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My work as a contributing writer with the West Orange Times & Observer.

West Orange Times & Observer •

Duo leads Windermere High baseball to regionals following fifth consecutive district title

After capturing the program’s fifth consecutive district title this season with the help of versatile pairing of players who share the same first name, the Windermere High baseball team fell just short of advancing past the regional quarterfinals round of the Class 7A FHSAA state tournament Friday, April 24, losing to Winter Haven at home 2-1.“I thought we played pretty well,” head coach Brian Adkins said. “We pitched it well, played great defense. We threatened offensively in a couple of inning...
West Orange Times & Observer •

Freshman trio and new head coach reignite Olympia High baseball

Before his first year as the head baseball coach at Olympia High School, Kyle Blum and the team set a goal of finishing with a winning record, looking to bounce back from last year’s season. They accomplished the feat — but not without vital contributions from three freshmen and the promise of chicken wings.  When Blum arrived to coach the team in the fall, he was looking for ways to bring the players together. He said the fall is the players’ growth period. At that time, the Titans played 12 ga...
West Orange Times & Observer •

Windermere Prep proposes new campus

Horizon West residents worry that Windermere Preparatory School’s proposed elementary campus in Horizon West will exacerbate the area’s existing traffic and pedestrian safety issues.Residents raised concerns during an Orange County community meeting Thursday, March 26, at Bridgewater Middle School’s media center regarding the private school’s expansionOrange County officials and Windermere Prep leadership presented two proposals at the meeting: a Change Determination Request to reduce framework...
Orange Observer •

PHOTOS: West Orange and Windermere Little League Night

For the first time in the program’s history, Windermere High baseball team had a perfect game. Junior Xavier Roman’s 70-pitch performance Tuesday, March 24, helped the Wolverines top West Orange 10-0 in six innings at the Warriors’ home field. Windermere broke away in the fifth. Up 1-0, the Wolverines scored six of its runs before adding another three the following inning to force the run-rule victory. The game was played in front of a mix of Windermere and West Orange faithful, as well as a bat...
Orange Observer •

Relay for Life of Lake Buena Vista supports American Cancer Society

Yamile Rivera remembers when her mother was diagnosed with stage four mantle cell lymphoma in 2008. She said the doctors gave her six months to live.Rivera has been a volunteer with the American Cancer Society for the past 30 years and said she had not known anyone with cancer before she started. Learning of her mom’s diagnosis, she knew the resources ACS provided and immediately called its 1-800 helpline to learn what to do.She said thanks to the ACS and a cell transplant in 2009 at the Moffitt...
Orange Observer •

Gymnastics USA is building regional qualifiers through the basics

When Nick Kosteski enters the gym to coach the boys’ competitive teams at Gymnastics USA in Winter Garden, he makes his way across a sea of mats and equipment. He is first flagged down, though, by nearby 5- and 6-year-old gymnasts who stop what they’re doing for just one thing: to shake his hand. It’s one of the first lessons the boys are taught at the gym, Kosteski said, making sure they know how to stand up straight, provide a firm handshake and show respect before they ever learn about gymnas...
Orange Observer •

Could more houses be constructed in Southwest Orange?

Orange County staff held a brief community meeting Thursday, March 5, in Olympia High School’s auditorium offering information on a rezoning request that would add 51 homes at 1955 S. Apopka-Vineland Road. Case planner Adriana Caamaño explained in a presentation the importance of future land use and zoning correlation. Future land use can be general, such as commercial, residential or industrial, Caamaño said, while zoning is more specific in regard to, for instance, lot sizes and where homes ca...
Orange Observer •

Winter Garden leaders approve AI answering system

The Winter Garden City Commission unanimously approved Thursday, Feb. 26, the purchase of an AI public safety non-emergency answering system to better support the Winter Garden Police Department’s dispatch center.The city is set to pay the tech company Aurelian $55,000 per year under a three-year contract for its platform, a tool adopted by departments across the country, including the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office in August 2025.Winter Garden Police Chief Steve Graham said the decision to imp...
Orange Observer •

Winter Garden residents protest recent property purchases

With one individual purchasing numerous buildings around downtown Winter Garden, residents went to the Winter Garden City Commission meeting Thursday, Feb. 26, to express their concerns.  James Larweth has spent more than $40 million since 2015 buying 36 residential and commercial properties in downtown Winter Garden using 26 different LLCs. Residents fear what Larweth is planning as two small businesses — Polka Dotz and Three Birds Café — at one of his properties already have been told they wil...
Orange Observer •

AdventHealth Winter Garden CEO leads growth with patient perspective

The sounds of whirring drills and buzzing table saws resonate from just outside Aimee Keller-Pickford’s office at AdventHealth Winter Garden’s campus. Two stories above the construction site, her window overlooks two major expansion projects totaling more than $188 million. Keller-Pickford was brought on as the hospital’s chief executive officer in July 2025, previously having held other executive management positions for AdventHealth across Central Florida during her 31 years with the hospital....
Orange Observer •

PHOTOS: Boots and Salutes

The Pines at Windermere were filled with people ready for a good time in support of veterans and first responders during the inaugural Boots and Salutes, Saturday, Feb. 14.Those in attendance were there to support nonprofits from the Windermere area raising money for Wind River Ranch, a retreat in Estes, Colorado, that aims to help veterans, first responders and their families. The night featured performances from four country artists — Mark Powell, David Lee, Daniel Johnson and Tomara Conrad —...
Orange Observer •

Scholarship collaboration helps families in need

This year, graduating seniors at West Orange High School whose families have been affected by cancer will be able to apply for a scholarship to offer financial assistance when enrolled in a Florida college.It’s happening thanks to a collaboration between the West Orange Scholarship Foundation and the Jimmy Crabtree Cancer Fund, an effort JCCF President Andy Crabtree said was “at the heart” of what the cancer fund does: help families that have been touched by cancer. The nonprofit was created aft...
Orange Observer •

West Orange Dream Center welcomes new executive director

Julia Martinez spent the past 10 years in the luxury automotive industry, praying for an opportunity to return to faith-based, nonprofit work. In January, her prayers were answered.Martinez joined the West Orange Dream Center as its new executive director Monday, Jan. 5. She brings more than 20 years of experience carrying out missions in the Dominican Republic before she settled in the United States to attain financial stability and put her two children through college. “I just fell into the au...
Orange Observer •

Community rallies after fire at Hamlin BJJ academy

One of the first rules Marcos Vinicius teaches his students at the MVBJJ Academy in Hamlin is to never step on the mats with shoes on. However, that rule was broken Dec. 22, when firefighters had to rush in and extinguish flames that forced the jiu-jitsu gym to close temporarily.The owners say the fire was caused by a short circuit in a mini-Pepsi cooler near the front door. It started at about 8 a.m. — hours before the first scheduled class that morning — and soon spread to a small plastic Chri...
West Orange Times & Observer •

Ward Trail will make Windermere safer

Around 8 a.m. on weekdays, Leah Thon and her son, Emmett, set off to Windermere Elementary School from their home in downtown Windermere. As they make their way across sandy paths covering cracked sidewalks past North Drive, they meet an old pedestrian bridge over a canal. It features a steep concrete ramp leading to a narrow walkway encased by a warped chain-link fence. Vegetation has grown through the ceiling and along the sides. It’s just wide enough for two people to walk over it side-by-sid...