Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By Kyle LoJacono

Staff Writer

An incurable disease has spread to 33 of Florida’s citrus-producing counties and threatens the long-term health of the industry in the Sunshine State.

It is called the huanglongbing (HLB), but is also known as yellow dragon disease or citrus greening. The disease was first recorded in the Tampa Bay area in 2007. There have been more than 1,900 confirmed cases of HLB in Florida as of the end of 2009, with at least 36 in Pasco and Hillsborough counties combined. The only citrus-producing counties not affected are in north Florida.

“It is the most serious citrus disease out there,” said Florida Citrus Mutual spokesman Andrew Meadows.

While all citrus plants are vulnerable to HLB, sweet and mandarin oranges are the most affected. Sour oranges, grapefruits and lemons are only moderately susceptible, as are plants related to citrus such as the limeberry.

George Neukom III, of Zephyrhills, runs one commercial grove in Pasco and is on the board of directors for the mutual.

“We’re just starting to see the shirking of the fruit and the other symptoms of the greening,” Neukom said. “We expect to see more next year…I’m very fearful of it. I’ve seen groves down south that have had the disease longer and it can get very bad.”

Neukom has had to remove 10 to 15 trees this year because of HLB. The disease plus the extreme cold from last winter could have destroyed the next crop, but his grove has been able to dodge both bullets to this point.

“We would have lost some of the smaller trees if we hadn’t used the water to protect them,” Neukom said. “We were really lucky because it was cold enough to do a lot of damage…Our next crop will be ready in November and I expect it to be a good one as long as we don’t see problems with the disease.”

HLB causes leaves to develop yellow blotches, poor flowering and stunted tree growth according to Florida Citrus Mutual. Fruit from infected trees are usually misshapen or shrunken, remain green when ripe and taste either bitter or very sour.

Trees may not exhibit symptoms for six to 18 months and by that time much of the grove is usually infected. Citrus plants generally die within two years of contracting HLB.

The disease was first detected in the United States in September 2005 in Dade and Broward counties. HLB is spread by two species of psyllid, a flying insect. Only the Asian variety has been seen in this country.

Psyllids carry the bacterium that causes the greening and pass it to the trees while feeding on the sap. HLB is not spread by wind, rain or contact with contaminated tools.

While HLB poses no threat to people, animals or plants that are not related to citrus, the disease is a risk to the $9.3 billion citrus industry. There are no projections of how much HLB will hurt the industry this year.

The best way to prevent the spread today is to remove infected trees from a grove as soon as it starts to display symptoms. Generally trees near the infected ones are also removed in case they have caught the greening.

In addition, the Florida Department of Citrus is researching more effective pesticides to reduce the number of psyllids and developing strains of citrus that are resistant to HLB.

A smaller grove in Zephyrhills is the one owned by Charlie Proctor. He has grown all naval oranges on the land for seven or eight years.

“I haven’t had problems with that yet,” Proctor said of HLB. “I have a guy who takes care of the grove for me and he hasn’t said anything about it getting to the trees.

“Last year was the first time I lost money on the grove, but that was because we didn’t get enough water until too late in the season so we only got a few oranges,” Proctor continued. “It wasn’t because of the greening.”

The Florida Department of Agriculture is encouraging anyone who has a tree infected with HLB to remove it as soon as possible to prevent the spread of the disease. For more information on HLB, visit the mutual’s Web site, www.flcitrusmutual.com.

By Sarah Whitman

Senior Staff Writer

Lutz Elementary School and the old train depot will get a fresh look when Lutz paints the town April 24.

For 11 years, the Sheriff’s Office has sponsored Lutz Paint the Town to coincide with Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful and the Great American Clean-up.

This year the Sheriff’s office didn’t have the funds or resources to manage the event, so Idlewild Baptist Church stepped up to help. The church has 40 volunteers scheduled to participate, most from its singles ministry.

“We didn’t want the event to die so we picked up the tab to keep the community active,” said Jonathan Boyette, local and national missions coordinator for Idlewild.  “We invite everyone to come help out.”

The event begins at 8 a.m. at the Old School House on 41 with a quick orientation meeting. Anyone interested in volunteering can grab a brush and join in. The event will last until 1 p.m. Hot Rod’s BBQ & Grill will supply lunch for the volunteers.

Last year, volunteers painted Hot Rod’s restaurant, 18430 Livingston Ave., as part of the project. Owner Rod Smith was overwhelmed with gratitude. Having been diagnosed with cancer, he was unable to do the repairs himself. Having the community step up to help gave him hope in a difficult time.

“It was just wonderful,” Smith said. “Making the food this year is my way of reciprocating. As of now I am doing good and beating the disease.”

Prior to 2009, Paint the Town projects were usually private homes of the elderly.

This year, volunteers will paint picnic tables, fences and doors at Lutz Elementary. The second project site is the Lutz train depot at Lutz Lake Fern and US 41, where in addition to painting, cross signals will be repaired. The train depot is a replica of the original built at the turn of the 20^th Century.

“The train depot is something the community worked on for many years to build,” said Eleanor Cecil, member of the Lutz Civic Association. “It is very significant to the community. Having it renovated is a very good thing.”

The Paint the Town project sites were chosen by community members and Idlewild volunteers.

“We’ve always been involved with this event,” Boyette said. “This year we went around to local establishments to see where there was a need.”

Both sites are supplying the paint themselves. Idlewild is supplying additional materials.

Boyette said giving back is important.

“At Idlewild, we are always looking for opportunities to serve,” he said. It’s important to feel a sense of ownership and take personal responsibility for one’s community.”

Boyette isn’t sure what the future holds for Paint the Town but said Idlewild will be there to head it up for as long as is needed.

“It’s an important tradition,” Boyette said. “We definitely want to keep it alive.”

By Sarah Whitman

Senior Staff Writer

A 1981 motorcross accident left Randy Neiswender partially paralyzed from the waist down, reliant on a wheelchair and walker.

The accident didn’t stop Neiswender from becoming the top salesman at Jarrett Ford in Dade City, where he has worked for 30 years.

“I could have sat at home and collected a monthly check from the government but that would have been a waste,” he said. “I’ve had a productive career.”

Neiswender moved with his family to Zephyrhills in 1972. He and his brothers, John and Mike, were interested in motorcross and the area was a perfect place to race. Their father Winfield owned Pasco Motor Sports, a local bike shop.

Neiswender graduated from Zephyrhills High School in 1977 and went to work as a motorcycle mechanic for Yamaha in California. He traveled the United States attending bike races. In 1980, he returned to Zephyrhills and was offered a job working with his dad, a manager then at Jarrett Ford.

In October 1981, Neiswender earned his first salesman of the month award. It was the same month he went bike racing with friends at the Pasco County Fairgrounds and woke up in intensive care at University Community Hospital.

“It was October 29,” Neiswender said. “My friends had gotten some new bikes. I crashed. I wiped out. The crash wasn’t really worse than the other crashes I’d had racing through the years, but my body hit a tree.”

Neiswender had three crushed ribs, a broken arm, internal bleeding, a bruise on his brain and a bruise on his spinal cord, which resulted in paralysis.

“I was never expected to walk again but with some good doctors and the help of the good Lord I can walk with a walker and have some feeling in my legs,” he said.

Neiswender was in physical therapy from 1981 to 1984, when he decided it was time to go back to work. He received an unexpected response.

“I went to the government office and said, ‘I want to discontinue my disability,’” Neiswender said. “The man said, ‘What, nobody ever does that?’ ”

Jarrett Ford welcomed the salesman back without hesitation and Neiswender has since earned the salesman of the year title 13 times. The company stopped handing out awards in 2000, or he would probably have many more.

Neiswender’s co-workers attribute his success to a genuine desire to help customers.

“Randy truly worries more about the customers’ needs than he does about just selling a car,” said Michael Kline, new car manager. “He is probably one of the most compassionate salesmen I’ve ever met.”

Neiswender’s brother, John, is general manager of Jarrett Ford in Winter Haven.

“Randy’s a great salesman because he’s tenacious and he never misses work,” John said. “He never has a bad day because he always has a positive frame of mind. ”

The two brothers support one another in good times and hard times. They lost their older brother Mike to cancer, also in 1981. Their father passed away a decade later and their mother, Mary Lou, is currently struggling with Alzheimer’s disease.

Neiswender, now 51, doesn’t believe in dwelling on the negative. In his opinion, it is a blessing to get out of bed everyday and drive his Ford Explorer to work. His biggest complaint is able people who park in handicap spaces.

“I can honestly say there’s never been a morning I’ve woken up and thought I didn’t feel like going in to work that day,” he said. “I really like what I do.”

Neiswender loves chatting with customers to get a feel for what type of car they need.

“I sit them down and talk to them because I want to sell them something that fits,” he said.

Jarrett Ford receptionist Ruth Johnson loves Neiswender’s approach to sales.

“It’s his honesty, and if he sees someone come in, he’s always right there, ready to take care of them,” she said.

When he’s not working, Neiswender spends time with his wife of almost three years, Carolyn. The couple likes watching sports, especially Bucs games.

Neiswender also follows stock car racing. He keeps a signed lettered from driver Richard Petty on his wall at work, and he hasn’t forgotten his love for motorcross. He watches the races on television and keeps in touch with old racing buddies. He doesn’t fault the sport for what happened and wouldn’t tell any young man not to race.

“Some of my fondest memories are of waking up, going out into the woods and racing with friends,” he said. “Accidents happen. You can always fall off a horse, or off the sidewalk for that matter. You can’t stop living.”

Contact Randy Neiswender at (352) 567-6711.

National effort helps remove tons of garbage

By Kyle LoJacono

Staff Writer

Each year millions of volunteers across the United States spend one Saturday in the spring picking up trash in their communities as part of the Great American Cleanup.

In Pasco County the event was April 17 and is the signature event of Keep America Beautiful (KAB).

“The cleanup started in Pasco County in 1992 and the first location was in Land O’ Lakes,” said Jennifer Seney, president KAB’s Pasco chapter. “Some of the site captains have been doing it for years, but we still get people calling who are interested in starting new

locations.”

Seney, who is also Pasco’s recycling coordinator, said the event always happens the third Saturday in April in the county.

This year there were 17 locations for the cleanup. Of those, three were in Wesley Chapel and one was in Land O’ Lakes.

The captain of the Land O’ Lakes cleanup is Amy Gallogly, who is also Club Connerton’s activities director and took over the site two years ago. The group picked up trash along Kent Grove Drive off SR 52.

“The road really needs it,” Gallogly said. “We picked the road also because the traffic isn’t so bad for the safety of our kid volunteers.”

Gallogly said girl and boy scout troops in Land O’ Lakes always come out to help with the cleanup. There were 30 volunteers at last year’s Land O’ Lakes cleanup and Gallogly estimated 50 helped this year.

“We found all sorts of things out there,” Gallogly said. “What we find the most of is cigarette butts, but there are lots of soda cans, bottles and paper too.”

Another Pasco site that has found less common trash is coordinated by Michelle Barbour of Wesley Chapel. Barbour started the first cleanups in Wesley Chapel four or five years ago near the Sun Trust Bank at the corner of Bruce B. Downs Boulevard and SR 54, but the event moved to Wesley Chapel Park two years ago.

“We find all kinds of crazy things during the cleanup,” Barbour said. “One year we found a whole dashboard of a car on either Old Pasco Road or Boyette (Road). We’ve also found TVs, washers and dryers and other things that seem so odd because of how big they are. Things like that can do a lot of harm to the environment and to the animals that live out there.”

Barbour, who works for ReMax Advantage Realty, said the cleanup usually removes about two tons of trash each year. ReMax gives support to Barbour’s cleanup efforts by promoting it in the area each year and other employees also participate in picking up the trash.

“We always try to do better than the year before,” Barbour said. “We do a cleanup in the fall for the Coastal Cleanup and we usually have more trash for that event, but it is still outrageous the amount we pick up in the spring too.

“It is critical that we keep our community clean,” Barbour continued. “If we don’t keep it clean it only hurts ourselves and the wildlife in Pasco County.”

The event is about making the community a cleaner place than the day before, but Gallogly sees another long-term goal of the cleanup too.

“It’s awesome for kids to get involved at a young age,” Gallogly said. “The movement to go green and protect the environment has put more of a focus on things like cleanups, but it is still important to teach children to look after the planet.”

For more information on the Great American Cleanup or KAB, visit www.kab.org. To learn about Pasco specific KAB events, visit www.keeppascobeautiful.org.

“We’ve been at this for a long time,” Seney said of the cleanups. “If we didn’t do the different events Pasco County would be a much nastier place to live.”

Central and East Pasco cleanup locations

• Land O’ Lakes on Kent Grove Road
• Wesley Chapel at Wesley Chapel Park
• Wesley Chapel on Old Pasco Road
• Wesley Chapel on Quail Hollow Boulevard

To form a site for next years Great American Cleanup, call Seney at (813) 996-7341, (352) 521-4274 or (727) 847-8041.

By Joe Potter

Laker Correspondent

The fire station on Sixth Avenue in Zephyrhills reopened with little fanfare on April 15, slightly more than 800 days after it was rendered unusable by a flood in January 2008.

For the past 116 weeks, personnel and equipment from Zephyrhills Fire Rescue Station 2 had been operating out of the World War II Barracks Museum at Zephyrhills Municipal Airport. The museum was vacated April 16 after firefighters and paramedics had returned to the downtown station.

City workers did the lion’s share of the remodeling of station 2, said Zephyrhills City Manager Steve Spina. The city acted as general contractor on the project. The work was finished earlier than anticipated and under budget, according to Spina.

A Grand Opening for the revamped station 2 is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. April 26.

The interior of the fire station was gutted and redesigned. This resulted in a more functional and comfortable environment for personnel, Spina said.

A new sprinkler system was installed in the building at a cost of $51,000. Also, the station’s electrical system was brought up to current code and a new air conditioning unit was installed.

This is the first of two planned phases of work on Fire Station 2. The second phase will include converting three bays on the west end of the building into office space, which is currently used for storage.

Zephyrhills has applied for a Community Development Block Grant that could help fund the second phase, Spina said.

By Suzanne Schmidt

Staff Writer

Recently the guys came together to form a band and are playing a few gigs a month at places like Rapscallions in Land O’ Lakes and Skinny’s Sports Bar in Wesley Chapel. The band plays classic rock with tunes like “Wasting Away in Margaritaville” and “Sweet Home Alabama.” Sometimes the band will play original music as well.

Many musicians dream of becoming famous rock stars but members of the local band The Loopers gave up on those dreams about 20 years ago.

Their next show will be 7:30 to 11:30 p.m. April 23 at Ukulele Brand’s, 4805 Land O’ Lakes Blvd.

Mike Sams of Wesley Chapel is the lead guitar and back up singer. He started playing the early 1970s and spent 16 years playing full-time with several bands including Classics IV featuring Dennis Yost, Switch and Sudden Change.

“I went as far as I thought I was going to go,” Sams said. “I always enjoyed playing and it was great because I went all over. It was something I enjoyed and I was making money at it.”

Sams said he loves getting up in front of the crowd.

“I like to play music because it is challenging,” Sams said. “I can always get better. I am doing things now that I couldn’t do 20 years ago. I never thought I would be playing again. We are just a bunch of older guys who like to play music.”

The band is working on some original music as well with the hopes that someone will want to buy it and record it.

“We are not trying to be stars,” Sams said. “It would be nice to sell the song and see it end up on the radio.”

Tom Burt of Wesley Chapel is the newest member of the band and the youngest. He plays bass guitar and is a back up singer. In addition to playing with the band, Burt also plays at Crossroads United Methodist Church.

“In the beginning, it is a rush and you are nervous,” Burt said. “After you play enough, you get comfortable. After my 20-year-hiatus from playing it feels good to be playing again.”

Burt played in a band called Bobby’s Box after he graduated high school in the late 1970s when he lived in Denver.

“When I was younger, it was thrilling and exciting,” Burt said. “I had dreams of being a rock star, but now I just do it to have fun. We always say the more you drink, the better we sound.”

Bruce Ballas of Land O’ Lakes is the lead singer and he plays rhythm acoustic and electric guitar. He has been playing guitar for 42 years.

“It is mostly a hobby for me,” Ballas said. “I like to play smooth rhythms on the acoustic guitar. It is relaxing. It is a lot of fun to play with the guys. We get to meet a lot of people.”

Ballas said everything is going so well that the band is already starting to have fans.

“We have a lot of people who like to come out and listen to us,” Ballas said. “We have had as many as 60 people follow us. We play a nice variety of music and every time we play we try to switch it up. We play a lot of songs people like but don’t hear that much.”

In addition to playing covers and the occasional original song, the band will also take requests with or without a tip.

“If they write a request on a $100 bill we guarantee that will be the next song,” Ballas said.

Buddy Walker of Thonotosassa is the drummer and the lead singer for a few of the songs. He used to be a full-time musician in the 1970s, 1980s and the 1990s.

“I am trying to rekindle an old flame,” Walker said. “It can be a lot of fun. I like the little circuit we are on in Land O’ Lakes and Wesley Chapel.”

For more information, e-mail the band at .

Tragedy leads to voyage of hope

By Kyle LoJacono

Staff Writer

Charles Salvatore got the idea riding on his 50cc scooter—travel across the country to raise support for the disease that devastated his mother’s life.

His mother, Dorothy, was engaged to Robert “Coop” Cooper, but hepatitis C took his life last June. Salvatore’s mother and Cooper had planned to take a vacation to Sterling, Alaska, but were unable to make the trip before he died.

“I was just riding around on the day he died and I got to looking at all the beauty around me and thought I need to make this journey for them,” Salvatore, 24, said. “I didn’t have all the plans set yet, but I knew I needed to go on the trip they had planned.”

Salvatore, who first moved to Zephyrhills in 1996, said his mother’s best friend died of cancer around the time Cooper passed away. The two personal tragedies pulled his mother into a state of despair, but Salvatore’s trip to Alaska has put renewed life into her.

His plan is to ride from Zephyrhills to Sterling on his scooter, a distance of 5,600 miles. If he completes the journey he will set a Guinness world record for the longest distance traveled on a 50cc scooter. While such scooters can be legally driven on interstates, they are smaller and less powerful than motorcycles.

“I’m calling it ‘One Man’s Journey,’” Salvatore said. “It is all to raise money and awareness for the American Liver Foundation… It will take at least 25 days, but I’m giving myself two to three months just in case.”

Salvatore left from downtown Zephyrhills at noon April 20. To pay for the trip and to raise money for the foundation, Salvatore sold red wristbands with “One Man’s Journey” on them.

One place he sold the wristbands was at Zephyrhills High, where Salvatore went to school for ninth and parts of his 10th and 12th-grade years. He graduated from the high school in New York and returned to Zephyrhills. Currently he is a culinary student at the Art Institute of Tampa.

“Mr. Salvatore came in and said he was trying to set a world record, and I said aren’t we all,” said Derrick Tucker, Zephyrhills assistant principal. “Then we were told he was trying to bring awareness and raise money for the American Liver Foundation and principal (Steve) Van Gorden thought it would be good to let him sell his bracelets here during lunch.”

A video of Salvatore’s story was played on continuous loop during lunch so the students knew what he was trying to do.

“As principal anytime I can involve the students in worthy causes that give back to the community or help those that are less fortunate I strongly encourage it,” Van Gorden said. “…Charles was very passionate about his beliefs. He shared a personal story about why he was involved with the cause.”

Salvatore has received sponsorships from businesses and organizations in the area, which include Zephyrhills Water, Affordable Motorsports and New Walk Church in Zephyrhills. Zephyrhills Mayor Cliff McDuffie also gave Salvatore a letter of recommendation so people knew his cause was legitimate.

“I’d like to raise a million dollars, but I’m a 24-year-old kid from Zephyrhills, so that’s probably not going to happen,” Salvatore said. “I’d like to raise as much as I can to give to the liver foundation because they need all the help they can get.”

Salvatore said the foundation’s southeast division gives services to five states including Florida, but only has two staff members. Everything that does not go to food and gas on his trip will go to the foundation. By the time he left he had raised more than $5,000.

“I’ll be sleeping in a tent some of the time, so I won’t be spending all the donations on fancy hotels or anything like that,” Salvatore said. “Sheraton (Hotels) is donating some hotel rooms for me along the way…I want as much money to go to the foundation as possible.”

Salvatore did not expect his project to get the kind of attention it did a few weeks back while trying to sell his bracelets in New Port Richey. His 10-year-old nephew was holding the money raised at the event when someone tried to steal the donations.

“The guy asked my nephew how his grandfather died,” Salvatore said. “That confused him and while he was thinking, the guy grabbed the money and tried to get away on his bike.”

The man did not get far thanks to Salvatore’s scooter. He was able to chase the would-be thief and recovered the money for the trip. John A. Marika, of Palm Harbor, was charged with robbery by sudden snatching in the case and was in the Land O’ Lakes Detention Center at press time, according to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office’s Web site, www.pascosheriff.com.

“It just made it bigger for me,” Salvatore said of the publicity he received because of the robbery attempt. “It got the word out faster than I could have done on my own.”

After his trip, Salvatore said he plans to return to Zephyrhills to finish his degree and become a chef.

“The people of Zephyrhills and all over Pasco County have really helped me with the trip,” Salvatore said. “I couldn’t have raised the money without them.”

By Sarah Whitman

Senior Staff Writer

Crocodiles will show their teeth and lady bugs will crawl free when Pasco County celebrates Earth Day April 24 at Crews Lake Park in Spring Hill.

The free event is sponsored by Pasco County Parks and Recreation and Covanta Pasco.“We want to keep people informed about what they can do to protect the environment, said Lottie Kelley, public relations coordinator for Covanta.

Covanta, a waste to energy plant, has sponsored the event since it began 14 years ago. This year, people can stop by a variety of educational booths to learn about recycling, Florida wildlife and reusable energy. There will be information on conservation and green living. Kids can work on earth-friendly craft projects and plant vegetable seeds.

“It’s important to raise awareness about the effect each individual has on the environment,” said Jennifer Seney, recycling coordinator for Pasco County. “From how we take care of our yards to how we dispose of our trash, each of us has an impact.”

Seney said recycling in Pasco County is up 3% from last year. She credits the increase to the growing popularity of the green movement.

“There’s a political revolution in that area and there’s been a renewed interest in recycling in our neck of the woods,” she said. “The participation rate is up.”

Earth Day at Crews Lake is a litter free recycled event, so the county will have recycling containers stationed throughout the park.

People are encouraged to bring their recyclable items, including those containing mercury such as thermostats and thermometers to exchange for a $5 gift card from Covanta.

“Mercury is extremely poisonous to the environment so it needs to be kept out of the waste system,” Kelley said. “At last year’s event, we collected 60 pounds of mercury.”

About 1,200 people attended last year. Even more are expected to fill the park this weekend. People can picnic and spend the entire day.

“There are very few big Earth-Day events any more so we have a lot of people come from throughout the county,” Kelley said.

One of the event’s biggest draws is the opportunity for children to interact with live reptiles and insects.

Croc Encounters of Tampa will have a 10-foot alligator named Spike on display. Volunteers will walk around with smaller alligators, snakes and lizards for children to touch and see up close.

All 400 pounds of Spike will stay safely inside a steel metal cage.

“It’s an opportunity to educate people about reptiles and to collect funds for our organization because we are 100 percent nonprofit,” said Karina Sura Paner, co-director for Croc Encounters.

Children can also participate in a ladybug release sponsored by Covanta. Each child is invited to release one little lady into the wild.

“Everything at the event is geared toward children and families,” Kelley said. “We want the children to go home having learned something valuable about conservation.”

The Pasco County Cooperative Extension will have master gardeners on site to field questions from visitors. The extension will also have a rain barrel workshop where visitors will make their own rain barrels.

“Collecting rainwater is good because the water isn’t regulated and you can use it when you need it,” said B.J. Jarvis, county extension director.

Earth Day is special to Jarvis.
“It’s a day to remember mother earth and the many things the land does for us,” she said. “An event like Crews Lake helps us refocus on those things.”

Kelley hopes people who attend the event will leave with a better understanding of what it really means to live green. She said there are many ways to help preserve the natural environment. Most are simple and easy.

“People can take reusable bags to do all their shopping,” Kelley said. “They can properly dispose of things like light bulbs and electronics. They can recycle their glass bottles and aluminum cans.”

Jarvis said saving the earth is about the little things.

“If each one of us would just do a couple things each day, it can make a world of difference,” she said.

Organizations scheduled to celebrate Earth Day at Crews Lake include Southwest Florida Water Management District, the Florida Aquarium, Florida Native Plant Society, Pasco County Extension master gardeners and many more. For information, visit www.pascocountyfl.net.

Crews Lake Park is located at 16739 Crews Lake Dr. in Spring Hill.