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LEVY COUNTY JOURNAL

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2006

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Prove to me how great it is

To the editor:

’ Lately I have been hearing how great our economy is
doing. Jobs have been created, it looks like everything

is coming up roses. Well, if this is true, I believe every
newspaper in the United States should publish a list of the
jobs and wonderful opportunities that are available to the
most wonderful, the greatest young men and women this
world has ever known. I am speaking of the young men and
women returning from Iraq and the Bush war.

God only knows just like past veterans they have truly
earned and deserve a piece of the American Dream. I only
hope and pray they receive it before the illegal immigrants.
William J. Franklin
Bronson

Do unto others

To the editor:

Let’s say you live in a residential community and the
property owner next to you (who has no intention of residing
on his land) plans to build a structure capable of holding
200 persons at a time, has showers, has potential sleeping
quarters, and has a kitchen. i

Or let’s say you live in one of the houses along 1 and 1/2
miles of side roads that lead:to this structure.

If you’re like many of the residents in Fox Grove Farms
and in Shamrock Acres, subdivisions in Morriston where this
has occurred, you are probably not very happy with this land
owner.

I have to admit that when I, a home owner in Fox Grove
Farms, first heard that the pastor of the Living Waters Life
Center, located off of HWY 121, planned to build a “church”
at the end of our subdivision, I wasn’t overly concerned.
Other than a “little extra traffic”, what harm would there be
in having a church in the neighborhood? Even after a phone
conversation with the pastor and a neighborhood meeting
that included the pastor and his wife, I wasn’t convinced
that a church, retreat house, community center, mission or
whatever it’s called, is such a bad thing.

But the more I discussed this with my neighbors and the |
more I thought about it was the more I saw the harm in
having this 2 story metal structure in our neighborhood. First
of all, with a seating capacity of 200 persons, there will be
more than a “little extra traffic”. For starters, there will be
an increase of traffic AT LEAST four times a week (to and
from Sunday and Wednesday services). And then of course if
’ services are added and/or other activities held, our normally

sleepy side streets will be very busy. This will have an
impact on the safety of the neighborhood children and horse
riders who frequent our roads. Besides safety concerns, there
will be €xcessive dust’ along with wéar and tear on our dirt
roads.

The building use is another cause for concern. From
talking to the pastor on the phone and listening to him at the
neighborhood meeting, it is my understanding that his intent
for using those classrooms/sleeping quarters, and kitchen
is not yet clearly defined. Is this facility going to be used
for retreats, drug rehab, bible study, a troubled teen house,

_revivals.or what? To say the least, the vagueness for use of’
: this 5000 or so square foot building is unsettling.

Many of the folks that moved to this area did so for peace
and quiet. And many of us can’t help thinking that a regular
parade of cars passing our houses along with whatever
sounds are created by a large assembly of people will take —
away the very reason we chose to live here. I do not doubt
that there are people who benefit from Living Waters Living
Center but I question that it has to be done at the expense of
others.

I appreciate all the hard work that the folks in Fox Grove
Farms and Shamrock Acres are doing to ensure that our
rights as home owners in these deed restricted communities
are protected. While I will move forward with them in this
effort, I also invite the pastor of Living Water Life Center
and his supporters to ask themselves how they would feel
if someone planned to build a similar structure down the
street from, or better yet, right next door to them. And if they
would feel the slightest reservation to this, then I hope and
pray that they will embrace the passage “do unto others as _.
you would have done unto yourself’ and rethink the location
of their ministry.

Kathleen Hampton -
Morriston

 

 
 
    
  
 

itor. Submit your letter By noon Monday OUT may yy amall
_ it to editor@levyjournal.com, bring it by either of our of-
: fices or mail it to either address on the front page.

Lk

The Levy County Journal is published to serve the people
of Levy County as the leading information source that
empowers the community while never
compromising our principles.

We:

*reflect our community in everything we do.
*provide leadership that contributes to the betterment of
our community,

*record the history of our county and make a difference
in the quality of life for our residents and merchants.
*promote readership of community events that foster
better citizens.

*promote readership of advertising thereby fostering a
healthy economic environment.

   
 

 

   

Our Mission

 
 
   
 

o-
o

nlike most journal-
ists I know, there
was never any

light bulbs going off inside
my head when I decided

I wanted to be journalist.
However, somewhere
between the ages of six and
eight I began to fall in love
with the idea telling the story
of real events and important
information affected the au-
dience that reads my words.

My name is Neal Fisher
and I am proud to be a jour-
nalist. I think it is an honor-
able and noble profession
when done right. Along the
way I lost my way, but six
years ago, I realized jour-
nalism wasn’t just a love or
something that I thought was
interesting, it is my passion
and calling in life.

Everyone has a purpose to
fulfill in this life and while
I have yet to discover the
purpose in its totality ] am
to serve, journalism is the
vehicle by which I am-to
complete it.

The passion I have for
telling the public the story of
the issues that affect them is .
more than something I enjoy.
To me it is a way of life and
its culture is the means by
which I have come to hold —
the values and beliefs I hold
dear.

While I have spent a
lifetime pursuing a career in
journalism, the same can be
said of my passion for auto
racing and entertainment.

Hooked
On May 25, 1975, the

’ night before I turned six |

years old, I saw my first
race, what was then known
as the World 600.and was
immediately hooked. Of

course, back in those days

e national networks only

televised segments of the

ore prestigious races, I

don’t remember what chan-

Y COUNTY JOURNA

THE COUNTY PAPER « EST.

AL

Who We Are

Carolyn Risner

ES2

  

Office Manager/Chiefland
Robin Heath

Photographer/Production
Miriam Blitch
Staff Writers
Cassie Journigan
Neal Fisher

Sales Representative/Bronson
Laura Catlow

Tynesetter
Wilma Jean Asbell

     
        
      
 
     
       
      
        
      

~

nel televised the race or even
what time it was, but I will
always remember the feel-
ing I had when I flipped the
channel with the race on.
My father was not around
often and I felt I had finally

 

found a group of men anda
fraternity whose atmosphere
was what I needed and

‘desired: ‘Thosé men became '
my role models..To‘me-they «:

were what a man should be,
both good and bad. A few
minutes after I began to feel
the-comfort that comes with
knowing a person has found
his place, the announcers
spotlighted Dale Earnhardt,
who was making his first
start in stock car’s top cir-
cuit.

I was immediately attract-
ed to him‘as a role model
and so was born a life long
admiration and appreciation
for the man who through his
public celebrity would come
to have the biggest influence
on me during my forma-
tive years.. While he was a
nobody at the time, strug-
gling just to find his place

in life, his demeanor and the

look in his eye instilled in.
me a confidence that one day
he would be somebody and
could provide an inspiring
example.

I know many fans of NAS-
CAR nation had their issues
with the “man in black”
during his heyday, but I was
inspired by his determina-
tion to achieve his goal of
becoming a champion racer .
and his relentless pursuit
of it as well as his steadfast

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Available from Commercial News Providers”

perseverance to be the best at

whatever he tried: Because |

of this, he grew into a man
who was respected and his
opinions were cherished as a
racer, businessman, husband,
father and friend. He was
not per-
NEAL FISHER fect, but
the per-
teal son who I
saw at the
time of
his death
was a
man’ who
had learned and grown from
his mistakes. He was proof .
that when a family believes

Columnist

in the man of the house, a=’

person has a keen. eye for-
what is going on around him
and. with hard work, one
can pick himself up by the
bootstraps and rise above his
beginnings.
Inspiration

As much as Earnhardt’s
life has been an inspiration to
me his colleagues.also hold
a place in my heart. Men
whose last name are Wal-
trip, Allison, Petty, Pearson,
Baker, Yarborough, Unser,
Andretti, Mears and Foyt
have also given me the cour-
age to overcome obstacles,
refuse to give up, learn from
my mistakes, avoid taking
the easy way out of difficult
situations (many of which
were not of my doing) and
follow a career-in the com-
petitive field of journalism.
In fact, if there ever was a
case for the karma thing my

birth is it. My mother went

into labor during the 1969
Indianapolis 500, which was
eventually won by Mario _
Andretti.

Much like Earnhardt, as
I have grown older I have
evolved into a man with ~
many other interests. While
journalism and racing will
never be replaced at the top

Miss Honey says

unday p.m. Sept. 10
S Hi! Had a wonderful
day with my friend
Debbie and her family. Had,
a good lunch and enjoyed it

very much and was treated

_ like one of the family. Isn’t it

great to have special friends?
Thanks again, Debbie, for
being my special friend.

Later, OK?

Monday, 4:30 a.m. Coffee
is making and the puppies
are sleeping, but I’m just
being lazy.

Monday, 9 a.m. Here I
am again, right back where
I started from. Isn’t it great
to be alive and still in the
land of the living. Oh, where
would I be without Jesus?

I have so much to do

today. I r
might get fe
it done. I
might not!
Time will
tell. I do as
I please. I
just don’t
please to
do too 4 ee
much. ___ MISS HONEY
Sometimes
it just overwhelms me!

I’d rather be visiting the
dollar store. Ha! I get to
see a lot of my customers
from IGA and that’s great.
And also the yard sales they
have down at the Bronson
Motel. I visit with all my
friends down there and I get

 

    

  
 

“a
‘

   

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Journalism is my calling and my passion

of my list of significant influ- ©

ences in my life, because of
what they meant to me when
I was a child, many other
people havé given me in-
spiration:in my teenage and |
adult years. Among them are
Shania Twain, Nolan Ryan,
Mark Messier and more

recently Danica Patrick, Rick

Hendricks and Jerry Bruck-
heimer.

On May 25, 1977 Stars
Wars was released and
much like the first time I
saw arace, I was attracted

to the idea of being an actor, ©

producer and director. With
Darth Vader’s first appear-

‘ance, clamoring through the~”

rock concert like fog-and
smoke while his laboring
breathing gave off the eerie
villainous feeling we have all
come to love, the same as-
surance that this was where
I belonged developed in the
pit of my stomach. While
it took almost 25 years,
I decided to act upon the sen-
sation a few years ago and
have been in several movies
as well as several events at
Universal Studios.

Born and raised in the big
city of Detroit, Mich., the
last thing I expected was ©

‘to work for a community

newspaper in Levy County.
However, the wheels of fate
kept me in Orlando for most
of the ‘90s, because I was
pursuing a degree at the Uni-:
versity of Central Florida.
After my graduation I began
training for a career in the
federal government’s foreign
affairs department, but five
years ago I realized it wasn’t
for me. I-did not feel it was
where I belonged. After
several months of consider-
ing my future, I came to the
conclusion journalism and
acting was where I belonged.

See Neal Page 10

to see Maggie, a friend who
had been sick, down at the
Bronson restaurant. I am
glad she is up and around
again.

My sister and her husband
came Saturday to see me and
yes, I was down at the dollar
shore so they came back
down there.

If you fail to find me, most
likely that’s where you will
find me.

I guess you could call
me their “greeter”. I talk to
everyone. They’re all my
friends.

Life is short, live it. Love
is free, give it. Death is
sure, be ready! We have no
See Honey Page 10

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