ALACHUA ‒ Alachua Police Chief Jesse Sandusky was officially sworn in to his new position in a standing room only Commission Chamber at the Alachua City Commission meeting on Feb. 28. Members of the Alachua Police Department were present to show their support of the new chief. Also in attendance were current and former chiefs of the Alachua Sheriff’s Office (ASO), City of Alachua Police Department (APD) and the High Springs Police Department (HSPD).

Sandusky was promoted to the Chief of Police position on Tuesday, Feb. 1 after then Chief Chad Scott accepted a position with the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office.

Sandusky began his career with the Alachua Police Department (APD) in 2003. He worked his way up through the ranks as a patrol officer, then to special teams traffic unit, then detective, sergeant, and lieutenant where he was the public information officer for the department.

At the request of Sandusky, his mother pinned the Chief's badge on him and Judge Susanne Wilson-Bullard officiated his swearing-in and administered the oath of office. Former APD Chief Chad Scott held the Bible Sandusky swore on.

In other business, the City Commission recognized the Santa Fe High School Lady Raider Volleyball program, which won the State Championship in Class 4A on Nov. 17. They finished the season 29-3, and at the end of the season were ranked second in the nation and first in Florida. This is not only the first Volleyball State Championship for Santa Fe High School, also the first-ever State Championship in any women’s sport at Santa Fe High School. Head Coach Eric Marshall, Assistant Coach Nicole Stout, Assistant Coach Kayla Hess, and most members of the team were in attendance for the presentation and to take a photograph with the Commission.

The Commission appointed four new members to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. The Board serves in an advisory role to the City Commission concerning recreation services and potential long-range capital improvements. They also evaluate existing programs, recommend changes and enhancements and promote and review citizen participation in utilizing city services and facilities. Carol Richardson was re-appointed to a three-year term and Travis White was appointed to a three-year term. Malcolm Dixon and Jovante Hayes were appointed to the one-year terms.

In other business, the City of Alachua will be waiting a while longer for its latest purchase of transformers. City staff solicited pricing and availability on 12 types of transformers from four different vendors for a total of 39 transformers at a cost of $617,234. Due to continuing supply chain issues, delivery of these transformers is anticipated to be between 12 and 39 weeks.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ Bees are the most vital insect on the planet for plant pollination and the human food supply. Bees pollinate 80 percent of all flowering plants, including approximately 75 percent of the fruits, nuts, and vegetables grown in the United States. The sweet nectar is widely used as a natural sweetener and by many people in treating coughs and sore throats.

Daniel Dorosheff started beekeeping seven years ago. “At first, I got a few chickens for my yard, but found I wanted to expand to other animals. Both my father and grandfather had raised bees, so I already had an interest in it,” he said. “I read everything I could find on beekeeping to improve my chances of success.”

The practical value of bees as pollinators is enormously greater than the value of their honey and wax production. Bees are entirely dependent on flowers for food, which consists of pollen and nectar, which they modify and store as honey. As bees go from flower to flower gathering pollen, a small amount is rubbed from their bodies and deposited on the flowers they visit. The pollen transfer results in cross pollination, and without this process, plants cannot reproduce. A hive of bees will fly over 55,000 miles to make one pound of honey and can create 100 pounds in a year.

“Over the years I built from one hive and now have 27 hives in various locations,” said Dorosheff. “It was basically a hobby and a way to get honey, but it got to the point I had a large stock of honey.”

Dorosheff said, “At the time, my son Spencer was 16 and asking about getting a car. I offered to split the profits in half if he could sell some of the stored honey.” What began as a small operation turned into a booming business. “Like most of his generation, he made use of social media as a marketing tool and we were suddenly flooded with orders,” said Dorosheff. “Before that, we had just been selling to friends, but we now realized it could be a commercial business and founded our LLC as “Thy Will Bee Done.”

While beekeeping has been around for thousands of years, recently there has been growth in home-based small production beekeepers. Several local beekeepers now offer classes for the novice. Dorosheff received inquiries about how to become a beekeeper, and now with help from his son, they offer classes.

The first half of each two-hour class is lecture focusing on equipment, construction of the hives and the behavior of bees. The second half of the class offers hands-on training of handling the bees safely and the racks. Each hive contains between five and 10 racks that bees build their honeycombs on. In the center of each hive are brood racks, which house both honey and eggs. The outer racks contain mainly honey and are the ones they harvest from.

Classes are small with a limit of five students. Dorosheff outfits each person attending in personal protection gear (PPE) consisting of a hat with netting to keep bees off the face. Each person must wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants as well as gloves so all exposed flesh is covered. While bees are only aggressive when threatened, they will protect the hive and attack. Bees communicate through pheromones scent and if one feels threatened, the others will react to that.

The best way to calm bees is with smoke that both covers the pheromones and has a calming effect on the bees, letting the beekeeper make the hive inspection or honey harvest without major problems.

Dorosheff gathers the class around the hives and applies smoke to the bees, allowing him pull a rack to illustrate construction of the hive, how they harvest the honey and to show the queen and the brood nest.

Each student gets a chance to hold the rack as Dorosheff explains the harvesting process. He says that you never take all the honey since it is also the bee’s food source and good beekeeping management keeps the hive healthy.

Although there is no set schedule for a class, Dorosheff expects to have another class in mid-March. Interested people can contact Spencer at spencerdorosheff@gmail.com or on instagram@thy.willbeedone and facebook at thywillbeedone to register for classes.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ Each year on the first Sunday in March, the High Springs Lions Club opens its doors and makes dreams come true for local teenage girls by offering free prom gowns, shoes and corsages. The motto of the event is “If it Fits, It’s Yours.”

The dresses and accessories are donations from past proms, formal affairs or weddings and are collected throughout the year. The event is successful due to support and sponsorship from the local community, and the event serves an increasing number of girls each year.

Items and funds are donated by people throughout the community through the club’s “Donate a Dress - Support a Dream” team project. Local businesses provide additional services to make it a complete magical experience for the teenagers. Referred to as Fairy Godmothers and Godfathers, they offer such free services as boutonnieres and corsages from flower shops, tailors for alterations, limos and party buses, hair salons for nails, hair and makeup, photographers, DJ /bands, tux rentals and caterers.

The Lions Club also creates a book for the girls for use at special events throughout their lives. “We are trying to create a guide book so they can use it not just for prom but also for their next prom (senior) or wedding as well as a memory book of their event,” said Lions Club member Barb Kowats.

Cinderella’s Closet was founded in 2006 in Lakeside Park, Kentucky, after Erin Peterson overheard a teenager ask a consignment shop clerk if a gown on display could be put on hold while she figured out how to pay for it. The teenager asked her foster mother for the money, but a prom dress was an extra in life, and its price was out of their reach. Seeing her disappointment, Peterson stepped in bought the dress for her. As tears flooded her eyes, said she would look “just like Cinderella.”

In partnership with Immanuel United Methodist Church, Cinderella’s Closet was born. Through donations of new and gently used formal dresses and accessories, the organization was able to “Turn Dresses into Dreams” for juniors and seniors referred to the organization by their schools, community organizations or social care agencies. The program ensures that costs associated with attending prom are not a financial burden on a family by offering the gown shopping experience at no extra cost. But the benefit is more than just a dress, Cinderella's Closet provides an unforgettable experience for these girls to remember for the rest of their lives.

In High Springs, Kelly Dees, who owned All Creation Salon, heard about the idea and began working with the High Springs Lions Club to sponsor a local event in 2010. Dees ran the program and recruited sponsors while the Lions Club provided the location, additional sponsors and staff to hold the event. Lion member Karen Drake said, “Kelly's passion for Cinderella's Closet to make a difference was unparalleled, and without this program many young people wouldn't have been able to attend their prom or other formal events.”

While most donations and services have already been collected, the HSLC is still accepting donations until the event on March 6. The club also accepts cash donations they can use to buy accessories or more dresses from thrift stores.

“We currently have about 400 dresses that we will be putting out at the club for the girls to pick from on Sunday,” said Karen Drake.

Anyone who would like to donate a dress or money can contact Drake for more information by messaging her on Cinderella's Closet at the High Springs Lions Club Facebook page or by calling 386-454-4521 and leaving a message.

“The greatest reward for doing this is the happiness on the faces of the girls as they pick a dress and have a chance to enjoy their prom and the memories it will leave them,” said Drake. “Without this charity event many of these girls could not afford to go to their prom. To be able to help them make this dream come true is worth all the work the club puts into the event.”

The Cinderella’s Closet event will take place March 6, 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the High Springs Lions Club at 26900 West U.S. Highway 27 in High Springs and is open to everyone.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ On a chilly Feb. 12 morning, 50 runners gathered at the High Springs Civic Center to compete in the aptly named 5K Frozen Foot Race. The 3.1 mile run winds through the High Springs Sports Complex, around Bailey Estates and back into town with varying terrains and elevation changes.

Runners were divided by age and gender into eight groups, with competitors in both male and female categories starting at ages 1 to 18; 18-39; 40-49 and finishing with over 50 years old. Younger kids accompanied their parents in strollers.

The event was started in 2016 by the City of High Springs Parks Department to raise money for improvements at City owned parks. All proceeds go to the department’s budget to purchase playground equipment and facility improvements at area parks. The race has garnered support and sponsorship from other groups as well, including the Kiwanis Club of Santa Fe and the High Springs Police and Fire departments. Additional organization sponsoring this year’s event were AAA Porta Serve, Florida Credit Union, McDonalds and Start To Finish Race Management.

The event has grown each year, although the event was canceled last year due to the pandemic, and this year’s event was scaled down with fewer activities than previous races. High Springs CRA director David Sutton says the City is working toward reestablishing the event next year and expand it with children's activities, bounce houses and food trucks.

With the City's recent purchase of the Canoe Outpost on the Santa Fe River, the future may bring a triathlon of sorts that would include a bike ride to the river, a swim and then back to the Civic Center for the footrace.

This past Saturday, at 9 a.m., runners started on the 3.1-mile course, and 21 minutes and 36 seconds later the overall winner, Tim Guinn, crossed the finish line. Female winner Jessica Frey crossed the finish line three minutes later. Both were also the winners in the 18-49 age category.

Awards are given for the top three runners in each group who completed the course. Hudson Williams and Eisley Moore were the winners in the 1 – 18 age category. The winners of the 40-49 category were Spencer- Smith Corbett and Carol Ellis. High Springs Police Chief Antione Shepard finished third in the 40-49 category. In the Senior category of 50 – 98, winners were Thomas Story and Sally Chappell.

Two runners not receiving awards were High Springs Fire Department Lt. Kevin Pearson and Deputy Chief Andy Burkhalter who ran the 3.1-mile course in full turnout gear and on-air, which is similar to a SCUBA tank, in just 41 minutes. The combined weight of the gear and air pack comes in at over 60 pounds.

“This is what we would wear to an actual fire, so doing it for the marathon was good practice to stay fit,” said Burkhalter. “We wanted to challenge ourselves and always be physically prepared for an actual emergency and this was a cause that benefits the community as well with funding for our parks.”

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