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GULFPORT – Gulfport’s Get Rescued Animal Rescue Festival & Fun-raiser is returning for its 21st year with up to 50 animal rescue groups.

The event takes place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Feb. 22 at 3000 Beach Blvd. S.

“We’re so excited to be back for our 21st anniversary,” Suzanne King said. “This event is a great way to learn about animal rescue, meet adoptable pets and support local businesses. We hope everyone will come out and join us for a fun-filled day.” 

The event will feature pet-friendly vendors, pet-care education, animal training demos, the Florida Weiner Dog Derby and raffles. 

All leashed people and well-behaved pets are welcome. There is no admission fee to attend and plenty of convenient complimentary parking will be available throughout the area.

Proceeds from the event support participating rescue groups. Last year’s event raised over $9,000 and was donated to 26 rescue groups.  Participation is free for 501c3 Animal Rescue Groups.

“Find your paw-fect match at Get Rescued because love is just a wag away,” said Francia Vogini of Husky Haven of Florida Inc.

Email or text 727-417-5494 for more information on Gulfport’s Get Rescued Animal Rescue Festival & Fun-raiser.

The Pasco County Board of County Commissioners authorized several developments this month.

• The recording of a plat with Performance Guarantees in the amounts of $25,677,346.28 and $230,998.80 requested by Forestar (USA) Real Estate Group, Inc. was approved to cover the cost of incomplete infrastructure improvements remaining to be done for 261 single-family detached lots on 132.67 acres in the Wyndfields subdivision, approximately 1,200 feet south of State Road 56, west of Two Ridges Road in south Pasco County.
• Also approved was the recording of a plat with a performance guarantee in the amount of $12,807,810 requested by Taylor Morrison of Florida, Inc. to cover the cost of incomplete infrastructure improvements remaining to be done for 274 single-family detached lots in the Esplanade at Wiregrass subdivision on the north side of Chancey Road, approximately 0.4 miles east of Wiregrass Ranch Boulevard in south central Pasco County.
• Approved the recording of a plat with a performance guarantee of $6,952,863.50 requested by EPG Two Rivers Holdings X, LLC to cover the cost of incomplete infrastructure improvements remaining to be done for 183 single-family detached lots on 124.62 acres in the Two Rivers subdivision east of U.S. Highway 301 (Gall Boulevard, south of State Road 56, in southeast Pasco County.
• Also approved was the recording of a plat with a performance guarantee in the amount of $5,617,365.31 requested by Caroline Drive SFR Owner, LLC, to cover the cost of incomplete infrastructure improvements remaining to be done for 150 attached townhomes on 40.22 acres in the Skymore Wesley Chapel subdivision on the north end of Caroline Drive, west of Bridleford Drive in south central Pasco County. 
• Approved the recording of a plat requested by M/I Homes of Tampa, LLC for the replat of 42 single-family detached lots on 4.995 acres in the Cobblestone subdivision on the east side of U.S. 301 (Gall Boulevard), south of Chancey Road, in east Pasco County.
• Agreed to contract the boundaries of the AR-1 Community Development District owned by LEN-Angeline LLC down from 2,441.787 acres to approximately 1,782.52 acres. The CDD, which is located entirely within the unincorporated portion of Pasco County, was created through an ordinance the commissioners adopted on June 30, 2020. 

The applicant said contracting the boundaries of the CDD would provide for a more efficient use of resources. The development’s contraction would also benefit Pasco County and its residents outside the District by increasing the ad valorem tax base of Pasco County and generating water and wastewater impact fees. This would assist Pasco County to meet its obligations to repay certain bonded indebtedness and transportation and other impact fees as well, the applicant said.

• Agreed to expand the boundaries of the Mirada II Community Development District from approximately 801 acres to approximately 882.11 acres in total. This will be made possible by adding two parcels of land, which are approximately 64.97 acres and 15.55 acres, respectively into the district.

It is located entirely within the unincorporated portion of Pasco County and was created through an ordinance the County Commissioners adopted on Aug. 7, 2018. 

The development’s expansion would also benefit Pasco County and its residents outside the District by increasing the ad valorem tax base of Pasco County and generating water and wastewater impact fees. This would assist Pasco County to meet its obligations to repay certain bonded indebtedness and transportation and other impact fees as well, the applicant said.

• Approved a Comprehensive Plan Amendment to change the Future Land Use (FLU) classification from RES-6 (Residential 6 – Du/Ga) to COM (Commercial) on approximately 0.94 acres located at the southeast corner of the intersection of Veridian Way and State Road 54 that was requested by David Springstead, authorized representative for Rajasekaran Mani, agent of record. 

A physician’s office and supporting businesses consisting of a pharmacy and testing facility to provide a single destination for patients will be allowed on the site that will be known as the Wesley Chapel Professional Center.

• Commissioners also confirmed the appointment of David Allen to the position of assistant county administrator, development services, with an annual salary of $205,000.00, and a start date of Dec. 26, 2024.

 

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The Pasco Sheriff’s Office said it arrested a man for human trafficking after learning that he was trying to get other men online to train a child in his custody to carry out sexual fantasies. 

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children passed on information about the suspect to the Pasco Sheriff’s Office. Detectives said the suspect was having conversations online with other individuals about a child, who was elementary school age, in his custody. 

The suspect told others online about his fantasies with the child and that he was offering her to them to train. The suspect had sent photos of the child in a bathing suit. 

Detectives intervened before anything happened to the child. Sheriff Chis Nocco said the other individuals were in New Jersey, Alabama, Illinois and the United Kingdom. 

The suspect, identified as Jean Cebollero-Arias, 46, was arrested on charges of human trafficking involving a minor in his custody. 

“The death penalty is never good enough for individuals who are arrested for this,” Sheriff Chris Nocco said. “I know it’s a life charge. But there’s worse things that these people deserve because what these children have to go through is horrendous.”

Nocco said human trafficking investigations generally pull staff from two areas: cybercrimes and missing persons. They call it the missing and exploited persons unit. 

To extend their resources, the Pasco Sheriff’s Office is starting a volunteer unit called Operation Phoenix. This group will work with detectives in going through open source information. Volunteer at https://joinpso.com/.

“You get a lot of young girls that run away,” Nocco said. “They go online. They go into a social media site. They believe they’ve fallen in love with somebody who’s their age. And what they find out is that person is not their age. They find out that person is now using them for sex, selling them.”

Another growing problem is sextortion. After sending nude photos, victims are forced into doing something they don’t want to do if they want to prevent their photo from being sent to all their friends on social media. 

Nocco encouraged families to have conversations with children about these online dangers. 

He also cautioned about getting caught up in the rumors spread on neighborhood sites about people getting swept up by human trafficking.

Nocco encouraged residents to seek the truth and ask those sharing such information if they have notified the sheriff’s office. He said people have told him they heard someone was kidnapped from a particular shopping location. If that were the case, Nocco said the community would see the largest police presence they’ve ever seen. 

“Let’s get to the truth,” Nocco said. “Let’s get to the reality because there’s already enough fear and anxiety out there, but really, if we can just use our power to go save people together, that makes us more efficient.”

 

I’m a big believer in history and pausing at least for a second and looking backwards.

Today’s the start of semester two, which means we ended semester one. 

Semester one was a very, very challenging semester. And I think we need to recognize that because there’s some issues that we are seeing as a result of that. 

Just pause and take a moment to reflect. 

In August and September, we saw an exponential, remarkable increase in the number of school threats that disrupted many of our schools and their academic time daily in the months of August and September. 

By the grace of God, those numbers seem to be going down. It is still a challenge. But it was at a crisis level in those first two months. 

That brought us into October, where we had back-to-back hurricanes, where school was closed in essence, for almost two weeks straight. As you know, when you close school for two weeks straight, you lose routine. You lose rhythm. You lose kind of discipline structures. 

We have to start all that back up, which brought us right into the holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

We experienced significant disruptions during semester one. And our student data is showing that. 

Our student data is showing that our students need stability. They need classroom time. Our teachers need to be able to support and block out that distraction.

As we head into semester two, we have time. We have time to make up those academic losses, if you will. But we have to lock arms and we have to work together to commit to allow our teachers to be in those classrooms to focus on what matters most – student learning  – especially in the second semester.

The reason why Is there is no semester three. This is it. For many of our students, this is the time. This is graduation time. This is the opportunity for achievement. This is acceleration time. 

I’m mentioning that to you because semester one was a challenge filled with distractions. I hope all of us, and I know we will, but let’s work together to protect that learning time in semester two. 

Support our teachers, so they can focus on what matters most. And that’s our student learning. 

 

Superintendent John Legg made these remarks Jan. 13 during the Pasco County Schools school board meeting.

With healthier eating on the forefront of people’s minds going into the new year, the slow cooker is a great option to eliminate the temptation of stopping for fast food after a long day when you know that a meal is waiting for you once you get home.  

I use my slow cooker regularly, especially in the colder months when soups and chilis make the perfect comfort food.  

If yours has been collecting dust, or you made it your New Year’s resolution to eat healthier meals at home, I encourage you to make your slow cooker one of your go-to kitchen appliances.  

Or, at least experiment with it and see how you can fit it into your lifestyle.  

The history of the slow cooker as we know it goes back to the 1930s.  

But the concept of it dates back to the 18th century, when Jewish families in eastern Europe would prepare a traditional stew for Shabbat.  

Because cooking wasn’t allowed on Shabbat, the day of rest, they would bring pots of stew to a bakery the day before and leave it in the ovens overnight.  

The residual heat from the ovens as they would slowly cool would cook the stew for several hours, according to Smithsonian Magazine.

Fast forward to the 1930s, when electrical engineer and Jewish American inventor Irving Nachumsohn started his own company focusing on his inventions, Naxon Utilities Corp.  

He was aware of the stories of families using bakery ovens after hours to cook stew on Shabbat because his family experienced it themselves and he grew up hearing about it.  

This was his inspiration for the “low and slow” cooking method, while also solving the problem of allowing a warm family meal to be prepared without heating up the home in the summer.

He was granted a patent in 1940 for what he called the Naxon Beanery, but it didn’t gain much traction, with mostly coffee shops and diners being marketed to.

The turning point came when he sold his business to Kansas City’s Rival Manufacturing, when they acquired multiple products invented by Nachumsohn.  

At first, the slow cooker was seen as more of an afterthought.  

The company’s team of home economists were assigned to assess the Naxon Beanery’s practicality, where they quickly realized just how versatile it is.  

It was renamed Crock Pot, and the home economists created numerous dishes to go in a recipe booklet that came with each device.  

It was revealed by Rival at Chicago’s 1971 National Housewares Show.  

The timing was perfect: with more women entering the workforce in the ‘70s, advertising was heavily focused on working moms.  

Sales went from $2 million in 1971 to $93 million in 1975.  

Other companies eventually entered the slow cooker market, and now 70% of American households are said to have a slow cooker.  

There’s nothing like being welcomed home by the smell of dinner after a long day.

Besides saving time, the slow cooker also saves money on your electric bill and grocery budget; it uses less electricity than the oven and doesn’t overheat the house when cooking in the summer, and it tenderizes cheaper cuts of meat.  

Cooking food on “low” will cook the food in six to ten hours, and cooking food on “high” will cook it in four to six hours.

 

Slow Cooker Pork Roast (Iowa State Extension)

Ingredients:

Juice of one orange

Juice of one lime

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 cup water

1-3 pound pork roast (recipe nutrition was analyzed using a 3 pound pork loin roast)

1 onion, sliced

 

Instructions:

1. Stir the orange juice, lime juice, garlic powder, cumin, salt, ground black pepper, and water together in a small bowl.
2. Spray a slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Cut the pork roast into large chunks (about 3 inches by 3 inches). Place in bottom of slow cooker.
4. Pour the juice mixture over the pork. Top with the onion slices.
5. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Pork should be cooked to a minimum temperature of 145°F.
6. Shred the pork with a fork and serve.

 

Shari Bresin is the Family & Consumer Science Agent for the University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Cooperative Extension Pasco County, An Equal Opportunity Institution.

 

DADE CITY –  Laura Henderson is not only the vice chair of the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking but she is also a survivor of the crime. Henderson said last year marked the 10th year since the commission was formed.

“As we continue our efforts of spreading awareness, continued education and stronger prevention, it is imperative that we continue listening to survivors,” Henderson said. “Being survivor-led and being survivor-informed, the survivors’ voice is the most important one. But we, including myself, cannot stand alone and push forward in this fight without everyone taking a stand and doing their part.”

Henderson was among leaders representing the group Jan. 14 as Pasco County commissioners adopted a resolution declaring January 2025 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. The resolution encouraged citizens to “participate in education, awareness, advocacy and prevention efforts to combat human trafficking.”

Liana Dean, chair of the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking, credited Henderson for the value she brings to the organization, highlighting her input on initiatives and guidance for delivering an appropriate message to the populations they serve.

“Everything that we do is geared towards helping (human trafficking survivors) to thrive and to grow after they leave the life and to support their efforts to lead this movement,” Dean said. 

The resolution states there were 680 cases of trafficking involving 1,172 victims, with 181 being children, statewide in 2023. It also acknowledges that human trafficking continues to occur in Pasco County. 

“Through the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking, our community has united to combat this horrific crime and restore dignity to survivors by  bringing  together  the  sectors  deemed  critical  to  effectively  combat  human  trafficking,  such  as  law enforcement, schools, child welfare, nonprofits, businesses, faith-based organizations, survivors, and more,” according to the resolution. “Despite  these  dedicated  local  efforts,  more  awareness,  education  and  advocacy  are needed  to  eradicate  human  trafficking.”

Pasco County Commissioner Lisa Yeager said she was pleased to sponsor the resolution. 

“This important initiative serves to raise awareness, educate the public and empower individuals, families and our community to take a stand against these horrific crimes,” Yeager said. “Together we can strengthen our collective efforts to prevent human trafficking and support survivors on their path to healing.”

Commissioners Jack Mariano, Ron Oakley and Kathryn Starkey also thanked the group for its work.

“This is such an important group and it just pains me to hear that we still have sex trafficking going on in our county with all the awareness we’ve tried to bring to this issue,” Starkey said. “That it still goes on here is upsetting.”

Visit facebook.com/knowmorepasco to learn more about Pasco County’s efforts to stop human trafficking. 

 

RESOLUTION NO. 25-094

A  Resolution  by  the  board  of  county  commissioners  of  Pasco County, Florida, declaring the month of January as National Slavery And Human Trafficking Prevention Month and January 11, 2025, as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day in Pasco County

WHEREAS,  human  trafficking  is  a  crime  against  a  person  whereby,  through  exploitation,  an individual is compelled to work or engage in a commercial sex act through force, fraud, or coercion, thereby being stripped of their rights and humanity. Traffickers typically use multiple means to control their victims, including  beatings,  rape,  isolation,  forced  drug/alcohol  dependency,  withholding  of  documentation,  and psychological and emotional abuse; and

WHEREAS, the International Labor Organization conservatively estimates that there are over 49.6 million victims of human trafficking worldwide, and that this crime is second only to the illegal drug trade in terms of the speed of its growth and the profits that it generates, as human beings can be sold repeatedly; and 

WHEREAS, human trafficking has been reported in all fifty states. Florida consistently ranks third in the nation in both the number of calls made to the National Human Trafficking Hotline (NHTH) and the number of cases identified. In Florida in 2023, there were 680 identified cases of trafficking involving 1,172 victims, with 181 being children; and

WHEREAS, human trafficking is occurring in Pasco County. Through the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking, our community has united to combat this horrific crime and restore dignity to survivors by  bringing  together  the  sectors  deemed  critical  to  effectively  combat  human  trafficking,  such  as  law enforcement, schools, child welfare, nonprofits, businesses, faith-based organizations, survivors, and more; and  

WHEREAS,  despite  these  dedicated  local  efforts,  more  awareness,  education,  and  advocacy  are needed  to  eradicate  human  trafficking.  Every  resident  of  Pasco  County  is  called  upon  to  declare  that  the exploitation of people for profit has no place in our world, and that we need to work together to restore freedom, dignity, and justice to all; and

WHEREAS, January is annually declared as National Slavery Human Trafficking Prevention Month and January 11th as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day.   

NOW,  THEREFORE,  BE  IT  RESOLVED  by  the  Board  of  County  Commissioners  of  Pasco County, Florida, that said Board hereby declares January 2025 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month in Pasco County, Florida, and that all citizens are encouraged to participate in education, awareness, advocacy, and prevention efforts to combat human trafficking. 

DONE AND RESOLVED in regular session with a quorum present and voting this 14th day of January 2025.

 

DADE CITY – Pasco County Planning Commission members agreed by a vote of 6-1 on Jan. 9 to recommend the Board of County Commissioners impose a yearlong moratorium on new development within the Connected City.

The Connected City is a special planning area of 7,900 acres situated mostly in Wesley Chapel. Metro Development Group is the area’s primary developer.

A comprehensive plan amendment adopted in 2017 designates it as a Community Hub Zone, a Business Core Zone, North and South Innovation Zones and an Urban Core Zone.

The recommendation for the moratorium was made following a lengthy discussion concerning a rezoning request made by Xtreme Team 41 LLC. 

The Tampa-based company is seeking to rezone 38 acres in the Connected City’s Community Hub Area changed from an Agricultural District to a Connected City Master Planned Unit Development District. 

The zoning change would make it possible for the applicant to build the Tall Timbers development that would consist of 380 multifamily dwelling units – 216 apartments and 164 townhomes – and 180,000 square feet of nonresidential uses. 

During its meeting on Jan. 14, commissioners continued until March 11 a public hearing regarding the request for the rezoning for the proposed Tall Timbers project.

Planning Commission member Jon Moody made the motion to recommend the commissioners approve Xtreme Team 41 LLC’s rezoning request and Chairman Charles Grey seconded it. Planning commission members Derek Pontiltz, Chris Williams, Moody and Christopher Poole voted in favor of the rezoning request on Jan. 9 while Grey, Vice Chairman Jaime Girardi and member Matthew Muntz voted against it..

Moody’s motion called for modifying item 50 of the conditions. That condition originally said in part that no stormwater ponds or wetland mitigation areas could be located within the Service Ready Site Acreage site or Mixed-Use areas as depicted on the Master Plan Unit Development Master Plan. 

The modification of that condition was that stormwater ponds or floodplains could be located in part of the Mixed-Use area. That could result in a minor reduction in the number of townhomes that could be developed there.

The following uses will be limited within the Service Ready Site Acreage to preserve adequate land within the Connected City for the most desirable land uses (office, industrial and manufacturing) positively affecting economic development.

This occurred after Michael Pultorak, who organized the more than 1,100 members strong Pasco Connected City Residents Group on Facebook, expressed some concerns to planning commissioners.

He lives on Kenton Road near where Tall Timbers could possibly be developed.

A large part of the Connected City as it was originally designed called for parks, nature trails and recreational areas. None of those have been developed in there so far, Pultorak said.

“The Community Hub Zone is not designed for a parcel. It isn’t designed for vertical integration,” Pultorak said. “The Community Hub is the center point of the entire Connected City to have parks, recreation and a place where people want to live. Every rezoning project so far has turned into another subdivision with a playset for the people that live in it.”

The Connected City’s comprehensive plan did include a district park in the Community Hub Area, according to Chief Assistant County Attorney David Goldstein. It now appears the Connected City’s master plan needs to be changed because it isn’t likely a district park will be developed in the Community Hub Area, Goldstein said.

This is partially because the master plan prepared by the county’s Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Department didn’t include a district park there and a funding plan to put a district park in Connected City hasn’t been established, according to Goldstein.

However, David Engel, the county’s planning and economic development director, told Planning Commission members that “internal leadership discussions” have been held about possibly providing a park for the Connected City.

“I don’t have any official capacity to make an announcement, but I don’t want the public nor the Planning Commission to think that we’re just sitting on our hands,” Engel said. “We are working on something right now.”

 

DADE CITY – When asked why trees are so important, Pasco County arborist Mike Woodard points to how they protected his property from Hurricane Milton’s powerful winds.

Woodard lives on a one acre lot that’s mostly forested. The hurricane’s winds brought down a few broken branches from the tree groupings but toward the front of the lot where he cleared some trees for his home, winds brought down some larger branches and and damaged his well.

“If I had had full trees all around my home, it wouldn’t have been able to damage my well and I would have come through unscathed,” Woodard told county commissioners Jan. 14. “When we have the new developments, the trees are really important.”

Woodard is working wth Keep Pasco Beautiful to educate the community about trees. 

Keep Pasco Beautiful is celebrating Arbor Day on Jan. 17 with a tree-planting seminar in Dade City and a tree giveaway in New Port Richey. The effort focused on the firebush and fringe tree. 

“One of the goals with these is to encourage people to know how to plant it right from the start,” Woodard said. “We picked two smaller species so that homeowners can easily take care of it at home themselves without having to call to have someone come out and pay that extra money for a large branch that needs removed. They can go out with their snippers and just take care of their little tree. They can sit out and enjoy it and they can be underneath it still for the shade because as we know summertime it’s brutal.”

Lottie Kelly of Reworld, has served on the board of directors for Keep Pasco Beautiful for 25 years. She’s has pitched in for cleanings, plantings and providing leadership to the organization.

“It’s something that we really believe in at Reworld Waste and something I believe in personally,” Kelly said. “We’re happy to be once again giving out our trees for Arbor Day. It’s a great thing to get people involved and planting native plants and educate.”

Pasco County commissioners not only approved a approves a resolution declaring Jan. 17, 2025, as Arbor Day in Pasco County, but they also voted to give Keep Pasco Beautiful $3,000 toward their tree planting efforts. 

“This is one of my favorite things,” Commissioner Kathryn Starkey said. “I’m so glad we’re back giving out more trees in this county.”

Ligia Martello Buchala, executive director for Keep Pasco Beautiful, thanked commissioenrs for their support. 

 

A resolution by the board of county commissioners of Pasco County, Florida, declaring Jan. 17, 2025, as Arbor Day in Pasco County

WHEREAS, Arbor Day was first observed in 1872 with the planting of over one million trees in Nebraska; and

WHEREAS, Florida has celebrated Arbor Day on the third Friday in January since 1886; and

WHEREAS, trees are important in that they remove CO2 and pollutants, therefore reducing the “heat island effect”. Trees also preserve soil by decreasing storm water run-off, and provide shade and shelter for many animals; and

WHEREAS, trees are a renewable resource giving us paper, wood for our homes, fuel for our fires, and beautify our community; and 

WHEREAS, trees in our county increase property values and enhance the vitality of our county’s business areas; and

WHEREAS, the steps we can take to protect our natural environment through education, partnerships, and positive actions should be encouraged in Pasco County; and 

WHEREAS, the citizens, staff, and elected officials of Pasco County are committed not only to the protection and preservation of our trees, but also planting additional ones; and

WHEREAS, it is the mission of Keep Pasco Beautiful to improve Pasco County by engaging the community in sustainable efforts to reduce litter, promote waste reduction, and encourage beautification; and

WHEREAS, there will be tree distributions on January 17, 2025, in East and West Pasco County where citizens can receive a native tree to plant. Funding for these tree giveaways is provided by Keep Pasco Beautiful and the Florida Forest Service’s Urban and Community Forestry Grant to promote and enhance local participation in Arbor Day activities. 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of County Commissioners of Pasco County, Florida, that said Board hereby declares January 17, 2025, as Arbor Day in Pasco County and encourages all Pasco County citizens to join in efforts to plant and preserve trees in all its diversity.

DONE AND RESOLVED in regular session with a quorum present and voting this 14th day of January 2025.

 

DADE CITY – The Heritage Arts Center Association has received a $4,000 gift from the Suncoast Credit Union Foundation. 

The money will be used to reward four Pasco County high school seniors with $1,000 scholarships. Two students will receive the Nereim Fine Arts Award. Two others will receive the Pasco Heritage Scholarship Award.

The Heritage Arts Center Association works to benefit the visual and performing arts in the area. 

Several years ago, the association made a commitment to increase its two scholarship awards in both visual and performing arts for young people. Members wanted to know that their awards would significantly help talented young people further the development of their gifts beyond high school, with a career in mind.  

The association produces a Spotlight On Talent competition that attracts more than 200 students who attend schools from all over Pasco County. The competition offers these students opportunities to prepare and perform art pieces on stage in front of professional judges and a large community audience. 

Despite being a worthwhile experience for students, the Spotlight On Talent costs money to produce. 

The production involves renting a large theater for two days, paying 15 professional judges to evaluate and give feedback to the students, and offering awards to younger competitors in their age categories. 

For the last few years, even with local sponsors, the organization has not been able to meet production costs. The organization slightly increased application fees and ticket prices to adjust. Still, leadership was worried about the future of continuing to produce the contest and giving the scholarships. 

“We are so very excited that because of this generous grant, our sponsor and fee income will be able to pay for the production costs,” said Barbara Friedman, vice-president of performing arts of the Heritage Arts Center Association.

Suncoast Credit Union founded the Suncoast Credit Union Foundation to promote the education, health and emotional well-being of children in the community. 

Each time a Suncoast member uses their debit or credit card, the credit union donates two cents to the foundation to fund local initiatives. The foundation has raised and donated over $45 million since 1990.

“At Suncoast Credit Union, we believe in the transformative power of creativity and the arts to shape the leaders of tomorrow,” said Bob Hyde, vice president of community impact at Suncoast Credit Union. “By supporting the Heritage Arts Center Association and investing in the future of Pasco County’s youth, we are fostering an environment where creativity can thrive.”