Plant City Times &
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2015
FAIR PLAY
SWIMMING
The county fair is a treat for families.
Celi Guzman isn’t a fish out of water.
SPOTLIGHT Dancers prepare for Dancing with the Locals.
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OUR TOWN
FREE
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BOYS IN BLUE by Amber Jurgensen | Managing Editor
Locals hold Police Lives Matter rally Family and friends gathered at Police Center Drive to show support for the Plant City Police Department.
+ Church performs skit A humorous presentation of “Church Ladies” was presented at Springhead United Methodist Church Sunday, Oct.18. The skit, in honor of Laity Sunday, depicts several of the ladies found in churches everywhere. The cast, comprised of members of the Laity of Springhead United Methodist Church, worked hard to present the show. The next production will be announced after the first of the year. Members of the community are invited to attend. They are also invited to attend Springhead United Methodist Church’s trunk or treat from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31, at the church, 3208 Nesmith Road. Decorate a vehicle and bring the kids to the event.
Senior Patrol Officer Gerald Baker drove down East Alexander Street in his Plant City Police cruiser. It was 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, and there wasn’t much traffic on the thorough street that cuts in front of Police Center Drive. But there was some unusual activity in front of the Department’s entrance sign. A group of residents stood in the median with black and blue balloons and posters. He couldn’t read what they said. He waved anyway. It looked
bery suspects who, combined, hit Sonic, Arby’s, Regions Bank, Sunshine Convenience Store and a Circle K within days of each other. Baker made a U-turn to return to the station. When he got out of his car, the group approached him with boxes of goodie bags. James Vitiello gave him hundreds of Police Lives Matter rubber bracelets he ordered and paid for out of his pocket. “I’ve never seen it in 11 years, so I think it’s awesome,”
Baker said. “People call 911 when there’s a problem. Rarely do they come here to support.” Kasey Maples was one of the first to introduce herself to Baker. She was in charge, although she didn’t brag about the ownership. The rally is part of her 32 acts of kindness she has been completing since her birthday Sunday, Oct. 18. “At first it was, ‘Let’s go out there and hold signs,’” Maples said. “Which became a Facebook event.”
“Which became a madhouse,” Lisa Simmons, her friend, said. The group consisted of a network of family and friends that crossed age, race and gender barriers. Although no one was on the force themselves, there were many connections. Maples’ brother-inlaw is with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, and Simmons has friends at different agencies.
SEE RALLY / PAGE 4
Children, including Kloe Perez, dressed up for Walden Lake’s Halloween Party Saturday, Oct. 17, at the polo field. Ninja Turtles, princesses and superheros competed in a costume contest. Go to PlantCityObserver. com for more photos.
DAY OF THE DEAD
+ Strawberry tank wins award
Although the Plant City water tower painted like a strawberry at Mike E. Sansone Park won Contemporary Winner in Tnemec’s annual contest, it did not take Tank of the Year. An American flag-painted tank in Cocoa, Florida took the top honor. It was chosen out of the top 12 water tanks in the competition. The other top-voted tanks for 2015, including Plant City, were Cedarville, Ohio; Nobleton, Ontario, Canada; Lebanon, Missouri; Zebulon, North Carolina; North Newton, Kansas; Amboy, Illinois; Oak Grove, Missouri; Chesterfield, Virginia; Carrollton, Texas; and Mont Belvieu, Texas. The finalists were selected from a field of more than 200 water tanks nominated for the competition. The public cast a total of 20,703 votes online. The water tank that received the most votes was Plant City, with 5,792 votes. The highest-voted classic tank was Pittsfield, Ohio, with 82 votes. All tanks will be featured in Tnemec’s Tank of the Year calendar. Order a copy on Tnemec’s website: Tnemec.com.
to be something positive. Less than thirty minutes later, Plant City Fire Rescue called him. The group he saw earlier had goodie bags for him and his fellow officers as part of a Police Lives Matter rally. It’s something he’s not used to seeing in a job that has him patrolling the streets of the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World for dirty dealings and on-the-run perps. This month alone, two of PCPD’s biggest cases had detectives on the trail of two armed rob-
Amber Jurgensen
NOT SO LOCAL by Emily Topper | Staff Writer
Chamber warns about potential scams Some chamber members have said that a sales company is claiming it is affiliated with P.C. chamber of commerce during calls to local businesses. Clayton Jenkins is used to getting phone calls from advertising and marketing companies. But the owner of T. Clayton Jenkins Construction Inc. knew something was up when he received continuous calls in October from a company named Hometown Productions. A representative for the company, which is based out of Arlington, Texas, called Jenkins to sell advertising space.
Jenkins said the representative told him that Hometown Productions was affiliated with the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce. Jenkins was asked for his credit card information over the phone from the Hometown Productions representative, but he declined. Instead, he notified chamber President Marion Smith about the phone call. Currently, Heron Publishing, based out of New Port Richey, is the
only advertising company that is endorsed by the chamber. “There’s just so much of this going on,” Jenkins said, noting that he is frequently asked for his credit card information over the phone. “We get solicitations all day long. We live in a day and time where we just shouldn’t do that anymore.” After Jenkins notified the chamber, Smith sent out a notice to all chamber members about Hometown Productions. Following the alert, a few other local businesses called her and said they had received similar phone calls. “We tell members when we have something going on,” Smith said. This is not the first time that
a company has called businesses and said that they were affiliated with the chamber. According to Smith, members tell the chamber about these calls every two to three years. “We have probably, over the course of the last 14 years, seen two, three, four of these,” Smith said. “It’s not yearly, it’s random.” David Taylor, the customer service manager for Hometown Productions, said that sales representatives follow a script and reach out to businesses that are both affiliated with the chamber and ones that are not. However, sales
For companies that were contacted by Hometown Productions and have questions, contact customer service manager David Taylor. Toll Free: (800) 778-6195
CHAMBER HELP Questions? Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce: (813) 754-3707, marion@ plantcity.org.
SEE SCAMS / PAGE 4
INDEX Calendar........................2
HOMETOWN QUESTIONS
Vol. 3, No. 13 | One section Crossword....................15
Obituaries....................11
Sports..........................12
Weather.......................15
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