Narrator Chris Heesch walks spectators through a weapons demonstration at the Zephyrhills Military Museum during the D-Day event. YOUR HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER SINCE 1911 Thursday, June 10, 2021 109th Year - No. 39 thezephyrhillsnewsonline.com 50¢ Zephyrhills graduates A Look Back ... JUNE 10, 1965 Wealth of Health proved how resilient New series harkens back to This week’s column details how to eat properly to days gone by. Let’s look improve your energy levels. at the above date ➤ 8 they were BY STEVE LEE News Reporter This week’s Look Back, the fi fth in our series, takes us back to 1965 and graduation was a major theme. Although it was not quite as detailed as our recent special section high- lighting high school graduates at Zephyrhills and Pasco in Dade City, a story noted just the Zephyrhills graduates. Back then, the high school was located at Weather what is now Stewart Middle School. The cur- Summer temperatures will rent site for Zephyrhills High did not open un- continue to be seasonal with til 1975. Diplomas were presented to the Class mostly 90s in the daytime of 1965 with its 81 graduates being the second and low 70s in the evenings. most in school history. It will remain sunny for Including valedictorian Linda Hayden the next three days, but by and Barbara Thompson, some of the other top Sunday we are in store for students were: Ronnie Cherry, best all-around scattered thunderstorms for boy; Kaye Henry, best all-around girl; Larry a few days. Chauncey, most athletic boy; Ronnie Carroll, ➤ 3 activities award; Robert Winters, school spirit; and Lillian Johnson, citizenship award. High school students were not the only ones earning recognition in the June 10 edition Danny Burgess is from 56 years ago. During assemblies at West Elementary and East Elementary, students now a Major were recognized for making honor rolls and perfect or near-perfect attendance. Additional- State Senator Danny Burgess ly, youngsters were recognized for moving on wears many hats. During a from the ABC Kindergarten and Day Nursery. recent ceremony at Veteran’s In a sign of the times, there were stories Memorial Park, the former Graduates turned their tassels and tossed their caps into the air at the conclusion of the Class of 2021 graduation ceremony at Bulldog Stadium. galore on the front page of The Zephyrhills Zephyrhills resident was News. Count 11 in all, although some were surrounded by family and STEVE LEE brief announcements. friends as he donned a new There was a piece on W. Byron Hill, an ac- one as a Major in the U.S. Class of 2021 overcame adversity It was noticeably diff erent last Thursday. While tive civic leader who at 66 suff ered a fatal heart Army Reserves. graduates from the Class of 2021 still had to sit on the attack. The lifelong Zephyrhills resident born ➤ 10 unlike any other previous students football fi eld at Bulldog Stadium with just two guests in 1899 worked in the sawmill and cattle in- per student, the stands were fi lled with plenty of sup- dustries before overseeing the Hill Lumber to earn their high school diplomas porters. Company. That was one of the city’s major in- Led onto the fi eld by the JROTC Color Guard, grad- dustries before a 1961 fi re destroyed the plant. Summer fun in uating seniors took their respective places in folding Among the groups he belonged to were BY STEVE LEE chairs. Once settled, they listened to a handful of speak- east Pasco County News Reporter the Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce, Pas- ers who were led by principal Christina Stanley. For her, co County Fair Association and Pasco County There are several options both graduations she has presided over came in the Co- Cattleman’s Association. He also was a charter for summer recreation in From one graduation to another, there was signif- vid-19 era. Stanley replaced Angie Stone, who retired af- vice president of the Zephyrhills Democratic Zephyrhills and Dade City. icant progress for outgoing students from Zephyrhills ter the Class of 2019 graduated at the University of South Club and Zephyr Elks Lodge 198 member. Among those are various High School. During the height of the coronavirus pan- Florida’s Yuengling Center in 2019. In a story that combined heroism and camps and open sessions at demic last year, attendance for the Class of 2020 was se- Stanley commended the graduates for persevering tragedy, three Melbourne teenagers came to verely limited with just two family members of friends parks. ® ➤ 13 per graduate. ZHS GRADUATION: See Page 9 ®A LOOK BACK: See Page 4 D-Day comes to Zephyrhills Rain holds off for Pasco’s Class of 2021 The Zephyrhills Museum of Military History, located on the outskirts of the Zephyrhills Municipal Pasco High and Cambridge Airport, brought D-Day to life last weekend. There were graduates share one last informative talks, plenty of reenactors and retro military Friday night together at equipment on display. W. F. Edwards Stadium ➤ 16 BY STEVE LEE News Reporter INDEX Community News 2 The ongoing challenges for Pasco’s Class of 2021 continued last Friday night at W.F. Ed- Weather 3 wards Stadium in Dade City. Having over- Church Directory 5 come the adversity of dealing with the corona- virus pandemic for more than a year and hav- Obituaries 5 ing a co-graduation with the Cambridge pro- Crossword Puzzle 6 & 7 gram students sharing the experience, inclem- ent weather factored into the equation. Coloring Contest 12 The forecast called for thunderstorms to Crime Reports 14 soak the east side of the county that night, but fortunately the rain held off except for a few Legals 14 minutes during the middle of the traditional Classifieds 14 ceremony. Rain, a deadly virus and a co-grad- uation did nothing to dampen the spirits of the T.V. Guide 15 114th graduation in school history. No school in the county has had more Zephyrhills News graduations, excluding the Cambridge pro- gram that is just in its seventh year at the Dade City-based school. ➤PASCO GRADUATION: See Page 11 Confetti filled the air at the end of the graduation ceremony for Pasco and Cambridge graduates at W.F. Edwards Stadium. 2 Thursday, June 10, 2021 | Zephyrhills News LETTER TO EDITOR Dear Editor, Cody Somoano achieves Spring 2021 Dean’s List I appreciated your “A Look Back” section today and spe- cifi cally regarding Joie Chitwood. I grew up in Wisconsin and at Belmont University for many years starting for me in the early 1950s, Joie Chit- wood’s auto thrill show would come to our county fair. One of Cody Somoano, of Wesley Chapel, qualifi ed for the Spring 2021 Dean’s List at Belmont my heroes growing up. My grandfather told me that Joie Chit- University. Eligibility is based on a minimum course load of 12 hours and a quality grade point wood owned a Chevrolet dealership here in Zephyrhills. A average of 3.5 with no grade below a C. Approximately 53 percent of Belmont’s 6,170 under- few weeks ago I asked on Facebook about this fact and a cou- graduate students qualifi ed for the Spring 2021 Dean’s List. 38333 5th Ave. Zephyrhills, Florida 33542 ple responded they thought it was true but many more men- Belmont Provost Dr. Thomas Burns said, “Students achieving the Dean’s List recognition (813) 782-1558 tioned Reutimann ownership. So I was excited to read an of- at Belmont have clearly demonstrated enormous commitment to their educational endeav- ors - they have invested deeply in their studies and in their future. We are happy to celebrate E-mail: [email protected] fi cial statement about Joie Chitwood’s local involvement. I have researched further to discover that Joie is buried in a Tam- their success and know that their continued, consistent and comprehensive dedication to their The Zephyrhills News, USPS 699-080, is pa Cemetery, which I hope to visit sometime. academic work will equip them to embrace future opportunities to engage and transform our published every Thursday. Periodicals Again, thank you for the article and look forward to future world.” postage paid at Zephyrhills, Florida and segments. My great grandparents came to Zephyrhills in the additional mailing offi ces. Postmaster: 1920s (Albert and Sarah Perkins), later my grandparents, my Send address changes to The Zephyrhills parents and now my wife and I as full time residents. Several Harper receives White Coat News, 38333 Fifth Avenue, Zephyrhills, At its annual white coat ceremony on May 19, New York Institute of Technology’s Florida 33542. No part of the The Zephyr- years ago you did an article about the Perkins Shuffl eboard Club hills News may be reproduced or trans- and our connection to that by my cousin, Robert Perkins. Physician Assistant (PA) Studies program celebrated graduating members of the Class of 2021, including Oksana Harper of Wesley Chapel. mitted in any form or by any means, Sincerely, Rick Unbehaun electronic or mechanical, including pho- White Coat ceremonies are a rite of passage celebrating the completion of students’ training tocopy or recording, of any informa- as they graduate and pursue careers as PAs. In marking the transition into professional life, tion storage or retrieval system without the event centers around the symbolic awarding of a new long white coat, which replaces the the expressed written permission of the Plea for Pasco customers to short student white coat worn daily to class and clerkships. publisher. PAs are healthcare professionals who diagnose illness, develop and manage treatment To subscribe call (813) 782-1558 conserve water during dry season plans, prescribe medications, and often serve as a patient’s principal healthcare provider.