- April 26, 2024
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Four members of the Ormond-by-the-Sea Lions Club joined over 10,000 volunteers in welcoming more than 4,000 athletes to the Orlando area for the Special Olympics 2022 USA games. The local lions were also joined by over 100 other Lions from Multiple District 35-0.
On Saturday, June 4, OBTS Lions Club Past Presidents Bobbie Cheh and Mary Yochum worked the ESPN Wide World of Sports welcome volunteer tent, handing out over 300 backpacks, according to a press release. OBTS Lions Club President Greg Evans worked at the Opening Eyes tent that day, giving Special Olympics athletes eye tests.
Opening ceremonies were held in Exploria Stadium on Sunday, June 5, and afterward, Cheh, Yochum and OBTS Lions Club Secretary Jean Cerullo helped serve lunch to the athletes at the Amway Center. Evans was a bus captain and traveled with the athletes to the opening ceremonies, to lunch and bak to their hotels. The following week, he again assisted at the Opening Eyes tent and was a spotter on the golf course for the competition.
"The happiness and enthusiasm of the athletes was extraordinary and we all so enjoyed our time spent with them," the press release states. "It was our pleasure to serve."
The OBTS Lions Club meets on the first and third Wednesday of every month at 6:30 p.m. at Alfie's Restaurant, located at 1666 Ocean Shore Blvd. Call 386-441-4421 for more information.
Ormond Mainstreet has welcomed Caroline Skinner as its new executive director, a role formerly held by Julia Truilo, who recently retired after 10 years on the job.
“It has been a delight getting to know and work with Caroline Skinner — she is a great addition to the community and the Ormond MainStreet team — and her enthusiasm is infectious," said Truilo in a press release. "I look forward to attending and enjoying the next events, and especially to the organization’s continued growth."
Skinner received a master's in business administration from Stetson University and is a small business owner and mom to four grown children, which the press release said "gave her the most on-the job training for process management and efficient resource management of time, finances and energy uses as a single parent." She has a professional background in banking, academia and government, and is bilingual, as she speaks Spanish.
"I am so excited to have such a talented and capable executive director in Caroline Skinner," said Nancy Cortez, president of the Ormond Mainstreet board of directors. "Introducing her to our community has already been such a great process and I am excited to see how we will continue to grow and develop our member businesses."
When she is not making her rounds at local businesses and streamlining and digitizing process and procedure, the press release states, Skinner enjoys traveling, curating and researching midcentury fashion, furniture and collectibles, karaoke and music and giving back to the community by educating in personal finance, efficiency, digital tools and small business ownership.
Country music superstar and Ormond Beach native Brian Kelley unveiled his first solo release off Big Machine Records on July 1, and the song is a tribute to service members and first responders, including his grandfather — John Edward Kelley —who served in the army during World War II, was a prisoner of war, and earned two purple hearts.
The song, "American Spirit," produced by Kelley and Jake Rose, and co-written alongside Blake Redferrin and Canaan Smith, the track is a "timely salute to the ideals of freedom, bravery and honor — especially all of those who join the hitmaker in holding them dear. With a steadfast beat, heart-on-his-sleeve lyrics, and a smooth vocal that’s tried-and-true, Kelley stands tall for the red, white, and blue," a press release states.
"American Spirit" follows Kelley's 2021 solo album, "Sunshine State of Mind." According to the press release, Kelley is already working on new music to be released in the future.
The Capt. James Ormond Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution recently installed new officers for 2022 to 2024.
The officers are:
