Back from a two-year Covid hiatus, six couples marrying and seven renewing their vows participated in today’s annual mass Valentine’s Day wedding officiated by Clerk of Court Tom Bexley at the Flagler County courthouse.
Holsey Moorman, Stately Last of Palm Coast City Council’s Class of 2007, Dies at 84
Holsey Moorman, a Roanoke, Va. native who rose to the rank of brigadier general in the Army, moved to Palm Coast after his retirement in 2001 and served a term on the Palm Coast City Council, died on Feb. 7 at AdventHealth Palm Coast. He was 84.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Tuesday, February 14, 2023
The annual Valentine’s Day mass wedding at the Flagler County courthouse, the Palm Coast City Council meets in workshop, a poem from The Black Flamingo.
Valentine’s Day Gifts from Chaucer to Chocolates
For Valentine’s Day, some couples only roll their eyes at each other in mutual cynicism. The capitalisation of love in the modern world can certainly seem banal. But people have been celebrating the day and gifting love tokens for hundreds of years.
The Battle Over Mifepristone, the Abortion Pill
Medication abortion now accounts for more than half of all abortions in the United States. Some states that have banned abortion altogether or have restricted access to it are vowing to block access to abortion pills.
Flagler Beach Commission Narrows Interim Choices to 3, Eliminating Cameron
The Flagler Beach City Commission this evening opted to narrow down a list of five candidates to three and pause before making a decision on hiring an interim manager to fill the seat of William Whitson, whom the commission fired last week.
Flagler Sheriff Adds Live 911 Video Option for Callers to Show Their Emergency in Real Time
Flagler County Sheriff’s 911 dispatchers can now have a live video feed from any caller with a smartphone, with the caller’s permission, vastly improving 911 dispatchers’ awareness of an emergency scene and GPS location, so they can send the proper resources.
Palm Coast Man Arrested After Stand-Off With SWAT, and Twice Firing a Gun
Juan N. Nodarse, a 53-year-old resident of Cute Court in Palm Coast, is at the Flagler County jail on $175,000 bond after twice firing a gun–one shot was fired with deputies outside, one fired with his wife in the house–and triggering a SWAT team’s response from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Ex-County Administrator Cameron Has Been Lobbying for Flagler Beach Job Since Before Whitson’s Firing
Former Flagler County Administrator Jerry Cameron had conversations or meetings with four of the five Flagler Beach City Commission members about stepping into a job at the city well before City Manager William Whitson was fired last Thursday.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Monday, February 13, 2023
The Flagler County Library Board discusses sending a member to the district’s book-ban committees, the Macon dirigible disaster, Bill McKibben on the national culture’s small minds.
CBD Is Not a Cure-All. It Has Real Benefits, But Use With Caution.
While there is growing evidence that CBD can help with certain conditions, caution is needed. Rigorous scientific studies are limited, so it is important that the marketing of CBD products does not get out ahead of the research and of robust evidence.
Era of ‘Free’ Covid Vaccines, Test Kits, and Treatments Is Ending. Who Will Pay Tab Now?
Time is running out for free-to-consumer covid vaccines, at-home test kits, and even some treatments. Vaccine prices will be steep, as will covid treatments, and benefits will depend on insurance coverage even as many are poised to lose insurance because of new government rules.
Flagler Beach Cancels Boil-Water Notice Scheduled for This Week
Update: Flagler Beach on Monday (Feb. 13) cancelled the boil-water notice that was scheduled for this week, saying the tie-in will be rescheduled to a later date.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Sunday, February 12, 2023
The final of Palm Coast’s tennis open, the Farmers’ Market at European Village, Super Bowl versus World Cup, Robert E. Lee’s worry about Yankees’ effects on Southern women.
Public School Enrollment Dropped by 1.2 Million During the Pandemic
Dramatic evidence of learning loss has mobilized federal, state and local education leaders. The federal government has allocated US$122 billion to support state and local efforts to help students “catch up in the classroom.”
Five Years On, Parkland Shooting ‘Feels Like Five Minutes Ago’
Five years after a mass shooting that shook Florida, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and Parkland remain inextricably linked to the ghastly day when a troubled teenager in less than four minutes killed 14 students and three staff members, injured 17 more and traumatized an untold number of children and families.
The DeSantis GOP Plan: Replace Public Education With Ahistorical Propaganda
By unleashing an avalanche of fear and legal absurdity into a struggling, underfunded system of public education, these far-right ideologues are in the process of crippling the learning process for tens of millions of the nation’s children.
Dr. Hiram Powell to Be Honored at Volusia Cultural Alliance’s Annual Celebration
The Volusia County Cultural Alliance (VCCA) will honor Dr. Hiram Powell for his service to Arts and Culture at its Annual Celebration and Awards Ceremony on Feb. 22, 2023 from 6 pm to 8 pm at The Shores Community Center in Daytona Beach Shores.
Bethune-Cookman University Names Raymond Woodie Head Football Coach
Bethune-Cookman University Director of Athletics Reggie Theus announced the appointment of Raymond Woodie as Head Football Coach. Woodie, 49, becomes the 16th head coach of Bethune-Cookman Football.
Sheriff Hopes DNA, New Imaging and Public Can Solve Murder Case from Early 1990s
The unidentified victim’s remains were found in 1993 on Palm Coast’s Sea Ship Place. A 2021 DNA profile was able to trace the victim’s family tree, and in January the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Forensic Imaging Unit produced a new facial approximation.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Saturday, February 11, 2023
The Annual Jazz Brunch and fund-raiser at AACS, Unique Boutique Event at Santa Maria del Mar Church, Palm Coast Tennis Open, the first robots, Mohsin Hamid.
The Bible’s Song of Songs Is Full of Sex, Challenging Assumptions
Graphic descriptions of both male and female bodies pervade the work and are certainly titillating, even bordering on pornographic. Sensual metaphors such as “grazing among the lilies” and “drinking … from the juice of my pomegranates” suggest sexual practices that are anything but vanilla.
Florida Health Boards Back Banning Treatment for Trans Youths
The Florida Board of Medicine and the Florida Board of Osteopathic Medicine on Friday refused to scrap new rules prohibiting doctors from using gender-affirming care for trans youths, after dozens of transgender men and women pleaded with them to reverse the treatment bans.
Deborah Phillips, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Deborah Phillips is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
Biden Puts GOP’s Juveniles In Their Place
President Biden showed no inclination to take any grief from an openly hostile, Republican-controlled House of Representatives as he delivered his State of the Union address. If Republicans were surprised by the vigor of Biden’s rebuttals, they have only themselves to blame.
Buddy Taylor Middle’s Mitchell Spencer Edelstein Is Spelling Bee Champion Again
Buddy Taylor Middle School 8th-grader Mitchell Spencer Edelstein had the stamina to survive the challenge and emerged as the Flagler Schools Spelling Bee Champion for the second consecutive year.
Scott Spradley, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Scott Spradley is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
DeSantis Will Snag Some Control of Disney’s Reedy Creek District as Lawmakers Approve Scheme
Florida lawmakers Friday gave final approval to changes that would shift control of the Reedy Creek Improvement District from the Walt Disney Co. to Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Bob Cunningham, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Bob Cunningham is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
Doug Bruno O’Connor, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Doug Bruno O’Connor is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election that will be decided on March 7.
Rick Belhumeur, Flagler Beach City Commission Candidate: The Live Interview
Rick Belhumeur is one of five candidates for two seats on the Flagler Beach City Commission in the non-partisan municipal election will be decided on March 7.
51-Year-Old Man Riding Pick-Up Truck’s Running Board Is Ejected and Killed in Mondex
Andrzej Kokoszka, a 51-year-old resident of Bud Lake, N.J., and Palm Coast, was killed Thursday afternoon in a vehicle incident at Rosewood Street and Clove Avenue in Daytona North, also known as the Mondex, in West Flagler.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, February 10, 2023
The Flagler Woman’s Club’s Annual Rummage Sale, tennis in Palm Coast, LGBTQ+ Night at Flagler Beach’s Coquina Coast Brewing Company, the day Nelson Mendela was released.
Five Years After Parkland, School Shootings Have Increased and Kill More People
Since Parkland, there have been over 900 shootings in K-12 school settings. Thirty-two were indiscriminate attacks apparently driven by the intent to kill as many people as possible, including mass casualty events at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in May 2022 and at Oxford High School, in Oxford, Michigan, in November 2021.
Flagler Beach Commission Fires City Manager William Whitson After Withering Criticism
The Flagler Beach City Commission this evening fired City Manager William Whitson in a 4-1 vote, capping a rocky year and a withering night for the manager. The commission will choose an interim manager on Monday.
School Board Is Timidly Mum on Superintendent’s Future as She Hints of Looking Elsewhere
With three rookie members, latent ideological tensions, foot-dragging and a ticking clock, the Flagler County School Board is at risk of losing Superintendent Cathy Mittlestadt, just as it lost her predecessor, Jim Tager. Mittlestadt all but explicitly told the board as much on Tuesday.
‘Now Is the Time’: Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin Looks West in State of the City Address
This evening’s State of the City Address by Palm Coast Mayor David Alfin highlights the challenges the city experienced in 2022, such as the hurricanes, celebrates various accomplishments and looks to 2023 with eyes on a westward expansion. as provided by the city. Here’s the full prepared text.
Belt-Buckle Bruise on 5-Year-Old’s Face Leads to Felony Charge Against Step-Father
A 5-year-old child said his step-father, Anthony Aaron Dailey, 25, whipped him with a belt because he was having some candy in his parents’ bedroom. The belt buckle struck the child’s face, leaving a large red welt below his right eye.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Thursday, February 9, 2023
A panel discussion on book-banning at AACS, State of the City in Palm Coast this evening, The Flagler Beach City Commission once again takes up the fate of City Manager William Whitson, Ludovico Einaudi and Don DeLillo.
Palm Coast Council Surrenders Key Demands in 3-2 Approval of Controversial Harborside Development
Ending a six-month wrangle over the proposed Harborside redevelopment around the Palm Coast marina, the City Council Tuesday in a 3-2 vote surrendered on key demands, overriding some staff recommendations, and approved the addition of 300 apartments and town houses, a project that will remake the character of one of Palm Coast’s original neighborhoods.
What To Do About That ‘Dark Personality’ at Work
Have you ever suffered through tales of greatness from a self-absorbed “friend” who reminds you of Michael Scott from “The Office” – and not in a good way? Have you been betrayed by a colleague out of the blue, undermined on a project by the office mean girl, or had a work friendship dropped altogether without explanation?
The GOP Culture Wars’ Deadly Impact on Working People’s Lives
Although Republicans claim they’re working in the interests of women’s health, 20 GOP state attorneys general seek to ban the abortion drug mifepristone. These pills are safer than penicillin or Viagra — and going through pregnancy and childbirth is far more dangerous to women’s health than abortion.
Flagler County’s Emergency Management Team Makes Its Mark at State Association
Flagler County’s Emergency Management team made its mark last week at the Florida Emergency Preparedness Association’s (FEPA) Annual Meeting.
Affordable Housing Proposal Bans Local Rent Control Measures
A $711 million affordable housing package designed to address Florida’s affordable housing crisis was met with disapproval and ire by housing activists on Wednesday — they said the measure’s provision to ban local governments from enacting rent controls won’t help alleviate the problem.
Palm Coast’s Frank Fiore, 53, Accused of Fleecing Elderly Woman Who Took Him In
Frank Fiore, 53, of Palm Coast, faces nine felony charges–a maximum of 125 years in prison–for stealing thousands of dollars’ worth of jewelry from the elderly women who took him in after he told her at church that he was down on his luck.
Future BJ’s Wholesale Club Raises Traffic Concerns as Palm Coast Mulls Annexation
As it considers annexing the land where a BJ’s Wholesale Club will rise on State Road 100, the Palm Coast City Council is concerned about the amount of additional cars thronging an already busy road, and may condition annexation on the a analysis.
The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Wednesday, February 8, 2023
Weekly Chess Club for teens at the Public Library, how Jules Verne saved a childhood, James Spader, Taiwan’s inevitable rendez-vous with China.
Republican Lawmakers Prepared to Spend $10 Million on Migrant Expulsions from Florida
The Florida Senate on Wednesday likely will take up a plan that would bolster Gov. Ron DeSantis’ efforts to send migrants to “sanctuary” cities and states, as Republicans and Democrats battle over the issue.
W.E.B. Du Bois and the Importance of African American Studies
Du Bois’ words in a 1951 article are especially prescient today, offering a reminder about the importance of Black History Month and what is at stake in current conversations about African American studies.
Over 80% of Staffers Surveyed at 9 Flagler County Schools Don’t Want To Be Armed on Campus
The survey was conducted at the request of the Flagler County School Board as the board studies the feasibility of arming some staffers in addition to the sheriff’s school resource deputies. The survey did not ask employees whether they supported or opposed an armed-employee program in general, but only their willingness to participate.