Garden Provides Serenity For Wharton

Members of the Wharton High “Beautification Club” hope to raise funds to add some green to this serenity garden, which serves as both a memorial and a place of peace and quiet on the school’s campus.

Several years ago, students in Wharton High’s Key Club created a place on campus to remember students and faculty members who had passed away. But, the quiet corner it’s tucked into doesn’t have sprinklers, so grass won’t grow, and plants planted in the “serenity garden” wither.

Over the years, it fell into disrepair. In fact, says Jennifer Bell, an English teacher at the school, “It became a weed-choked barren thing with a picnic table — not the kind of memorial garden we wanted.”

So Wharton’s “Beautification Club,” which Bell co-sponsors with fellow English teacher Lindsey Glenn, went to work.

Back in September, with the help of the school’s head custodian, Junior Cintron, club members completely overhauled the area, adding raised plant beds with drought-friendly plants.

Now it’s much improved, but members of the club think it still has a way to go. While other solutions have been tried, such as mulch (which washed away in heavy rain), it was decided that the best way to improve the space would be with artificial turf, since no water is available to keep grass alive.

The turf is expensive, so the club hopes members of the community might help to make this project happen. The turf is estimated to cost about $1,200.

“We know there are people in our community who have been touched by those who were lost,” says Bell.

She emphasizes that the area is not only a memorial, which is why it was named the serenity garden.

“We want to make it a place that is uplifting and beautiful, as a place of reflection,” she explains. “So, if you need to go and re-center yourself, it’s off the beaten path a little, so you can take a quiet moment to yourself if you’re having a rough day.”

She says that is already happening. “We’ve heard there are definitely students who have noticed the improvement and have been sitting out there if they are upset and need to take a moment to themselves.”

Bell says that the serenity garden isn’t the only project the Beautification Club has undertaken since its inception last year.

“One thing that’s striking at Wharton is that everything at the school is gray,” she says. “We felt like the lack of color and beauty was hurting morale at Wharton.”

She explains that while the club hopes to overcome the gray with some color, it’s about more than that.

“We want to boost morale and improve the overall climate around the school,” she says, explaining that the club takes on a couple of large and a couple of small projects each year. “We’ve placed anonymous Post-It notes to encourage students, we’ve made sensory bottles — also called calm-down bottles — to help autistic students, and painted murals at our on-campus preschool playground.”

To support the Wharton Beautification Club’s efforts to install artificial turf in the school’s serenity garden, contact the club’s sponsors via the school: (813) 631-4710. Checks, made out to “Wharton High School” and designated for the Beautification Club, can be dropped off at the school.

Octogenarian Trying To Bring Truly “Old-School” Hockey To Wesley Chapel

Wesley Chapel resident Norm Dann (in the goalie gear) recently competed in the 80s Division at the Hall of Fame Games in Ottawa, Canada. Dann’s team was comprised of octogenarians from all over the country, the oldest playing being 86 years old.

Florida Old Timers Hockey Association secretary/treasurer Norm Dann is looking for a few good (older) men — and women — to come out in support of ice hockey in Wesley Chapel.

The Canadian-born Dann just turned 80 years old, and amazingly, he says 75 of those have been spent playing organized hockey. He also says he once had pro aspirations while playing in a juniors league for the Ontario Hockey Association, but says a back injury torpedoed his chances. As a teenager, he moved to Tampa in the 1950s, but never stopped playing hockey.

It’s easier to find venues these days for Dann, who lives in Wesley Chapel and is already taking part in some senior hockey programs already going at Florida Hospital Center Ice (FHCI).

The USA Hockey Adult Nationals Program has been at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon since 2004. Dann says in 2015, at its zenith, the program produced 50 teams of 50-over players, 12 teams of 60-over, eight teams of 65-over and six teams of 70-over.

There were even 24 ladies teams for ages 50-over. Yes, ladies. There is room for you in senior hockey leagues, too.

Meanwhile, FHCI hosts a myriad of hockey leagues for many different age groups, from beginners to ages 50-over, but Dann is pushing for an even older hockey division.

“It’s definitely something we could do,” says FHCI general manager Gordie Zimmerman. “Last year, we had a very successful adult nationals hockey tournament here.”

Finding the older skaters is the next goal. Dann says he meets seniors frequently at FHCI, many of them snowbirds who had no idea that there is an opportunity to play locally.

“I’ve met 12 guys just standing around and when I ask them where their gear is and they say, ‘Up home, up north,’” Dann says. “I go over there (FHCI) two or three times per week, just to see who’s there and to get on the ice. Most guys I talk to are interested, we just have to let people know that if they are interested, to contact us.”

The leagues and the membership are already strong in the Tampa area for older hockey players.

Currently, Dann, who credits a 125-over-65 blood pressure with a resting heart rate of 50 to the health benefits of playing hockey, skates at Clearwater Ice Arena in Largo, and his bonds run deep there.

He says the camaraderie and warmth in a hockey locker room is like no other, and that spirit is what makes it difficult to start a league in Wesley Chapel.

“There’s guys that would like to play here (Wesley Chapel) but they play in Brandon or Oldsmar and they’ve made friends there,” Dann says. “They don’t want to leave their leagues.”

But, Dann is hoping to create those same bonds here in Wesley Chapel.

“It’s a beautiful facility here, everything anyone could want,” Dann said. “They have a studio, a half rink (aka “minipad”), weight rooms and off-ice facilities. It’s so new you can still smell the paint.”

Dann and his teammates don’t bang each other around like they might have in their youth. In fact, checking and other overly physical contact is not allowed.

“It becomes more of a finesse game, “ Dann says. “All these guys have great stick handling.”

Appreciation for the sport over decades isn’t lost on Zimmerman, who also grew up playing hockey in Canada before moving south.

“I’ve been playing since I was three and I’m 52 now,” Zimmerman says. “I enjoy it as much now as I did back then. You can play until you’re someone like Norm’s (Dann) age and still enjoy it.”

Anyone interested in joining a senior hockey league at FHCI  can reach Norm Dann at Florida Old Timers’ Hockey Association, PO Box 7218, Wesley Chapel, FL 33543-0103. Or, call (813) 973-3654 or email old.puck@juno.com.