Sharon Triplett from the University of West Florida Small Business Development Center will present “Growing Wealth in Your Business” at 11:30 a.m., March 18 at the Navarre Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, 8543 Navarre Parkway. It is part of the “Jump Start Your Business Workshop Series” sponsored by the chamber and Navarre Press.
I was troubled when an initial search did not show Sharon Aydelott, a teacher at Holley-Navarre Middle School, as ever being on the pages of Navarre Press. However, when I read that she was teacher of the year for her school in 2005, I knew there must be a glitch. Sure enough, we interviewed Sharon after she won the honor in December 2005. We reprinted the article this week on our education page in honor of her. We received the press release on Christmas Eve about a murder and posted it immediately to our Facebook page. Then news started leaking that it was Sharon who was killed even before we even received the official press release, my heart sank along with everyone else. The story has appeared all over the world in gruesome detail. We elected not to publish all the details on our website because we knew that this was a time to mourn the loss of Sharon and to celebrate her life and contribution to our community and it was not necessary to detail the manner of her death. The minimal details were enough at the time. There will be a trial and if not a trial, there will be sentencing and the details will be detailed at that time.
There are significant differences in the current pier management contract and the new agreement, which goes into effect Jan. 1. Most notable are tighter financial controls and security measures, including pre-employment background screening in the aftermath of a Navarre Press investigation which prompted the firing of a registered sex offender who was hired to work at the pier.
We have a new Navarre Press Pass Discount. Sail Inn is offering a free cup of soup when you buy a whole sandwich or sub and a beverage. They have the best soups ever. I had one the other day that was squash, chicken and kale. Yummy! Sail Inn is under new ownership since October and Chuck has made some very subtle, but essential, changes to the menu and quality of the food. For example, all of the meats and cheeses are Boars Head. And they have a killer Saturday Breakfast.
One of our long-time advertisers, Pet Nation, is celebrating its 10th anniversary on Saturday! Bring your dog to the store on Saturday at 3 p.m. for a costume contest with prizes! Pet Nation’s ad in this week’s issue gives more information. We know part of their success is advertising in Navarre Press, and we also know that Holly and Abdul put a lot of time, energy, effort and love into the store and the Navarre community. They have obviously discovered the key to staying in business – and keeping so many loyal customers.
Check out our local happenings page for some great Halloween/Fall activities taking place in and around Navarre. Samplings include the YMCA Trunk or Treat this Sunday from 4-6 p.m. The Navarre United Methodist Church ad has a schedule of activities taking place on Halloween, which happens to be the date of next week’s issue of Navarre Press. The Gulf Breeze Zoo has their second weekend of Boo at the Zoo this coming weekend. At the Zoo, you will find an extensive collection of animals, including their newest edition, Cooper, the Hippopotamus. Apparently it was a blast last weekend because I heard several people say they were going back again. You can buy tickets for this weekend ahead of time so you don’t have to wait in line. The lines were very long last weekend, and I’m sure they will be longer this weekend.
Following breaking news of the termination of a registered sexual offender’s employment at Navarre Beach Pier after an inquiry by Navarre Press, residents addressed their concerns about the matter to the Santa Rosa County Commission at the board’s Oct. 21 meeting. One resident’s exchange with Commission Chairman Bob Cole became so heated he threatened to have her ejected from the meeting.
Former Navarre resident Jeff Juhnke first shared his plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro with the Navarre Press in June. Now, he is back home after spending almost a month in Africa and excited to share his experience climbing the fourth tallest peak in the world.
Former Navarre Press reporter, Christine O’Connor was recently named the editor of a Rhode Island newspaper, the Bristol Phoenix. She said working at Navarre Press is making things very easy for her at the Phoenix. I’m not sure how to take that, but I’m glad that she is working where her passion is. She did a good job here and a good job for Navarre as a community when she worked for Navarre Press. Rhode Island might not be big enough for her.
Drug arrests. Deadly shootings. Sex crimes. Armed burglaries. Car burglaries. Prostitution. Animal cruelty charges. Readers checking out the headlines of the Navarre Press and other media outlets lately might get the impression that the south end of Santa Rosa County is outlaw territory.
