The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Keeping up appearances: The smart way

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By B.C. Manion

While beautifully maintained landscapes can help create a good impression in any neighborhood, keeping up those appearances can prove costly.

That’s why the Pasco Alliance of Community Associations (PACA) recently invited Chris Dewey of the Pasco County Extension Service and Paul Woods of OLM Inc., to its meeting to discuss the issue of what to consider when hiring a landscape management company.

Woods is the Florida regional consultant for OLM, a company that has worked for communities and property managers since 1988 to help homeowner associations and property managers to prepare landscape management contracts, to ensure that the contracts specify what it needed for particular properties and to assist in administering such contracts.

Dewey coordinates the Florida-Friendly Landscaping Program in Pasco County and advises homeowners, homeowner associations and businesses on Florida yard and landscaping standards and goals.

“Landscapes are capital investments,” Woods said during PACA’s meeting on Thursday, Sept. 8 at the Land O’ Lakes Community Center.

The idea is to protect that investment, while keeping the financial interests of the homeowner associations in mind, Woods added.

“The things that happen, happen by contract,” Dewey noted.

So, it is critical that contracts spell out specific standards, he said. “Be detailed.”

Avoid phrases such as “as needed” or “as determined,” Woods advised. That language is too loose.

The contract should spell out such things as the height at which the grass must be maintained, Dewey said. He’s seen instances when the grass has been scalped, which damages its health.

The contract should contain the appropriate standards and should address such things as fertilization, mowing and pesticide use, Dewey said.

“One size does not fit all,” he noted. “I’m always available to help the HOA (homeowners’ association) board to develop the specifications for a good lawn maintenance contract.”

It’s a good idea to look for companies that can handle all aspects of the landscaping service, Woods added. They should be able to do the landscape maintenance work, handle irrigation and do pest control, he said.

If you divide the duties up among different contractors there’s too much opportunity for blame shifting, Dewey said. He calls that the “circular firing squad” effect.

Once you have a contract that specifies what must be done, it’s also important to verify that it is being carried out properly, Woods said.

“There is no substitute for verifying that people are doing what they’re supposed to be doing,” he said. The keys to effective inspections are frequency and detail.

There are published materials that can assist community associations in their planning. Two guides that may be helpful are: “The Florida-Friendly Landscaping Guide to Plant Selection & Landscape Design,” produced by the University of Florida IFAS (Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection; and, “The Community Landscape, An Environmental Approach: Florida-Friendly Landscaping Guidelines for Community Associations,” produced by the University of Florida IFAS.

Ground covers for Florida-friendly living

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By BJ Jarvis

The summer of 2011 has been brutal to area landscapes. High heat alternating with downpours has made it hard to keep up with lawn mowing. Quick-growing lawns need to be cut every 4-5 days, but life’s schedule only allows for once-per-week mowing.
One way to reduce this chore is to minimize turf areas down to what is practical for the occasional game of tag or crochet. Once established, groundcovers require little-to-no additional fertilizer and are typically drought tolerant. Weeds have a very hard time competing when groundcovers connect. Groundcovers cover a lot of territory with a minimum of plants, so select hardy ones to minimize the number that need to be replaced from year to year.
Perennial peanut is a colorful favorite. Grown by farmers as a forage crop, homeowners will enjoy the bright yellow flowers. Quite adaptable in a large bed with little organic matter, hot afternoon sun and no supplemental irrigation, perennial peanut will out-compete turf. Perennial peanut are somewhat aggressive and are best grown in beds that are bounded by a hardscape such as a sidewalk.
There is a stand of perennial peanut along US 301 in downtown Dade City. This ever-blooming display will cause any good gardener to want to locate the nearest retail source.
Powderpuff mimosa is another adaptable groundcover. In addition to being a Florida native, mimosa will completely cover an area in short order. Pink puffball flowers sit atop the foliage in a showy display from summer through fall. While winter may nip it back a bit, mimosa comes on strong when temperatures warm in the spring.
You can’t beat ajuga in partial sun sites. Once established, this purple-leaved groundcover is very drought tolerant and will produce a nice small blue/purple flower held above the foliage. Although landscapes irrigated with reclaimed water will want to make another selection due to low salt tolerance.
For those living in a deed-restricted community that specifies the amount of traditional lawn you must maintain, check with your rules to assure compliance or learn of an appeals process.
Replacing a portion of the lawn will save time from maintenance and will add interest to most any landscape. Consider the many attractive low maintenance ground covers that will continue to add curb appeal while reducing the lawn-mowing burden.
BJ Jarvis is Horticulture Agent and Director for Pasco Cooperative Extension, a partnership between the County and the University of Florida / IFAS.  For more information about groundcovers or other gardening questions, visit: pasco.ifas.ufl.edu/gardening or email at .

 

Pasco makes it five straight against Land O’ Lakes

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By Kyle LoJacono

The Pasco football team defeated Land O’ Lakes for the fifth consecutive season, the longest winning streak in the 36-year rivalry.

Pasco senior Trey Dudley-Giles brings in a catch over a Land O’ Lakes defender in the Pirates 39-6 win on Sept. 9.

The Pirates (2-0) took a 7-6 halftime lead against Land O’ Lakes (1-1), but the Dade City squad put up 32 points in the second half to win 39-6 as the injury depleted Gators seemed to wear down.

“Land O’ Lakes has always been a good team,” said Pasco coach Tom McHugh. “I’ve been doing this for a long time and they’ve always been a very good team.”

The Gators were without five starters to begin the home contest on Sept. 9; four because of injury and defensive back Jordan Michelson was out for off-the-field reasons.

Tight end Kent Taylor broke his left hand in Land O’ Lakes’ kickoff classic against Anclote, and linebacker Shadow Williams broke his left hand against Zephyrhills on Sept. 2. Center John Kranendonk and safety Darin Patmon were also hurt against the Bulldogs, with a cracked sternum and injured knee respectively. The injury bug continued to bite the Gators against Pasco, as wide receiver Ricky Boyles left the game after halftime with a concussion.

Pirates junior running back David Emmanuel ran for 221 yards and three touchdowns against Land O’ Lakes.

Gators coach Brian Wachtel did not use losing six starters as an excuse.

“Pasco’s a good football team,” Wachtel said. “In the second half of the game they made some big plays. Our kids fought hard. I’m so proud of our kids for everything that they did out there tonight, and man it was exciting at half 7-6. We’re just going to have to go back and evaluate the film and move forward.”

The game started promising for the Gators, as they forced a fumble on the Pirates second play from scrimmage, but Land O’ Lakes was unable to come away with any points.

Pasco got on the board first when quarterback Jacob Guy hit running back Janarion Grant for a 61-yard touchdown pass with 10:29 left in the second quarter. The Gators answered with 1:15 left before halftime when quarterback Ryan Bird found wide receiver Nico Watts for a 59-yard strike.

The Pirates came out from halftime on fire, scoring touchdowns on their first four drives to take a commanding 32-6 lead.

“Coach had a good speech at halftime,” said Pasco running back David Emmanuel. “We were a little bit down because it was a very close game. Normally we would be ahead by a mile, but he told us the right things and we came out and did what we had to do.”

Pasco started running the ball more with the 6-foot, 175-pound Emmanuel in the second half to take advantage of the short-handed Gators.

Gators senior linebacker Jackson Cannon sacks Pirates quarterback Jacob Guy.

“Our offensive coordinator found a weakness in their line, and we capitalized on it and made big plays,” Emmanuel said.

Emmanuel finished with 221 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Grant had three scores of his own, all receiving.

Emmanuel said of sharing a backfield with Grant, “He’s like my brother. There’s competition between us every game. He normally comes out on top first, but I guess I tied it up in the end tonight.”

Emmanuel had to miss the Pirates’ first regular season game with a shoulder injury, but the junior showed no lingering effects against the Gators.

“David runs the ball hard,” McHugh said. “If you don’t bring everything you have to tackle David, then it doesn’t work.”

Guy finished 14-of-23 for 232 yards and three touchdowns. Wide receiver Trey Dudley-Giles had four catches for 84 yards and added another 28 on kick returns.

The Land O’ Lakes defense did cause some problems for the Pirates, recording six sacks for -29 yards.

Bird went 12-for-23 for 192 yards with one touchdown and an interception. The Gators signal caller added another 40 rushing yards.

The victory increased Pasco’s lead in the all-time series against Land O’ Lakes to 20-16. The Pirates host Wiregrass Ranch on Friday, Sept. 16 at 7:30 p.m. The Gators have a bye next week, and then host district rival Hernando on Friday, Sept. 23 at 7:30 p.m.

Sunlake tops Wiregrass Ranch 36-0

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By Eugenio Torrens

Sunlake didn’t match its offensive output from week one, but the defense posted its second shutout of the season in as many games to beat Wiregrass Ranch 36-0.

Sunlake senior Jerome Samuels rushed for 50 yards in the first half against Wiregrass Ranch.

The Seahawks (2-0) have outscored their opponents by a combined 84-0, a fact not lost on Sunlake coach Bill Browning.

“Defense did a good job,” Browning said. “It was a good effort by everybody.”

The Bulls (0-2) gave the Seahawks good field position throughout the contest. Sunlake started its first drive from its own 43-yard line. Senior quarterback Cameron Stoltz completed 4-of-5 passes on that drive, including a screen pass that senior Jamal Jones took 19 yards to get the Seahawks on the board.

Wiregrass Ranch fumbled the ball on its own 17 on the ensuing drive. Sunlake recovered, and Stoltz bulleted a pass to senior Rashaud Daniels to go up 13-0.

Jones then picked off Bulls quarterback Ricky Weisbrodt, who started in place of a concussed Jake Day, and ran it back 31 yards into the end zone.

On the next Bulls’ drive, sophomore athlete Tyre Creary came in for Weisbrodt, but it did little to solve their offensive woes as they were unable to get a first down. Weisbrodt was brought back later in the game.

The Wiregrass Ranch defense held Sunlake to its first three-and-out series, but a Bulls’ muffed punt resulted in more prime field position — 30 yards out — for the Seahawks. A 22-yard field goal from Thomas Koen made it 23-0. Senior Mike Lopez added another touchdown for the Seahawks before the half on a 26-yard run.

Wiregrass Ranch running back Eli Galvan fights for yards against Sunlake’s Rashaud Daniels.

Despite the pair of touchdown passes, Stoltz only threw for 60 yards in the first half on 6-of-11 passing. He finished with 132 yards and three touchdowns.

The favorable field position for Sunlake continued in the second half, when the Seahawks recovered an attempted onside kick on the 50-yard line. Stoltz connected with Jones again for a 31-yard score — Jones’ third trip to the end zone.

The Sunlake ground attack was led by senior Jerome Sanmuels, who piled up 50 rushing yards in the first half.

“Our defense plays well at times, but we battled field position all night,” said Wiregrass Ranch coach Jeremy Shobe. “It’s tough when you’ve got a short field to work with.”

The Bulls sorely missed their starting quarterback, Day, and starting running back Jamie Berone, who also suffered a concussion the week before.

“That throws the rhythm off,” Shobe said. “We got a couple of kids we feel are ready, but it’s hard in three days to change the whole rhythm of an offense when you’ve got a guy like your QB that goes down.”

Wiregrass Ranch didn’t get a first down until 4:44 left in the third quarter, and the offense was only able to generate 41 yards.

Sunlake has a bye next week, and then travels to district rival Springstead on Friday, Sept. 23 at 7:30 p.m. The Bulls travel to Pasco on Friday, Sept. 16 at 7:30 p.m.

 

Zephyrhills Christian football builds anew

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By Kyle LoJacono

Last year the Zephyrhills Christian six-man football team reached all of its goals, including completing a perfect 13-0 record and winning a state title.

The majority of those players from that Florida Christian Association of Private and Parochial Schools (FCAPPS) championship team graduated, while others choose to play on public school squads like Zephyrhills or Pasco.

However, the 2011 Warriors season will go on, but as a middle school squad.

Sixth-grader Javan Smith carries the ball during one of Zephyrhills Christians six-man football practices.

Zephyrhills Christian will compete in the FCAPPS middle school division. The goal is to build the program back up to the high school level as the Warriors get older, stronger and more experienced.

“It’s fun because we get to teach football to a lot of kids who are new to the game,” said Zephyrhills Christian coach and principal Mike Smith. “Here it’s a lot more about fundamentals. We can’t do a lot of things like we did last year, but we’ll get to build on this new foundation.”

Mike has found a few more differences teaching sixth and seventh graders from the juniors and seniors.

“The first day I had four kids crying because they didn’t want to run because it was hot, which is very different from the high school kids, but that has changed and by the fourth practice they were all ready to go,” Mike said.

The Warriors will have a familiar name at quarterback to start the year — sixth-grader Javan Smith. Javan is Mike’s youngest son and the brother of Mikey Smith, who was Zephyrhills Christian’s signal caller in 2010.

Javan had a front-row seat to the Warriors 2010 perfect season.

“I saw every game,” Javan said. “I was the announcer. It was a great experience. … We have the talent to do a lot here, but we’re still working on some things.”

Seventh-grade linebacker Nevada Taylor (No. 34) tackles Robert Keldie in the backfield during a recent Warriors practice.

One of the biggest players on the squad is ninth-grader Devon Grannis, an offensive lineman. He relishes the chance to build the program to that championship level.

“I feel honored to help build the program back,” Grannis said. “Maybe next year we can get back to that state final.”

Another player who Mike predicts will help return the Warriors to greatness is seventh-grader Nevada Taylor, a linebacker and running back.

“I really wanted to play, and this team has great potential,” Taylor said. “We’ve got a great coach who has helped us come a long way in a short time.”

Taylor said he looks up to Josh Roberts, who was the Warriors running back last year. The story is similar with seventh-grade linebacker Josh Wilcox, who looks up to Dale Smith Jr., last year’s starting linebacker.

“Watching (Dale) taught me how to be a linebacker,” Wilcox said. “He’s a great player.”

Dale graduated last year, while Roberts and Mikey decided to be home schooled and play on the Zephyrhills football team this season.

“Mikey and Josh both thought it was the right time to try and play with the public school,” Mike said. “They both want to play in college and wanted a chance to get a little more attention.”

Mikey is still around the program on a daily basis. He helps coach the offense during the team’s practices, held during the student’s normal physical education class in the afternoon. The timing allows the former Warriors quarterback to help the program before leaving for Zephyrhills practice.

It seems coaching runs in the Smith family.

“I love the sport, but I love helping the kids and impacting their life,” Mike said. “I believe with all my heart that football kept me in school. I believe it kept me away from drugs and alcohol. Those things were there, but I knew if I did those things I wouldn’t be able to play on Friday night.

“I try and translate everything we do into life for these kids,” Mike continued. “When things are difficult, I tell them lots of things in life will be difficult. But at the end of the day you don’t quit because things are difficult. You get up on your feet and keep fighting. I want to it be an impact on their life spiritually and mentally for years after they take off the pads for the last time.”

The Warriors play at Hernando Christian on Thursday, Sept. 15 at 4 p.m. They will close the season at home against Jacksonville Eastland Christian on Thursday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.

Young Gators poised to leave mark in area cross country

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By Kyle LoJacono

The Land O’ Lakes boys cross country team may be one of the youngest squads in the area, but they are not lacking in race experience or confidence.

The Gators will be led by junior Dillon Oergel along with Travis Nichols, Tyler Stahl and Jake Poore, all sophomores. Oergel, Nichols and Stahl were all part of the 2010 Land O’ Lakes squad that placed 15th in the Class 3A state meet.

“It meant a lot getting to states last year because we had so many seniors,” Nichols said. “It was a great experience.”

The Land O’ Lakes Gators boys cross country team is very young, but still has experience competing at the state meet.

Two of the biggest seniors from last year were Chris Dotson, who signed a cross country scholarship with Lee University in Cleveland, and Hendrix Lafontant, who came in third in districts in 16:29 and earned a spot on the All-Laker/All-Lutz News cross country team in 2010.

Despite the subtractions, the Gators do not feel like it is a rebuilding year.

“This year we’re hoping to get in the top-10, but it’s not going to be easy,” said Land O’ Lakes coach Kris Keppel. “What’s important is our three top sophomores really feed off each other. When you have that you can have a strong team. Not every year do you have that, but these three have really gelled together.”

Keppel said the team has the talent to be one of the top teams in the Tampa Bay area, especially because the younger runners have started taking on leadership roles.

“Tyler and I have been leading the runs, and that’s a lot different from what we did last year as freshmen,” said Nichols, whose personal record (PR) in a 5-kilometer race is 16:52. “We had all that senior leadership who pushed everyone to finish. Now we know we have to do some of those things because the seniors aren’t here anymore.”

Nichols said his goal is to get his time less than 16 minutes by the end of the year, and he has taken steps during the summer to help make it happen. He has given up fast food and replaced it with pasta and lean protein, while also keeping hydrated and focusing on stretching.

“I feel better on runs,” Nichols said. “It helps me be more productive.”

Stahl, whose PR is 17:25, has his own methods for slashing his times. He has run for 50 straight days and plans to run every day throughout the season.

Oergel, whose PR is 16:58, has not been able to do as much training during the summer as he would like. He has been suffering a small injury to his left knee that happened during the offseason because of too much running and weight training. While his conditioning is not where he would like it, he said he is almost completely healed and ready for the year.

“We have a couple injuries, but I think the prospects are still very, very good,” Keppel said.

Keppel is entering his 18th year as Land O’ Lakes’ coach. His Gators squads have qualified for states seven times, including the last three seasons.

The road toward a fourth-straight trip to states will not be easy for the Gators. They are in Class 3A-District 6 with Wiregrass Ranch. The Bulls won a district and regional championship last year, forcing Land O’ Lakes to live with runner-up finishes in both events.

“There’s a lot of competition,” Nichols said. “Wiregrass is in our district and were really good last year. I know all their runners and I think myself, Tyler and Jake are stacked right there with their guys, but it’s not going to be easy to get where we want.”

Wiregrass Ranch is coached by Chris Loth, one of Keppel’s former assistants.

“He started the program there, and we’ve always had that friendly rivalry,” Keppel said. “These guys know all of their runners by name. It’s not like we go and spray paint their house or anything, but we don’t want them to beat us. It just adds something more when we run against them.”

If they get to regionals, Land O’ Lakes will likely face perennial powerhouse Chamberlain as well as Steinbrenner, which finished as the 2A state runner-up in 2010.

“Wiregrass has been beating us for years and it would be great to finally beat them,” Stahl said. “We want to get first at districts and regionals and beat them at states. With Steinbrenner, they’re new and we haven’t faced them, but we’re pretty confident we can beat them. As long as we feel that way we should be able to.”

Marla Oliver to guide academy volleyball

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By Kyle LoJacono

Marla Oliver was recently named the new volleyball coach at Academy at the Lakes and has a goal of bring a winning tradition to the Wildcats program.

New Wildcats volleyball coach Marla Oliver speaks with her team during a break in the action in the squads' win against Brooks-DeBartolo Collegiate on Sept. 8.

The challenge is large for Oliver, as the academy is seeking its first playoff appearance and is coming off a 2-12 season.

“This is a great school and is the reason why I accepted the challenge,” Oliver said. “I know that I have a support system that will help me and pick me up when I fall down.”

Coaching is nothing new to her, having spent more than 20 years coaching basketball and softball from elementary school to the college level, but this is her first time leading a volleyball program.

“I accepted the challenge,” Oliver said. “I have many years of coaching experience in other sports and figured that it wouldn’t be much different. Well, I was wrong. Volleyball is definitely a sport in its own category.”

Oliver said she did a lot of research on how to lead a successful volleyball program during the last few weeks.

Academy at the Lakes senior Alexis Holler in the Wildcats three-set win on Sept. 8.

Either Oliver is a quick study or she has a natural gift to coach volleyball, because the Wildcats won their first match of the year at home against Hernando Christian Academy, a district opponent, on Aug. 30 in four sets 19-25, 25-22, 25-21, 25-18.

“After we lost the first set Tuesday night, the competitiveness came out in me,” Oliver said. “Now I’m on a mission to get the girls better day by day so we can compete with anyone.”

The academy made it two wins in a row by defeating Brooks-DeBartolo Collegiate 25-6, 25-10, 25-3 on Sept. 8.

Oliver and her family moved to the area from Michigan a year ago. Academy athletic director Tom Haslam said she started working as a part-time substitute teacher during last school year.

“We offered her a full-time physical education position at the end of the year,” Haslam said. “She had a four-month audition you could say, and we really enjoyed what we saw from her. We liked her personality, she has great energy and knows how to coach. The girls really respond to her.”

Oliver said her key players will include senior outside hitter Mary Power, senior outside hitter and setter Alexis Holler and junior setter Rachel Allen.

“(Mary) is a true leader and great motivator,” Oliver said. “Alexis knows the game very well and is athletic. Rachel is a great setter and knows when and where to be at all times. She is another great leader on the court.”

Marla said there are also a lot of players who haven’t played the sport before, but are “working hard and catching on quickly.”

Volleyball may be new to Marla, but she does have a familiar face in the Wildcats lineup. Her daughter Amelia is a senior outside hitter and defensive specialist.

Marla is also the middle school athletic coordinator at the academy. Haslam said she will coach middle school girls basketball in the winter.

“I played college basketball, so that will be a little more familiar to me,” Marla said.

The academy plays in Class 2A-District 8 with Bayshore Christian, Cambridge, Citrus Park Christian, Hernando Christian and Tampa Bay Christian. The 2A-8 tournament is Oct. 24-27 at Citrus Park.

The Wildcats host Cambridge Christian on Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 6 p.m.

John Clapp leads two Gators programs

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By Kyle LoJacono

John Clapp was named the Land O’ Lakes softball coach just a few weeks after taking over the Gators girls golf program.

Land O’ Lakes athletic director Karen Coss said Clapp’s experience with the Gators softball program made him the clear choice.

“(John) has been the junior varsity coach for the last nine years and has built a great relationship with the girls while teaching them the game,” Coss said. She then added, “He knows his way around the team, field and players better than anyone. There were great candidates for the head varsity position, but John’s experience with the program gave him the advantage.”

Coss also said Clapp “is committed to Land O’ Lakes High School athletics, and is willing to put the time in to help the girls learn, but also have fun while they’re doing it.”

Clapp was honored to take over both Land O’ Lakes programs.

“Being involved in two programs is exciting,” Clapp said. “I believe it is an honor and a privilege to coach these young ladies, making a difference one athlete at a time. I truly love coaching.”

Clapp said he has experience coaching softball, baseball, football and hockey, but this is the first time he has led a golf program. The squad is very young, with three freshmen, a sophomore and two juniors.

Despite a lack of experience, the Gators girls golf team has hit the ground running, earning a victory 208-233 against Gulf in their first match of the season.

The Land O’ Lakes softball team went 4-16 in 2011. The program loses seven players to graduation from last year, including second-leading hitter Emily Austin who averaged .328 as a senior.

The Gators will likely return catcher and infielder Meghan Sfraga, who led the squad with a .444 batting average, 18 RBI, 15 runs scored and nine doubles.

“My goal for both programs is to build strong successful long-term teams that the girls are proud to be a part of,” Clapp said. He then added, “We have a few months until softball begins but have great plans in place.”

Clapp is replacing Jamie Martin, who resigned her softball position but will remain as the Gators girls weightlifting coach and a physical education teacher at Land O’ Lakes.

–All stats as recorded to Maxpreps.com by coaches.

 

TOUCHED BY TRAGEDY

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 Area residents reflect on 9/11 anniversary

By B.C. Manion

As the nation pauses to honor the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, Rich Diehl will be in New York to honor the memory of his brother.

The Land O’ Lakes man was selected by lottery to be among about 200 people reading the names of those who died from the attacks on that fateful day.

He and his wife, Eileen, will join Rich’s brothers and their families as they gather to honor his late brother, Michael, and others who died in the worst attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor.

Here are some recollections from the Diehls and other local residents who had a personal connection to the Sept. 11 attacks.

 

Rich and Eileen Diehl

Rich Diehl was on his way to work when an airliner plowed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001.

Diehl didn’t know what the receptionist was talking about when he walked into his office in St. Petersburg and the receptionist told him his brother was OK.

“I learned almost immediately thereafter that a plane had hit the World Trade Center,” the Land O’ Lakes man recalls.

The family thought everything was fine because Rich’s mom had talked to Michael and he had told her he was fine.

That was before another airliner slammed into the South Tower at 9:03 a.m.

Rich saw the second plane hit.

“We were actually gathering in a meeting room and watching this all transpire on TV,” said Rich, who was working at JSA Healthcare.

As the day wore on, no one could get in touch with Michael. So, the Land O’ Lakes couple packed up the car and headed to New York the next day.

They didn’t know whether Michael was dead or alive, Rich said.

“We thought he might still be missing. We drove up there, then – thinking that maybe he would be found – hopefully found alive,” Rich said.

“Our daughter contacted the Red Cross. At one point, they said they had heard of a Michael Diehl,” Eileen said.

There was a Michael Diehl in a hospital on Staten Island, but it turned out that it wasn’t their Michael.

The couple was up in New York for about 10 days.

Authorities found Michael’s wallet and then some of his remains, said Rich, the oldest of the family’s four brothers.

There’s still pain in his eyes as Rich thinks about his brother, who was married and had two children.

“Michael and I were best friends,” said Rich, who frequently talked to his brother. “He was a great family man,” Rich said. “He valued his relationship with his mother, his wife and kids and with us.”

Eileen said Michael once told her, “You’re the sister I never had.”

 

Arthur “Fitz” Foster

“I was working in New York at 55 Water Street, which as the crow flies, is about seven blocks from the World Trade Center,” recalls Arthur “Fitz” Foster.

“I was a little late getting to work that morning. As I got out of the subway, everybody started looking up. We just saw debris just floating across. A lot of paper debris. Everyone was wondering,  ‘What happened?’”

He walked to his office and was at his desk on the 27th floor of the building.

“I had a window and looked toward where I saw the debris coming and I saw this big gash in the side of the North Tower. I noticed a lot of other people were at the windows, as well.”

Foster said he called his wife, who was at work in Long Island and asked if she’d heard about any problems at the World Trade Center. She told him she’d heard an airplane had crashed into one of the towers.

Foster said he couldn’t figure out how that could have happened on such a clear day.

Then, when he looked out his window, he saw the blur of an airplane going by and it struck the South Tower.

After the second plane hit, it became clear the country was under attack, Foster said. His office was evacuated.

Foster and a colleague later went back to the building to find out whether to return to work.

“Then we heard this “whooom” at ground level, we couldn’t see anymore the World Trade Center. All we knew was that this big debris field was making its way toward us. “We thought it was a bomb. It came down with such a force.”

He and a colleague put handkerchiefs over their faces and sought refuge beneath an elevated highway.

“Even when we heard the F-15s coming into town, we couldn’t see anything because of the cloud of debris, so we thought, ‘Maybe it’s enemies.’”

“You could see nothing. So, we decided to keep walking north. Largely to get out of the debris field, and also to find out what was happening.

“We saw people walking across the Brooklyn Bridge and I said, ‘I’m not walking across the bridge. I don’t know how I’m going to get transport (back home) from there or whether the bridge would get blown up.’

“You just didn’t know what was happening at all,” Foster said. “We walked to the South Street Seaport.”

That was less than a half-mile, and that’s where they watched a television report to find out what was happening.

“We moved further north and when we reached Chinatown, we were able to get phone signal and I was able to call my wife.”

When they were in Chinatown, he said, they saw the second tower coming down.

“I will never forget something like that. It was like in slow motion, but the whole thing, I guess, came down in maybe 30 seconds. It just pancaked all of the way down.”

Foster said one of his friends, who worked on the 84th floor of the first tower, was late to work that day – sparing his life.

Another friend, who occasionally worked in the building to help set up technology for conferences, happened to be there that day, setting up equipment for a conference at Windows on the World.

That man, Wade B. Green, was never found.

Shortly after the attacks, Foster said his department was moved from the 27th floor of his building up to the 50th floor.

“You had people who resigned because they didn’t want to go that far up,” he said.

 

Jim Chalker

Jim Chalker was working at a hotel about two miles of the World Trade Center at the time of the attacks.

“I had just got done on my coffee break,” said the 67-year-old, who now lives at Westbrooke Manor and Assisted Memory Support in Zephyrhills.

He had heard the news about the first plane striking the North Tower and knew immediately that America was under attack.

Right after the airplane hit, there was soot a couple of inches thick on the cars, Chalker said.

“I went outside and I saw the second plane,” he said. “You could see the second plane aim at the second building. You knew it was deliberate.”

Chalker said he didn’t know what to do, but heard reports that the first responders needed dry clothing.

“We got involved with that. We went to Kmart. We basically bought them out,” said Chalker, who still wears the now-faded T-shirt he got from the fire department for his help after the attacks.

He saw televised reports of people leaping to their deaths.

“They were 90 floors up. You had one of two choices: You could burn or you could jump.”

He also recalled seeing people walking around, carrying fliers containing photos and descriptions of loved ones they were trying to find.

“It was terrible,” Chalker said.

Alyson Stanina

Alyson Stanina, who now works at Westbrooke Manor and Assisted Memory Support in Zephyrhills, said she went to New York the summer after the attacks to work at a summer camp for children.

The New Ground Day Camp was basically for children who lost a family member or witnessed the horror of the attacks, Stanina said.

“There were a lot of kids that saw people jumping, unfortunately.”

She said psychiatrists and counselors worked with the children.

The children drew pictures to express their feelings, Stanina said. While many of the children seemed to be coping well, some of the drawings were heartbreaking, Stanina said. She recalled one drawing, in particular. A child had drawn “a picture of daddy with wings.”

 

Melisa Rodriguez

Melisa Rodriguez was living in New Jersey on the day of the attacks. She shared her recollections in an email to The Laker/Lutz News.

“That day happened to be my parents’ 25th wedding anniversary,” Rodriguez wrote, noting she and her husband had just dropped off their 1-year-old daughter at her mother’s to go to a dental appointment.

Her husband was in the dentist’s chair when he heard the country was under attack and rushed out to tell his wife. When the couple arrived home, they watched the towers fall.

Rodriguez said her husband, who was in the New Jersey Army National Guard was deployed to help guard the Holland Tunnel.

“At home, I had a feeling of dread, wondering if we would be bombed, if our water would be poisoned, or if a bioterrorism attack would occur,” Rodriguez writes.

“Our towns were filled with people wondering about their loved ones who worked in Manhattan that they could not reach because cell phone service was so poor,” she recalls.

Meanwhile, her father — a battalion chief with a fire department in New Jersey – returned home early from training exercises in Texas to help secure the area where search and rescue teams were working.

“They (rescue teams) mostly recovered the poor souls who were either doing their jobs as business men or women, or doing their jobs as police officers and firefighters,” she noted.

“Soon after 9/11, we attended a memorial service at Battery Park, in which Christopher and Dana Reeve spoke and Ray Charles sang “America the Beautiful.”

“Our New Jersey towns started filling with makeshift memorials, as local commuters were discovered dead.

“When I walk up a stairwell in an office building, I think of the firefighters who went up many, many stairwells, never to come back down.

“I think of the people running from the buildings with soot covering their faces.  I think of the monsignor who was killed by a falling body while performing the anointing of the sick to another dying soul.

“I think of the NYC skyline that will forever be altered. I think of Lisa Beamer, and her now 10-year-old child that never met his father.

“I think of all the heroes and their families.

“I think of the troops and their families who are still sacrificing.

“And I think of the terrorists that are surely living amongst us, waiting to attack us again.  “I think of how patriotic our country was soon after 9/11, and how divided we are now.  “We will never be the same after 9/11.

“We should never forget this day and all those we lost.”

9/11 tragedy brings out giving spirit in Lutz woman

By

By Kyle LoJacono

 

Like most people in the United States, Sylla Hanger was devastated by what happened on Sept. 11, 2001.

For the Lutz resident, it wasn’t enough to send some supplies or money. She needed to get out and give back with all her skills to try and help the emergency workers around ground zero.

Sylla decided to use her knowledge of massage and aromatherapy to help make working in the devastated area a little easier. She became a licensed massage therapist in 1979 and has been using essential oils for decades.

“In the early ’80s I was making my own perfumes from oils at the health food stores,” Sylla said. “I realized that there was more relaxation from the massage with a nice scented oil. I thought I’d invented something, but I found that aromatherapy was being taught in England.”

Sylla helped form the first aromatherapy organization in the United States, which eventually led to the creation of the National Association of Holistic Aromatherapy (NAHA). When 9/11 happened it was natural for her to give back using her expertise.

“My friend Doug started a massage team called North Carolina Emergency Response Massage Team, or CERMT,” Sylla said. “He was taking care of flood victims in Carolina before 9/11. I knew our skills could do some good. It actually came to me while I was doing a massage treatment and I knew we had to aromatize Manhattan. There was all that smoke in the air. I knew we had to get these oils there.”

Sylla and the team first went in November 2001 and returned during Christmas, Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day. The trips were one to two weeks long.

Sylla said people sent her $10,000 worth of aromatherapy products for the first trip. Significantly more came for the last three trips. During the second trip the group developed the name United Aromatherapy Effort (UAE), an official nonprofit group.

“We worked at the stations, at the chapel by ground zero, at the landfill on Staten Island and in the temporary morgues,” Sylla said. “Mostly we did the chair massage, which is about 15 minutes long. It’s mostly head, neck and shoulders and it’s very relaxing. It leaves people very refreshed. Then we’d give them some product with them. Often it was sprays, lotions and breathing potions.”

They would also give the workers cotton swabs with oils on it to put in their respirator.

“They loved that because the masks smelled horrible and it was hard to breath,” Sylla said. “A lot of them told us they wouldn’t use them without the oils.”

Sylla and the team started adopting fire stations during the second trip. In total, UAE adopted 22 stations, which received oils, a diffuser and a vaporizer.

“They couldn’t get over that we came from out of town to help them, and paid our own way to do it,” Sylla said. “It made them feel really good, which made us feel really good. A lot of them had survivor guilt and didn’t want to relax after so many of their friends died. We told them to let us help. Let us help you because that’s all the thanks we need.”

Sylla’s daughter Nyssa Hanger, who was in high school at the time, went on two of the trips.

“I didn’t decide to go until my mom came home from her trip in November and said she was going back for Christmas,” Nyssa said. “I wasn’t able to see it until years later, but my mother has instilled in me a deep drive for helping others. Seeing what she gained through helping, I wanted to go as well. I knew that there were many people hurting up there and it was consoling to know I might be able to help.”

Nyssa, who attended Gaither High her first two and then went to Blake High for its magnet program, was picked as one of the “20 Coolest Teens in America” by YM magazine in November 2002 because of her work after 9/11. Those trips also helped her decide to become a physical therapist.

“Though I wasn’t doing massage formally, I spent three weeks working side-by-side with other massage therapists and saw the amazing effects of loving touch,” Nyssa said.  She then added, “Though Sept 11, 2001 will be a day remembered as a national tragedy, I can say that it actually changed my life in a profound and surprisingly positive way.”

The experience has changed Sylla’s life as well, and she still can’t help but get emotional while recalling the trips.

“I learned you can’t care too much,” Sylla said, choked up with the memory. “I had a lot of post-traumatic stress when I left because it felt so good to help that I wanted to keep going back. It’s the greatest thing I’ve ever done, and when it was over it was like a hole in my life even though it cost me a fortune to do it. … I wanted to do it again and again, and I knew that I could do it.”

Sylla and UAE also went up the Gulf Coast to help after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Now the group is focusing on sending aromatherapy products to U.S. soldiers serving overseas in places like Afghanistan. Sylla also goes to the VA hospital in Tampa to give the massage therapy treatments to veterans.

“We’ll put the supplies where they’re needed,” Sylla said. “The best thing is if anyone has money to help with shipping. We have product, but not the money to ship it.”

How to help 

To help UAE, visit unitedaromatherapy.org. From there people can find phone numbers and addresses if they want to donate money, supplies or their time and expertise in aromatherapy. People can also email .