Optimist Club of Plant City holds 49th annual Tri-Star Basketball Skills Contest
Last Saturday the Optimist Club of Plant City held their 49th annual Tri-Star Basketball Skills Contest at the Sadye Gibbs Martin Community Center, in partnership with the Plant City Parks & Recreation Department.
The competition was open to all area kids ages eight to 13, competing in single age groups with the boys and girls scored separately.
The 2022 competition saw participation from 36 boys and seven girls for a total of 43 participants and tested each challenger in dribbling, passing and shooting.
Dribbling against the clock through cones awarded a maximum of 100 points, chest and bounce passes at a target awarded a maximum of 42 points and a mix of free throws and outside shots awarded a maximum total of 70 points, with the highest scorers earning first, second and third place in their age group.
These are the competition winners from each age group.
GIRLS
8: Emperial Smith (36)
9: Siran Sanders (71)
10: Aaria Johnson (86)
11: Ja’Niah Dexter (32)
BOYS
8: Merrick Chandler (60)
9: Michael Davis (146)
10: Jaxon Williams (145)
11: Alijah McFadden (124)
12: Brayden Thompson (160)
13: Ricky Hall (157)
Plant City to hold City Manager Photo Walk later in the year
The City of Plant City will host a “City Manager Photo Walk” at McIntosh Preserve on Saturday, March 19, starting at 8 a.m. The event will be led by the city’s new Environmental Land Management Supervisor Chris Foster and city manager Bill McDaniel. The two will lead all in attendance through a hike along the trails, along with other areas of the preserve, allowing people to capture photos of the wildlife, plants and landscape that bring life to the area. All are welcome to attend and attendees should plan on bringing a camera or their phone to participate and capture photos.
More information, along with a link for registration, can be found at www.plantcitygov.com/parksrec/page/city-manager-photo-walk.
Hundreds of scholarships still available for Hillsborough County seniors
Seniors throughout Hillsborough County who plan to pursue higher education after graduation now have an opportunity to potentially receive thousands of dollars in scholarships, all by filling out just one application. But don’t wait, the deadline is quickly approaching.
With values ranging from $500-$10,000, there are more than 90 named scholarships available and nearly 200 will be awarded to seniors this year. All Hillsborough County 12th grade students with aspirations of continuing their education at a university, community or technical college — along with 11th grade students who have earned enough credits to graduate in May, 2022 — are eligible to apply.
The Hillsborough Education Foundation, a nonprofit focused solely on strengthening public education in Hillsborough County, will be accepting applications until 11:59 on Monday, Jan. 31.
“We are able to support students’ dreams of pursing higher education through the generosity of our business partners, community organizations and individual donors—many of whom want to leave the ultimate legacy of a loved one by naming a scholarship in their honor,” said Hillsborough Education Foundation CEO Kim Jowell. “We understand for many students affording the opportunity can be a financial strain on families. These scholarships can help ease that stress, positively impact students’ lives and the future of our community.”
Using the HEF’s online process, students will only be required to complete one application to determine potential eligibility for multiple scholarships, although students may be required to complete additional essays as part of the qualification process, based on scholarship criteria.
Scholarships are awarded based on a variety of criteria such as GPA, field of study, financial need, challenges overcome, school and community service, SAT/ACT scores or extracurricular activity participation and vary from scholarship to scholarship.
Visit www.EducationFoundation.com/SeniorScholarships for a list of available scholarships, the criteria and to apply by the deadline and recipients will be announced in the spring of 2022. For scholarship questions, contact Angie Anthony, Director of Scholarships at 813-5740-0273 or by email at aanthony@educationfoundation.com.