The most recent hikers lost in Flatwoods Park were found by HCSOâs Aviation Unit (top) with help from the light from their cell phones.
The Hillsborough County Sheriffâs Office (HCSO) rescued two hikers from New Tampaâs Flatwoods Wilderness Park on June 4, a fact that could make those who regularly use the popular 7-mile biking loop wonder:
How did that happen?
Social media teased the hikers, who were not identified, although some also sympathized with them.
But hikers, particularly inexperienced ones, getting lost in Flatwoods Park — which has entrances on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. and Morris Bridge Rd. — or even one of the areaâs hidden gems, the New Tampa Nature Park (which can be entered off Dona Michele Dr.), isnât really as crazy as it sounds.
This past December, an avid hiker made the news when she got lost for two hours in Flatwoods, and had to call the HCSO, which sent in a helicopter to help with the search.
âIt happens now and again,â says Jan Kirwan, the City of Tampaâs conservation parks coordinator.
Combined, the two parks, which are connected, have more than 31 miles of wilderness hiking trails. While most of the trails are marked, Kirwan says that some are more primitive than others.
HCSOâs Aviation Unit, which is used to assist in rescues and arrests, was able to locate the most recent hikers to get turned around at Flatwoods thanks to their cell phone lights. The aviation unit then directed park rangers to their location.
According to the 9-1-1 call, a man and his friend were on the popular Panther Path, one of the parkâs off-road trails, but ended up near a swampy area on the west side of the park towards I-75.
While Kirwan says people can get lost, âIf you are familiar with following a trail then you shouldnât have any problem.â Sometimes, hikers will inadvertently follow an animal trail that bisects the regular trails.
But, if you venture off the beaten path, be prepared.
Kirwan says cell phone service is not always available in the park, and if you are relying on maps on your phone, you could find yourself without any directions. Itâs always smart, she says, to have a compass on hand.
Mostly, however, inexperienced hikers sometimes find themselves misdirected when they try to stretch their trip out.
âPeople donât realize how dark it can get,â Kirwan says. âItâs not like there are lights out there, and under the trees thereâs not much moonlight that gets through. It looks very, very different in the dark.â
Thatâs why the hours of the park are generally dawn to dusk. The recent hiker rescue began with a 9-1-1 call at 9:24 p.m., after the park had closed.
While neither Flatwoods or the New Tampa Nature Park are advanced hiking areas, they are a step up from, say, Lettuce Lake Park off Fletcher Ave., which is only 240 acres. Lettuce Lake, Kirwan says, is more of a gateway park into the wilderness parks in New Tampa, which offer a plethora of trails and wildlife.
âYou see a lot of bird (watchers) in the morning, and thereâs plenty of other animals like deer, turkeys, hares and wild hogs,â Kirwan says. âIt should be a fun little hike. Just remember, itâs always good to let someone know where youâre going. Then, if you donât get back, they know where you were.â
The New Tampa Recreation Center began hosting summer camps this week after easing back into things a few weeks earlier with its dance programs. (Photo: Tampa Parks).
Summer camps at the New Tampa Recreation Center (NTRC) have finally begun for eager â and maybe, a little stir crazy â kids and parents, as the city expands some of its preliminary offerings.
Seven different City of Tampa sites with gymnasiums hosted Summer Kickoff Camps through June 19, which took a cautious approach, with limited numbers. On June 22, the Rec Summer Camps kicked off on a first-come, first-serve basis.
The Summer Kickoff Camps had limited groups and served almost as a test run, as the city tries to figure out the best practices for new, more stringent protocols for social distancing and cleanliness.
âWeâd like to be going full-bore right now, but that wasnât feasible,â says Heather Erickson, the City of Tampaâs manager of aquatics, athletics and special facilities. âWe have been very conservative.â
The NTRC did not host kickoff camps. It had been closed since March due to the Covid-19 pandemic, although construction on the centerâs expansion, which will be completed later this summer, has continued throughout.
The city also was able to make a number of improvements all of its facilities.
âThe silver lining is that weâve been able to replace all of our lights in our gyms, and the place is cleaner than itâs ever been,â Erikson says.
The NTRC eased back into things by allowing its softball teams to begin practicing and opening the first week in June for some of its competitive and more advanced dance teams.
The tumbling mats are mopped between each group, coaches are wearing masks and hospital-grade organic anti-bacterial fogger is used every 28 days to keep the air as germ-free as possible.
âWe have some pretty crazy safety protocols in place,â Erickson says, âbut this is the new normal.â
By starting with the older, more experienced kids, who are all part of the year-round programs offered at the NTRC, the facility was able to get a feel for the new standards.
âThe hardest thing is not letting them hug the coaches,â Erickson says. âThey all really missed each other.â
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ended all restrictions on youth activities for the state on May 22, but other than directing people to the CDC guidelines, offered little direction.
Erickson says the NTRC is offering four different summer camps, and typically they host 175 or so kids. She said the summer numbers will be a moving target this year, and could contract or expand depending upon how the camps unfold.
As anyone who has ever coached a large group of 9-year-olds can attest, enforcing group social distancing is simple only in theory.
âI sure wish we had a manual for this,â says Erickson. âWeâre really writing it as we go.â
All Summer Camps Get The Green Light
On June 1, roughly 20 kids showed up at the first PROtential Sports camp of the summer at Heritage Isles.
Two weeks later, a similarly-sized group began camp at the Seven Oaks Community Club in Wesley Chapel.
For PROtential Sports co-owner Nyree Bland, it meant she could finally breathe again.
âI am grateful to be opened again. Itâs good to be back,â says Bland who, along with her husband (and former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver) Tony, has been running PROtential sports camps locally for 17 years.
Meanwhile, Bland says PROtentialâs camps usually have 100-plus participants at each location, but will be limited to 25 percent of their usual capacity in the early going this summer.
She has canceled the field trips that are usually a part of the PROtential Sports summer camp experience.
Counselors will be taking the temperatures of each camper daily.
The groups will be kept smaller than usual, since some of the activities are held indoors.
âThe parents we have talked to that are coming are super excited,â Bland says. âSome arenât ready. I think it is about 50-50. So, weâll be a lot smaller. But, itâs the new normal, and Iâm embracing it.â
Pasco School Superintendent Kurt Browning has tested positive for Covid-19.
Browning notified Pasco County school employees today. He is now in isolation at home.
In a statement from Pasco County Schools, Browning has experienced relatively minor symptoms (fever, chills, general achiness) since Friday, prompting him to get tested. On Sunday, the results indicated he had tested positive.
âMy symptoms are relatively minor, but Iâm not taking this lightly,ââ Browning, 61, said on Monday. âIâm looking forward to get back to work full strength as soon as the medical experts say I can.â
Browning has mostly been working from home during the coronavirus crisis, but has spent some time in his office in recent weeks. However, he was informed that his interactions do not amount to close contact and do not require self isolation or testing for those he came in contact with.
Last week, Browning unveiled the plans to re-open schools in August, giving parents three choices for their children’s education this fall. The deadline to make a choice is July 1 by filling out the form HERE.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor talks with members of the community who showed up in the wake of George Floyd’s death to march for peace and racial justice.
I would be lying if I said I understood how people of color in this country feel every day about being black or brown in America.
Gary Nager Editorial
So while, like most white Americans, I personally donât care what color the people were who died recently at the hands (and knees) of law enforcement officers were black, brown, green or any color, religion or orientation, I completely understand the outrage being felt again by so many of us who witnessed what amounted to the recent public executions of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks.
As everyone surely knows by now, Floyd â who was killed about four weeks ago by former Minneapolis Police Office Derek Chauvin as three other now-former officers watched â was being arrested (but not resisting arrest) for passing a counterfeit $20 bill at a store.
Three weeks later, Brooks was shot dead by now-former Atlanta Police Officer Garrett Rolfe after trying to run away from being arrested at a Wendyâs. Although Brooks certainly did resist arrest and tried to run away from the scene, the fact he stole the Taser from one of the officers and fired it at them from a distance makes his situation different from Floydâs, but still begs the same nagging question:
If either of these men were white, would they still be alive today?
Yes, I believe all four cops (the others let him be killed) shown in a video thankfully released the day after Floyd was killed should go to jail for murder. And no, I donât understand why Floyd was targeted by these cops to receive this particular abuse of their power, especially in light of something that happened to Jannah and me only a year ago.
When we got married in March of 2019, some of our attendees gave us gifts of cash, including a few people who each gave us a $100 bill as a gift.
However, when we tried to pay a tab at a local bar with one of those $100 bills, we were informed that the bill was counterfeit. But, rather than have us arrested â at least in part because the bar owner knew us from previous visits and said it was obvious we didnât know the bill was no good â all he did was ask us to use an alternate method of payment. I then took the bill to my bank, which told me that all they could do was take the bill out of circulation, which meant that we lost that $100 gift. Oh well.
One thing neither of us lost, however, was our life. No one handcuffed us or held us down to our pleas of âI canât breathe.â Today, itâs hard not to imagine that same situation ending with either of us dead after being suffocated for 8 minutes and 46 seconds.
Likewise, if a white man in Atlanta perhaps had too much to drink and fell asleep in a fast-food drive-through lane, would the white police officers trying to arrest that white man have used deadly force to stop him? Itâs horrifying to me that black, brown, Asian and LGBTQ people are targeted for this type of behavior so often in this country. Something has to change. And yes, I understand why peaceful protests can and should be part of that solution.
Unfortunately, looting and setting fire to stores owned by people who literally had nothing to do with those situations should never be the target of those protests. But, they unfortunately too often are â as seen around the country once again in the aftermath of Floydâs murder, although, thankfully, most of the protests of Floydâs death after those first few nights have been peaceful. Considering that the shooting of Brooks took place only a couple of days before this issue went to press and the Wendyâs where he was killed was looted and then burnt to the ground the following night, it remains to be seen if violent protests will continue to be an issue.
I have been encouraged, however, by local elected officials like Tampa Mayor Jane Castor (in blue in photo) and New Tampaâs City Council member Luis Viera who have been getting out in the community with the protesters, trying to make a difference.
Taking Action
Before the Rayshard Brooks situation, I wrote about the aftermath of the Floyd killing in our June 9 Wesley Chapel issue and I was very pleased at three emails/letters I received since then from black readers who appreciated my take on the current situation and offered words of advice and encouragement and something much more valuable to me than just the kind words: Two of the readers even offered to help start and/or get involved with a local grassroots movement that might help stem the tide of systemic racism and build better communication here.
I therefore am looking for people in New Tampa who also want to help. What can we do? I really donât know. I just know I want to try. Black, white or otherwise, email me at ads@ntneighborhoodnews.com if you do, too.
While there werenât any protests in New Tampa, just a few miles up Bruce B. Downs Blvd. in Wesley Chapel, a hundred or so people gathered to make their voices heard. (Photo courtesy of Susan Boyle)
State Representative Fentrice Driskell says she has lived with racism her entire life, but not nearly as long as her parents Joel and Terry did growing up in the segregated south.
As the country continues to boil from the weeks of protests and marches following the death of George Floyd while in police custody on May 25, it is her parentsâ optimism that fills Driskell, the State Rep. for District 63, which includes New Tampa, with high expectations for the future.
This time, she says, it feels different. It feels lasting. It feels productive.
âThe hope and optimism they feel is wonderful,â Rep. Driskell says of her parents. âThey are so excited that in their lifetime, they may actually see the realization of the dream that Martin Luther King was fighting for.â
While none of the local protests and marches took place in New Tampa, there was one a few miles north outside of the Shops at Wiregrass, as well as a few miles to the south, in the University of South Florida area along E. Fowler Ave.
(l.-r.) Richmond Place resident and CEO of the University Area CDC Susan Combs, Tampa City Council member Luis Viera and State Rep. Fentrice Driskell participated in a prayer walk organized by the Crossover Church on Fowler Ave.
What started as a visceral reaction to the death of Floyd beneath the knee of a Minneapolis police officer has grown into a larger conversation on racial injustice in America.
âThis has gotten everyoneâs attention,â Driskell says. âI think this is the greatest chance that weâve had since the civil rights movement (of the 1960s) to make some positive changes.â
* * *
The rain poured down on Susan Boyle and her daughter Emma on June 6, but it did not deter them as they stood at the intersection of S.R. 56 and Bruce B. Downs Blvd. in Wesley Chapel, taking part in their first-ever protest together.
Like many in this country, Susan, a Meadow Pointe resident, was overcome by the images on television â the death of Floyd, the massive crowds that protested his death â and felt like she wanted to do something.
âIt was heartbreaking seeing Mr. Floyd killed on TV while I watched,â Susan said. âI wanted to be part of the group saying âEnough is enough.ââ
So, she and Emma, a junior at Wiregrass Ranch High, stood in the rain. They sang songs of protest. They moved from corner to corner at the intersection, along with 100 or so others, many waving homemade signs, others just waving their hands, and with everyone chanting various songs and slogans.
She said the experience was overwhelmingly positive from passers-by. One driver, stopped at a red light, even reached out to hand her an umbrella before speeding off.
The unpleasant weather did little to dampen their enthusiasm.
Susan is like many people in this country â aware there was a problem, but unsure of what if anything, she could do about it. But, she said we would go to another march if one was held nearby, and will get more involved.
While she has seen her fair share of arguments over the merits of going to a protest on social media, she said there is something almost spiritual about being amongst people of all different colors and ages fighting for the same thing, and for the right thing.
She canât help but feel she is watching what she thinks might be a transformational moment in our nationâs history.
âThere is a tipping point when you see that people are starting to get behind an actual movement, instead of just a few days of lip service and then on to the next disaster,â she says. âWhen it started gaining traction, it was heartening to me, but Iâm also prepared to be devastated if nothing changes. If nothing changes, then this country canât change.â
***
Dean Reule, the pastor at Cypress Point Church on Morris Bridge Rd., says the murder of Floyd âboth breaks and awakens our soul.â
In a written statement, he urges people, particularly those who are white, to be humble, not defensive, and to be informed.
âPlease do not look away,â he writes. âDonât minimize racial stereotyping, racial bias and justice issues. Research and study and pray with an open mind and heart. Genuinely seek to learn, opening yourself to better understand the experiences of those different than you.â
That is something Tampa City Council member Luis Viera, whose District 7 includes New Tampa, has preached long before protests, marches and riots took over large swaths of the country.
While the protests over Floydâs death werenât as acute in Tampa as they were in other bigger cities, Viera says it has still opened many wounds.
Viera (left) was critical of violent protesters and looters who hurt many of the local businesses along E. Fowler Ave. and Busch Blvd. â both areas in his district — on May 30, but praised the efforts the following day, when those who actually live in the community gathered to clean up. Viera was joined by Tampa Mayor Jane Castor in meeting with residents to listen to their concerns.
âIâd say this issue is a challenge to us all,â Viera says. âNo matter where we live, we all have a duty to act. We need to build bridges and make historical wrongs right. I think you can feel a sense of urgency on the part of people.â
Viera and Driskell marched together on June 6 with congregants of Crossover Church on Fowler Ave. and community members to the site of some of the burned buildings to pray for racial justice and peace, as well as deliver gift baskets to the business owners hurt by the looting.
The two elected officials are are also working together on efforts to build a memorial for victims of lynching in Hillsborough County.
To find racial harmony, Rep. Driskell says it will require âuncomfortable conversations.â
And, for the first time in her lifetime, she feels both sides are ready to finally have them.
âI hope that everyone would know and feel and believe that they have something to add to the conversation,â Driskell says. âIt really is going to take everybody in the community to come to the table and have those tough conversations. But, I am absolutely optimistic it can be done, and I feel activated and energized and proud that so many people are ready for it.â
