Displaying items by tag: Community

The Birthplace of Clearwater Jazz Holiday

Clearwater

October 15, 2008, Downtown Clearwater—On Wednesday the 15th of October from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., The Church of Scientology hosted a cocktail reception in the lobby of the Clearwater Bank Building to showcase to the public for the first time the new designs, handcrafted furniture and special features that will be part of the historic Fort Harrison’s makeover.  The building, which has been an icon in Clearwater since 1926, is being renovated from top to bottom to modernize its facilities and polish up its 1920’s splendor.  The announcement coincided with the Clearwater Jazz Holiday, which grew out of a series of jazz concerts held in the Fort Harrison during the 1970’s.

According to Chuck Adams, the co-owner of the former WAZE radio station and who was responsible for planning those concerts, “Back in those days, the Fort Harrison hosted the likes of jazz greats such as Woody Herman and his Thundering Herd, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Stan Keaton, and Buddy Rich. That was when I realized how much Clearwater loves jazz.”

"The September Concert" to Remember 9/11 victims and to Celebrate the "Sister Cities International" program

Clearwater

On Thursday, Sept 11th, the City of Clearwater joined communities around the world from Beijing, China to New York City as they filled the skies with the universal language of music in The September Concert.

The September Concert is a series of free musical performances held in cities around the world on Sept 11th every year in remembrance of the 9/11 tragedy. The concerts offer a way for communities to commemorate this historic date and focus on bringing all people together, reaffirming our hope for world peace and celebrating life and universal humanity.

Sister Cities International is a movement founded in 1956 after U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower convened a White House Summit on Citizen Diplomacy. In a speech delivered on September 11, 1956, President Eisenhower called on Americans to forge people-to-people ties with communities abroad and to build a lasting peace based understanding and respect.

Downtown Clearwater

In today’s economic climate, many have the tendency to “cut back” and adopt the mentality of “look out for number one”. But not downtown Clearwater merchant Angela Gioffrè, who owns “Gioffrè”- a woman’s clothing store featuring high-end Italian designs.

Saturday, September 6th, Angela opened up her beautiful boutique located at 8 South Ft. Harrison, to raise funds for the renovation of  the building previously known as the “Bill Irle Dinner Theater” located at 1411 Ft. Harrison.  The theater was purchased by The Community Learning Center and, upon completion of the renovation, will supply the much needed additional space for their expansion.

”At the end of the day, we are responsible for our own lives. If anything happens to us, don’t blame somebody else. Backtrack and look at what you did to contribute to that. You also contribute to your successes. Once you learn that, you’re on your way.”

– Isaac Hayes

MEMPHIS, TENN. (August 12, 2008)

A memorial service will be held on Monday at Hope Presbyterian Church, 8500 Walnut Grove, Cordova, Tennessee from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. to celebrate the life of pioneering soul icon Isaac Hayes, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 65.

The first of three sculptures on Cleveland Street

Standing 15-feet tall and 10-feet wide, this magical aluminum sculpture by artist Bruce White, is the first of three pieces of public art scheduled to arrive at the Cleveland Street medians this month. Bruce’s work has been described as “an elegant union of ancient symbolism and contemporary science.” With its mystically-changing spectrums of purples – dependent on the position of the nebula and heavenly bodies - Sorcerer’s Gate provides a refreshing splash of color to the Cleveland Street District. Lifelong artist and Professor, Bruce White of DeKalb, Ill, answered the Call-to-Artists released earlier this year by The Clearwater Cultural Arts Division and was one of the three chosen.

Study Shows Economic Impact of Florida Boys & Girls Clubs On Local Communities

Tallahassee, Fla. – Young people who attend Boys & Girls Clubs in Florida show higher high school graduation rates and better behavior, resulting in increased lifetime earnings and hundreds of millions of dollars in savings for the state in costs for health care and incarceration. These results, announced today by Florida Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp, were the findings of a research study conducted by the Florida TaxWatch Research Institute.

Florida TaxWatch Research Institute, Inc. (known as Florida TaxWatch), a non-profit, non-partisan research institute based in Tallahassee, with assistance from MGT of America, Inc., conducted a comprehensive study of the economic impact of Florida Boys & Girls Clubs (FBGC) on local communities throughout the state.

Children Reading

and Writing Poetry... 

In Gaslight Alley  

Boys and girls from the Community Learning Center, 1611 N. Ft. Harrison Ave., took pen in hand and  wrote original poetry for the first downtown Clearwater Poetry Walk to be held on April 19th. "The hotel is a toy box," wrote Dakota Frank, age 8, and "the rainbow turns into a river up in the sky." Elizabeth Ann Gubola, age 6, provided a poem about riding a lion. "I hold onto the lion’s hair. My hair blows in the wind" Andi Menal, age 11, wrote about a girl who wore glasses that made the world look like a waterfall, but when she took them off...

An unpredictable economy drives people to invest wisely

By Robert Harwood
Heritage Tax & Retirement Advisors, LLC

LARGO, FL – It’s hard to talk about inflation without sounding like an old geezer: “I remember back in 1940 when gas was only 18 cents a gallon!” But this is 2008 and times have dramatically changed. Less than five years ago we can remember the price of gas was below $2 per gallon. 

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce and a statistical abstract of the United States, in 1940, a loaf of bread cost 8 cents and a first class postage stamp cost 3 cents. By 1970, those prices had inflated to 24 cents per loaf and 6 cents per stamp. By 2002, inflation had pushed those prices to $2.99 per loaf and 37 cents per stamp. Today, the average loaf is $3 per loaf and stamps will be 42 cents this May. 

Give a Manatee!

Love those sweet-natured manatees or know someone who does?  Join the Club!  Save the Manatee Club, that is.  Thousands of people around the world have become members by “adopting” one or more of the 32 manatees featured in Save the Manatee Club’s three Florida adoption programs, to help protect the endangered marine mammals.  Manatee adoptions are often given as gifts, and with Easter coming up, this is a great alternative to candy and the usual fare. 

Maureen Dalessio from Pennsylvania adopted manatees for her young nieces and nephew in South Jersey last year for Easter.