Special to The Laker/Lutz News

 

 

By Jeff Odom

 

An electrified crowd of 15,000-plus packed the stadium at Land O’ Lakes High Oct. 27 to hear about the vision presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has for the United States

People donning red, white and blue flocked from across Tampa Bay for a chance to see Romney in person. The early arrivals got to the entrance of John Benedetto Stadium around noon for the rally for the Republican Party’s nominee for the nation’s highest office.

Zephyrhills resident Paul Cheever said he wanted to show his support for Romney because he believes the country is heading in the wrong direction, especially the support for the military.

“I’m 71 years old,” Cheever said. “There was 12 children in my family — seven boys, five girls — and every one of the boys has served for the country in the military. Our country has gone so far down that my heart breaks for all the men and women that have lost their lives. … They fought for our country to get in the shape it’s in right now.”

On stage, Romney told supporters they had a “clear choice” on Election Day, even joking about his opponent, President Barack Obama.

“At (Obama’s) rallies, they all cheer, ‘Four more years.’ I think our chant should be, ‘Ten more days,’” Romney said.

Those in attendance followed with that chant throughout most of Romney’s speech, where he hit key points like repealing Obama’s healthcare plan, reforming Medicare and cutting government spending. He also told the crowd stories of military veterans, Boy Scouts and families across the country that have made sacrifices.

Jan Coad of Land O’ Lakes was glad to see Romney at the school she graduated from in 1977.

“Well, No. 1, I think Romney will be the next president,” Coad said. “I can’t believe he’s (in) Land O’ Lakes. He’s the only one that can help us out of the mess that we’re in.”

Brett Hatcher, 13, has been trying to spread his support of Romney with his fellow classmates. Even though he isn’t of age to vote, he said he was honored to see him in person.

“It’s nice to see someone else,” Hatcher said. “(Romney’s) a republican. I kind of support republicans, and he’s really good for president. … I’m not the best with politics, but I think he’ll do really good.”

The rally was not without conflict, however, as some questioned why the event was at a public school.

Pasco County School District policy states students are not allowed to participate in political function on a school campus. But in the case of Land O’ Lakes High — where the Gators’ cheerleaders and Mitchell High band performed during the afternoon — officials said those students volunteered, which complies with the district code.

Romney closed the evening by thanking those who came to support him and said it’s up to them vote Nov. 6.

“I need you to vote early; I need you to get out and vote,” Romney said. “Americans have a clear eye for the truth and America is going to win. … When we win Florida, we’re going to win the White House.”

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

After an endless stream of negative ads, robo calls, tweets, polls, debates and surveys, voters will finally have their say in Election 2012.

They will decide whether Democrat Barack Obama, the nation’s first black president will get four more years, or if it’s time to give the reins to Republican Mitt Romney, who would be the first Mormon elected to the nation’s highest post.

Voters will also choose who will control Congress, which will have a ripple effect on the economy, healthcare, the military and the U.S. Supreme Court.

In addition, Florida voters will decide the fate of 11 proposed amendments to the state’s constitution, choose representatives for the state legislature and decide the outcome of a slew of local races.

Early voting in Pasco and Hillsborough counties began Oct. 27 and will conclude Nov. 3. Polling sites for early voting are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., which are the same hours that polls will be open on Election Day on Nov. 6.

In Hillsborough, as of Oct. 22, there were 743,650 registered voters. Of those, there are 300,217 Democrats, 241,997 Republicans and 201,436 others.

In Pasco, there were 310,524 registered voters as of Oct. 23. Of those, there are 120,472 Republicans, 107,964 Democrats and, 81,818 others.

Travis Abercrombie, spokesman for the Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections Office, said they don’t predict voter outcome. However, he noted, turnout was 72 percent in Election 2008 when Obama won the White House.

Pasco Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley expects a turnout of somewhere between 74 percent and 76 percent of the voters.

“I can predict, more than likely, there will be lines,” Corley said.

He asks voters to be patient and suggests that they use their sample ballots to speed up the voting process.

“For the first time ever, we’re going to have a two-page ballot,” Corley said. He advises voters to fill out their sample ballot before showing up at the polls so they’ll be able to get through the process more quickly.

One key issue on Pasco’s ballot is whether voters want to impose a penny sales tax on purchases in the county to help pay for road, school and public safety improvements, as well as support job creation and the acquisition of environmentally sensitive lands.

This sales tax is an extension of the original Penny for Pasco that expires in 2014.

The extension, which would take effect Jan. 1, 2015 and end on Dec. 31, 2024, is projected to generate more than $502 million.

Voters wanting to weigh in on the extension will find the item at the end of the two-page ballot.

Pasco voters will also decide a number of key offices, including clerk of circuit court, sheriff, property appraiser, tax collector, superintendent of schools and county commission.

They’ll decide the fate of a number of judges and will select their representatives on a number of lower-profile boards, including mosquito control and community development districts.

Hillsborough voters will also decide a number of key offices including the supervisor of elections, property appraiser, sheriff, county commission and school board.

They will also choose representatives for lower-profile boards including soil and water conservation and community development districts.

 

 

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Atonement Lutheran Church is a busy place on Wednesday mornings.

That’s when people stream in to pick up food at the Wesley Chapel church’s Helping Hands Food Pantry.

It’s a ministry that began in the spring of 2009 and has helped thousands of people since then.

“It’s the biggest thing we’ve ever done,” said Scott Lindner, pastor of the church for the past six years. “It’s very visible.”

The ministry is one of many at the church, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

The ministry began with the simple desire to feed the homeless, Lindner said. “It kind of morphed into a food pantry.”

After the Christmas dinner, some of the people who put it on said they wanted to open a food bank, Lindner said.

“At first, we talked about having it open once a month,” Lindner said. “People insisted, ‘No, if we’re going to do this, we want to be there for people. We’re going to do it once a week.’ … I admit, I was one of the naysayers. I said, ‘We’re just too small. We don’t have enough volunteers.’

“People said, ‘You just step aside, pastor,’” Lindner continued. “‘We’ll take care of this.’ And, they did.”

The ministry is helped by donations from Sweetbay, Publix, Bagelicous and Grace Family Church, Lindner said. He added, many service clubs also pitch in.

“It’s the community that makes this work,” the pastor said.

The church understands, firsthand, what it feels like to struggle.

“It was on the verge of closing down,” Lindner said.

That was in 2003, well before the current pastor arrived.

“They had come into some financial difficulty once they got this building, and they had trouble making the mortgage. There was some conflict. People left,” Lindner said.

Nils Lenz, who is chairman of the church’s anniversary committee, remembers it well.

“We were down to 20 and 30 per service,” Lenz said.

The church has rebounded since then and now reaches out to serve the community in many ways.

In addition to the food pantry, the church opens its doors to groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, scout troops and Relay for Life organizers, Lindner said. A Hispanic congregation also uses the facility for its Saturday service.

“We’ve kind of made a decision that this building is God’s, not ours,” Lindner said. So, it shares its space with organizations that are providing service that they believe aligns with God’s work.

Outreach is nothing new for Atonement Lutheran.

In its early days, it drummed up members by knocking on more than 3,000 doors in the community extending an invitation to join them.

Atonement Lutheran had its first worship service on Nov. 1, 1987 at J.F. Hunt’s restaurant. It had 117 members.

It has had six pastors throughout the years, including those serving interim appointments. The first pastor was Matthew Cox, who came from Montana.

When church leaders began making plans for Atonement’s 25th birthday, they had to decide whether to celebrate the anniversary of its first worship service or when it was officially chartered as part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America at the Professional Building of Wesley Chapel.

They chose to honor the anniversary of the church’s first worship service.

Atonement has had three locations during its quarter-century history. It began at the restaurant, moved to the professional building and then moved in 1992 to its current home at 29617 SR 54 in Wesley Chapel.

About 150 families are registered at the church, coming from communities including Lutz, Land O’ Lakes, New Tampa, Wesley Chapel, Zephyrhills and Dade City.

When Lindner arrived, he began looking at ways to enliven the worship service.

He also looked for ways to get church members more involved.

“I really looked at who was here and what their talents were,” Lindner said, noting that the number of ministries grew.

“We believe everybody is gifted by God. Everybody has a talent, an ability, a passion, something that was given to them uniquely to tie in with what God is doing,” Lindner said.

As it looks toward its future, the church is planning a $114,000 facelift to the front of the church in 2013.

It is also launching a $300,000 capital campaign to pay for a multipurpose building behind the church.

The new building will enable the church to gather as a community for meals. It may also have classrooms, so the church can use the building for a daycare or school, Lindner said.

 

Atonement Lutheran anniversary events

Nov. 1 at 5:30 p.m., ribbon cutting and open house at the church with the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, 29617 SR 54.

Nov. 3 from noon to 4:30 p.m., church celebration and luncheon, Quail Hollow Country Club, 6225 Old Pasco Road at Wesley Chapel. Tickets are $10 or free for kids younger than 5. For tickets, call Nils Lenz at (813) 782-9491 or email .

Nov. 4 at 10 a.m., Bishop Ed Benaway will preach with fellowship to follow.

 

Atonement Lutheran Church milestones

—1985: The Florida Synod of the Lutheran Church in America, the predecessor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, purchases 13.3 acres for a church on SR 54.

—1987: The church’s first pastor, Matthew G. Cox arrives. The church has its first worship service on Nov. 1, 1987 at J.F. Hunt’s Restaurant.

—1988: The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) forms on Jan. 1, 1988, merging the Lutheran Church in America and the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches, after years of discussion.

—1988: Atonement Lutheran Church is organized as a congregation of the new ELCA on March 27, 1988, at the Professional Building of Wesley Chapel Village Market. It began with 117 charter members.

—1992: Groundbreaking for the new church was on June 21, 1992. The building was finished in early 1993 at a cost of $796,000.

—2009: The church opens its Helping Hands Food Pantry. It also sold frontage for $360,000 to accommodate the widening of SR 54.

—2010: A youth group from Atonement goes on a mission trip to Tallulah, La., to help start a community Bible school and help clean up in the aftermath of tornadoes.

—2012: A new parking lot is constructed and new landscaping is completed. Church celebrates its 25th anniversary.

 

Third annual Help Stock our Shelves Pancake Breakfast and Fall Festival

When: Nov. 10, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

What: pancake breakfast, games, pony rides, bounce house, dunk the pastor, face painting, duck pond, clown, popcorn and more.

Participants are asked to bring canned goods to help those in need at Thanksgiving and to help stock the pantry.

Where: 29617 SR 54 in Wesley Chapel

 

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Most people who want to see an original artwork by Peter Max or a drawing by Theodor Geisel, also known as Dr. Seuss, would have to travel to a museum or a gallery.

Pat Nelson simply walks from one room to another in her North Hillsborough County home.

She’s been collecting interesting paintings, drawings, glass works and decorative walking canes for years.

She has pieces of Lalique and Steuben in a curio cabinet in her living room and a grouping of colorful glass tusks in the dining room.

Some pieces in her collection blend beauty and practicality. Some are dramatic. Others are whimsical.

There are glass works that are solid and strong, and others that are fragile and thin.

Every piece has its place in a collection Nelson has been amassing for the better part of a quarter of a century.

When she adds a piece, it’s for the sheer joy of it.

“My husband and I just like the colors,” Nelson said. She added, “It just makes me happy to look at them, to see the work. … Some people probably never even look at their paintings. I’m constantly enjoying my paintings every day.”

She often makes new discoveries as she gazes at the works.

In one abstract piece, for example, there’s an obscure image of a dog she didn’t notice for ages.

The art comes from a wide array of sources. Some were pieces her husband picked up for her during his travels. Others, she ordered from catalogs or she purchased at local galleries and furniture stores.

The bulk of her collection, however, came from galleries or art shows in Highlands, N.C.; Bar Harbor, Maine and Atlanta.

The cost of the items, such as glass work, started out fairly inexpensive, but now go for two to three times what she paid for them.

Price is not the deciding factor in determining whether a piece will find a place in Nelson’s home. She either likes it or she doesn’t, and she knows that in an instant.

“It’s the shape, the color,” Nelson said.

There are times, of course, when the item costs too much. In some instances, she’ll try to negotiate a better deal. In others, she’ll just walk away.

She also likes to give her place a fresh look by moving objects from room to room.

The former flight attendant said she thinks she came by her love for decorating from her aunt.

“She was all the time changing things,” Nelson said.

Her mother, on the other hand, didn’t alter much: “She bought something, it stayed there and that was it.”

Nelson doesn’t claim any expertise when it comes to collecting. Some items in her collection have gone up in value, while others haven’t.

So, when art lovers are purchasing a new item to display, Nelson offers this piece of advice: “Buy what you like. You’ve got to enjoy it, day in and day out.”

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Paradise Lakes — a clothing optional resort in Land O’ Lakes — is getting a new look, according to Jerry Buchanan, who along with his wife, Patti, purchased the property last month.

Buchanan, who lives near Minneapolis, said he and his wife had come to Florida because they wanted a place to live in the winter.

While here, they learned about the resort’s availability, and Buchanan said it seemed like a project that suited his particular set of skills.

He specializes in restoring buildings, including one project involving an 1860s building he brought back to life.

“The first thing I want to do is bring Paradise Lakes back to its former self,” Buchanan said. “It used to have 5,000 members.”

While he’s committed to the project, he isn’t promising an overnight transformation.

He said he’s beginning by doing touchups to the 66-room hotel.

Some rooms need new paint; others, a new air conditioner. A few have leaky faucets or need a new light switch, Buchanan said.

There’s a fair amount of deferred maintenance that needs to be addressed, Buchanan said. “We’re chipping away at it.”

The couple’s purchase includes the resort portion of the property with its pools, restaurants, nightclub and hotel.

In addition to their property, Paradise Lakes has 581 residents who live in houses, town homes and condominiums.

Buchanan said he and his wife will live here during the winter, and he’ll commute back and forth during the rest of the year.

“I’m going to be spending a lot of hands-on time here,” he said.

Buchanan said he has no plans for lay offs and may need to hire additional staff when business picks up.

“We have hired the entire staff that was here,” Buchanan said.

The resort and residential community have a long history in the community, according to Stephanie Gibson, general manager. Paradise Lakes is the largest clothing optional resort in the United States and possibly the first clothing option resort in Pasco County, she said.

The Buchanans’ decision to buy the property has been greeted with enthusiasm by staff, property owners and guests, Gibson said.

“We all feel with the Buchanans’ vision, Paradise will far exceed what it used to be,” Gibson said.

Buchanan said he’s delighted by the warm reception he and his wife have received from the Paradise Lakes’ staff and community.

The previous owner of the resort, John Forier, died in a car accident Nov. 20, 2011. Before his death, Forier had announced plans for a $4 million makeover of the resort.

Buchanan said he won’t be pursuing Forier’s plans. However, he expects to make gradual improvements to yield the kind of place where people want to come and relax.

“Our goal is to fill this place up,” he said.

Buchanan also noted that the purchase included Pasco Naturally, a publication that serves nudists throughout North America. Buchanan plans to continue to publish it.

Community News Publications, which owns The Laker/Lutz News, sold Pasco Naturally in July 2009.

 

 

 

By B.C. Manion

 

Greg Hutchens knows quite a bit about satellite phones.

In fact, he has a satellite communications business that he operates out of a converted garage in his Odessa home.

He also knows about responding to emergencies.

Recently, Hutchens was at the Keystone Civic Association meeting, where he gave the group a satellite phone to help the team the community has formed respond to emergencies.

When Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans, Hutchens personally transported more than 100 satellite phones to emergency responders in Louisiana.

The hurricane had knocked out delivery services, Hutchens explained.

“Because of the urgency and the need, I took my pickup truck, and we drove up to Louisiana with FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) authorization papers and got through all of the blockades, and we delivered the phones to the United States Army up there,” Hutchens said.

After dropping off those phones, he headed back home to Florida, where he got a call from the 101st Airborne in California.

That group was going to help in New Orleans and needed a dozen satellite phones, Hutchens said. He flew out to California, satellite phones in tow.

When the airplane landed, he made a beeline to the hotel to charge the phones. In a span of 12 hours, Hutchens had brought the devices cross-country and primed them for delivery.

Word got out about his company’s commitment to service, said Hutchens, who is founder and CEO of BEX Voice Data Satellite Communications.

“I was getting calls from government agencies. We had five people in the office here. We were processing orders for phones, 24 hours a day,” Hutchens said, recalling the flurry of activity caused by Hurricane Katrina.

His company also responded to the earthquake in Haiti.

“We had several church organizations, nonprofits that went down there that we supplied,” Hutchens said. “We did supply some of the government agencies,” adding that satellite phones are vital for keeping open lines of communication.

“Satellite phones work when cell phones and landlines don’t,” Hutchens said. “When an earthquake hits, like in Haiti, the cell phone towers went down and the power went out. The satellite phones kept working.”

Disaster zones aren’t the only places where the devices come in handy, he said.

They’re used by military personnel in remote locations and by members of homeland security. Commercial fishing boats, oilrigs and vacations to places off-the-grid are spots where the phones are often used.

Hutchens got into the business after hearing about the phones from Cap. Mel Berman, a widely known radio personality who was considered the voice of the Gulf Coast fishing scene.

Hutchens said that Berman, who has since died, knew the Odessa man was in the communications business. So, Berman asked Hutchens if he’d heard about satellite phones that worked as far as 50 miles offshore.

Hutchens, who also rents the devices, checked it out and it led to him starting his company in 1999.

The business offers a broad range of satellite phone service and phones including Terre Star, Iridium, Globalstar, Thuraya and Inmarsat. It also provides satellite communications, global positioning and marine electronic, among other services.

During the years, the company has developed a client list of roughly 1,000 and has branched out to include four locations across the country.

“If Tampa gets knocked out, we have three other distribution centers,” Hutchens said. “We’ve got them in Arizona, Virginia and Oregon.”

In his line of work, it’s important to be prepared for emergencies.

 

For more information

For more information about BEX Voice Data Satellite Communications, call toll free: (800) 654-4437 or (813) 920-8575, or visit http://www.bexvoicedata.com.