This break in the median on BBD between Sonny’s BBQ near the Hollybrook Plaza (not shown) & Twistee Treat in front of the Village Market will be eliminated under FDOT’s safety plan. (Photo: John C. Cotey)
For anyone who has ever tried to cross through the median on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. from either of the side exits that lead out between the Sonny’s BBQ and SunTrust Bank adjacent to the Publix-anchored Hollybrook Plaza or just north of the Twistee Treat near the Wesley Chapel Village Market onto BBD, it is often a harrowing experience and not an uncommon site to see an accident in that area.
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is currently working on what will be a safer solution.
Currently in the design phase (cost: $500,000), plans include eliminating the median opening, installing a traffic signal at Eagleston Blvd. (just south of the Village Market) as well as a southbound U-turn lane at Eagleston, improving pedestrian options and adding an additional left turn lane to the northbound side of the BBD and S.R. 54 intersection.
The improvements are expected to ease the traffic dangers in that area and improve the flow during busy hours. The intersection has long been a hot topic for local residents. In a Neighborhood News Reader Survey in 2017, the intersection was chosen as the second-worst in Wesley Chapel, behind the I-75 and S.R. 56 intersection, which currently is under construction for a new Diverging Diamond Interchange .
The recent efforts by FDOT means that both intersections named as the worst in our survey will be improved within two years, although construction work at BBD and S.R. 54 isn’t expected to begin until the fall of 2021.
“This project was initiated after a safety study was performed recommending the closure of the first median opening south of S.R. 54/C.R. 54, and adding more capacity for the northbound left turn movement,” FDOT’s David Botello wrote in an email. “The new signal at Eagleston Blvd. was included to accommodate traffic being redirected by the median closure, and for future development along Eagleston Blvd.”
Because the split median will now be one long median from Eagleston all the way to S.R. 54, the northbound far left turn lane — which, when filled, would block those trying to cross over BBD — can be extended to accommodate more vehicles, helping reduce congestion.
For those needing to head south on BBD from the Hollybrook Plaza, there will no longer be a shortcut through the current median between Sonny’s and SunTrust.
As for those driving north on BBD who typically enter the Village Market through the break in the current median, they will now be better served turning left at the new light on Eagleston Blvd. and entering the Village Market from its southernmost portion.
“They will be provided a safer route by turning left at the signalized Eagleston intersection, and then turning right into the plaza,” Botello says.
If leaving the Village Market but needing to head north on BBD, drivers will be accommodated by the U-turn lane at Eagleston Blvd. (if they choose not to use either of the two exits that lead out to S.R. 54).
Construction of the planned BBD/54 improvements is expected to be completed in 2022.
Wiregrass Ranch High band director Josh Hobbs (seated) & drum majors (left to right) Ryan McHale, Hannah Kim, Daniil Fortuna and Alex Kopp hold up their state championship banner, a first for the school, as well as for all of Pasco County.
At an event where there is no scoreboard and your fate lies in the hands of judges, you really never know. But Josh Hobbs, the Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH) band director, was pretty convinced that of the five finalists for Florida’s Class 4A State Championship, his Bulls were among the best.
“We thought we had a good chance to be in the top three and we would have been excited about that,” Hobbs said.
The Bulls had turned in one of their best runs of the season at the State semi-finals to make the finals, and the band was even better at the finals.
He still wasn’t expecting what happened next.
First place.
State Champs.
Boom!
“It was surreal,” Hobbs says. “It was shocking. We were flabbergasted.”
The Bulls’ performances were history-making. While acclaimed as one of the area’s best bands for years, on Nov. 23 the Wiregrass Ranch Marching Bulls became the first Pasco County group ever to capture a Florida Marching Band Championship.
“It is a first for the school, and a first for Pasco County,” says Hobbs.
The Bulls capped a great season with a magnificent and grueling final day. They had to compete against 15 other high school bands in Orlando for the semifinals, and then after being one of five teams selected to move on, had to load all of their instruments and uniforms to drive to Daytona Beach for the final that night.
They were up against perennial powerhouses in the high school marching band world, including Seminole, the defending champions, as well as Bradenton’s Lakewood Ranch and Orlando’s University High.
No problem.
The Red X
Gone are the days when a marching band was primarily entertainment under the Friday Night Lights. The band performs at every football game, but beyond bringing excitement to the bleachers, the crowd provides an opportunity for the band to do a live run-through of its show in front of an audience, honing the music and marching skills needed to be competitive against the best high school marching bands in the state.
Hobbs, who is in his second year at WRH after coming over from Wesley Chapel, credits both the students’ hard work and the design of the show for their State Championship win.
The show, called The Red X, depicts a plague. That may not be your typical marching band fare, but Hobbs says the band members, section leaders and drum majors all bought into it and made it great.
“They were super excited about it and worked really hard,” he says. “We had a great leadership team to get everyone on the same page and stayed really focused throughout the year to set small goals, to achieve our big goal, which is to get where we did.”
Music in The Red X included Linkin Park’s “In The End,” Alanis Morissette’s “Uninvited,” plus classical pieces, an orchestral piece and a band piece.
“They had a great theme and they really sold it,” says Tom Viking, the fine arts program coordinator who oversees all fine arts programming in kindergarten through grade 12 for all Pasco County Schools. “They played well and performed well.”
Months Of Rehearsals
Rehearsals for the show started last May. Color guard and percussion met over the summer to rehearse, and the entire band had two weeks of band camp before the 2019-20 school year started. Every day at camp, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., the band practiced.
Students started with the fundamentals of marching, learning how to stand, how to step, how to play warmups or toss a flag. Then, they started learning the placements and continued practicing two or three hours a day, at least three days a week, throughout August, September, October and November.
With 140 band members, plus support staff and volunteers, this adds up to tens of thousands of hours of work.
Hannah Kim is the band’s senior drum major and flute soloist. She’s been in the band her entire high school career and hopes to continue playing in college this fall.
Kim says what it takes to reach that pinnacle is “a lot of endurance and consistency.”
First In Class & Even Beating The Bigger Bands
“I happened to be there that night and saw all of the bands, which was really cool,” says Viking. “It was a tight margin.”
He explains that bands are divided into five categories, based on how many students are on the field, not the size of the school, which is how schools are typically classified for sports classifications.
WRH is a 4A school, the second-largest category behind 5A in Florida.
“Not only did they win their category statewide, they placed third overall,” explains Viking. “That means of the 5A bands, only two scored higher than Wiregrass Ranch.”
There are several adjudicators and each judge studies one component very carefully, he says, such as footwork or music, design or color guard. Adjudication is meticulous, and bands are judged precisely in many categories.
“Wiregrass Ranch has been in the finals before,” says Viking. “They’ve been in the hunt, and this time, the stars aligned for them.”
After making it to the finals her freshman and junior year, Hannah says it was exciting to not only reach the finals her senior year, but to finally pull off the big win.
“It feels amazing,” she says. “Honestly, I just feel so proud. We work hard every year, and I felt like all our hard work was recognized.”
Her unique perspective included watching the band perform from the drum major platform, seeing the show take shape from its very beginning, but she also got to perform in the show as the flute soloist.
“It was a cool experience. When I got drum major, I was a little sad because I was going to miss marching on the field and playing the flute,” Hannah explains, “but it was awesome to get the best of both worlds.”
Kudos To The Director & His Support Staff
“Josh Hobbs is home grown in Pasco County,” says Viking, taking pride that Hobbs not only has chosen to spend his career in Pasco, but also graduated from Wesley Chapel High (WCH), where he participated in the marching band.
In fact, Hobbs’ former school also competed this year. WCH was in Class 2A when Hobbs led it, but moved up to Class 3A this year. The Wildcats also made the finals, finishing fifth in the state for its class.
At WRH, Hobbs has the benefit of significant support, including a strong band at John Long Middle School that feeds into the high school.
“He’s got a great staff that works with him, a great middle school program, and a great group of parents,” says Viking. “It’s a special thing.”
Viking says the typical Wiregrass Ranch High band kid probably started in the band at Long as a sixth grader, and many of the students have performed together ever since.
“It’s a lot of hard work through a lot of years,” says Viking. “They’re passionate about what they do and the team members they do it with.”
This year, Hobbs says all that hard work paid off.
“The skills these kids build through the fall — time management, discipline, and working harder than they ever knew they could work — and then to be rewarded the way they were, makes it all worth it.”
Kids squealed with delight upon arriving at the brand-new inclusive playground designed for those with virtually any type of disability at the Wesley Chapel District Park. There were swings and tubes and things to sit and spin on, a soft, cushioned floor to walk on and roll over and lots of bright colors.
It was all theirs.
The glee in their faces was contagious, and it was exactly the moment Pasco County Board of County Commissioners chair Mike Moore had envisioned when he first pitched the idea to the county’s Parks and Recreation department.
The kids weren’t the only ones overwhelmed.
“I’ll be honest with you, when the kids first came out here, I was watching and I had to walk away because it was a little overwhelming,” Comm. Moore said. “I had a couple of tears in my eyes, I really did. This is a miracle.”
***
On December 4, a large gathering of overjoyed kids, dedicated caregivers and teachers, Pasco County government dignitaries and generous donors from the Wesley Chapel Rotary Club, the Lennar Foundation and AdventHealth Wesley Chapel took a few snips at the ribbon cutting, officially opening Pasco’s first-ever inclusive playground.
It was a perfectly sunny day, with a slight chill in the air. But, most everyone there had their hearts warmed by the excitement of the kids, most of whom arrived on a bus from the Exceptional Student Education (ESE) programs from John Long Middle School and Wiregrass Ranch Elementary.
“I’m having a ball,” shouted Eric Piburn, a terminally ill 13-year-old in glasses, gloves, a knit cap and a face mask. Piburn, who needs a heart and double lung transplant, excitedly described his experience as he swung back and forth from a disc swing (that looked like an over-sized basket), the tube from his oxygen tank swaying along with him.
“I’ve loved swings since I was little,” he exclaimed. “I never ever ever ever ever ever want to leave. Ever.”
Another Long student walked around giving everyone a hug. Others wide-eyed but trepidatiously wandered from ride to ride, looking to find something they enjoyed.
“This is really cool,” said Deborah Collin, assistant principal in charge of ESE services at Long. “I keep saying to myself, where can we get some of this stuff?”
****
For every 1,000 children in Pasco County, there are 85 who have some type of special needs. Countywide, the Pasco County School District says there are about 16,000 children with special needs. Collin says there are 55 children in the ESE program at her school, spread over three different classifications of disability, with five teachers and eight instructional aides.
While they have adaptive physical education for the students, it is confined to a room.
“It’s still not enough movement or variety,” she said.
Which is why the playground is such a gamechanger for children with disabilities.
“This is huge,” said Barbara Hayes, a physical therapist with Pasco County Schools for 22 years. “There aren’t a lot of areas for those children to access. You can see the smiles on their faces. This gives them an opportunity to play with children more at their developmental level. This is a wonderful thing and very well done.”
Collin said one of her students, seventh grader Zakyla McKenzie, spends a lot of time playing with a plastic bottle. It fulfills some of her sensory needs, with its texture and the sound it makes when squeezed. But, it’s been the only exercise she usually gets each day.
At the inclusive playground, however, Zakyla was able to find something she liked more.
“She was having such a good time on the swing, she did not want to get off,” said Nellie Reilly, a behavioral specialist at Long who seemed as overjoyed as many of the students.
****
While many area parks may be compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines, few truly meet the standards of what proponents consider to be inclusivity. To do so requires wider pathways and easier-to-navigate surfaces, activity panels that are at ground height, larger swings with more back support and sensory elements that include touch and music.
There are multiple swing sets on the playground, an inclusive spinner that allows kids in wheelchairs to have a merry-go-round experience with their friends, a tube to crawl through — “I like to pretend I’m a cat!” said Eric — and four springy chairs. The surface throughout the playground is made of rubber and, combined with the spread-out rides, allows easy access for wheelchair-bound kids to move around and interact with others.
In the spring, a butterfly garden, which will be tended to by the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel, should be in full bloom.
“I didn’t see anybody that didn’t find something that worked for them,” Collin said.
****
The inclusive park is the first of its kind in Pasco County and one that Moore said he hopes to replicate in other places. It was not, however, your typical project for the county — it was introduced, funded, approved, designed and built in less than five months, which is light speed by traditional governmental standards.
As a volunteer coach at the District Park for a variety of sports, Moore had for many years seen kids who could run fast, jump high and were able to revel in what the park had to offer.
However, he also had seen the kids who couldn’t, those relegated to the sidelines because of a disability. The park wasn’t for everyone, he realized, and he said the thought bothered him and prompted him to try and change that situation.
After a few months of research, Moore introduced the idea to Keith Wiley, Pasco’s director of Parks and Recreation, earlier this year. Wiley had been thinking similarly — he already had been planning some special needs camps for the county.
****
To fund the project, since it wasn’t in the county’s budget, Moore turned to the 53-member Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel — of which he is an honorary member — which just happened to be looking for a big project, and the club agreed to donate $50,000 for the playground.
Chris Casella, the Rotary Club’s current president, told the ribbon-cutting ceremony crowd of roughly 100 that he was motivated by his own experiences as a kid, and the times spent at the park with friends and family.
“Today,” he said, “this can be a reality for so many families from this area that are going to be able to bring children to this park and have memories that will last a lifetime.”
The Lennar Foundation, the homebuilder’s charitable arm, donated another $50,000, and Advent Health Wesley Chapel chipped in another $25,000.
In August, the county commission voted 5-0 to approve roughly $215,000 in public funding to cover the rest of the project. Ground was broken in September. The ribbon was cut in December.
It was money well spent. As the kids slowly filed back to their school bus, and the adults headed back to work, Eric Piburn continued to rock back and forth on the disc swing, still planning to never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever leave.
The Joint Chiropractic of New Tampa (19014 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.) is proud to welcome Dr. Richard Tantillo.
Dr. Tantillo will be at the New Tampa location Mondays-Fridays. He has earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of the State of New York, and a Master of Business Administration degree from Strayer University, and a Doctorate of Chiropractic degree from New York Chiropractic College in Seneca Falls, NY, in 2000.
Originally from Long Island, N.Y., Dr. Tantillo also has worked in Palm Harbor and St. Petersburg.
His own first-hand experience with chiropractic led him to this point in his life.
“After long-lasting back pain, I visited a chiropractor and received my first chiropractic adjustment,” he says. “I felt immediate relief. I started chiropractic college two years later and have never looked back.”
He is grateful for the opportunity to work at The Joint Chiropractic in an environment that doesn’t lose sight of the goal: serving people who need help.
“I had practiced for years following the insurance model,” he says. “Over time, I saw many of my patients no longer able to afford chiropractic care due to high deductibles and copays. The Joint offers an affordable solution that allows almost everyone to enjoy the benefits of regular chiropractic care.”
Appointments are never required to visit The Joint. For more information, call (813) 644-8944 and please tell D. Tantillo you read about him and The Joint in the Neighborhood News!
North Tampa Bay Chamber News!
Although Jannah and I had to miss this year’s “Excellence in Business” awards gala, hosted by the North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce (NTBC) at Tampa Palms Golf & Country Club (for the first time), we had a pretty good reason — Jannah’s daughter Lauren gave birth to our first grandchild — the precious Rosalie (“Rosie”) Carolyn Cione — at about the same time as the event.
Rosalie (“Rosie”) Carolyn Cione
Congrats to Lauren & her fiancé Albert for bringing this most precious 6-lb., 3-oz. (at birth) bundle of joy into the world! Thanks also to Jeanine McLeod of Cloud 9 Studios (search “Cloud 9 Studios” on Facebook) for this too-perfect pic of Baby Rosie (below left)!
Even though we missed the awards gala, I still wanted to congratulate this year’s award winners. As a former “Small Business of the Year” award winner (in 2014) for the former Wesley Chapel Chamber, I know how nice it is to accept one of these awards:
“Small Business” – Advisor Magazine
“New Business” – Hilton Garden Inn Tampa-Wesley Chapel
“Large Business” – AdventHealth Wesley Chapel
“Entrepreneur” – Slater • Grant
“Large Business” – AdventHealth Wesley Chapel
“Volunteer” – Cam Caudle, Shred 360
For more information about the North Tampa Bay Chamber, call (813) 994-8534 or stop by at 1868 Highland Oaks Blvd., Suite A-1, Lutz.
Congrats, Parks Ford!
Speaking of the Chamber, November has been a busy month for NTBC ribbon-cutting events. Congratulations go out to Ron Parks (in yellow in photo above) and the entire team at Parks Ford of Wesley Chapel (28739 S.R. 54), which unveiled its newly revamped showroom at a ribbon-cutting event on Nov. 13. The amazing thing is that the dealership never closed during its massive (and impressive) renovation! For more info, call (888) 742-4177 or visit FordofWesleyChapel.com.
Your CBD Store Opens!
Congrats to owner Debra Curler of the new Your CBD store in the Pebble Creek Collection. We previously told you about the opening of the Your CBD Store in Wesley Chapel, well New Tampa has now added another link in the largest chain of CBD stores, with nearly 500 locations nationwide and still growing. Curler says Your CBD Store’s hemp-based products have extremely low levels of THC (0.3% or less) and therefore will not offer a psychoactive “high” like marijuana. It’s even safe for pets!
For more information about Your CBD Store (19651 BBD Blvd.) or call (813) 994-0599.
Fresh Healthy Café Celebrates 10 Years
Congrats also go out to Emily and Michael Schaefer, who celebrated the 10-year anniversary of the Fresh Healthy Café in The Shops at Wiregrass with an NTBC ribbon cutting on Oct. 16.
Fresh Healthy Café originally opened under another name, and Emily and Michael have only owned it for three years, but it’s still a perfect complement to the Fit Niche running and fitness store located next door and its delicious smoothies, bowls, wraps, sandwiches and fresh juices have kept customers coming back for more.
The Schaefers are both U.S. Army veterans and genuinely cool people, so I hope you’ll let them know that you read about them in the Neighborhood News or perhaps saw our video of their ribbon cutting on Neighborhood News Online. Fresh Healthy Café is located at 28139 Paseo Dr. For more info, call (813) 973-3578 or visit FreshRestaurants.com.
Havertys Unveils Its Remodeling!
Also cutting a ribbon with the NTBC on Oct. 10 was Havertys Furniture, located off S.R. 56, just east of I-75, which unveiled its newly remodeled showroom.
Wesley Chapel Havertys manager Brandon Young says the store’s new look will appeal to Havertys’ base clients, who tend to skew a little older than some furniture stores, as well as younger furniture shoppers who will appreciate getting quality furniture at a fair price. For more info, call (813) 994-0541 or stop by at 26450 Golden Maple Loop and tell Brandon& his crew we sent you! — GN
Pastor Rev. Dr. Sueng Lin Baik says his stewardship over the thriving Tampa Korean United Methodist Church on County Line Rd. has been a blessing. (Photo: John C. Cotey)
In an age when many churches are seeing declining numbers, the Tampa Korean United Methodist Church (UMC) on County Line Rd. in Wesley Chapel continues to flourish.
Since outgrowing its previous location in Tampa and electing to take over the space previously occupied by the Crossroads Community Church in 2014, the Tampa Korean UMC has grown from 150 members to more than 400.
That growth led to a $1.5-million expansion last year — a debt paid in full by a fund-raising campaign — and more expansion could be on the way.
“We are still growing,” says Pastor Rev. Dr. Sueng Lin Baik, the church’s Pastor since 2010.
The secret to the church’s success, he says, is providing a spiritual home to New Tampa and Wesley Chapel’s Korean community, as well as opening the doors to others with English-language services as well.
“I am blessed to be able to serve a church that continues to grow,” says Pastor Baik.
While there are traditional Korean services every day at 5:30 a.m., a typical Sunday sees the parking lot slowly fill with eager churchgoers.
They will tell you to come, sit down, and enjoy some bibimbap after church services are over at noon.
Pastor Baik and his staff have successfully gone back to an old time concept — ecclesia — which simply means a gathering of people. Whether or not groups of people gather at the newly expanded activity wing for interesting and meaningful fun things to do, or if they meet in private homes for singing, eating, praying and study, church activities are accomplished on a week-long basis.
This has the effect of doing what churches like to say they are in the business of doing — serving the needs of people in times of crisis or offering due congratulations for achievement. Having an early-warning system built in, with groups such as this, makes the church seem like far more than just a place of worship.
With this powerful degree of unity built in, along come the two major components Korean people have traditionally loved most — food and music.
For centuries, Koreans back in their homeland have fallen back on wonderfully prepared food and the sanctity of song, no matter the hard times. The local Korean community has core values here in Florida.
“Music is my life,” says Susan, a Zion Choir member.
“I don’t have a musical background,” says Hyun-su Kim. “I sing because God gave me a second chance and I can sing in service to God.”
Sonia, a powerhouse of a first soprano, also says she loves to sing: “It’s a Korean thing.”
The Zion Choir can beautifully render tunes as moving as “Give Thanks” to modern compositions of Christian music rife with zesty harmonies and fancy piano keyboarding.
At church, they sing in Korean. If they were performing elsewhere, it would be in English. It matters little which language they employ when it comes to their precious music.
This notion of singing heavenly tunes for Korean-Americans is likely a product of that “Korean thing” of adoration of music and lifting one’s voice to heaven in song. Indeed, Koreans adapted with enthusiasm to the general style of American worship and this has changed the fabric of that formerly heavily Confucian nation.
Now, churches of every denomination are everywhere in South Korea, including Mormon, Jehovah’s Witness, Pentecostal, and the more traditional Catholic, Baptist and Methodist. Of course, in Florida they are here as well, with a Korean slant but dogmatically identical, no matter the country.
So, a kind of reverse missionary work has happened. It’s common for visiting pastors from many places and countries to come to church and have a chance to preach. Visitors from Korea who come to Tampa will likely reserve a Sunday date for a church service here if they prefer the liberal principles of this Protestant faith.
Hundreds of bowls of delicious Korean fare are prepared every Sunday morning for Tampa Korean United Methodist Church churchgoers to enjoy afterwards. (Photo: John C. Cotey)
Thus, there are three prime reasons for the church’s expansion: Unity, fellowship, and service.
The Tampa Korean UMC Church faithful are perfectly willing to commit time a day ahead and go into the church kitchen to cook and prepare for the next day’s post-service fellowship.
Jun-sung Kim is the man in charge of what is often a prodigious weekly project of buying and getting the proper ingredients, making sure the team is in place, and firing up the kitchen stoves to cook food in mass quantities.
“We love the fellowship,” Kim says. “This past Sunday, we served 270 people, but in winter it will probably go up to 300 or more.”
This food is carefully prepared and approximates Korean food served in restaurants. For those in the know, specialties that the congregants regularly feast on after church include japchae (glass noodle stir fry), ssambap (rice lettuce wraps), bulgogi (grilled beef), bibimbap (a bowl that combined rice, seasoned vegetables, meat, egg and a variety of other toppings) and galbitang (beef short rib soup).
The traditional Korean side dishes will be there too, like kimchi, rice and pickled radish. And, listeners may hear a congregant slide from one language to another at any time.
“People here come from all over,” says Pastor Baik. Common places of origin for congregants are from anywhere in South Korea, as well as California, Illinois and New York state. Many personal backgrounds were in Buddhism. Some of the older congregants were born in North Korea before there was a North Korea.
This past summer, the church hosted a large contingent of Christians who made it out of the repressive North Korean state. These people have had a much harder time learning English, due to the educational restrictions and liabilities of the North. But, they love the notion of religious freedom and were amazed at the size of the fellowship hall at TKUMC and the graciousness of the congregants.
“It’s my job to get a kind of synergy here,” Pastor Baik says. By that, he is referring to the tricky and seemingly neverending task of melding older and newer approaches to the Bible’s meaning, along with the use of music and singing, which is so generationally oriented.
Pastor Erik Sue is a player in getting this synergy going with an English-only service. He tends to serve the younger crowd and caters to their urge to do upbeat Christian music in English that employs a “band-style” approach.
So, what can you expect if you show up for a service at Tampa Korean United Methodist Church?
You will have contact with folks who go back and forth between two complex languages without missing a beat. You may have your name mentioned and a song sung your way by the congregation, led by Pastor Baik. And, best of all, you are immediately ushered post-service into the gigantic fellowship hall with a plateful of superb Korean vittles, where you can chat and chew to your heart’s delight.
