Due to the anticipated impact of Tropical Storm Isaac in Broward County, all Broward County public schools and District offices will be CLOSED on Monday,  August 27, 2012. **Palm Beach County Schools also closed.

        District officials are in contact and monitoring the storm’s track with Broward Emergency Management officials. While the storm’s impact is not fully known, officials agree there is the risk and potential for heavy rain and possible flooding throughout Broward County and high winds, which may cause power outages.  

        Information and updates will be shared with the public and the media as soon as available. Parents, students and BCPS employees will receive information via ParentLink (robot calls). Updates and information will also be provided via Twitter, Facebook, BCPS Rumor Control Hotline (754-321-0321), BECON-TV and local media.

        As soon as the storm passes, District officials and staff will assess any damages and conditions of schools, administrative sites and the safety of roadways. Following this assessment on Monday, a decision will be made about the resuming classes and normal operations on Tuesday. This information will be posted and shared as soon as available.

By Jim Lusk

After a storm passes through, there are a few things you can do to temporarily restore phone service and Internet access, as well as power up your equipment until all the services are back. Yes, it is possible to answer your business phones and have Internet access the day after a major hurricane without power.

PHONE SERVICE

There are three types of phone service: regular hardwired, cable service and VOLP. If you have regular traditional ATT phone lines, they supply their own power and do not require electricity to operate with a portable single or two-line phone. You can forward your numbers to a cell phone if you have call forward remotely, but when the cell tower runs out of fuel your back where you started.

Instructions:

First, unplug line 1 and 2 from your phone system box.
Plug the phone wire into a regular home phone.
If you have multiple lines and want 2 lines working, you can pick up a 2-line phone at most stores, and if both lines are on one cable, plug it into the line 1 and 2 jack on the phone or you can buy or bring two separate old fashioned phones using one for each line.
Buy a 100’ regular phone extension cord for each phone to let you move the phones to your operating location.

INTERNET ACCESS

Depending on your provider, you may not have an Internet connection with a power outage at your location. There are several factors that control cable services. Locations that have cable broadband need transfer stations along the route to amplify the signal and keep it strong, so if power is out at any of those stations, it will take out your service. Comcast has made many improvements since Wilma and they have generators but it still could take some time for an area-wide blackout. If their service is hot, you will need only to supply the modem with power from a generator.

T1 and DSL service will most likely stay up but will require powering the modems as well with a generator or inverter from a vehicle. If you don’t have a generator and have a laptop with a car charger, you can have Internet service by using one of the dial-up services that offer a free trial and hook up to your office or home phone line . I have confirmed that AOL offers one and also Net Zero.

Instructions:

Download software from one of the free providers onto your machine or burn it on a disk and put it in a safe place in case you need it.
Make sure you have a phone cord extension to plug into your machine.
Plug up the phone line to the machine (I used our line 4 after Wilma and had Line 1 and 2 hooked to a Radio Shack 2 line phone so we could answer calls, make calls to find our staff and work online at the same time).

By Gary Curreri

Fittingly, when the Florida Flag Football League State Championship (FFFL) in Melbourne concluded, the team left standing was the Pompano Beach-based Apocalypse team.

James Panui, Quinton McLendon and Derrick Brown each scored touchdowns as Apocalypse defeated the Palm Beach Knights, 19-7, to win an unprecedented fifth consecutive FFFL state title recently in Melbourne, FL.

Apocalypse surpassed the previous record of four consecutive victories held by Palace Saloon of Tallahassee. Following the tournament, Brown was inducted into the Florida Flag Football Hall of Fame.

“All the credit for this championship goes to Tony Walton, our linebacker and defensive coordinator,” said Apocalypse coach Craig Miller. “Our offense was sputtering and not as high-octane as in the past. Our defense kept us out of the fire. Tony won MVP for the tournament.”

Playing a double elimination tournament against the best flag football teams in the state, Apocalypse defeated four teams to win it all. The local squad defeated the Impact (Orlando), 23-12; Ruff Ryders (Miami), 20-18, and the Palm Beach Knights, 24-12, to advance to the finals where it defeated the Palm Beach Knights again. It marked the second year in a row that Apocalypse defeated the Palm Beach Knights in the championship game.

Local headed to paralympic games

Pompano Beach resident and 41-year-old double amputee Bradley Johnson left this weekend for London where he will compete in the Paralympic Games as a member of the 2012 U.S. National Sailing Team.

After finishing his undergraduate degree in criminology in 1992, Johnson had his eyes set on attending law school at the University of Florida (UF). However, his life took a dramatic turn the day he took his law school entrance exams. While traveling on I-75, his automobile hydroplaned and slammed into a guardrail, which severed Johnson’s left leg below- the-knee and right leg above-the-knee. However, Johnson didn’t let the accident deter him from achieving his dreams as he went on to obtain his law degree from UF in 1997.

In 1999, while at the Hanger Clinic for a prosthetic follow-up appointment, Johnson saw an ad for the National Disabled Summer Games hosted by Disabled Sports U.S.A; this compelled him to seek out a viable sport in which to compete with the objective of achieving Paralympic glory. Johnson then took up sitting volleyball and competed in the 2000 Sydney Paralympic Games.

It was there he was introduced to the U.S. Sailing Team coaches. Upon returning to the states, Johnson, who has always had a passion for the water, went on to join a sailing team and compete in the 2004 Paralympic Games. He took home a bronze medal!

In addition to chasing his Paralympic dreams, Johnson is a practicing attorney, an advocate for equal rights for individuals with physical disabilities and a motivational speaker.

By Gary Curreri

Gwen Bencie made the most out of her first year in the Deerfield Beach Ocean Rescue Junior Lifeguard program.

Bencie, 11, of Deerfield Beach, had spent her previous two years as a junior lifeguard with the Ft. Lauderdale program before moving to her hometown program.

She won the Girls C Division beach flags title, as well as the paddleboard championship, and placed third in the surf swim division in the second annual Florida State Junior Lifeguard Championships in Ft. Lauderdale recently.

“It is the first time I actually won beach flags,” said Bencie, who will be a Deerfield Beach Middle School sixth grader in the fall. “I was actually surprised, but really excited too. I never won beach flags before and the girls were really fast. I like junior life guarding because it is actually a lot of fun.”

Bencie said paddleboard is her favorite event. She’s captured nationals, regionals and states.

“Junior Life guarding has made me a stronger paddler and stronger in beach flags,” Bencie said. “It has also helped me learn about the water. They teach you how to rescue people.

Mike Brown, who heads the Deerfield Beach program, said the junior lifeguards get to see the other lifeguards from the other beaches and they may know them from school.

“We are proud to represent Deerfield and there is a lot of camaraderie there,” said Brown, who has been with the city for 15 years and headed up the program as its coach for the past six years. “A lot of kids, especially the ones who have never been a part of a team, accomplished something.”

Pompano Beach won the team competition with 1,240 points, while Ft. Lauderdale was second with 810 points. Hollywood and Deerfield Beach were third and fourth with 455 and 360 points, respectively, in the competition that featured nearly 150 competitors recently.

Other local double winners included Pompano Beach’s Sloan Sizemore (Run-Swim- Run, surf swim, Girls B Division); Pompano Beach’s Shane Shulte (Paddleboard, Run-Swim-Run, Boys C Division); Pompano Beach’s Kelly Shulte (Paddleboard, Surf-Swim, Boys B Division).

Individual winners included Pompano Beach’s Julia Schulte (beach flags, A Division); Glenis Carlson (beach flags, B Division); Pompano Beach’s Konnor Katzmark (Paddleboard, Boys A Division); Pompano Beach’s Race Wilhate (Run- Swim-Run, Boys B Division); Pompano Beach’s Clayton Adkins (Run-Swim- Run, Boys A Division).

Andrew Morris

By Rachel Galvin
On August 4, Deerfield residents and other country music lovers from all over flocked to the beach to do a little dancing in front of the stage while Country crooners sung their hearts out at the 1st annual Deerfield Beach Country Music Festival. Others browsed the vendor booths or bought some food while listening to the Country tunes. Performances were by Emily Brooke, Shane Duncan, Andrew Morris, David Ray Band and Tom Jackson Band. Event was presented by the City of Deerfield Beach Parks and Recreation Dept. Video coming soon on ObserverTV.

BREAKING NEWS: Response to TLC
By Diane Emeott

Wednesday, August 1, at 5 p.m., the city of Deerfield Beach issued an order in response to TLC Recovery’s request for Reasonable Accomodation, pursuant to the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), sources said.

The order will deny request for up to 9 residents at TLC’s location in a house at 1550 SE 12 St. The city is approving that up to 6 live may there. This is 3 persons less than TLC originally wanted. It is also 3 more than are allowed in pure single-family zoning.

“The single-family zoning category allows not more than three unrelated people. That’s why they’re filing for reasonable accommodation,” said Director of Planning & Development Services Jerry Ferguson following a hearing on July 25.

Regarding parking – which raised the ire of at last one resident who spoke last week of 4 to 6 cars being parked on the sidewalk – the city is allowing up to 4 cars to be parked there at one time, with 3 of those required to be in the garage.

Original date the city was supposed to have a decision by was Monday, July 30 at 1 p.m. The matter was said to be “still a work in progress” at that time.

Because of press time deadline, TLC could not be reached for comment.

Last week, Attorney James Green, representing TLC Recovery president Allie Natkin spoke of the need for transitional housing after someone completes a 28-day program.

“If someone uses, they are ejected from the premises,” Green added at the hearing.

By Gary Curreri

Tournament Director Mike Goodrich couldn’t have been happier as a record number of golfers turned out recently for the 5th annual Frankie Foundation Golf Tournament at Palm Aire Country Club.

“We certainly had the biggest field we ever had with 240 golfers and a waiting list,” said Goodrich, 49, of Coral Springs, who said the tournament was staged to raise money and awareness for automated external defibrillators (AEDs).

“We certainly didn’t want to overburden the golf course with slow play, so we kept it at 240 on purpose.”

“You can’t put words on it,” said Goodrich, whose efforts with the foundation have helped raise more than $300,000 in five years.

“Frankie (Speciale) was a very, very special person to everyone and the impact he had on everyone he touched was great. You can see that by the turn-out that we get every year, either with the players, volunteers, sponsors … he was a friend of everybody.”

Goodrich said the scramble/ best ball tournament, on two courses at Palm Aire Country Club in Pompano Beach, raised $70,000 from in-kind donations, tournament fees and the LIVE auction.

More than 30 AED units have been awarded to cities and municipalities in Broward and Palm Beach counties. Goodrich said the Sheridan House and church groups have also been given AEDs.

They also award four $1,000 scholarships annually in Speciale’s name to deserving high school seniors. Speciale died of a massive heart attack while playing in a recreational men’s soccer league match in Deerfield Beach in 2007. Even though the 1982 graduate of Pompano Beach High School was given CPR immediately, his life could not be saved. It is believed an automated external defibrillator might have made the difference in him surviving.

Goodrich, president of the Frankie Foundation and classmate of Speciale’s, said the tournament has grown over the years. The first tournament at Colony West drew a capacity crowd of 144 golfers.

On the Oaks course, Ryan Romero, Jay Guerrieres and Luis Guerrieres won with a 59, while Tom Cooper, Jim Fry, Troy Parra Jr. and Pete Tagget were second with a 60, and won by a match of cards over Doug Chasser, John Dedes, Connor MacBeth, and Ian Shinnick, who took third with a 60.

Dustin Major, Jon Major, Frank Major and Bob Salico shot a 61 to win on the Cypress Course, while Dan Calleja, Shawn Cevra, Howard Nash and Marlon Thompson took second with a 63.

The tournament will be played at Woodlands Country Club next year. Palm Aire, which was purchased by ClubLink last fall, suggested the tournament move to Woodlands because its banquet facility can accommodate the 240 golfers.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH  www.observernewspaperonline.com/observertv

By Gary Curreri

For nearly three decades, Highlands Christian Academy has combined fun and instruction with outstanding results at its annual summer basketball camp.

Now, in its 27th year, Highlands Christian Academy hosted more than 100 players in two separate sessions.

The first session attracted the older students (7th through 12th graders) who met from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. There were a total of 55 players.

The younger athletes (2nd through 6th graders) met from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the second session. There were 50 that week.

Jim Good, the school’s athletic director and boys’ varsity basketball coach, said a typical day included morning devotion, warm-up runs, stretches, ball handling, dribbling and Gatorade contests. Each day, a certain competition was done: 1 on 1, 2 on 2, free throw competition and hot shots competition.

“We went to lunch at Chick-fil-A and CiCi’s Pizza,” Good said. “In the afternoon, we played 5 on 5, full court games. Reg Cook started the camp back in 1985, and it is our most popular athletic camp at HCA.

Other athletic camps the school provides include cheerleading, softball, flag football, indoor soccer, volleyball and golf.

The head coaches for the two weeks of camp were Jim Good (boys varsity), Luke Still (boys’ JV), Josh Good (boys’ junior high) and Kelly Fichtner (girls’ varsity).

Several varsity athletes at the school also helped out during the second week to earn community service hours.

Soccer camps slated

Simply Soccer has two summer camps remaining in the city of Pompano. The dates are July 23-27 and August 13-17. Registration is being held at the Pompano Beach Civic Center. The soccer camp is for boys and girls, ages 5-14, of all skill levels, who will be taught a variety of soccer skills from dribbling to shooting. There are three sessions each day, ranging from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. (cost is $100 weekly); extended hours camp is available: from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for $125 each week, and a Tiny Tot program is offered for kids ages 5 and 6 from 9 a.m.to noon for $55 weekly.

Campers must bring a soccer ball, swimsuit, shin guards, water bottle and lunch. For more information, call the city of Pompano Parks and Recreation Department at 954-786- 4119 or 954-786-4111.

Men’s softball league begins

The city of Pompano Beach’s summer softball league began on July 9. The league, which plays its game at the Pompano Community Park 4-Fields Complex, offers games on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday nights from 6:45 p.m., 7:45 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Teams with a little more experience play on Wednesday nights. All-star events such as a Home Run Derby and special prizes will be offered throughout the season. There is a fully operational concession stand.

For more information, call 954-786-4119 or visit www.leaguelineup.com/ pompano.