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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ North Central Florida is known for its pristine natural beauty and recreation based around the springs and rivers in the area. The rivers are popular spots for swimming, diving and boating by kayak or canoe and for group get togethers. Unfortunately, not everyone helps maintain the natural beauty they enjoy, discarding their trash in the river and on the surrounding banks.

The trash is not only unsightly and disruptive of the natural beauty, it adds to the pollution and degradation of the environment and river system. This is especially problematic for parks offering group recreation leading to group partying and an increase in trash at sites like the popular Ginnie Springs and other parks along the river.

Several organizations and individuals have taken it upon themselves to organize cleanup events with volunteers using kayaks to reach the banks and surface of the water and scuba divers to clean the river bottom. Often the cleanups are a combination of several groups to make use of more volunteers.

On the weekend after Labor Day, Our Santa Fe River organization (OSFR) teamed up with Rum 138, Current Problems, Trail Trash Outdoors, Anderson’s Outdoor Adventures and scuba divers James Merritt and Joe Miller along with other volunteers to do a large river clean up.

Current Problems, a Gainesville based non-profit organization, works to clean the waterways of North Central Florida not only by holding frequent cleanups but by also providing outreach and educating the public on water quality issues. So far, Current Problems has removed 888,000 pounds of trash from area rivers.

Rum 138, which is where OSFR is based, provided four free kayaks and transportation for those with their own canoes. Rum 138 also offered additional kayaks at a reduced rate of $15 per volunteer, young or old. That also included paddle, vessel, life jacket in tandem kayaks, canoes or single kayaks. Also included was shuttling services to and from the river. Anderson’s Outdoor Adventures also provided kayaks for the volunteers.

Brothers Travis and Maverick Smith founded Trail Trash Outdoors. They duo organized the event and filmed the efforts for their YouTube Channel and Facebook page. The brothers have been going on the river weekly since December in an effort to make a difference in the environment.

“High Springs is our home,” Maverick said. “We grew up here and want to help preserve this natural beauty for our kids and future generations to enjoy.”

The brothers started Trail Trash Outdoors after a hike in North Carolina mountains where they witnessed the large amount of trash people left beside the trail. As they hiked, they gathered the trash into piles and then removed it on their way out. “The whole way home we discussed it and when we got home and went on the river, we realized the same problem existed here so we decided to do something about it,” said Travis.

Each week they go down the river and film their efforts for their YouTube channel, which is a blend of tag-along camping footage, adventure hikes, trash cleanups and even a survivor challenge where the brothers race to see who can build the best fire the fastest. “We want to make the world a better place by removing trash from our environment,” said Travis. On their weekly cleanups, other kayakers and swimmers in the springs watch the pair travel through using their garbage grabbers. The brothers like to remind tourists that the bottled water they drink comes from the very springs they are hauling this trash out of.

They are not the only ones filming their efforts. Divers James Merritt and brother-in-law Joe Miller also have a YouTube channel and Facebook page, “Into the Water with James.”

“I noticed the amount of trash in the water and decided to do something about it and make the public aware of the problem by filming our dives,” Merritt said.

Not everything the divers find is trash. “We find a lot of cell phones, sunglasses, watches and shoes—items people drop when leaning over their boat to take photos or capsize,” said Merritt. “Any items we can't return we see as a little bit of profit for our efforts. I have more sunglasses than I know what to do with. Occasionally we have even found car keys, which means somebody, especially a tourist, is having a really bad day.” Merritt said.

Volunteers met at 8 each morning at Rum 138 for the cleanup day. On Saturday, 28 volunteers gathered at Rum Island Park between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. to float downstream to Hollingsworth Bluff Boat Ramp. On Sunday, participants gathered at the U.S. Highway 27 Bridge and paddled downstream to Rum Island Park, collecting trash as they went. At Hollingsworth Bluff Boat Ramp, a dumpster was provided by Current Problems with assistance from Columbia County.

On Saturday the group collected 274 pounds of trash and 138 pounds on Sunday. “However, with the river being so high, it means there’s a whole world of trash we still weren’t able to reach but have goals to attack in the near future,” said Smith. “We found a good bit of trash but not as much as we would like.”

The groups are planning to do another major clean up in late October or early November. Anyone interested in joining or getting more information can contact one of the groups through their Facebook pages or contact Rum 138 at 386-454-4247.

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ALACHUA ‒ The Swamp Bots of Alachua are working to make science more appealing to students. Composed of students from several Alachua County high schools, they recently held one of several upcoming exhibitions to engage kids in kindergarten through high school in exciting, mentor-based, research and robotics programs and is open to all skill levels. The goal is to help them become science and technology leaders, as well as well-rounded contributors to society. The initial exhibition by the Swamp Bots took place at the City of Alachua’s Hal Brady Recreation Center on Sept. 3. Kids faced a course laid out on a plywood board and were given Legos to build robots they could program to navigate the course

The Swamp Bots are part of FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), which is an organization founded to build student interest in STEM—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. These fields will play an important part in the jobs of the future. There are groups of FIRST members throughout the world with over 90,000 members.

The organization was founded in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen, who is best known for inventing the Segway PT, an electric, self-balancing human transporter with a computer-controlled gyroscopic stabilization and control system. Kamen was already a successful inventor when he produced the Segway.

Kamen created FIRST to foster the love of science in a younger generation. His vision was "To transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology leaders”. But FIRST is more than robots. The Robots are a vehicle for students to learn important life skills. “Kids often come in not knowing what to expect from the program or themselves,” said Kamen. “They leave with a vision, with confidence, and a sense they can create their own future.”

There are several levels to the FIRST program based on age. FIRST LEGO League introduces children ages 4-16 o science through fun, exciting hands-on learning. The participants gain real-world problem-solving experiences through a guided, global robotics program using Legos to build robots that can be programmed to complete a course.

FIRST Tech Challenge teams (up to 15 team members, grades 7-12) are challenged to design, build, program, and operate robots to compete in a head-to-head challenge in an alliance format. Guided by adult coaches and mentors, the students develop STEM skills and practice engineering principles, while also realizing the value of hard work, innovation, and working as a team. The robot kit they build is reusable from year to year and can be coded using different levels of Java-based programming.

Teams design the robots, raise funds to build it, design and market their team brand, and do community outreach to earn specific awards. Participants are eligible to apply for part of $80 million in college scholarships. Each season concludes with regional championship events

For high school students and their mentors, there is the First Robotics Competition. Under strict rules and limited time and resources, the teams of high school students are challenged to build industrial-size robots to play a difficult field game in alliance with other teams, while also fundraising to meet their goals, designing a team “brand,” and gives the teams an opportunity to work and create together.

“The competition is more than building robots and competing,” said Ben Sanders, mentor of the Alachua Swamp Bots group. “They also have to explain to the judges how they built it to show the analytical thought process. While the core value is problem solving, they also have to show the judges that they worked as a team with input from everyone. The judges want to see that they thought it out before acting,” Sanders said.

“In the competition, cooperation is important, not just within a team but against competitors as well,” said Sanders. “If a team or person is rude or arrogant to others or doesn't work as a team, the judges will scratch them from the event. While it is meant to be a fun challenge, it is also meant to teach social skills, cooperation and be a contributing member in society,” Sanders said.

The Swamp Bots group started in Sanders’ living room in 2012 and his son is one of the members. Sanders, a mechanical engineer, works in Progress Park and considers the Swamp Bots as his weekend hobby with his kids. But the Swamp Bots don't just compete, they also demonstrate the excitement of designing and creating, working together and gaining confidence in abilities to younger students. That's the group is holding free exhibits where any student between four and 18 can attend, build and program a Lego robot to work through the outlined course.

The Alachua Swamp Bots received a grant from the Children's Trust of Alachua to help start groups of middle school students. So far, they have helped initiate groups in High Springs, Alachua and Turkey Creek, all mentored by an adult. Another group is currently forming in Waldo.

More information on the FIRST program can be found at https://www.firstinspires.org/ . For information on local activities and groups, contact Ben Sanders at sanders32615@gmail.com.

“We want to make science exciting and show kids the achievements they can make both as individuals and as a team and help shape their future,” Sanders said.

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NEWBERRY – The Newberry City Commission has drawn a line in the sand with respect to Alachua County’s proposed Charter Amendment. At the Aug. 24 City Commission meeting, commissioners voted unanimously to approve Resolution No. 2020-36 in opposition to the County’s Charter Amendment, which if approved by voters in November, would extend the County’s growth management jurisdiction in various municipalities.

Commissioners voiced concerns that the change would take away home rule from the cities and give it to the County. Mayor Jordan Marlowe said that the Alachua County League of Cities is in opposition to this significant change and he hopes community leaders in the other municipalities will educate their voters as to the significance of the proposed change.

The City’s resolution indicates that if the County’s proposed charter amendment is implemented it is designed to restrict the ability of municipalities to determine the appropriate uses for property within their jurisdiction after annexing property from the County.

The resolution further asserts that the Florida Constitution provides for Home Rule. Article VIII, Section 2(b) of the Florida Constitution reads, “Municipalities shall have governmental, corporate and proprietary powers to enable them to conduct municipal government, perform municipal functions and render municipal services, and may exercise power for municipal purposes except as otherwise provided by law.”

Newberry’s Commissioners said local elected officials make the best decisions about commercial, residential, recreational and conservation development within their community.

The resolution states that the County’s proposed amendment, as drafted, “eliminates the ability of municipalities to determine land uses that allows them to chart their unique course of development and differentiate themselves from other local communities.”

Pointing out that businesses and residential property owners often choose to annex into a municipality because they believe their interests are compatible, this proposed change will negatively impact growth and limit people’s ability to make those types of choices, stressed Newberry’s commissioners.

Commissioners said they are capable of managing their own zoning and policies and do not believe that the extra, unnecessary level of bureaucracy is in the best interest of the citizens of Newberry.

A map of the County’s Growth Management Area indicates just how much land the County will control should this amendment be approved. Commissioners encouraged the public to go to the County’s website to view that map.

The resolution approved by Newberry’s City Commission states “it is in opposition to the County’s proposed Charter Amendment that would prohibit the City from managing growth of land annexed from the County.”

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GAINESVILLE ‒ Healthcare facilities continue to face personal protective equipment (PPE) shortages amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Haven included.

Gainesville’s Queen of Peace Catholic Church learned of a gown shortage and donated a large quantity of used sheets through a recent outreach event. The sheets would later be converted into gowns for Haven’s clinical staff and visiting family members to wear.

Greg Hollingshead, who oversees outreach ministry at Queen of Peace, said, “When the COVID pandemic became acute in March, we got in contact with our ministry partners and asked, ‘How can we help?’ This question turned into an expansion of our monthly food program. But in May and June, in talking to other organizations, we realized they had non-food missions we may be able to help with. To respond to specific needs, we made a wish list. We learned that Haven was experiencing difficulty getting gowns so we put sheets on the wish lists for Haven’s volunteer seamstresses.”

Haven’s volunteers are not currently able to visit patients due to COVID-19, but have been searching for ways to continue serving. When Queen of Peace donated sheets, volunteers in each of Haven’s service areas offered to sew the sheets into gowns.

The volunteers used a CDC-approved gown pattern to convert the sheets into safe, usable PPE. “I’m a retired nurse so I know how important protective equipment is. I didn’t know clinical staff at Haven were still having difficulty getting them,” said volunteer Joan MacLeod. “I’ve been sewing since I was a little girl and have a nice machine. I’ve got it down to where I can make one gown in three hours. I just finished the eighteenth gown. As long as Haven needs them, I’ll keep making them and am happy to do so.”

MacLeod, who is a long-time Haven Advance Care Planning volunteer, said that she is sewing gowns for the Gainesville area and that seamstresses in Haven’s other service areas have also volunteered to continually make gowns.

Haven proudly continues to serve patients, including those who are COVID-19-positive, across the state. Various challenges have arisen as a result of the pandemic and Haven is thankful for those who have helped creatively address these obstacles.

“Haven is grateful that Queen of Peace quickly and graciously donated sheets to be made into gowns in a time of need,” said Haven Director of Clinical Operations Brigid Doherty. “In a time where personal protective equipment is hard to come by, the community and our volunteers have stepped up to serve our clinical staff, as well as our patients and families, in unique ways.”

In regard to continued partnership, Queen of Peace’s outreach ministry leader Hollingshead said, “We were told that we far exceeded Haven’s expectations. As far as sheets are concerned, we had people clean out their entire linen closet and donate. We’re happy to do it. Hopefully this is the beginning of a long-term relationship between us and Haven.”

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• Online: Florida residents can register to vote online. The online voter registration portal — found at RegisterToVoteFlorida.gov — is a safe and secure option for voter registration.
• In person: The Alachua County Supervisor of Elections’ office, located in Gainesville at 515 N. Main St. on the third floor of the Josiah T. Walls Building, is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Supervisor of Elections Office will remain open until 7 p.m. on October 5. Registrations can also be completed and turned in at any Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles office or Alachua County Public Library.
• After hours: The Alachua County Supervisor of Elections’ office has a white, secure, afterhours drop box outside its main entrance. Completed forms received through the drop box by 11:59 p.m. October 5 will be accepted.
• By mail: Forms are available online at VoteAlachua.com. Mailed forms must be completed and postmarked by the October 5 deadline.

GAINESVILLE/LAKE CITY ‒ September is Suicide Prevention Month and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) wants to remind Veterans and their loved ones through the “Be There” campaign that small actions can make a big difference to Veterans experiencing difficult times.

During this and every month the North Florida/ South Georgia Veterans Health System (NF/SGHVS) remains committed to spreading awareness of suicide prevention to Veterans and their supporters and connecting them to the resources they need.

“At VA we are proud to play a leading role in this important national effort” stated Thomas Wisnieski, health system Director. “Each one of us can learn to either be a resource, or direct people in need of resources.”

“Be There” suggests several simple actions that can help make a difference for a Veteran to include:

• Learning about the warning signs of suicide, found at https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/education/signs-of-crisis.
• Watching the free https://psycharmor.org/courses/s-a-v-e/ to learn how to respond with care and compassion if someone indicates they are having thoughts of suicide.
• Contacting VA’s https://www.mirecc.va.gov/coaching/ program where a licensed psychologist or social worker will provide loved ones with guidance for motivating Veterans to seek support.
• Sharing stories of hope and recovery from VA’s https://maketheconnection.net/
• Reaching out to the Veterans in your life to show them you care by sending a check-in text, cook them dinner or simply asking, “How are you?”

For more information and resources visit http://bethereforveterans.com/.

NF/SGVHS offers a range of services to Veterans who are at risk of suicide, to include same day urgent care mental health services and primary care mental health integration. Suicide prevention coordinators are available to speak with any Veteran and/or family member experiencing a crisis they are also able to provide education and outreach efforts.

If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, contact the Veterans Crisis Line to receive free, confidential support and crisis intervention available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Call 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1, text to 838255, or chat online at http://veteranscrisisline.net/Chat.

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