AdventHealth Wesley Chapel, along with AdventHealth physicians, nurses and other team members across West Florida — spanning Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough, Marion, Pasco, and Pinellas counties —took a bended knee today in silent reflection as part of the White Coats for Black Lives campaign.
The show of solidarity with medical professionals all over the world took place from 1-1:09 p.m. this afternoon, the 8 minutes and 46 seconds in remembrance of 46-year-old George Floyd, who died in police custody on May 25, and countless others.
Those who participated maintained social distance, wore masks and were encouraged to share photos as an expression of support online with #WhiteCoatsForBlackLives.
The #WhiteCoatsForBlackLives movement is centered on combatting :
higher rates of disease among Black communities,
higher barriers of entry to the health care industry for Black individuals,
lower rates of Black medical students, and
the fear among Black individuals to seek medical care.
Here at the Neighborhood News, we get an inordinate number of phone calls asking “Is this Aldi?” and “Are you open yet?”
We’re not sure why, other than Google must be taking many a curious reader to our website, where at least a handful of stories about the Germany-based discount-grocer reside.
Finally, however, we can give the next caller an answer: Wednesday, July 1.
So, why the question mark in the leadline?
In our next issue, which will be hitting your mailboxes any day now, we say the Aldi, located at 2215 Sun Vista Dr. (on the southeast corner of S.R. 56 and Wesley Chapel Blvd.) is opening June 17 because that’s what the Aldi website had posted the day we sent the issue to the printers. Oops!
Official plans for the Grand Opening should be coming soon.Â
ALDI says it has nearly 2,000 stores across 36 states, and is on track to become the third-largest grocery retailer by store count by the end of 2022. It carries mostly lesser known brands, and many products can be had at deep discounts compared with other stores.
The Aldi store has been a long time coming for the Wesley Chapel area. The company first approached Pasco County planners about a site near The Grove on S.R. 54 back in 2015. Those plans were scrapped for a different location on the north side of S.R. 56, before being altered again for its current location on the south side of 56, in front of Costco.
Wesley Chapel seniors celebrated their graduation on June 1 at The Grove.
As the Covid-19 pandemic took hold, the 2019-20 school year was forced to come to a premature end.
Senior year, which can be the best and sometimes most eventful year of a teenager’s life, ended with a whimper, instead of a bang.
High school sports, proms and Grad Bashes were canceled. Yearbooks were passed out through open car windows by folks wearing masks. Graduations were postponed until August. Final goodbyes among classmates would have to wait.
As the mother of a Wiregrass Ranch High senior, and the president of the Pasco County Council PTA, Denise Nicholas found it all to be a shame. So, she decided to do something.
With the help of all the PTAs across the county, a host of volunteers and the determination to give all of Pasco’ seniors a sendoff, Nicholas and a team of helpers organized a car parade for the outgoing seniors for every school in the county.
“I brought the idea to my (PTA) board and they were very excited about it,” Nicholas says. “And, we found people to help at each of the schools that do not have PTAs. The schools that do not have PTAs, we found people to help at each of those schools. We really wanted to give the same experience to every senior in the county.”
Here in Wesley Chapel, The Grove shopping center enthusiastically stepped up and offered a parade route in front of its shopping plaza after a few other sites declined.
Cypress Creek and Wiregrass Ranch high schools had their parades — which featured decorated cars and large groups of friends and family cheering along the parade route — on May 19 and 20, respectively, while Wesley Chapel High’s parade, which was delayed by rain, was held June 1.
“Obviously with the pandemic, the (way school ended) was very saddening for our students and their families,” said Monica Ilse, Ed.D., assistant superintendent for Pasco Schools. “But, Denise reached out and wanted to do something to provide some community support for the seniors, which we appreciate beyond words.”
Nicholas had no shortage of volunteers to pull off the project. Pasco County Commissioners Mike Moore and Ron Oakley agreed to introduce the seniors and serve as the parade emcees, local professional photographers Jess Montgomery and Paul Gigante took pictures, Makayla Gulash (aka DJ Night Mixer) provided the music, Troy Stevenson (of Acme On The Go multimedia) also contributed video trucks at each event, and former Tampa Bay Bucs tight end (and father to a Wiregrass Ranch sophomore) Anthony Becht also donated time and services.
Ilse said the county hopes to be able to hold traditional graduations in August at the Yuengling Center on the campus of the University of South Florida, but that will depend upon the CDC and the status of the pandemic. If they can’t be held, she thinks the car parades made a nice send off.
“I took my niece to the Wiregrass Ranch one, and she had a great time,” Ilse said. “It was a lot of fun.”
Nicholas said the smiling senior faces across the county helped end their final years on a happy note, which was her primary goal. “Bryce (her son) thought it was a great idea, but he had no idea how much he would enjoy it,” Nicholas says. “Seeing how his face lit up, to be able to drive in the parade and hear the horns and the cheering and see the signs….it was worth every second.”
