SUWANNEE INVITATIONAL SHS boys, girls track place first SPORTS « Page 1B Do you love to color? Details The Suwannee Democrat 15A EASTER EGG LUCKY YoU! TREAURE HUNT St. Patrick’s Day coloring contest You can win $200 Photo: Paul Buchanan 14A (SuwanneeSports.com) Suwannee Democrat 129th YEAR, NO. 43 | 2 SECTIONS, 26 PAGES Wednesday Edition — March 5, 2014 50 CENTS Serving Suwannee County since 1884, including Live Oak, Wellborn, Dowling Park, Branford, McAlpin and O’Brien Live Oak Farmers Market? Century Ambulance reps speak out County’s decision to perform non-emergency medical transport will be devastating to the private company, says reps. “With the thin margins that we operate, if we have any more impact to our business, we may have to very well consider Come to meeting to learn more closing our operations. That’s a very real consideration.” The Live Oak CRA will host a town hall style meet- - John Glover, chief executive officer of ing on Thursday, March 13 at 6:30 p.m. at Live Oak Century Ambulance City Hall to get input from residents regarding the future possibility of a downtown farmers market. To By Bryant Thigpen learn more about the Farmers Market, visit suwan- [email protected] needemocrat.com, search farmers market. Editor’s note: The Suwannee County Board of County Commissioners listened to concerns Century Ambulance representa- Yoho mobile office tives had concerning the county performing non-emergency medical transport at their hours today regular meeting Tuesday night. The follow- John Glover, chief executive officer of Century Ambulance, right, with WHO: Staff for Congressman Ted S. Yoho Marsha Morell, Century executive vice president. Courtesy photo SEE CENTURY, PAGE 2A WHAT: Mobile Office Hours WHEN: Today (Wednesday) from 9-12. WHERE: Live Oak City Hall Conference Room - 101 White Ave. S.E., Live Oak FL, 32064 Teacher scores released WHY: Constituents who need assistance with Individual teacher scores will be in a federal agency or would like to voice their Friday’s print edition of the Democrat. opinion about legislative issues, can speak to By Bryant Thigpen The data was used in conjunction members of Congressman Yoho's staff in [email protected] with other information about class- person. room practice and other measures of The Florida Department of Edu- student achievement to determine cation has released the Value Added the overall evaluation score of the Model (VAM) scores of all teachers teacher. The VAM scores are used to Woman jailed for in the state including Suwannee DUI following crash County school teachers. SEE TEACHER, PAGE 3A Suwannee County School Board. O'Brien man receives minor injuries. Moving up with Pfizer Branford man By Joyce Marie Taylor involved in [email protected] Edress Darsey, a 1982 SHS graduate, named Columbia County A Branford woman was jailed Maldonado Global Pediatric Saturday for DUI after rear end- accident ing a vehicle, causing minor in- Medical Director for juries to the driver, according to the Florida High- major pharmaceutical By Bryant Thigpen way Patrol. company. A Columbia County man was Reports show that on Saturday, March 1 at 3:20 critically injured Monday p.m., a 1995 Jeep driven by Maria Margarita Mal- By Bryant Thigpen evening when he walked out in donado, 46, Branford, was traveling south on SR [email protected] front of a semi, driven by a Bran- 247 at 77th Rd. in Suwannee County with Jasmine ford resident, according to the Marie Acevedo, 5, Branford, as a passenger. A Suwannee County native Edress Florida Highway Patrol. 2005 Chevy pickup driven by Tyronne Lee Hill, Darsey, PharmD, was recently Edress Darsey According to a FHP report, on 55, O'Brien, was traveling south on SR 247 ahead named the Global Pediatric Med- Monday, March 3, at approxi- of Maldonado and slowed to make a left turn onto ical Director for Pfizer Pediatric miles outside of Live Oak with one mately 5:44 p.m., Gerald Ayers, a private driveway. Maldonado failed to slow, Center of Excellence, according to sister, Edna Moore. 56, of Branford, was driving a causing the front left of her vehicle to strike the Pfizer officials. In this new role, “I grew up on my parent's farm in 2003 truck and was traveling east rear right of the pickup truck. The Jeep came to a Darsey will work to provide con- Live Oak,” Darsey said. “My mom on US 90 in Lake City. Joseph final rest in the southbound lane facing in a south- sumer-focused pediatric expertise taught nursing at Lake City Commu- Roe, 61, of Lake City, was stand- easterly direction and the pickup came to a final across Pfizer and work with pedi- nity College and my dad was a real- ing on the southwest corner of the rest in the northbound lane facing northeast, re- atric centers across the US to im- tor and full-time land owner and intersection of SE Defender Drive ports state. prove research and the health of farmer.” and US 90. The crash report from FHP stated that after the children across the world. “As a child, I came home from The reports state that as Ayers traffic crash investigation was concluded, a DUI in- Darsey was born in Valdosta, Ga. school every afternoon and helped approached the intersection, Roe vestigation began on Maldonado, the driver of the to Ira and Claydell Horne and was walked out onto the roadway. Ay- Jeep. Maldonado was charged with careless driving, raised on the family farm just five SEE MOVING, PAGE 3A ers’ vehicle struck Roe with its DUI property damage/injury, and DUI refusal to right front corner and then submit to a breath test. She was transported to the TRUCK MONTH stopped in the right east- E E Suwannee County Jail. The Department of Children WES HANEY bound travel lane. Roe came and Family Services was notified of the incident N N to a rest in the right lane also, since there was a minor involved in the crash. GM SUPPLIER PRICING T T oriented in a northern direc- FOR EVERYONE! Maldonado and I I tion. YOU PAY THE SAME PRICE R the five-year-old re- G M S U P P L I E R S P A Y ! R Ayers stated in the report E E ceived no injuries. $ AVE $ that Roe walked directly out Hill suffered minor U P T O 7,878 S S in front of him and he was injuries in the crash T unable to avoid the collision. NO NEGOTIATIONS NECESSARY T and was transported O O JJUST UST EAST OF DOWNTOWN • LIVE OAK, FL Roe was transported to to Lake City Med- C C 362362-2976 362-2976-2976 Shands-Gainesville, suffer- ical Center. K K WWWWWW.WESHANEYCHEVROLET.COM .WESHANEYCHEVROLET.COM ing from critical injuries. FFRIENDLY, RIENDLY, NO HASSLE, BUYING EXPERIENCE 855471 www.suwanneedemocrat.com PAGE 2A I SUWANNEE DEMOCRAT/LIVE OAK WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2014 HOW TO REACH US Century Ambulance reps speak out Continued From Page 1A The Suwannee County as an advisor to the owner added), and reviewed their transport. Switchboard, 386-362-1734 Board of County Commis- and has been the CEO for billing department because Morrell said she is con- Fax, 386-364-5578 sioners gave the nod to about two years. Marsha Email, [email protected] ing interview occurred Fri- the reimbursements were cerned the county does not Mail, P. O. B ox 3 7 0 day, Feb. 28 at the Democ- Public Safety Director and Morell, Century executive so far behind and referred have the proper medical Live Oak, FL 32064 rat. The outcome of Tues- Fire Chief James Sommers vice president, has been them to a software compa- equipment needed to con- Office, 211 Howard Street East day’s meeting will be pub- to begin non-emergency with the company for over ny and worked with them duct non-emergency med- I Publisher, lished in the March 7 edition. transport services within 20 years. to understand all of the pro- ical transporting. Myra Regan, ext. 122 A local private company the county. The service is cessing,” Morrell said. “Inter-facility critical that specializes in non- now available for county Century’s assistance Besides serving Suwan- care transport has to have a emergency medical trans- residents by way of county to the county nee County with non-emer- significant amount of dif- port is asking the Suwan- resources. Morell said through the gency transport services, ferent equipment than the CONTACT US WITH nee County Board of Glover said Century years, Century has assisted Century also has a mutual 911 units do because 911 County Commissioners to Ambulance has been in the county with repairs to aide agreement with the units don’t carry IV pumps YOUR COMMENTS reconsider their recent de- Suwannee County for over their medical equipment county. or ventilators and you have cision to have Suwannee two decades. and have even donated “Today, we provide mu- to train your crews to be If you have any questions or County Fire Rescue launch “We’ve been in the units to the county. tual aide to the county and critical care certified,” concerns, call us at 386-362-1734 into the same business. county for 22 years. We’re “When their units were have done so for years for Morrell said. or visit our Website at John Glover, the chief ex- very close to Suwannee broke and there wasn’t the large-scale incidents or just Glover added, “It’s a www.suwanneedemocrat.com ecutive officer of Century County Fire Rescue,” funding to repair them, motor vehicle accidents more complex transport.