Student's Dream Led to County Action

Take a look back at an inspirational story that ran last year about Corey Smith's quest to have sidewalks built along Moon Lake Road.

Editor's note: This story originally ran in February 2012. We're putting it in the spotlight again to highlight the accomplishments one person can make. The sidewalk is now cmplete. When Corey Smith was 12, he asked his mother why he couldn’t walk to school on Moon Lake Road and why nobody was putting a sidewalk there.  “I don’t know,” said his mother Elaine Smith, who is parks and recreation director for the city of New Port Richey. “Why don’t you do something about it?” So he did. It was 2008, and Corey Smith was in 7th grade at River Ridge Middle School when his mother issued the challenge. He did research, found opportunity for funding and took his request for a sidewalk to the Pasco County Commission. Now, Corey is 15, and the county …

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Envisioning New Port Richey as an Edible City

Permablitzing the Peace Hall garden.

Charity Poker Run Raising Money to Bring Sparky the Fire Dog to Town

Have fun at the poker run and free concert and help support New Port Richey public safety workers.

Verizon is hosting a charity motorcycle poker run in the New Port Richey area on Saturday, July 28, that will raise money for the city to get a Sparky the Fire Dog robot, which teaches children about safety. The run will be followed by a free concert event in Sims Park that will feature fun for guests young and old. The Sparky the Fire Dog robot will be used by the city fire rescue and police departments to educate children, said Bob Elek, spokesman for Verizon. Sparky is a dalmatian firefighter who rides around in a miniature fire truck and has conversations with kids about safety. He is remote controlled. According to Robotronics, the company that produces Sparky, the robot teaches ”fire and life safety to children, because it can …

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Stuff the Bus to Help Pasco Teachers

The second annual donation drive seeks to net supplies for the folks who educate your kids.

The United Way of Pasco is gearing up for a donation drive that collects school supplies for teachers in the county, and it’s looking for donations and volunteers to assist with operations. The second annual Stuff the Bus for Teachers donation collection event is planned for Aug. 3-5, during the state’s sales tax holiday. According to the United Way, teachers spend $400 out of pocket on classroom expenses each year. “We think that’s a lot to ask of a teacher,” stated Duggan Cooley, president and chief executive office of the Pasco United Way, in a press release. The Stuff the Bus campaign will have buses set up at roughly 13 locations over three days from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and they want to fill them with folders, pencils, boxes of  papers…

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Help Needed for Parks Clean Up Day

Volunteers are needed for projects taking place at the Land O' Lakes Recreation Complex and other parks throughout Pasco County.

Many of the city and county parks and recreation systems in the Bay area have been working together to designate Thursday, July 26, as a Parks Clean Up Day in Tampa Bay. This is in conjunction with Florida’s designation of July as Parks and Recreation Month. The Pasco County Parks and Recreation Department invites individuals, groups and organizations to make this day, a day to visit their local parks and “make a difference” by working side by side with parks and recreation professionals on various tasks. To adopt a project call Parks and Recreation at 727-834-3278. Here is a list of tasks the public is being asked to help to the county complete in various West Pasco area parks: Robert Rees Memorial Park (AKA Green Key) – Rake and clean up…

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Teen's Project Aims to Provide Second Chances to Bay Area Youth

The 17-year-old is looking for businesses in Pasco, Hillsborough and Pinellas to serve as donation collection sites.

She’s 17 and on a mission.  And she needs the help of individuals and businesses to get it done. Ellen Kromer, a Westchase resident who attends Steinbrenner High in Lutz, wants to reach out to people across the Bay area to help her collect items such as gently used clothing and basic toiletries for Jesus for Juveniles. The nonprofit organization supports incarcerated and newly released juvenile offenders to help them start over, she said. Her mom, Janet Kromer, began volunteering for JFJ as a mentor at the Pasco Girls Academy in January. The organization also supports the Hillsborough Girls Academy and the Riverside Academy for boys, as well as the Gulf and Lake Academy in Pinellas, which serves disabled youth. It’s a challenge, because …

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Growers' Meeting and Permablitz Planning Scheduled

Locals interested in environmentally sustainable can netwqork with like-minded locals.

Sheriff's Office Opens Redesigned Children's Resource Room

A section of the room was dedicated as "Olivia's Corner" in honor of a Pasco middle school student.

Last week's reopening of the Pasco Sheriff's Office children's resource room drew an excited crowd, including Sheriff Chris Nocco, Child Protective Investigative workers and others who helped make the redesign a success. River Ridge Middle 7th grader Olivia Georgi also was in attendance, accompanied by her parents Janet and Otto Georgi. And Olivia, who received a Citizen Service Award from the sheriff's office in April, had a surprise in store for her at Friday's ceremony. A section of the room was named "Olivia's Corner" to honor her work collecting donations for Pasco's CPI unit for the past several years. Another contributor to the redesign operation was BB&T, whose staff gave more than 600 volunteer hours and $5,000 in funding for the …

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PPAL Hosts First-Ever Football, Cheer Camp

The event, sponsored by the Pasco Police Athletic League and Dick's Sporting Goods, is open to children ages 5-15.

Hey kids, time to gear up for some fun on the field this weekend. The Pasco Sheriff’s Office has partnered with Dick’s Sporting Goods to host its first-ever Pasco Police Athletic League Football and Cheer Camp for kids ages 5-15 this Saturday, June 16, at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex. The camp will feature four football and cheerleading skills stations, a K-9 demonstration, surprise guest speakers, bounce house, dunk tank and free T-shirts to the first 500 registered participants. There also will be a sports memorabilia auction, raffles and giveaways. A portion of the event proceeds will benefit the Vitale family of New Port Richey. Lori Vitale, a longtime PPAL volunteer, lost her battle with cancer in January. Her husband passed …

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Mandala More Than a Lockdown

New Port Richey man spent more than a decade educating young men with troubled pasts.

Michael Turansky teaches teenagers who have troubled pasts. He works at Mandala Adolescent Treatment Center, a residential treatment facility in the New Port Richey area that serves teenage boys who have been through the justice system. Teenagers at Mandala have been ordered there by a court. The challenge and unique nature of the job give him a charge. "Every day there is a new problem or situation, and you have to deal with that," he said. Mandala is closing its doors at the end of the month, and Turansky, who lives in New Port Richey, says he will need to find another job. He wants his next to offer a similar thrill. "Anything else just seems mundane," he said. Mandala is a lockdown facility that holds 14- to 18-year-old boys …

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Alex Tiegen

9:35 am on Monday, June 11, 2012

Update:On Monday, Pasco Schools spokeswoman Summer Romagnoli said the two Pasco County educators will be reassigned to other schools once Mandala closes   more ›