The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

 

Welcome to Our New Website. Enjoy.

Lutz

Finding new ways to celebrate, amid COVID-19

By

It may not have been the graduation ceremony he envisioned, but 17-year-old Carl Scavino seems to be enjoying himself, as he took advantage of the sunroof to wave to the crowd. His mother, Judy Scavino, appeared to be having a good time, too. (Randy Underhill)

COVID-19 may have delayed graduations for the Class 2020, but it couldn’t curb the enthusiasm of graduates, and their loved ones, to celebrate their achievements.

Drive-by celebrations were held at The Grove in Wesley Chapel for members of the Class of 2020 from Land O’ Lakes, Wesley Chapel and Cypress Creek high schools. Pasco County Commission Chairman Mike Moore read the list of graduates’ names. Family and friends applauded and cheered, as vehicles drove by with the graduates.

There also was a celebration at Idlewild Baptist Church, in Lutz, for graduates from the church, as well as for graduates of various Pasco and Hillsborough County schools.

Kristen Engasser, 17, of Lutz, waits patiently for the 2020 Land O’ Lakes High School senior graduation parade to begin at The Grove shopping complex, Wesley Grove Boulevard in Wesley Chapel. The parade is a celebration of Land O’ Lakes seniors unable to have a formal graduation ceremony due to the COVID-19 school closures.
Minister Kelly Knouse, of Idlewild Baptist Church, greets Travis Shelby, a member of the Sunlake High Class of 2020.
Katheryn Munger, a member of Wesley Chapel High’s Class of 2020, gets ready to take part in the June 1 drive-by celebration for graduating seniors held at The Grove in Wesley Chapel. She plans to attend the University of South Florida.
Graduate Ashley Bischof is in the driver’s seat, as she takes part in the celebratory parade. She plans to attend Pasco-Hernando State College.
This group helped graduating seniors from Cypress Creek Middle High, during festivities at The Grove. From left, Jennifer Yingling, Mark Gold, DJ Night Mixer Makayla Gulash, Pasco County Commission Chairman Mike Moore, Troy Stevenson, Cypress Creek Middle/High School Principal Carin Hetzler-Nettles, Jennifer Welling, and Tami Baker, along with the school’s Coyote mascot. (Courtesy of Andy Taylor/Pasco County)

Feeding the hungry through ‘pop-up’ food drive

By

When Idlewild Baptist Church decided to hold a food drive recently — it had no idea the response would be so great that it would essentially create a traffic jam because so many church members showed up to drop off contributions.

Typically, the church takes weeks to plan big events.

In this case, it sprang into action.

The church’s Gatheria — a space used for church suppers and other events — looked like a food warehouse after contributions came rolling in to help others needing food. (Courtesy of Yerusha Bunag/Idlewild Baptist Church)

As medical and economic impacts of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) began ramping up, the church started fielding more requests for assistance, said Yerusha Bunag, director of local missions.

The church was hearing from schools it has been involved with in partnerships that began before the pandemic, she said. It also noted that the church food pantry, which has operated for years, was getting depleted.

Plus, Bunag said: “We had an increasing number of people needing help, from our own membership, but also an outpouring of people wanting to give help.”

So, as the week before the March 29 food drive wore on, the need to act became clearer.

“Just through prayer, through meeting with the leadership — virtually —  we said, ‘Let’s just trust God. He’ll work through our people to be generous at this time,” she said.

They decided they could use the church’s Gatheria area as a warehouse to hold the donations.

Bunag recruited youth volunteers to help collect the food.

She also put out the word about the food drive through an email on the afternoon of March 28, and a posting on Facebook.

Senior Pastor Ken Whitten made an appeal to help during the 9:15 a.m. livestream service on March 29, which was repeated at the 11 a.m. service.

The food drive was supposed to be from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

By 1:30 p.m., when volunteers arrived, though, cars were already lining up to drop off their donations.

“We did not stop until 4:30 p.m.,” Bunag said.

Although the church did not count the cars that came, it was a steady stream, Bunag said.

Volunteers from Idlewild Baptist Church in Lutz delivered boxes of food to three elementary schools, after the church held a somewhat spontaneous food drive.

At one point, about 2:30 p.m., one of the guys coordinating traffic flow radioed and told her: “‘I just got word that we’re backed up to (North) Dale Mabry (Highway). And, Van Dyke (Road) has started to get backed up.”

To help speed things up, some guys who had been directing traffic were reassigned to work an additional collection point.

“It was really hot,” Bunag said. But, no one was complaining.

The volunteers were so pumped up, they didn’t even want to take a break, she added.

“Everybody was on an adrenaline high,” Bunag said.

Pastors were out there sweating, too, she said.

It was work, but it was fun, too, she said. “Cars would go by and they would honk. ‘Hey, it’s great to see you.’”

All the while, the church practiced social distancing, with volunteers working in different parts of the campus, in groups of 10 or fewer — wearing masks and gloves, and keeping a safe distance apart.

And, nobody complained about having to wait.

After the volunteers left on Sunday, the church’s hallways and lobbies were filled with boxes and bags of foods.

Then, Bunag huddled with Nancy Reed, the church’s events coordinator; Tonya Sloan, its food service director; and Kirk Malone, its Benevolence assistant, to plan out the rest of the operation.

Bunag created an online signup sheet seeking volunteers. By midmorning, she’d met the need for 80 volunteers who would work in three shifts, at four locations.

“We were done sorting all of that on Monday.

“On Tuesday, we began making toiletry packets and food boxes,” she said, noting they filled hundreds of boxes and toiletry packets.

“So, on Wednesday, we began distribution. Again, volunteers from our church that had trucks or SUVs signed up to deliver to three different schools (Kenly, Just and Booker T. Washington elementary schools).”

The efforts, she said, are to share God’s love — and to let others see that love in action.

“It goes beyond, ‘Here’s a box of food,’” she said.

“We want to give people not just hope that we care for them and we love them, but we want to give them the same hope in God, that he’s in control of the situation, and he’s going to provide for our every need,” she said.

Published April 08, 2020

Lutz video game studio offers virtual concerts

By

As coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is keeping most stuck inside home, a Lutz-based video game studio is discovering novel ways to keep users together and entertained.

For years, Artix Entertainment has been creating free online fantasy-based video games filled with monsters, magic and storytelling.

Adam Bohn is the founder/CEO of Artix Entertainment, an independent video game studio in Lutz. (Courtesy of Adam Bohn)

Among the most popular iterations is the AdventureQuest3D series, which takes role-playing users into an expansive fantasy world where combat skills are tested in an environment filled with the undead, beasts, dragons, dungeons and all sorts of other challenges. The game is cross-platform, meaning it can be played through computer, tablet or smartphone.

More recently, AdventureQuest’s creators have added a new wrinkle: in-game, virtual battle concerts from various well-known bands like Alice in Chains, Breaking Benjamin, Korn and others.

And, ever since the outbreak of the coronavirus has canceled many activities and concerts, game makers vowed to keep the music going.

So, the company decided to again team up with Breaking Benjamin, a multi-platinum rock band with nine No. 1 hit songs, to re-release an “encore” virtual battle concert, with some newly added features and objectives.

Here’s how the battle concert works: After completing a short tutorial, an unlimited number of users enter the concert and are tasked with fighting off a host of giant monsters all while the band’s music plays in the background. Users also have the option of taking a virtual selfie and interacting with Breaking Benjamin animated characters.

The virtual concert loops nonstop, and is designed for players of all skill levels. Bands send pre-recorded songs and custom voiceovers to Artix for the virtual concerts.

“I think it’s the best thing we’ve ever created,” Artix CEO/founder Adam Bohn said of the virtual concert series. “We’re trying to provide the most fun we can and help people during their stays at home.”

Artix also is expanding the virtual battle concert series to include local bands, so long as their music is safe for radio play. Interested groups can email .

“We have the ability to do these performance with any band in our game,” Bohn said. “Right now, I’m sure there’s musicians, with all the concerts canceled, there has to be some other way we can help, so it’d be great if anybody wanted to contact us.”

Humble beginnings, to millions of users
Artix today has over 30 employees, headquartered out of the NorthPointe Village business plaza off State Road 54.

Yet, the company started with humble beginnings back in 2002.

“It started out at the kitchen table of my first home here in Lutz,” Bohn, 44, said. “Our offices have been very, very slowly, methodically just moving down (State Road) 54.”

A computer video game enthusiast growing up in Pennsylvania, Bohn’s “lifelong dream” was to someday create games of his own.

It first came from the encouragement of his father, who all but told a youthful Bohn that if others could build video games, then his son could, too.

The planted seed led Bohn on “this kind of obsessive mission” that included years of trial and error “and unbelievable persistence.”

Lutz-based Artix Entertainment has teamed up with rock band Breaking Benjamin to host virtual concerts inside the AdventureQuest online video game series.

In the almost 18 years since Bohn launched the first version of AdventureQuest — then in 2D form — over 200 million accounts have been created worldwide across Artix’s platform of more than a dozen games.

It’s more than Bohn could’ve ever anticipated two decades ago. “I put the game out there hoping we’d get 100 players,” said Bohn.

In addition to AdventureQuest, other Artix titles include DragonFable, MechQuest, and BioBeasts. While the games are all free to play, users have the option to purchase cosmetics to improve the likeness of their characters.

Bohn acknowledged he entered the video game industry at the right time — when internet technology began booming in the early 2000s. “We were very early, so we were a part of this great video game evolution that’s been happening,” he said.

Like other area businesses dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, Artix employees have begun working remotely from home, collaborating via Google Docs, Trello and a chat program called Discord.  “I think gamers maybe have an easier time with this (coronavirus) problem because we love staying at home,” Bohn quipped.

However, the work to fine-tune a host of online games is anything but easy.

Bohn explained gameplay updates and problem-solving requires long hours from his team of artists, programmers and developers, and database managers.

For him and his team, it’s “pretty much a 24/7 job.”

“Most of the team is quite a fan of coffee,” Bohn joked, adding video game creation is more difficult than some may think. “There is this belief that we have this magical “make game button” and we press it and then there’s more games…”

As if running an independent video game studio day and night wasn’t enough, Bohn has another side project — he’s building a new video game for the 1985 Nintendo.

Bohn said the game, coming in a physical Nintendo cart, should be finished in two months’ time. “The game’s really, really far along,” he said. “We’ve already kind of done all the fulfillments. I have the circuit boards, I have the shelves…”

To play AdventureQuest and other Artix Entertainment games, visit AQ3D.com and Artix.com.

Published April 08, 2020

Keystone Community Church delivers Easter joy

By

Members of the Keystone Community Church delivered Easter baskets and food to 26 families on April 1.

Volunteer Charlie Bell is bagging up some frozen food items, to be distributed to families. (Courtesy of Lisa Kamps/Keystone Community Church)

The food boxes contained dairy, meat, bread from Publix, fruit, veggies and nonperishable items.

The Easter baskets were made by the church’s women’s group, along with Emma Wasson, a volunteer’s granddaughter.

The church, which is on State Road 54 just west of the U.S. 41 intersection, in Lutz, will continue to distribute to families and individuals in need, as often as possible, according to information provided by Lisa Kamps, of the KCC Second Serving outreach ministry.

The church reaches out to the local community providing food to those in need, according to its website. People the church serves range from single seniors to young families with children. Because the church is a Feeding Tampa Bay agency, it can purchase frozen foods and other items at a low cost. It also collects nonperishable food from our members and friends to round out what it distributes. Also, it also prepares food for the homeless.

Published April 08, 2020

Emma Wasson was one of the volunteers who helped to make Easter baskets.
Christy Smith, who is a teacher, is shown here bagging some cartons of orange juice.

Local businesses getting hit with COVID-19 impacts

By

Drive around the region and the impacts of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) are obvious.

Grocery store parking lots are full — with people lining up before the stores open to get their hands on toilet paper, hand sanitizer, and other scarce items.

There’s less traffic on the road because many people are working remotely, and that number may climb if ‘stay at home’ mandates are announced.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered restaurant dining room areas to be closed because of concerns about the potential spread of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Here is a sign letting customers know that the restaurant at Cypress Creek Town Center is open for drive-thru only. (Christine Holtzman)

While grocery stores are slammed, restaurant, gym and nightclub parking lots are empty.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has temporarily shut down bars, nightclubs and gyms, and has ordered dining rooms be closed at restaurants.

Businesses are feeling it.

Some have cut staff, including The Laker/Lutz News, which laid off three employees.

Some businesses have ceased operations, at least for now.

Tampa Premium Outlets had barricades blocking the entrances.

Its website notes that the closure is through March 29, but directs potential shoppers to “stores” and “dining” areas of the website to see if essential retailers, such as pharmacies and food delivery/take-out, are available.

Others are adapting practices to try to preserve business or to respond to changing customer behaviors amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Walkabout Eatery, a restaurant at 18430 Livingston Ave., in Lutz, is serving its customers with takeout, drive-thru and delivery through Uber Eats. The restaurant also has limited its hours to 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and reduced its staff.

In keeping with the governor’s order, Chick-fil-A, at Cypress Creek Town Center, off State Road 56, has closed its dining room and is offering drive-thru only.

Lakeland-based Publix Super Markets, which has several locations in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area, is opening at 7 a.m., on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, to allow shoppers age 65 and older the chance to shop for an hour before other shoppers are allowed to enter.

Also, Publix stores are closing an hour earlier, to give staff additional time to do preventative sanitation and restock shelves. Pharmacy hours have been changed to 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday, with regular hours on Sunday.

Tampa Premium Outlets, at 2300 Grand Cypress Drive, has barricades to keep people out. The website said the outlet mall was temporarily closed because of concerns about COVID-19.

Business owners and employees, meanwhile, grapple with uncertainty.

Amanda Perkins , a hairdresser for 11 years, has had Haven Hair Studio for two years at Porte Noire — A Salon Collective, at The Shops at Wiregrass.

During an interview last week, she said she’d had a number of cancellations — related to COVID-19 because of where the clients recently traveled, or out of a client’s concern about a relative’s compromised immune system.

She was still operating her shop last week, but was getting nervous.

“For me, if it only stayed at six, seven, eight cancellations, that wouldn’t be the end of my world,” Perkins said.

But, she added: “Everybody has all of the same questions: ‘What if this? How do we deal with this?’ It is just nerve-racking.”

On March 22, she decided to temporarily suspend services, according to her Facebook page. She said she will be emailing her clients to inform them how she’ll be handling appointments, both future and missed.

Hope Kennedy, president/CEO of the North Tampa Bay Chamber, said the uncertainty is a widespread concern.

“It’s very hard for the service industry, and we have a very large service industry in Wesley Chapel and in North Tampa Bay,” said Kennedy, who leads a chamber of about 700 members.

The chamber has reached out to its members and has conducted two surveys to get a pulse of what’s happening, Kennedy said.

Walgreens, at 22829 State Road 54, Land O’ Lakes, has new temporary store hours.
Its website says the company is updating its store hours an extra measure to help provide a clean and safe environment for its customers and employees.

“I can tell you the trend is definitely there’s going to be a very negative impact on our small businesses in our communities,” Kennedy said.

In fact, one business indicted it won’t be able to make it back, Kennedy said. “We’re three days in and we’re already hearing that.”

As the situation continues to evolve, stress levels are high, said Kennedy, who understands the sentiment.

“I told somebody the other day, I feel like I’m going through a hurricane, the BP Oil Spill and the Recession, all at the exact same time,” Kennedy said.

But, Kennedy pointed out that she has experienced all three of those, as a chamber executive, and her organization is working hard to find out what chamber members need and to help point them toward resources that can help.

“There’s so much out there and it changes so rapidly,” said Kennedy, who currently has her chamber office set up on her dining room table at home.

“We’re updating our website almost hourly for the various links,” she said.

Meanwhile, she’s encouraging everyone to: “Keep calm and shop local.”

The Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce is sharing a similar message.

It’s encouraging its members to “shop local, shop small, shop now.”

The Greater Pasco Chamber announced it would be reaching out to its members who operate restaurants to find out their new hours of operation and whether they operate takeout or delivery, and also to share menu links, when available.

Once that information is collected, the chamber plans to share it.

It, too, is sharing information about potential sources of help.

The Pasco Economic Development Council Inc., a nonprofit economic development agency, also wants to help businesses. It has compiled a list of potential sources of loans and other types of help that are posted on its website, PascoEDC.com.

While local organizations are trying to help businesses seek out sources of help, Gov. DeSantis is urging that economic assistance be provided quickly and simply — to those needing it, in light of COVID-19.

Need some help?
Information on these websites/links may be useful:
North Tampa Bay Chamber: NorthTampaBayChamber.com
Greater Pasco Chamber of Commerce: GreaterPasco.com
Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce: ZephyrhillsChamber.org
Pasco Economic Development Council Inc.: PascoEDC.com
FloridaDisaster.biz/BusinessDamageAssessments
SBDCtampabay.com/coronavirus

Published March 25, 2020

Under Construction 03/18/2020

By

This rendering shows an example of what all 10 buildings will look like inside the Stonewood Professional Park in Lutz. (Courtesy of John Westfall of Waterford Construction and Development)

Addition to office plaza
The Lutz Stonewood Professional Park is currently adding two new buildings to its site. This comes as its first building was erected last year. The structures will both stand at over 3,600 square feet, serving as medical and office space along State Road 54. There are plans to incorporate 10 buildings, in all, within the plaza.

 

 

 

Office space springs up in Wesley Chapel
The Professional Office Building is under construction at 2663 Lajuana Blvd., in Wesley Chapel. The structure will be set up to accommodate professional, medical and dental offices. It also will stand three stories high, each floor being 5,000 square feet. And, it will be situated across from the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Complex of Pasco County.

Car wash coming soon
Lutz will be the home to the new Woodies Wash Shack. Located at 24823 State Road 54, the carwash will be a part of the soon-to-come Shoppes at Cypress Creek. It will consist of a drive-thru washing tunnel and 19 parking spaces for self-service vacuum cleaning. The facility will total more than 5,000 square feet.

Taco shop added along 54
Fuzzy’s Taco Shop is expanding its chain into Land O’ Lakes. The site is at 19651 State Road 54, in the same vicinity as a new 7-Eleven convenience store and gas station. The 8,000-square-foot restaurant will serve its trademark tacos, guacamole, chips and frozen margaritas. It will be the newest location of more than 100 branches nationwide.

Curious about something new that’s popping up in your community? Please send us the location — along with the address, if possible — and we’ll see what we can find out. Send your email to .

This entrepreneur is bullish on Pasco

By

When Thomas Giella Jr., launched his business, he was a one-man operation — and he wasn’t sure how to get it where he wanted it to go.

So, he took advantage of various programs offered through the Pasco Economic Development Council Inc., and began learning more about the ins and outs of being an entrepreneur.

That helped get his business rolling, and now, six years later, he still uses what he has learned through those programs.

When Thomas Giella Jr., launched his business, he was a one-man operation. Now, his business has three divisions — with five employees — and plans to add two more within the foreseeable future. He is optimistic about Pasco County’s potential. (B.C. Manion)

Now, he has five employees, and he expects to add at least two more in the foreseeable future. He also expects to be required to move from his current location, on Wesley Chapel Boulevard in Lutz, as the business outgrows its space.

Giella thinks the future is bright for entrepreneurs who want to launch businesses in Pasco County.

“Pasco is hot,” the Dade City native said. “Pasco is growing.”

Entrepreneurs and manufacturers should realize the county has much to offer, Giella said.

If they can’t find what they’re looking for in Pasco, he said, “they should start it themselves.”

He added: “Who knows what’s going to happen in the next decade?”

His interest in technology dates back to his teenage years, when he built his own computer.

When he started his business, called Gear Spinners, he offered website design aimed at the small to mid-sized business market.

Over time, his business pursuits have evolved and grown.

Now, he is chief executive officer of Complete I.T. Corp, which  owns and operates three different brand divisions, including Complete I.T. Computer Repair and Network Solutions, Tampa Bay Installs and Diverge Laser Systems.

Complete I.T. provides computer repair and computer/network solutions. It also designs, repairs and replaces business network of all sizes.

“We started off as a website company. We have added so many services. We started doing IT — helping companies set up networks,” Giella said.

Giella estimates he has roughly 800 clients on the IT side – residential, commercial and enterprise.

“Our primary market for the computers and networks is Tampa Bay and Florida,” Giella said.

But, it has expanded its reach, he said. “Sometimes, we’ll do work for a local franchise that’s starting up or something, or a business — and word will get to one of their other offices, what we did, so they’ll say, ‘Can you put in a bid for us over here?’”

Tampa Bay Installs provides a variety of services. It installs and services access control gates and security cameras for homeowner associations and community development districts, Giella said.

For instance, at a clubhouse, company services include installing speakers and Wi-Fi, inside and out, cameras by the pool, in the clubhouse and in the parking lot, televisions and access control systems.

His primary market for gate access systems stretches from Brooksville to Riverview and from Kissimmee to the Gulf of Mexico, Giella said.

Most recently, his company branched into lasers.

Giella co-owns Diverge Laser Systems with Charles Bourne.

The company provides support and sales for Universal Laser Systems.

It sells and services equipment for a vast array of clients in the fields of manufacturing, education, education, military and government.

He believes lasers will help the county attract more manufacturers.

“Pasco’s mission right now is to bring manufacturing jobs back to Pasco County. We can now provide equipment to companies, who will then be able to create the manufacturing jobs using the equipment,” he said.

To find out more about Giella’s companies and services, call (813) 235-0554, ext. 103.

Want to know more about running a business?
Pasco Hernando SCORE offers numerous free workshops and seminars at various locations around Pasco County. The Pasco Economic Development Council Inc., also offers free and low-cost programs. To find out more, visit these websites: PascoHernandoScore.org or PascoEDC.com.

Published March 18, 2020

St. Joseph’s Hospital-North expands

By

St. Joseph’s Hospital-North has completed a $75 million expansion, and began welcoming patients to its more spacious facility this week.

The project doubled the hospital’s capacity — increasing it from 108 beds to 216 beds. The hospital also has upped its intensive care unit beds from 12 to 24. And, has more room to deliver services, accommodate visitors and enhance employee work areas.

Sara Dodds, the director of operations for St. Joseph’s Hospital-North, has worked at the Lutz hospital since its inception. She has been the point person on the $75 million expansion, which doubled the hospital’s capacity. The expansion is opening this week. (B.C. Manion)

Sara Dodds, the hospital’s director of operations, provided a walk-through tour of the addition to The Laker/Lutz News last week, before it opened for patients.

The expansion will allow the hospital to respond to the area’s fast-paced growth, Dodds said.

“There’s definitely a need. There’s so many new homes going up around us.

“We’ve been overcapacity for quite some time,” she said.

The hospital’s primary market is within 5 miles, and its secondary market is within 10 miles.

“The growth going on in our primary and secondary service areas is much faster than the rest of Florida and the rest of the country,” Dodds said.

In designing its expansion, the hospital sought feedback from its existing staff and incorporated their ideas into the design, she said.

For instance, Dodds said, “We got feedback from the staff that our waiting rooms weren’t very open, and inviting for guests.”

The new waiting rooms feature comfortable furniture, artwork and a flat-screen TV.

Patient rooms also provide accommodations for patients when they’re out of their beds, and offer a place where family member can rest through the night.

Also, at intervals in the hospital’s corridors, there are respite areas.

Dodds explained: “A lot of time we might ask a visitor to step out, while we’re doing something for the patient. Instead of them having to stand out in the hallway, or go walk to another location, we added benches.”

The recently wrapped-up project also includes technology to help patients.

There’s a “Get Well Network,” which allows patients to watch health videos, learn about their medications and so on. “That is all integrated with their medical record,” Dodds said.

The hospital also uses technology that automatically displays the name and title of hospital staff entering a patient’s room on the television screen.

That system is integrated with the hospital’s call light system, so “as long as a nurse or a tech or another member of that clinical care team is in the room, there’s a specific color light that’s illuminated outside the room,” Dodds said.

The hospital also uses a technology that allows care team members to secure-message physicians and anyone they might need to take care of a patient.

Some of the approximately 100 St. Joseph’s Hospital-North team members who have been with the hospital since it opened on Feb. 15, 2010. (Courtesy of St. Joseph’s Hospital-North)

“It’s definitely enhanced communications, on behalf of the patient,” she said.

The expansion also includes a dedicated hemodialysis suite, which can accommodate up to four patients at a time.

It has a larger space for physical therapy, too, to help patients prepare to return home after treatment.

The hospital’s clinical engineering department now has a larger workspace, where staff can ensure the hospital’s equipment is up-to-date and can do required preventative maintenance work.

The design keeps function, in mind.

In the progressive care area, for instance, a nurse can sit at a station, with windows on both sides. The nurse can slide open the blinds, to observe two patient rooms, without having to enter the rooms.

The hospital also is using technology to help manage its inventory.

“Historically, someone from materials management would have to come in each day, or more than once a day, and have to count everything that was in the bin (material container), so they knew what to reorder.

“Now, with this new technology, there’s a scale built into every one of those bins, they can see it on a computer system, so they know, remotely, what needs to be reordered,” Dodds said.

The technology improves efficiency.

“We did hire a lot of new staff for the expansion, but this is one area where we did not have to because of the innovation,” Dodds said.

The hospital also has more classrooms now, which are used to keep staff up to date on the latest information, to provide training on new equipment and to accommodate orientations. They’re also available for classes to help staff members meet continuing education requirements.

With a larger facility, more employees will be needed.

Dodds expects the hospital to need 200 additional employees, when the expansion is operating at full capacity.

She’s been working there since its inception and is excited about the facility’s future.

Apparently, she’s not the only one who enjoys working there.

“We just celebrated our 10-year anniversary,” she said. “We have close to 100 team members that were here when the hospital opened that are still here now.”

St. Joseph’s Hospital-North
The $75 million expansion:

  • Doubled number of hospital beds, from 108 to 216
  • Doubled intensive care unit beds, from 12 to 24
  • Added two new floors
  • Added a new infusion center, allowing treatment for up to 15 patients at one time
  • Doubled number of operating suites, from four to eight

Hospital statistics, 2019

  • 404 births
  • 4,467 outpatient surgeries
  • 42,869 emergency room visits
  • 463,414 lab tests

Hospital statistics, 2010-2019

  • 6, 944 cardiac procedures
  • 380,061 emergency room visits
  • 61,137 admissions
  • 31,300 surgeries
  • 3,923 babies delivered

Service providers

  • 188 physicians with hospital privileges in 2010; more than 350 in 2020
  • 476 team members in 2010; 820 in 2020

Published March 11, 2020

Simulation teaches a real-life history lesson

By

Second-graders at McKitrick Elementary School had a chance to gain a greater understanding of what life was like for immigrants arriving at Ellis Island during the early 1900s.

The school, at 5503 Lutz Lake Fern Road, created an event that allowed children the chance to walk through the paces that immigrants faced when they arrived in America.

Volunteer Deanna Okun, left, administers a medical exam inside the Medical Detainment room, to student Jyles Morales. Students were asked such questions as, ‘Have you been sick lately? And, ‘Do you have any allergies?’ The exam and questions asked were the same ones used at Ellis Island in the early 1900s. (Christine Holtzman)

The Feb. 27 simulation involved 180 second-graders and 68 volunteers, many dressed in period clothing.

Bilingual volunteers spoke to the students in Turkish, Russian, Greek and Arabic, to show students how it would feel to arrive in a new country without knowing its language.

Students prepared for the experience by taking virtual trips to Ellis Island, where they listened to audio recordings of interviews from people who actually came through Ellis Island.

They also had a chance to video chat with a museum curator, via Skype.

To prepare for their trip, students were asked to construct a cardboard suitcase and use it to hold five prized possessions, such as family photos, a favorite book or other treasured items.

Each student remained in character as they completed the activity, which took two hours to three hours to complete. They carried out the steps that were taken by actual immigrants: They waited in long lines for customs, upon departure and arrival. They were crammed into a boat. They were sprayed with ocean mist and doused with water, to simulate delousing measures taken when immigrants arrived.

They provided fingerprints at the registry, were subjected to searches at baggage claim, and forced to undergo medical and psychological exams.

After arriving by boat, students are seen standing in the long line at the customs area of McKitrick Elementary School’s Ellis Island. The students had the chance to find out what it may have felt like for immigrants who experienced long waits just to gain entry into Ellis Island. From left: Wyatt Montgomery, Zion Karp, Eric Vargas and Ben Friedman.

They also participated in interviews and had to pass a citizenship test.

And, they faced real dilemmas, such as being separated from family members or having to pawn their possessions for money.

After each group finished, they were sworn in as American citizens — by a judge, portrayed by McKitrick Principal Allison Cline.

The event, now in its third year, is the brainchild of former second grade teacher Liisa DiTarando, who is now the school’s Social & Emotional Learning Resource teacher.

It takes about three months to organize the annual production.

In addition to great content, the activity teaches kids critical thinking and problem-solving skills, which allows them to rise to the occasion, DiTarando said.

Every year, she said, she receives emails from parents that tell her how their child could relate a connection in their own lives to the content that was taught in this program. Parents also share that it has given their child the ability to empathize with what their relatives may have gone through.

Published March 4, 2020

Volunteer Carine Pyree, left, administers a simulated medical exam to student Olivia Ebel. Using actual examples from Ellis Island, Pyree asked Ebel to walk in a circle with her eyes closed.
After waiting in a long line, second-grade students Gabriel Gonzalez, left, and Rosie Vona, arrive to the customs area, at McKitrick Elementary School’s simulated Ellis Island. The pair, along with all the other arrivals, had to present proper documents before being permitted inside the registry office.
Second-grade student Giulia Longo, left, comes to collect the baby (a doll) that is under her care, that was found unattended inside the Citizenship and Testing room, by Gary Camacho, the McKitrick Elementary School’s security officer. Longo played a young girl whose uncle forced her to come to America, so she could care for his child, because his wife died. The woman behind this event, Liisa DiTarando, is on the right.

Edward Scissorhands’ screening coming soon

By

If you’re a local and a fan of the movie, “Edward Scissorhands,” you may already know that much of the movie was filmed in the Carpenters Run neighborhood of Lutz.

Of course, Carpenters Run no longer boasts the bright pastel-colored homes or topiaries featured in the film, but Kenny Caperton, of On Set Cinema, plans to bring elements of the movie to life in a special event planned for the evening of April 25.

Caperton, who created On Set Cinema, describes himself as a “cinema dork.”

Kenny Caperton stands in front of his home in Hillsborough, North Carolina. The house is a life-size replica of the house used in the movie, ‘Halloween.’ He’s the guy in the T-shirt and the other guy is a friend of his who dressed up as Michael Myers, the star of ‘Halloween.’ (Courtesy of Kenny Caperton)

He’s been visiting filming locations for about 20 years, and a couple of years ago, he said: “I got this fun, crazy idea: Wouldn’t it be cool to show movies where they were actually filmed?“

He knows that’s not an original idea, but he said, “as far as I know, there’s never been a film series that exclusively does this.”

So, over the past two years, he’s arranged a couple of dozen screening events at filming locations for movies.

“I’ve had the opportunity to do some absolutely incredible screenings,” Caperton said, noting he’s had events for “The Shining,” “Halloween,” “Beetlejuice” and others.

To hold a screening, Caperton must secure rights to screen the film, make arrangements with the property owners and organize the event.

Most of the movies he’s screened are from the horror genre, and they attract fans from all over, he said.

“I’m used to getting a lot of out-of-towners and not so many locals.

“I do about one a month, and I do them in different states.”

“I did “Twilight” in Oregon, and I had people that came from five different countries,” he said.

“The Shining — that one made national news,” he added.

Some screenings take on a life of their own, he said.

For instance, at the screening of the remake of “The Blob,” in Abbeville, Louisiana, people approached him and said, “Oh, I have pieces of the Blob.”

“When that movie came in there and they filmed, it was very big deal for that town, and it did a lot for that town,” Caperton explained.

“People brought out pieces of the actual Blob. They gave me pieces,” he said.

The movie, “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” had some incredible scenes shot at a department store, he said.

A guy at the department store went up in the attic and unearthed some big signs that had been used in the movie.

The signs hadn’t seen the light of day for 20 years but the guy put them back on the building, so the fans could enjoy them, Caperton said.

“Really cool stuff like that, happens,” said Caperton, who’s such a die-hard horror film lover that he lives in a house he had built that’s a life-size replica of Michael Myers’ house from “Halloween.”

Caperton, who lives in Hillsborough, North Carolina, is excited about the upcoming screening of “Edward Scissorhands.”

He loves the Tim Burton film that stars Johnny Depp, Dianne Wiest and Winona Ryder.

Caperton has long wanted to visit the house where scenes were filmed in Lutz, but just never made it into the area.

Now, that he’s secured permission to have a screening at the house, he plans to make the most of it.

This will be the first time that fans are officially sanctioned to visit the house, take an interior tour of the home and hang out in the backyard for a barbecue.

Other highlights will include a limited number of haircuts being done by a stylist in the backyard, and a walking tour of the neighborhood, where Caperton will describe scenes shot in those locations for the movie.

Caperton surmises the neighborhood must have been fairly new when the movie was filmed because that would explain how Burton “was able to get ahold of all of these houses and paint them.”

Tickets for the “Edward Scissorhands” event are $60, which includes neighborhood and home tours, as well as the screening.  There will be an additional charge for food and beverages from the barbecue.

Only 50 tickets will be sold, because of the size of the backyard.

He’s not expecting to rake in substantial revenue from the event.

“At the end of the day, I’ll probably just break even,” Caperton said.

That doesn’t bother him.

“It’s going to be really fun,” he said. “I love movies. I kind of create events that I would want to go to.”

“Edward Scissorhands” screening event at filming location in Lutz
When: April 25
What: Event includes neighborhood walking tour, interior tour of home, backyard barbecue, haircuts in the backyard and outdoor movie screening.
Cost: Tickets are $60 (only 50 will be sold); additional charges for food and drink from barbecue and haircuts.
To order tickets and for more specifics, visit https://www.myershousenc.com/.

Published February 19, 2020