850

Advertising / Chandler Workman CWorkman@PlantCityObserver.com Advertising / Al Berry Al@InTheFieldMagazine.com

The Plant City Observer is published once weekly, on Thursdays. The Plant City Observer also can be found in many commercial locations throughout Plant City and at our office, 1507 S. Alexander St., Suite 103. If you wish to discontinue home delivery or if you wish to suspend home delivery temporarily, call Linda Lancaster at 704-6850.

DANIEL FIGUEROA IV STAFF WRITER

The sun began its slow descent across Plant City last Thursday as three of the more than 50 volunteers participating in the Tampa/ Hillsborough County Continuum of Care Point-in-Time-Count stopped for a needed break in the grass outside the Winter Visitor’s Center. They were approaching their twelfth hour of walking through the city and making trips to the parks and campsites where East Hillsborough’s homeless population are known to gather. They showed no signs of slowing and no signs of fatigue. They were ready and eager to get back out for another four hours or whatever it would take to get the job done. “I’m staying until Miss Jen kicks me out,” Allie Hayes said. “I’ve been looking forward to today. I’m real excited.” The annual count is ordered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It keeps track of local homeless populations throughout the country and helps get resources properly allocated. Locally, it’s run by the Tampa Hillsborough Homeless Initiative with deployment leads in different zones. Last year, the count netted 1,549 homeless throughout the county, with only 24 counted in the Plant City/East Hillsborough area. Local homeless advocate and Hands of Hope outreach director Jennifer Anderson knew there were more out there and put a call out for volunteers to help intensify the count this year. Preliminary numbers more than tripled last year’s 24, standing at almost 80. “There was a bit of a learning curve and there’s some things we can tweak to make better,” Anderson said. “But we had some great volunteers and all-in-all I’m really happy with it.” Much of the count’s success,

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Greg Ladislas (far right) shows (left to right) Michelle Kerns, Wendy Sciacca and Lindsay Cast his litter of eight-week-old Jack Russell Terrier-Chihuahua mixes, Nique-Nique, No-No and Streak, at the Plant City campsite where he lives.

Anderson said, was due to volunteer groups braving campsites hidden in wooded areas and being willing to work long hours trekking the city’s streets. Having current and previous homeless men and women, like Hayes and her boyfriend Patrick Baxter, helped, too. Hayes, Baxter and others acted as scouts, leading volunteer groups to known sites and acting as bridges to the sometimesguarded homeless population. When Hayes says “the struggle is real,” it’s not an ironic phrase highlighting first-world problems — she means it. She knows the stigma attached to homelessness. She’s heard it all before: “You got yourself into this” and “why don’t you just get a job.” She’s seen the dirty, judgmental looks people give her, but remains hopeful that she can pull herself out of the difficult cycle of walking from place to place in search of shelter for the night and food to survive, lugging around what few possessions you have left. It’s difficult to break the cycle when your time is consumed trying to survive, and it’s hard to fill out job applications when you can’t put an address on a tent or a tree. “I’m not homeless. I’m address-challenged,” she said. “It’s hard to find a job when you don’t have clean clothes and you haven’t showered for a week.” Hayes worked the count hoping

to bring awareness to the needs in East Hillsborough, the family of homeless people she’s become a part of aren’t looking for handouts, she said, but hands to get by. “We just want a chance,” she said. Later in the evening, as Baxter led a group of volunteers through the woods surrounding Plant City, well after the sun went down, one volunteer noted that everyone makes mistakes and for those mistakes, we shouldn’t dehumanize them. Often, she said, the difference between living in the woods under an old tarp slung over a clothesline or a mansion-sized home in Walden Lake’s Polo Place could simply be one got caught and the other didn’t. Wouldn’t you hope for help if it were you, she asked. The count went from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Some volunteers worked a few hours and some the whole day. Some worked because they’ve lived on the streets before and some worked because they remembered what it was like to get a second chance. Lesley Tipton, an ordained minister who works with the state’s corrections department, worked because it’s a calling. “The Lord called me to give them hope when they are hopeless. I’m more comfortable walking through the ‘hood’ in jeans and a t-shirt than I am behind a lectern in a dress,” Tipton said. “I guess I’ve got a heart for the

To contact us, send your information via: Email: Sarah Holt, SHolt@ PlantCityObserver.com. Mail: The Plant City Times & Observer, 1507 S. Alexander St., Suite 103, Plant City, FL 33563

“The Lord called me to give them hope when they are hopeless. I’m more comfortable walking through the ‘hood’ in jeans and a

Plant City Times & Observer is locally owned by Ed Verner, Karen Berry, Nate Kilton and Felix Haynes

The Plant City Times & Observer is published by Plant City Media LLC, a joint-venture of the Tampa Bay Times and Plant City Observer LLC.

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t-shirt than I am behind a lectern in a dress. I guess I’ve got a heart for the streets.” — Lesley Tipton, a minister and volunteer

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THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

Observer

‘I am somebody’ arly Tuesday morning, dozens of students at Lincoln Elementary Magnet School lined the stage and gave performances of influential African-Americans during their annual Black History Month performance. Everyone from Sidney Poitier to Oprah Winfrey made an appearance as the young actors shared brief summaries of their accomplishments

FROM PAGE 1

days throughout Plant City, and home delivery will be returned to Walden Lake and Pinedale with potential to increase to other areas, Berry said. “I’d like to thank our readers for their continued support,” Berry said. “We are looking forward to the next phase of this journey. Being born and raised here in Plant City, I am blessed to be a part of such a rooted community. The Plant City Observer is headed in the right direction and we, as a team, look forward to covering events and happenings, as well as promoting local businesses.”

while adorned in costumes. In between speeches, the group of students would sing and dance before the next group of leaders went to the front of the stage. As each speech was finished the young actor would point toward themselves and say, "I am somebody." Each time they finished they were met with thunderous applause. — BREANNE WILLIAMS

Students at Lincoln Elementary practiced for six weeks for the presentation to a packed house.

“I’d like to thank our readers for their continued support. We are looking forward to the next phase of this journey. Being born and raised here in Plant City, I am blessed to be a part of such a rooted community.”

Above: The young students sang songs in between the speeches. Right: At the end of each speech, the students pointed at themselves and declared "I am somebody."

Influential leaders from baseball players to astronauts were all represented at the event.

— Karen Berry, Publisher of Plant City Observer and In the Field Magazine

PATRICK SMITH’S FLORIDA IS

A Land R emembered March 8 at 7:00 PM

Bruton Memorial Library 302 W. McLendon Street, Plant City

http://alandremembered.com/plant-city Audiences all over Florida are raving about a multimedia show about Patrick Smith and his life’s work in literature. It isn’t a “book lecture” or a “talk”: It is visual storytelling produced and presented by his son Rick (Patrick Jr.), a professional media producer. Rick has created over 50 video clips, special visual and sound effects, music and more to bring his presentation to life. It has been shown over 230 times in venues all over Florida.

Photos by Branne Williams

The multi-purpose room at Lincoln Elementary Magnet School was packed with parents and friends for the performance.

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Gary Allan promises ‘soulful’ concert at festival STAFF WRITER

This year, the Florida Strawberry Festival is kicking off with one of country music’s “modern-day outlaws.” Gary Allan has been delighting listeners for decades. He has five number one country radio chart toppers, 14 Top 10 hits and his last album “Set You Free” topped the Billboard pop chart for the first time in his career. He has amassed a massive following of both fans and critics and will be on the Wish Farm Soundstage at 7:30 p.m. tonight. “This will be my first time at the Strawberry Festival, but I have heard great things about it from other artists,” Allan said. “I really love these type of events. It may be in a smaller town, but the crowds come out to celebrate and have a good time. That always makes for a great show.” Growing up, Allan said his father constantly played music around the house. He spent most of his childhood listening to greats like Merle Haggard, Willie

Nelson, Waylon Jennings, George Jones, Buck Owens and Ernest Tubb. Their music didn’t always fit the “mold,” but they refused to conform and stayed true to their sound. He said he’s adopted that policy and tried to keep his songs “authentic.” When he was young, Allan and his brother would play in a band with their father in southern California. He said they often played in a lot of bars even though he was not yet old enough to technically be in them. The concerts continued at home, where his father kept guitars and amps on display in the living room. He told his sons if they put the instruments away they would forget to play them. Allan said he was right and soon he was playing every day. Some of his most cherished memories are of playing with his family, though he said there is also something “amazing” about walking on stage and seeing thousands of people sing his songs back to him. “I’ve always felt that music evolves and you have to evolve with it or get left behind,” Allan said. “However, while music may

HITTING PAYDIRT 2300 block of Maki Road. Vehicle burglary: Complainant stated an unknown suspect broke into a lawn care crew’s fleet vehicle and stole two cell phones and two purses, which contained more than $6,020.

FEB. 21

Courtesy Photo

BREANNE WILLIAMS

DIRTY LAUNDRY 1030 block of Ashentree Drive. Residential burglary: Complainant stated a home under construction was burglarized and the washer and dryer units were stolen.

NAILED IT 1200 block of West Reynolds Street. Theft: Complainant stated an unknown suspect stole four nail guns from the bed of his truck. The guns were valued together at $475. The incident was documented and the complainant signed a waiver of prosecution.

Gary Allan is known as a “modern-day outlaw" and will be one of the first headliners to perform at the 2018 Florida Strawberry Festival.

This is Gary Allan's first performance at the Florida Strawberry Festival but he is looking forward to wowing the masses this evening.

FEB. 19

IF YOU GO GARY ALLAN When: 7:30 p.m. March 1 Where: Florida Strawberry Festival at the Wish Farms Soundstage Tickets: Available via the Florida Strawberry Festival at flstrawberryfestival.com.

evolve, you have to stay true to yourself. Each of my albums represents where I was in life at the time I cut the album. Each one is a piece of me.” To him, music is a form of therapy, a piece of himself he can use to help and move his listeners. He said he’s often found he’ll write a song about something he is feeling at the time and when it is played live the audience simply clicks with the message. The music “gives them comfort and sometimes even hope” and Allan said he thinks that’s why his songs resonate with so many different generations. Allan said fans can expect a “raucous, rowdy and soulful” concert. If you’re lucky, you may even run into Allan and his band strolling the midway in search of a juicy turkey leg.

YOU CAN’T SEE ME 3900 block of West Baker Street. Theft: Complainant stated an unknown male subject cut the power to a security camera and stole it overnight at 11:18 p.m. FEELING PARCHED 2430 block of James L. Redman Parkway. Retail theft: Complainant stated two juveniles were caught stealing a beverage by hiding it in clothing. One left and later returned to the business and the other had stayed there. Both juveniles were trespassed and returned to their parents. Complainant declined to press charges and signed a waiver of prosecution.

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COPS CORNER

MARCH 1, 2018

SPORTS

T.J. Gayner pitched a perfect game for Plant City last week.SEE PAGE 14

HIGH

Reigning Raiders 5

Plant City High School’s boys soccer team got another taste of victory this week. The Optimist Club of Plant City and Outback Steakhouse teamed up Wednesday afternoon to give the Raiders, newly-crowned state champs, dinner on the house.

File photo

The National Club Baseball Association and National Club Softball Association are bringing the Spring Training Showcase back to Plant City this month. For schedules and more info, visit NCBAspringtraining.weebly.com.

Local wrestlers competed in the Class 3ARegion 2 tourney over the weekend and several recorded top-four finishes. Strawberry Crest’s Jake Spray placed third at 126 pounds. Crest’s Chas Waller won the 152-pound bracket and Durant’s Daniel “Reese” Haley placed fourth. Crest’s Trenton Davidson placed second at 170 pounds. Crest’s Joe Hatfield took third place at 182 pounds. All five wrestlers will compete in this weekend’s state championship tournament.

Durant’s baseball team snapped a two-game losing streak Tuesday night with a 4-1 win over Strawberry Crest, which was on a two-game winning streak. Crest opens district play at Freedom tonight and the Cougars will host Plant City on Friday. Games start at 7 p.m.

Plant City Stadium and the Randy L. Larson Softball FourPlex hosted Riverview High School’s Angela Slater Tournament from March 22-24, in which both the Plant City Raiders and the Strawberry Crest Chargers played. Plant City made it to the championship game, taking a 2-0 loss to Alonso and finishing with wins over Braden River, the Chargers and Robinson. Strawberry Crest went 2-2, defeating Lake Gibson and Lake Wales but falling to the Raiders and East Lake.

Plant City beat Miami Beach, 2-1, on penalty kicks Saturday afternoon. JUSTIN KLINE SPORTS/ASSOCIATE EDITOR Photos by Justin Kline

Above: The Hi-Tides kept the Plant City offense in check for almost all of regulation. Left: Ricardo Rosales fights off a Miami Beach player for ball control. Below: Plant City players pose with their medals and trophy.

Caleb Roberts spent his entire high school athletic career trying to do something that hadn’t been done since 1982: bring a state championship to Plant City High School. On Saturday, he finally achieved the goal — as a coach — in front of hundreds of screaming fans. The Raiders won the FHSAA Class 5A state boys soccer championship in DeLand in a closelycontested battle with the Miami Beach Hi-Tides, a game that blew through two scoreless sudden death overtime periods and came down to the final penalty kick in that round. “The whole city needs a champion,” Roberts said. “There’s a lot of kids in our school that do great things.” Leonardo Acosta’s goal in the 32nd minute of play put Miami Beach ahead, 1-0, and often looked as though it may have been the only goal of the game. That’s no dig at the Raiders, though — Plant City’s offense found more success in the game’s second half and created numerous open scoring chances. The only problem was that no Plant City shots could find the back of the net from any angle of attack, and that certainly wasn’t for a lack of trying. SEE SOCCER PAGE 12

PLANT CITY OBSERVER

PlantCityObserver.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

“The whole city needs a champion. There’s a lot of kids in our school that do great things.” — Caleb Roberts, head coach

Soccer FROM PAGE 11

As the clock crept closer to zero, frustration on the Raiders’ faces became more visible. But the team finally ended its scoring drought with 2:29 left on the clock on a Paulino Ramirez header that electrified the team and the army of Plant City fans in the Spec Martin Stadium bleachers. Plant City’s defense held strong through the end of the half, then

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stopped the skillful Hi-Tides offense in back-to-back sudden death periods. “That’s the way a state championship’s supposed to be, right? Just two even teams getting after it,” Roberts said. Going into the fifth and final pair of penalty shots in the game’s final period, both teams had the same result: two consecutive goals, followed by two consecutive saves. Plant City’s David Jalomo saved Miami Beach’s fifth attempt, meaning all the Raiders had to do was put one past the Hi-

Tides’ keeper to win. Ricardo Rosales answered the call. Plant City High School’s 36-year state championship drought is over, thanks to Rosales’s last shot and, of course, the “all-in” mentality displayed by the team. “We got it. We made history,” forward Eric Ugarte said. “It’s gonna go down in the books. I’m pretty sure we’re all gonna get down and sit together and eat breakfast one day, and just talk about this season.”

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This week’s Celebrity Cipher answers

Puzzle One Solution: “Idealism allied with pragmatism ... making the world bend a bit, is very exciting ... very real ... very strong.” – Bono Puzzle Two Solution: “I was kind of a street kid, in a lot of trouble committing crimes and stuff. Music gave me something to focus on.” – Flea

This week’s Sudoku answers

This week’s Crossword answers

Photos by Justin Kline

The 2017 9-10-11 All-Stars team, which won a state championship, were given trophies for their accomplishment.

PCLL’s 2018 Opening Day I n all of Plant City Little League's years, there's never been an opening day quite like this year’s. The league's annual seasonopening ceremony, held Feb. 24 at Mike Sansone Park, was headlined by guest speaker Mark Wegner, a Major League Baseball crew chief, and performances of the national anthem and "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" by the RedHead Express. It also featured three first pitches: one by Florida Strawberry Festival Queen Ally Elizabeth Burt, one by Plant City native and professional softball player Kristen Wyckoff and one by longtime PCLL fixture Jeff Jacobsen. Jacobsen and his wife were honored with a banner that event emcee and league treasurer Rhett Rollyson said will hang permanently in the park. The league also held its firstever raffle for the occasion. Open only to PCLL teams and players, prizes given away included baseball equipment, gift cards, bubble gum, Strawberry Festival tickets and a PlayStation 4 video game console.

Kristen Wyckoff threw one of the first pitches to ring in the new softball season.

— JUSTIN KLINE

2018

The RedHead Express wowed the crowd with a pair of musical performances.

PLANT CITY OBSERVER

PlantCityObserver.com

THURSDAY, MARCH 1, 2018

JUSTIN KLINE

Sports section getting more than new look

ou’ve surely noticed by now how different the rest of the paper looks. I’m excited about all the changes we’ve made on the whole and what this enables us to do from this day forward — especially in my own neck of these woods. Our previous page size prevented us from using exactly the same styles as our colleagues around Sarasota, Orlando and so on. Getting on the same page as everyone else means the sports content we bring you week after week will be tweaked nearly across the board. If you’ve gotten to glance at the whole section today, you noticed our typical Sidelines section has been replaced by “High 5.” This section is an Observer standard — we were the only publication in the company doing Sidelines — and is not meant to be a ranking of things that happened, despite how it looks. The goal of High 5 is to draw your attention to five notable things that happened in Plant City’s sports world each week, from individual performances to new events. Sidelines may return in some capacity in the future but, for now, we’re sticking with High 5. As with Sidelines, I encourage anyone with a suggestion for an upcoming week’s High 5 to email me at jkline@plantcityobserver.com

with “High 5” in the subject line by the Tuesday morning of that week’s issue. Athlete of the Week will continue to be a standard weekly feature of the section, as will Focus on Fitness every other week. My own column may not run every week, though that would only happen when we need to fit another story or stick a large visual element into the section. The future of the Gridiron Report podcast is uncertain but, in its place, I’m considering writing a football “pick ‘em” column to run weekly during the season. We’re in the process of brainstorming other regular features to work into the section over time, whether they be purely informational or new ways to tell stories, and these will be rolled out gradually. I’m expecting the section to look quite different in the fall when prep sports come back — my goal is to have all or most new ideas in place by then so we can get a fresh start for the 2018-19 school year and evolve our preps coverage. Exciting times are on deck. Justin Kline is the Plant City Observer Associate Editor. Email: jkline@plantcityobserver.com.

OMG IT’S WEDNESDAY! PLANT CITY FARM AND FLEA MARKET Highway 39 North at Sam Allen Road—1 mi. N. of I-4 Exit 21

WEDNESDAY FLEA MARKET OVER 40 ACRES . . . MORE THAN 500 VENDORS

HIGHLIGHT REEL

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Triston Evans puts up a shot.

Green Devils eliminate Raiders

lant City went down in the Feb. 22 Class 8A regional quarterfinal, but not without a fight. The Raiders and the St. Pete Green Devils duked it out at 1 Raider Place in a highenergy, up-tempo game matched by a packed, rocking crowd. Though the two teams kept things close for much of the game, St. Pete took control in the end and advanced on a 72-63 win. — JUSTIN KLINE

Justyn King shoots from the free throw line.

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ATHLETE OF THE WEEK