Plant City Community rallies to support grieving families; Plant City Community Chorale announces annual Fall Concert; UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences offering new tour; FWC hosts Florida State Fish Art Contest
Plant City Community rallies to support grieving families
The Plant City community is coming together physically, spiritually and financially, to support the families affected by the sudden tragic accident last weekend that claimed the lives of six members of our community and left one slowly recovering in the hospital.
As grieving families make funeral arrangements for the five members of the Hernandez family that perished in the crash — Jose G Hernandez (52), his wife of 30 years Enedelia Hernandez (50) and his 3 children-Aniella Hernandez (22), Alyssa Hernandez (17) and Julian Hernandez (9) as well as 17-year- old Jakub Lopez, a junior at Plant City High School and Chick-fil-A employee who was the seventh occupant of the vehicle — they are appreciative of the calls, texts and prayers they’ve received during this challenging time.
Jennifer Cantu, aunt of the surviving victim, 23-year-old Guillermo Gama III, said he is still in critical condition at Lakeland Regional Hospital. “He’s fighting for his life,” she said.
Donation pages have been set up for the train crash victims and their families to offset the cost of funeral expenses and medical bills.
Gama Family – https://www.gofundme.com/f/gama-family-fundraiser
Hernandez Family – https://www.gofundme.com/f/r7rpc-hernandez-family
Lopez Family – https://www.gofundme.com/f/jakub-lopez
Plant City Community Chorale announces annual Fall Concert
Plant City Community Chorale is excited to announce its annual Fall Concert, History’s Greatest Hits. The performance will be held on Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023, at 7:30 PM at The First United Methodist Church of Plant City, 303 N. Evers St., Plant City, FL.
The Chorale, under the direction of Artistic Director, Coleman Flentge, is excited to present this musical stroll through the centuries of choral music that never goes out of style.
There will be the moving classical hymn, “Ave Verum”, by Mozart; Handel’s ceremonial, coronation anthem, “Zadok the Priest”, as well as the cheerful lilt of madrigal music in “Sing We and Chant It”. Familiar, contemporary pieces such as the powerful, “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and the fun and fast-moving Beatles medley, The Beatles: Rewind will also be part of the entertainment.
Tickets are available at www.pccchorale.org; FB.com/plantcitycommunitychorale; from any Chorale member or by calling 813-505-5441. Tickets may also be purchased at the Walden Lake Car Wash or at the door the night of the concert. Tickets are $15.00. Children 12 and under are free.
UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences offering new tour
You ever wonder where your food comes from? While you buy food from the grocery store, it originates on farms. That’s why you might consider a tour of farms and research facilities being hosted by the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).
Stops on the Nov. 30 tour include a plant nursery, aquaculture production, a cattle ranch, strawberry farm and two UF/IFAS research facilities. To join the bus tour, register through October 31 at this site: https://AgTourHillsborough2023.eventbrite.com.
For more information, contact the UF/IFAS Extension Hillsborough County office (813)744-5519, located at 5339 County Road 579, Seffner FL, 33584.
FWC hosts Florida State Fish Art Contest
The annual Fish Art Contest is now open! Students in kindergarten through 12th grade can create an original piece of artwork and compete in this free contest for a chance to win state and national honors and prizes.
In partnership with Wildlife Forever, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is excited to announce the second annual category for a Florida Native Fish Award! This State Specialty Award is an additional award to the national Fish Art Contest that participating students will qualify for by submitting a Florida native species from the specified list below. The goal of the Florida Native Fish Award is to celebrate fish species native to Florida’s inland and marine waters.
“The Florida Native Fish Award is an amazing opportunity to introduce students to some of Florida’s most iconic native fish species in a fun and creative way,” said FWC Commissioner Sonya Rood. “This award helps connect Florida’s students to the fish species that help make Florida the Fishing Capital of the World, which is critical in inspiring the next generation of fisheries resource stewards.”
One first place winner and one runner up will be selected for each grade bracket (kindergarten through third grade, fourth through sixth grade, seventh through ninth grade, and 10th through 12th grade), one for illustrating the best freshwater fish species and one for the best saltwater fish species. Digital artwork will not be accepted this year, all submitted pieces must be created with a traditional media. All first-place winners will advance to the National Competition to be judged for top prizes, such as Best of Show. The deadline to enter is Feb. 28, 2024, so start designing!
To enter, students from Florida should submit their entry at Wildlife Forever – Florida Art, consisting of the following:
An original piece of physical artwork featuring any fish including one or more of the following Florida native species from the same category:
Category 1 – Freshwater: largemouth bass, striped bass, black crappie, bluegill, redear sunfish, spotted sunfish, channel catfish, Florida gar, chain pickerel, bowfin
Category 2 – Saltwater: snook, redfish, spotted seatrout, flounder, tarpon, mahi-mahi, Spanish mackerel, hogfish, queen snapper, black grouper
A piece of creative writing, no longer than one page, about the chosen species (required for grades 4-12).
A Florida State-Fish Art Contest entry form.
Note: Digital artwork will not be accepted this year, all submitted pieces must be created with a traditional media.
Florida Prizes
First-place winners in the 10-12 grade bracket will receive 10 T-shirts printed with their artwork to give to family and friends from our partner The Florida Nomad and the shirts will also be available for sale on their website.
The two first-place winners from each grade bracket, from each category will have their artwork displayed in FWC’s freshwater or saltwater regulations guide.
All first-place winners will have their artwork displayed at FWC headquarters in Tallahassee.
