Almost a year into retirement, my decision to hit the ground running and stay busy has served me well. Activities include mentoring a child at a local school, volunteering at the CARES Senior Clinic and remaining active on several community boards. ...more

December 30, 2007

The Lake Placid Jaycees have been hosting the annual Lake Placid Christmas Parade for over 35 years. Due to the small size of our club, it has become more of a project than we can handle. Unfortunately, 2006 was our last year for hosting the parade. The chamber of commerce and the town of Lake Placid have graciously agreed to step in and co-host the 2007 parade. We have always received generous accolades from the community regarding the parade and wish both the chamber and the town all the success with this event. The chamber wants to thank the Jaycees for their past contributions and have given us the honor of being the grand marshas of the 2007 Christmas Parade. We would like to share that honor with all past and present Jaycees. Contact Leah Wilson at 465-3821 if you want to join us as grand marshals. ...more

December 7, 2007

The separation of church and state is not meant to expel God from our schools or government functions. Our founding fathers established that separation so that no particular branch of organized religion could force their way of worshipping God to be the only way. One of the reasons immigrants came to the United States was so that they could be free to worship as they pleased. Separation of church and state simply guarantees that no one branch of religion, be it Protestant, Catholic, Islam, Buddhist or any of the worlds many other religions, is sanctioned by the state. To include prayers or rites from one of these religions in our schools and not include similar prayers from all of them has the effect of the state promoting that one religion. ...more

December 1, 2007

They call it "passing the trash" - the practice that allows teachers accused of sexual misconduct to quietly leave and find a new job in another town with a fresh crop of unsuspecting victims. ...more

November 19, 2007

EDITOR'S NOTE: This occasional series spotlights local school principals. This week's column features Dennis Mayo, principal at Turkey Creek Middle School, 5005 Turkey Creek Road. The school's telephone number is (813) 757-9442. ...more

October 29, 2007

EDITOR'S NOTE: This occasional series spotlights local school principals. This week's column features Dennis Mayo, principal at Turkey Creek Middle School, 5005 Turkey Creek Road. The school's telephone number is (813) 757-9442. ...more

October 22, 2007

ST. PETERSBURG - Before his suicide, St. Petersburg City Councilman John Bryan acknowledged he improperly touched one of his adopted daughters twice, St. Petersburg police said, but he said the touching was unintentional. ...more

September 11, 2007