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ALACHUA – Winning teams got bragging rights as well as prizes during the Alachua Chamber of Commerce’s Sportsfest Golf Tournament June 18 at the Turkey Creek Golf Course in Alachua. In a long running tradition, area teams participated in the 32^nd annual event sponsored by the City of Alachua Chamber of Commerce.

Area golfers began the scramble early Saturday morning in shotgun style. Teams of four players each played as best ball scramble, each group using the best shot of their team’s four shots for the following shots to pin. The teams worked their way around the course at Turkey Creek for about four hours completing 18 holes.

New Generation Builders lay claim to the winning shootout team with players Mitch Hall, Devon Ross, Sam Stark and Scottie Langford. Santa Fe River Ranch nabbed 1st place gross while New Generation Builders took 2nd place gross and Capital City Bank came in with 3rd place gross.

The winners for net were Conestogas taking 1st place net, Edward Jones - Ed Potts -Matt Surrency taking 2nd place net and Easy Dumpster claiming 3rd place net.

While the golfers undoubtedly enjoyed their time on the course, it was also for a good cause. Funds raised from this tournament have typically supported youth in the community through City of Alachua Legacy Park Recreation programs. Over the past several years, tournament funds were donated to the Alachua branch library for enhanced study space.

The Chamber also recently donated $15,000 to provide cases for the laptops and computers that were provided to all elementary and middle school students in Alachua. They will also fund any needed replacements and provide for new students each year.

“While our chamber focus is on supporting our local business community, we also want to be a partner with the city and our community service organizations to improve our schools,” said Alachua Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and Sportsfest Committee Chair Ed Potts. “None of this would be possible without the support of our long-term sponsors, particularly Dollar General and Capital City Bank.”

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ALACHUA COUNTY ‒ Thinking of adopting a pet? Now is a great time to add a furry friend to your household. Effective immediately, all adoption fees are being waived until the Alachua County animal shelter can reach a manageable capacity. Pet adopters must be 18 or older and show identification with proof of current address. All adoptable cats and dogs are vaccinated, microchipped and sterilized before going home. The shelter located at 3400 N.E. 53rd Avenue, Gainesville is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., excluding holidays.

Not quite ready to adopt, but would like to help? Volunteer opportunities include dog walker, cat cuddler, dog wrangler, animal photographer, dog play group attendant, transporting animals, enrichment facilitator, adoption counselor, off-site adoption event assistant, foster parenting and facilitating doggy day outings.

Also, fostering opportunities with a one-month minimum commitment are available. Food and medical treatment will be provided to all fosters.

In recent months, intakes have exceeded outcomes (adoptions, transfers and owner reclaims). A recent case in Micanopy resulted in the confiscation of 23 additional animals. Springtime has brought with it the usual overabundance of kittens and puppies. All of this has contributed to overcrowding at the shelter, with upwards of 50 dogs above what the current shelter was designed to hold. The County, like other businesses, has been affected by the nationwide staffing shortage. These circumstances are not unique to Alachua County.

To volunteer, fill out the online registration form located at alachuacounty.seamlessdocs.com/f/VolunteerPacket. Once you submit the form, you will be sent a zoom link to the mandatory zoom orientation. Currently, an orientation is scheduled for Saturday, June 25, 2022, at 9:30 a.m.

“We are so grateful for the help from our volunteers and other animal care agencies,” said Alachua County Animal Resources and Care (AR&C) Acting Director Nikki Healy. “My hope is that folks will use this new streamlined volunteer application to join us in caring for the animals in our severely overcrowded shelter.”

“There is an overabundance of animals in our southern shelters,” said Cathy Bissell, founder of the BISSELL Pet Foundation, in a recent article. “Shelters that have not euthanized for space in years are now having to make those painful choices,” Bissell continued.

To help address the serious nature of the situation, the Alachua County Commission will conduct a Special Meeting to discuss the current animal overcrowding at the shelter on Tuesday, June 28, at 5 p.m. at the Alachua County Administration Building at 12 S.E. 1^st Street, Gainesville.

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NEWBERRY ‒ A man was found dead from a gunshot on Thursday night, June 16, around 10:25 p.m. Alachua County Sheriff’s Office Deputies responded to 911 reports of a man lying on the ground next to a vehicle near Champions Park in Newberry. 

Upon arrival to the location at the 24000 block of Southwest 30th Avenue, they discovered 53-year-old Newberry resident Joseph M. Malone was deceased and had suffered a gunshot wound to his torso.

The type of gun used in the homicide was unknown but will be determined following an autopsy.

Alachua County Sheriffs’ deputies are urging the public to contact Alachua County Crime Stoppers if anyone has information about this incident.  A person can remain anonymous and still be eligible for a reward by contacting Alachua County Crime Stoppers Inc at 352-372-STOP (7867) or by downloading the Crime Stoppers P3 Tips app.

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WALDO ‒ On June 25, during national American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Ham Radio Field Day, the public is invited to see the debut of the newly-created Emergency Operations Center (EOC) for the City of Waldo. The Gainesville Amateur Radio Society (GARS) has joined forces with Waldo City management to establish a room at Waldo City Square to serve residents with emergency communications, even when cell phones and the internet are non-functioning.

All over North America, Field Day simulates these conditions, emergency communications are practiced and the public is invited to come and talk on the radios.

Waldo City Manager Kim Worley welcomed the offer from GARS to do the labor and planning of the room and to set up the radios that will be used to gather and share information to help local officials assist citizens during a crisis.

“We have two Council members who are Amateur Radio operators. During Hurricane Irma, people set up here informally to relay messages, but now we will have an established EOC. The major storms in South Florida showed governments that when cell towers and the internet are down, important information is scarce,” said Worley.

The furniture for the room was drawn from surplus and the radios are made available by GARS, “The Waldo EOC is being created through a collaboration of GARS volunteers and the City of Waldo,” said Club Vice-President and Waldo Council Member Shannon Boal. “GARS members hope this EOC relationship can exemplify the spirit that drives volunteer fire departments to help the community.”

Every June, more than 40,000 hams throughout North America set up temporary transmitting stations in public places to demonstrate ham radio's science, skill and service to our communities and our nation. It combines public service, emergency preparedness, community outreach and technical skills all in a single event. Field Day has been an annual event since 1933, and remains the most popular event in ham radio.

ARRL Field Day starts at 2 p.m. at the Waldo City Square, 14450 N.E. 148^th Avenue and runs for 24 hours. Adults and youth are invited to come by on Saturday afternoon to join the Club’s activities. For more information, go online to GARS.club.

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ALACHUA ‒ Betty Ann Terry, 46, of Alachua, was arrested on Tuesday, June 14, after allegedly flinging hot grease at a fellow employee at Popeyes Restaurant in Alachua.

On June 9, Alachua Police Department officers responded to Popeyes about a dispute between two employees. During their verbal argument, Terry allegedly said she was going to throw hot grease on the victim, another female employee.

The store manager said he had attempted to stop her, but he backed away in fear of having hot grease thrown on him. Terry then allegedly grabbed a tool from the fryer that had hot grease on it and she threw the grease at the victim. Witnesses said that Terry threw grease at the victim approximately three times. The regional manager told police that the grease is set at 330 degrees.

The victim had burn marks on her left side and left arm and there was damage to the business that had to be cleaned up, along with losses from having to close the business early. Terry reportedly fled before police arrived, but she was located on June 14.

Terry has been charged with aggravated battery causing harm or disability and damage to property under $200. She is being held on $75,150 bond.

Terry was previously arrested on Sept. 5, 2021, after allegedly threatening her nephew with a knife. The charges were later dropped on the same day her lawyer filed a motion requesting a reduction in her bond. Authorities report she has served five state prison terms and was most recently released in 2019 after serving a seven-year sentence on a conviction for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

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WALDO ‒ While enroute to a separate incident, Alachua County Fire Rescue Engine 40, which is based in Waldo, noticed a sudden, large column of black smoke rising just north of their location on U.S. Highway 301.

Engine 40 arrived at approximately 4:15 p.m. to find a two-vehicle T-bone style collision at the intersection of U.S. Highway 301 and Northeast County Road 225, just south of the Alachua/Bradford County Line.

Engine 40 simultaneously deployed a hose line as one of the vehicles was fully engulfed in flames, and also treated two patients with serious injuries. Both Patients were transported to the local trauma center. The accident is under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.

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