Page 12 - Florida Sentinel 6-12-18

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Active Wife, Mother, Educator, Pastor Passes Away After Brief Illness
Neighborhood Associations Can Apply For Mini Grants
Hillsborough County’s pop- ular neighborhood mini-grants program is back – and this year, there’s twice the good news.
Hillsborough County’s Of- fice of Neighborhood Relations is now accepting applications from neighborhood associa- tions to fund projects aimed at bringing neighbors together and boosting community pride. Groups will be able to apply for up to $5,000 – dou- ble the amount available in past years.
Applicants are encouraged to be creative and original. The mini-grants can be put toward a wide variety of projects, such as neighborhood celebrations, children’s programs, commu- nity gardens, signs and land- scaping, crime watch programs, safety equipment, websites, newsletters, and leadership training.
Neighborhood, civic, home- owner, and crime watch asso- ciations in Hillsborough County that are registered with the Office of Neighborhood Re- lations are eligible to apply, in- cluding those in Tampa, Plant City, and Temple Terrace.
The deadline to apply is 5 p .m. on Friday, Aug. 3.
Applicants must attend an information session, either in person or online, before sub- mitting their requests. The training will review the appli- cation, grant criteria, and proj- ects that qualify for the mini-grants, and answer ques- tions regarding the program. A verification code received at the completion of the training must be included on the appli-
cation in order for the proposal to be considered.
• Monday, June 18 at 6 p. m., Seffner-Mango Branch Li- brary, 410 N. Kingsway Road, Seffner
• Tuesday, June 26 at 6 p. m., 78th Street Community Li- brary, 7625 Palm River Road, Tampa •Monday,July2at6p.m., Jimmie B. Keel Regional Li- brary, 2902 W. Bearss Ave., Tampa
• Monday, July 9 at 6 p.m., Temple Terrace Public Library, 202 Bullard Parkway, Temple Terrace
• Monday, July 16 at 6 p.m., New Tampa Regional Library, 10001 Cross Creek Blvd. in Tampa
• Monday, July 23 at 6 p.m., County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd., 1st floor
• Monday, July 30 at 6 p.m., Bloomingdale Regional Public Library, 1906 Bloomingdale Ave., Valrico
Online Session
Participants can view a we- binar online or listen in via phone.
Wednesday, July 11 at 6 p.m.
Successful grant recipients in this year’s round will be no- tified by Nov. 30.
To register for one of the training classes, and for com- plete information about the mini-grants process, require- ments, and application, go to HCFLGov.net/Neighborhoods and click on the “Neighbor- hood Grants” link, or call the Office of Neighborhood Rela- tions at (813) 272-5860.
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
An active wife, mother, educator, and co-pastor passed away on June 4th after being hospitalized for a brief period.
Popular gospel artist, Ebou Howard said his mother, Florine Howard passed away in a local hospi- tal after suffering a stroke in May. Mrs. Howard was 61 years old.
Employed with the Hills- borough County School Dis- trict for 28 years, she was currently at Palm River Ele- mentary School, Howard said.
“I just want people to know how our mother in- stilled a strong faith in God in us and the value of getting an education,” he said. “All 8 of us are successfully em- ployed.”
Howard said his mother came to Tampa at the age of 17 from Hardeeville, SC, when she became the wife of Julius Howard, currently a retired postman.
“At first, she was a stay-at- home mom, who volunteered with Head Start. By the time she got all 8 of us in school, she said, ‘it’s time for me to go to work.’ Because of her devo-
tion to the Head Start pro- gram, she was eventually hired. She went back to school, got her diploma from Middleton, went on to HCC, where she got her AA degree and became a Paraeducator,” he further explained.
This past school term she was named Non-Instruc- tional Employee of the Year, a title she had earned several times before.
Mrs. Howard is credited with influencing countless lives as an educator. “She took in everybody’s child – from church, school, relatives – and gave them the same love she gave her own family.
She was a giver, who had a heart of gold,” he said.
The Howard children are: Abdul (truck driver), Kwanza (retired military), Marvin (Sgt. In military), Ebou (teacher, whose gospel group is Minstrels of Wor- ship), Yaisa (counselor), Janet (lawyer), Yulita (re- cently got her Master’s in Journalism), and Felecia (warehouse worker).
About 10 years ago, Mrs. Howard founded “Mothers, Daughters, Sisters and Friends,” a women’s empow- erment ministry, using the story of Ruth and Naomi as part of its basis. “He goal was to have the older women be effective in the lives of the younger women as well as the sisters and friends,” he said.
Having worked as a chef once in her life, Mrs. Howard took control of the family’s events. “All everyone had to do was show up. She loved cooking and did it all.”
Funeral services for Mrs. Howard will be held on Sat- urday, June 16th with Ray Williams Funeral Home han- dling services.
Mrs. Florine Howard with her husband, Julius Howard.
Correct Number
An incorrect phone number was published in Friday’s issue about the Father’s Day event hosted by Our Sisters Our Friends and A and V Sweet Treats. The cor- rect number is (813) 965- 5117.
PAGE 12 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, JUNE 12, 2018