The Laker/Lutz News

Updates

More mortgage-free homes for veterans coming in 2015

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Building Homes for Heroes is using a $2 million grant through the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity to help build or modify homes in the state for injured veterans who served in the U.S. Armed Forces during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Florida is becoming the most military-friendly state in the nation, and our partnership with Building Homes for Heroes is a fantastic opportunity to thank our veterans,” Gov. Rick Scott said, in a release. “As a Navy veteran, I’m very proud of this partnership, and look forward to seeing many more veterans benefitting from this program.”

Building Homes for Heroes is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to making a difference in the lives of wounded American service members and their families, according to a release. This past year, the organization gifted 13 mortgage-free homes throughout the state.

With the new grant funds, Building Homes expects to build or modify another 20 houses in the coming year. Florida is home to nearly 1.5 million veterans, the third largest population of veterans in the nation. The state’s work force boards have helped 23,000 veterans find jobs, government officials said.

“The state’s support enables us to make a meaningful and memorable difference in the lives of our injured servicemen and women,” Building Homes president Andy Pujol said, in a release. “In addition, we’re seeing an extraordinary spirit of patriotism and community support all across Florida.”

Despite holiday, gas prices continue to fall

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The demand for gasoline was the biggest in years for travelers trying to take the road to their Christmas destinations. Yet, where the classic system of supply and demand would’ve typically meant higher gas prices — they were, instead, lower.

In fact, motorists saw the cheapest gasoline for Christmas since 2008, where Florida drivers saw an average price of $2.43. That broke lows set in 2009, AAA said, when gas was $2.63 in the state.

“Low gas prices are helping consumers save more than $21 for a tank of gasoline compared to the highs earlier this year, and that has a positive effect on holiday shopping and travel,” AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said, in a release. That high was $3.70.

“The new year will bring new expectations for even cheaper gasoline. Prices could drop another 3 to 6 cents by New Year’s Day.”

The national average dropped for a 94th consecutive day Sunday, the longest streak on record. The previous record of 86 days of drops came during the height of the Great Recession. Since that streak began, gas has fallen 92 cents in Florida.

“The world’s oil supply continues to outpace demand keeping downward pressure on oil and gas prices,” Jenkins said. “Speculators believe this trend will continue next year, so cheap gasoline should stick around for a while.”

Crude prices settled at $54.73 at the close of trading on Friday, down $1.79 from the previous week. The average price for a barrel of oil is expected to be $63 this coming year, according to the Energy Information Administration, down $12 over the last three months of 2014.

Florida is down 8 cents from a week ago, and 39 cents from a month ago. It’s off by 98 cents from a year ago.

Cheapest prices locally, according to GasBuddy, include:

• $2.10 at the Citgo at U.S. 41 and Crenshaw Lake Road in Lutz
• $2.13 at Sam’s Club on State Road 56 in Wesley Chapel
• $2.21 at both the D&D station at U.S. 98 and U.S. 301, and Clark at U.S. 301 near Long Avenue in Dade City
• $2.27 at the RaceTrac on State Road 52 near Silver Palm Boulevard in Land O’ Lakes
• $2.29 at the Marathon on Eiland Boulevard and Geiger Road in Zephyrhills

Bayonet Point hospital CEO participates in Rose Bowl tradition

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The Rose Bowl football came on New Year’s Day will feature Florida State against Oregon, to see which college team will end up in the national championship game Jan. 12. But the Seminoles won’t be the only Florida representative showing up in Pasadena, California.

Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point’s chief executive Shayne George prepares his 2015 note to be placed in the Donate Life Rose Parade Float. (Courtesy of Kurt Connover)
Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point’s chief executive Shayne George prepares his 2015 note to be placed in the Donate Life Rose Parade Float. (Courtesy of Kurt Connover)

Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point has received an invitation to participate in the 2015 Donate Life Rose Parade Float Hospital CEO Rose Dedications. The Hudson hospital is part of a select group of hospitals in the area that have been asked to have its chief executive prepare a handwritten message honoring the patients and families who, with the support of hospital staff members, have saved and healed lives through the gift of organ, eye and tissue donation.

Shayne George, the chief executive of Bayonet Point, has shared the following message:

“In honor of Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point and our life-saving staff, we are honored and grateful to those who chose to donate a gift that can change a life.”

This handwritten dedication will be placed in one of the rose vials in the “dedication garden,” which is filled with thousands of roses in the Donate Life Rose Parade float.

The American Hospital Association has joined with the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations and the Eye Bank Association of America to offer this inspirational tribute to the donors of tissues and organs, according to a release.

For more than 10 years, dozens of organizations nationwide have collaborated to enter the Donate Life float in the Rose Parade. Originally envisioned by a lunch recipient who wished to thank organ, eye and tissue donors for their gifts of life, the Donate Life Rose Parade float has grown into a national tradition featuring dozens of participants each year.

The dedication garden is one of the trademarks of the float, with each vial carrying a unique personal message from an individual, family or organization.

Staples closing leads searches on LakerLutzNews.com

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Thousands of Web travelers found their exit off the Information Superhighway to LakerLutzNews.com thanks to search engines this past year, but what exactly lead them here in the first place?

Apparently, it was all about the closing of Staples.

Not long after LakerLutzNews.com started publishing daily stories to complement the print stories found each week in our papers, reporter Michael Hinman published a story March 6 about the closing of 225 Staples stores by the end of 2015. That could include two stores locally — the Staples at 7910 Gall Blvd., in Zephyrhills, and another at 6260 Commerce Palms Blvd., in New Tampa.

It was a rather significant chunk of the Staples chain, which has 1,500 stores in the United States and employs more than 50,000 people.

But what else led the list of top search terms that led to the LakerLutzNews.com in 2014? Check out our list, just in time for us to start it all over again in 2015.

1. Staples closing stores
The good news, however, is that both the Zephyrhills and New Tampa stores continue to remain open by year’s end, with no public announcement of their fate made at this point.

2. Angela Madonia Tampa
Who is Angela Madonia you might ask? Well, she’s a co-owner — along with mother Josephine Argento — of what was then a new farmer’s market called The Family Farm on 41 that opened May 23.

Reporter B.C. Manion shared the news of this market for the first time on June 12, based on a story that appeared the day before in the Lutz News.

“The concept is providing the freshest and healthiest fruits and veggies to our customers,” Madonia said at the time. “We will be growing strawberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, peppers, carrots, corn, radishes, pumpkins and okra. We will start harvesting in late August or early September.”

At the beginning of the year, the site where the outdoor market would eventually open was just an empty field south of County Line Road on U.S. 41. But that changed quickly throughout the spring as what appeared to be a barn went up, and the Family Farm opened for business.

3. Sanders Elementary School
A lot has happened on the former campus of Sanders Memorial Elementary School in Land O’ Lakes in the past year, everything from the announcement of it becoming a magnet school to the opening of enrollment earlier this month.

Through reporter B.C. Manion, The Laker has stayed on top of all the developments regarding the school, including the November announcement that Lake Myrtle Elementary School principal Jason Petry would be the head administrator at the new Sanders school.

It is set to open in August, just in time for the 2015-16 school year.

4. Cypress Creek Town Center
With all the development taking place in Pasco County, it’s surprising to see one project get more attention than others. Yet that seems to be happening with the Cypress Creek Town Center area in Wesley Chapel, right where State Road 56 and Interstate 75 meet.

With everything from the construction start of Tampa Premium Outlets to plans to open a Costco on the site, there’s been plenty to talk about on the property. In fact, in the past year alone, LakerLutzNews.com has posted six stories about the project. It would be hard to find any other topic, outside of the failed elevated toll road project, the paper wrote about more.

5. Atlanta Braves
Believe it or not, the elevated toll road didn’t make our list of the top five search terms — probably because that project died last July.

However, people were interested in the Atlanta Braves, especially some teasing from former Major League Baseball star Gary Sheffield, who told Wesley Chapel business leaders in September that he wanted to convince his former team to set up spring training in Pasco County once a massive baseball complex he was involved in was built.

Except there’s one problem: At the moment, it doesn’t look like the baseball project is coming. Last week, the Pasco County Commission terminated the contract it had with Sheffield and business partner James Talton after they failed to secure funding for their 19-field project.

Could Sheffield and Talton come back with a revised plan? Talton thinks so. But they would likely have to compete with other would-be developers to turn that part of Wiregrass Ranch into a sports megaplex.

Are you curious to what the most-read online stories were on LakerLutzNews.com this past year? Find out in the Dec. 31 print edition of The Laker/Lutz News, and get a great recap of all the stories that moved readers over the past year as well.

And be sure to visit LakerLutzNews.com for daily stories every day — sometimes before you even have a chance to read it in print. Find out why more and more people are making sure The Laker/Lutz News online is a regular stop on their Web journeys.

Stuff your recycling cart for the holidays

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The morning celebration is over, but now there’s a lot of trash. So what do you do?

Hillsborough County officials are reminding residents that many traditional trash items created during the holidays can actually be recycled. That includes:

• Clean paperboard boxes, like cereal and food boxes
• Mail, magazines, newspapers and advertising
• Writing papers, pads and notes
• Flattened corrugated cardboard boxes
• Brown paper bags
• Aluminum cans and foil
• Steel and tin cans
• Glass bottles and jars
• Plastic bottles, jugs and containers, including foamed polystyrene and styrofoam
• Plastic film and packaging
• Grocery and shopping bags
• Liquid food containers and gable-top cartons, like milk and juice boxes

For those living in Hillsborough County, at least, recycling that can’t be collected by the typical recycling cart can be dropped off for free at community collection centers, including Hillsborough Heights on County Road 579 in Seffner, Northwest County on Linebaugh Avenue in Tampa, and South County on U.S. 41 in Gibsonton.

Those centers are open Monday through Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., except for Christmas and New Year’s days.

For details on recycling, or where to find centers, visit HillsboroughCounty.org/SolidWaste, or call (813) 272-5680.

It’s Christmas, and roads will be packed

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Records might only date back to 2001, but AAA is projecting the holiday travel volume to be the highest it’s ever tracked, with 98.6 million Americans journeying at least 50 miles away.

That’s up 4 percent from the 94.8 million people leaving home last year between Dec. 23 and Jan. 4.

A vast majority of those drivers — 91 percent, actually — will take to the road, also up more than 4 percent from last year. Air travel is growing a little bit, too, up 1 percent to 5.7 million. Helping all of that is the fact that gas is at its lowest point since 2008, when regular unleaded ran just $1.65 per gallon.

Florida will have a good chunk of those travelers — nearly 5 percent of the national total — with 4.6 million taking cars, 270,000 traveling by air, and a little less than 200,000 finding another way to travel. Although hotel and car rental rates are up nearly 5 percent, airfares have fallen 7 percent.

“This year, more Americans will join friends and family to celebrate the holidays and ring in the New Year than ever before,” AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said, in a release. “Continued growth in consumer confidence and disposable income, an extended holiday period, and low gas prices should drive expected travel volumes to the highest level we have ever seen during the year-end holidays.”

Gas prices have dropped significantly in the past year. On New Year’s Day in 2014, for example, gas averaged $3.32 nationally. Today, it’s $2.55 — down 68 cents.

“Gas prices should continue falling through the rest of the year,” Jenkins said. “Prices are dropping at around 1 to 2 cents a day.”

With so many people on the road this holiday, AAA is asking drivers to be extra diligent looking for and avoiding impaired drivers. In fact, 1-in-8 drivers who drink at least occasionally reported having driven when they thought their alcohol level was at or above the legal limit, according to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

That same survey also revealed that 91 percent of drivers consider impaired driving to be unacceptable, with 42 percent reporting that drunk drivers are a bigger problem today compared to three years ago.

“Despite the ubiquitous warnings about drinking and driving, especially during the holiday season, an average of one alcohol-impaired driving death occurs every 45 minutes,” Jenkins said.

Pasco sets up Christmas tree recycling locations

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In what might be the biggest holiday recycling effort of the year, Pasco County officials are asking residents to recycle Christmas trees by bringing home to one of several locations between Dec. 26 and Jan. 7.

“I have copies of old news articles going back to Dec. 28, 1995, that indicate this was a recycling tradition for at least five years before that date,” said Jennifer Seney, Pasco’s recycling coordinator, in a release. “We recycled 1,330 Christmas trees in 2013.”

Trees brought to the drop-off points will be chipped and made into mulch for landscaping purposes, officials said. It’s asked that those bringing trees remove all tinsel, metal hooks and decorations before bringing them to a station.

Locations east of the Suncoast Parkway include:

• John S. Burks Memorial Park, 1322 Gene Nelson Blvd., in Dade City
• Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex, 3032 Collier Parkway in Land O’ Lakes
• Sam W. Pasco Recreational Complex, 9835 Chancey Road in Zephyrhills
• Wesley Chapel District Park, 7727 Boyette Road in Wesley Chapel

“Trees are chipped and made into mulch for many different uses, like covering hiking paths, weed control and landscaping accents,” Seney said.

Also, decaying trees can make a strong wildlife habitat if used in a brush pile, she said. “Of course, this only works where the homeowner has the space and time to let nature take its course.”

Questions or requests for information can be directed to Pasco County Recycling at (727) 856-4539, or by visiting PascoCountyUtilities.com.

Concern remains over using credit cards, but not enough to stop

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It’s the final day of the Christmas shopping season, but there is still some concern among consumers that using a credit card or debit card at major stores can create problems down the road.

Yet, a new poll by the Saint Leo University Polling Institute shows those concerns won’t stop most people from still using those cards at checkout.

Some 82 percent of shoppers say they are very or somewhat concerned that their credit card information will be stolen from cyber breaches at stores. However, 61 percent say they will keep using currency the same way, and even singing up for advantage cards offered by many retailers.

In fact, there seems to be more concerns that retailers will track purchasing behaviors of shoppers than there are of others stealing their financial information.

A substantial number of people are even open to enhanced security techniques, such as requiring fingerprint scans, but not go as far as requiring eye scans.

“In most cases, data breaches did not directly impact customers, but caused huge losses for companies,” said Sreekanth Malladi, a cybersecurity professor at Saint Leo University, in a release. “One of the affected companies, for example, spent millions of dollars to recreate and reissue their credit cards. Ultimately, the company incurred significant indirect losses, including cleanups, remaking, gap in sales, and reputation.”

In terms of whether businesses are tracking spending habits of customers, it’s not exactly what people think it is, Malladi said.

“It seems to be a myth,” he said. “People think companies now have more access to their personal information than needed. Companies actually try to safeguard an individuals’ personal information more than ever, since it will be their own loss if they didn’t.

“It is unfair for consumers to say, ‘We want you to properly authenticate transactions, but we will not give you our personal information to help it.'”

The Saint Leo poll surveyed 1,1016 adults nationally between Nov. 25 and Dec. 6. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent.

In Print: A hospital for Connerton, and a chat with St. Nick

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An area has come into its own when it has added a hospital. And Connerton has taken a huge step in that direction.

As Connerton continues to grow just north of Land O’ Lakes, entrances from U.S. 41 and State Road 52 will have to be improved, Pasco County officials say. (File photo)
As Connerton continues to grow just north of Land O’ Lakes, entrances from U.S. 41 and State Road 52 will have to be improved, Pasco County officials say. (File photo)

Pasco County’s Development Review Committee has given an initial approval on the second phase of Connerton’s overall project — and that includes early plans for a 150-bed hospital.

“What we’re doing right now is securing approval of the entitlement limits so that can decide what they can put there, depending on the market at the time,” Connerton representative Stew Gibbons told reporter Michael Hinman. “It’s a great location, especially when Ridge Road goes through, which will give you access across the county.”

Florida Hospital owns a bunch of land in Connerton through its University Community Hospital Inc., name. And if anyone builds there at this point it would be them.

But are they ready do it? Find out in this week’s print edition of The Laker/Lutz News, available now in driveways and newsstands everywhere, or for free online with our e-edition by clicking here.

U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis has spent a lot of time working on veterans issues, but now he’s focusing on yet another pressing matter that may not get the attention it deserves: mental health.

Bilirakis invited Pennsylvania congressman Tim Murphy to Land O’ Lakes recently to talk about a new bill he authored that could change the face of how we approach mental health care in the coming years.

“On any given day, half-a-million people in this nation are in jail with a mental illness,” Murphy told participants of a recent mental health roundtable at Rasmussen College, according to reporter B.C. Manion. “We have to stop pretending that we can just wish this away.”

Unfortunately, many people’s introduction to mental health care in the county is through the state’s Baker Act, which requires mental health institutions to release those under forced observation after 72 hours.

“Who came up with 72 hours for mental illness?” Murphy asked, adding that the time limit “doesn’t make clinical sense.”

Find out what can be done in this week’s print edition of The Laker/Lutz News, available now, or by reading our free online e-edition by clicking here.

And do you hear reindeers on your rooftop? Then that means Santa Claus is coming to town. And our very own Michael Hinman sat down with the jolly old elf himself to talk about what kids are asking for this year.

OK, so it wasn’t actually Santa Claus, but one of his many helpers — retired Q105 radio personality Pat George. He said history is starting to repeat itself because once again, boys are asking for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles — something that probably hasn’t been on too many people’s minds since the 1990s.

But what about girls? Is there a new Barbie? Maybe something from the Disney movie “Frozen”? Or how about …

“A lot of them want guitars,” George said. “I don’t know what it is out there driving it, and I’m pretty up on a lot of music. But it might be because there are a lot of shows on television right now where girls are not only singing, but they’re playing instruments too. So maybe we have Taylor Swift to thank for that.”

So what is Santa’s secret? Find out in this week’s print edition of The Laker/Lutz News, or read it online for free by clicking ho-ho-ho.

And finally, photojournalist Fred Bellet has some great pictures to share from a couple of events that you might be interested in. First in the final smaller edition of the East Pasco edition of The Laker, Fred offers a full-page look at the Pearl Harbor remembrance event in Zephyrhills. It’s something you don’t want to miss.

Then, Fred was out and about finding a number of great holiday moments in all different kinds of places. See a little of what he found by clicking here, and also by clicking here.

All of these stories and more can be found in this week’s The Laker/Lutz News, available in newsstands throughout east and central Pasco County as well as northern Hillsborough County. Find out what has your community talking this week by getting your local news straight from the only source you need.

If The Laker/Lutz News is not coming to your door, call us to see where you can get your copy at (813) 909-2800, or read our free e-edition by clicking here.

The Laker staff shares holiday memories

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Anyone picking up the print edition of The Laker/Lutz News this week will find a little something special from many of the people who help put the newspaper together each and every week.

Everyone here in our Land O’ Lakes office was given an opportunity to share a favorite holiday memory, whether it be something recent, or even something from their childhood or past. Nine of our crew here shared their stories, which you will find scattered in the Christmas Eve edition of your community paper.

Here are some snippets of what you will find. The first is from account manager Suzanne Beauchaine, talking about a crazy cold, yet warm Christmas.

 The house would be full of light and warmth for about an hour, and then poof — everything was dark. There was no way to know how long we would be without light.

Typically, the power would be out for an hour or two, but sometimes it would be out for three.

We were forced to sit and relax by candlelight, and we found ourselves engaged in pleasant conversation. We had no idea when we would receive the glorious gift of electrical power again.

Customer service manager Carolyn Bennett shared her royal Christmas fit for a princess.

I wanted a bedroom fir for a princess. I wanted pink walls and a full-sized white canopy bed with layers of purple ruffles, white nightstands with small lamps that were fitting, and a white fur rug to place my princess feet upon. This was a Christmas wish.

As the gifts started going under the tree, I would try to figure out which part of my princess room could fit into the box. The day arrived when a very large, but flat, gift appeared. Could it be my princess bed?

My parents asked me if I really thought a big canopy princess bed could fit into such a box. How could it? I knew they were right: No way a bed could fit into that box.

Why should Christmas come to our home when my one and only wish was not coming true?

Getting together for a hayride was always a fantastic way to get into the holiday mood. We held these rides during the holidays for years in our Wesley Chapel neighborhood.
Getting together for a hayride was always a fantastic way to get into the holiday mood. We held these rides during the holidays for years in Mary Eberhard’s Wesley Chapel neighborhood.

Our accounting manager Mary Eberhard talked about making wonderful memories at the holidays.

My parents had this great idea and rented two cabins at Mohican State Park. They drove up early, and since we were only staying there a few days, my mom brought just a handful of small Christmas decorations to make the cabin look a little festive before the rest of the family arrived.

They didn’t have room to bring a tree, so my mom jokingly said that if we saw a tree lying in the road to bring it with us.

My sister, brother and I were driving up to the cabin, and sure enough, there was a beautiful blue spruce tree on the side of the road.

My mom couldn’t believe it.

Michael Hinman, our news editor, explored the cultural differences when it comes to religion and the holidays by attending a Christmas Eve Mass in his Pennsylvania hometown.

Once the priest arrived at the altar, he started talking. I’m sure what he was saying was profound, but what really got my attention is that behind me from a balcony on the second story, a small choir started a low, dramatic hum.

The priest continued to talk, and he held out his hands, first at waist level, and then on a slow rise up. As his hands ascended higher and higher, so did the crescendo of the choir behind us.

Suddenly, the priest’s hands shot straight up into the air, and the choir was in full majestic sound. At the same time, all the holiday lighting came to life around the beautifully adorned sanctuary, and it was as if a small slice of heaven had enveloped the room.

I was shocked and I was awed. I was overwhelmed by the sound, the light, the energy.

Publisher Diane Kortus discovered how wonderful it was for childhood Christmas ornaments to find new homes.

The most emotional unveilings are of ornaments given to me the first Christmas after the births of my son and my daughter. My favorites are a little brown ceramic bear with dangling arms that a sister-in-law made for Andy in 1988. And a pink Hallmark carousel pony with Rachel’s name and birthday, May 4, 1992.

My Christmas boxes seem to have more ornaments for “Baby’s First Christmas” than any other theme. There is something endearing about the birth of a child that prompts friends and relatives to bestow these special ornaments on parents.

And then, in what seeks like no time at all, reindeers made out of clothespins and glitter-globbed Santas with cotton ball bears take over the ornament box.

Community editor B.C. Manion is probably one of the most festive people in our office when it comes to Christmas, but there was even a time when she needed an act of kindness to rekindle her Christmas spirit.

I have always looked forward to Christmas

Except for one year.

My sister Anne Marie was very ill, and I just couldn’t feel the joy of the season.

So instead of going to get a freshly cut tree from a lot and decorating it with my friends, Bob and Heather, I decided not to put up a tree.

When I told Heather that I was skipping our annual tradition, she invited me to come to their place and help them to decorate their tree. As I put ornaments on their tree’s branches, I knew the decorations evoked memories of happy events, important places, and special moments for my friends.

And I thought to myself: I have a fine collection of ornaments, too.

Editorial assistant Mary Rathman says there’s nothing like a Polish Christmas.

Christmas Eve, or “Wigilia,” was our most important holiday tradition. We’d eat delicious pierogi and break bread. The bread, or Christmas wafer called oplatek, was imprinted with a holy picture. We offered our oplatek to family and friends to ask for their forgiveness, or to extend a wish for happiness.

Also on Christmas Eve, I or one of my three sisters would add hay to our creche in preparation for the Christ child. We’d then dress in our Sunday best, pile in the car, and attend midnight Mass at St. Mary’s Catholic Church. Even though we didn’t understand the language of our parents — no matter how hard they tried to teach us — just listening to the Polish Christmas carols gave me more reasons to love the season.

Our administrative coordinator, Kathy Welton, talked a little bit about a shy boy making his singing debut one Christmas.

When my son was a little older than 3, the blond-headed, blue-eyed tyke was extremely shy. Whenever someone he didn’t know well would drop over, Michael would try to hide behind me.

That is until one Christmas when we had a house full of visitors.

I had mentioned to my brother, Tom, Michael’s tendency to shy away from people. So during our gathering, Tom asked Michael, “What’s your favorite song?”

Without missing a beat, Michael said, “Sunshine on My Shoulders.”

“Can you sing it?” Tom asked.

And finally, senior account manager Terri Williamson shared how the spirit of giving comes full circle.

We lived in Flint, Michigan, the hub of the automobile industry. My mom worked at General Motors and was bringing up four children on her own. She couldn’t afford big Christmas presents, and while we never went hungry, we sure ate a lot of hamburger casserole meals.

We loved mom’s company party. We hardly ever got to go to a movie, and if we did, we never got popcorn. Plus, the gifts were always things we enjoyed.

Those holiday parties made a real difference in my life, and to this day, they have inspired me to want to bring cheer to children who otherwise might not receive Christmas presents.

Want to read the full vignettes from everyone? There’s only one way to do it: Check out the Dec. 24 print edition of The Laker/Lutz News.