Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By Gary S. Hatrick

The Laker Correspondent

ZEPHYRHILLS — It’s “Snowbird Season” again — you can tell by the signs.

Traffic is a bit more congested than during the summer. Lines at grocery stores are longer. Shuffleboard games are more frequent at park clubhouses.

Zephyrhills has been a retirement community since its inception, and while the median age has reduced some as younger families moved to the area, the snowbird migration continues to be a defining characteristic of the City of Pure Water.

Water department supervisor Tamela Davis reported that there has been an influx of people coming in the office to get their water turned on.

Davis did not say they are all northern residents, but she acknowledged that this is the time of year when there is an increase for water services from city residents. The influx should be even greater when including those who live in the surrounding areas of Zephyrhills.

The Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce is a popular destination for snowbirds who want to get the scoop on what is happening and when. Executive Director Jan Slater has seen a recent increase of about 10-15 people visiting the chamber daily.

Fred Fletcher, a year-round resident who has his finger on the pulse of things at Betmar Acres, a 55 and older community, said that about 30 percent of the people who usually come down for the winter have arrived.

“The Canadians are coming this week and next week,” Fletcher said.

Canadians are only allowed to be out-of-country for 180 days, because of that nation’s health care system, Fletcher explained, adding that they typically arrive in mid-October.

Local churches have also reported increase in the pews for recent Sunday services.

While some residents bemoan the arrival of snowbird season, many business owners welcome the yearly migration, if only for the boost it gives to the local economy.

Frank DiGrigoli, manager of the Save-A-Lot Food Store in Zephyrhills, said he can tell that the snowbirds are returning by a full parking lot. DiGrigoli said the customer count has gone up from 700 people per day to between 800 and 900.

Maine-ly New England owner Mike Mira said that traffic coming in the restaurant is an indicator of the season’s start.

“Sales are up 20 to 25 percent over last month already,” Mira said. “We have a lot of loyal customers, a lot of customers come straight here before they even go home. They tell us ‘We just got back.’”

Tampa woman saves Wesley Chapel cat in Carrollwood

By Ashley Dunn

News Editor

WESLEY CHAPEL — It’s said that cats have nine lives. If that’s true, Zeke, an orange tabby, is down to eight.

After traveling 20 miles from home and being hit by a car, the fortunate feline is back home in Wesley Chapel.

Zeke’s adventure began Sept. 26. His owner, Nicole Johnson, was visiting family in Seattle and had left him in the care of her friend, Matthew Luckie. Zeke, an indoor cat, must have escaped from the comfort of his cozy home when Luckie took out the garbage, Johnson said.

When Luckie realized Zeke was missing, he felt terrible, Johnson said. He called her immediately and posted fliers around the neighborhood. Johnson flew home Sept. 28, a day early, in order to help find Zeke.

***

That same morning, Tammy Blackburn, of Tampa, was driving to work on Dale Mabry Highway in Carrollwood, preparing to turn onto Fletcher Avenue. When traffic began to move, Blackburn spotted something out of the corner of her eye. She looked closer. An orange cat hobbled along the road. It peeked around and meowed.

Blackburn is a self-described animal lover. She’s taken care of animals all her life. She’s trained horses and rescued helpless creatures. She has a 2-year-old dog that she rescued from the side of the road who’s “the best thing that ever happened” to her.

“I can’t help it,” she said. “I’ll stop for a squirrel if I see it’s still OK.”

“I just don’t like to see animals or children hurt,” she added.

Blackburn pulled over, ran across traffic and scooped the weak male cat up in a towel. She drove him to VetCare Village Animal Hospital, made sure he was in goods hands and headed on to work.

***

Dr. Nadia McLean examined the cat. He didn’t have a microchip, or any identification.

Animals with names seem have a better chance of surviving trauma than those that are unnamed. It’s a superstition, but the staff wasn’t about to take a chance. They named the fragile feline Fletcher after the location where Blackburn had found him.

McLean determined that Fletcher had been hit by a car. He was in shock and terrible pain. He had difficulty breathing, his face was swollen and there were cuts all over his body and on his tongue. He had bruising on his lungs and pulmonary contusions.

McLean took X-rays and blood work. She gave Fletcher oxygen, pain medication and antibiotics.

Six hours after she had dropped him off, Blackburn returned to check on Fletcher. She decided that she would attempt to find his owner. If she couldn’t, she was prepared to keep him.

***

In Wesley Chapel, Johnson arrived home. Two hours later, she was on the Internet, posting a lost cat announcement on Craigslist.

Johnson had had Zeke for four years. She rescued him as a kitten in Seattle. Her parents had found a litter of kittens on their property. A coyote had gotten all but one of them. Johnson’s parents called her and asked her if she’d take him. She didn’t have to think twice before saying yes.

“He was itty bitty,” Johnson remembered.

Zeke is her only pet and a lovable companion. He greets her when she comes home after a long day, and he even plays fetch like a dog. He has his “ornery” moments, but he’s a great cat.

“He’s real sweet,” Johnson said.

***

After visiting Fletcher at VetCare Village, Blackburn went home and got on her computer. At about the same time Johnson was posting her lost pet announcement, Blackburn was posting her found cat announcement on Craigslist.

It wasn’t long before Blackburn’s phone rang. Johnson was on the other end.

“I think you’ve found my cat,” she said.

Blackburn said she wasn’t sure. She had found Fletcher in Carrollwood and Johnson lived in Wesley Chapel.

Blackburn asked if Johnson’s cat, Zeke, was male of female. The answer was male.

She asked how much Zeke weighed. The answer was 13 pounds, same as Fletcher.

As they talked, it became clear that Fletcher and Zeke were the same cat.

“Everything matched up,” Blackburn said.

***

Johnson and Luckie went to VetCare Village the next day to see if Fletcher was in fact Zeke. Dr. Nadia McLean was there for the reunion.

“Their cat — as soon as they brought him in, he was purring,” McLean said. “It was very emotional.”

So how did Zeke get from Wesley Chapel to Carrollwood? McLean said he probably hitched a ride atop an engine in one of Johnson’s neighbor’s vehicles. The corner of Dale Mabry Highway and Fletcher Avenue was likely the car’s first stop, and Zeke hopped out unnoticed. Zeke’s whiskers were singed, which seems to corroborate the story.

“The cat would have been much easier to identify if it had had rabies tags, a color or a microchip,” McLean pointed out, stressing the importance of owners properly identifying their pets. “Microchipping would have been a huge benefit for the cat.”

Johnson and Luckie made a donation to VetCare Village for the care that staff had provided for Zeke. They also made a donation to Kitty City Rescue, an organization that helps stray cats and kittens find homes.

“They are amazing,” Johnson said of VetCare Village.

***

Zeke is now recuperating at home with Johnson. He’s still limping a little, but he’s on his way to a full recovery.

Johnson and Blackburn have never met in person, but they plan to stay in touch. Johnson said she would periodically e-mail photos of Zeke to Blackburn and keep her updated on how he’s doing.

“It’s not very often that you actually end up finding the owner,” Blackburn said. “I’m just so happy that he came back home.”

But likely no one is happier than Johnson — except maybe Zeke.

“It’s fate because who does that?” Johnson said of Blackburn’s kind actions. “I’m really, really grateful.”

Gov. Crist honors Land O’ Lakes High 11th-grader for work with Habitat for Humanity

By Ashley Dunn

News Editor

DADE CITY — In 2006, Matt Mooney set a goal to collect and recycle enough aluminum cans to build a house for a needy family through East Pasco Habitat for Humanity.

Three years later, Matt, 16, has collected more than 1 million cans — about a quarter of what he needs — and he has no plans to slow down.

“It’s just for a good cause so it’s a good thing to stick with,” said Matt, who lives in Dade City and is an 11th-grader in the International Baccalaureate program at Land O’ Lakes High.

On Oct. 7, Matt received the top prize from Gov. Charlie Crist’s Serve to Preserve: Green Schools Awards program, which recognized the environmental achievements of students, teachers, classrooms, schools and school districts. Matt was the student winner and received $1,500. More than 100 nominations were received in all.

Matt became involved with Habitat when he was in eighth grade, after a house was dedicated to a friend on his baseball team.

“Everyone’s pretty emotional because they’ve worked so hard… so they’re just really humble and appreciative,” Matt said of what it’s like to be at dedication ceremony. “Just everyone is really into the whole program.”

Matt decided then that he wanted to help Habitat, but at the time he was too young to help build a home. His parents, Wayne and Jane Mooney, had done volunteer work for Habitat and knew of a program called Cans for Habitat, a national partnership between Habitat for Humanity International and the Aluminum Association.

Matt and his parents began scouring their Lake Jovita neighborhood for cans. Several homes were under construction, and the family found that workers drank lots of canned beverages and left the empty containers at the construction sites.

Over time, word spread that Matt was collecting cans. Now, fire stations, golf courses, baseball fields, churches, businesses and the Wal-Mart distribution center in Brooksville are collecting cans for him. Businesses and other organizations can request that a small can house or box be placed at their offices, and the Mooney’s come pick up the cans left inside. Neighbors have also joined in the collection, adding to Matt’s tally. Lake Jovita sends out a homeowner’s newsletter, and it includes “Matt’s Can Count,” a section on how many cans Matt has collected.

“People want to recycle,” Wayne Mooney said. “If they’ve got a reason to recycle, then they’ll do it.”

When Matt began the project, 34 cans, or one pound of aluminum, were worth between 55 and 60 cents — about the cost of a nail. Now that the price of aluminum has dropped, the same amount of cans is worth 35 cents. That means the Mooney’s have to collect even more cans.

“We’re going to have to rally here,” Wayne Mooney said.

They’re hoping groups or individuals will be willing to save their cans for Matt. They’ll even provide the boxes and liners or the can houses.

“If communities, golf courses, trailer parks, businesses, etc. want to embrace the recycling of aluminum cans, and the recycling of building homes, and the recycling of families that may need a second chance just by collecting aluminum cans that they would ordinarily throw out, please have them call me on my cell phone (352-467-9808),” Wayne Mooney said. “Matt and I will come and pick them up and turn them into a home for a deserving family.”

As of Sept. 20, Matt had collected 1,006,379 cans or 29,853 pounds of aluminum. That equals $13,897.60 for Habitat.

“Matt has really been a force unto himself — he and his family,” said John Finnerty, executive director of East Pasco Habitat for Humanity. “… Matt’s very goal oriented… He’s just done an outstanding job for us.”

The Mooney’s have spent countless hours on the project, and Jane Mooney said she thinks Matt’s commitment to his goal is commendable.

“It’s pretty special,” she said. “I’m very proud of him. He could be doing a lot of other things with his time, but it’s good to see him working on this type of goal.”

When he’s not collecting cans Matt plays golf and baseball for Land O’ Lakes High. After he graduates, he said he hopes to go Stanford University and study medicine. He’s thinking about becoming an endocrinologist.

Right now though, Matt’s focused on the cans and what they mean for Habitat. Generally quiet, he perked up when he thought about being able to build a home solely from the proceeds generated by recycling the cans.

“It would be pretty amazing,” he said, “and it would just show that a lot of hard work for me and my dad would pay off and help a family in need.”

How to help

The Mooney family is willing to pick up aluminum cans wherever they can get them. Call Wayne Mooney at (352) 467-9808.

The Mooney’s take the cans they collect to Pasco Recycling Inc., 15641 US 301 in Dade City. If you recycle your aluminum cans there already and want the proceeds to go to Habitat, let them know and they’ll donate the money.

For more information about East Pasco Habitat for Humanity or Cans for Habitat, visit www.ephabitat.org.

Meet new columnists  –  Kyle and Derek

By Steve Lee

Sports Editor

LAND O’ LAKES — Kyle LoJacono and Derek Highley penned their first columns for The Laker/Lutz News in our Sept. 30 editions and I must say, “Thanks, guys.”

LoJacono came to us this summer and has worked his way up from correspondent to staff writer. Highley is a golf professional who enthusiastically answered the call to pen an occasional column on that sport.

Their initial forays into sharing opinions with you were well-written and had just the right amount of personality sprinkled in. Hoped you liked their debuts as much as I did, and please feel free to send us feedback.

Our new columnists in sports join yours truly, as well as fishing columnists Ric Liles and Scott Keith. As for the pages before the sports section, we have no less than five columnists.

Randy Grantham, an attorney from Lutz, writes on the topics of today with most of his, often humorous, material pertaining to the law.

Richard Wendlek, who along with his wife Connie transformed Academy at the Lakes from a day care to a prestigious private learning center, authors Family Life. He espouses on the virtues of family values and dealing with today’s issues. Eileen Kanter is another educational columnist who authors Successful Students.

Bill Riddle provides a tongue-in-cheek look at answering society’s most pressing questions. Well, not really, but his funny takes in a Q. and A. format sure do provide a unique perspective.

Lastly, wacky Dr. Dr. Thayer (yes, his name really is Dr. Dr.) takes readers back to the 1960s with his zany Zixties column. Thayer owns and hosts a radio show based in Zephyrhills.

Getting back to LoJacono and Highley, expect to see more of their columns. While they will not contribute on a weekly basis each plans to share his opinion as issues or matters arise.

In a very short time, LoJacono has proven to be a valuable member of our staff. In addition to sports, the 23-year-old writes features and news stories.

As for Highley, to say he is a golf enthusiast is an understatement. The 39-year-old Wesley Chapel resident owns Global Golf Marketing. He lives in Lexington Oaks, but often plays the Plantation Palms course in Land O’ Lakes.