Joe Potter

Orlando Health expands in Pasco County

May 14, 2024 By Joe Potter

Orlando Health, which acquired Florida Medical Clinic (FMC) last August, continues to expand its presence in Pasco County.

Construction began earlier this year on a 300-bed hospital at 3000 Wiregrass Ranch Blvd., in Wesley Chapel, according to Orlando Health’s Media Relations Manager Sandra Bentil.

The facility, which is known as Orlando Health Wiregrass Ranch Hospital, is reportedly anticipated to be completed and ready to serve patients in early 2025.

The multistory hospital is going to be one of the anchors of the Wiregrass community that is being developed by J.D. Porter. It reportedly will be the largest hospital in Wesley Chapel when it is completed.

A wide range of health care services, including emergency and inpatient care, are going to be offered at the hospital.

Physicians from FMC, which was rebranded as Florida Medical Clinic Orlando Health on May 1, will be among the professionals providing health care services at the new hospital.

Orlando Health also will build a freestanding emergency room at the intersection of State Road 54 and Henley Road in Lutz.

The plan to construct the 10,865-square-foot facility was announced last December by Matt Taylor, senior vice president of Asset Strategy for Orlando Health.

A groundbreaking hasn’t occurred yet at that site, Bentil said.

The ER will have 10 exam rooms, an imaging suite, lab and ambulance bay, according to Taylor.

The property for the Lutz ER was purchased from LIV Development.

That company is currently involved with the construction of Livano Sunlake, a 234-unit luxury multifamily and mixed-use development also located in Lutz, Taylor said.

The decision to build the ER in Lutz was driven by the tremendous population growth that Pasco County has experienced in the last decade, and also by the desire to provide a convenient location to meet patients’ needs for emergency care, Taylor said.

Pasco County’s population in 2022 was 608,794, a nearly 31% increase from the 465,516 who lived there in 2010 according to USAFacts.org. For comparison, the population of the United States grew 7.7% and Florida’s population grew 18% during that period.

“The demand for convenient access to a wider range of choices in health care services has been increasing and continues to grow in this area. Orlando Health is pleased to expand its presence to serve this community and address their health care needs,” Taylor said.

A freestanding ER is simply an emergency facility that’s not physically attached to a hospital, according to Orlando Health’s Media Relations Department. The purpose of a freestanding ER is to provide the same level of care and services as are available at traditional hospital-based emergency rooms, to be staffed by board-certified emergency medicine doctors and nurses who are certified in advanced cardiac life support and pediatric advanced life support.

The Lutz ER will be the seventh one operated by Orlando Health. The other six are located in Leesburg, Clermont, Kissimmee, Lake Mary, Orlando and Davenport.

At last report, the not-for-profit health care organization has $9.6 billion of assets under management that serves the southeastern United States and Puerto Rico.

More information about Orlando Health can be found at OrlandoHealth.com.

Published May 15, 2024

Living large in Lutz

May 14, 2024 By Randall Grantham

It ain’t me, it ain’t me

I ain’t no millionaire’s son, no, no

It ain’t me, it ain’t me

I ain’t no fortunate one.

-”Fortunate Son,” by Creedence Clearwater Revival

That girl could spot the lip of a 7 Up bottle peeking out from the sand in the orange grove at 100 feet. While riding by on a bicycle.

Cheryl and I were next-door neighbors since birth and best childhood friends growing up and that’s how she and I made money to go to the State Fair and ride rides and eat fair food — combing the groves and pastures that are now subdivisions and shopping centers collecting pop bottles for deposit returns.

At first the deposit was 2 cents for regular sized bottles and maybe a nickel for the larger ones. We felt rich when the price went up to 3 cents. That doesn’t seem like much now, but remember, this was in the sixties. Gas was 25 cents a gallon.

By the time they went up to 5 and 15 cents for the bottles, the Fair prices had also kept pace and we started getting our first lessons in reality and inflation. We needed a new gig.

Now mind you, collecting pop bottles was not our only entrepreneurial endeavor. We used to spend the summers on the lake swimming and fishing. Every year the old cypress fishing boat my parents had purchased from a fish camp on Lake Rosalie had to be bailed out and pulled out from beneath the rising waters as the summer rainy season helped the lake claim her for its own.

We were free-range kids. Our parents basically set us outside every day with instructions to be home for dinner. We would paddle that old boat all around Lake Hobbs catching bream, shellcracker and bluegill in the dredge holes and around the cypress knees.

They were so abundant that we decided we could make some money doing a fried fish dinner for the neighbors. After catching and cleaning a freezer full of the little buggers, we prepared tickets to sell for the big event.

In those days there was no Xerox machine, much less a copy and paste function on the old Royal upright typewriter my Mom had gotten from the welfare office that she worked at before my birth. I had to type and space and do dashes between and X’s down the middle of each sheet of tickets. (I think I did two sheets.) Then we canvassed the neighborhood and raked in the big bucks.

Each dinner was priced at 35 cents and we served fried fish, baked beans and, I think, grits. We provided the fish but the fixins and side dishes were compliments of our parents’ pantry. We each cleared a couple of bucks but it probably cost our parents that much or more in groceries.

35 cents must have been a magic number for us because in spring time, one of our parents would ride us out to Plant City during the strawberry U-Pick season and we would come home with several flats of berries. After setting up a little stand on the side of U.S. 41 in front of my Mom’s real estate office under the big old oak tree just north of Carson Drive, we sold those berries for 35 cents a pint.

While we didn’t grow rich, we did grow older, and as we progressed from elementary school to junior high (we didn’t have middle school), our friends and interests diverged, expanded and matured.

I moved onto mowing lawns and selling forbidden gum and candies at school for pocket money while my parents kept me busy with chores in the pasture, garden and yard.

We were next-door neighbors and had been best friends throughout our formative years, but even as we still lived right next to each other, we did grow apart.

But those early years taught us both the value of a dollar, or maybe a nickel, and those lessons stuck with us both. Fiscal responsibility and the willingness to work for your money was ingrained in all of us growing up in that manner.

Perhaps I am a fortunate son.

Published May 15, 2024

Progress made toward development of large employment center

May 14, 2024 By Joe Potter

The development of a large employment center north of State Road 52 and west of Interstate 75 was approved by the Pasco County Board of County Commissioners during its May 7 meeting in Dade City, with the rezoning of approximately 785 acres where the site is located.

An economic development agreement was approved to provide a Public Infrastructure ad valorem rebate for infrastructure installed for the development, not to exceed $29,269,623, as adjusted for inflation.

Both requests were made by MU Landco Liquidating Company & SF Landco Liquidating Company LLC, which owns the property.

The zoning was changed from A-C Agricultural District, R-1MH Single Family/Mobile Home District, and C-2 General Commercial District to MPUD Master Planned Unit Development District.

This will allow the development of 190,000 square feet of Retail/Commercial; 3,000,000 square feet of Light Industrial; 500,000 square feet of Office; a 250-room Hotel; 2,327 residential dwelling units and associated infrastructure.

The Hines Group, based in Texas, will oversee development of the project. Hines also developed the Asturia subdivision for luxury homes in Odessa.

The infrastructure rebate will be for road systems and public utility transmission lines for both the on-site and off-site areas of the employment center as shown in the agreement.

None of the roughly $29 million will be paid until infrastructure work has been completed, according to the agreement.

Some of the major roadway improvements within the project will consist of a north-south extension of Old Pasco Road and “Roadway ‘AD,’” which will be the east-west vision collector road internal to the project.

“This area is a very important employment and tax generating area and this is one of the most important components of that development,” said David Engel, Pasco County’s director of planning and economic growth.

It is anticipated that 2,770 jobs will be created when construction of the employment center has been completed.

In other business on May 7, commissioners:

Awarded a bid not to exceed $7,937,909 to The Diaz/Fritz Group Inc., d/b/a Diaz Fritz Group General Contractors, for work on the Starkey Ranch District Park Phase 2B-2G – to provide fields, a concession stand, a parking area, and other improvements for the Starkey Ranch District Park located off Lake Blanche Avenue in Odessa. This award will create six new ball fields with sidewalks and multi-use paths to extend around the existing stormwater pond area, parking and a concession stand to support sports activities at the park.
Approved a zoning change requested by Blanton Creek Development Corporation for Timber Ridge Master Planned Unit Development (MPUD) from R-3 Medium Density Residential District to an MPUD Master Planned Unit Development. This change will allow a maximum of 190 single-family detached units on approximately 48.42 acres located on the east side of Pasco County. Access to the proposed subdivision will be via 14th Street. The applicant was also granted its request to be able to use an emergency access connection to Catalina Drive because this road is not built to county standards. This will avoid impacting existing neighbors in the residential subdivision to the north.
Agreed to the recording of a plat with a performance guarantee for Clinton Land Investments LP – Clinton Townhomes for 158 residential lots on 21.61 acres on the north side of Clinton Avenue approximately 0.38 miles west of U.S. 301 in east central Pasco County. The county received a Surety Bond in the amount of $5,071,115 to cover the cost of necessary infrastructure improvements.
Agreed to the recording of a plat with performance guarantees for LNR3 AIV LLC – Connerton Village 3 Phase 2A for 144 residential lots on 77.612 acres on the east side of Connerton Boulevard, approximately 2.41 miles east of U.S. 41/Land O’ Lakes Boulevard in west central Pasco County. The county received Surety Bonds in the amounts of $3,259,872.38 and $40,794.30 to cover the cost of necessary infrastructure improvements.
Agreed to the recording of a plat with a performance guarantee for Lennar Homes, LLC – Wiregrass Ranch M21 Plat for 42 residential lots on 3.44 acres on the northwest side of Silent Gardens Cove, about a half mile east of the Suncoast Parkway. The county received a Surety Bond in the amount of $1,836,727.79 to cover the cost of necessary infrastructure improvements.
Approved Pasco County Parks, Recreation, and Natural Resources Department to coordinate with the Pasco County Property Appraiser’s Office and the Woody Williams Foundation to designate Veterans Memorial Park, 14333 Hicks Road, Hudson, and Wesley Chapel District Park, 727 Boyette Road, Wesley Chapel, as locations for Gold Star Families Memorial Monuments to be installed.

Published May 15, 2024

Florida regulators approve Tampa Electric’s recovery of storm costs

May 14, 2024 By Andrew Powell

(The Center Square) — The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) approved the request this week by Tampa Electric Co. to recover nearly $135 million in repair costs from tropical storms from 2018 to 2022.

The PSC ordered that any under-recovery or over-recovery be recovered or refunded through adjustments to the energy conservation cost recovery clause.

Tampa Electric Co. serves over 810,000 customers in Hillsborough County, and portions of Polk, Pasco and Pinellas counties. The petition for cost recovery covered Tropical Storm Alberto in 2018, Hurricane Dorian in 2019, Tropical Storm Nestor in 2019, Tropical Storm Eta in 2020, Hurricane Elsa in 2021, and Hurricanes Ian and Nicole in 2022.

In the company’s pre-hearing filing, the purpose of the hearing was to determine actual recoverable costs, which was estimated by the company to come to around $134.8 million.

The document further notes that Tampa Electric agreed to follow certain processes for incurring storm recovery costs, including using an independent accountant to perform an audit.

The Office of Public Counsel (OPC) reviewed the company’s audit plan, audit report and audit workpapers and determined that the company complied with all requirements. The OPC also noted that Tampa Electric has demonstrated good stewardship over resources used to restore service after a major storm event.

During the hearing, Malcolm Means from the Ausley Law Firm representing Tampa Electric, stated that the company’s goal is to always restore service safely, quickly and efficiently. Means added that the last time the company requested recovery of storm restoration costs was in 2019. In this agreement, future process improvements were set in motion.

“I’m happy to report that these process improvements worked,” Means said. “As a part of this proceeding, Tampa Electric engaged with an outside accounting firm to examine the company’s Hurricane Ian cost. In addition to this outside examination, your staff also conducted an audit of the company’s storm costs, and the Office of Public Counsel conducted discovery.”

Means noted that the parties agree that those processes worked as intended and that Tampa Electric has agreed to follow additional process improvements for future storms.

“Based on the record in this proceeding in the parties stipulations in this matter, we urge you to approve the company’s reasonable and prudent actual storm restoration costs,” Means said.

Published May 15, 2024

Report: State received only 58 cents for every dollar spent on tourism marketing

May 14, 2024 By Andrew Powell

(The Center Square) — State officials say Florida’s tourism marketing organization, Visit Florida, returned only 58 cents for every dollar spent on it in 2023.

The report by the Office of Economic and Demographic Research (EDR) found that Visit Florida’s public marketing during fiscal years (FY) 2019-2022 generated a positive 0.58 return on investment.

According to the report, the return on investment for fiscal years 2019-2022 was much lower than the previous two reports that covered 2016-2019 and 2013-2016.

The report shows that in the 2021 report, Visit Florida’s marketing efforts received $3.27 for every dollar spent with a return on investment of 3.27. This was up from 2018’s analysis, which had a return on investment of 2.15.

Legislation enacted in 2013 and 2014 directs EDR and the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to analyze specific state economic development incentive programs every three years.

According to the EDR, state payments to Visit Florida have decreased 35.7% since its previous review, averaging $48.9 million annually over three years. However, the report further states that the U.S. Travel Association has reported that average state funding for tourism was around $18 million in fiscal year 2021-2022.

Overall, Florida had 134.2 million visitors in 2022, with nearly 127 million being domestic travelers, the largest number of visitors between 2016 and 2022.

International travel recovered somewhat with a reported 7.2 million international visitors in 2022, a slight rebound since the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020, which saw only 2 million international visitors.

However, despite appearances, Florida’s Economic Estimating Conference expects a strong period of growth, around 6.4% during FY 2023-2024, after which it is likely to drop to an average of 4.9% in FY 2024-2025.

The EDR also notes that they believe the current working return on investment for Visit Florida is closer to 3.3, which better reflects the program’s long-term goals.

The report says Visit Florida’s mission is to promote and drive visitation to and within the state of Florida in hopes of establishing the state as the No. 1 destination, both domestically and internationally.

Visit Florida conducts marketing activities, and advertising campaigns both domestically and abroad, as well as researching travel trends and tourism, managing welcome centers, administering reimbursement grant programs, and partnering with businesses and destinations.

Published May 15, 2024

How workplaces can contribute to COPD risk

May 14, 2024 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema, is a long-term lung disease that makes it hard to breathe. Impacting 11.7 million people in the United States, many people only think of it as a disease that impacts people who smoke and use tobacco products, but long-term exposure to dust, chemicals, fumes and vapors from the workplace are also risk factors.

((c) KatarzynaBialasiewicz / iStock via Getty Images Plus)

In fact, work-related exposures account for 10% to 20% of either respiratory symptoms or lung function impairment consistent with COPD.

To help people understand the many facets of COPD risk, the American Lung Association is launching a campaign to raise awareness of occupational COPD. As part of the campaign, they are sharing patient insights, along with information to help people identify workplace risk factors and signs of disease progression.

Knowing the risk factors
Mary Cohen, who lives with COPD, started having symptoms when working at a nail and hair salon.

“I did not realize that working in a hair and nail salon doing nails would put me at risk for lung disease, COPD,” says Cohen.

The leading industries and job types that increase risk for COPD include agriculture, mining and manufacturing; however, many types of workplaces, from construction to welding, can potentially expose workers to harmful irritants that can contribute to developing COPD. Workplace exposures include:

Secondhand smoke
Mineral dusts like silica, coal and asbestos
Organic dusts like cotton, wood and grains
Metal or welding fumes like cadmium
Diesel or exhaust fumes
Asphalt, tar fumes, or vapor in roads or roofing
Smoke from fires

Recognizing the signs
While there is no cure for COPD, it is often preventable and once diagnosed can be managed and treated. That’s why recognizing the symptoms as early as possible is so important. These symptoms include shortness of breath, a cough that may bring up sputum (mucus or phlegm), wheezing, tiredness or fatigue, or repeated lung infections like bronchitis or pneumonia. Perhaps a person notices they are taking the elevator instead of the stairs because of shortness of breath, or that they develop a lingering cough every time they sweep sawdust. Unfortunately, people often attribute these changes to their health to aging or because they have gained weight or are out of shape.

If a person has been exposed to risk factors for occupational COPD or has symptoms, the American Lung Association recommends that they speak to their health care provider. For more information, visit Lung.org/workplace-COPD.

The workplace is where people spend hours of their day and years of their life. Learning more about how to protect the lungs at work is critical.

-StatePoint

Published May 15, 2024

Governor signs ban on lab-grown meat

May 14, 2024 By Andrew Powell

(The Center Square) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that bans the sale of lab-grown meat as part of efforts by state officials that are intended to boost the state’s agricultural sector.

DeSantis signed Senate Bill 1084, prohibiting the sale of lab-grown meat in Florida. He also said at a news conference in Hardee County that the Sunshine State is upping its beef production to keep up with demand.

In addition, DeSantis said that Florida is supporting the state’s agriculture and meat industry by modernizing the Right to Farm Act, reestablishing funding for the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program with $300 million in funding and investing more than $2.8 billion into the industry itself.

“We want to make sure we protect agriculture activities from frivolous litigation,” DeSantis said. “We’ve also signed legislation to ensure that agri-tourism operators qualify for protection against property tax assessments when operating on agricultural land, we also simplified steps for Florida farmers to receive sales-tax exemptions for agricultural materials.”

The governor said that the legislation is part of a continued effort to have a vibrant agricultural industry. He added the legislation is intended to protect the industry from natural disasters and also from man.

“What we’re protecting here is the industry against acts of man,” DeSantis said “Against an ideological agenda that wants to finger agriculture as the problem, that views things like raising cattle as destroying our climate. These will be people who will lecture the rest of us about things like global warming…meanwhile, they’re flying to Davos in their private jets.”

DeSantis noted that the people who hold these ideologies like the World Economic Forum (WEF) only want to impose restrictions on everyday people, while they do whatever they want. DeSantis further noted that policies have already been enacted to protect Floridians from being forced into a social credit score system as in China.

“I think what they’re looking to do is create a social credit score system…We see the threat for what it is,” DeSantis said.

DeSantis stated that is not a vision that has taken hold in Florida and that those at the WEF want to eliminate meat production and farming altogether.

“They want to eliminate meat, they want to eliminate cattle, they want to eliminate chickens…they want to create protein in laboratories,” DeSantis said. “So essentially lab-created meat, and their goal is to get to a point where you will not be raising cattle.”

Published May 15, 2024

Five things athletes need to know about asthma and summer heat

May 14, 2024 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Nearly 25 million people of all ages in the United States are living with asthma, a lifelong chronic disease that makes it harder to move air in and out of the lungs, and for athletes, the summer heat can exacerbate the disease.

Here’s what the American Lung Association wants everyone to know during summer, when extreme heat can make asthma harder to manage.

New challenges are emerging.
Beyond traditional asthma triggers like respiratory infections, secondhand smoke and pets, new challenges are emerging. Extreme heat, poor air quality, increased allergens, extreme weather events, and more frequent and intense wildfires, all are making asthma more difficult to manage.

Excessive heat and humidity increase the risk of asthma exacerbations, asthma-related hospitalization and asthma-related death, especially for children and women. Athletes should limit time outdoors during heat waves, seek access to air conditioning and take steps to improve indoor air quality, as humidity allows dust mites and mold to thrive.

City dwellers are particularly vulnerable.
Two-thirds of the average U.S. city is made up of roads, parking spaces, sidewalks and roofs. Since these surfaces are typically dark and nonporous, they contribute to flooding, increased air pollution, poor health and what is known as “urban heat,” a phenomenon in which cities experience warmer temperatures than surrounding areas. Urban heat, combined with pollutants from power plants, motor vehicles and other pollution sources, creates ozone pollution, also known as smog. Those with asthma can experience symptoms like shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing from both ground-level ozone and particle pollution, as well as from the impacts of extreme weather and airborne allergens.

Flooding can harm lung health.
Increased severe storms result in more flooding, which can harm lung health. Chemicals, sewage, oil, gas and other dangerous substances found in floodwaters can pose health risks, and mold, associated with asthma attacks, can grow anywhere there is water or dampness.

Advocacy efforts are underway.
The Smart Surfaces Coalition is made up of 40 national and international organizations committed to making Smart Surfaces the global urban design standard. Smart Surfaces encompass a suite of cutting-edge technologies, including reflective (cool) roofs and pavements, green roofs, trees, solar panels and rain gardens. Designed to mitigate urban heat, enhance air quality and improve health, these transformative urban features can cool cities by 5 degrees F, reduce flooding, provide economic benefits and potentially advance environmental justice.

The American Lung Association, an active member of the Smart Surfaces Coalition, encourages cities to take these actions:

Install light-colored roads, parking lots and driveways to reflect sunlight and reduce heat.
Install solar panels to convert sunlight into electricity and provide shade for roofs.
Plant trees to increase shade.
Select porous surfaces to collect polluted stormwater, soak it into the ground, and filter out pollution.

Other strategies to reduce urban heat, air pollution and ozone levels include using public transportation carpooling, increasing green spaces and installing cooling centers in extreme conditions.

Resources are available.
Educational programming can help people better manage the disease in summer and year-round. Patients can check out the self-management education programs, information and tools available at Lung.org/asthma or call the American Lung Association’s Lung Helpline at 1-800-LUNGUSA. Living with an illness, or being the caretaker to someone who is, can take a physical and emotional toll. Patients can get support and knowledge, and connect with others by joining the Lung Association’s Patient & Caregiver Network.

For the 24.8 million Americans living with asthma, extreme summer temperatures and emerging environmental threats can make life more difficult. Fortunately, new educational resources and expanded programming can help patients navigate new and old challenges alike.

-StatePoint

Published May 15, 2024

A special Mother’s Day wish

May 13, 2024 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

(Courtesy of Mass Communications Specialist 2nd Class Keith Nowak, Navy Office of Community Outreach)

Seaman Cierra Kenney, a Spring Hill native serving in the U.S. Navy, wishes her mother, Meagan Loomis, of Spring Hill, a Happy Mother’s Day from afar. Sailors help maintain America’s advantage at sea and this means they do not always get to celebrate holidays with their loved ones. Kenney wants her mother to know she is missed on Mother’s Day. “Thank you for all you do for me,” said Kenney, in a news release. “I love you and I’m grateful to have someone like you in my life.”

Baldomero Lopez Nursing Home’s 25th anniversary celebrated

May 7, 2024 By Joe Potter

Some of the younger residents of the Baldomero Lopez State Veterans’ Nursing Home were only teenagers when the place they now call home opened in 1999.

The 25th anniversary of the nursing home was marked by a special event on April 27 in Land O’ Lakes.

Residents of Baldomero Lopez State Veterans’ Nursing Home watch the Crossroads Band. (Joe Potter)

About 120 veterans, whose ages range from 40 to 101, now reside there.

Being at the ceremony was a “great opportunity” said James S. Hartsell, retired Maj. Gen., U.S. Marine Corps, and Florida Department of Veterans Affairs’ (FDVA) executive director.

“This is what makes Florida great and I’m glad to be here,” Hartsell said. “This is a ‘home,’ not a ‘facility,’ and they aren’t ‘patients.’ The ones who live here are ‘residents.’”

Bob Hatfield, left, reads what was put into the Congressional Record regarding the nursing home’s 25th anniversary as its administrator, Marlies Sarrett, looks on.

As part of the ceremony, Bob Hatfield, a member of Congressman Gus M. Bilirakis’ staff, read what had been entered into the Congressional Record in Washington D.C. regarding the nursing home’s 25th anniversary.

“Florida is home to more than 1.5 million veterans, many of whom reside in the Tampa Bay and Nature Coast areas. Through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs, the state of Florida operates eight skilled nursing facilities and one assisted living facility, including Baldomero Lopez State Veterans’ Nursing Home. These critical long-term care resources are available to Florida veterans with an honorable discharge who are in need of assistance,” read Hatfield, repeating Bilirakis’ remarks.

Baldomero Lopez offers its residents safe shelter and skilled services 24/7 to help them live out the remainder of their lives in a good, healthy environment.

Attendees visit with a mini horse from Mary Rose Mini Pet Therapy Horses.

Meals are prepared daily to help meet the individual dietary needs of residents. There is a 58-bed Alzheimer’s/dementia unit. Other offerings include 24-hour skilled nursing service, help with pain management, and a variety of social and recreational activities.

The nursing home is named after First Lt. Baldomero Lopez, a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, who died on Sept. 15, 1950, while serving during the Korean War. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, our nation’s highest military decoration.

Lopez was a rifle platoon commander of Company A, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division (REIN).

He was only 25 years old when he was killed while serving in Inchon, Korea.

Officials attending the event included, from left: Robert ‘Bob’ Asztalos, deputy executive director of the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs; James S. Hartsell, FDVA executive director; and Marlies Sarrett, nursing home administrator.

This is the same age at which the nursing home named after him is now.

Lopez’s Medal of Honor (MOH) citation says, in part, that he was attempting to throw a grenade into a bunker from which enemy fire was pinning down the area where his platoon had just landed on a beach. He was wounded in his right shoulder and chest as he lifted his arm to throw the grenade.

He dropped the grenade while falling backward and turned and dragged his body forward in an effort to retrieve the grenade and throw it.

“In critical condition from pain and loss of blood, and unable to grasp the hand grenade firmly enough to hurl it, he chose to sacrifice himself rather than endanger the lives of his men and, with a sweeping motion of his wounded right arm, cradled the grenade under him and absorbed the full impact of the explosion.

“His exceptional courage, fortitude, and devotion to duty reflect the highest credit upon 1st Lt. Lopez and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country,” the MOH citation said.

Pasco County Tax Collector Mike Fasano also attended the event.

Marlies Sarrett, who has been the nursing home’s administrator for 13 years, said she was very pleased with how many people turned out for the celebration, which also included entertainment by the Crossroads Band that performs at Baldomero Lopez monthly.

She also noted that she was happy with the number of volunteers who had helped organize and run the event.

A large number of organizations and vendors were in attendance, including the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office’s K-9 unit, Pasco County Votes, Land O’ Lakes Library, Mary Rose Mini Pet Therapy Horses, Rosebud Continuum, Coastal Cremations and the Sertoma Club, according to Johanna Snee, Baldomero Lopez activity director.

Also attending and participating were representatives of various veterans’ organizations, including the FDVA, American Legion, Marines Forever, Operation Patriot, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Daughters of the American Revolution and Sons of the American Revolution.

In addition, representatives of Kathryn Hintz Piano Studios, the New Port Richey Elks Club, JDog Junk Removal & Hauling, Grunt Style, Palm City Church, Pasco-Hernando State College, Tampa History Museum and Zonta participated in the event, according to Snee.

For more information about the Baldomero Lopez State Veterans’ Nursing Home, call 813-558-5000.

Published May 08, 2024