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New DIY Studio opens in Winter Haven

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New DIY Studio opens in Winter Haven

New DIY Studio opens in Winter Haven

By Allison Williams

 

The Makers Co. is a new small business located right in Winter Haven. Gina Smith, owner of The Makers Co. started her DIY studio business just a few months ago. Working for several years as a nurse, she decided it was time to find something else she was passionate about to share with others.

“I love to craft,” Smith said.  “I went to a workshop and thought this would be a really great business.”

After Smith attended the craft workshop, she knew it was the right time to pursue her passion.

“The seed was planted and this year I really started giving it some real thought about starting my business,” Smith said. “I chose to start it out of my home and so we have a studio set up that can accommodate about 12 people.”

Since opening officially a few months back, Smith has seen the momentum shift. She has started her wood sign workshops to share what she loves to do with others.

Smith’s husband, Darryl has been hard at work making new work stations to use in their home studio. On Sunday, she hosted a wood sign workshop. Guests were able to get creative and choose their own designs or could pick from Smith’s collection.

Each individual started with a blank wooden pallet. Smith walked everybody through the process, step by step.

First the pallets were sanded down to create a smoother starting surface. Then a base coat was put down over the wood. To give the signs a more rustic look and finish, a second coat was placed on top and then sanded down.

Next was the stenciling. Each person was given a stencil sheet of the artwork piece they picked before attending the workshop. After choosing colors and painting, each piece of art was truly one of a kind. Everybody was happy with the outcome.

This is the part Smith loves about what she does. “At the end of it, seeing everybody really happy about what they made and being able to say ‘wow I can do it’ is her favorite part. People get really scared and apprehensive. People feel they aren’t artistic. I try to be as helpful as possible. If you need help I want to help you, but I don’t want to hover.”

She allows each person the opportunity to be imaginative, but is always ready to step in and help when needed.

Maybe creating artwork isn’t for everybody. This is why Smith also offers custom orders. “People who want a sign but don’t want to do a workshop can definitely place an order,” Smith said. She also has ready-made signs and other artwork available for purchase at Rustic Rose Vintage Shop in downtown Winter Haven.

For now, Smith is running the wood sign workshops out of her home studio. Her future plans are to open a brick and mortar storefront here in Winter Haven.

For those interested in learning more or signing up for a workshop, visit https://themakerscofl.com.

“No artistic ability is needed and everything you need is supplied,” Smith said.

The next workshop is scheduled for August 25 at 1:00 p.m. Cost is $35. This is a “pick your design” workshop.

Special events are also encouraged and can be arranged:

  • Private parties
  • Girls’ night out
  • Baby showers
  • Bridal showers
  • Holiday parties
  • Birthday parties
  • Team building

To see work from previous workshops, visit The Makers Co. Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/themakerscofl/

Instagram:

@themakerscofl

Hudson Man Arrested for Soliciting and 11-year-old Polk County Girl Online

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Hudson Man Arrested for Soliciting and 11-year-old Polk County Girl Online

On Friday, August 10, 2018, a Polk County arrest warrant was served on 38-year-old Michael Lee Caraway of 8504 Hunting Saddle Drive in Hudson (which is in Pasco County) charging him with:

  • Directing sexual performance of a child (F-2)
  • Transmission of material harmful to a minor (F-3)
  • Use of two-way communication device to commit felony (F-3)

Caraway was taken into custody by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and booked into the Polk County Jail.

According to his affidavit, PCSO computer crimes deputies responded to the 11-year-old victim’s home, which is in unincorporated Polk County, due to suspicions her guardians had that she was being solicited online by a man she met when he was doing construction work at the house. Detectives located over 450 pornographic images on the victim’s phone of herself that she sent to the suspect at his direction, and over 50 images of the suspect’s genitalia that he had sent to the victim. During the investigation, PCSO detectives consulted with FDLE and the statewide prosecutor’s office, due to the fact that the suspect lives in Pasco County and frequents Polk and Hillsborough during the work week.

Once Caraway was taken into custody, he was interviewed by detectives, during which he admitted to having explicit sexual conversations with the victim via text messages, including sending and receiving pornographic images. He also sent her adult pornography from various websites. He further admitted to “making out” with the same victim in another county (not Polk or Pasco) and that investigation is ongoing by another agency.

The suspect’s electronic devices were seized, and more charges are pending a forensic analysis of the devices. He’s being held in the Polk County Jail on $20,000 bond ($5,000 per the two F-3 charges, and $10,000 per the F-2 charge).

“Here’s another disgusting suspect who preyed on a Polk County child online. We say it over and over again – we don’t care where you live, if you victimize a child in our county, we will come after you and put you in jail. We can only hope this suspect hasn’t victimized any other children he met during the course of his occupation or in his personal life. If you suspect he has, please call law enforcement immediately.” –Grady Judd, Sheriff

 

“Biggest 90s Party” Raises Funds For Local Breast Cancer Patient

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“Biggest 90s Party” Raises Funds For Local Breast Cancer Patient

“Biggest 90s Party” Raises Funds For Local Breast Cancer Patient

by James Coulter

Plenty of “totally radical” dudes and dudettes had the chance to “get jiggy with it” while supporting a local breast cancer patient during “The Biggest 90’s Ball & Prom Party” at Masons Live! in Lakeland.

Guests had the chance to get dressed in their tight-rolled jeans and bright-colored clothes and spend the night re-living their 90s kid nostalgia during this party themed to the most “tubular” decade ever.

Helping revitalize their “most triumphant” nostalgia were some of the hottest 90s songs and dance moves churned out with the aid of MTV-famous deejay, DJ Scribble, who donated his time for this event.

When not “busting a move” out on the dance floor like DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, guests could either down a Jell-O shot or eat some finger food from a buffet serving 90s kids favorites such as Tostito’s Pizza Rolls, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, and Taquitos.

From 7 p.m. that Saturday evening up until the wee hours of Sunday morning around 2:30 a.m., guests could party like its 1999 and sing and dance to the songs that remind them of the good times, and sing and dance to the songs that remind them of the best times.

While the 90s-themed event was good for allowing many locals to re-live their fondest memories of the most “tubular” decade ever, more importantly, it served as a charity fundraiser for a local Lakeland woman currently fighting cancer.

Ensley Roessler, a Mason’s employee, had recently been diagnosed with breast cancer, and had been going through several rounds of chemo to help combat it. As the treatment has left her unable to work, the expenses for her treatment have especially been a challenge for her.

As such, her employer decided to host this charity event to help raise funds for her medical expenses. And as she was a product of the 90s herself, being born in 1991, a 90s-themed event seemed all the more fitting for her.

All of the proceeds from the event go directly towards her to help cover her medical expenses. Having already survived her chemotherapy, and with only four more weeks of treatment to go, not only is Roessler feeling well, but she is looking and doing well, as she managed to attend the event in her honor that evening.

“It is amazing, and I am so happy for everyone who came out to support me,” she said. “I love everybody having a good time. I love the support from everybody in the community and all of my friends and family.”

Masons Live! was the most “excellent” place to host such a “gnarly” event. The local venue has been routinely voted best/bar club, best patio, best DJ, and best live music in the Lakeland area.

Sean Williams, General Manager, has been overseeing Masons Live! for the past five months. He loves hosting such parties, whether it’s for a baby shower or event for a political cause.

The large venue provides enough room for everybody to have a good time. Only two hours into the event alone, and their list of pre-sold tickets had become 20 percent filled, with 80 percent of the pre-paid customers still arriving throughout the evening, he said.

“I love the big place where you can host big events,” he said. “You can have only 12 people here and still have the best time of your life.”

Masons Live! is located at 5501 Florida Avenue S. in Lakeland. For more information about future events, visit http://www.masonslive.com.

Double Vision: Photocentric Paintings By Richard Heipp

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Double Vision: Photocentric Paintings By Richard Heipp

Double Vision: Photocentric Paintings By Richard Heipp

by James Coulter

Stepping into the gallery for the art exhibit of Richard Heipp at the Polk Museum of Art is like stepping into the pages of a scientific textbook.

Inside you’ll find several large photographs (or rather, what appears to be photographs) overlaid with graphs and camera lens markings, with black illustrations doodled on the white walls and amidst displays of scientific equipment, anatomy models, and cameras.

Heipp revels in his “maximalist” aesthetic (the opposite of minimalist), as he uses up whatever space he is given and puts it to good use.

“If you give me an empty space, I will fill it up,” he said. “I want things to be full all the time. I like to make my artwork to fill it up with as much space as I can.”

At first glance, many of these large photographs appear to be just that: large photos. But upon a closer glace, you’ll see that they’re really photo-centric paintings.

This level of photorealism was created through the air-brushed simulations of photographs and other scanned objects, thus making them appear as real as the original copies themselves.

Heipp considers his artwork to be at the crossroads between classic art and modernism, to blend the reality of the realistic and the idealistic.

While classic art was the window to the world, and modernism was the wall to that window, his photo-centric artwork is where the wall and window meet as one.

“So I wanted to find the space that was kind of in between there, between the window and wall itself where the window becomes the wall,” he said.

As such, his artwork focuses on the perception of illusion. He wants to use his art to show how art, specifically photography, helps influence us as a culture.

“My work, I wanted it to be more than just the feel for the photograph, but also how in many cases the role that photography plays in shaping the way we see and shaping the way we think as a culture,” he said.

One such art piece involves the negative photograph of a young girl framed within the insignia of a rose and within a red house.

The photo itself was inspired by anti-Nazi propaganda, and the rose was the symbol of the underground group, The White Rose, that would post such propaganda in the dead of night, and that was inevitably arrested, captured, and executed by the Nazis.

“So that tells you how ideas can be squelched,” Heipp said. “The government can come in and take what is yours. They can impose these values on you.”

Heipp was born in 1952 in Cleveland, Ohio to parents who were both German immigrants from Yugoslavia.

Born with the visual condition, strabismus, he was cross-eyed. This caused him to see double, thus requiring him to focus on one eye rather than the other as to allow himself to see straight.

“What that means is that I see the world in a much flatter way then everyone else, which makes it easier to draw,” he said.

From a very young age, he exercised his ability to draw. He would often spend time copying the comic illustrations from the Sunday newspaper comics pages.

He graduated from a vocational high school before attending community college, becoming the first person in his family to attend university.

Heipp graduated with his bachelor of art from the Cleveland Institute of Art and with his masters of art from the University of Washington.

For the past 37 years, he has taught as a proffesor of painting at the University of Florida and as the director of arts and art history from 2010 to 2015.

He has been the recipient of several accolades throughout his art career, including six Florida Individual Artist Fellowships and an Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award from the Southeastern College Arts Association.

Heipp sees the world from a much flatter perspective due to his strabismus. This allows him to not only draw better in two-dimensions, but allows him to better reproduce photographs with near photorealism.

“So as this artwork goes, it causes you to slow down and think about how it makes you feel,” he said. “That is what we as artists are trying to do, we are trying to challenge you emotionally and intellectually.”

Alex Rich, Polk Museum Curator, appreciates how Heipp serves as both a good studio artist and a great proffesor, as he demonstrated during his gallery talk on Friday, August 10.

The exhibit itself is unlike any other that the museum has showcased in recent years, as the various art pieces, coupled with the lighting, displays, and illustrations, thus fully engaging the average museum patron in more ways than one.

“It is unlike most other exhibitions that we have shown within the museum, and in particular, in recent years,” he said. “It is engaging in terms of its multimedia, its using familiar images and unfamiliar images, its focus on eyes, it is stimulating for all different audiences…So it is wonderful to see all these different pieces in a single contemporary art show.”

Double Vision is currently on display from now until August 25 at the Polk Museum of Art, located at 800 E. Palmetto Street in Lakeland. For more information, visit their website at: https://polkmuseumofart.org/

Florida’s Economy Growing Faster Than Rest Of Country, Chief Economist Says

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Florida’s Economy Growing Faster Than Rest Of Country, Chief Economist Says

Florida’s Economy Growing Faster Than Rest Of Country, Chief Economist Says

by James Coulter

Florida’s economy and population is growing, will continue to grow, and will pose challenges for the future that the state will have to adapt to.

That was the big takeaway during the third annual I-4 Commercial Corridor Conference at Florida Polytechnic University in Lakeland on Thursday.

Having recently surpassed one trillion dollars, Florida’s economy is growing twice as fast as the rest of the country and is creating twice as many jobs, according to Dr. Jerry Parrish, Chief Economist & Director of Research at the Florida Chamber Foundation.

Dr. Parrish was one of the many top market analysts and experts to report on the economic news and trends occurring with the state, especially along the I-4 Corridor, during the conference, hosted by Coldwell Banker Commercial Saunders Ralston Dantzler (CBCSRD).

The chief economist broke the good news to attendees during his luncheon speech, where he shared many of the economic findings and data from his foundation as presented on the Florida Scorecard.

While the overall U.S. growth rate remains at 1.6 percent, Florida’s growth rate is nearly twice as large at 2 percent, he said. Leading the state in this job growth has been Miami-Dade County with 31,534 jobs created, followed by Orange (25,069) and Broward (17,564).

So much has Florida’s economy grown that the state has become the third largest economy within the country, and would be the 17th largest economy within the world if it were its own independent country, he further explained.

Florida’s economic growth has been reported across the world by news media in countries ranging from New Zealand to Poland. One such article had a headline that read: “Has Florida found the secret to saving the economy?”

“The reason it’s getting so much press is because nobody is believing it,” he said. “People are still surprised.”

Helping to grow Florida’s economy has been its influx of new residents. On average, $879,000 is moving to Florida every hour of every single day, Dr. Parrish reported. Polk County itself has experienced a population change of 11,015 people, with the county receiving the most migrants being Orange County with 27,016.

With this economic and population growth will come new issues that the state will face in upcoming years. The most pressing issues remain the affordability of housing and transportation.

How the state can tackle these issues has been detailed within the strategic report, “The Florida 2030 Project”, which can be read in full at the Florida Foundation Website: www.Florida2030.org

The I-4 Commercial Corridor Conference offered several discussion panels to address some of these issues, as well as the business potential for the state, especially along the I-4 Commercial Corridor located between Tampa and Orlando.

Parrish further provided his economic expertise on these subjects during one panel, “Economic Opportunities for the I-4 Corridor”, which he attended along with Mike Grissom, Executive Vice President for Enterprise Florida, and Gary M. Ralston, broker & managing partner for Coldwell Banker Commercial.

With the increase of jobs in the state comes an increase in the number of commutes. More than 7,000 commuters travel along the interstate per day, which means more money being transferred away from where they live and towards where they worked, he said.

As such, during their panel, he and his colleagues discussed ways to promote business growth along the corridor, and in doing so, keeping income within their respective area.

Grissom proposed creating more business opportunities within the corridor by further loosening regulations, thus making it easier for businesses to start up within that area.

He mentioned how such job growth had already occurred within the state under the deregulation pushed by Governor Rick Scott. Before Scott arrived in office, the average permitting time for businesses was 79 day; now, it was less than 33 days, he stated.

“We heard complaints [from businesses] that if the regulations…are too hard, they give up,” he said. “So my magic pill is to make it easy for business so they can grow and expand.”

For Parrish, his suggestion was to promote better financial education, especially among high school and college graduates, as far too many lack the proper understanding to make the best financial decisions.

For example, many people assume that commuting outside their home city for a better paying job will benefit them more; but when factoring in automobile expenses such as gas and maintenance, working a lower paying job closer to home would often save them better money, he said.

“When you look at the cost of commuting to the cost of living, it is so expensive that you can make half as much if you simply work where you live,” he said. “Financial education can solve a lot here.”

Frostproof Man Arrested On Multiple Charges Of Sexually Abusing Children & 68 Counts Of Child Pornography

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Frostproof Man Arrested On Multiple Charges Of Sexually Abusing Children & 68 Counts Of Child Pornography

Polk County Sheriffs Office Press Release

On Friday, August 10, 2018, PCSO undercover computer crimes detectives arrested 63-year-old Keith Guy Garrard, Sr., of 378 Hwy 630 East in Frostproof and charged him with:

• 68 counts possession of child pornography – enhanced (F-2)

• 2 counts sexual battery by a custodian on a victim under 12 years old (F-L)

• 2 counts sexual battery by a suspect over 18 on a victim under 12 (F-L)

“This monster is behind bars today because someone saw something, and said something. During the child pornography investigation, we further learned that he has sexually abused children – a crime which has no statute of limitations. We will do everything in our power to ensure he never has access to children again.” Grady Judd, Sheriff

According to his affidavits, staff members at a health/medical facility in unincorporated Highlands County witnessed what appeared to be Garrard, who resides in Polk but was at the facility receiving treatment, viewing images of child pornography on his laptop.

The staff members contacted the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office. HCSO detectives responded to the facility, and during an on-scene preview of his laptop, found child pornography. Garrard admitted to possessing the images, and told detectives he has more pornography at home on his computer devices there, and that he has used his cell phone to take images of young children that he sees while out. HCSO special victims unit detectives contacted PCSO, due to the fact that Garrard lives in unincorporated Polk County.

PCSO detectives served a search warrant at Garrard’s home, and located several electronic devices, which they seized for forensic analysis. They also interviewed Garrard, who told them he has been viewing child pornography for approximately 20 years. He repeated what he told HCSO detectives, that he had taken photos of female juveniles’ crotch areas with his cell phone, for the purpose of sexual gratification. He told detectives he had printed several images, and detectives located 68 printed images depicting children as young as 6 months old being sexually battered.

During the investigation, detectives interviewed more witnesses and discovered he sexually battered three different victims that he had access to when they were very young children. Garrard confessed to committing the sexual abuse.

More charges are pending the forensic analysis of his electronic devices. He is being held in the Polk County Jail under no bond for the capital felony charges, and $5,000 bond for each child pornography char

Bartow Police Searching For Suspect Who Allegedly Pistol Whipped, Shot At & Robbed Victims

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Bartow Police Searching For Suspect Who Allegedly Pistol Whipped, Shot At & Robbed Victims

Bartow Police Press Release

On 08/09/18, the victims who are from another country and in the United States participating in a student-exchange study and work program, began communicating with a subject on Facebook messenger Marketplace about the purchase of a cell phone. The victims were eventually lured to Azalea Gardens, 1050 Golfview Ave. Bartow, to complete the purchase, where the two subjects robbed the victims at gun point, pistol whipped them, and fired a shot at them. The victims sustained lacerations to their heads as a result of being pistol whipped and US currency was stolen from them by the suspects.

Detectives with the Bartow Police Department have identified one suspect as, Jonathan L. Vaughn, DOB 06/11/97, who has an arrest warrant for two counts of armed robbery with a firearm, two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and discharging a firearm in public.

A social media photograph of the second suspect has been obtained and we are asking assistance in identifying him.

Anyone with information can remain anonymous and submit tips through Heartland Crime Stoppers where you can receive up to a $3000 reward.

Heartland Crime Stoppers 1-800-226-TIPS(8477) or www.heartlandcrimestoppers.com.

19 Yr Old Woman Seriously Injured In Polk Crash Saturday

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19 Yr Old Woman Seriously Injured In Polk Crash Saturday

The PCSO Traffic Unit is investigating a two-vehicle crash that occurred in the Bradley area of Lakeland Saturday morning. Preliminary information so far is as follows:

Around 10:20 a.m. this morning, Saturday, August 11, 2018, a 2008 black Nissan X-Terra being driven by 17-year-old Gavin Boles of Mulberry was heading southbound on SR 37 near Radar Road when, due to water on the roadway, it hydroplaned into the path of a 2018 silver Mitsubishi Mirage that was heading northbound, being driven by 19-year-old Destiny Nichols of Bradenton.

The occupants of both vehicles were all wearing their seatbelts and the airbags deployed.

Nichols was transported to LRHMC with serious injuries. She is in critical condition. She was the only occupant of her vehicle. Gavin and his passenger, who is his 13-year-old sister Gwendolyn, were not injured. They were offered treatment on-scene by PCFR but refused treatment.

Weather and driver inexperience are both thought to be factors in the crash. It was raining at the time. SR 37 was reduced to one lane of travel during the investigation, and deputies assisted by routing traffic around it.

Ready Or Not It’s Time For School – A Message From Lake Wales Police Department

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Ready Or Not It’s Time For School – A Message From Lake Wales Police Department

Ready or Not It’s Time for School

It’s that time again and a new school year is already upon us. For weeks parents have been checking items off the back to school supply lists and confirming schedules, while our children express their excitement and anticipation of the first school day through social media. Meanwhile, teachers have been setting up their classrooms and preparing lesson plans to take our children to the next level in their education. Some parents will anxiously send their children off to school for the very first time next week while others have mastered the routine and can already see graduation right around the corner. The Lake Wales Police and Fire Departments share this excitement and are ready to make sure our students are safe and secure.

Monday morning students of all ages will be walking to and waiting at bus stops, walking to school or traveling our roads in private transportation. Drivers are urged to pay extra attention during their travels next week and exercise caution due to the increased activity. Be aware of school zones and reduce your speed accordingly, obey school crossing guards, stop for school buses as they loading and unload students, slow down near school bus stops and leave a little earlier so you are not rushing to get to your destination.

A common traffic violation that is both dangerous and costly relates to passing a school bus which has stopped to load or unload children. The Florida Statute requires drivers traveling in both directions to stop unless traveling in the opposite direction and the roadway is divided by a barrier such as a raised median or guard rail. The fine for passing a stopped school bus is $269.00. Additionally, traffic fines for speeding in a school zone range from $154.00 to $604.00 and may even result in a mandatory court appearance.

The Lake Wales Police and Fire Departments will be present at many of the school zones next week to help educate the community, increase safety awareness and conduct traffic enforcement. For the sake of our children, please partner with us by driving safely and paying extra close attention to your surroundings. Working together we can help ensure our students remain safe and secure while they prepare to become tomorrow’s leaders.

Main Street Winter Haven Discusses Future Plans For Downtown Area

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Main Street Winter Haven Discusses Future Plans For Downtown Area

Main Street Winter Haven Discusses Future Plans For Downtown Area

by James Coulter

Planting seeds in the present to grow trees for the future was a general theme of the Main Street Winter Haven Annual Meeting on Wednesday.

Main Street Winter Haven hosted its annual meeting to discuss its accomplishments within the past year, announce its plans for the upcoming year, and to honor new committee members and benefactors.

As almost a testament to their accomplishments, their meeting was hosted at the new Winter Haven Tennis Complex, which had been renovated and re-opened to the public earlier that summer.

Their immediate plans included the announcement of the Carl J Strang Urban Tree Canopy Fund, a project to raise funds to plant new trees within the downtown area. The fund had been started with an initial $20,000.

The fund was named after Carl Strang, a local philanthropist who, prior to his passing, had been involved within the community, including serving as the Winter Haven Mayor as well as the head and founder of many local organizations.

Strang loved the outdoors and the downtown area, and did everything in his lifetime to give back to his community, especially when it involved improving the local environment, explained Kerry Wilson, President of Six/Ten LLC.

“He was always wanting to plant trees,” said Wilson. “We hope a lot of people will continue to recognize Carl and hopefully join us in making downtown a more livable and sustainable environment.

Anita Strang, Main Street Winter Haven CEO, remembered the very last contribution her father-in-law made by having an oak tree planted outside of the refurbished Derry Down. She hopes that more trees like that are planted in his honor through this fund.

“I am very proud the oak tree is growing and will continue to grow, and I am proud to see every tree planted under his name,” she said.

This overall theme of making present day investments for future growth was exemplified by T. Michael Stravers, Winter Haven Assistant City Manager, when he discussed the recent renovations within the downtown area and announced plans for the immediate future.

Such plans included renovations to Martin Luther King Jr. Park along Lake Silver, including the construction of a new skate park and overall refurbishments to the water ski show area.

The city is currently recrafting proposals for the skate park, which is expected to be designed and constructed by 2019.

As for the water ski show area, renovations include removing the concrete seating and replacing it with green grass embankment, making the facilities ADA-compatible, and adding a new stage area.

Such new additions will hopefully continue the trend of revitalizing the downtown area and making it attractive to new residents and businesses.

Stravers mentioned how such growth had occurred years ago following the construction of the library building and the Complete Street Project along the Third Street corridor.

Prior to the construction of the new public library, the downtown area was empty; but the new facility has since stimulated economic growth and activity. Stravers hopes further activity will grow and thrive with these new public investments.

“You could shoot a gun on Central Avenue, but not only would you not hit anybody, no one would hear it,” he said. “Since that public investment, we have had an economic boom of activity that has continued to happen…You cannot go downtown and not see a bustle of activity.”

Later that evening, Former President Carman Rich ceremoniously passed her title and gavel onto the new president, Alex Santiago.

Having served within the organization as its president for two years, Rich has overseen many projects including the refurbishment of the Derry Down, the construction of South Central Park, and the creation of an interactive downtown map.

Tearfully, she shared her past experience within the organization, and expressed gratitude for everyone within it for helping her thus far.

“It is a sad day for me as I finish two years as Main Street president,” she said. “It has been an honor, it really means a lot to me that you had faith in me to be your president, and I want to thank Anita and the board for everything we have accomplished.”

Upon accepting his gavel and new position, Santiago expressed his gratitude for being conferred this honor and his intentions of using it for the greater benefit of the local community.

Santiago previously served on the board of directors from 2007 to 2011. He later returned to continue serving from 2014 until the present, when he will complete his last year there as the new president.

As someone who has raised his family within the community for the past 39 years, and who currently has grandchildren being raised within it, he understands how the community has benefited him.

As such, he desires to use his position to give back to his community so that it can continue to benefit both current and future generations.

“Giving back to the community that has cared for and supported our family is honor,” he said. “Downtown Winter Haven has come a long way since the years I have been involved in main street. We have a strong board of directors, and I feel I have pride and passion for creating a strong healthy downtown as one of our strengths.”

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