Land O' Lakes News

Eat, shop, show cars, cook chili – all in Lutz

October 2, 2013 By B.C. Manion

Lutz First Friday – a food truck rally sponsored by the Lutz Citizens Coalition — was supposed to make its debut on Oct. 4 at Lutz Preparatory School. However, it’s been indefinitely postponed.

In an email sent out to Lutz Citizens Coalition members, group president Mike White said the group thought they had reached an agreement with the school and began putting the word out about the rally. Those plans were dropped, however, after the coalition had a second meeting at the school and officials there appeared to be backing out, White said.

Classic cars will be on display at the Lutz Centennial Cars and Chili event on Nov. 2. (File photo)

Yet Diane Farmer, principal at Lutz Preparatory, said the school still wants to work with the coalition on hosting food truck rallies there.

“We’re still in negotiations,” Farmer said. “We’re still trying to work out the details for it. We want to do it.”

She said there was a problem with logistics, and the school could not meet the coalition’s desired schedule.

While the monthly truck rally has been put on hold, people who enjoy a flea market, or who want to do their part to help maintain a historic building, will have their chance to do both on Oct. 5 at the Old Lutz School Building Flea Market. It runs from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m.

The event raises money for the upkeep of the Old Lutz School, a historic building that local residents fought to preserve when the state was widening U.S. 41. The school itself is at 18819 N. U.S. 41, which is at the corner of Fourth Avenue SE and U.S. 41.

Less than a month later, on Nov. 2, the community is having another in a series of events scheduled this year to celebrate the Lutz Centennial.

At the Lutz Centennial Cars & Chili event, chili aficionados and classic car buffs will be able to compete for bragging rights. Car buffs and motorcycle enthusiasts are encouraged to take part in the show, which will feature classic cars, exotic cars and motorcycles.

The chili cook-off will have two categories: Families and individuals will compete in one, and clubs and organizations will square off in the other.

The deadline for registration to compete in the cook-off is 5 p.m. on Oct. 25, and there is a $25 team entry fee.

Chili cook-off teams can consist of one chef and two assistants. The chili must be cooked on-site. Since there’s no electricity, teams must provide their own LP-gas cooking appliance. They must also supply their own ingredients and cooking utensils.

Patrons will be able to purchase official centennial chili cups for $5 each, which they can carry around from team to team to sample different kinds of chili. The tastings will begin at noon and will end when the chili runs out, or at 2 p.m.

The celebration will be on the grounds between the old train depot and the Lutz Community Center, between U.S. 41 and the Lutz Branch Library.

To find out more about the chili cook-off, email . To learn more about the car show, email .

On your marks, get set, wobble

October 2, 2013 By B.C. Manion

Runners who enjoy starting their Thanksgiving Day with a Turkey Trot will have a new option this holiday season.

Instead of driving to the Turkey Trot in Clearwater or the FishHawk Turkey Trot, area runners will be able to do a 5-kilometer or a one-miler at the first Wiregrass Wobble Turkey Trot at The Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel. The race will begin at 7:30 a.m. on Nov. 28.

A look at some of the participants of a weekly Thursday night run at The Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel. The Thursday night runners inspired the idea for the Wiregrass Wobble Turkey Trot, scheduled for the first time this coming Thanksgiving. (Photo by B.C. Manion)

Brian Brink, the race director, came up with the idea for the Wiregrass Wobble. However, he credits his wife Erica with coming up with the name and dreaming up the prize that winners will receive — an engraved carving board for use at their holiday gatherings later in the day.

Besides giving runners a new race, the event is raising money for Feeding America Tampa Bay and the New Tampa YMCA.

Brink, who is general manager of Fitniche at The Shops at Wiregrass, said the idea for the event came out of the weekly run he organizes at the mall every Thursday night.

There are two groups of runners who run at the mall with one heading out at 6 p.m., and the second at 6:30 p.m., Brink said.

Since they always meet on Thursdays, they decided to do a morning run last Thanksgiving.

They announced that plan about a week before Thanksgiving, Brink said. Much to his surprise, roughly 150 people showed up.

Brink figured if that many people turned out with just a week’s notice, the event could draw substantially more runners with more lead time. Thus began the planning for this year’s event, which Brink believes will attract at least 1,000 runners.

“We have Seven Oaks and Meadow Pointe and all of these giant neighborhoods within a few miles of here that are (homes to) young families,” Brink said.

He expects runners to come from such communities as Wesley Chapel, New Tampa, Zephyrhills, Dade City, Land O’ Lakes and Lutz.

Lutz resident Jonathan Bosque, 18, said he plans to be there. The Freedom High student has run at the Turkey Trot in Clearwater for the past three years.

“I just love running,” Bosque said. “This is a great community place for running.”

Brink said he expects the Wiregrass Wobble to become a premier event for the area because the other Turkey Trots are so far away.

“The Clearwater one is the biggest one. They have about 15,000 people doing four different races,” Brink said. “To get down there, to get parking, to get registered, everything like that, it’s going to take over an hour to do all that.

“There’s so many people in the North Tampa area that have no desire to wake up that early on Thanksgiving morning. So, really the area needed something like this. I think we’re going to have a huge turnout,” Brink said.

He also noted that once the county gets a planned park built on adjacent land in Wiregrass Ranch, organizers can add a 10k run.

The route of the Wiregrass Wobble’s 5k will go around the mall and Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel, ending to the top of the mall’s parking garage.

“Doing 3.1 miles takes some maneuvering,” Brink said, noting the idea is to keep the race off busy roads. “Luckily we have a really big parking garage over there — that will give us some distance.”

The race director thinks the event will be a popular choice for families who want to take a walk or run before settling down later to their Thanksgiving meals. He also thinks it will be a nice option for people who are having family in for the holiday.

“People are traveling on Thanksgiving to be with family. They’re looking for something to do together,” Brink said.

Runners who register early enough will receive a T-shirt that’s designed to keep them dry and cool while they race. The 5k will also be a chip-timed event, Brink said. The chip ensures that racers are timed from the start line to the finish.

Registration is $25 for the 5k and $20 for the one-miler.

Runners who sign up in person at any Fitniche location or the New Tampa YMCA can get a $5 discount if they donate five nonperishable goods for the food bank, Brink said.

Registrations are also being accepted online at signmeup.com.

Runners will also be able to register on race day.

Local filmmaker finds his own Batman story

September 25, 2013 By Michael Hinman

Will debut documentary this weekend

Just as a movie franchise alone, Batman has grossed more than $3.7 billion at the box office worldwide, and has touched millions of people.

Yet the character of The Dark Knight is giving back in so many different ways beyond the movie screen and the pages of a comic book. It’s touching people’s lives, and making a positive difference in society. Something one Land O’ Lakes resident has put together in a new documentary premiering this weekend in Tampa.

Land O’ Lakes filmmaker Brett Culp poses with Kye Sapp, a young boy diagnosed with leukemia who finds strength during his treatments through the character of Batman. (Photo courtesy of Brett Culp)

“This character has been around since 1939, and multiple generations have experienced Batman,” said Brett Culp, a wedding videographer turned independent filmmaker. “I wanted to create a film that expressed how people do things for others, and I was looking for a way to do that. Batman was really an ideal way to do that, with a story that has been a powerful and constant part of our culture for a long, long time.”

Culp used his own money mixed with a little more than $50,000 raised through crowdfunding websites like Indieogogo and Kickstarter to produce “Legends of the Knight.” In this film, Culp traveled around the country finding out how the Caped Crusader influenced our culture today with a range of people as young as 5, and as old as retirement age.

The stories surprised him, but the people behind those stories amazed Culp even more.

“This one guy we featured is 19 years old, and is one of a kind,” Culp said. “He is a junior college student, and when he puts on his Batman mask, no one knows who he is. He raises $50 here and there for different organizations, and then he’ll go downtown and do pretend fights with bad guys just to entertain people. He’ll then go to places like the Boys and Girls Club and take pictures with the kids there.”

On the other end of the spectrum is a retired businessman who, once he sold his company, decided he was going to live the life of Batman, right down to creating his own $200,000 replica Batmobile from the 1960s television series. He drives around to children’s hospitals, and makes that his full-time mission.

“It is really beautiful, interesting, connectable and inspiring,” Culp said. “The connection that it has to Batman, it’s just so fun to watch people interact with the character.”

“Legends of the Knight” was a two-year project for Culp, the grandson of former Tampa mayor Lloyd Copeland, and a fourth-generation native of the area. When Culp and his wife Tricia get together with friends for dinner, they spend the time sharing stories with each other, many on how popular culture has impacted the world.

Culp is a lifelong fan of Batman, fascinated by the character’s ability to solve problems with only his superior intellect and innovative technology, not through a need for superpowers. Batman also is much more relatable to fans since he was born out of tragedy (his parents being killed in front of him as a young boy), and his commitment to never turn his back on the people of Gotham City.

Movies based on comic books are dominating theaters, but comic books themselves still haven’t earned the respect they deserve, Culp said.

“Comic books are perceived as irrelevant, stupid, or something just for kids,” he said. “We all had that experience growing up, where nobody takes us seriously and think our ideas are stupid.”

Yet, these characters have been a part of many lives for decades, covering generation after generation after generation. And more than 70 years after its creation by Bob Kane, Batman is still finding his way into the hearts of young people. That includes Kye Sapp, a 5-year-old in Arlington, Texas, diagnosed with leukemia. It took a character like Batman to inspire him to continue on.

“He is part of a home with a single mom who has two other kids, all younger than Kye,” Culp said. “It was a really difficult time in their lives, and it was also a time when they felt a lot of weakness and vulnerability. But that was until Kye adopted Batman as part of his own identity.”

Kye would check in to the hospital as Batman. He would wear Batman pajamas to his chemotherapy sessions. When he would feel sick, he would stay strong, because he said Batman wouldn’t whine, and he won’t either.

There have been documentaries about Batman in the past, but never one that explored how Batman has affected the real lives of people who enjoy the character. That made “Legends of the Knight” a passion project for Culp, keeping him going despite the thousands of miles travelling, the long hours planning, and countless sleepless nights stressed about how he can make the project a reality.

But now it is real. After months of talk, film trailers, interviews, and a small promotional tour that included one of the nation’s biggest comic book conventions in San Diego, Culp is ready to premiere “Legends of the Knight” at Tampa Theatre. The family-friendly event will take place Sept. 28 at 7:30 p.m. at the theater, located at 711 N. Franklin St., in Tampa.

Along with the 12 stories, Culp also conducted more than 60 interviews with Batman “experts,” including producer Michael Uslan, the man who owns the Batman movie rights, and is responsible for the Dark Knight’s rebirth on the silver screen in 1989.

But what happens to “Legends of the Knight” after this screening is anyone’s guess. Culp said he’s working with his team to figure out the next step, which most likely will include finding a distributor to take it to theaters, or direct-to-DVD.

“This is a grassroots film,” he said. “It was not made with Hollywood connections, or funding from a major studio or anything like that. It doesn’t have any big names in it, just everyday people.”

So Saturday’s event might be the only time in the near future they’ll get to see Culp’s hard work.

“For the path we have gone down so far, I just feel so overwhelmingly blessed,” Culp said. “I don’t have any doubt that this whole project is just special, and that something really cool is going to come out of it.”

For more information on the film, how to get tickets, and even to watch a teaser trailer, visit www.WeAreBatman.com.

Wesley Chapel hospital, Focus on Fitness win top awards

September 25, 2013 By Special to The Laker/Lutz News

There were smiles and tears as the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce honored businesses and volunteers at its annual banquet Sept. 14.

Kelly Mothershead, the owner of A Focus on Fitness, accepts the Small Business of the Year award at the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce annual banquet at Hunter’s Green. (Photo courtesy of Tony Masella, OurTownFla.com)

The awards acknowledge the accomplishments of small businesses, larger businesses, volunteers, civic organizations and business leaders for the contributions they make to the regional economy. They are nominated and voted on by their peers.

This year’s winners were:

• Small Business of the Year: A Focus on Fitness
• Large Business of the Year: Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel
• Business Leader of the Year: Greg Lenners, The Shops at Wiregrass
• Volunteer of the Year: Cathy Bickham, Chapel Home Health
• Civic or Non-Profit of the Year: Oasis Pregnancy Care Centers
• President’s Award: Dean Smith, Quest National Services
• Board Member of the Year: Maureen Moore, Saint Leo University

Bickham of Chapel Home Health was elected the 2014 honorary mayor of Wesley Chapel, and won through a fundraising competition. Mary Ann Yaney will serve as the deputy honorary mayor.

The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce was founded in 1998, and now has nearly 500 members.

Make a choice to stay alive, speaker says

September 25, 2013 By B.C. Manion

“I’d like you to imagine the most important person in your life,” Cara Filler told the crowd in Gaither High School’s auditorium.

“With your eyes closed, imagine what your life would be without them.”

That’s how Filler began her talk during a motivational speaking appearance in front of Gaither’s senior class.

The most important person in Filler’s life was her twin sister, Mairin Johnston. But she died the day after they shared their 18th birthday, not long after they graduated from high school.

It was a car accident just three miles away from the mall where both had just been hired to work at a Disney store. Mairin left the mall with her boyfriend driving, allegedly hitting speeds of 110 mph in a 35-mph zone. He lost control of the car and crashed.

The boyfriend sustained some minor injuries. He paid a $150 speeding ticket and spent 15 days in jail. Mairin lost her life.

This was Filler’s best friend. The person who was going to be her maid of honor. The one who would be hanging out with her when they were in their 80s.

Now Filler shares her story through the “Drive to Save Lives” tour, talking about the importance of making smart choices to stay safe.

She made similar stops at Wharton and Steinbrenner high schools, too, which were among the 10 schools in Florida she visited to spread her message.

Students Against Destructive Decisions, better known as SADD, and the Florida Department of Transportation sponsored Filler’s appearances.

“FDOT, for the first time, has put teen safe driving as part of their strategic plan,” said Danielle Branciforte, SADD’s state coordinator. These kinds of presentations remind students “that there are consequences for every action,” Branciforte said.

At times during Filler’s hour-long talk, one could hear a pin drop in the auditorium. At other times, the place rocked with laughter. In the end, students gave Filler a standing ovation.

Many said they appreciated her candor, her humor and her practical advice.

Filler, who grew up in Vancouver, B.C., now lives north of Portland, Ore.

She travels around the country, coaxing audience members to keep themselves safe and avoid becoming statistics. She gives about 150 talks a year and has been doing that for 18 years.

“I can tell you the second my sister died,” said Filler, who was driving behind her sister and witnessed the crash. She could only watch as emergency workers at the scene were unable to save her. “She died because she made a bad choice.”

Filler said she continues to give the talks because she wants her sister’s death to have meaning.

“I’m sick and tired of car crashes being the No. 1 killer of youth,” Filler said. “I watched them rip the car apart to try to get my sister out. There was nothing they could do for her.”

While recounting her sister’s death was dramatic and poignant, Filler’s talk also painted a portrait of the joys and hassles of life as a twin.

She used self-deprecating humor to build connections with the audience, believing that if she can make the kids laugh, she can also make them listen.

Gaither principal Marie Whelan told students that she is always concerned about their safety, and she encouraged them to look out for themselves and their friends. She wants to see them walk across the stage on graduation day next June.

“I want you to be able to be that maid of honor or best man in your best friends’ weddings,” Whelan said. “I want you to be there for them, when their children are born and all of those special moments in life.”

Sharon Hall, program manager for Mothers Against Drunk Driving, knows too well the depth of Filler’s pain.

State troopers knocked at Hall’s door at 11 one night five years ago to tell her that her 26-year-old son, Louis B. Hall, was killed in a wreck on the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway. He was a passenger.

“The driver was speeding, and impaired, and lost control,” Hall said.

Some members of Gaither’s SADD chapter said they think Filler’s comments will hit home with their peers.

“I think she gave great tips on how to prevent accidents,” said Autumn Riedy, 17. “Every day teenagers go to parties and you can prevent stuff (from) happening.”

Brad Smith, 17, said he thinks Filler’s talk “really opened the eyes of a lot of students who think, ‘It’s not going to happen to me.’

“We’re all going to college next year. This is a good message to keep in the back of your heads, to make good decisions. Sometimes just saying, ‘No,’ is all you have to say,” Smith said.

It’s also important to intervene, to help friends avoid foolish actions, Smith said.

“If you don’t say something and something happens, you’re going to regret it,” he said.

Distracted driving is a big issue, said Brittany French, 17.

“My dad is always telling me not to text and drive,” she said. “You’re looking down. You’re not really paying attention.”

French connected when Filler asked the crowd to imagine the person closest to them.

“Personally, mine would be my little sister,” French said. “She’s my everything. I couldn’t imagine my life without her.”

There are times when teenagers know it’s not safe to get in a car with friends, but might not know how to say no. Motivational speaker Cara Filler offers these four approaches:
• Don’t get in the car — There are always other options, Filler said.
• If you’re already in a car, and it’s dangerous, get out of the car — “Speak up for yourself,” Filler said. “My sister didn’t. That’s why she’s dead.”
• Lie if you have to — “Tell the driver you have to pee,” Filler said. Or tell the driver “you think you’re going to puke.”
• Call your parents — Not popular, Filler said, but it’s a move that can save lives.
Teenagers not driving can also volunteer to be the “designated texter,” to make sure the driver doesn’t do that.
And if all else fails? “Hide the car keys,” Filler said.

— B.C. Manion

Hair-raising fundraising event planned for Land O’ Lakes teen

September 25, 2013 By Michael Hinman

Emily Raymond was just 1 when her hair first starting falling out.

She was diagnosed with an autoimmune form of alopecia, where Emily’s immune system attacks hair follicles, preventing new hair from growing.

As a young girl, Emily covered her head with hats or bandanas. But since seventh grade, the now 17-year-old Land O’ Lakes High School senior has worn wigs,

“When I got my first wig, I didn’t really want to wear it,” Raymond said. “I was just afraid to, I guess.”

It took Audrey Pease three years to grow her hair this long, and only seconds for stylist Lucy Rosado of Susan’s Mane Tamer in Lutz to cut it off. It’s all to support Emily Raymond, background, and Locks of Love. (Photo by Michael Hinman)

Good wigs, especially those made from natural human hair, are expensive, ranging in price from $700 to $2,000, she said. That’s why nonprofit groups like Locks of Love are so needed.

“I am definitely grateful,” said Raymond, who plans to attend Pasco-Hernando Community College next year to begin studying to become a dental hygienist. “It’s wonderful that people want to grow their hair out and donate it to for others to wear.”

That’s what Audrey Pease, a Mary Kay cosmetics sales consultant, decided to do for Raymond. Pease met her when Raymond was just 12. Her son and Raymond’s brother attended Boy Scout meetings together, and Raymond would tag along.

“I didn’t really understand what was going on with her,” Pease said. “But when I learned what was wrong, and what it costs to buy wigs, I knew I had to help.”

Pease tried a fundraiser through Mary Kay, raising $100 for a wig. But as an encore, Pease decided to add something to this year’s fundraiser — she would actually donate some of her hair.

“I’d been growing it for three years, and I didn’t want to get it cut until it was long enough to help Emily,” Pease said.

Locks of Love, which started in 1997, requires hair donations to be at least 10 inches long. It has to be bundled in a ponytail or braid, and cannot be bleached. Pease had 12 inches of hair ready to go, and it took just seconds for stylist Lucy Rosado to cut it away.

“I love my new haircut,” Pease said afterward. “My hair had been getting in my face a lot, and made it hard for me to turn my head while I was driving. It’s shorter now than what it was when I first started to grow it out, so it will take some getting used to.”

Pease’s hair will not necessarily go to Raymond. However, such donations can save Locks of Love money from acquiring hair from other sources, thus bringing their overall costs down. The nonprofit does sell hair it doesn’t or can’t use, a controversial practice it says is necessary to help offset manufacturing costs. That includes shorter and gray hair.

While Raymond won’t benefit directly from Pease’s hair donation, she will benefit from Pease’s latest fundraiser. Through Nov. 15, Pease is donating 40 percent of her Mary Kay sales to help Raymond get a new wig.

“That’s pretty much everything I make from the sale,” Pease said. “But it’s absolutely worth it.”

Raymond has two wigs custom-made for her right now, but she really only uses one. At one point she had four, but she donated two of hers to a family friend who also was losing her hair.

“I joke around with my friends that I could just get a bunch of different-colored wigs, and wear a different wig each and every day,” Raymond said. “I want to do it.”

For more information on Audrey Pease’s fundraising benefit for Emily Raymond, visit tinyurl.com/RaymondLocks.

On your marks, get set, wobble

September 25, 2013 By B.C. Manion

Runners who enjoy starting their Thanksgiving Day with a Turkey Trot will have a new option this holiday season.

Brink, the race director, came up with the idea for the Wiregrass Wobble. However, he credits his wife Erica with coming up with the name and dreaming up the prize that winners will receive — an engraved carving board for use at their holiday gatherings later in the day.