Up close and personal with a cheetah
Students and staff at Garden Montessori School got a close-up view of Tende (in the background), a 1 ½-year-old cheetah from Busch Gardens, when the animal visited their school in Wesley Chapel. The kindergarteners partnered with Busch Gardens to help raise money toward the Cheetah Conservation created by SeaWorld Inc. As part of the children’s yearlong ‘Peace Project,’ the students visited Busch Gardens to learn about the cheetah’s plight of becoming extinct, followed by a car wash to raise money for the cause. Kindergarten graduates Myla Garry, Rafael ‘Billito’ Robertson-Brown, Caitlyn Sorrentino, Naveed Fallah, Sophia Tarokh, Sophie Devolder, Sarina Choudhry, Jose Daniel Cuevas-Gonzalez and Naisha Shah presented a check for $500 to Cara Treadway.
Summer food program
Hillsborough County will participate in a Summer Food Service Program to provide free, nutritious lunches and afternoon snacks to children at more than 50 sites throughout the county from June 13 through Aug. 3. The sites are in areas where 50 percent or more of the children qualify for free or reduced priced meals during the school year.
The program will provide a balanced meal during summer vacation when school meals are not available. The meals and snacks will be offered at local parks and other community locations to all children ages 18 and younger in the area.
Applications and summer camp registration are not required.
A list of approved sites can be found under the Summer Food Program link at HillsboroughCounty.org/summerfood.
Summer career camps
Pasco-Hernando State College will offer academic career-themed summer camps for middle school aged students (those entering sixth, seventh and eighth grades). The sessions will provide an opportunity for students to explore popular career programs offered at PHSC. Each camp will run for four half-days, Monday through Thursday.
- Nature/Environmental Studies: June 27 to June 30 from 9 a.m. to noon, at North Campus in Brooksville
- EMS First Aid and Safety: June 27 to June 30 from 9 a.m. to noon, at West Campus in New Port Richey
- Survival: July 18 to July 21 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at East Campus in Dade City
- Photography: July 18 to July 21 from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., at Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch in Wesley Chapel
- Engineering/Advance Manufacturing: July 18 to July 21 from 9 a.m. to noon at West Campus in New Port Richey
- Health: July 18 to July 21 from 9 a.m. to noon, at Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch in Wesley Chapel
- Digital Photography: July 25 to July 28 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at West Campus in New Port Richey
- Aviation: July 25 to July 28 from1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., at East Campus in Dade City
- Fire Science: July 25 to July 28 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at East Campus in Dade City
For more information and camp fees, call (727) 816-3257, or visit PHSC.edu/summercamp.
Fundraiser for scholarships
The volunteers of Medical Center of Trinity will host a fundraiser to raise money for scholarships on Aug. 11 at Spartan Manor, 6121 Massachusetts Ave., in New Port Richey.
There will be a fall fashion show sponsored by Stein Mart, a gift auction and dinner.
The cash bar will be open at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 6:15 p.m., and the fashion show.
Tickets are $30 and go on sale July 1, and can be purchased from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., in the hospital’s cafeteria, 9330 State Road 54 in Trinity, by cash or check only.
The deadline to buy tickets is Aug. 5.
Character camp conference
The theme of the annual Character Camp Conference, hosted by the Florida Intentional Character Partnership and The University of Tampa, is “Linking Smart and Good.” The conference will take place on July 22 from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at the UT campus, 401 W. Kennedy Blvd., in the Vaughn Center.
The free conference is of special interest to teachers, school administrators, guidance counselors, paraprofessionals, school support staff, school bus drivers and stakeholders interested in the social, emotional and academic development of prekindergarten through grade 12 children.
Character Camp will feature national speakers with breakout sessions on digital citizenship, ethics in decision making, teaching social/emotional learning, and more.
The deadline for free registration is July 8 at Florida-ICP.com.
