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Hundreds Of Cars Line Up For Drive Thru Trunk Or Treat At Bartow First Baptist

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Hundreds Of Cars Line Up For Drive Thru Trunk Or Treat At Bartow First Baptist

Hundreds Of Cars Line Up For Drive Thru Trunk Or Treat At Bartow First Baptist

by James Coulter

What do the Addams Family, Paw Patrol, and Cookie Monster all have in common? They’re characters that children were able to meet and greet during the inagural drive-thru trunk or treat at First Baptist Church of Bartow.

Hundreds of cars line up along the street in front of the church for a chance to drive through the church parking lot and pass by the dozen or so cars decorated in festive decorations.

As children rode by dressed in their own Halloween costumes, they could accept the free candy provided by other costume characters at the decorated vehicles in the parking lot, with costumes and decorations based on various properties including Sesame Street and Paw Patrol.

The event lasted from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Within the first hour, nearly 71 vehicles pulled through the trunk or treat drive thru, with cars lined up along the block nearly 40 minutes before the event, explained pastor Matt McCraw.

First Baptist Church of Bartow initially was not planning a Halloween event this year. However, Pastor McCraw wanted to offer something for the children in the local community to do during Halloween, especially with many local Halloween events cancelled.

Their event was mostly promoted through their Facebook page. More than 1,100 people had liked their Facebook event page, Pastor McCraw said.

“It is an opportunity to love families,” he said. “Our mission statement is to love others. And in the midst of the pandemic, we can do that in a safe way. We are still determined to love families.”

Richard Jones, youth pastor, loved being able to reach out to the children that evening. Most of the children attending that evening were from their church, and many of them were those who had not been at the church for some time due to COVID-19.

“It is a lot more cars than I anticipated,” Jones said. “I feel so much joy, to do something for Halloween during this pandemic. I am just glad we could partner with the community to have something fun.”

Chuck Butler is a congregation member who has been attending the church for nearly two years. Initally, he had visited several churches to find the right one for him. He decided to stary with First Baptist Church of Bartow because of the dedication of the pastor, the teaching, and the fellowship.

Butler helped direct traffic that evening, directing cars to pull up into the parking lot. He loved being able to see so many people he had not been able to see lately due to the pandemic. He especially appreciated helping the church do something for the local children for Halloween.

“I think it is bigger than what we have expected,” he said. “I think we are serving the community like this this time of year. With COVID this year. It is a blessing from God. That is all I can say about it. It is wonderful to see these kids.”

More Than 50 Cars Go Ridin With Biden In Winter Haven Caravan

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More Than 50 Cars Go Ridin With Biden In Winter Haven Caravan

More Than 50 Cars Go Ridin With Biden In Winter Haven Caravan

by James Coulter

You’ve heard of the Trump Train, but have you gone Ridin With Biden? More than 50 cars drove through Winter Haven to show their support for the Democratic presidential candidate during a car caravan on Saturday.

Around noon, vehicles decorated in Joe Biden campaign material and American flags gathered together in the Publix parking lot across from LEGOLAND. The caravan then took off down the road along Cypress Gardens and through Winter Haven.

This car parade was one of several hosted throughout the county in support of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, as well as the other Democratic candidates on the ballot. Other parades were hosted in Lakeland, Lake Wales, Davenport, and Poinciana.

This was the fourth parade to be hosted by the Polk County Democrats. Previously, several parades were hosted two weeks ago on Oct. 17. More than 40 vehicles appeared for that parade, and even more attended this caravan, with nearly 50 to 60 people signing up before hand, explained Norm Wilderson, President of the Polk County Democrats.

In a city and county where one cannot drive half a mile without seeing a Trump sign or flag, being able to gather together with other Democrats was the best thing about gatherings such as this, Wilderson said. He has met many people who lived down the road or block from him that he didn’t even know, he said.

“What I enjoy is the camraderie of the people,” he said. “These are people who lived in my community that I didn’t even know…So it is the bringing together of the citizens of our community for a common cause.”

The enthusiasm of the participants to congregate together and show their support for their favored presidential candidate has allowed the Winter Haven campaign to be as successful as it has been; hopefully, this same energy will not only allow Biden to win, but also turn the state and county Blue, Wilderson said.

“The key to our success has been people who are enthusiastic about turning Polk County blue,” he said. “We have Democrats here in Polk County. It is a toss-up, it is a hard fight, but we put in the work. When you put in the work, that is all you can do, and it comes out how it comes out.”

Kathy Sutherland, Chair of Polk County Democrats, likewise remains optimistic about Biden’s chances. Contrary to popular belief, while both Polk County and Florida have remained Red for a long time, there are a significant number of Democrats capable of turning the tide and changing the color to Blue.

“I am very hopeful that Biden is going to win,” she said. “I am hoping he wins by a landslide instead of just winning. I think we can make a difference right here in Polk County, right here in Florida…I think all of the momentum is with Biden and we will swing in.”

Pedestrian Killed In Winter Haven Crash Sunday Evening

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Pedestrian Killed In Winter Haven Crash Sunday Evening

PCSO investigating a fatal vehicle crash that left a pedestrian dead in unincorporated Winter Haven

At 7:40 p.m. on Sunday, November 1, 2020, the PCSO Emergency Communications Center received a 911 call regarding a fatal crash involving a pedestrian that occurred on Rifle Range Road and 5th Street East in unincorporated Winter Haven.

Preliminary information so far is as follows:

According to evidence at the scene and witness interviews, the victim, an adult male, whose name is being withheld pending next of kin notification, was walking north near the fog line that separates the northbound lane from the right of way.

73-year-old Miguel Juardo of Winter Haven was driving a 2001 gray Honda Odyssey north on Rifle Range Road, and as he approached the intersection of 5th Street East, he struck the victim.

Juardo stopped his vehicle and looked around the area, but he did not see the victim. The area was not well lit, and the victim was wearing dark clothing. Juardo left the scene and drove home. Once he arrived at his residence, Juardo noticed damage to the front of his vehicle, contacted the Sheriff’s Office, and returned to the crash scene. The victim was located and transported to the Winter Haven Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Rifle Range Road and 5th Street East were closed for approximately four hours during the investigation. The investigation is ongoing. 

18 Yr Old Polk City Teen Killed In Sunday Evening Crash

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18 Yr Old Polk City Teen Killed In Sunday Evening Crash

PCSO investigating a fatal two-vehicle crash in Polk City

At 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, November 1, 2020, the PCSO Emergency Communications Center received a 911 call regarding a two-vehicle fatal crash that occurred on SR 33 at Grimes Road in Polk City. The crash killed 18-year-old Michael Yousett of Polk City.

Yousett was transported to Lakeland Regional Health where he died from his injuries. Yousett was the driver of a 1997 black Honda Civic.

The second vehicle involved was a 2017 gray Toyota Rav4, driven by 22-year-old Rebekah Hutchinson of Lakeland.

Preliminary information so far is as follows:

According to the investigation so far, Hutchinson was traveling southbound on SR 33 approaching Grimes Road when she apparently lost traction on the wet road and rotated into the northbound lane. Hutchinson entered into the path of Yousett’s Honda Civic, striking the front end of the vehicle and redirecting it approximately 15-feet to the east where it came to rest along the west shoulder of the road.

Upon impact, Hutchinson’s Toyota flipped onto its passenger side and came to a final rest in the middle of the roadway, near the point of impact.

When first responders arrived on scene, Yousett was entrapped inside his vehicle. He was extracted and transported to Lakeland Regional Health where he succumbed to his injuries.

Hutchinson was also transported to a nearby hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

Hutchinson was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. It is unknown at this time if Yousett was wearing his seatbelt.

Speed and wet road conditions are possible factors in the crash.

CR 33 was closed for approximately four hours during the investigation. The investigation is ongoing.

Lake Wales Man Charged With 4 Counts Of Attempted Murder

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Lake Wales Man Charged With 4 Counts Of Attempted Murder
45-year-old Timothy Callaway

On Thursday, October 28, 2020, around 5:30 p.m., PCSO deputies responded to the area of Babcock Avenue in Lake Wales (near US 27 and SR 60) and took 45-year-old Timothy Callaway into custody, charging him with four counts attempted murder, resisting arrest, and giving false information to a law enforcement officer.

Callaway got into a domestic dispute with the victim – she fled in her vehicle, with three children in the car, in an attempt to get away from him. He chased after her in his vehicle, ramming her car and verbally threatening to kill everyone in her car.

She ran into a nearby gas station to get help. When she saw him accelerating towards her at the gas station, she got back into her car and fled. Fortunately, she and the children were able to escape unharmed, although he did ram her car several more times.

When deputies arrived in the area, he fled but was eventually captured, and taken to the Polk County Jail. Callaway is still in the Polk County Jail, on no bond

Ransomware Actively Targeting Healthcare and Public Sectors

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Ransomware Actively Targeting Healthcare and Public Sectors

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have credible information of an increased and imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers. 

With hospitals seeing an increase in hospitalizations from the Flu or COVID-19 pandemic Malicious Cyber actors see this as an opportunity to target the Health and Human Services sector because any disruption to Hospital Systems would potentially lead to a quick payday for Cyber Criminals.

The Cyber Criminals have development teams that continue to develop new functionality and tools into malware droppers like Trickbot and BazarLoader. Many of these Cyber Criminals have teams that monitor updates from antivirus providers so they know when their variant of malware has been detected and know when it it time to change their code or techniques. This is a very coordinated effort by Cyber Criminals so they can circumvent an organizations Cyber Security Defense Systems.

The current Trickbot and BazarLoader variant droppers appear to be leveraging email phishing campaigns that contain links to external sites hosting malware or attachments loaded with the new variants of specially crafted malware. The Malware will start the infection chain by deploying and executing code that will provide Cyber Criminals a backdoor entry point into the environment.

Once the backdoor is open, Cyber Criminals can issue Command and Control scripts that will conduct resonance work in order to quickly spread the malware throughout the environment. After successfully spreading the malware Cyber Criminals will issue commands to launch the final attack and crypto lock the machines infected.

Once the Crptolock command is given the infected machines will Encrypt themselves and then display a screen notifying the user that their system has been encrypted. In order to decrypt your files, you will have to pay ransom in the form of Bitcoin. Some organizations choose to negotiate with the Cyber Criminals to decrypt their systems while others attempted to restore from backup or rebuild. In either case the business suffers and outage and if large enough will make the local and national 5 O’clock News.

The good news is there are a few things an organization can do to protect their environment and reduce the risk of becoming a victim of a Cryptoware attack. Below are some recommendations.

  1. Make sure you have some type of central logging system such as a SIEM to monitor your network.
  2. Ensure you are getting alerts. More importantly make sure you are getting alerts that are actionable. Tuning your alerts is the key to ensuring you are not sending so many false alerts that you desensitize yourself to alerts and miss the ones that would have alerted you to an attack.
  3. Pen test your internal and external network. By pen testing you will get a baseline of your environment’s Cyber Security health and identify areas that need immediate attention. A bonus to pen testing is you can also test your SIEM to ensure your alerts are setup properly.
  4. Install some type of Application Whitelisting software on your endpoint machines. Today having an antivirus or malware solution is not enough. Using Antivirus or malware software is more of a reactive solution. Application White Listing is a Pro Active solution as you will only allow known good software to run on your machine. Everything else will be denied the ability to execute by default.
  5. Make sure your OS’s are updated and patched regularly
  6. Regularly back up data, air gap, and password protect backup copies offline.

If you or your organization need help deploying some type of Endpoint Protection, Email Filtering Service, or building your Cyber Security Program, please reach out and I will be glad to setup a call to discuss your needs and challenges.  [email protected] or 863-734-8060

The WAY Center Celebrates 15 Years Of Showing People In Need The Way

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The WAY Center Celebrates 15 Years Of Showing People In Need The Way

The WAY Center Celebrates 15 Years Of Showing People In Need The Way

by James Coulter

Jalanonda Townsend was down on her luck, struggling, and pregnant. She found her way to The WAY Center in Haines City in June and eventually found her way through them.

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She participated in their Way Home program and attended several of their weekend and night classes. Through them, she learned about important life skills such as relationships and nutrition.

Currently, she is taking her GED, and she has since given birth to her child on Sept. 9. Now as a mother receiving her education, her life has turned around for the better, and it is all thanks to the local organization that showed her the way.

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“The WAY Center and the Way Home they help you get your life on track,” she said. “I was down. I was depressed. I was broken when I first got started with my Way Home. My attitude, my depression, everything that I was feeling before, I was not feeling that anymore. I am happier and more content and more stable. I feel better than I was a year ago.”

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The WAY Center is a faith-based non-profit organization in Haines City. For the past 15 years, their mission has been to help families in need and crisis.

“The WAY Center Mission is to provide a variety of spiritual and social services for families in need or crisis,” their website states. “Our desire is to work with our clients for a period of time to help them overcome obstacles that keep them from meeting personal, financial, and spiritual goals.”

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The center offers care through three primary programs. Crisis Care provides people in need basic necessities such as gas cards, clothing, food, and hygiene products. Way Home offers a safe haven for women and children by providing them stable housing and mentoring. The We Can Program is a 12-month program designed to provide its students with the life and job skills to succeed on their own in life.

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“The WAY Center is a place where people find hope,” said LeAnn Pierce, Executive Director. “We try to help people who are in crisis and take them to a stable place in their lives so they can be a productive member in society.”

This year proved to be an especially challenging year for them, as they helped many families who had lost income due to COVID-19.

The WAY Center celebrated their 15th anniversary with their annual fundraiser on Thursday evening. The event was hosted at an outdoor venue outside of the city. Normally, they host the event indoors, but decided to host it outdoors this year due to COVID-19. Their event that evening was sold out, with an estimated 230 people attending.

That evening, they officially announced their building campaign. Currently, they are in the process of purchasing the building they have been renting for their main facility for ten years. Their initial goal is to raise $50,000 for the deposit, and they are expected to do that by the end of the year, Pierce said.

“God and a lot of great volunteers [have allowed us to be around for 15 years and counting],” she said. “We are sold out. This is our [biggest] fundraiser we have ever done.”

Marsha Franz is a home mother for the Way Home program. She joined a year ago to work during the day. She enjoys being able to serve and mentor the women in the program, and especially with collaborating with other churches in order to do so.

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“For me, the center is a way for helping, reaching out to members of the community,” Franz said. “We love working with people, working with the women, helping where there is a need.”

Kathy Nayrocker serves as a house mother during the evenings and weekends. She works as a first-grade teacher, but she loves her volunteer work at the WAY Center. She considers it especially fulfilling, especially when working with newborn babies.

“It is nice to be able to encourage their ladies in their faith in God and help them to grow in their faith,” she said. “It is also good to be there to encourage them when they get discouraged.”

The WAY Center is located 20 North 6th Street, Haines City, FL 33845. For more information, visit their website at: https://www.thewaycenter.org/

Sweet Smoke Q Wins Grand Champ Pro BBQ For 2nd Year At Rock ‘N’ Brews BBQ Competition

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Sweet Smoke Q Wins Grand Champ Pro BBQ For 2nd Year At Rock ‘N’ Brews BBQ Competition

Sweet Smoke Q Wins Grand Champ Pro BBQ For 2nd Year At Rock ‘N’ Brews BBQ Competition

by James Coulter

Jim Elser and his barbecue team, Sweet Smoke Q, have been winning the tile of grand champion for the past seven years at various barbecue events. This year they attended the Rock ‘N’ Brews BBQ Competition for the second consecutive year and won the title of grand champ for professional barbecue.

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Elser owes his success to having participated in barbecue since 2010. The past decade has conferred him the experience to make the best darned barbecue. That experience allowed him to win the grand champ title for the second year in a row at Rock ‘N’ Brews BBQ Competition at Camp Mack in Lake Wales.

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“I have won grand champion every year for seven years…so I am happy to continue the streak,” Elser said.

Elser has been able to win the grand title for the past two years at Camp Mack and seven years at other competitions due to his consistency: consistency in quality, hard work, and passion. Such consistency allows him to make some of the best award-winning ribs and brisket.

Most of all, he loves being able to gather with family and friends in the great outdoor for good barbecue. “Barbecue is American food and we love to do it,” he said.

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Sweet Smoke Q was one of 50 teams from across the county and state who participated in the annual Rock ‘N’ Brews BBQ Competition at Camp Mack in Lake Wales. The teams competed in various categories in both professional and backyard barbecue.

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Sam Songer and his team, Done Right Smokin, won the grand champion title for the backyard division. As it was one of the last barbecue competitions of the year, he and his team were sure to attend, especially with many events having been canceled earlier this year, he said.

His own success he owes to a combination of practice and friendship, which allowed them to excel in chicken, ribs, pork butt, and brisket. To him, the best barbecue is prepared with the right combination of wood, rub, and especially meat.

“You need a good meat to get a good barbecue,” he said. As far as the competition, he claimed that, “it is a good crowd, big crowd. [There’s] a lot of people I haven’t seen for a long time.”

Aside from good old-fashioned barbecue, the annual event drew in a large yet “social distance-friendly” crowd that enjoyed live music, a fire show by a local performer, and a dedication ceremony inducting Camp Mack into the Historic Polk County Heritage Trail.

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Several members of the Polk County Chamber of Commerce and Historical Society attended that afternoon to officially designate Camp Mack as a location along the Polk County Heritage Trail, which includes various other historic landmarks across the county.

The overall turnout more than met expectations, with 50 teams participating this year. More people and teams wanted to attend, but the campsite wanted to ensure that enough people were properly spaced out to help maintain healthy social distancing, explained event organizer, Kevin DeNell.

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“It was a great event,” he said. “Teams were ready to cook, they were anxious to cook, they haven’t been able to cook for a long time, so we were glad to host this event safely.”

Camp Mack will be hosting a Bobby Lane Kids Fishing & Conservation Clinic on Dec 12. For $10, children and their families will have the chance to learn angling tips from Major League Bass Fishing Pro, Bobby Lane.

For more information about future events, visit their website at: https://guyharveycampmack.com/

Victory Ridge Clay Shoot Friday November 20, 2020 Register NOW!!!

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Victory Ridge Clay Shoot Friday November 20, 2020 Register NOW!!!
Victory Ridge Charitable Fund Clayshoot

Lake Wales Man Sheds Over 100 Pounds Through Local Non-Profit TOPS, Named Florida King

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Lake Wales Man Sheds Over 100 Pounds Through Local Non-Profit TOPS, Named Florida King

Lake Wales Man Sheds Over 100 Pounds Through Local Non-Profit TOPS, Named Florida King

by James Coulter

Jack Clifford was once so big he lied about his weight. He used to tell people he was 220 pounds. He was actually 293.

At 83 years old, he was not tremendously active, and the extra weight didn’t help. He had trouble walking and problems with high blood pressure.

The worst part was buying new clothes. His weight and size required him to buy extra-large clothes, which were much more expensive than regular sized clothes.

“Most of our money were spent on new clothing,” she said. “We don’t make that money anymore, so it is difficult.”

Jack had tried many methods to cut back on his weight. He once attended Weight Watchers for a short period of time, but quit when he failed to make permanent progress and when the meeting dues became too expensive.

Finally, he joined TOPS (Take Pounds Off Sensibly), a non-profit organization, true to its name, to helping its members take off pounds sensibly through the aid and resources provided by its support group.

“TOPS offers tools and programs for healthy living and weight management, with exceptional group fellowship and recognition,” its website states. “Weekly meetings include private weigh-ins and professionally prepared, informational chapter programs, featuring up-to-date information on nutrition, exercise and healthy lifestyles.”

After attending the group for nearly a year, Jack lost more than 95 pounds. He was once 293 pounds. Now he’s near 182. For his weight loss, which allowed him to lose more weight than any other male member in Florida, Jack was named the 2019 TOPS Florida King.

The COVID-19 pandemic helped him take off and keep off the extra pounds. Before, they often ate out twice a week. As he could not go out to eat out, he and his wife ate at home more often and skipped off on meals with extra calories.

“We do not go out to eat anymore,” Jack said. “We used to go out at least twice a week… [During lockdown] you could not go for so long; it was a special occasion to get a pizza.”

His wife has been an off-again, on-again vegetarian. During the past year, they have returned to that lifestyle, cooking meals with a greater emphasis on vegetables and with meat substitutes.

“So consequently, we changed our eating habits tremendously,” Jack said.

More than simply losing weight, his lifestyle change has allowed him to save on clothes shopping. No longer does he have to pay extra for extra-large clothes. Now he no longer needs to buy new clothes.

“I was at a point where I could not go into Walmart and buy clothes at a reasonable price,” he said of his past self. “It is always a large price, and I found that it was much easier to spend less money on clothes. Because the smaller sizes [cost] less money.”

His blood pressure also decreased with his weight. His doctor has since cut his medication in half. He now takes half the heart medicine and blood thinner.

He has also become much more active. With less weight bearing down on his knees, he can more easily move. His light weight has especially proven helpful for his knee replacement.

“I had a knee replaced. It does not have to support as much weight when I stand up,” he said. “I think most people who lose weight, they notice their ambition has improved and their step is lighter because they weigh less and they are healthier, their health has improved.”

Jack owes his success to his TOPS chapter. More than any other weight loss program, it helped him to take off pounds sensibly and for him to keep it off through their support and resources.

“TOPS is not a diet,” explained Dave Amaroso, Vice President of Ron Sonntag Public Relations (RSPR). “It is a lifestyle change for a lifetime. TOPS has been fighting obesity since its founding in 1948. There are more than 100,000 members in the U.S. and Canada. In 2019, they lost a total of 241.5 tons of excess weight!”

Their membership includes a monthly magazine with recipies for healthy meals and anecdotes of other members who lost weight through the program.

They have monthly meetings where members track their weight, record their progress, and receive support from other members. No pressure is forced to make their members lose weight. Even if they don’t, they still receive much needed help and encouragement.

“It is the most reasonable weight loss program there is,” Jack said. “If they want to lose weight, it is a great way to do it. It is a good support group. If you don’t lose, we are at least glad you are here. You can make friends with other people.”

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