Francine Frazier ST – A student at Fruit Cove Middle School was hit by a car Wednesday morning near the school RELATED: Growth in St. Johns County highlighted by Bass Pro Shops opening Deputies said the girl was airlifted to a local hospital for treatment. They did not have an update on her condition. St. Johns County Fire Rescue said the girl was on a bicycle near Racetrack Road when she was hit and critically injured. The district spokesperson said students who were on a bus going to the school saw the girl being hit. A woman who has lived in the area for the last 22 years said she wasn’t shocked about the incident. “I’m not surprised, it’s getting to be a very busy road,” Shari Haber said. “...I’m saddened it happened and it’s unfortunate and it would be nice if we could all take a pause.” She talked about all the changes she’s noticed in St. Johns County so far. “Just the business, the traffic, all the roads,” Haber said. “You used to have lovely tree-lined roads, two-lane roads everywhere back here now they’re all like four lanes minimum and the traffic. I used to live in Atlanta, and the traffic, it’s like oh my gosh are we getting to be like Atlanta in a way.” Another resident said the said the traffic is getting worse. “I think the community is getting increasingly huge and the traffic now...if it takes 15 minutes to get somewhere it takes 30,” Abbie Swain said. “You never know how long it’s going to take to get somewhere, and I think that it’s honestly kind of ridiculous.” Haber said she wants to see better road structure. “Maybe some better alternative routes, maybe build bigger roads outside of where the school areas are,” Haber said. Swain said that more stop lights and stop signs should be added in St. Johns County. The girl’s name and age have not been released. Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX - All rights reserved. This native of the Big Apple joined the News4Jax team in July 2021. A Jacksonville native and proud University of North Florida alum, Francine Frazier has been with News4Jax since 2014 after spending nine years at The Florida Times-Union. Click here to take a moment and familiarize yourself with our Community Guidelines TV Listings Email Newsletters RSS Feeds Contests and Rules Contact Us Careers at WJXT / WCWJ Closed Captioning / Audio Description WJXT Public File WJXT EEO Report WCWJ Public File WCWJ EEO Report Terms of Use Privacy Policy Do Not Sell My Info FCC Applications Copyright © 2025 News4JAX.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group Wednesday Dee wrote an article titled Matt Queen and His “Integrity” Is the Reason I No Longer Trust the SBC to Protect Abuse Victims. You can view the article here. Queen had been placed on leave of absence from his job as Senior Pastor of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church once they became aware of the indictment by the Department of Justice Below is the statement published by Queen’s church once he changed his plea from “not guilty” to “guilty.” I am predicting Queen will receive a light sentence in the opinion of some legal experts is likely interested in going after bigger fish In an article by the Baptist News Global titled “Former Southwestern professor charged in FBI probe claims God told him in a dream to change his testimony” published on July 23 Two months after this article was published Queen changed his plea from “not guilty” to “guilty.” According to the above article Queen could now be considered “cooperative.” What was the purpose of this Most likely to obtain a lighter sentence by turning state’s evidence Schmidt stated “there are only two or three potential subjects of this investigation and each of them are very aware that they are potential subjects.” Who are these subjects? Obviously Matt Queen is one. Heath Woolman appears likely to be a second subject of the investigation, and perhaps the bigger fish the Department of Justice is interested in going after. In the article below the president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary named Chief of Staff Heath Woolman “employee 2” in the indictment Heath Woolman was preaching at Fruit Cove Baptist Church prior to being offered the job as the senior pastor even though he said he doesn’t and he appears quite relieved that the pastoral search team didn’t uncover the burgeoning scandal he was involved in at SWBTS Christian leaders who obtain high positions in the Evangelical Industrial Complex have each other’s backs “Words of Affirmation” from their colleagues are worthless It’s hard to imagine that David Dockery didn’t know that Woolman was lying to him when he told him that he never told Women’s Dean Stovall to make her report go away but I will give him the benefit of the doubt Once the scandal became public Dockery did say he regretted endorsing Woolman for his senior pastor’s job and wouldn’t have done so now Notice anything missing in this recent screenshot from Heath Woolman’s Facebook account If you noted that Woolman failed to list his 15 month stint at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary serving as the Chief of Staff I would like to hear from Woolman his reason for not listing that influential job “My advice to Heath Woolman is tell the truth to the members of Fruit Cove Baptist Church.” Good advice but color me skeptical it will happen Everyone loves to talk about king David but I think most completely miss why he was said to be a man after Gods own heart It wasn’t because David was a warrior or a strong leader Or even that he wrote and sang spiritual songs I think it was because when confronted with his sin involving Bathsheba & Uriah he admitted he was wrong and signed his name to that admission for all of eternity in Psalm 51 Humility via complete ownership publicly of one’s wrongdoing without hedging Can anyone name a single Theo-dude in recent memory who has admitted and owned their sin publicly and completely Fisher Fisher: Humility via complete ownership publicly of one’s wrongdoing without hedging And it seems that church leaders are the last to confess up Christian leaders who obtain high positions in the Evangelical Industrial Complex have each other’s backs.” And there is a really bad case of that in the New Calvinist movement The dudebros cover for each other until the potato becomes too hot to handle … then they protect their own skin by distancing themselves from the bad-boys with “Driscoll who … “MacDonald who?” … “Patterson who?” … “Woolman who?” etc Video clip: “Heath Woolman Preaching about Hypocrisy” There is an interesting dynamic in the American church Some preachers preach the hardest about the sins they themselves are living to put the focus on the pew instead of the pulpit These reports are one of the reasons I no longer have any faith I’m a cultural Christian in so far as adhering to some of the basic tenets but I can find those tenets without being Christian Ultimately it’s a mess that Christians have to clean up Every so often I take a hiatus from reading here and I think I’ll be going on a longer than usual one this time As I’ve said before quoting St Smokey “only you can prevent forest fires” Max: “no skeletons in his closet” Jack: These reports are one of the reasons I no longer have any faith People of Faith who follow Jesus filled with the Holy Spirit place their faith in God never man; Jesus was a man but also uniquely the Son of God The religious people of Jesus’s day executed the Son of God Trusting humans for holiness is a distraction at best and an execution at worst and the civic leaders orchestrated Jesus’s execution The regular folk in the mob then voted for the criminal Barabbas to live and Jesus to be executed Faith in people culminated in the execution of the most perfect One to ever walk on Earth Jesus’s disciples today are still figuring this out Beware of and aware of faith in people versus faith in God Are they people who are Faithful to Jesus or to themselves a higher calling … A discerning person filters out God from the cacophony of voices … Do I follow the Ego Drama where I or another man is the writer do I follow the Theo Drama of the God Who created me and the God Who has meaningful things for me to do …?” – Bishop Barron speaking at the Naval Academy about 3 years ago Some churches are clearly run by a leader who is all about the Ego Drama The Wartburg Watch is a place to sort out the Ego Dramas going on in churches from the Followers of Jesus throw out the junk mail but keep the meaningful It’s as simple as shucking corn on the cob for a summer BBQ We don’t throw out ears of corn; we throw out the discards to enjoy a delicious feast “Oh taste and see that the Lord is good and blessed is the man who trusts in Him,” wrote the Psalmist And I wish I had a dollar for every time I see or hear the idea that Christians must attend church so they can have Christian fellowship or prevent backsliding Christian fellowship abounds outside the doors of the church I have friends who were missionaries for 50 years on the Navajo rez About 45 of those they served within churches Finally they realized what was happening within the walls was not church and they began serving people outside the walls Now they say they cannot “go to church” since believers ARE the church and there is no where they need to “go” to be “in church.” And their ministry now that they are retired is reaching more people I put my faith in Him alone … not in any minister Staying focused on Jesus has helped me keep my spiritual sanity during my journey through the American church I’ve found Him working more outside of the organized church than within it The Christian Industrial Complex with its multiple flavors of “gospel” hype and mega-mania has darn near eliminated ‘the’ Gospel from Sunday morning worship But Jesus is alive and well in the hearts of those who believe Max the sad thing is that we humans are also “social beings” I am realizing how I can be content with what Max wrote partially because I lived long enough to see the bankrupcy of so much of American Christianity yet realize there are nuggets/jewels that you need to dig for is for all of the young people mislead by all the clowns… It is easy for me to call them clowns Jeffrey J Chalmers: there are nuggets/jewels that you need to dig for just as we all have to dig our own spiritual wells … I long for the faith community I once knew in church where there was unity and every believer (regardless of race class or gender) was free to exercise their unique spiritual gifting … but a new generation of authoritarian church leaders have messed that up Gateway Church removes 4 church elders who knew about Morris’ sexual misconduct and did nothing about it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deqykNKMjWg Jeffrey J Chalmers: As I get older It’s great that Christians have made peace with being Christians but here’s some reality my wife has been a Christian mostly by going to church on line My 16 year old son has decided to be Christian His friends are mostly claiming to be atheist I don’t trust church so I’m the worst “Christian” role model Maybe the question will answer itself when he becomes an adult but it’s more likely he’ll become a cultural Christian rather than a person of deep faith Many people here started faith in a church We were schooled (or indoctrinated if your a Richard Dawkins) so without Jesus showing up in a golden chariot it’s easy to say “chuck church” but how do new Christians connect otherwise Jack–I became a Christian in my teens My folks sporadically attended church when I was a child Then they quit going without losing their faith When I came to faith in Christ I spent about 1 1/2 years reading the gospels before I set foot back in church whoever to spend a year reading a chapter of the gospels a day Then and only then are you even remotely ready for “Christianity.” Gateway Church removes 4 church elders who knew about Morris’ sexual misconduct and did nothing about it if the elders want to continue to “do the right thing” they will contact that woman who was “removed by security” for wanting to know what was going on financially Max: When I came to Christ decades ago I put my faith in Him alone … not in any minister Staying focused on Jesus has helped me keep my spiritual sanity during my journey through the American church linda: I have friends who were missionaries for 50 years on the Navajo rez About 45 of those they served within churches Finally they realized what was happening within the walls was not church and they began serving people outside the walls Now they say they cannot “go to church” since believers ARE the church and there is no where they need to “go” to be “in church.” And their ministry now that they are retired is reaching more people also split from his org back home in England who also disagreed with the institutional church Both Taylor and George Müller dissented re: church org protocols while following their conscience Ava Aaronson: Then George Müller Jack Your best as role model is to be a good agnostic Agnostic is what is now declared practically illegal by “theist” and “atheist” heavies alike to share my spiritual gifts to help agnostics be better agnostics and to help followers of subtractive religion to become believers in more meanings that organisations don’t own In my young day agnostics were very kindly towards believing children: I got some of my best RE from them first showing they accorded high value without going through the hoops of the outward wedge drivers (I think that without feeling a need to “bother with theology” they would see a MLJ type as having their feet more on the ground vis a vis the people around him and a Stott type as being “up to something”.) (Those who are “Christ Alone” are by definition dual-action Holy Spirit affirming as well unless they are dishonest to their definition; see Frances’ recent comment on Incarnation.) The insights we have won by cold sweats at night you can offer them to your son and he’ll strengthen a perspective that “conventional christianity” fogeys of all current generations have never had I felt I fitted in precisely by not fitting in and wished more of the others would too What your son already has and what you give him are his passport though the “security force” on the door may deny it (I’ve encountered the unwitting and witting “security force” in people’s heads and propaganda wars.) The serendipitous eponym of the church in the story is God’s witty reminder about values linda: they realized what was happening within the walls was not church and they began serving people outside the walls So much of what goes on in church is not ‘the’ Church at all I would probably part of the “problem” One thought I do have is discussing the conept of “world view” What I think is realvent further is that many of the “abuses” discussed here on TWW are from people that profess one thing but live a life that is governed by a different “world view” He may have tricked people for a year or so And I too am so sick and tired of the pastors comparing themselves to King David I want them to preach AND practice forgiveness like Zacchaeus Has one of these men who has been caught ever said “I took a loan out against my house to give to the victim for her counseling and health care or time off of work that she needs after what I did to her.” Robert Morris JJallday: sick and tired of the pastors comparing themselves to King David the references to justifying everything and anything on David’s life and “short comings” is really wearing thin life and teaching about the nature of God and His will for humanity is the only narrative for anyone who claims to be a Christian it’s what reconciled us to God and gives us blessed hope Regarding the conversations around the “short comings” of the church that people within pastoral leadership roles today are shameless and utilize the churches they are affiliated with as stalking horses there isn’t anything new under the sun and that there are “churches” and there is the body of Christ with members of all shapes and sizes “Everyone loves to talk about king David but I think most completely miss why he was said to be a man after Gods own heart Samuel thought he was a man after God’s own heart (who knows what means it’s an observation of what he perceived; doesn’t necessarily mean it’s empirically true we don’t necessarily have to agree 100% I’d be impressed with David if he refused to act on his attraction to Bathsheba and honored her marriage with Uriah then if David came clean and confessed on his own without being prompted by the confrontation elastigirl: The Goliath story is cool Max: IMO And the only angle to that story is “DAVID GOT AWAY WITH IT Michael in UK: (Those who are “Christ Alone” are by definition dual-action Holy Spirit affirming as well unless they are dishonest to their definition; see Frances’ recent comment on Incarnation.) “Christ Alone” drifts into (and ends up as) “Lone Ranger Christians” with no connection to anyone or anything else — “Us Four Same with “Sola Scriptura” (“Bible Alone”) but that ends up with duckspeaking single verses to chapters without activiating any higher brain function And a view of the Bible more like a Wahabi to the Koran There’s a word in Hopi (which I’m not going to even try to pronounce) that translates as “Life Out of Balance” Chesterton wrote that Christianity was a dynamic balance between contradicting doctrines “any one of which in isolation could lay waste to a world” And the above are just two of the ways to go Out of Balance note:I would be caeful with anecdotal evidence as observed by “Seneca.”They teach the problem with that in most schools today senecagriggs I can’t find the piece about what they teach in schools or hence why something being “anecdotal” or not may be relevant (everything is anecdotal at first) As for commenters some of us don’t go to churches you would call churches Even my reformed church wouldn’t fit your bill as whatever sort of believer he defines himself to be and honouring truly respectful agnosticism over baggage is to add his prayers for protection to all our general situation It would be wrong of anyone to demand he await church organisational permission to do that There’s no easy answers but your perspective is appreciated linda: I encourage everyone you may easily fall for a gospel which is not ‘the’ Gospel at all Max: Read the red!If you don’t you may easily fall for a gospel which is not ‘the’ Gospel at all Search TWW Permanent Pages Descriptions Twitter (Elon) has made changes that prevent us from displaying recent tweets (This article has changed to include additional information.) As a major winter storm races across North Florida with snow Augustine is likely to begin feeling effects soon senior meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Jacksonville Augustine will be impacted by this historic storm early Tuesday afternoon and through Wednesday morning Nelson said that Tuesday's intermittent rainfall will increase in intensity as temperatures plunge into the 30s by midnight 1 may experience temperatures at the “freezing mark” (32 degrees) shortly after sunrise on Wednesday overpasses and elevated road surfaces west of I-95 could experience an “icy glaze” with Fruit Cove and Rivertown listed as having a higher probability of a light accumulation of ice (0.05 inch) Nelson said that even with a low probability (20%-30%) for one-tenth of an inch of ice “The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for late tonight through 10 a.m Augustine Record via email Tuesday morning “Temperatures will rise above freezing by 10 a.m ending any threat to transportation in the county.” and Alachua – could experience ice accumulations of one-tenth to one-quarter of an inch “These counties are under a Winter Storm Warning where a more significant threat to transportation and power lines exists," Nelson said “Temperatures will fall to freezing overnight tonight as the rain continues." There's a very low potential (5%-10%) of light rain and light freezing rain becoming snow flurries in the northern half of St Johns County shortly after sunrise on Wednesday Nelson advised those travelling to Georgia or to the Florida panhandle to witness the falling snow to depart long before Tuesday's sunset due to icy road conditions Johns County on Wednesday morning is not advised as temperatures in the Winter Storm Warning Area will remain below freezing for much of the morning hours Johns’ beach and riverfront communities will experience north-northeasterly wind gusts between 30 and 40 mph late Tuesday afternoon/evening adding “wind chill concerns to a very cold rainfall that will increase with intensity,” he said The National Weather Service has issued a Cold Weather Advisory from midnight on Tuesday to 10 a.m  “Wind chill values (the combination of how cold temperatures and wind feel on human skin) will fall to the low and mid-20s,” Nelson said Beaches have been issued Gale Wind Warnings until Wednesday as pounding surf could result in beach erosion during high tides A cloud cover will cross through early Thursday morning which may prevent sub-freezing temperatures across St additional freezes are possible Thursday and Friday nights Cold temperatures will continue through Saturday Nelson is reminding everyone about the dangers of leaving pets outdoors describing the combination of “very cold rain and wind” as life threatening for animals left outside residents using space heaters need to make sure that there’s at least 3 feet between the unit and any objects,” Nelson concluded “Continue to practice fire safety during this extended cold spell!” Grace Methodist Church, at 8 Carrera St. (904-829-8272) in St. Augustine, referred to as the "Red Door Church," will be open Tuesday, as a cold night shelter. Doors will open at 8 p.m. Those in need must call 904-819-4344 on a daily basis to check if one of two churches — the other being United Methodist Church at 118 King St referred to as the Pumpkin Church — will be open Also, on Jan. 20, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued Executive Order 25-13 declaring a state of emergency in most of Florida in preparation for the impact of this winter storm Early prescription refills are permitted under the state of emergency Johns County Schools will observe normal operations tomorrow Any specific changes to school activities will be relayed by your school Johns County will be under a winter weather advisory late tonight into the morning tomorrow which includes freezing temperatures We will continue to work with the SJC Emergency Operations Center and staff to monitor the weather and will relay any changes to our operations through this mass-notification system." vice president of external affairs for the Jacksonville Aviation Authority for the Jacksonville International Airport issued the following statement: "Due to winter weather conditions expected to impact Northeast Florida Jacksonville International Airport will close following the last departure this evening The airport is anticipated to reopen at noon tomorrow Travelers are encouraged to check flight status with their airlines for the most up-to-date information about their itineraries and for rebooking options." The auction market for luxury homes is picking up along the First Coast and a sprawling mansion on the shores of the St Johns River is the latest property that will soon go to the highest bidder Situated on 15 acres in the Switzerland area (south of Fruit Cove) in Saint Johns is scheduled for auction Saturday at 6 p.m the floor plan measures just over 12,000 square feet The sale will be hosted by Platinum Luxury Auctions It was built in 1994 for local philanthropist Duane Ottenstroer former chairman of the Florida Prepaid College Board the home resembles an historic Southern estate like something you might see along the Gulf Coast According to listing agent Anita Vining of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Network Realty that's exactly what the couple intended when they commissioned late New Orleans architect Barry Fox "They spoke to a few local architects, but their tastes are very traditional," said Vining, who represents the Ottenstroers. "There's a book about his work and I believe they had seen it was celebrated as much for his passion for historic preservation as he was for building new homes that maintained the air of the Old South That passion is on full display throughout the beautifully manicured property the home is positioned on a 22-foot elevation The main house is highlighted by quoins (contrasting masonry bricks at the corners) and pillars of Indiana limestone Vining has shown the home to several interested parties who have expressed amazement at the way the home is positioned to capture the river views A park-like setting"It sits at one of the widest points of the river," she said "and if you look at one of the aerial views you can see that not one of those trees is close to the roofline." Vining added that the Ottenstroers employ a caretaker who previously worked at major golf courses That expertise is no doubt responsible for the lush green lawns on the rolling property That thick carpet of grass extends roughly 300 feet from the back of the home to the waterfront deep-water dock with lift stretches 1,100 feet into the waterway Adding to the home's park-like setting are multiple ponds The main house features a guest wing with three large bedrooms gathering room and private courtyard while the property also includes a detached 1,774-square-foot cottage with two bedrooms and two full baths Paused by the pandemicVining had worked with the Ottenstroers a few years back when they initially listed their property for sale at $15 million That was just as COVID was morphing into a raging worldwide pandemic and the couple eventually took it off the market Now the owners have decided it is finally time to move on and they returned to Vining for guidance on the best plan for selling but Platinum came highly recommended by another agent at Berkshire," Vining said "They've been phenomenal in terms of exposure." Those in the market for a luxury home (or considering it) might do well to remember that "all auctions are not created equal," as company founder and President Trayor Lesnock put it "Most luxe real estate auctions are often lumped into one its performance is subject to the knowledge and skills of those operating the process." Benefits for buyers and sellersAccording to Lesnock the efficiency created by the luxury auction process creates transactional benefits to both buyer and seller transparently and without negotiation or contingency The home is open for previews by daily appointment now through Friday one day prior to the auction and the deadline for registration to participate Appointments can be planned in advance or on a moment's notice by contacting the onsite project manager Bidders may participate in the auction by being physically present onsite or they can participate remotely from anywhere in the world typically by having another person onsite who has been granted limited power of attorney lawyer or friend — has the remote bidder on the telephone or linked via FaceTime during the live bidding process No minimum bid requiredAs with previous local auctions the Eventide Avenue home is selling without reserve meaning there is no minimum bid requirement or other qualifier it must conclude with the sale of the property to the highest bidder regardless of the amount of the high bid price In a feature for Mansion Global on the upcoming auction Ottenstroer was quoted as saying the property is well-suited for his dogs to run and for his grandkids to hit golf balls he and his wife are downsizing and building a new home about 30 minutes away and admitted they will miss the home they built over the years  A book drive by the Kumon Math and Reading Center of Jacksonville-Fruit Cove collected about 510 books that were donated to the Cathedral School of St which was damaged by hurricanes Helene and Milton last year “There was so much damage there from the flooding from the hurricanes,” said Kumon Instructor Kimberley Teira whose sister-in-law is a teacher at the school Teira put out a call to her parents and community to help “I have the most amazing families,” she said “One boy brought his favorite book and gave it to me And another parent went to a bookstore and brought a bunch of books to us from there Kumon Instructors and corporate staff in the U.S. Canada and Mexico collect new and gently used books at their centers each year instructors designate local organizations that provide resources to families – such as children’s hospitals literacy tutors and library fundraising groups – to receive the books Instructors have collected and donated 57,268 books one book at a time,” said Danielle Sabbagh Kumon’s communication and event specialist “These books have been distributed far and wide across North America supporting access to education and literacy for countless communities.” Kumon is an after-school math and reading enrichment program that unlocks the potential of children Kumon serves children in preschool through high school The learning method uses an individualized approach that helps children develop a solid command of math and reading skills Through daily practice and mastery of materials Democrats Silent as Trump’s Authoritarian Grip Tightens Jamal Bryant Announces 40-Day FAST Against Target Urging 100,000 Black Consumers to Withdraw Support and website in this browser for the next time I comment FL and her latter years in Wilmington,NC with her daughter after an extended illness entered into the joy of the presence of her Lord on Sunday to the late Elmer John Langan and the late Charlotte Kolls Langan She is now reunited with her beloved parents and siblings Having grown up living on the river on Clifton Avenue in Jacksonville she loved sharing fond childhood stories and cherished those treasured friendships that have lasted her lifetime She attended Assumption Catholic School and Bishop Kenny High School Patricia was a faithful follower of Jesus and a devoted member of the Fruit Cove Baptist Church in St John’s Her life Bible verse is Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me.” She had an unwavering faith in God and He was her anchor in the storms of life Patsy had a servant’s heart and loved helping in various ministries in her church and community she brought her love into celebrating every special occasion especially the holidays with festive decorations and cooking the traditional favorite meals for her family Her home was always open to others and it was her heart for them to leave with a happy heart and a full tummy She delighted in studying God’s Word being a part of her Sunday school class and participating in various Bible studies including completing 8 years of BSF International Her joy was being a spiritual pillar to her family and loved taking her grandchildren to church every Sunday and to Bible study with her We have all been blessed to have a Mom and Nana who loved Jesus and has left us with a beautiful legacy of her strong faith she loved to travel including our family camping trips in the Florida Keys FL as well as new adventures in Alaska and Ireland Patsy was a huge sports fan and was especially happy when college football season finally kicked off each year You would certainly hear her cheering for her favorite Florida Gators she loved attending all of her grandkids special events dance recitals and sporting events even donning her own jersey with their name and numbers leaving no doubt she was their #1 fan Her other passions and hobbies included gardening she took great pleasure in all types of arts and crafts she cherished her family and loved being a Nana and GNana so very generous and always putting her kids' needs before her own a doting Nana to her nine grandchildren and a blessed G-Nana of 10 great-grands outgoing personality and truly brought smiles and happiness to every room she entered She cherished the people God brought into her life and the joy of fellowshipping with others Patsy was also a beautiful and faithful friend to so many throughout her life journey She touched so many lives for the better and will be profoundly missed by all that knew and loved her She lived her life being a blessing to others Madison Burrell (Christian) Ashleigh Brooks (Austin) Lindsey Wheaton (Cody); her great grandchildren Ruby ; and many more dear family members and cherished friends In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Patsy's honor to IFOPA - the International Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva Association.  A Celebration of Patsy’s Life will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday Shared memories and condolences may be sent to the family by selecting Tribute Wall above Quinn McGowen Funeral Home – Wilmington      IFPOA1520 Clay St., Ste. H-2, North Kansas City MO 64116Tel: 1-816-809-2772Web: https://www.ifopa.org/donate_to_the_ifopa Located about 567 million light-years away, the Bullseye Galaxy resides in the constellation Pisces NASA “Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God, do you learn.” CS Lewis Tonight, I am working at the Night to Shine prom at our church we have identified and interviewed seventeen (17) Survivors who were either sexually abused or experienced sexually abusive misconduct perpetrated by BICKLE beginning to our knowledge in the mid-1970s,” stated the report by Firefly Independent Sexual Abuse Investigations “These acts of abuse have had profound and lasting impacts on the lives of the victims Bickle and his Executive Leadership Team (ELT) also responded to reports of sexual abuse with “deliberate indifference” and discouraged victims from involving law enforcement “This indifference not only exacerbated the trauma experienced by the victims but also allowed the perpetrators to evade accountability and continue their misconduct,” the report stated Long a taboo topic in religious circles — whether clergy burning out on ministry or laypeople turning to faith communities for help — mental health has become a topic too prevalent to avoid inside many faith communities while local and national outside initiatives have recognized that houses of worship have a nearly unique ability to reach underserved communities …One such latter enterprise is the Christian Mental Health Initiative a nonprofit that takes free mental health trainings into churches especially primarily Black churches like Christ Community Bethel Church has announced it had a falling out with Shawn Bolz over concerns he fabricated his prophecies using online resources labeling Bolz a false prophet continue to grow Bethel also alleged Bolz was accused by one of employees of behaviors that “seemed to fit the descriptions of sexual harassment and a hostile work environment,” according to the statement Bolz is known for both creating prophecies that call out specific people during sermons, according to Prophecy Today UK He regularly identifies a specific individual during a sermon then lists several personal details about the person before sharing a “prophecy.” …“Shawn still maintains he never used social media in any words only he and the Lord really know what took place.” Church aims to ‘deconstruct Christianity and other patriarchal religions’ …The staff, which is led by “pastor and priestess of ritual” Stacy Boorn, includes over a half dozen “priestesses” and a “priestexx” Thom Longino, who is listed as “adjunct pastor” and “spiritual director.” A CP review of Longino’s LinkedIn profile also revealed that he is an employee of Catholic Charities San Francisco …One of herchurch’s “priestesses,” Christine Konkol identifies as a “resident witch” and is seen in a photo on the church website wearing a traditional witch’s hat …As part of its about section liberating feminist congregation” which is “hoping to be a part of the prophetic voice of the divine feminine that will deconstruct Christianity and other patriarchal religions.” Washington state bill would force Catholic priests to violate church law A proposed law in Washington state would require priests to violate Catholic Church law by breaking the seal of confession The bill would amend the current state law that requires law enforcement or child care providers to report cases of child abuse or neglect to include church clergy that hear about abuse during the sacrament of confession Priests that break the seal of confession are automatically excommunicated from the church The bill was proposed by Democratic Washington state Sens The ELCA church in San Francisco is as nutty as some of the fundamentalist maniac-led churches featured prominently in sexual abuse cases We have lost the ability to call out the heterodox or even the heretical Nancy2(aka Kevlar): !!! Each individual church has the constitutional right whether or not to provide mental health services to its staff and members The Surgeon General needs to keep his nose out of it Muff Potter: Posting the ‘Ten Commandments’ in a classroom is no more the establishment of a ‘state religion’ than would be a Starbucks in the Capitol Rotunda But what if Starbucks was a 2000 year old organization devoted to establishing a universal coffee that bestowed eternal life what if the teachers were mostly members of this coffee cult and smiled most favorably on fellow drinkers while passing judgement on their sex lives Nancy2(aka Kevlar): !! I clicked on all the links and it looks like the Christian Mental Health Initiative is a nonprofit growing out of a Christian woman’s convictions when she had a psychiatry rotation during medical school The article on the surgeon general is about his focus on social media and the mental health of teens but I didn’t see any mandates to churches or mention of churches Can you help me see what I’m missing Eyewitness I had intended to post something our former surgeon general said some time ago connecting depression with lack of church attendance I could not find that specific article again but I hope the link will be enough to explain I was interrupted for a while and forgot…. https://julieroys.com/u-s-surgeon-general-health-may-be-undermined-by-not-going-to-church/ Americans have become disconnected from one of the institutions that can forge deep and permanent social connections: church attendance “Religious or faith-based groups can be a source for regular social contact create a sense of belonging around shared values and beliefs and are associated with reduced risk-taking behaviors,” Murthy writes “As a consequence of this decline in participation individuals’ health may be undermined in different ways.” Sandy Nancy2(aka Kevlar) Nancy2(aka Kevlar): (BTW Sandy: Decaf or regular Nancy2(aka Kevlar): Sheesh the government doesn’t even care if ‘churches’ are cults teaching heresy as long as they are not committing criminal acts the Christianese definition of “Cult(TM)” entirely by Theology and Doctrine not repeat not abusive behavior and thought-control towards their rank-and-file (Helps when the Christanese Cult-Sniffers are the exact same Theology – Rapture Ready Fundagelicalism – as the not-a-cult cults they greenlight.) Stavros49: The ELCA church in San Francisco is as nutty as some of the fundamentalist maniac-led churches featured prominently in sexual abuse cases Maniacs are not limited to a single theology or religion (My personal favorite) Bethel Church Raises Concerns that Shawn Bolz Fabricated Prophecies Using Social Media Bethel Church of Grave-Soaking and Dead Raising Team fame Bethel Church who’s doing to Redding what Scientology did to Clearwater and Douggie’s Kirk is trying to do to Moscow I object strenuously to posting the 10 Commandments in school or to coerced because I remember being that seven year old kid on the first day at a new school when I went and got my lunch at lunch time and opened it up to eat: “Deana We pray before we eat.” I was mortified I am going to absolutely be against any sort of religious stuff in the public schools What the teacher did caused me a lot of problems but I still had to be with those kids for another five years Being labeled as essentially godless didn’t help Let’s not have religion in the public schools there are plenty of private/parochial schools out there But let’s not open up the Wars of Religion in our public schools Muslin, fka Dee Holmes: Let’s not do this Let’s not have religion in the public schools But let’s not open up the Wars of Religion in our public schools that’s the thing – i no longer share the values of christian culture the angle & focus of christian culture’s values changed (decided in shadowy conference rooms and proliferated through campaigns involving promoting people & publishing) (i hate aliteration – no time to edit it out) Muslin, fka Dee Holmes: I object strenuously to posting the 10 Commandments in school or to coerced when I went and got my lunch at lunch time and opened it up to eat: “Deana Being labeled as essentially godless didn’t help Not to discount you or diminish your experience fka Dee Holmes ….I wonder how many other students that expletive-deleted “teacher” humiliated there are plenty of private / parochial schools out there If the 10 Commandments are posted in a public school then every other religion should also be allowed to post something (I’m not sure what that’d be — I’m well-versed enough to say) researcher: (I’m not sure what that’d be — I’m well-versed enough to say) 🙂 That should read: (I’m not sure what that’d be — I’m not well-versed enough to say) Muslin, fka Dee Holmes The 10 Commandements were never intended as a “public notice” When we had a couple of nice hymns and the Lord’s Prayer at assembly in ordinary state schools there was never “grace before meals” The only religious displays were ephemeral seasonal ones painted or crafted by us In those RE lessons I recall (up to about 55 years ago) the ethos seemed to be one could warm to the subject matter individually as much or as little as one felt like I’ve always had a personal feeling towards any subject matter I was studying but that’s me There was a point around when RE lessons ceased when by hindsight it appears that “evangelicals” started speaking half-truths to power perhaps about how to go through hoops to be “alright in the sky” Michael in UK: “evangelicals” started speaking half-truths to power Sandy: But what if Starbucks was a 2000 year old organization devoted to establishing a universal coffee that bestowed eternal life BACK TO TOPTV Listings “I fully cooperated with this investigation and have pleaded not guilty to the charge against me. As a Christian, a (former) seminary professor, and now a pastor, my integrity is everything to me and I will cling to that integrity and seek to be vindicated by God and man,” Queen, 49, said in a statement to The Tennessean. “Woolman praised how thorough the church’s hiring process was “They have looked for every skeleton in every closet,” Woolman said to the congregation “I don’t have any skeletons in any closets and I was still scared they would find skeletons in closets.” Southwestern President David Dockery confirmed the identities of Woolman and another previously unidentified employee in a statement Tuesday in response to a request for comment “This episode is a matter of deep regret to me. I am, however, grateful that several employees in whom I placed great trust acted responsibly, especially Terri Stovall. I commend the service and integrity of these employees,” said Dockery in the statement “We remain resolute to continue to cooperate fully with the Department of Justice in all aspects of this investigation.” The event at the heart of the case involving Queen and Woolman is a Jan meeting in which Woolman instructed Stovall to destroy a document containing details of an earlier report of alleged abuse by undergraduate student Christian Flores a professor and dean of women at Southwestern notified the chief of seminary police in November 2022 of a forthcoming arrest warrant for Flores Flores’ alleged assault was “against an individual unaffiliated with the seminary,” said Dockery in a statement Tuesday Dockery said in his statement the chief of campus police “took no further action in November.” That chief of seminary police is no longer employed at Southwestern Following Flores’ arrest by area municipal police on Jan Stovall provided Woolman the document with details about the earlier report to seminary police Dockery said in his statement Tuesday that Woolman who served under Dockery as chief of staff at one point lied to the president and said he had not instructed Stovall to destroy the document “For nearly five months we operated within the tension of knowing that employees in whom we had confidence had differences of recollection regarding the January conversation,” said Dockery in his statement Queen revealed he heard Woolman instruct Stovall to destroy the document which was the basis of the federal charges against Queen last week Queen had resigned from his post as interim provost and the seminary had placed Queen on administrative leave Both Queen and Woolman eventually left Southwestern to become pastors of the churches that they currently lead. Woolman’s candidacy for senior pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist received endorsements from Queen and Dockery, according to a Fruit Cove Baptist website archive Dockery said in his statement Tuesday about that endorsement: “If asked to provide the same recommendation today and based on information received subsequent to that time I would not be able to provide the same recommendation.” In a May 14, 2023 address to the Fruit Cove congregation Woolman praised how thorough the church’s hiring process was Source: The Tennessean, May 29, 2024 The leadership of Fruit Cove Baptist Church Florida is adept at making slick brochures to promote the candidate of their choice for approval by church members Below is the brochure they published to successfully promote Heath Woolman for the position of Lead Pastor Recently Fruit Cove Baptist Church has conducted a search for a “Weekday Preschool Director.”  Heath Woolman’s choice is Karin Woodley Below is the slick brochure Fruit Cove leadership has published to promote Lead Pastor Woolman’s choice Church members will be voting whether to hire Mrs Woodley  at a special called business meeting on February 9th If this church operates anything like the two Baptist churches I was a member of the vote is a mere formality The vast majority of members simply rubber stamp whomever the Lead Pastor desires As an outsider looking in I humbly offer a thought Has Heath Woolman proven himself to be an individual of high integrity specifically as it involves his actions as Chief of Staff at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary perhaps you may want to look closely at his choice for the Weekday Preschool Director Woodley the most qualified among the applicants for the job or is she simply being given the job because the Woolman family and the Woodley family are close friends is the principle “It’s not what you know but who you know” the deciding factor in who Heath Woolman personally desires in the position I have received some inside information from an individual who wishes to remain anonymous the story this individual has shared with me is reflective of the culture in many churches the job description for the Weekday Preschool Director may be found here: https://web.archive.org/web/20250205043247/https://fruitcove.com/wp-content/uploads/Weekday-Preschool-Director-JD-September-2024.pdf Woodley has no management experience nor qualifications matching the original job description I am told that there were other candidates for this job who had matching skills/work history and much more experience for the job description role requirements Below are two individuals the church body is aware of that have applied for the job and were interviewed by the Personnel Committee: Amanda Blalock Meyer:  Previous experience as preschool director of a private preschool Meghan Bunch Roy:  Current Fruit Cove Baptist Director Preschool Ministries  Masters degree in children’s ministries from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary “Several members have been made aware that Pastor Heath has injected himself into the hiring process and unduly influenced the Personnel Committee and Deacons by withholding information from them while also inappropriately pressuring for his preferred candidate Heath Woolman has a heavy-handed leadership style allegedly including  -Firing church admin staff without reasonable notice (according to years served) and then providing different messaging to church staff vs church members and the congregation at large  -Intentionally influencing the church personnel committee to hire his personal friends for leadership positions who clearly do not have the required background experience thus putting church programs such as weekday preschool in peril from failure of following governmental regulations etc… by hiring people without leadership experience or  -Purposely keeping in the dark church leaders directly responsible for certain areas of ministry from direct hiring knowledge and decisions to influence hiring authorities to place close also includes hiring ill-equipped and inexperienced church leadership (i.e yes-men) in HR positions to remove escalation abilities of any dissenters and the ability of the congregation to ask questions and require hiring/firing process transparency.” Karin Woodley has been approved by the members of Fruit Cove Baptist Church as the new Weekday Preschool Director DOJ Investigation of the SBC Results in its First Indictment – Matthew Queen https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/religion/2024/05/29/sbc-florida-pastor-implicated-abuse-cover-up-doj-probe/73823428007/ Matt Queen and His “Integrity” Is the Reason I No Longer Trust the SBC to Protect Abuse VIctims It is another facet of what Pope Francis calls “clericalism” Did Dockery consult an attorney before he made this public admission This in my view is a thorough and convincing rebuttal of the common Christian narrative of being saved according to God’s plan with the aid of prayer as guided by the Spirit This guy did all the work and checked all the boxes then he is supposed to help you to not do stupid Is it too much to ask God to fulfill his and her end of the bargain This narrative simply endorses superstitious magic What if we based our faith in Jesus AND critical thinking Sandy: What if we based our faith in Jesus AND critical thinking they’re disqualified from everything now i could perhaps trust them to hand me the flipper if we were bbq-ing hamburgers together… but that’s about the extent of it) Queen’s and Woolman’s self-perception the lack of character standards & integrity in christian culture (gotta check all the right political and theological boxes to avoid being treated with more arrogant rudeness and cruelty than you ever imagined civilized people were capable of) this is one more example of the SBC’s supposed leaders in action No: You do not have all of the facts Specifically the names and backgrounds of the candidates W: How did you get this information “I have received some inside information from an individual who wishes to remain anonymous.” someone sure was not paying attention in journalism class not sure how you can sleep at night knowing this has your name on it Must be a slow news day when a church’s preschool director becomes your lead story I am sure the people you target in your “story” are keeping receipts Libel is a legal term that refers to the making of false and malicious statements about a person in some type of print or writing This can include false and malicious statements made in writing I was a member of a church that brought in a new pastor who had a “moral failure” and this was told to us not via the pamphlet that was passed out introducing him and his wife but mentioned at meeting 1 and then after a flurry of questions and though we asked question after question if was never fully explained what this “moral failure” was just that he had a group of hand-picked pastor bros that declared him ok to minister again after a year God forbid we have full information and make a informed decision ourselves before we vote it almost feels like their primary duties are either to satiate their own evil desires No I love the video you have at the end of your post 🙂 Too bad the people who really need to pay attention to — and learn from it — won’t….they’d probably be to busy coming up with some of the usual Christian prooftexting to counter it Stavros49: After his stint at SWBTS Woolman would have benefited from a humbling role as a cashier at a Piggly Wiggly which would have been character strengthening he was passed along to an unsuspecting parish I’ve said for YEARS that (although it’d be against the Constitution 🙂 ) that EVERYONE should be required to do a two-year term in retail (customer service) “The customer is always right.” is expletive-deleted It’s a fine balance….a humbling experience but not one to teach grovelling or fawning Sometimes one has to stick up for the customer sometimes one has to stick up for the company and sometimes one has to stick up for oneself It’s difficult these days to find a place to work where all of that is possible Chris Webster: Man-up Considering these kind of churches freeze moral development at the toddler level acting like a teen is actually pretty mature researcher: they’d probably be to busy coming up with some of the usual Christian prooftexting to counter it JJallday: Nope Only when the vocational pastor position is eliminated can we begin to move toward the Biblical church The SBC Blogger bless your heart.Thank you for your passive aggressive note lecturing us on libel laws This blog has been around for 16 years this March Did it cross your mind that we may know something about the libel laws We get notes from people making accusations of libel because they don’t like what we say We practice the gold standard when it comes to that You may not like what we believe to be the truth just like we may not like what you believe to be true Why don’t you read this post I wrote a few years ago https://thewartburgwatch.com/2013/03/18/slander-or-an-inconvenient-truth/ Dee–and lets not forget “bitter!” Every time a person says something true but unpleasant to the hearer she is accused of being “bitter.” I have seen it happen usually for the sort of stuff that happens on this blog: calling out wrongdoing Example: the woman years ago who found out her husband was arrested in a prostitution raid Found it out on the front page of our local paper When she divorced him she was labelled bitter Or a whole church full of people who refused to follow a calvinista Or those calling out the hubris of pastors in 2020 who refused to heed the stay at home orders as the worst of covid swept through Those parishioners who stayed home were also labelled bitter and it can be soul freeing those being abused linda ……We’re almost all churches that existed before non-bivo pastors were a available and before there were churches that could afford to pay salaries… That would mean that almost all churches that existed before 1950 were non-biblical??? the elimination of bi-vocational pastors would close a lot of churches in rural areas where small congregations would not be able to meet the salaries needed for the pastors and their families to survive – I can name names.) linda Yep- they called me bitter 17 years ago when I confronted my church about their handling of a significant sex abuse scandal involving many teen boys That was the approved form of Christian putdown let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor Amy “I’ll hang up and listen!” Nancy2–I am saying our churches should fire the whole lot of the unBiblical seminary trained professional Christians We should look in our midst to find those with some life under their belt who first off show the fruit of being truly saved Then back to the old “letting them preach” if preaching is what the church wants (not all do) and the pew packers evaluating them to see if they agree they have the call But the whole rigamarole of clergy as a class above the laity linda I’m curious – have you ever attended or been a member of Fruit Cove Baptist Church or any other SBC church “1) I actually think it is good for pastors to have friends Hate that in this case a friendship is being used against him I guess that’s why so many pastors do not have friends.” It’s my experience that pastors who have few friends among the members of the church they’re employed by intentionally desire it to be that way Since you mentioned something you hate let me share something I hate – pastors that coverup sexual abuse “2) Seems like a lot of information shared would be considered highly confidential Naming the other candidates and sharing information about staffing decisions No doubt whoever shared this info thought they were “righting a wrong” or “helping a friend” What they have done is irreparable harm and placed everyone involved in very difficult situations.” You may have no doubt about your conclusions but consider that perhaps the individual who shared the information desires to have the best candidate for the job hired “3) By now we all know that swbts identified Pastor Woolman as one of the employees in the federal information only known as Employee #1 and could this person be central to everything Confused as to why swbts names 2 out of 3 and not all 3.” The following quote can be found here: https://publichealth.networkofcare.org/nye-nv/CommunityResources/News/Article?articleId=152788 “The indictment and allegations at the Fort Worth theological school are the latest development in the U.S Department of Justice’s investigation into sexual abuse and misconduct at Southern Baptist Convention-affiliated organizations former interim provost at Southwestern Baptist was indicted May 21 after he failed to inform the FBI of a conspiracy to destroy evidence in the investigation and instead produced falsified records according to a news release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York According to a statement posted Wednesday by seminary President David Dockery Terri Stovall — who was referred to as “employee 1” in the indictment — was the staff member who documented the report of a student committing sexual assault in November 2022 Stovall followed institutional procedures and notified the chief of the campus police The chief is no longer employed with Southwestern Baptist The Burleson Police Department arrested the student who was accused of sexual assault Stovall discussed the document she prepared regarding the assault with Heath Woolman who was the seminary’s chief of staff at the time It was in this confrontation that Woolman told Stovall to make the document “go away,” according to Dockery’s statement all Southwestern Baptist employees were made aware of the DOJ’s investigation into SBC organizations Employees were also told to provide any relevant documents in response to a subpoena Dockery said in the statement that Woolman denied telling Stovall to make the document “go away.” Queen also initially told authorities and Dockery that he did not hear Woolman instruct Stovall to get rid of the document So we see that of the three employees involved in this incident Funny how the two “men of God” with multiple degrees from Baptist theological institutions are the ones who failed to act in an ethical manner Who would you rather have leading your church Amy At the risk of offending my Baptist friends I would choose Terri Stovall to be my pastor over the two men every day of the week and twice on Sundays She chose to do the right thing and I believe she risked her job to do it “4) Is The SBC Blogger related to The Baptist Blogger I don’t know who writes either and therefore it follows that we are not friends “5) My church produces slick brochures but in researching the community this church is in full of people who probably expect nothing less than excellence So I for one applaud this church for trying to put forth excellent content I can see that this church is in the top 5% in giving to cooperative program Shows the heart these people have to reach others for Jesus but if any of their members read this please know that I am cheering you on!” The vast percentage of SBC members have little or no knowledge of what goes on in the three SBC groups you have named the people in the pews need to take responsibility for investing their gifts wisely I suggest you do some more scouring and see whether you would want your hard-earned dollars going to these groups https://thewartburgwatch.com/2025/01/17/are-the-clueless-tithing-pewsitters-in-the-sbc-being-player-as-suckers-by-johnny-hunt-and-the-very-secretive-north-american-mission-board-stop-giving-them-your-hard-earned-money/ “The irony is that it is unbelievably easy to spot our toxic leaders They are often the ones who refuse to use their privilege and high-performance gifting to expose and address the roots of our recent abuse crises rather than owning up to personal and corporate failings they show “faux-nerability” and use those same gifts to create an alternative if you go to any gospel ministry team and ask “Whose integrity do you trust more than anybody else Who speaks up for those who cannot speak for themselves Who is demonstrating a compassionate concern to take the gospel to the least they will always be there with you” – you will often find everyone pointing to the same person who is creating an environment for everybody else to flourish and … they may not be your most impressive orator Todd Wilhelm: Matt Queen told me “I have received some inside information from an individual who wishes to remain anonymous.” I am a bit surprised that Matt Queen would share information with you Todd Wilhelm: In my opinion much tithing is actually social climbing or “in-group” seeking Nothing to do with wisdom or responsibility or moral clarity or supporting integrity in leadership acquire access to Dear Leader’s inner circle toxic soup group Todd Wilhelm: “The irony is that it is unbelievably easy to spot our toxic leaders.” Tithers seem to revel and thrive in their lack of interest I thought it would be obvious that my reference to Matt Queen was tongue in cheek Todd Wilhelm: I thought it would be obvious that my reference to Matt Queen was tongue in cheek Trying to destroy a man’s career and a church’s reputation and all you can say is that you made a comment tongue and cheek Oh be careful little blogger what you blog oh be careful little blogger what you blog because the Father up above is looking down with (righteous The SBC Blogger: the Father up above is looking down with (righteous The Father is keeping a close eye on bloggers while giving a green light to the endless parade of grifters and rapists acting in his name in his church I have a bridge in Brooklyn that would look lovely next to your (upper middle class!) bird bath The SBC Blogger Queen and Woolman ruined their careers all on their own Sandy Amy I do not know TBB but I hope to be like him when I grow up He represents all Baptists since he is THE Baptist Blogger Hit me up if you are interested in my substack Weekly insights to the dark underbelly trying to destroy the SBC and its leaders The SBC Blogger: Come on Todd Trying to destroy a man’s career and a church’s reputation and all you can say is that you made a comment tongue and cheek There is no need for me to try to destroy Matt Queen’s career He did that all by himself when he decided to lie to federal agents Todd Wilhelm Talking about the pastor and church that are the focus of this hit piece just wanted to highlight your heavy handed accusations that have the potential to cause major damage “The Wartburg Watch – Dissecting Christian Trends” does that mean the trend is to call for people to step down when only one side of the story has been told (see previous WW hit piece by TW from November) The SBC Blogger: Oh be careful little blogger what you blog They need someone like you because things are not going well This is the final warning before you are subjected to TWW’s infamous slow moderation YOu are not banned but…ask Seneca how that works The SBC Blogger: Not talking about MQ Gotcha; so you aren’t sticking up for Matt Queen – the guy who lied about Heath Woolman telling Terri Stovall to make her report on a students sexual assault “go away,” you are sticking up for Heath Woolman who actually told Terri Stovall to make her report go away after the seminary had assisted the Burleson Police Department in arresting the student accused of sexual assault discussed a document she prepared regarding the incident with Heath Woolman Woolman instructed her to make the document “go away” during this conversation all employees had previously been made aware of the Department of Justice investigation in an all-employees meeting in August of 2022 upon receipt of a subpoena from the Department of Justice in November 2022 employees with relevant information had been made aware of the subpoena including the need to preserve and produce any responsive documents.” Source: Statement by David S. Dockery https://swbts.edu/news/statement-by-david-s-dockery/ I have seen a couple of situations where the convicted or soon-to-be-indicted politician spills the tea to the investigative reporter that has been following them for years So having a convicted felon talk to you after the fact actually seemed plausible Todd Wilhelm my dad was an SBC pastor before he took his life Someone blamed him for doing something he did not do and the impact was too great for him to overcome The SBC Blogger Amy Todd Wilhelm After what Amy shared and that is your response Amy: my dad was an SBC pastor before he took his life Amy: My church produces slick brochures This is the mistake that we baby boomers made in the church Due to an overwhelming amount of attention paid to those who “made it in business” or other publically highly regarded professions excellence came to be equated with “doing it like Wall Street does it.” Excellencece in a church should not be equated with “doing slick brochures because the upper middle class aourur church demands it.” It concerns me that upper middle class people demand “slick brochures.” Is this what happens at “upper middle class” churches these days could the money spent on those “slick brochues for the upper middle class expectation” be used for missions Have you notice a decline of “slick brochures” coming to your house in the mail Instead of applauding the ability to make brochures I might suggest that one reconsider what is demanded of the church by the “upper middle class.” My family would fit into that category and I can assure you that i don’t want one more piece of paper being toosed in my direction and Todd is interfering with your narrative Since you are a “blogger,” you should know this It takes alot of effort to know if the story is true Todd just responded and asked a question and I will add to that Splash some cold water on your face and maintain.This is an opinion type of blog.Say you disagree and move along You are not helping your POV by your comments I would be interested in maybe telling your story The SBC Blogger let people respond to one comment at a time Amy: My church produces slick brochures but reading just this point tells me all I need to know about your church and those like it I pity the people who can’t see the issues Bridget Are people of lower socioeconomic status members there Is there outreach to ‘the least of these’ Are low income families living in trailer parks welcome there Do underprivileged children feel comfortable there Nancy2(aka Kevlar): Are people of lower socioeconomic status members there Are low income families living in trailer parks welcome there Do underprivileged children feel comfortable there I don’t know a single member of the church but surely there has to be some sincere Christians in attendance I don’t hold out much hope for the majority though I did call the church last week and asked to speak with Dr The secretary asked if I would like to speak with Jake Lynch After holding for a few minutes the secretary came back on the line and said Mr Lynch was also unavailable and asked if I would like to leave a message “Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary President David S who was installed as president of the Fort Worth said in a statement that both Woolman and Queen misrepresented the facts of the investigation to him “In a follow-up conversation concerning what was said to Stovall Woolman provided me assurance that he did not instruct her to make the document ‘go away.’ Queen acknowledged to me on more than one occasion that he did not hear Woolman instruct Stovall to make the document ‘go away,'” Dockery said “For nearly five months we operated within the tension of knowing that employees in whom we had confidence had differences of recollection regarding the January conversation Queen claimed that he now recalled hearing the directive related to the document and also provided additional information that led to the decision for him to resign as interim provost and to be placed on administrative leave.” Source: https://www.christianpost.com/news/pastor-charged-in-doj-investigation-of-sbc-says-hes-not-guilty.html Todd Wilhelm: With access to SBC data but if any of their members read this please know that I am cheering you on!” I’m not saying that none of them have a heart for Jesus Bridget Bridget: Don’t know why it tagged you dee: Excellence in a church should not be equated with “doing slick brochures because the upper middle class….church demands it.” It concerns me that upper middle class people demand “slick brochures.”… could the money [and time] spent on those “slick brochures for the upper middle class expectation” be used for missions I might suggest that one reconsider what is demanded of the church by the “upper middle class.”… That’s pretty much what I said out loud to my computer when I saw and read through the brochures Todd Wilhelm included in his post I also commented (out loud to my computer) about how manipulative the brochures were designed to be dee researcher Slick brochures as a symbol of Christian excellence dee: For example could the money spent on those “slick brochues for the upper middle class expectation” be used for missions dee: This is the mistake that we baby boomers made in the church Due to an overwhelming amount of attention paid to those who “made it in business” or other publically highly regarded professions excellence came to be equated with “doing it like Wall Street does it.” Which is also why the mail-order delivery warehouses covering square kilometers outside every major city are all blazoned “Amazon” instead of “Sears” A former Southern Baptist pastor and seminary professor won’t serve jail time after lying to federal investigators in the first and potentially only felony conviction to emerge from an abuse-related investigation into the nation’s largest Protestant denomination Kaplan sentenced Queen to six months of house arrest concluding the case out of federal court in the Southern District of New York The terms of the sentence were available in court records In the weeks prior to Wednesday’s sentencing hearing asked Kaplan for a year of probation and a $2,000 fine versus prosecutors’ request for probation and house arrest The charges carried a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison “The defendant insists that his conduct had no ill effect but that too is untrue,” prosecutors said in a Feb “The defendant’s repeated lies dragged out the Government’s investigation and distracted resources better spent elsewhere.” That question about where the DOJ has focused its investigation into the Nashville-based SBC and its affiliated agencies hasn’t yielded a satisfactory answer so far for abuse survivors and allies who hoped for denomination-wide accountability  There are no public indications federal authorities are pursuing additional charges against Southern Baptist leaders including another former Southwestern administrator named Heath Woolman for his involvement in the same incident that led to Queen’s conviction Woolman reportedly instructed Southwestern seminary dean Terri Stovall in a January 2023 meeting to destroy a document detailing a report Stovall received months prior that contained abuse allegations against a student a witness to Woolman’s directive to Stovall in what federal prosecutors later described as a conspiracy to cover-up abuse initially lied to FBI agents about what he heard Woolman say and fabricated contemporaneous notes to support the false narrative and former seminary police chief Kevin Collins after learning those three reportedly mishandled this abuse case and tried to cover-up that alleged wrongdoing "With the criminal justice process now complete regarding the charges against Matt Queen we are hopeful that the investigation will soon reach its conclusion Our prayers for Matt Queen and his family as well as all others involved in this process continue," Southwestern said in a statement Wednesday "Southwestern Seminary remains steadfast in its commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of all members of our community taking every possible measure to prevent sexual abuse and harassment.”  Queen transitioned from Southwestern, where he long was a well-known professor of evangelism, to become lead pastor at Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro, North Carolina, and Woolman went onto become pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist Church in St. Johns, Florida. After Queen pleaded guilty in October, he resigned from Friendly Avenue church in November Woolman continues to pastor Fruit Cove Baptist “He (Queen) has suffered substantially,” Schmidt which was accompanied by 59 other character references for Queen Schmidt said in statement his client "is thankful that he will not serve time in prison and will seek to use his time under home confinement to help others." Specific terms of the probation include requirements for Queen to participate in a mental health treatment program and to receive approval to open a new lines of credit if he is noncompliant with a court-ordered payment schedule "Queen's offense had nothing to do with interfering with the sex abuse allegations," Schmidt said in his statement Wednesday "Queen has been always be supportive of victims of abuse and urged victims to report the abuse to authorities Most recent SBC abuse-related news: How new administrative leadership for SBC abuse response is setting goals, rethinking past Both Queen and Woolman’s congregations publicly backed their pastors in the immediate aftermath of the public scandal about the former seminary administrators Queen went on paid leave following his indictment but a pastor at the church prayed in a May service for the “Friendly (Avenue Baptist) family as we walk through it alongside with him (Queen) in full support,” according to a video recording from the service Woolman’s church approved bylaw revisions that raised the bar for the church to fire its lead pastor The new Fruit Cove bylaws require a far more exhaustive process, including a 30-day study period to evaluate the lead pastor’s wrongdoing, 75% of deacons to vote to recommend the pastor’s ouster to members, and a full congregation vote to approve the ouster, according to an analysis of the church’s current bylaws versus its 2023 version The new bylaws also added a clause that if the pastor resigns “no further action regarding removal will be required unless the situation involves a confirmed allegation of: a moral failure; an act which amounts to a violation of law.” An SBC oversight group reviews reports against churches for not upholding the convention’s standards on abuse, though that group has long faced challenges in evaluating abuse-related complaints. An ongoing civil case in East Tennessee is expected to make that even harder Fruit Cove has continued growing with Woolman at the helm and is planning to expand by opening a new campus This story was updated to include an additional statement Liam Adams covers religion for The Tennessean Reach him at ladams@tennessean.com or on social media @liamsadams – The president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary issued a statement where he identified a St Johns County pastor as someone who told another employee to make a document “go away.” now lead pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist Church told a staff member to get rid of a document detailing sexual assault when he worked at that school Woolman instructed her to make the document “go away” during this conversation,” wrote David S READ | Full statement from the president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary That statement came as a response to an article by The Tennessean, a paper doing a story on this indictment of Matthew Queen. Queen was a professor and interim provost at the school He was charged with obstructing justice by falsifying records in an attempt to cover up an abuse report According to these documents, the U.S. Attorney’s Office began investigating allegations of sexual abuse at the Southern Baptist Convention and its affiliated entities in 2022. In November of that year, after the school received a subpoena, “Employee 1″ at the seminary also received a report about an allegation of a student at the school committing sexual abuse. “Employee 1″ immediately brought that allegation to the attention of campus police, but the documents stated the school never took further action. The document goes on to say in January of 2023, Employee 1 created a document describing the allegation of that sexual abuse. Then, during that same month, Employee 1 and Employee 2 met with Queen. During that meeting, Employee 2 told Employee 1 to make the document “go away” in front of Queen. Dockery identified Terri Stovall, dean of women, as “Employee 1,” with her permission and Woolman as the person who told her to make the document go away, which is Employee 2. After finding out Woolman worked at the church in Fruit Cove, News4JAX visited the office to see if they had any comment. Staff directed us to contact the pastor of administration by email. According to the statement by the president of the seminary, in April 2023, Woolman became a candidate for pastor. News4JAX is still waiting to hear back from Woolman or the church. Copyright 2024 by WJXT News4JAX - All rights reserved. Khalil Maycock joined the News4JAX team in November 2022 after reporting in Des Moines, IA. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Aysha Taufiq of Fruit Cove fiddled on her iPhone Tuesday afternoon while glancing out over the half-full parking lot of one of the community's characteristic strip malls She's lived there for several years and has seen dozens of retail stores and eateries appear but said she still encounters too many reasons to go across Julington Creek to Jacksonville to do her shopping "The shops they've chosen here aren't correct," she said I have to go all the way up there to do my main shopping Having something more locally would be wonderful." mostly clustered around the intersection of Racetrack Road and Florida 13 Many of them have appeared within the last five years "There used to be absolutely nothing here," said Jessica Reese who works at Fruit Cove's Sonic restaurant Growth has been phenomenal here since 1990 That represents a rate of growth of 386 percent since 1990 And that's a large part of the reason why Businessweek, working with population data and location analysis company Gadberry Group, has named Fruit Cove the fastest growing city in Florida Johns County line on Interstate 95 and Florida 13 and bordered on the south by Florida 210 and roughly on the east by Interstate 95 has been dodging several of the economic downturn's bullets The study found that employment opportunities increased in Fruit Cove in 2009 has grown by 6 percent since 2008 and by 102 percent since 2000 Its growth has sustained enough through the 1990s and the better part of the last decade to bring enough wealth to the area to support even the most specialized shops JoAnn Radcliffe's Wild Birds Unlimited in Fruit Cove sells high-end food feeding equipment and other merchandise for lovers of wild birds "There's a lot of people feeding birds," Radcliffe said "Then there's the number willing to pay the prices we charge for our products none of the shops or restaurants in the sprawling grocery store-anchored strip mall where her store is located have had to close due to the economic downturn says his school seems like it is the heart of the community Ask almost any parent of the 1,270 students who attend and they will agree Business Week cites the middle school - one of the state's best-performing - as a major reason in naming Fruit Cove the best and most affordable suburb in Florida The magazine chose a suburb in each state and Fruit Cove is Florida's winner McCormick didn't seem surprised his school was noted by the magazine More than half of Fruit Cove residents are married with children "Lots of times when people move to the area they tell me they've researched the school and wanted to come here," McCormick said "The parents are very involved and very supportive." Fruit Cove is a "neighborhood middle school," says McCormick The children live in one of the various housing developments just minutes away "Children ride their bikes and walk to the school," McCormick said Another asset for Fruit Cove residents is that many are about half an hour away from their jobs Kathy Vinski said this is partly why her family moved to Fruit Cove four years ago from New York City Her husband's job transferred him to Jacksonville They chose Fruit Cove as home because of the short commute and the schools The climate is good and it's a good quality of life for our children," she said Johns River) here and Jacksonville is close." This positive honor from Business Week comes on the heels of a dubious one it listed Fruit Cove as a town "that could be hit the hardest by the financial crisis" because many residents who commute to Jacksonville work in finance and real estate The article said the area was very vulnerable to the ongoing meltdown on Wall Street said the down economy has hurt some residents He said housing is cheap everywhere right now but you can get a lot for your money in Fruit Cove - yet another reason cited by Business Week why Fruit Cove is a desirable suburb Johns River off State Road 13 are still expensive he's been house hunting for missionaries new to the area and he found great deals that Fruit Cove "is a great place to live." "There's a low crime rate and people are out all hours of the night," he said "Parents fall over themselves to get their children involved here said he especially enjoys that Fruit Cove "has an old community feel to it even though it hasn't bee here that long." "You're not afraid to get to know your neighbors," he said "People moving here from urban areas really like that." SearchSWBTS president expresses ‘deep regret’ over former staffers implicated in federal investigationLog InSubscribeThe Christian Post To enjoy our website, you'll need to enable JavaScript in your web browser. Please click here to learn how You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser to improve your experience Dockery is officially installed as the tenth president of Southwestern Baptist Theological in Forth Worth | SWBTSSouthwestern Baptist Theological Seminary President David S Dockery expressed "deep regret" Wednesday over the actions of two former staffers now serving as pastors charged or implicated in the U.S Department of Justice's investigation of allegations that Southern Baptist Convention leaders intimidated whistleblowers and exonerated churches with credible claims of sexual abuse "This episode is a matter of deep regret to me," Dockery, who was installed as president of the Fort Worth, Texas-based seminary last August, said in a statement He had high praise for staffers like Terri Stovall Terry School of Educational Ministries and professor of educational ministries who acted with "integrity" concerning the investigation grateful that several employees in whom I placed great trust acted responsibly I commend the service and integrity of these employees We remain resolute to continue to cooperate fully with the Department of Justice in all aspects of this investigation." Last week, former Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary evangelism professor and interim provost Matthew Queen, 49, the lead pastor of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro, North Carolina, was charged with one count of falsification of records from his time at the seminary The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison The charge comes nearly two years after the DOJ and the Federal Bureau of Investigation launched an investigation into the SBC and its affiliate entities following the release of a Guidepost Solutions report finding that leaders failed to protect victims of abuse Terry School of Educational Ministries and professor of educational ministries at the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth | YouTube/Southwestern SeminaryHeath Woolman is lead pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist Church in St | YouTube/Fruit Cove Baptist ChurchFollowing Queen's indictment Friendly Avenue Baptist Church announced Sunday that he had been placed on administrative leave Queen has committed to resolve this matter responsibly and we support his full cooperation with the authorities Queen is on administrative leave from his pastoral responsibilities He will step away to devote his attention to his family and to assist authorities in their inquiry we will secure other speakers to fill the pulpit on Sundays the church will continue to monitor events closely." The charge against Queen stems from a November 2022 report of an alleged sexual abuse committed by a Texas Baptist College student, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary said in a statement on May 21 Seminary officials noted that they later helped facilitate the arrest of the student who went on to withdraw from the college Before the sexual abuse allegation in November the Justice Department issued a grand jury subpoena to the seminary in October 2022 which required the seminary to produce all documents in the seminary's possession related to allegations of sexual abuse against anyone employed by or associated with the seminary the DOJ noted that a seminary employee identified as Employee-1 received a report alleging that a current seminary student committed sexual abuse Dockery said he was unaware of the report until late January 2023 identified as 'Employee-1' in the indictment received a report that a student had committed a sexual assault against an individual unaffiliated with the seminary Stovall followed institutional procedure to care for victims of sexual abuse and immediately reported the allegation to the chief of Campus Police," Dockery said Tuesday "No one else on campus was informed of this matter and the chief of Campus Police Former Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary evangelism professor Matt Queen is currently pastor of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro | YouTube/ Friendly Avenue Baptist ChurchAccording to the DOJ the allegation was not reported to the U.S Stovall documented her response in January 2023 and the seminary's failed response Stovall met with Queen and another executive staff member of the seminary identified as Employee-2 Dockery confirmed in his statement that Employee-2 is the seminary's former chief of staff the lead pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist Church in St Woolman reportedly told Stovall to make the report of the alleged sexual abuse "go away" in Queen's presence but Queen told federal investigators more than once that he did not remember hearing Woolman say this until June 21 when he "testified under oath that he had in fact heard Employee-2 direct Employee-1 to make the document 'go away," authorities said Woolman instructed her to make the document 'go away' during this conversation," Dockery said including the need to preserve and produce any responsive documents," he added Dockery said both Woolman and Queen misrepresented the facts of the investigation to him "In a follow-up conversation concerning what was said to Stovall Woolman provided me assurance that he did not instruct her to make the document 'go away.' Queen acknowledged to me on more than one occasion that he did not hear Woolman instruct Stovall to make the document 'go away,'" Dockery said "For nearly five months we operated within the tension of knowing that employees in whom we had confidence had differences of recollection regarding the January conversation Queen claimed that he now recalled hearing the directive related to the document and also provided additional information that led to the decision for him to resign as interim provost and to be placed on administrative leave," Dockery explained Dockery said he worked with the seminary's lawyers to update the DOJ on the developments Prior to Queen recalling Woolman instructing Stovall to make her report "go away," Dockery said he recommended Queen for a pastoral position But he said if he knew then what he knows now he would not have been able to provide him with the same recommendation Woolman became a candidate for the pastoral position he now holds a brief affirmation of his candidacy to the church given his then role at the seminary given the fact that he had been a quality student in one of my doctoral seminars and given the information available to us at the time," Dockery said "Woolman resigned as chief of staff on May 5 If asked to provide the same recommendation today and based on information received subsequent to that time I would not be able to provide the same recommendation," he added It was unclear Wednesday if Woolman would continue as pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist Church Officials there did not immediately respond to calls for comment from The Christian Post Contact: leonardo.blair@christianpost.com Follow Leonardo Blair on Twitter: @leoblair Follow Leonardo Blair on Facebook: LeoBlairChristianPost Help keep The Christian Post free for everyone By making a recurring donation or a one-time donation of any amount you're helping to keep CP's articles free and accessible for everyone Hope you’ll give us another try and check out some other articles. 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Residents tell News4JAX the application to begin rezoning and building hasn’t been filed but they are preparing with a well-organized campaign even printing letters and sending them to St Johns County leaders in opposition of the plan the company wants to build age-restricted apartments and a townhome community Developers would need the county’s approval to rezone a portion of the land in order to build Thu Nguyen attended the Wednesday night meeting She said her extended family lives in the area Dawn Hutchins has been helping organize an effort against the proposal with the group “Save Fruit Cove” — taking steps to bring attention to the proposal and block its progress through the bureaucracy of local government that makes the areas around it compatible with that new zoning so it just starts from there and it keeps on going,” Hutchins said She said her mind was blown by how many people showed up for the meeting “I am so proud of our community for coming out and responding so quickly.” Magan Hartley says the proposed development would be next door to her home “We’ve invested everything we have into making it our forever home so to pull in tonight and to see all the people here that are ready to support and go to war for us to keep our spot what it is and not let this developer come in and just ruin something so special The organizers say the fight could be long and they encouraged attendees to keep showing up and making their voices heard to local leaders As of Wednesday, more than 4,000 people have signed a petition on change.org against the proposed development. A request for comment Wednesday from RISE was not returned by publication of this article. Copyright 2022 by WJXT News4JAX - All rights reserved. Ted Copeland does a little bit of everything at Fruit Cove Middle School he works with all the teachers and students I've worked at Nease (High School) and Cunningham Creek (Elementary School) and then I came here What are some examples of the things you do here A lot of times I get kids into their lockers when they get stuck and I take care of water fountains when they don't work and they're spilling over I check my e-mail to make sure I don't need to help set up for anything that's happening at the school that day or that evening I put cones out for the parent pick-up area in the morning I have lunch and then I clean the lunch room and the rooms next door to it that are also used during lunch And I respond to calls [on my radio] between that I also really like being around the teachers I don't miss any days because I want to be here Many schools close in the summer and all the custodians go to four schools We only have a couple days to get the school cleaned and ready for it to open in the summer so it's nice because we don't get burned out Here if I help a kid out with getting his locker open during his tenure as an administrator at a top Southern Baptist seminary instructed another seminary employee to make a document about an abuse report “go away," according to court records filed by federal prosecutors and unsealed last week Department of Justice investigation into aspects of the Southern Baptist Convention and how the SBC and its affiliated entities handled reports of abuse The records on the Florida pastor, who prosecutors didn't identify, are part of the case against North Carolina pastor Matt Queen also former administrator at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth who is accused of falsifying records in an attempt to cover up an abuse report FBI Assistant Director James Smith said Queen was part of a “conspiracy to destroy evidence related to the ongoing investigation of sexual misconduct.” who served as the seminary's chief of staff at the time currently the lead pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist Church in St according to two people familiar with the events outlined by federal prosecutors and an analysis of records from Woolman’s tenure at Southwestern Federal prosecutors didn’t respond to a request for comment about the status of any investigation into Woolman. Woolman did not respond to a request for comment. Woolman has not been charged as part of the federal investigation. Also, Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro, North Carolina, announced Sunday it placed Queen on leave for the duration of the federal inquiry But the case against Queen and potentially other former Southwestern staff seems to have a long road ahead Last week's news release said the investigation is ongoing and Queen indicated in a statement last week he will fight the charges in trial "This episode is a matter of deep regret to me. I am, however, grateful that several employees in whom I placed great trust acted responsibly, especially Terri Stovall. I commend the service and integrity of these employees," said Dockery in the statement "We remain resolute to continue to cooperate fully with the Department of Justice in all aspects of this investigation." Flores' alleged assault was "against an individual unaffiliated with the seminary," said Dockery in a statement Tuesday Dockery said in his statement the chief of campus police "took no further action in November." That chief of seminary police is no longer employed at Southwestern "For nearly five months we operated within the tension of knowing that employees in whom we had confidence had differences of recollection regarding the January conversation," said Dockery in his statement Both Queen and Woolman eventually left Southwestern to become pastors of the churches that they currently lead. Woolman’s candidacy for senior pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist received endorsements from Queen and Dockery, according to a Fruit Cove Baptist website archive Dockery said in his statement Tuesday about that endorsement: "If asked to provide the same recommendation today I would not be able to provide the same recommendation." In a May 14, 2023 address to the Fruit Cove congregation Woolman praised how thorough the church's hiring process was More: Former SBC seminary administrator faces charge of falsifying records in DOJ inquiry The estranged husband of Nicole Elise Bush was indicted on charges of first degree murder and armed burglary on Thursday Sean A. Bush, 42, was arrested two weeks ago three months after Nicole Bush was found shot but still alive in her home in a gated community The Fruit Cove woman later died An autopsy showed cause of death was severe blood loss from multiple injuries from gunshots After several search warrants and DNA testing Johns County detectives got an arrest warrant for Bush The indictment charges Bush with murdering his wife by "shooting her with a firearm stabbing her with a sharp instrument and/or beating her with an aluminum bat." and came while Bush was burglarizing her house Residents of a Fruit Cove neighborhood are celebrating a win against a proposed Daily’s gas station County commissioners voted 5-0 Tuesday to deny a request for a future land use amendment that would have changed the designation of the land from Residential B to Community Commercial The 7.7-acre property is located on either side of Otoe’s Place and State Road 13 at the entrance to Fruit Cove Estates It used to be a plant nursery until First Coast energy bought it hoping to build a 12-pump gas station with a 24-hour Daily’s convenience store and car wash on one side of the property and office buildings on the other side The property is currently zoned Community General to provide a buffer between residential and high-density commercial development But residents of the surrounding neighborhood were concerned that a gas station would generate traffic pollute their well water and disrupt their quiet neighborhood “People in our neighborhood will be breathing car exhaust and gas fumes anytime they are outside,” said resident Joann Leskanic I like to open my windows and have some fresh air A future land use amendment is needed to build the gas pumps but everything else is currently allowed under the existing zoning representatives for First Coast Energy explained that the alternative development could include a 75,000-square foot shopping center They argued that a shopping center would generate many more vehicle trips compared to a gas station But residents stated they would still prefer a shopping center over a gas station we looked at what commercial property could be behind us because we were concerned we were satisfied that that was a place to make our home — our forever home,” resident Marion Edwards said you wonder if you are ever going to be able to sell your property once you’re sitting next to a gas station.” Commissioner Jimmy Johns questioned why the applicant was insisting on creating a driveway on Otoe’s Place the only access point to the neighborhood and the route children take to get to their bus stops every morning “I can understand the office part because there’s only one access point the traffic generated on Otoe’s Place by that driveway is substantial,” he said adding that the vehicles would bring fuel contamination runoff into the neighborhood the Planning and Zoning Agency voted to deny recommendation to the board of county commissioners citing incompatibility with the surrounding residential neighborhood “It is obvious that the community — that the citizens that are most impacted by this — do not want this,” Commissioner Jeremiah Blocker said I do have concerns about the storage tanks I do have concerns about the water pollution.” the Commission voted in favor of its constituents “This comp plan amendment is totally incompatible with this neighborhood and residents who lived there for 20-25 years,” Commissioner Henry Dean said He would much rather be outside playing baseball But his teachers say his recent win of Fruit Cove Middle School's spelling bee is proof he is just being humble "He could not have done as well as he did without studying," said Fruit Cove sixth grade language arts teacher Traci Deasy who also organizes the school's spelling bee Michalski was one of 13 students at the school that competed in the spelling bee Deasy said the entire school was given a spelling pre-test and those who scored highest moved on to the competition Johns County School District's spelling bee Friday He said he has been given a list of words to study and he'll probably look it over but I don't exactly like it that much," Michalski said He's not the only stellar speller at Fruit Cove Middle School won a spelling bee in the seventh- and eighth-grade division held by the Knights of Columbus in St Stenzel will go on to the regional competition on Jan "My mom just heard about it and signed me up." Stenzel placed seventh in Fruit Cove's spelling bee and she said it was even tougher than the Knights of Columbus event "I'm excited about the regional (Knights of Columbus) spelling bee If I do well I can move on to state (championships)." Deasy said that this year Fruit Cove's spelling bee was tougher and the students "blew me away with their spelling skills." "They blew through the first list we had," Deasy said "We had to use our supplemental lists by round 8 was runner up for Fruit Cove's spelling bee she said she spent hours preparing for the competition She said she's not giving up and hopes to win next year How did your children go to three different high schools now 20) was zoned for Bartram Trail High School now 17) wanted to attend Nease for the journalism magnet program And then our zoning changed and my son (David now 15) was zoned for Creekside High School instead of Bartram When my son attended Fruit Cove Middle School I was the PTO [Parent Teacher Organization] president and now I'm the president at Creekside I was very involved with volunteering and doing things with the school band What are some of the specific projects you've done One of the things I'm most of proud is program we [the PTO] started there in 2006 and that keeps growing today We saw that the Girl Scouts had an orientation program for girls going into middle school It's a day-long program and we have boys come in and we teach them things like how to open the lock on their lockers That is the most anxiety-provoking thing for boys they have a swagger in their step because they can open their lockers and they feel confident about middle school It's been very exciting to work at Creekside because it's a new school and it's their first graduating class We started all the things there that make high school fun When I first moved here I had left my job and I was used to working long hours But I found it to be incredibly satisfying My feel like my life is better and my family is enriched because I became a volunteer You discover that the true reward is the time you give I don't think I would enjoy it as much if I was paid Cathy Klein has juggled having three kids in three different schools and was highly involved in each institution After leaving her job as a hospital administrator in Philadelphia five years ago she found out volunteering has brought her true joy A proposed fitness center off of Roberts Road is proving to be controversial among Fruit Cove residents The owners of the 5.1-acre site are requesting to rezone the land from Open Rural to Planned Unit Development so they can build a commercial center called Fruit Cove Village They plan to open a 5,000-square-foot private membership fitness center complete with a walking path patio for relaxing and a “dog zone” for pet owners to bring their dogs during their workout Part two of the development — to be built later — would include office space and other commercial uses like shops and cafes the owners are asking for a waiver to allow them to sell alcohol on the premises which is currently not allowed because its within 1,000 feet of Cunningham Creek Elementary School The rezoning would allow for restaurants that serve beer and wine to be built but not a stand-alone bar The surrounding area is made up of several single-family neighborhoods which also has neighborhood commercial such as office and retail buildings Wetlands and open space separate the two developments Neighboring homeowners are split on the project some wrote that they are happy to support a locally owned business and that it’s a refreshing change from the rapid commercialization of the rest of the county “This concept reminds me of how neighborhoods used to be Small mom and pop businesses where the owners lived nearby their kids went to the local schools and everyone got to be familiar with each other,” resident Cindy Mellone wrote to commissioners get a cup of coffee or maybe an ice cream cone.” Others commented on the small scale of the project its minimal impact to traffic and the architectural aesthetic of the fitness center “What is being proposed is not an eyesore of a big commercial strip mall rustic design which will accentuate the area and provide us a local gym option,” resident Todd Trulock wrote But some residents fear the rezoning would set a precedent for more commercial development in the area noise and traffic — especially with the school so close by “This will add more traffic on Roberts Road which is already difficult to navigate due to the many homes on Greenbrier [Road] Longleaf [Parkway] and [County Road] 210,” Cynthia Hartman wrote “We believe that this community needs to stay Residential There are plenty of Commercial Properties in the surrounding area to place the business the property owners — Jim and Victoria Bauer — say they are dedicated to maintaining the rural feel of their neighborhood They plan to add additional setbacks and landscaping and they’re facing the commercial buildings inward and away from Roberts Road At a September meeting of the Planning and Zoning Agency the board voted 3-1 to recommend approval of the project as some of the agency members were not present They noted how the audience seemed to be evenly split on the project “This is a scenario where people loved the idea but want them to do it somewhere else,” resident James NeSmith said it’s always someone’s back yard and there will always be someone who was there before the road was paved But I like the idea of a local place that doesn’t require me to jump into my car and ride to someone else’s 'backyard' to enjoy fitness.” The County Commission will vote on the project around 3 p.m An estimated 5,000 people showed up last Saturday to enjoy the annual Fruit Cove Baptist Church Car Show hot rods and specialty vehicles as well as a dragster which included a spring festival at the church located at 501 Florida 13 in Saint Johns also had an earth-shattering demonstration of Allen Racing’s Division 2 Top Alcohol dragster The crew crew primed and fired up the dragster’s 433-cubic-inch 3,500-horsepower-injected nitro V-8 engine they blipped the engine as the surrounding crowd jumped and backed up first place went to Jacksonville resident Mark Becker’s gray 1954 Packard convertible while second place was Arthur Hill’s 1935 Ford Tudor Third place went to Don Sasser’s 1939 Ford Woodie And Pastor’s Choice was Jeff Stalvey’s sweet blue 1964.5 Ford Mustang with an inline six-cylinder engine Catch a video slide show of some of the show then watch and hear the dragster fired up and run LOUD Additional coverage of the show can be seen at jacksonville.com/drive FRUIT COVE Johns County deputies arrested a man Wednesday afternoon who was accused of stealing a car in Jacksonville and crashing it in the Fruit Cove area Deputies said that when the Honda Accord crossed the Julington Creek Bridge into St a license plate reader alerted deputies and they were able to stop him almost immediately initially pulled over for the traffic stop then sped off at over 100 mph and ended up flipping the car in a wreck right in front of a home on Fruit Cove Road South deputies announced that they had found Wood near Natures Hammock Way driving with a suspended license and leaving the scene of an accident with property damage Wood ran off through neighborhoods headed toward Duval County UPDATE: The suspect in the stolen car incident from this morning in the area of Fruit Cove Road North, has been apprehended. Deputies located the subject off of Natures Hammock Way. The suspect has been arrested on a host of charges. He is currently on his way to the SJC jail. pic.twitter.com/SdO3CpU9DF K-9 units and a helicopter assisted in the search for the man in the area along Fruit Cove Road South. One family that lives at the home where the vehicle crashed said they thought the loud noise outside was something falling in their yard but now they think the suspect tried to get through their fence as he ran off. Several neighbors said the chaos caught them off guard when they woke up Wednesday. “I was completely shocked. I mean, not with what’s going on in today’s society, but in this area, in Julington Creek, Fruit Cove Road, we’re all just really nice southern people -- and you just don’t hear stuff that big happening," Andrea Grimes said.   A woman interviewed by investigators said Wood had been driving the Accord for two weeks and got it from two women in Jacksonville. She told deputies Wood took off around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday after a fight with her. Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved. UPDATE: The suspect in the stolen car incident from this morning in the area of Fruit Cove Road North, has been apprehended. Deputies located the subject off of Natures Hammock Way. The suspect has been arrested on a host of charges. He is currently on his way to the SJC jail. pic.twitter.com/SdO3CpU9DF Become a Founding Member Today at Basecamp's Second Florida Location and Receive a 30 Percent Discount JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Jan. 3, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Basecamp Fitness a hyper-condensed high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workout that packs 55 minutes of supercharged exercise into only 35 has launched a month-long presale special for its second Florida studio opening in Fruit Cove at 465 State Rd 13 founding members will receive 30 percent off their membership giving them access to coach-led group sessions that feature heart-pumping cardio and strength training that keeps muscles guessing the Phase 1 discounts of the presale are guaranteed for the lifetime of the membership and will not be made available again the greater Jacksonville area has been a priority market for Basecamp since the launch of its franchise development program in 2020 the city has experienced exponential growth in recent years with many millennial residents establishing roots Basecamp's concept fits with the evolving demographics of the market and provides a differentiated HIIT workout for residents looking to transform in a quicker amount of time "We are excited to introduce Basecamp's unique HIIT concept to Greater Jacksonville with our newest studio in Fruit Cove The opening continues our brand's expansion across the state of Florida and we look forward to bringing additional studios to the area," said Ben Camper "Like all of our locations across the country we are confident that the Basecamp workout will resonate with the Fruit Cove community." Throughout the duration of the 35-minute session participants rotate every 60 seconds between an air bike and strength training exercises with an optional 10-minute cool-down available at the end of each workout with each session developed by a national team and strength exercises featuring an ever-changing mashup of TRX define and add mass to members' muscle tissue To help motivate members to reach their fitness journey goals Basecamp's Fruit Cove staff will celebrate individual providing shout outs and swag for milestones accomplished Members will also be encouraged to track their progress through Basecamp's mobile app allowing them to monitor their results and health data members can use the app to schedule classes and stay connected with the Basecamp community in real time "With each workout being completed in 35 minutes Basecamp is an intensity training experience unlike any other The workout drives our members to crush their fitness goals by taking them through fast and effective sessions that can easily fit into their busy schedules," said Austin Wright "Basecamp naturally creates a welcoming environment by uniting those who work hard We can't wait to provide Fruit Cove residents the opportunity to experience it themselves Our presale for the studio is now available and we look forward to opening our doors later this year." Contact:Nate RubinsteinFish Consulting954-893-9150[email protected] Do not sell or share my personal information: This website is unavailable in your location It appears you are attempting to access this website from a country outside of the United States therefore access cannot be granted at this time ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – The constant rise in violence at a few St. Johns County schools has some parents on edge and concerned about their children’s safety. Those concerns are fueled by the recent threats and fights at Bartram Trail High School, Creekside High School, Fruit Cove Middle School and Switzerland Point Middle School. At April’s St. Johns County School Board meeting, one mother spoke about her daughter being attacked at Fruit Cove Middle School. The mother said her 14-year-old daughter was “violently assaulted” in an unprovoked incident by an eighth-grade boy who was over 6 feet tall and weighed over 200 pounds. “I’m extremely worried, of course,” Anthony Kimba said. “Worried because my daughter is in the eighth grade. Somethings have been happening and it’s tough.” Priscilla Centeno said although her children haven’t experienced any issues, she said she’s heard about a lot of the chaos, calling it “really sad.” These concerns at Fruit Cove Middle became public around the same time as concerns were raised at Switzerland Point Middle School following a student being violently attacked in a video that circulated online. There were also two recent and similar threats made at two high schools in the area. One was at Bartram Trail High School where a threat was written on a bathroom wall on April 21st. Then another was written on a bathroom wall at Creekside High School on April 28th. In that case, a student was arrested. St. Johns County Sheriff Robert Hardwick put out the following statement to the community: The St. Johns County School District also put out a statement with respect to the situation at the two middle schools: “Student Services ran the report for the coding of Fight which is FIT. Fruit Cove has had 10 this year and Switzerland Point has had 0. Fruit Cove administration has addressed every fight on school campus and applied the appropriate consequences in accordance with our Student Code of Conduct.” Parents are planning to attend the May 9 school board meeting to express their concerns. Copyright 2023 by WJXT News4JAX - All rights reserved. Scott is a multi-Emmy Award Winning Anchor and Reporter, who also hosts the “Going Ringside With The Local Station” Podcast. Scott has been a journalist for 25 years, covering stories including six presidential elections, multiple space shuttle launches and dozens of high-profile murder trials. a seventh-grader at Fruit Cove Middle School He represented North Florida in Washington at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in late May "He has always had a passion for spelling and vocabulary repartee (conversation in which clever statements and replies are made quickly) and wordplay." spelling the word "reprieve." You might think that is an easy word to spell but other words included "camphor," "apartheid," "narcissistic" and "tchotchke." He advanced - and on Feb he won - the 72nd annual Florida Times-Union Regional Spelling Bee by spelling "crescendo," which propelled him onto the national competition in Washington This was Vogoti's first trip to the Scripps National Spelling Bee He studied word lists provided by Scripps and studied words of different roots His motivation lies in a passion for knowledge and learning There were 285 spellers competing for the title of 2016 Scripps National Spelling Bee Champion the community and all of North Florida are behind you," she said think the words through and do your best!" Vogoti made it to the finals with 44 remaining competitors he placed in the top 10 national spellers to get knocked out in eighth place This was his first time at the National Spelling Bee He is quite an extraordinary young man," Fontaine said "It was very exciting to have a local student participate in the National Spelling Bee."