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"Honk if you love Jesus, text if you want to meet him"
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When drivers text, their eyes are off the road for an average of five seconds at a time: a period that, while travelling 55 mph, is enough to cover the length of a football field - blindfolded.
Aware of the dangers of distracted driving, a Pinellas County resident who isn't yet old enough to drive himself is sending a safety message to those who are:
"Honk if you love Jesus, text if you want to meet him."
Rawlings Elementary Student Dayton Petrone incorporated the phrase as the theme of the vanity plate design he created as part of the Pinellas County Tax Collector's Office Kids Tag Art pilot program.
Through Kids Tag Art, students in 37 Pinellas County schools created their own unique vanity tags that sold for between $10 and $15.
To kick off Distracted Driving Awareness Month this April, Sheriff Bob Gualtieri joined Tax Collector Diane Nelson Wednesday, March 30th, to honor Dayton for artistically relaying the important, timely message.
"I would like to thank Dayton for using his artistic talent to help us get the word out about the dangers of texting and driving," Sheriff Gualtieri said. "The bold colors and caption of his artwork send a clear message about the serious consequences of distracted driving that we hope will serve as a reminder to all." |
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Operation Predator: a Success
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The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office was one of 39 Florida sheriff's offices that participated in "Operation Predator," a two-week effort to verify current locations and criminal backgrounds of the 46,000 permanent sexual predator residents in the state.
The Operation, a Florida Sheriffs Association (FSA) Task Force endeavor, confirmed sexual predator and offender addresses, registration violations, numbers of related warrants served through arrests, and numbers of ancillary arrests made through this enforcement operation.
The flier below displays the Task Force's overall results, and you can see a county-by-county breakdown
here.
"'Operation Predator' allows our sheriff's offices to better predict dangers that could potentially harm our children and community members," said Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, the FSA Task Force chairman. "The data found informs the public of possible threats and helps better prepare our task force to defend Florida residents."
Click HERE to access the full Florida Department of Law Enforcement sexual offender and predator directory.
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On Saturday, March 5th, Sheriff Bob Gualtieri hosted a Community Service Awards Ceremony to recognize several Neighborhood Watch members and outstanding citizens who have gone above and beyond their calls of duty. He presented Leadership Awards to people who have taken the initiative and led others to success and Crime Prevention Awards to individuals who performed a specific action or reported a situation that substantially assisted deputies in solving a crime.
In the next several "Inside the Star" issues, we will highlight a few of the award recipients in gratitude for their service.
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Ms. Kit Ewing
Leadership Award
Longtime Dunedin Middle School guidance counselor Ms. Kit Ewing believes "hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard." Coming into work early and leaving late, she practices what she preaches. Kit's stellar example to school-aged children exemplifies the meaning of leadership.
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Mr. Hippolyte Houndji
Crime Prevention Award
When a suspect fled on foot from the scene of a grand theft crime, Mr. Hippolyte Houndji chased after and apprehended him until deputies caught up. Thanks to Hippolyte's courageous actions, the suspect was arrested, and a warrant has been issued for his accomplice.
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"This bi-weekly newsletter is another step in my effort to give interested residents the most up-to-date information about services and programs here, at the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office. I value your feedback and look forward to continuing our dialogue about public safety."
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The Sheriff's Main Office
10750 Ulmerton Road
Largo, FL 33778
The Sheriff's North District Office
737 Louden Avenue
Dunedin, FL 34698
For Non-Emergencies
(727) 582-6200
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Feeding the hungry this Easter season
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To limit the number of families who go hungry this Easter, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, the Indian Rocks Beach Rotary Club, Calvary Episcopal Church, Pinellas Suncoast Fire Rescue District, and Publix partnered for the 12th consecutive year to deliver food to families who otherwise could not afford a traditional holiday meal.
They loaded PCSO Community Policing deputies' patrol cars with meals that included a fully cooked ham, several side dishes, dessert, drinks, and more.
Deputies then delivered the meals to 50 families in need whom they had encountered throughout their daily work in the community.
Check out the photos we took as participants packaged and delivered the meals.
Feeding families in need is not just a holiday project for Calvary Episcopal Church. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays throughout the year, the church accepts monetary and non-perishable food donations through the Beach Community Food Pantry. If you would like to volunteer at the pantry, contact the church at 727-595-2374.
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On Saturday, April 2nd,
hundreds
gathered at Wall Springs Park for the the Second Annual Palm Harbor Spring Fling 5K race and 1-mile fun run benefiting Elisa's Greatest Wishes.
Elisa's Greatest Wishes is a nonprofit created to honor the memory of 10-year-old Elisa Nelson, who in 1980 was abducted as she rode her bike to Palm Harbor Middle School and was subsequently murdered.
The race proceeds totaled more than $60,000, which will fund new books for school libraries, scholarships, Girl Scouts, youth athletics, sick children, and animal charities, which were some of Elisa's greatest passions.
A proud sponsor of the event, the PCSO hosted a fingerprinting booth, and several agency members participated in the race.
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