Local

Columbia County Emergency Management Director Shayne Morgan (second from right) listens during a panel discussion at the 2024 Florida Emergency Preparedness Association conference. (COURTESY)

Columbia County Emergency Management Director Shayne Morgan (second from right) listens during a panel discussion at the 2024 Florida Emergency Preparedness Association conference. (COURTESY)

Morgan voted state group’s VP

MORGAN MCMULLEN
Friday, February 23, 2024
Columbia County’s Emergency Management Director has a few more responsibilities on his radar. Shayne Morgan was recently elected as the vice president of the Florida Emergency Preparedness Association at its annual meeting in Miramar on Feb. 2. The move makes Morgan the No.

I-75 exit ramp detours planned at SR47

NEWS STAFF
Friday, February 23, 2024
The Florida Department of Transportation is planning overnight detours next week for the Interstate 75 exit ramps at State Road 47. Starting Sunday, and lasting through Friday, the northbound and southbound exit ramps at SR 47 will be closed from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for paving operations.
Lake City Humane Society Executive Director Elizabeth Halloran alongside the agency’s office cat, Scruffy, in her office. (MORGAN MCMULLEN/Lake City Reporter)

Lake City Humane Society Executive Director Elizabeth Halloran alongside the agency’s office cat, Scruffy, in her office. (MORGAN MCMULLEN/Lake City Reporter)

Humane Society director settling in

MORGAN MCMULLEN
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
Elizabeth Halloran doesn’t mind the competing interests in the world of healthcare. In fact, she said she’s spent years trying to bring those different people and organizations together for a common cause.
Marilyn Hamm (left) and Marcia Kazmierski look over their board in last year’s Lake City Garden Club Scrabble Tournament. (FILE)

Marilyn Hamm (left) and Marcia Kazmierski look over their board in last year’s Lake City Garden Club Scrabble Tournament. (FILE)

Scrabble tournament spells Clubhouse support

TONY BRITT
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
Once a year they gather in a competition where vocabulary knowledge and correct spelling reigns supreme.

Teen pleads guilty for ’21 murder

NEWS STAFF
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
A Lake City teenager will spend 25 years in prison after a plea deal in a 2021 homicide case. Brandon Hopkins, 19, pleaded guilty Monday to second-degree murder while armed and received a 25-year sentence.
Mike Ferrell (clockwise from left), Richardson Community Center director, looks on as Jordan Maxwell gets a tutorial from Nicholas Brannon of the Florida Gateway College IT department on how to utilize video game consoles that are installed at Richardson Community Center. (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

Mike Ferrell (clockwise from left), Richardson Community Center director, looks on as Jordan Maxwell gets a tutorial from Nicholas Brannon of the Florida Gateway College IT department on how to utilize video game consoles that are installed at Richardson Community Center. (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

Gaming systems installed at Richardson

TONY BRITT
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
Richardson Community Center plans to expand its relationship with community youths by initiating a gaming program at the facility. The program is the result of a partnership between Florida Gateway College, the City of Lake City, Columbia County and the Richardson Community Center Board.
Winners in the Suwannee Valley Regional Science Fair were recognized Friday at Florida Gateway College’s Levy Performing Arts Center. (COURTESY)

Winners in the Suwannee Valley Regional Science Fair were recognized Friday at Florida Gateway College’s Levy Performing Arts Center. (COURTESY)

Fort White’s Robinson takes science fair top honors

NEWS STAFF
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
A Fort White High School student took home top honors at the Suwannee Valley Regional Science Fair. Cyler Robinson’s project “Does Temperature Effect the Dissolved Oxygen Concentration Within Hydroponic Solutions?
White Springs resident Joe Griffin sits in front of a sign erected on his property that calls Town Manager Vanessa George, Mayor Anita Rivers and Town Clerk Audre’ Ruise ‘crooks.’ (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

White Springs resident Joe Griffin sits in front of a sign erected on his property that calls Town Manager Vanessa George, Mayor Anita Rivers and Town Clerk Audre’ Ruise ‘crooks.’ (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

White Springs man calls out town, county officials with signs

TONY BRITT
Wednesday, February 21, 2024
WHITE SPRINGS — A White Springs man’s distaste for town and county officials is clear for all to see.