Mike Camunas

New HOPE Services training center creates opportunities

February 21, 2023 By Mike Camunas

One would think it’s been 20 years in the making.

But actually, it’s just been a few.

On Feb. 10, Hope Services opened the doors to its state-of-the-art Life Skills & Vocational Training Center, at 5426 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., in Land O’ Lakes.

Cindy Bray, founder and executive director of Hope Services, had been set to start on the center in 2019, but COVID intervened.

HOPE Services founder and executive director Cindy Bray, left, stands in front of the nonprofit’s brand new Life Skills & Vocational Training Center. She is accompanied by her daughter, Danica, who inspired Bray to launch Hope Services in 2003. (Mike Camunas)

Then in June 2020, HOPE Services purchased a building — just a gray shell, finished on the outside but completely unfinished inside.

Bray and her staff seized on the opportunity to design the center’s layout to best meet their training needs.

Each of the center’s six rooms is dedicated to a different type of training and profession.

The new Land O’ Lakes facility will provide training in culinary arts/food safety, construction, customer service/retail, hospitality, computers/technology and GED education.

“So, we’re really excited to get people in the building and get them trained,” Bray said. “This is a dream come true,” Bray said. “This is really my dream and vision.

“Back in 2003, this started out with just little ol’ me, and I was inspired to do HOPE Services because of my daughter, Danica, who lives with disabilities,” she said.

From that small beginning, Hope Services has built a 20-year history of helping teens and adults who have disabilities and special needs, to secure and maintain meaningful, competitive and integrated employment.

Besides providing training, HOPE Services also helps its clients to prepare for interviews, find jobs and to become more self-sufficient.

HOPE Services provides vocational evaluations, work incentive planning and assistance, on-the-job training, psychotherapy, employment services, pre-employment transition services and supported employment.

HOPE Services had a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the opening of its Life Skills & Vocational Training Center, 5426 Land O’ Lakes Blvd. It will provide on-site job training and classes aimed to help those with special needs obtain steady work. (Courtesy of Toyita Rivera)

These services are provided at no charge, as HOPE Services’ funding comes entirely from Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) and the Agency for Persons with Disabilities.

Once a candidate is eligible to receive services from VR or the Agency, the candidate must ask to be referred to HOPE Services, which immediately begins processing them as a client.

While based in Wesley Chapel, and now Land O’ Lakes, HOPE Services also serves Hillsborough, Hernando, Pinellas, Polk and Citrus counties.

“I’m a little surprised by our size now, and we will even add more now with the (on-site) training,” Bray said.

The new center allows Hope Services to expand to help a broader range of clients.

It will now be able to provide training to home-schooled children, to those who were recently released from incarceration and even those who are now free from human trafficking.

“Really anyone that struggles with vocational skills,” Bray said. “We want to be able to give them the life skills they need to live a better life — a full life.”

The training center is designed to provide practical training, which can be useful in vocations, and in life.

One example of this at the new center is the hospitality room. It not only features a washer and dryer, but is across the hall from the restroom. This allows training in not just the service industry, but also life skills such as picking up after oneself.

“They may get a job in a hotel or hospital and need to know how to do laundry, but then they can go across the hall where the restroom is and learn how to clean the restroom,” Bray said. “Sure, no one likes to (clean a restroom), but if that’s a job they have to do, then they know how to do it.”

This room will be used to provide training in hospitality, and other cleaning and washing skills.

The training rooms also “allow students to get individual attention, and we will be able to offer that so they can get the best training possible and go out fully prepared to enter the workforce.

“Again, it’s really a dream come true.”

HOPE Services Life Skills & Vocational Training Center
Where: 5426 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., Land O’ Lakes
Details: A center that provides youths and adults who have disabilities and special needs the opportunity to receive on-site training in culinary arts/food safety, construction, customer service/retail, hospitality, computers/technology and GED education.
There are training rooms within the center dedicated for various vocations, as well as a multimedia conference room for larger seminars and meetings.
Certified instructors will tailor courses to accommodate clients of all abilities, while maintaining high-quality instruction. The skills and certifications will enable individuals to earn higher wages, find sustainable careers and set a solid foundation for self-sufficiency.
Info: Visit HOPEGetsJobs.com.

Published February 22, 2023

Candidates vie in Zephyrhills’ elections

February 21, 2023 By Mike Camunas

Voters in Zephyrhills will choose a new mayor and will decide who should fill City Council Seat 2 in an April 11 election.

Three candidates are vying to be the city’s next mayor and incumbent W. Alan Knight is facing a challenge from Steve Spina, for Seat 2 council seat.

Zephyrhills residents will decide whether to retain incumbent City Council Seat 2 member Alan Knight or replace him with Steve Spina in the April 11 municipal election. Residents also will choose the 21st mayor in city history. (Mike Camunas)

Spina is the former city manager for the City of Zephyrhills. He retired from that role in 2019.

Knight is a longtime Zephyrhills resident and educator working mainly in Pasco county schools as a teacher, coach and administrator for 35 years. He is seeking re-election to city council following his first term on the board.

Residents also will decide who will replace Mayor Gene Whitfield, who announced in December that he would not seek a fourth term.

Candidates to become mayor are Nick Deford, Melonie Bahr Monson and Martin Harm.

Deford is the lead pastor at Zephyrhills First Church of the Nazarene and has been a resident of Zephyrhills for eight years. His ministry has worked with nonprofit organizations such as the Zephyrhills/Wesley Chapel Ministerial Association and the Samaritan Project, and is active with Meals on Wheels of Pasco.

Monson is a Zephyrhills native who stepped away from her role as the CEO of The Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce after eight years in September. She now works for her family business, Bahr’s Propane Gas and AC.

Harm is the treasurer for Main Street Zephyrhills and a national account manager for Sonitrol, an electronic commercial security system company.

The mayor position is largely ceremonial, with no voting power. The city council chooses a board president — in this case, Jodi Wilkeson — to run meetings. Lance Smith is the council’s vice president, while members Ken Burgess, Charles Proctor and Knight round out the council.

There also are eight proposed amendments to the city charter on the ballot. Most are minor changes to election procedures and financial reporting requirements, with the main one changing the term length of mayor and council members from three years to four years.

Published February 22, 2023

It was their ‘Night to Shine’

February 21, 2023 By Mike Camunas

They wore dresses and tuxes.

They walked the red carpet.

They laughed, they smiled and they cheered.

Then, they danced the night away.

Lily Madden, left, and Alastair Spivey raise their arms in recognition and joy of being announced while walking the red carpet at the ‘Night to Shine’ Prom on Feb. 10, at Cypress Creek Middle in Wesley Chapel. Every special needs attendee was able to stroll down the red carpet into the three-hour dance event being held in Pasco County for the first time. (Mike Camunas)

Hundreds attended “Night to Shine,” a prom for people with special needs, held on Feb. 10 at Cypress Creek Middle School in Wesley Chapel.

The idea was to give prom-goers a chance to have a night to remember, at the event being held for the first time in Pasco County.

Grace Community Church, based in Wesley Chapel, hosted the event, with Pastor Jeff Olsen acting as master of ceremonies.

“Night to Shine,” initiated by The Tim Tebow Foundation in 2014, is held simultaneously at venues across the country.

The foundation and local sponsors provide food and entertainment, and as the event approaches its end, a special video message from Tebow and his wife is played for the crowd.

Guests sign up to attend the prom, but there is one caveat: they don’t have a date. Instead, volunteers sign up to be a guest’s “buddy” for the night. Each prom guest spends the evening dancing, dining and enjoying the evening with their “date.”

At the Feb. 10 event in Wesley Chapel, guests attired in formalwear arrived in limos and other fancy rides provided by Lexus of Wesley Chapel.

They were announced to the crowd, as they walked the red carpet into the gym.

Upbeat music played at the three-hour event, which unlike other proms — had no official king and queen.

Instead, a crown or tiara was placed on every guest’s head, and then most of them — even those in wheelchairs — went right back to making dance moves.

Published February 22, 2023

Amaya Westray dances, and jumps, with joy during the ‘Night to Shine’ Prom, an event to give those with special needs a special night. Hundreds of people with special needs donned formal wear, walked the red carpet and then danced the night away on Feb. 10 in the gym at Cypress Creek Middle School, in Wesley Chapel.

Madison Boatright, left, is having a blast while dancing on Feb. 10, with her ‘Night to Shine’ buddy, Haley Krupnick, at the Cypress Creek Middle School gym. Boatright, Krupnick and hundreds of others attended the prom specifically for those with special needs. Although at the school, Grace Community Church of Wesley Chapel hosted the event.

Robby Sanderson shows off his dance moves, as he takes center stage at the ‘Night to Shine’ Prom on Feb. 10.

The joy was obvious, as prom-goers who have special needs, and their buddies, danced the night way at the Cypress Creek Middle School gym.

Jake McDaniel, left, gets honky tonk while dancing with his buddy, Serena Neumann.

Keely Hamilton, left, escorts John Agao down the red carpet into ‘Night to Shine,’ a prom for people with special needs.

Robert Bagdonas, left, and Mary Roush smile big as they’re announced on the red carpet.

Melissa Janicke waves with the pose of a prom queen while strolling the red carpet.

Karol Fogel and Raymond Oldham show off some dance moves at ‘Night to Shine.’

Sarah Miller, right, dances in line in front of the stage at the ‘Night to Shine’ Prom.

Demi Asensio, left, holds hands with Audrey Chin, to calm her nerves as she walks the red carpet at ‘Night to Shine.’

Morgan Roy, left, dances to her heart’s content during ‘Night to Shine,’ as her buddy, Jill Berendes, happily joins in.

St. Leo approves town center to announce its identity

February 21, 2023 By Mike Camunas

It’s possible, in a blink of an eye, to drive through the town of St. Leo without even knowing it.

Town leaders are looking to change that.

They are planning to create a town center that will provide a shopping, entertainment, event and community district, on a site at the corner of State Road 52 and Lemon Street.

St. Leo’s Town Commission, led by Mayor Vincent D’Ambrosio, voted 5-0 on Feb. 14 to approve the building of a town center at the corner of State Road 52 and Lemon Road. (Mike Camunas)

Town leaders hope the new town center will help make St. Leo more of a destination rather than just a drive-thru town.

“This is about having a space that will give an identity to this town,” said St. Leo Mayor Vincent D’Ambrosio, who assumed that role in May 2022. “We just don’t have that now. This will change that and still honor everything this town is about.”

The St. Leo Town Commission voted 5-0 on Feb. 14 to move forward with building the town center in Pasco County’s oldest incorporated municipality.

During a community workshop, residents who attended, as well as the town commission — D’Ambrosio; Donna DeWitt, O.S.B.; James Hallett, O.S.B; Curtis Dwyer; and William Hamilton — were presented a Planned Unit Development from Twelfth Street Studio and Aurora Civil Engineering.

The architecture and design firm and engineering firm, respectively, laid out a very comprehensive concept plan that would feature shops and vendors, an entertainment area, an event area, recreational space and more.

The Town of St. Leo approved a plan to build a multi-faceted town center at the corner of State Road 52 and Lemon Road, less than a mile from the university that also bears its name. The town center, shown in this rendering, will feature restaurants and vendors, event and entertainment space, gardens and more, as a destination for not only residents, but tourists as well. (Courtesy of Town of St. Leo)

The town center would go on some unused land, but also take over property used by On Q Smokehouse Grill and A Cup of Organic, two businesses not only in support of the town center, but the first two confirmed tenants as vendors.

The next step is rezoning the town center property to be a Planned Unit Development.

Town Administrator and Clerk Andrea Calvert told the crowd of more than 120, including Pasco County Commissioner Ron Oakley, that the town center will be “a very big revenue generator.”

She also noted it is being funded by the recently extended Penny For Pasco tax, which passed in the local elections.

Calvert told The Laker/Lutz News there isn’t a town center project cost yet, but the town’s officials “can work on what needs to be included in the initial phase and what that cost will be, as well as pursuing grants and other funding opportunities.”

St. Leo Town Planner Tom Asburn agreed, saying the town center will give “St. Leo a new identity, while enhancing development, but also keeping the rural character we all love very much.”

The St. Leo Town Center will have a sloped sitting area facing a stage for entertainment. (Courtesy of Town of St. Leo)

The town center will include a history center and several gardens, each dedicated to a different part of St. Leo, such as the Abbey and the town’s founders.

Several details are still being worked out, such as an underground stormwater system for food and beverage vendors, overflow parking and enough sidewalks so Saint Leo University students can walk the less than a mile to the town center location.

The consulting two firms and St. Leo also are working with the Florida Department of Transportation to refigure the intersection of State Road 52, College Avenue and Pompanic Street. The plan is to reconstruct a now-complicated intersection into a more traffic-friendly roundabout.

The meeting was held in a boardroom at Saint Leo University’s Student Community Center to accommodate the crowd.

Despite the large attendance, there was very little, if any, opposition to the project.

In addition to town residents, several students were at the meeting, including some representing Saint Leo University student government.

They spoke of “nothing being here (in St. Leo) but the university” and wanting the town to “be a town” and “be more than just a university and something to go visit and enjoy.”

Longtime area resident Betty Burke noted: “There is no meeting place for the community. As long as we can consider making it eco-friendly, like solar-powered, then it would be a great place where the people of St. Leo can meet.”

Others agreed, while saying it would give the town an identity, just like the commission wants.

“This is exciting,” resident Greg Smith said. “This will be the image of the town because a lot of people don’t know we even exist. This should be supported fully for the future of the town.”

Commissioners threw their support behind the plan to make St. Leo a place to stop and visit.

“We really did our homework here,” D’Ambrosio told the crowd. “We know that we can maintain the history and feel of St. Leo while still showing the greatness that we know we’re capable of. With a town center, we won’t be a drive-thru town anymore, but a destination that people will want to stop at.

“And now, with this step, the journey to that begins.”

Published February 22, 2023

Coyotes out to prove they’re not a fluke

February 21, 2023 By Mike Camunas

The Coyotes lost their best player ever — in their best season in just their short six-year history.

Yet, the Cypress Creek High baseball team has no plans to take a step back in competitiveness.

“Actually, our group, and myself, we’ve come in with high expectations,” said Coyotes coach Joe Neale, who is 64-43 since starting the program. “I think we’ll be very competitive, and we’re going to compete every night, but I don’t think there’s anyone that thinks that if we need a win, that we can’t go get it.

Senior outfielder and pitcher Ryan Buelk returns to the Cypress Creek High baseball team after the Coyotes had its most successful season in 2022. The team, entering its sixth year, finished 16-8 and advanced to the Class 5A Regional Semifinals, losing 5-4 to Melbourne Eau Gallie. (Mike Camunas)

“The district (Class 5A-8) is wide open, so there will be close ballgames, but we’re deeper (on the roster) than a year ago, so we’re happy about that.”

That is something of itself since the Coyotes saw the departure of two-way player Ethan Petry, the 2022 Sunshine Athletic Conference Player of the Year and now budding freshman at the University of South Carolina.

Petry, a third baseman, batted .479 on 34 hits with 18 RBI, nine doubles, two triples and a team-high six homers. On the mound, Petry was 5-2 with a 1.97 ERA and a team-high 60 strikeouts.

Also now playing collegiate ball is Caden Kwiat at East Georgia State College after going 4-3 with a 1.71 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 2022 and catcher Nick Sanchez at Belmont Abbey College in North Carolina after batting .306 with 22 hits, 14 RBI, two doubles and two triples.

Sophomore third baseman Ethan Morris flips the ball home on a bunt drill during a Coyotes practice.

But Neale is expecting big things from senior pitcher and first baseman Max Menendez, who was 3-0 with a 3.15 ERA and 43 strikeouts on the mound and who drove in a team-high 20 RBI last season.

“It feels great (to step into the No. 1 pitcher role), but now it’s time to show,” Menendez, a Thomas University (Georgia) signee, said. “I know (Petry’s) shoes are big to fill, but I’m going to do my thing and make my own big shoes to fill for next year.”

Helping fill in for Petry is transfer Ryan Maggy. The junior shortstop will take over for Petry not only in the infield, but at the plate, where he batted .534 with 39 hits, 47 RBI, four homers, 48 runs scored and had 16 stolen bases for Peru High in New York.

Coyotes coach Joe Neale enters his sixth season at the helm, with an overall record of 64-43.

“I’m just glad to get here and play baseball everyday, nothing beats that, because we’re shoveling snow off the fields in February,” said Maggy, a University of West Virginia commit. “I’m just trying to contribute just as much, if not more, than any of the previous teammates we’ve had, like the seniors that left last year. It’s not that I’m the new guy or thinking about the previous seasons — I’m thinking about this season and how I can make it a good one.”

Others looking to make it a good season will be Ryan Buelk, who will step into a closer role and “can be lights out on the mound,” Neale said. Plus, Derek Carson will become a starting pitcher after throwing just 7.2 innings in 2022.

“We expect big things out of Derek,” Neale said. “As a lefty on the mound, he doesn’t throw too hard, but has great command and really keeps guys on their heels. If we give him three or four runs a game, we’re going to win those games.”

While the Coyotes might be experienced and have depth, they are still young — but ready to return to the postseason after winning their first playoff game in the regional quarterfinals: a 6-4 win over Okeechobee.

“I think since it’s always so competitive, that the guys are never comfortable,” Neale said. “They’re never complacent and humble enough that they know they have to work hard. When you see these guys want to work enough so they can get the starting spot and work hard to climb over each other, it just makes everyone better.

“So, we don’t feel like last year was a fluke.”

Districts
Class 7A-District 7
Alonso
Palm Harbor University
Plant
Riverview
Steinbrenner
Sumner

Class 6A-District 5
Land O’ Lakes
Mitchell
Springstead
Sunlake
Wiregrass Ranch

Class 6A-District 9
Armwood
Gaither
Hillsborough
Leto
Tampa Bay Tech
Wharton

Class 5A-District 8
Cypress Creek
Fivay
Lecanto
Pasco
River Ridge
Wesley Chapel
Zephyrhills

Class 5A-District 9
Braden River
Brandon
Freedom
Jesuit
Parrish Community
Southeast
Spoto

Class 2A-District 5
Bishop McLaughlin
First Academy
Hernando Christian Academy
Redeemer Christian
Seven Rivers Christian

Class 2A-District 10
Academy at the Lakes
Cambridge Christian
Carrollwood Day
Foundation Christian Academy
Seffner Christian
Sports Leadership & Management

Independent
Zephyrhills Christian

*Bolded teams are Pasco County teams and teams in the publication’s coverage area.

Published February 22, 2023

Zephyrhills Christian athlete makes history

February 21, 2023 By Mike Camunas

(Courtesy of Zephyrhills Christian Athletics)

Olivia Chapman, a senior softball player at Zephyrhills Christian Academy, became the school’s first female athlete to sign a letter of intent to become a scholarship student athlete. While surrounded by friends and family and teammates on Feb. 3, Chapman signed to play collegiate softball at the University of Charleston in West Virginia.

Wrestling team wins third-straight

February 21, 2023 By Mike Camunas

The Land O’ Lakes High wrestling team won its third-straight Sunshine Athletic Conference Tournament, crowning the Gators as the top squad among the Pasco County high schools. Land O’ Lakes won the tournament in dominant fashion, beating second-place team and nearby rival, Sunlake, by 97 points. Land O’ Lakes had six finalists and four conference champions — Brandon Austin, Garry Gilbert, Leomany Casado and Wyatt Green — and 13 of its 14 wrestlers placed in the tournament.

Trotting through the shops

February 14, 2023 By Mike Camunas

It stopped traffic, but decidedly so, as the world-famous, iconic Budweiser Clydesdales were able to trot around the plaza across from Tampa Premium Outlets in Lutz, showing off their gorgeous hauling skills to onlookers and cars driving by. Total Wine & Liquor hosted the event, and for a few hours these horses displayed why they are so beloved. The ride started at the liquor store, then went over to nearby Ford’s Garage and then down Sierra Center Boulevard to Bahama Breeze and to the Hyatt Place, and back through the parking lot. Those who attended were able to pose for photos with the majestic horses.

They just keep ‘shuffling’ along

February 14, 2023 By Mike Camunas

They mingle as singles — single players, that is.

At the Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club, the longtime recreational staple in East Pasco, shuffling members can be found there daily, in the morning, in the afternoon and even in the evenings, sliding their discs away.

Chuck Moulton, the Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club treasurer and webmaster, elegantly slides a disc to the other side of the narrow court. Moulton, like many other members, such as Fred Litzman, behind, who leans to see the shot, can be found almost daily at the club, either practicing slides, enjoying afternoon frolics or participating in the many tournaments at the club. (Mike Camunas)

Some are prepping for tournaments, others are just there for some fun, low-impact activity, while making new friends on the courts.

Some gather at the club’s Mingles/Singles event held every Wednesday and Saturday mornings.

“We always have a good turnout on these mornings,” said Frank Pogel III, event leader and a member on the club’s board. “There are both amateurs and the professional players here, and mixing it up just benefits the amateurs.”

During Mingles/Singles, players are randomly paired with a partner during each of the four games they play before lunch. Then each will go after the 50/50 pot, as Pogel, and treasure Chuck Moulton, say that this bi-weekly event, alone, raises about $6,000 each year.

“As you can see, we get plenty of players here for these morning sessions. It’s always a good time,” Moulton said.

During play, friendly banter will ensue, with plenty of laughs, fake trash talking, and, of course, great play — even by players in their 90s.

During a Wednesday session of Mingles/Singles, Jerry Branham prepares to make a slide down the court, with his miniature playbook of the shuffleboard pyramid in hand.

“Yeah, we’ve got a few of those, including a guy who comes out and he’s 96,” Pogel said. “Sometimes, you just can’t keep these people from shuffling.”

Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club Mingles/Singles
When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 8:30 a.m.
Where: 5209 Eighth St., Zephyrhills
Cost: $5
Details: Open to amateur and professional-level shufflers, Mingles/Singles is a draw-of-the-hat-pairing bi-weekly play that has players team up with a random partner for each of the four games played. The buy-in is put into a 50/50 pot split with the winners and the club.
History: Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club (ZSC) was formed on April 4, 2007 after member Bob Perkins purchased the facility from the Zephyrhills Tourist Club. On Feb. 27, 2011, Perkins decided to transfer the deed title over to the ZSC members through the newly formed not-for-profit corporation, ZSC Inc. Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club is the only member-owned and open shuffleboard facility in Zephyrhills with no resident restrictions and welcomes all shufflers to join.
Membership: Single – $50; Couple – $85; Monthly (2 month minimum) – $20
Info: Visit ZephyrhillsShuffle.com.

Published February 15, 2023

Dave Stoops completes a big slide of the disc at Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club.

Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club member Joanne McLean intently studies her slide of the disc during a session of Mingles/Singles.

Guy Rose makes a sly slide of the disc down the shuffleboard court.

Neta Den Otter, left, and Joel Bostin are all smirks during some shuffling at Zephyrhills Shuffleboard Club.

While awaiting her turn, Linda Marshman monitors discs on her side of the court and indicates to her playing partner where the shot landed.

Don Hiar diligently marks down the score during a shuffleboard match.

Born to be ramblin’ vans

February 14, 2023 By Mike Camunas

Home is where the van is.

That’s what it means to live the vanlife — or disconnect (mostly) from the grid and hit the open road — traveling all over the country and living within the tight quarters of a van.

It’s not an entirely new concept, however, it’s one that is becoming increasingly popular.

Kristine Vaccaro chills in her van during the inaugural Florida Vanlife Gathering from Feb. 3 to Feb. 6, at Withlacoochee River Park in Dade City. Vaccaro, and hundreds of others who live the vanlife, gathered for three days of ‘peace, love and vans’ as part of the largest vanlife gathering on the East Coast. Vaccaro, an Air Force veteran from California, lives out of her van. It’s charmingly named ‘Duck Star’ due to her love of Star Wars and the decor in the van. She travels the country looking for places to explore and stay living the vanlife. (Mike Camunas)

So popular, in fact, that hundreds were attracted to the inaugural Florida Vanlife Gathering at Withlacoochee River Park in Dade City from Feb. 3 to Feb. 6.

The event gave vanlifers a place to hang and those curious about the lifestyle a chance to see it up close.

“We wanted a way to celebrate the nomadic and adventurous lifestyle (of vanlife) and also welcome the central Florida community who are van curious,” said Josh Theberge, the event organizer who also is co-owner of Vanlife Outfitters, a Sarasota-based, online store dedicated to vanlife that was the title sponsor. “Everyone has been very appreciative of the event, as we wanted this to be an educational event for people, too.

“We didn’t just want to have an event where people are trying to sell stuff.”

More than 300 vans arrived at the park, carrying more than 500 vanlifers. On top of that, others came with day passes to see the vans and take advantage of workshops on topics related to vanlife.

Vendors were on hand, as well. There were demonstrations to show off new designs or products, and there were “Talking Tree” sessions focusing on specific topics of vanlife. Small crowds would listen to those talks at the park’s large tree that dates back to the Civil War era.

Living the vanlife means basically getting off the grid and outfitting a van with a kitchen, bedroom and even a bathroom.

“They’re curious people,” said Scott Watson, a popular vanlifer who has a YouTube channel featuring his three-years-and-counting journey around the country in his Winnebago Travato 59GL.

“It’s a very curious lifestyle where you can go anywhere, park anywhere, maybe hook up anywhere, and just see and wander — that’s what a vanlifer does: wanders, looking for the beauty out there on the road,” Watson said.

When adopting the vanlife, a van — or school bus, or even an old ambulance —is converted to become a traveling home.

A vehicle that’s been decked out with all the bells and whistles, but for many vanlifers, this is a DIY project. They customize their van to their liking by installing a bed, a bathroom, a fridge, a kitchen and entertainment center — with their own personal flair.

Hundreds of those living the vanlife gathered at Withlacoochee River Park in Dade City to attend the inaugural Florida Vanlife Gathering from Feb. 3 to Feb. 6.

“It’s not for everyone, for sure, but for those who can do minimalism, this is for you. I mean, everything I own is in my van,” Watson said.

“There’s not actually a blueprint when it comes to vanlife.”

In an even more minimal approach, some vanlifers will routinely go boondocking, or camping completely off the grid without hookup amenities of water and electricity.

“The third van that I am almost done building is the Boondocker 3.0, and I can live out of it without hookups for about a week at a time,” Theberge said.

The gathering had rows and rows of vans and other larger vehicles, all of varying designs. Theberge and his partner, Zach Daudert, held a Best in Show contest and judged which van was the best DIY model. Categories that were considered were overall quality, style/aesthetic, use of space/layout, uniqueness/creativity, and the systems from power to cooling to plumbing.

Joe Scelfo, of Destin, shows off his do-it-yourself tricked-out van to Josh Theberge, organizer of the inaugural Florida Vanlife Gathering, during the judging of Best in Show DIY Van. During the event at Withlacoochee River Park in Dade City, hundreds of vanlife people showed up to hang out and show off their vans, which, in essence, are either their homes or mobile camping units. Theberge is the owner of Vanlife Outfitters, a Sarasota-based company that sponsored the event and provides people with the tools and trade to build a DIY vanlife vehicle.

The rest of the time, vanlifers from all over the country just hung out around their or fellow participant vans, enjoying the nomadic, campy lifestyle.

“It’s all about what you can fit in about 19 feet of space, but this is a great event,” Orlando resident Ray Woo said. “It’s the first I’ve ever been to, and hopefully it can keep growing — not that there aren’t a lot of people here for the first one — and they’ll continue with the event so we can come out every year now.”

Theberge said vanlife is becoming more prominent on the East Coast, despite the lifestyle having a very distinct West Coast feel. That’s evident in the theme of the gathering, which paid homage to the 1960s and ’70s by including a lot of nods to the Grateful Dead.

“Oh, we’re big time Deadheads,” Theberge said with a laugh.

But this is why they gathered the vanlife here in Florida.

“This is us putting our flag in the ground and saying, come enjoy a weekend in Florida in February with (people) like you (vanlifers),” Theberge said. “And we’re looking forward to having it even bigger and better next year.

“And the vanlife is a true lifestyle change. It’s a lot of freedom and it’s about being out there and living life — and vanlife is a beautiful lifestyle.”

Vanlife Outfitters
Details: An online store that provides all the equipment, training, tips and more to DIY a recreational van.
Info: VanlifeOutfitters.com
To see Scott Watson’s VanLife YouTube, Go Small, Live Large, visit YouTube.com/@gosmall.livelarge.

Published February 15, 2023