April 6, 2009

VOLUSIA COUNTY ‘GO-GREEN’ WINNERS – The Volusia County Council has selected the top 12 winners of the “Go Green, Win Green” employee idea contest. As part of the county’s Green Volusia program, county employees submitted 211 entries suggesting ways for the county to be more energy efficient and kinder to the environment. The grand prize winner, Dena Rebozo of Library Services, recommended that the county create a staff team to conduct an energy, landscaping and waste audit to identify energy patterns, natural resource usage and waste production and utilize the data to generate cost savings.

FLORIDA GOURMET SUPPORTS OUR TROOPS – Florida Gourmet, a DeLand-based manufacturer of MSG-free sauces and marinades, will pay shipping costs for orders sent to U.S. troops stationed abroad. The company provided 55-gallon drums of Island Grove Habanera Hot Sauce to the United Kingdom’s armed forces every four months for five years. After the hot sauce arrived in the United Kingdom, it was repacked into 500,000 individual pouches and distributed worldwide to British troops. Information on Florida Gourmet’s products can be found at www.islandgrove.com.

FLORIDA ECONOMIC RECOVERY – A new web site, www.flarerecovery.com, allows access to all public records and documents related to Florida's implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. It also provides information about citizen assistance programs and helps residents apply for programs such as food stamps, Medicaid and cash assistance.

A RISING TIDE OF OCEAN DEBRIS – During the 23rd International Coastal Cleanup, volunteers removed 6.8 million pounds of debris from 6,485 sites in 104 countries including the United States. Florida finished with the third-highest weight of trash – more than 204 tons. Cigarette butts were the most common coastal litter – nearly 200,000 in Florida and 3.2 million in other areas. For more information, visit www.oceanconservancy.org/site/PageServer?pagename=icc_home.

SCHOOLS ARE GETTING BETTER GRADES – Florida has more schools earning A's and B's than ever before. Of the 2,889 schools graded this year, nearly three-quarters (2,125) are considered to be high-performing (receiving either an A or B). Of the remaining 764 schools, 20 percent earned a C, 5 percent a D, and 2 percent an F. The number of schools considered to be low-performing decreased significantly compared to last year. For more information, please visit http://schoolgrades.fldoe.org.

EMBRY-RIDDLE SUMMER PROGRAM – Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University partners with Volusia County Schools each summer to present the Engineering Scholars Program at Embry-Riddle (ESPER), a free seven-week program for selected high school students. This program is designed to help students focus on science, engineering, mathematics and physics coursework in high school. It also encourages them to choose a math- or science-based program as their college course of study and ultimately choose a career in one of those fields. For more information, please visit www.erau.edu/omni/db/academicorgs/dbcoe/summer.html.

GUIDE FOR REAL FLORIDA GARDENERS – The Association of Florida Native Nurseries has published its annual “Guide for Real Florida Gardeners.” This year’s guide includes an overview of Florida wildflowers that can be used for landscaping, landscaping techniques to attract birds and butterflies, and methods to incorporate native vegetation into your yard. To get a free copy of the Native Plant and Service Directory or Guide for Real Florida Gardeners, please contact Cameron Donaldson at (877) 352-2366.

NEWS ITEMS WANTED! – Please send your business news items to Dave Byron, Volusia County Community Information Director, 123 W. Indiana Ave., DeLand, 32720-4612; by fax at (386) 822-5072; or by e-mail at dbyron@co.volusia.fl.us.