PLANT CITY TIMES &
bserver
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD. VOLUME 3, NO. 34
FREE
Plant City’s flag football season heats up. Sports, page 17 •
FRIDAY, MARCH 25, 2016
They want your vote Who will be your candidate for the April 5 City Commission election? Page 3
YOUR TOWN Green day
On St. Patrick’s Day, members of the Plant City Daybreak Rotary Club were rolling in the green. The club sold $440 worth of burgers and hot dogs at O’Brien’s Irish Pub to raise money for South Florida Baptist Hospital’s intensive care unit addition. Hamburgers were donated by George Banning and Wendy’s. Among Rotarians present was the hospital president, Karen Kerr. Daybreak Rotary meets Mondays at 7 a.m. at South Florida Baptist Hospital’s Community Conference Room, 301 N. Alexander St.
IN FOCUS
HAPPY EASTER, PEEPS P
lant City will be dotted with pastel-colored eggs March 27, as Easter Sun-
Eason Beers sought out hard-to-find eggs.
day welcomes spring.
First United Methodist
Church of Plant City held its Easter event early, but there will be plenty of other hunts, breakfasts and services to enjoy this weekend. For a list, go to page 2. To
Goo Goo Gaa Gaa Baby Parade winners too cute to handle. See page 7
see more pictures from First United Methodist Church, visit PlantCityObserver.com. — AMBER JURGENSEN
Photos by Emily Topper
Adalee Szczech-Johnson had no problem filling her basket.
Train-tootin’ Fun Plant City’s RailFest 2016 is set for first week of April. EMILY TOPPER STAFF WRITER
Emily Topper
Bennie Lubrano, the executive director of the museum, will auction off a signed copy of the Robert W. Willaford Railroad Museum dedication book at RailFest 2016.
Plant City residents won’t want to lose track of a popular event set for the first week of April. RailFest 2016 will be chugging into town Saturday, April 2. This is the third year the family-friendly event has been held and the second time it has been hosted by the Robert W. Willaford Railroad Museum. In 2014, the City of Plant City hosted the event for the dedication of the rail museum. Bennie Lubrano, executive director at the Robert W. Willaford Railroad Museum, said that this year’s event will have activities for train aficionados of all ages.
FOR THE KIDDOS
Like any good festival, RailFest 2016 will have the classic kid favorites: bounce houses, face painting, a balloon artist and cornhole. But this year, a name for for the museum’s bright-red caboose, displayed on the yard of the museum, will be chosen from suggestions from train-loving tots. Children who attend KinderCare, A+ Learning, Kids’ World and First Baptist Church of Plant City, as well as special education students at Plant City High School, each received a train picture to color earlier this month. Once the SEE RAILFEST PAGE 4
SPONSORS AND CONTRIBUTORS The following companies and organizations are sponsoring RailFest 2016: n Jarrett-Scott Ford n CSX n City of Plant City n Felton’s Market n Hopewell Funeral Home n Smokin’ Aces BBQ n SouthEast Caulking & Sealant n Lubrano Designs n HYDE Knife n Johnson Barbeque n CSX, Tampa office