DeLand is considering whether to ban smoking and vaping in public parks, but unfiltered cigars, thanks to state law, will still be permitted.
The DeLand City Commission will consider an ordinance that would prohibit smoking and vaping in nearly all public parks owned by the city. The item already passed a first reading and is expected to have a final hearing before the City Commission on Monday. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m.
DeLand Mayor Chris Cloudman and Parks and Recreation Director Rick Hall said the city sometimes has problems with people smoking at parks, including during Little League events. They said the city wants to keep children and other people from being exposed to smoke.
Just asking people to stop smoking hasn’t been effective.
“It’s kind of amazing to me in 2024 that we’re having to, you know, put teeth behind asking people not to smoke around other families,” Cloudman said.
Hall said if the ordinance is enacted the city will post signs at parks to warn people of the change. Cloudman said the city’s intent isn’t to start “fining people left and right” but to educate them.
The city plans to craft penalties once the ordinance is adopted, city spokesman Chris Graham said.
The law won’t apply to unfiltered cigars because that is preempted by state law, officials said.
The city’s parks include, among other sites, the Chipper Jones Family Little League Complex at 260 West Walts Ave., Bill Dreggors Park at 230 N. Stone St., Earl Brown Park in the 600 Block of S. Alabama Ave. and Painter’s Pond at the corner of South Alabama and East Wisconsin avenues.
Pioneer Park, which is in the heart of downtown near bars, would not be included.
Peggy Whitmore said she is opposed to the proposed ban. Whitemore owns the E-Cig Source vape shop at the Walmart plaza at 955 S. Woodland Blvd.
She said she believes the ban would hurt business and would lead to more restrictions. She said her business only sells vapes, and she said vapes help people quit smoking and are much safer than regular cigarettes.
“People should have choices,” she said. “Adults have choices.”
“E-cigarette aerosol generally contains fewer toxic chemicals than the deadly mix of 7,000 chemicals in smoke from regular cigarettes,’ according to the CDC. “However, e-cigarette aerosol is not harmless. It can contain harmful and potentially harmful substances, including nicotine, heavy metals like lead, volatile organic compounds, and cancer-causing agents.
Studies on whether e-cigarettes can help people quit smoking have had mixed results, according to the CDC. The studies didn’t provide enough evidence to recommend using e-cigarettes as a tool to quit smoking.
― Reporter Brenno Carillo contributed to this report.
When it came time to present the pot, grant the ganja or bestow the bud ― however you want to say it ― the organizers of Delaware’s first “Joints for Junk” decided to hand out the promised pre-rolls at the start of the two-hour trash clean up in Millsboro this fall.
While the Delaware Cannabis Advocacy Network has been organizing community events ever since its founding in 2013, this was the first time it was doing one since marijuana was legalized in Delaware eight months ago.
So the nonprofit advocacy group brainstormed a new way to attract volunteers: give out grass. And they didn’t even wait until the volunteers put in the work first.
“People preregistered, showed up, signed a waiver and we gave them a joint,” says Zoë Patchell, president of Delaware CAN. “And, actually, nobody took the joint and left. It was a really positive, inspiring day.”
Once they landed on the catchy event name, they had to find a location for the community service project, eventually landing on Millsboro, the Sussex County town of about 7,000 whose council had just voted to prohibit the sale and manufacturing of marijuana.
“There was significant community support there while we were involved in opposing the vote, so it just seemed like a great place to do it,” Patchell says.
So did the cannabis giveaway work? It sure did.
The event drew more than 50 volunteers over the age of 21 with each getting a pre-rolled joint, which was donated by members of the nonprofit group. (Under new Delaware law,…
A Detroit woman is accused of having drug-laced gummy bears on school grounds while working as a teacher last summer, officials said.
Darla Spinner, 48, is scheduled to be formally charged Thursday through 31st District Court in Hamtramck with possession of marijuana on school property, a felony, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said.
Officials said police arrested Spinner on Friday. She was given an interim $2,000 bond during a hearing last week.
If convicted, she faces up to four years in prison.
According to authorities, Spinner was working as a teacher at the Wayne County Juvenile Detention Facility in Hamtramck over the summer.
On July 12, she allegedly brought marijuana gummies with her into the facility at about 8 a.m.
The Prosecutor’s Office authorized an arrest warrant for Spinner and charged her with the crime on July 27, officials said.
Lloyd Hopkins remembers what it felt like to not be seen.
He blended into the background of his class — not performing well enough to be noticed, or poorly enough to need a helping hand. Back then, he said, he was the kind of kid who could fall between the cracks.
Hopkins said his teachers didn’t necessarily have the resources to nurture him in the way they may have liked. Now 44, he’s working to get educators the support they need to be the role models he never had.
Hopkins created the Million Dollar Teacher Project in 2016 to create support systems for teachers in the Valley. The organization focuses its attention on school supply drives, teacher appreciation events and a program offering classroom aides. Million Dollar Teacher Project aims to help keep teachers doing the work they love, Hopkins said. After receiving $540,000 in COVID-19 relief funding in 2021 from the Arizona Department of Education, Hopkins said he hopes the organization will expand statewide.
“It’s not a luxury to support teachers — it’s mandatory,” he said.
Hopkins said he knew he wanted to work in education since he was in high school. He was determined to become a positive example for younger people.
He started at the Alhambra Elementary School District as a teaching assistant. But after six years, Hopkins said, long days left him drained. Hopkins eventually made the decision to leave teaching, something that weighed heavily on him.
He said it was difficult for him to see his classes move on after investing so much time into them. Hopkins eventually left the profession after one cohort he had worked with for years graduated. He said he realized he wanted to invest his time in work that focused on the big picture. That desire later lead him to create Million Dollar Teacher Project.
After stepping away from the classroom, Hopkins worked with dropout prevention programs and youth centers. It took several more years for Hopkins to eventually find his niche in the education sector.
‘The lowest point in my life’: From losing a job to starting an organization
For Hopkins, the beginnings of the Million Dollar Teacher Project blossomed from a moment of self-doubt. After being let go from his job, Hopkins found himself unemployed for the first time since he was 16.
Faced with the unknown, he called his younger brother searching for advice.
“Great — you lost your job, now find your life,” he remembers his brother saying to him.
Hopkins describes that call as completely changing the trajectory of his life. From there, he explored his newfound freedom. He tried out scuba diving and wrote a book, titled word-for-word after the advice his brother gave him.
Hopkins applied for jobs for a while without success. But the day he published his book, he got a call from Maricopa County about what ended up being his new job, working to help young people transition from juvenile corrections. This new chapter led to him getting his undergraduate degree in nonprofit leadership and management. That’s when he began planning the start of the Million Dollar Teacher Project.
“I created this organization out of fire and brimstone — out of what was really the lowest point in my life,” he said.
While in school, Hopkins renewed his love for education reform. He said he recognized that limited school funding affects marginalized communities the most.
“When systems are not operating properly, it hits Black and Brown communities the hardest,” he said.
Supporting teachers to support students
The Million Dollar Teacher Project uses three primary strategies to improve teacher retention: recognition, compensation and support. The organization’s existing projects include the Million Dollar Teacher Tree, which is a supply drive for teachers, and classroom support teams that enlist the help of paid interns and volunteers to free up time for educators.
Ultimately, Hopkins’ goal for the Million Dollar Teacher Project’s teacher retention efforts is to help students thrive by having dedicated, appreciated educators.
With the organization’s considerable increase in funding, the organization will be able to expand beyond metro Phoenix more rapidly. Right now, the Million Dollar Teacher Project has events scheduled through March 2024 at six schools in Tempe and Phoenix, according to the organization’s website.
The COVID-19 relief funding will go toward supporting activities at 15 new schools in 12 new districts — 90 teachers in total, Hopkins said. He said the expansion will not be about one program alone, but rather targeting the needs of each school.
“I find it all important,” Hopkins said. “Because we’re a culture change organization.”
On July 14, the organization hosted its second annual “Adult Field Trip” event. Guests scaled the metal and wooden playscape at the Children’s Museum of Phoenix as they were invited to “act like a kid again.”
This year, Nicole Marrs of the Madrid Neighborhood School was honored in front of nearly 200 guests for her commitment to teaching. Madrid, in west Phoenix, is part of the Alhambra Elementary School District.
“It means everything to me,” she said of the event honoring educators. “You don’t see this as often as you might like.”
Last school year, a Million Dollar Teacher Project classroom support team provided her with assistance in setting up craft supplies and organizing the classroom. She said having the team meant that she was able to return home after work without additional tasks to finish.
The classroom support team is one of Rhonda Bowman’s favorite parts of the Million Dollar Teacher Project, she said. Bowman has recently taken over as vice chair of the Million Dollar Teacher Project governing board. She said she wants her work to highlight the impact of teaching.
“It touches everybody … and everything,” Bowman said.
Bowman teaches special education within the Alhambra School District. She’s taught for around 11 years. She says she has always felt supported by her district, but knows that’s not the case for everyone. She’s proud to be a part of the work Hopkins started, she said, and is looking forward to the group’s planned expansion.
For Hopkins, he said he’s proud to see the impact of his organization. With the expansion of the program, Hopkins said even more teachers — and students — will benefit.
“Our future is literally in today’s classroom,” he said.
Helen Rummel is a Pulliam Fellow for The Arizona Republic. She can be reached at hrummel@gannett.com or on Twitter @helenrummel.
