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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ Every Wednesday a group of volunteers gathers at the High Springs Farmer's Market to distribute food to those in need. Known as the High Springs Mobile Pantry, the group of 20 volunteers pass out fresh meat, vegetables, fruit and bread to residents waiting in a long line of cars. Volunteers are a diverse group from various churches, residents who want to help, and even individuals who, themselves, have been in that line needing food at some point and then deciding to help others in the same situation.

“The volunteers that distribute the food are very dedicated to helping others and many of them know what it feels like to be in that situation because they have been in need at some time,” said Mobile Pantry director Anna James.

“Before the COVID pandemic, most of our clients were elderly, living on a small fixed income and would occasionally be in need.,” said James. “Volunteering with the Mobile Pantry is their way of giving back to the community.”

James started the program 11 years ago when she was working with Fellowship Baptist Church to offer food to those in need. At the time, James also worked with Bread Of The Mighty Food Bank, Inc., a non-profit organization that collects, stores and distributes donated or purchased fresh food. Over 35 years they have built a network of 170 non-profit agency partners with over 500 volunteers such as food pantries, churches, homeless shelters and other organizations that distribute the food to those in need.

James connected the church with Bread of the Mighty and continued the food distribution program. The church and other volunteers would contribute money to help purchase the food and cover expenses. Over the next few years, the program spread beyond the church and James had volunteers from multiple sources.” I couldn't have continued this program without the dedication of the volunteers,” James said.

James was also responsible for getting the City of High Springs involved, providing the Civic Center as a long-term location to have people come and pick up what food they needed.

“We would typically serve about 250 individuals and families each week with about 80 percent of the customers being elderly,” said James. “That was prior to the COVID Pandemic which radically changed everything.” James says that the need for food assistance increased as people lost income, and she saw a large increase in families in dire situations. “I had a number of people who came in reluctantly, claiming they never expected to be in this situation,” said James. “At the height of the Pandemic last year we were distributing food to 2,000 people each week.:

James says numbers are down now, but they are still are averaging 600 to 1,000 people a week and distributing over 35,000 pounds of fresh food.

COVID also changed the way they distributed the food and the location. For health safety they moved it outdoors to maintain social distancing and avoid crowded indoor spaces that could cause cases among volunteers and clients, who already had enough problems without endangering their health.

“Our mission is to help those in need, not jeopardize the,” said James. “The city offered us the Farmers Market where we could have cars drive by and put the food in their trunks to keep everyone safe.”

This method has been adopted by many charity food organizations and it works well, so James doesn’t see it reverting back to indoors with close contact.

James adds that despite the huge increase of people in need, they were able to keep up with the demand, thanks to the great efforts by Bread of the Mighty and the people who volunteer with the High Springs Mobile Food Bank. “Their continued dedication to helping others is amazing,” said James. “Even in the worst of the Pandemic they still came every week to distribute the food.”

James believes that everybody deserves to be able to have enough food to feed their families despite their income, and the need is greater than ever. “It's all about helping others,” James said.

The High Springs Mobile Pantry mainly serves High Springs but James says they also go to other communities in the surrounding counties if needed.

The Mobile Pantry is at the High Springs Farmer's Market at 23517 N.W. 185^th Road, High Springs, Florida, every Wednesday to distribute food from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. or whenever all the food is gone. More information or to volunteer can be found by visiting their Facebook page — Anna High Springs.

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ALACHUA ‒ Turkey Creek Golf Course will be hosting the “Miracle at Turkey Creek Golf Celebration” tournament Saturday, Jan. 22, 2022. This event is being held to commemorate the first anniversary of the reopening of Turkey Creek Golf Course that occurred on Jan. 23, 2021. 

For those not familiar with the story of the golf course, go online to see “Miracle at Turkey Creek,” a Golf Digest digital article that chronicles the reopening. It is an inspiring story. (https://www.golfdigest.com/story/turkey-creek-golfvolunteers) 

The tournament will be a 4-person team scramble with first, second, and third place prizes. There will also be a long drive, closest to the pin, and longest putt prizes. 

To register a team for the tournament, please go to http://tcgolf.eventbrite.com/. The cost is $250 per 4-person team. Registration, with morning refreshments, begins at 7:30 a.m. with a shotgun start at 8:30 a.m.

In addition, there are sponsorship opportunities available. Position your business with this celebration of success. For more information, please call 386-518-6815 or email proshoptcgc@gmail.com. 

In addition, visit https://www.turkeycreekgolfcourse.com/ for more information regarding membership and corporate sponsorship opportunities. Come on out and join in the celebration of “Miracle at Turkey Creek.”

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HIGH SPRINGS – The City of High Springs is considering projects that could be addressed using approximately $3 million in funds provided by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).  

Last May the City received approximately half of the ARPA funds allocated to High Springs.  The second half of the allocation is expected to be received in May 2022.  

ARPA funds were established to provide money to bolster the response to the COVID-19 emergency and economic impacts, help governments meet their present needs and build the foundation for a strong recovery.

Although the topic has been raised during the last two City Commission meetings, no action has been taken to whittle down the long list of projects that could be addressed using these funds.

At the Dec. 9 workshop, City Manager Ashley Stathatos provided Commissioners with the results from the Strategic Planning Sessions from last fiscal year as possible ARPA-funded projects.

Eligible uses include support of public health expenditures – COVID mitigation efforts, medical expenses, behavioral healthcare and certain public health and safety staff; address negative economic impacts caused by public health emergency that may include economic harm to workers, households, small businesses, impacted industries and the public sector; and to replace lost public sector revenue to bolster government services reduced due to the pandemic.

ARPA funds can also be used to provide premium pay for essential workers to support those bearing the greatest health risks because of their positions.

Another item ARPA funds can be used for is to invest in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure to expand access.

City departments that may see ARPA funds coming their way include the Police Department, Fire Department, Parks, and Administration.

Discussing the possibility of a Community Services Building, Assistant City Manager Bruce Gillingham mentioned that the City currently doesn’t have any buildings that can be used as an official shelter or an emergency operations center.  Neither the Civic Center nor Catherine Taylor Park’s building would meet the requirements and they also do not meet the requirements to house quarantined essential workers.  Had a building been available that met ADA requirements, American Red Cross and social distancing requirements, it might have been able to be used as a testing site or a temporary medical center.

In addition, Gillingham said the City is using a dish to communicate between buildings.  But there is currently no fiber-optic inner connectivity between buildings, which is something that could be a problem in a hurricane or other natural disaster.  

Gillingham also said the Community School only has one building, the Science Building, which can be used as a shelter.  Other than that, Santa Fe High School is the next closest location.  He also pointed out that if the County opens a shelter at the school, the High Springs Fire and Police Departments have to staff it.

Water infrastructure projects could include building or upgrading facilities, transmission, distribution and storage systems, including the replacement of lead service lines.  

Projects suggested by staff include engineering for a new water plant, water main upgrades/replacements, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system replacement and upgrade and additional software.  

Possible projects suggested by staff include engineering for sewer plant expansion Phase 3, generators for lift stations, spare pumps for lift stations, SCADA system replacement and upgrade and additional software.

Investing in broadband infrastructure could include providing the service to areas that are currently unserved or underserved or are lacking a wire line connection that reliably delivers minimum speeds of 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload.  

Possible projects recommended by staff are to provide broadband in city parks, downtown and Wi-Fi in parks.

The possible blending of funds between High Springs and Alachua County to leverage their funds with the city’s funds was raised by Commissioner Ross Ambrose.  Stathatos said she would address that issue with the County in the next week.

The topic of body cameras for the police department was raised with High Springs Police Chief Antoine Sheppard saying that the City will eventually have to make that investment.  “I think we are the last agency in the county without body cams,” he said.  “One day it will be mandatory through state legislation.”

Sheppard said the City of Alachua purchased Panasonic body cams, which he thought cost about $30,000 - $40,000.  He said he would be interested to see how they perform.  “Originally, we were looking at Exxon, which cost around $100,000 over five years.”

Further discussion included maintenance equipment for the gravity system, funding fewer projects, but funding them completely and monitoring possibilities for the wastewater and water systems. 

Stathatos said she would send out a list to the Commissioners and add the items that were discussed during the workshop so they could determine the importance of each item.  Once the top five items are determined, staff will research costs and considerations and present a plan to the Commission.

The City must obligate funds to the various chosen projects by Dec. 31, 2024, and expend those funds by Dec. 31, 2026.  Any unexpended funds will go back to the government after that date.  In addition, local governments are required to provide periodic reports along with a detailed accounting of how the funds are used.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ For 13 years in late December the High Springs Police and Fire Departments have been making wishes come true for local children. This year, on Dec. 22, a convoy of police cars, city vehicles and a firetruck with lights flashing and sirens wailing, traveled through High Springs neighborhoods delivering “Operation Holiday Cheer” to excited children.

Each year, beginning in the fall, the High Springs Police Department (HSPD) and Fire Department (HSFD) ask for donations of new toys, clothes and books from the community, as well as gift cards and cash, to give to families in need. Working in conjunction with the City CRA, Parks and Recreation Department and Public Works, they set up collection points within local businesses and city sites to gather donations from individuals in the community, civic groups and businesses, both local and national chains.

Through collaboration between the HSPD and the High Springs Community School, families are identified to take part in the holiday tradition. With parental approval, a home visit is planned so that officers can discover what the children want and to find out if there are other children in the house to add to the list so that no youngster is left out. This year’s Operation Holiday Cheer brought smiles to 19 families with a combined total of 45 kids.

The past two years throughout the pandemic have been harder than usual for many families, especially economically, making fulfilling Christmas wishes tough. Due to these hard financial times, this year the HSPD made sure parents and children received gift cards donated by both local and corporate merchants so they could buy any needed items, including food.

“We raised over $10,000 in funds to buy gifts that matched the children's needs and wishes,” said HSPD Chief Antione Sheppard. “Individuals, businesses and civic groups contributed over $8,000 in purchased gifts, gift cards, money and merchandise vouchers.”

“Each family also received a food gift card of $400-$500 from contributing stores,” said Sheppard. “The pandemic didn't slow down charity, it seems to have made people even more aware of the hardships others faced and the need to contribute.”

After all the donations were collected, the police set Dec. 22 for delivery of Operation Holiday Cheer. Since they couldn't go to every house, they offered parents the choice to come to the station to pick up the gift bags to put under their own tree. With six locations remaining for delivery, police officers, firefighters and city employees gathered at the station at 9:30 a.m. to lead the caravan. Led by a High Springs Public Works pickup with a trailer full of presents, the convoy began its mission.

The first stop was a rural house where three children were anxiously awaiting their arrival and the children were stunned by the number of gifts they were receiving, matched to the list the parents had provided, and much more. Two police officers wore inflatable costumes as Santa and a Christmas tree. The other officers decorated their uniforms or wore Christmas hats to brighten the festive holiday.

At the second location a mother waited with her pre-teen son and two-year-old daughter. Although the little girl was confused and apprehensive at first, her uneasiness quickly turned to smiles of joy as the bags were opened. At the next stop, the costumed Santa was greeted with hugs from the youngest two of the four children. As the officers left, the mother hugged one of the police staff, thanking them for this special day.

The next stop had three teens and a baby. One of their wishes had been bikes, and they looked on in awe as two bikes were pulled off the trailer. As the caravan was about to move on to its final destination, the three teens asked to take a picture with Santa.

At the final stop, two neighboring families received gifts. One family included two young teen boys and a much younger baby brother. When the officers gave them their bags of presents, the youngest brother was confused and not sure what to do. One of his older brothers sat with him and helped the little one open all his presents before looking in his own bag.

On the other side of the street were a brother and a sister who seemed surprised at what was happening. As the officers were preparing to leave with the now empty trailer, the brother and sister asked if they could take a photo with all the officers to remember this special day. The officers were happy to oblige.

For the High Springs first responders, the event is a tradition—an opportunity to help others in need and spread the joy of Christmas and community. For the youngsters who were visited, it is a Christmas they will never forget.

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ALACHUA COUNTY ‒ Area firefighters had their hands full on Dec. 26 with two crashes in different parts of Alachua County.  In Micanopy, at approximately 5 a.m. Sunday morning units from Alachua County Fire Rescue (ACFR) and Micanopy Fire Department responded to a report of a single vehicle crash in the southbound lane of U.S. Highway 441 near Micanopy.  Upon arrival rescue personnel found a 2002 Chrysler minivan on its side with a 60-year-old Ocala man trapped inside.  

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the vehicle traveled off of the road and onto the center grass median for unknown reasons.  Once in the median, the driver lost control of the vehicle and it overturned.

The driver was removed from the vehicle using the jaws of life and was transported to UF Health Shands in stable condition.

Later the same day in Hawthorne, units from Alachua County Fire Rescue and Windsor Fire Rescue were dispatched to the scene of a two-vehicle crash at approximately 3 p.m.  The crash occurred on Hawthorne Road near County Road 325.  Upon arrival, rescue personnel found both vehicles with heavy damage and one person trapped inside one of the vehicles.

The jaws of life were used to extricate the trapped individual, who was determined to be in critical condition and was transported to the UF Health Shands trauma center.  A second person was transported to Shands with non-life-threatening injuries.  

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ALACHUA ‒ For the past 16 years at Christmas, cars and people in lawn chairs have lined both sides of the road in front of Bill Holmes’ house on 170^th Street in Alachua. They all come to see and hear the two-and-a-half-hour Christmas light show complete with 45 songs transmitted by radio at 97.7 FM frequency. The show features 55,000 incandescent lights as well as another 6,000 LED lights — all synced to holiday music and a nativity scene with lights spreading over two acres. For local families and visitors as far away as Jacksonville, it has become an annual tradition.

For Holmes, the past 16 years has been a labor of love to celebrate the holidays and share it with the community. As wonderful as it has been, the tradition will end this year.

“Much as I have enjoyed doing this and watching it expand every year, there are several factors that are making it time to end it,” said Holmes. Two years ago, Holmes’ wife passed and the 75-year-old is finding it more difficult to hang lights in trees and along rooftops.

Although Holmes has had help the last few years, he has continued to do the majority of the work himself. It takes three months to put the holiday extravaganza together as well as troubleshoot during the month it is up.

This coming year, Holmes will be selling his Alachua home and relocating to the Dade City, Florida, area to be near family. “At this stage in my life, as I start to recognize and accept my limitations, this is a good move for me,” Holmes said.

The amazing light show started small back in 2005 as a work in progress. Watching television, Holmes saw a guest on “Good Morning America” who had built a smaller version that integrated a computer-based system of synced lights and sound to create a show. “I was interested in the concept and began looking into the technical aspects,” Holmes said. It didn’t hurt that his former career was with Phillips Corporation and much of it in the IT division.

Holmes began to build his Christmas show system using a specially designed computer system to run the controller, which sends “scripts” to sections of lights, coordinating music and lights.

“When I started the show in December of 2005, I had 30,000 lights I had picked up cheap at an after Christmas sale, five controllers and five songs,” Holmes said. “The show lasted 15 minutes. I started with extension cords coming out of various house windows so we didn't overload the electrical circuits, but the lights in the house would dim as the Christmas lights changed.”

Each year the show continued to expand and refine. “I had Clay Electric double the amount of power here from 200 amps to 400 amps with the additional amps being divided into 24-amp circuits around the property to distribute out the draw,” said Holmes. Despite that, there is still 10,000 feet of extension cord to connect it all. “The system now is run by a custom-built computer that sends programs to 60 controllers that have 10,000 channels controlling various lights,” said Holmes. “They also control the music program for what has become a two-and-a-half-hour show,” Holmes said.

But while Holmes is giving up the show, it will not end. Over the past few years, he has had help from the Lopez family, who have helped maintain the property and put up lights. They have offered to take over and will be given all the supplies after this year’s show.

The Lopez family, consisting of two parents and four grown children, will also work with their church to find a new home for the show. “This year they did over 85 percent of the work including programming to get hands-on experience on the whole operation,” Holmes said. “I feel confident giving this over to them that they will carry on the tradition.”

For those who haven’t had the opportunity to experience Holmes’ Christmas show, take heart. Shows will be running nightly until Jan.2 from 6 p.m. until 11 p.m. at 7904 N.W. 170^th Street, Alachua.

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