The Fourth of July festivities in Sopchoppy ended with a spectacular fireworks display over the river.
The Fourth of July festivities in Sopchoppy ended with a spectacular fireworks display over the river. See more on Page 11.
The Fourth of July festivities in Sopchoppy ended with a spectacular fireworks display over the river.
The Fourth of July festivities in Sopchoppy ended with a spectacular fireworks display over the river. See more on Page 11.
A Fourth of July parade wouldn’t be complete without little Shriners cars. Despite the threat of rain in the forecast for Independence Day, Sopchoppy’s 48th annual Fourth of July celebration drew crowds eager to see the downtown parade, enjoy live entertainment at Myron B. Hodge Park, a fireworks display over the river and more. For more of Gerald Brown’s photos from the event, see Page 11.
A Fourth of July parade wouldn’t be complete without little Shriners cars. Despite the threat of rain in the forecast for Independence Day, Sopchoppy’s 48th annual Fourth of July celebration drew crowds eager to see the downtown parade, enjoy live entertainment at Myron B. Hodge Park, a fireworks display over the river and more. For more of Gerald Brown’s photos from the event, see Page 11.
Rotarian of the Year Niraj Patel and President Megan Smith on Thursday, June 30, at the Rotary Club of Wakulla’s new officer installation and Rotarian of the Year banquet at the Shrine Club in Crawfordville.
Rotary Club of Wakulla's outgoing president, Megan Smith, speaks during an awards and officer installation banquet Thursday, June 30, at the Shrine Club in Crawfordville.
This sign greeted those attending the Rotary event.
Before revealing the Wakulla County Rotarian of the Year for 2022, President Megan Smith described him to the crowd gathered Thursday, June 30, at the Wakulla County Shrine Club for the Installation Ceremony and Awards Banquet.
He was described in glowing terms:
True heart for service
A genuine team player
A constant, involved member of the club, year after year
Always ready to lend a hand
True passion for helping people
Rotarian of the Year Niraj Patel received a standing ovation when his name was announced, a tribute to the respect he has garnered from The Rotary Club of Wakulla County.
Noting that Patel is a “service over self kind of person,” Smith said he has a “get-the-job-done attitude.”
“Niraj has rolled his sleeves up and volunteered in many fundraising events and club activities,” she said.
County Commissioner Quincee Messersmith inducted new leaders for the upcoming year.
President Katie Taff; President-Elect Kiersten Smith, Secretary Robyn Drummond, Treasurer Greg James, Sergeant at Arms Steve Sanabria, and Past President Megan Smith.
Directors are: Tiffany Hartsfield, Amy Geiger, Jared Miller, Bill Snowden and Joe Morgan. Committee Chairs: Kiersten Smith, Membership; Niraj Patel, Foundation; Angie Bozeman, Programs; Linda Oaks, Special Projects; Audrey Frazier, Public Image; Heather Bryan, Interact; and David Pienta, Youth Exchange.
The Rotary Club of Wakulla County was chartered in 1988, and meets Thursdays at 8:30 a.m. at the TCC Wakulla Center.
Adrion Mancilla prepares food to sell to help raise money for his mom’s medical bills.
Adrion Mancilla shows off one of his yummy-looking street tacos.
In early May, Wakulla resident Keith Godden saw a young man selling hot chicken and pork tamales in the parking lot of a Dollar General Store.
“Something told me to stop,” Godden said. When he learned that eighth-grader Adrion Mancilla was out in the heat trying to raise money for his mother’s medical bills, Godden began spreading the word. WCTV6 picked up the story, and the community has continued to rally around Mancilla to support his fundraising efforts for his mom, Amanda Kelly.
Kelly became blind five years ago and has had at least 15 surgeries on her eyes since then. She also has stage 4 kidney disease, fluid around her heart, anemia, and debilitating migraines. She is currently recovering from surgery and spent three days back in the hospital this past week. Kelly is on the waiting list for a kidney transplant and describes the past few years as a “rollercoaster. I’m so proud of Adrion,” she said. “Not a lot of 15-year-olds would do this.”
Usually, Mancilla makes different menu items each week, taking pre-orders when possible. This past week, Adrion had a little help from Manna Express. Volunteers Keith Whitfield, Dawn Monteith, Madison Loree and Carla Whitfield teamed up to provide a barbecue fundraiser on Monday, June 27, earning a little more than $1,400 for the family.
“We were proud to join with a fine young man, Adrion Mancilla. What a great feeling to be able to help in some small way,” Keith Whitfield said.
The level of responsibility that Mancilla has taken on is foreign to many teens. While his dad and grandfather are working extra hours, Mancilla has been helping with his siblings, ages 6, 9 and 14, and whipping up dishes such as street tacos, lasagna, enchiladas, spaghetti, and empanadas to raise funds for his mom’s treatments. His choice to enroll through FLVS as a home-school student has given him more time to help with his mom’s medical bills, housing necessities, and transportation expenses for appointments and treatments.
“She does everything in her power to keep us happy,” Mancilla said, praising his mom. “She helps out as much as she can. Even though she’s legally blind, she still cooks dinner for us most nights. I try to take on the responsibility when she’s feeling really sick.”
Mancilla said he started cooking with his grandma and mom when he was younger, even winning the Future Chef Competition when he was in fifth grade with Ginger Butter Salmon on top of vegetable stir fry.
“Seeing them cook so much made me want to cook,” he said. “I can use that skill now.”
“I’m just trying to relieve some of the stress off of her,” Mancilla said. “Anything and everything others can do to help is greatly appreciated.”
Donations can be made to the family on their GoFundMe Page.
At the Feb. 22 meeting of the Wakulla County Commission, commissioners asked staff to research aquifer vulnerability and cave systems and how they could be affected by – and protected from – commercial development.
This came in the wake of a vote against allowing plans for a proposed gas station to move forward.
According to background information for the June 20 BOCC meeting, the standards for groundwater protection and hazardous waste administration are overseen by state agencies.
Planning and Development Director Somer Pell said county staff had met with geologists, and representatives from Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which is responsible for most of the monitoring and assessment. FDEP will not help with developing ordinances at the local level.
Other stakeholders at the April 27 meeting also included Scott Sigler, the county’s environmental consultant, and Robert Deyle, representing the Wakulla Springs Alliance. The discussion included establishing areas of high vulnerability and reviewing processes including adoption new ordinances, karst feature analysis requirements ad/or springs protection areas.
According to the background information, one obstacle in making requirements site-specific is that the technology to determine the exact location of a cave system or karst feature is considered imprecise as it pertains to property development, and an ordinance based on a site survey of underground features would restrict land use based on unsubstantiated data.
Staff determined that it would be better to rely on aquifer vulnerability study findings to identify and protect vulnerable resources.
At the June 20 meeting, Deyle said there was no reason a setback requirement couldn’t be adopted to protect cave systems.
“Setbacks around caves are not novel,” he said.
He encouraged commissioners to use the presence a cave system to define a special planning area, and if a parcel has an underground cave system, to require onsite geological data collection and consult with experts whenever a proposed commercial project could involve hazardous materials that could harm ground water.
Cal Jamieson, a member of the Wakulla Springs Alliance and the Wakulla Soil and Water Conservation District, said he was speaking on his own, but he believes the monitoring systems in place for the caves to be accurate. He said the process involves divers going down 100 to 200 feet into the underground cave system and deploying radio beacon monitoring.
Commissioner Ralph Smith said any fuel spill in the county would be bad, but it’s important to define the problem beyond people who don’t want a gas station.
Commissioner Randy Merritt said they could apply a protection ordinance to the entire Wakulla Springs protection area and any proposed commercial project that would involve hazardous chemicals would be required to have additional hydrogeological/geological studies to see that’s under the site.
He also said he would have voted for the gas station project because it met the requirements.
“If we don’t like the standard, we need to change the standard,” he said, provided it’s done fairly.
Edwards said the county’s environmental consultant would help the county develop best management practices.
Commissioners voted 5-0 to accept the staff update and move ahead with using environmental consultants to draft an ordinance.
The Wakulla County Audit Committee will have a public meeting at 10 a.m. July 12, 2022, in the Board of County Commissioners Administration Conference Room, 3093 Crawfordville Highway, Crawfordville. For information, call 850-926-0919.
The Wakulla County Tourist Development Council will have a public meeting at 9 a.m. July 14, in the M.H. Forke Lodge at Sherlock Springs, 2335 Bloxham Cutoff Road, Crawfordville.
The Wakulla County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee will have a public meeting at 10 a.m. July 19, 2022, in the Wakulla County Fire Rescue Conference Room, 318 Trice Lane, Crawfordville.
The Wakulla News will host a Speed Volunteering event at 10 a.m. Thursday, July 14, at Wakulla County Public Library, 4330 Crawfordville Highway, Crawfordville.
Adults and students will have the opportunity to spend a few minutes with each participating nonprofit, create a craft for Big Bend Hospice, and earn community service hours. This is a great opportunity to learn how to make a difference in this community.
Drivers will encounter traffic disruptions on the following state roads in the county:
U.S. 98 Resurfacing from East of U.S. 319 (Crawfordville Highway) to West of the Wakulla River Bridge – Motorists will encounter intermittent lane closures from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. through Friday, July 8, for paving operations.
All planned construction activities are weather-dependent and may be delayed or rescheduled in the event of inclement weather. Motorists are reminded to pay attention to the speed limit when traveling through the construction area, to watch for construction equipment entering and leaving the roadway, and to use caution when driving through the work zone. Speeding fines double when workers are present.
For more information visit the Florida Department of Transportation District Three on the web at www.nwflroads.com.
