PLANT CITY TIMES &
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 4, NO. 10
FREE
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Plant City and Strawberry Crest duke it out. PAGE 16
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2016
Paying Homage Hopewell hosts 9/11 remembrance dinner. SEE PAGE 6
YOUR TOWN
When customers come here, we’re going to treat them like family. — Jessie Frier, co-owner of Blue Thumb Computer Repair
Archived The Society of Florida Archivists has announced it has selected Plant City Photo Archives and History Center Executive Director Gil Gott to receive the Judith Beale Scholarship for its annual conference in Savannah, Georgia. The Judith Beale Scholarship was established to promote educational and professional development by providing students and archival professionals with funding to enable them to attend educational opportunities. The late Judith Beale was a professional archivist and a member of the Society of Florida Archivists, and the award pays tribute to her “boundless enthusiasm for the archives profession.” Gott has been a member of the American Association for State and Local History for 15 years and has completed many educational programs, including one in the basics of archives. He has been a member of the Society of Florida Archivists for four years and will be attending his third annual meeting.
City to vote on new budget The City of Plant City’s tentative budget of over $72 million includes an investment of $290,000 in economic development organizations.
COMPUTERS TIPS AND TRICKS While Randon Trowbridge and Jessie Frier are willing to go above and beyond to fix Plant City residents’ computer issues, they do have tricks for making sure electronics last longer: 1. KEEP COMPUTERS COOL AND CLEAN “Dust and heat kills computers,” Frier said. “Keep them off of laps and off of the bed.” 2. READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS IN DOWNLOADS “Viruses can piggyback off of programs,” Trowbridge said. “Read carefully before you download.” 3. DON’T OPEN EMAILS FROM STRANGERS “Don’t open them,” Trowbridge said. “And don’t let anyone remote connect to your computer unless you know them. It’s easy to be tricked.” 4. BACK UP YOUR DATA “Use Google Drive or an external hard drive,” Frier said. “There’s nothing worse than telling people that they’ve lost all of their photos. We can help them set up Google Drive. If you love it and you don’t want to lose it, ensure that you don’t lose it.” 5. DO REGULAR MAINTENANCE
EMILY TOPPER STAFF WRITER
Like it did last year, the City of Plant City is making an economic development a top priority when determining the budget for the 2016-17 fiscal year. City Commissioners adopted the tentative budget of $72,685,271 — over a $6 million increase from the previous fiscal year — at a Monday, Sept. 12, meeting. Before the final budget is approved, a public hearing will be held Monday, Sept. 26. According to the tentative budget SEE BUDGET PAGE 4
“Internal cleaning is recommended once every six months,” Frier said. The shop cleans laptops for $50. Desktop computer cleanings are $20.
Randon Trowbridge and Jessie Frier, of Blue Thumb Computer Repair, have made it their mission to cater to the technology needs of Plant City. EMILY TOPPER STAFF WRITER
T
his summer, Randon Trowbridge and his wife, Jessie Frier, celebrated the five-year anniversary of their downtown shop, Blue Thumb Computer Repair. Over the years, the business has earned a loyal customer base. Between 25 to 30 patrons circle through the shop doors on Reynolds Street on a daily basis for assistance with hardware repair, virus removal and software updates. The millennials are enjoying the strong connection they’ve made with the Plant City community. CLEAN INSTALL
As a kid, Trowbridge’s mother insisted he take classes in computer repair. He earned most of his certifications before age 18 and went on to college to study robotics programming at the University of South Florida. During school, he worked for IT companies and electronics companies. “I saw computers get wiped,” Trowbridge said. “I saw people sometimes taken advantage of. I felt it wasn’t the right way to do things. I could do a more reliable job for a cheaper price.” He decided to open his own business at its first location by WinnDixie. While visiting Krystal Burgers, he met Frier. “I was going through a divorce,” Frier said. “I was starting over again at 26. He would come over and ask me out once a day.” A year later, the couple was married and Frier was working full time in Trowbridge’s shop. “Randon taught me pretty much everything,” Frier said. It’s a family operation. Frier spends a lot of time bent over motherboards in the back of the shop. She is responsible for solving computer hardware issues. The couple’s youngest daughter, 3-year-old Adalynn, colors nearby. Adalynn took her first steps in the shop. Daughter Haley, 13, works in the shop during the summer. While Frier works on the hardware, Trowbridge is responsible for clients and service calls. The couple’s only other employee, Mike Andrade, works on virus removSEE THUMB PAGE 4
Photos by Emily Topper
Top: Jessie Frier is responsible for hardware repairs at Blue Thumb. Above: Motherboard