(Ocala, FL) A sign was unveiled this week that has been erected on Ocala’s downtown square. The sign commemorates and recognizes a twinning agreement with Ocala’s sister town located in Newbridge, Ireland. The official agreement linking the two communities was finalized ten years ago and was signed by the mayors of both towns. “The concept of twinning among towns helps promote the sharing of culture, and has resulted in lasting bonds of friendship” states Charles Eades, chairperson of the Ocala Twinning Committee.

Attending the ceremony were officials from the City of Ocala, Ocala Mayor Kent Guinn, a delegation visiting from Newbridge, and Ocala Twinning committee members. The sign includes information about the twinning, a display of the American and Irish flags, a map pinpointing the location of Newbridge, and the fact that Ireland is only 4,038 miles away.

In the photo, former mayor of Newbridge Murty Aspell says a few words to a group gathered during the unveiling ceremony.

   Pictured is Diane Leaf speaking in front of the Ocala Business Leaders about Champions for Champions. They are working toward making life better for children and adults by helping them overcome adversity. They are self-funded meaning they raise money through fund raising. They pay for building rental and program to enhance their participation skills.

The purpose for Champions for Champions Inc. is to enrich the lives of special needs individuals and their family in Marion county and surrounding areas of Central Florida. They facilitate in providing recreation, educational, athletic, life skills and musical activities. For questions on how you can help call 352-462-0380 or 352-800-6733.

    Ocala Water Resources Conservation Coordinator Rachel Slocumb explained the process of the water resources in Ocala. Slocumb showed how toilet tissue verse non toilet tissue breaks down. It was amazing to see. If you ask you can get a brochure that tells you what not to flush down the toilet. The list is just common sense. Remember the toilet is not a garbage can. Wipe grease out of pans and put in the trash bag for garbage pickup.

Some of the extra work processing waste water is what some people are flushing down the toilet or washing down the drain like grease. It will clog your drains and will clog the city’s drains. Slocumb explained some of the processes they use to break the grease buildup from the walls of the pipes. After filtering, the human waste is dried, treated and taken to a designated area near Brooksville.

It was a very educational talk! Thank you Rachel Slocumb!

MARION COUNTY, Florida [Monday, September 9, 2019] – The Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) has instituted a prescription drug drop-off box program, a service which will enable Marion County citizens a way to safely dispose of their prescription medications all year.   The goal of this new program is to combat our local, state and national opioid crisis by collecting unwanted or unused medications that have the potential to fall into the hands of those who may abuse them. 

With the contribution of funds from Advent Health and the Florida Department of Health of Marion County, we are able to have a prescription drug drop-off box at each one of our MCSO district offices as well as the Belleview Police Department where citizens will be able to drop off their prescription medications Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.  MCSO Evidence Division will collect the prescriptions and properly dispose of them according to DEA regulations.    Continue reading →

OCALA, Fla. (Aug. 30, 2019) – In preparation for Hurricane Dorian, the City of Ocala Recreation and Parks Department has announced the following facility closures and adjusted hours of operation.

• Friday, Aug. 30
  • All city parks, splash pads and recreation centers will be open and maintain routine operating hours
• Saturday, Aug. 31
  • All city parks and splash pads will be open and maintain routine operating hours
  • All city youth and adult recreation centers, including the Discovery Center, will be closed until further notice
• Sunday, Sept. 1
  • All city parks and splash pads will be closed until further notice.

Please note, these facility closures and adjusted hours of operation are subject to change as weather conditions change. We will continue to provide updates as they become available. Continue reading →

Tony Clayton of Ocala Electric was ask to give a talk about Ocala Electric on  how everything works, telling us a little bit about power outages and how the power grid resets itself three times before it actually goes off. Tony says be prepared for Hurricane Season. They are forecasting 14 named storms and another 6 becoming hurricanes.

Outages will happen with storms and hurricanes. Their goal is to keep the power on.

During a storm or hurricane when the winds get up to 30 miles per hour they pull their guys in. Once the winds are safe again they start assessing the damage, and do the repair work in priority, like hospital first, homes keeping the elderly and so on and so on! Continue reading →

County Commissioner Michelle Stone was the Guest speaker at the Ocala Business Leaders. She listed the things they were proposing, things they have done and things they were working on right now. It was an informational hour with lots of good information that most of us did not know. Thank You Michelle Stone for informing us!