Hometown

By Times Staff Writer
Published January 27, 2008

What's Happening

Thursday is the deadline for membership in the non-profit Pasco County Fair Association Inc.. No memberships will be sold in February.

Membership in the association not only supports the non-profit organization, allowing it to survive and host the annual fair, it also entitles the holder to free gate admission each day. Members also receive free parking in a members parking area. A membership dinner is held in March or April each year when members of the board of directors are elected.

Memberships are $45 for a family and include the parents and children ages 18 and younger living in the home. It does not include grandparents or other relatives. Individual memberships are $22.

Gate admission to the fair is $7 for adults and $4 for children ages 6 -12. Children 5 and younger are admitted free.

Applications are available at the Pasco County Fair Office, 36722 State Road 52, Dade City, and online at www.pascocountyfair.com. Checks, cash and major credit cards are accepted.

The Pasco County Fair Association was founded in 1947 for the purpose of hosting an annual fair to showcase the resources of Pasco youth and adults. It has continued since that time as an independent, non-profit organization that owns and operates the 40-acre fairgrounds. It does not receive county, state or federal funding but rather relies on memberships, fair revenues and sponsorships to continue to offer a place for Pasco people to spotlight their talents and enjoy themselves.

The 60th annual Pasco County Fair, featuring the theme "A Diamond Jubilee," will be held Feb. 19-25. For more information, call 352 567-6678.

Upcoming Events

Community Aging and Retirement Services, Inc. (CARES) will honor retiring Pasco County Attorney Robert Sumner for his many years of service to the community at the CARES Annual Benefit Dinner and Toast. The event is scheduled for Feb. 28 at the Tampa Bay Golf and Country Club in San Antonio. Sumner will be toasted by area notables and a special historical video of the three generation Sumner family in Pasco will be shown.

Sumner is a fifth generation East Pasco resident whose family settled in Pasco County at the end of the Civil War. He attended school in Dade City and graduated from Pasco High School in 1952. He received a bachelor's degree in accounting at Florida Southern College and a law degree from Stetson University. He is married to Marlene Storch Sumner and they have five children, twelve grandchildren and one great grandchild.

Sumner built his law practice over several decades, specializing in banking financial law, real estate, land use, wills and guardianships. He has been an active in the community serving as president of the Rotary Club of Dade City and coaching Little League baseball teams, including one that went to the state finals. He is a past president of the Pasco County Bar Association and is a member of the Florida Bar Association and the Florida Association of County Attorneys. In October 1999, he was selected by the Pasco County Commission to be county attorney.

CARES is a charitable not for profit corporation that takes pride in providing badly needed services to seniors in West Central Florida. The proceeds from this fundraising event will help support CARES senior enrichment centers and other specialized support services that do not receive any government funding.

For information about sponsorship opportunities or tickets to the event, please call (727)862-9291, extension 224 or (352)523-1500, ext. 206.

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The Women-n-Charge Health and Wealth Expo will take place 10-4 p.m., Saturday at River of Life Church, 410 Chapman Road in Lutz. Businesses will showcase their products and services at the free event. Sweetbay Supermarket will offer free health screenings. The day will be packed with information about building wealth and staying healthy. Attendees this year will also have the opportunity to win $25,000 in the "Crack the Safe" contest.

Money earned from the event will be used to award a mini grant to a woman in business.

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The first annual "Tour de Trilby" bicycle rally on the Withlacoochee Trail will be held starting at 7 a.m. Feb. 9 following a pancake breakfast.

According to Kim Rowe, event coordinator for the Greater Trilby Community Association and local Trilby businessman, the event will help establish Trilby as a center for outdoor activities noting the rural open area ideal for biking.

Registration for the event is a $29 donation through a registration form at www.trilbyfl.com/tdt. Participants who pre-register before Tuesday will receive a free "Tour de Trilby" T-shirt. Denny Mihalinec, GTCA board member, said proceeds from the event will be used to fund future children's safety and other community events.

Intermediate and advanced riders will start at 7 a.m. and amateurs at 8 a.m. The trail is a 47-mile long one-way trip from Trilby to Dunnellon - pro riders could make it a 94-mile round trip. According to Rowe, a 10-mile round trip from Trilby to the Ridge Manor Pavilion is good for amateurs or regular riders/runners. This rally includes cyclists, runners, walkers, skaters and horseback riders.

The Greater Trilby Community Association, a non-profit group of local residents, whose mission is to improve the quality of life in the greater Trilby area, sponsors the event. Contributions to the 501(c) (3) Association are tax deductible

[Last modified January 26, 2008, 22:24:52]